Southern Expo 2000 - Hornchurch UK
The following shots were taken at the above show earlier this year, some are in the competition some were on display in the hall....
Lockheed F104
I believe this was made from the Hasegawa kit . The display was for the sale of the new Alclad II spray metal finish. Made by Edgar Brooks to show the various tones that can be achieved with the product.
Harrier GR3
This is the Revell kit with a lot of modification especially in and around the cockpit area. Scratch built laser nose. All panel lines were re-scribed and the marking are a mix of kit and some found in the spares box. I do not know the name of the modeller, but I know he comes from the Barnet club in North London UK.
Revell Tornado IDS in RAF gulf war markings
This is the Revell Tornado IDS in RAF gulf war markings, from memory I recall that this was almost straight from the box. It represents a very early war machine possibly before hostilities broke out as it carries the small drop tanks and is very clean with only very restrained weathering. The model carries the non kit issue ALARM missiles.
MiG 21
Revell MiG 21 with Syrian markings probably from a Microscale sheet. This model was well finished and presented with some fairly subtle fading of the paint work to help with the overall impression of sun bleached paint. This was on one of the club displays and not in the competitions.
F-5E Tiger
Hasegawas F-5E Tiger. Its nice to see one of these kits actually built and to the standard this was. Once again this was on one of the many club stands. The realistic metallic finish was topped off with the application of the kit decals and an eye pleasing presentation. Interesting to note the F5E kit has been re-released by Revell as the Swiss version and then re-released by Hasegawa as a Swiss version.
F4J UK
Tamiya F4J made as one of 74 SQN RAF's aircraft. The modeller had used Paragon Ejector seats , reheat intake covers and various other aftermarket accessories to enhance the effect of the model. This was in the competition area and it won its class. The finish was excellent having been painted in Xtracolour paint. I am sure the modeller had used Yellow Hammer Decals and some home made items too. If I was to pick fault then I would have to say the modeller had forgotten to remove the strengthening plates that are too overdone on the kit. Never the less it deserved to do well in the competition.
Hawker Hunter
Britain's Hawker Hunter was a great success in its time and I can only hope that Revell's will do the same for them. This really is a great kit built here with very little in the way of additions. This was in the competitions area but didn't get any awards on this occasion. Some very subtle weathering gave the impression of a used machine.
Allouette II
Another of Revell's recent releases was entered into the competitions. This one took a second in its class . Some minor updating has been done to the standard kit to of the Allouette II to make a version used by the French Police These additions include the winch above the port cabin door and some aerials.
Tornado
GR1This is another of the Revell Tornado's but this time the later release of the GR1. Built by Bill Clark and not in the competitions this model will appear in a future issue of Scale Aviation Modeller Magazine as an in depth article. Almost everything that could be added was. This included Paragon Ejector seats, Ladder and remove before flight tags. Bill had done a superb weathering job that was probably the best that I have ever seen on a model of the RAF in the Gulf War. Bill told me that this model was made over a period of almost a year and he thoroughly enjoyed the experience, so much so that he is now almost converted to 1/32 scale exclusively from his old 1/48 scale.
F104S
This I believe is the Hasegawa F104 that had been converted to the S (Italian) version. The modeller has used the Cutting edge decals that I reviewed recently (Look in the reviews section). This little beauty was on one of the club displays and I am afraid I do not have any other details.
Heinkel HE219 UHU
This was a heavily modified I.D. Models Vac Form that was in the competition area. This particular Heinkel HE219 UHU was given a full cockpit and various panels were opened up for all to see. Unfortunately I have no other detail of this model so enjoy the photo's.
Revell AH-64 Apache
The modeller had gone to town with this Revell AH-64 Apache . The model represents the only combat loss victim of this formidable chopper during the Gulf War. She is seen here in a diorama depicting her as she was found by the US and UK special forces sent to find her crew. The scene has several figures and two vehicles set around the crashed helicopter. As can be seen from the picture the modeller has ripped open the rear end and exposed all of the working parts to great effect. If memory serves me correctly this model won the Aircraft Diorama Class at Southern Expo and at last years IPMS Nationals.
