Saturday 19 July 2014

Japanese Hybrid

The trouble with writing a modelling blog is that, even if you're working on something almost every day, there really isn't much to report until a build reaches a significant stage, or it's finished. But this one's done, now: Dragon's 1/72 Ke-Nu. Like the real tank, Dragon's model is a hybrid of two of their Japanese armour kits, so there are lots of parts which don't get used. Everything went together really nicely. The DS tracks were great to work with and replicating the sag was very straightforward.

It was enjoyable to do an armour piece for a change, and it was equally nice to have the build published in the July issue of Airfix Model World. The magazine has quite specific writing criteria that took some getting used to, but they're a joy to work with – very professional, plus they actually pay in a timely manner. (Since I'm still waiting for several payments for articles published in SAMI, the earliest dating back to the September 2013 issue, I'm finding little motivation to write for them any more)






4 comments:

  1. Excellent work the model looks very well detailed and in turn your build is wonderful. Congrates on getting published, it must be a buzz to see your work in a magazine and to be paid even better...

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    1. Thanks for your comment Shayne, I'm glad you like it. The magazines pay a flat per-page amount which is not a lot considering the number of hours that go into a model, but it keeps me in paint/plastic.

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  2. Lovely model! I built one of those 1/72 Dragon Japanese tanks a while ago and really enjoyed it. Doesn't look like yours though. : )

    On a side note I was flipping through some old SAMIs looking for something and remembered how much I enjoyed your Circuits and Bumps series. I used to buy the magazine mostly for those articles. Sorry to hear it hasn't ended up well with them.

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    1. Thanks Fugaku. Yes, I'm really disappointed about the SAMI thing; I always enjoyed working with Gary Hatcher (the editor), one of the most affable and humorous guys you could know. Unfortunately, their accounts department aren't so amenable...

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