I put the HK B-25 back in its box tonight. The Hasegawa P-40, too.
I know, I know. What the hell?
The P-40 is pretty straightforward. I started it up expecting a resin conversion to a very good kit. Instead I encountered a warped fuselage, terrible wingroot gaps, and so on. And I just don’t have the fire to take that on right now.
The B-25 is more complicated.
First…summer has truly arrived here in Austin. And with it hot and gross nights in the garage where I’m literally sweating as I sit at the bench. These past few weeks, the bugs have been just awful, too. Not only the usual moths, but spiders. Big ass ones popping out from under cabinets, little ones building webs in the bomb bay, and over sprue trees awaiting painting. And then there are the crickets. A plague of the damned hoppers. Tonight alone I’ve killed nearly thirty of the bastards. And dealing out insect holocaust is hella distracting, which doesn’t jive well with a kit as complex as the HK B-25.
Second, there’s the mental thing. The past two months have played absolute havoc on my mental state. Landing a new job, leaving an old one, all that goes along with that transition…I’ve had a ton of stuff on my mind. Last summer’s bout with unemployment pushed my mental buttons, too, but I was able to channel into the Spitfire VIII. This time around, no go. Honestly, for the past few weeks I feel like I’ve just bee spinning wheels.
Third, there’s the aftermarket thing. I desperately want resin wheels. And Eduard’s mask set. At a minimum. I also want better markings – right now nobody offers stencils for the B-25, which is absolutely retarded considering the scale of the kit. Perhaps giving it a few months off until the cooler weather will allow the aftermarket players to make some headway.
So what’s going on the bench next?
I have no idea…
Doogs Models 
Life can get in the way sometimes. I don’t get much time at my kits, and when I do, it’s like ” Where do I pick up from?”
I enjoy watching your work Doogs – give those bugs hell!!
I suggest Nolan and Lola on the bench. Enjoy the summer. It’s too darn hot to work in the garage.
I read a story on yahoo about hte crickets and how bad they arein austin right now. Crazy. Sound like a biblical plague.
I do find that I need a break for a week or two from modelling. I get too wrapped up in a project and it starts to not be fun, so usually a little time away helps.
Agree that crickets can bee a pain in the @55, but keep this in mind: They are predators whose prey includes cockroaches. Once they get all the roaches they generally leave of their own accord. My own experience bears this out: when I moved into my town house in 1999, there were a few roaches and a few crickets. The the roaches vanished (with no action on my part), and the crickets followed soon thereafter. Since 1999 I have seen exactly two (2) crickets venture into my home.
Cobwebbs in the bomb bays is enough to discourage anyone. Step back, take a breath. If it’s not fun anymore, take a break.
Hang in there Matt. Focus on new job, family etc. Your bench and kits will still be there. When the weather cools down I will look forward to see your build reports.
My A6M2 conversion is hitting me hard. The PE is mind numbing, Further, it ruffles my feathers when I spend a lot on time on a PE component only to have it completely hidden when I put pieces together. I am learning to select only PE items which will be seen.
After this build I am going to do something fun and easy.