AT LAST - F-35 LIGHTNING II SCALE MODEL APPROACHING

SMN REPORT:

Newcomer kit-maker Kitty Hawk Models has already received praise for its excellent inaugural model, the 1:48 scale Lockheed F-94C Starfire. And now here’s a really badly needed subject to the same scale, the Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II.

Expensive bird

The real thing, known as the JSF (Joint Strike Fighter) has had a chequered development, with massive cost overruns on the way (nothing new there, then) but it’s starting to get past those development problems now, with the STOVL (Short Takeoff, Vertical Land) ‘B’ version the subject of this kit by Kitty Hawk.

Picture story

We’ll let the pix tell the story of this Kitty Hawk model - suffice to say that we’ll be first on the block to fly this kit into the assembly zone at SMN Towers.

Testing in the tunnel

Here’s a real-world model in the form of a scale F-35 built for wind tunnel research. In the pic below, engineer Tim Wright examines an F-35 LIghtning II Joint Strike Fighter model in the Arnold Engineering Development Center's 16-foot transonic wind tunnel at Arnold Air Force Base, Tennessee. The information from testing will go into a database to refine and validate the aircraft designs for flight testing.

Approaching kit

So we’re just waiting now for the Kitty Hawk release - it's due soon. Here’s a lineup of development pix released by manufacturer Lockheed Martin - you'll note that there's plenty of opportunity to OD in the detail-up and weathering departments!

Wind tunnel pic courtesy US Air Force/David Housch.

Other pix courtesy Kitty Hawk Models and USAF, USMC, USN.

FROM POLITE ROBO-DOG TO SNARLING KILLER-CANINE - DOCTOR WHO K-9 UPGRADE

SMALLSPACE COUNTDOWN:

The smallspace “model show for all things space, science fiction and fantasy” will be held this Sunday, July 1, and among the sci-fi stars on display will be the original K-9 robot dog from Doctor Who.

Old and new robots

The robotic dog stars at smallspace courtesy Mat Irvine (above), who has also co-written with Mike Tucker the seminal book BBC VFX. K-9 at smallspace is the original dog, but a newer one was created for an Australian TV series. Here are a couple of pix from the TV series, and note how advanced our canine mechanoid now looks.

Detail-up model

There are plenty of K-9 collectibles around, but injection kits are hard to come by, that’s for sure, so for model-makers the best bet is to start with a ready-built, then use it as the basis for a superdetailed display model. Kit-bashing from the ground up is another possibility, and if you go this route, then something entirely new might be an interesting route to take.

Deadly dog

The Sydney-based visual effects designer Nick Kaloterakis could provide inspiration, as his website features an excellent concept for a 21st century robodog, and very nasty it looks, too. It’s not just an autonomous mechanoid, but has been seriously weaponized, to become an attack dog, rather than the polite and cerebral K-9. 

Movie worker

Nick Kaloterakis has worked on movie blockbusters such as Transformers, so his robodog slots neatly into that gritty and modish genre. Nick’s images here are intended as ideas-generators, rather than examples of anything you can go out and buy, more’s the pity - but we can hope, and meantime it’s a project for kit-bashers to think about.

Visit the hugely talented Nick Kaloterakis at his Kollected website here.

Look at a radio-control K-9 here.

Other Doctor Who collectibles here.

Check out the smallspace show here.

Look inside Mat and Mike's BBC VFX here.

Mike Tucker (left) and Mat Irvine with BBC VFX book and Dalek

ROBOT PLANE RETURNS FROM ORBIT - AND A 1:48 SCALE VERSION LANDS ON YOUR WORKTOP

DAVID JEFFERIS REPORTS:

The X-37B mini-Space Shuttle made a landing recently, after a record-breaking orbital flight lasting nearly 15 months. Its missions are US Air Force secrets, but the appearance is less so - and with this latest 1:48 scale kit, you can add a state-of-the-art robotic spacecraft to your display shelf.

About the kit

This Fantastic Plastic X-37B kit is a larger and more detailed version of the earlier 1:72 X-37B sold in FP’s Virtual Museum Store. In addition to precise exterior detailing, FP’s new 1:48 kit also includes a cargo bay and landing gear. It’s a resin kit, so is more suitable for experienced modelmakers. Having said that, with just 31 components it shouldn’t be too difficult to assemble - and perhaps makes an ideal choice for a first resin build.

Brief Stats

* Scale: 1:48

* Material: Resin

* Number of Pieces: 31

* Pattern and casting by BLAP! Models

* Decals by JBOT

About the spacecraft

The X-37B orbital robotic spaceplane was designed to be launched vertically by an Atlas V booster and then land horizontally on a runway, like a conventional aircraft, or indeed like the retired museum-piece Space Shuttles. The X-37B is built by Boeing and is essentially a 120 percent upsized version of the earlier X-40 atmospheric test vehicle. 

Fast track space project

The X-37B project was started by Boeing in 1999, then turned over to the US Air Force in 2004. The spaceplane made an extended maiden orbital flight in April 2010, returning successfully to Earth later that year, in December. To date, the purpose of the X-37B's missions have remained classified, though most observers reckon that checking out the spacecraft systems comes high on the list, as well as likely testing of hi-res cameras, reportedly capable of discerning newspaper headlines at ground level.

More on the first X-37B flight at SMN here.

Visit Fantastic Plastic here.

Plenty of space model kits here.

And hordes of sci-fi kits here.

WHAT IS THE SMALLEST-EVER MODEL KIT?

MAT IRVINE MINI-WEEKENDER:

Here’s a pub quiz-style question for you: “What is the smallest-ever model kit?” And the answer is: “Probably the one featured here!” It’s a tiny two-piece model of a Nike Hercules surface-to-air missile, apparently made by Revell - except that it wasn’t...

My Merry playsets

The Nike Hercules was actually made for a playset, a type of toy popular in the 1950s and 1960s especially, and mostly an American phenomenon, though there were quite a few British examples. The tiny Nike Hercules was made as part of a ‘My Merry Hobby Shop’ playset made by Merry (top right above), and scale-wise was intended to look like a ‘full-size’ kit on the playset shelves. It’s a more-than-somewhat simplified kit with just two parts, and instructions and decals are not included, though the box-art does indicate red stripes and ‘US Army’ markings! 

Size and scale

Size-wise, the Nike Hercules box measures 45 mm (1.8 in) high by 20 mm (0.8 in) wide. The assembled (I use the term loosely) missile stands all of 57 mm (2.25 in) high. Considering the scale (which works out to approximately 1:250), the model is not a bad representation of a Nike Hercules, although the first stage should have four fins, not three. 

Note also the star-and-bars etched in the second-stage fins. Interestingly, whereas you might expect the model to be produced in a soft plastic, such as vinyl or polyurethane, it appears to be moulded in standard polystyrene. 

Children’s publishing link

The back of the box features a mini-advert for a range of Revell Dr Seuss 'The Cat in the Hat' animal kits, featuring a snap-together Dr Seuss Zoo.

SMN note - Here's some interesting information from two readers on this subject - 

Hellblazer:

Revell did produce some Dr Seuss Zoo kits in 1959.

Andy Yanchus:

The Cat was a glue together kit, and it was updated to include Thing 1 and Thing 2. Revell also produced glue kits of Horton the Elephant and the Birthday Bird. The Zoo animal kits were molded in polyethylene and were snap together. There were about six different kits. The parts were interchangable, so even more strange creatures could be made! 

Jet model

Note that the Nike Hercules was one of two ‘Revell kits’ supplied with this play-set , the other being an equally-simplified interpretation of an F-100 Super Sabre combat jet, with a similar number of parts. 

Tracking down a playset

Playsets in general are now worth big money, and if you can find them complete, many run into three figures on auction sites. There were several ‘My Merry’ playsets, including a Hobby Shop, Drug Store, and Service Station, these ones shown courtesy Dean Milano. However, I came across the Nike Hercules by itself, rather than as part of a playset - sometime in the past, it had become an orphan, which I found in the Auntie Em’s Miniatures corner store (below), in Glendale, Arizona.

The real thing

To finish off, here’s the real Revell kit, the classic 1:40 scale Nike Hercules. It’s a model that dates back to 1958, is reissued from time to time, and is easily available on various auction sites. I’ve written about this and other missiles in Scale Model News, so follow the link below to catch up on this interesting kit from the early days of plastic kits.

Nike SMN missile articles here.

Visit Dean Milano’s excellent website here, described as: “a cross between the Smithsonian Institute and Pee Wee’s Playhouse...”

Auntie Em’s Miniatures website here.

HLJ ‘PLASMO’ SALE - BARGAINS IN JAPANESE KITWARE

DAVID JEFFERIS REPORTS:

Hobby Link Japan has some tasty sale bargains in the ‘plasmo’ (plastic model) line for Japanese hardware enthusiasts. Here are just a few of the dozens of offers, many at less than half-price.

Unusual kits available

Hobby Link Japan has a terrific website, and the company exports all over the world, and as HLJ hails from Japan, it’s a real specialist in tasty and unusual local models. These sale items are titled in HLJ-speak: ‘plasmos’, which is a neat contraction that we may borrow! There are dozens of kits on offer, so here are just a few tasters to think about.

   

Early RX-7 can be motorized

For the home market, the rotary-engine Mazda RX-7 was titled the Savannah. The svelte machine is modelled here by Aoshima to 1:20 scale, and can be motorized, though the required RE-260 motor is not supplied - however, gears, leads and electric contacts components are in the box. Likewise, the car can be wired up for lighting, though bulbs are not supplied. It comes with a green body and black interior. And as HLJ says of the box art: “F-14 Tomcat also not included!”

Impul - the Nissan Cedric racer

The Impul 630R was a successful tuned version of the boxy-look standard Nissan five-seater, a popular choice as a taxi in Japanese cities. The Aoshima model is to 1:24 scale, so will make a good buy for those who build in this standard model car scale. The Impul 630R has a detailed body supplied in black, with interior and chassis components in tan, grey, and black. Chrome wheels, black rubber tires, and decals are included, as is a reasonably detailed VG30 engine. You’ll have to display this item separately, or open up the body with a cutting tool, if you want to show it in situ. Actually, the engine would look extremely good if mounted on a workshop trolley, so that’s the best kit-bash bet. 

Big bus kit

Another Aoshima kit, but to a smaller 1:32 scale, this is still a good-size kit, and of an unusual subject, which would look excellent with big-scale aircraft or Scalextric slot racers - or, better still, next to the Airfix ‘Old Bill’ London bus from the early 20th Century. 

Loooong name

Its name is quite a mouthful though - in full, the title is: “Mitsubishi Fuso Aero Queen I JR Bus Kanto” (Phew!) and it assembles to make an impressive model, some 373 mm (14.6 in) from end to end. The kit features a pre-painted white and blue body, with steerable front wheels, opening doors, and a decent interior. 

Science-fiction racing car

We’ve rather lost count of Japanese anime productions, though Cyber Formula is a fast-paced series, based around a group of race drivers and their futuristic computerized cars. This 1:24 scale kit is the Garland SF-03G, piloted by Henri Claytor, and has crisply-moulded components that look good straight from the box, as they are pre-coloured. However, as ever with coloured components, you really do need to paint those parts if you want a throughly realistic look, let alone a dirtied-up used appearance. For younger modelmakers or the time-poor though, it’s good to have the option - at the very least, you end up with a good-looking model. Two scale figures are also included.

Visit HLJ’s Plasmo Sale here.

Pix courtesy HLJ.

SMALLSPACE - THE NEW MODEL SHOW FROM THE HAMEX TEAM

The new model show from the HaMeX organisers is arriving soon, with liftoff planned for Stardate: July 1, 2012. The smallspace event will feature a galaxy of space, science-fiction and fantasy modelling.

Voice of K-9, the robot dog

A fantastic day is promised for UK model fans at the smallspace model spectacular, liftoff due in a couple of Sundays, on July 1, 2012. There’s heaps of stuff on offer, including a special guest from TV’s famed Doctor Who, none other than the 'voice of K-9' himself, John Leeson (above). And the actual special effects prop K-9, as used in both Doctor Who and The Sarah-Jane Adventures, will be alongside. You will be able to chat with John, have your picture taken, and maybe - for a modest fee - get a signed photograph.

BBC VFX duo

BBC Visual Effects Designer, Mike Tucker (above) will also be attending smallspace. Mike is seen here with the Big Ben clock tower model he designed and filmed for the first series of the new Doctor Who. Mike’s presence means that, along with the show's co-organiser, Mat Irvine, you have two BBC Visual FX designers, and both the authors of BBC VFX, a unique book that details the story of the BBC Visual Effects Department.

Prints on sale

Mike Tucker also writes his own novels, and novelizations of both Doctor Who and Merlin stories. And at smallspace, his own series of limited-edition prints will be on view, where they will be available to buy for the first time.

Props and models

Scores of FX props and models will be on show at smallspace, from Star Cops, The Hitch-Hikers Guide to the Galaxy and Red Dwarf, to Doctor Who, Blake's 7, Moonbase 3, and Space Vets.

Meet the Daleks

The Doctor Who theme starts before you walk in the doors, with a squad of real-life Daleks waiting outside. Steve Fletcher will be co-ordinating them in greeting (or exterminating) visitors arriving at smallspace - assuming the Daleks obey him, of course!

Thunderbirds Are Go!

There’ll be an amazing display of replicas from the Gerry Anderson series, expertly recreated by David Sisson. Look for Thunderbirds and Captain Scarlet, plus an actual Eagle spacecraft, as used in the live-action Anderson series, Space 1999.

No Strings Attached

See the equally amazing puppet recreations by Duncan Willis, including examples from Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet, and Stingray.

It’s all happening with smallspace at Hanslope village, Bucks, UK, on July 1, 2012, and of course there's much more besides. Full details here.

Here's Mat, surrounded by tasty stuff, and (below) heaps of kits for sale.

SMN's Mr J (above) will be there, as will space models by the planetful. Look out for the Gerry Anderson Starcruiser at the SMN Crew Dock, along with displays of original art, and signed prints.