Short Stirling Mk.I
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I'm obviously very interested in the heavy bombers of RAF, amongst several other topics. Ever since I built the massive Airfix kit of the Stirling many years ago, I've been intrigued by the sheer size of this bomber. Not forgetting the Mosquito, of course, which were both used as bombers later during the war (it carried same weight of bombs as the American B-17), and as a pathfinder plane along with the Lancaster, pin-pointing targets for the arriving four-engined "heavies". As you will know, the Mosquito also had a successful role as a fighter-plane, but that's another story.
The scene is RAF base Wyton, Cambridgeshire, autumn 1941. Stirling Mk.I, LS-F, “MacRobert's Reply” is being readied for another raid.
Italeri Stirling Mk.I 1/72. Airfix ground vehicles.
The massive Gouge flaps are partially scratch-built. The green and brown camouflage is Humbrol, and the black is "Worn black" from Lifecolor. The exhaust stains and general wear and tear have been made with MIG pigments.
Now, moving on to the Lancaster...
I've heard bad things about that kit, but I only see very good things about your model.
Don't listen to such rumours, Tom.
This kit is way better than the old Airfix kit, though I may have focused much on the flaps.
Thank you very much for your kind comments - very much appreciated.
Great work Keld! @keldkh
Thank you so very much, David. Very much appreciated.
Nicely done Keld @keldkh. I'll have to remember that Worn Black, I like it.
Thank you very much, Robert. Much appreciated.
Yes, the worn black is from a Lifecolor box of six black shades. They're all handy to have.
Excellent Stirling, Keld.
Thank you very much, John. Much appreciated.
Excellent result and awesome looks, Keld!
Congratulations!
Thank you so much, Spiros. Very much appreciated.
Superb result, Keld @keldkh
A beautiful dynamic scene making clear how big this aircraft really is.
Thank you so very much, John. Much appreciated.
Big & Beautiful. A great looking effort.
Thank you very much, John. Very much appreciated.
A very nice build, great paintjob!
Thank you very much, Felix. Much appreciated.
Nicely done Keld, that grass is well kept.
Thank you very much, Allan.
Yes, it looks like the green of a golf course, doesn't it? - it's just a piece of green cardboard, but don't tell anyone 🙂
Impressive build.
Between the Stirling and Lancaster, though, they both look to me like they got hit with the ugly stick. No reflection on your build.
Thank you very much, Steve.
I agree - some British aircraft are so ugly that they appear charming. I can't help loving them, and they did a great job.
Very nice! I Remember building the Airfix kit as a kid (1970's). I think it came with a bomb trailer and tractor.
Thank you very much, Ross.
So did I, and I have been loving it ever since. And you're right, it came with bomb trailers and tractor.
Nice Sterling, Keld (@keldkh). I have heard that the Italeri kit is a handful, but you have certainly tamed it. Well done.
Thank you very much, George. Much appreciated.
I don't think it's that hard to build. Lots of detail, though, many are inside, which you can't see. And you have to scratch-build the flaps, if you want them out. Anyway, I think it's a nice kit, though it's not a quick build.
Well done, looks great!
Thank you very much, Chas.
I always enjoy seeing a Sterling built, you see a lot on Lancaster's, but not many of the Sterling which flew a great number of ,missions. Nicely done, and great diorama.
Thank you very much, Rob.
I agree with you, the Stirling has always been striking to look at for me.
Great work on this kit, not that easy a build.
Thank you very much, George.
No, not that easy - but not that hard either, I think. I have also a Mk III to build.
What a beauty. I have the...IV? to build as a glider tug (I am exe AAC so it connects there and was based just down the road during 1944).
My kit looks really nicely made. I am aware that people have had problems with the sequence but who doesn't plan first?
The large flaps don't surprise me. The Stirling was hamstrung by bureaucracy from the start.
The wingspan was kept short to accommodate the old hangars of the time. When they tried a scale model the thing wouldn't get airborne so they increased the angle of attack with the gangly undercarriage and no.doubt as big a set of flaps as they could. The Stirling stayed in production throughout though so...
Really nice job chap❤️😎
Thank you very much, Chris.
And thank you for the writing. Much appreciated.
Great looking build!
Thank you very much, Emberson.
Very nice build! The Stirling is one of the larger bombers I would love to build someday, though I got rid of all my larger aircraft knowing I wouldn't really have room to store/display them! I've always been intrigued by that behemoth!
Thank you very much, Greg.
I know the problem - my house is out of much more space. Too bad.