Tamiya A-10
I had this idea, building an aircraft with the landing gear transitioning from down to up, rolling around upstairs for a couple of years (about the time I started building this model). I wasn't sure how to go about how to display it so it sat in my garage for most of that time, meaning it was broken and fixed numerous times. For the most part this kit is straight out of the box, except for the customizing of the landing gear. I wish I had done a better job on the build though.
The one thing I like about modeling ...its like baseball, if you strike out or foul out there is always another inning and you have a chance to take another swing at the plate. So you go buy another model, learn from your experience from your first attempt at modeling the subject and build another kit and another, fowled by another swing at the modeling plate until you can hit one out of the modeling ball park. How's that for mixed metaphors.
Showing the landing gear going up is of interest and worth developing. Some folks use clear Plexiglas rods mounted in the engine nacelles or mounted in the center fuselage.
Thanks Stephen. I had thought of using the plexiglass rod but had never worked with that, soooo, I figured one less first would be good. I used an aluminum rod instead and the original plane was to polish it to a mirror finish... But, that seemed a little more difficult than I thought it would be with the plane attached. Oh we'll, it was still fun and I will continue on. Thanks again!
Another method you may wanna explore is one I've seen other modelers/photographers have some success with - the aircraft is placed upon a pane of glass and photographed from underneath toward the sky. After a bit of trial & error (getting the angle just right and no reflections), the results are very convincing. I haven't tried it myself [yet], but it's worth a shot.
Excellent idea Craig! Thanks!