NEWSFLASH August 2020

Hello Swamp Foxes, Welcome to the August 2020 Newsletter.

I hope everyone is keeping well and in good health, Hopefully still building, my bench is busy, if only I could just actually finish one, I will one day sit and add those little details that say this is done.

Another month has passed us by, it seems as they are coming and going quicker than ever, just glad I have this wonderful hobby to keep me... well somewhat sane, Nah, it is all in the mind :)

Now go build a model

From the Front Office…

Howdy, all! This month’s meeting is scheduled. The 4-1-1: Chapter Contact is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting. Topic: IPMS/Mid-Carolina August 2020 Meeting Time: Aug 19, 2020 06:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada) Join Zoom Meeting https://us04web.zoom.us/j/75943745724?pwd=V0hsbGlINGoreHBpdmhqRHRjSEY1QT09 Meeting ID: 759 4374 5724 Passcode: g4qFcQ Just a reminder—the meeting is set so all microphones are muted upon joining the meeting. Please leave them muted unless you are speaking. Also, in order to give everyone a chance to speak without being “stepped on”, please raise your hand and be recognized before you un-mute and speak. Remember, if you have something you want to show, take pictures and have them open on your desktop so you can share the screen with us. You can hold your item up to your webcam, but experience says the images will not be as good as a photo In other news: We just couldn’t get on the same page with the State Museum, which is why we cancelled our appearance at the Toy Soldier Show. A few folks who went said the museum was nearly empty. We upgraded to a Zoom Pro account, and we’re sharing the costs with the AMPS Chapter. It works out to about $8 a month each, which is more than affordable. Because of this, we can use Zoom for other meetings, as well, and we’re looking at possibly arranging some online demonstration meetings. Stay Tuned. I received our 2020 seal from IPMS/USA, so we’re official. Before too long, we’ll be re-Chartering again for 2021… That’s all I have. I hope to see everyone on the 19th! Cheers! Ralph SUPPORT THE LOCAL HOBBY STORES

SUPPORT THE LOCAL HOBBY STORES RAF Aerobatic Display Teams in UK – Pre Aerobatic flying was seen as a basic requirement for all military pilots, as it gave a pilot more confidence in his own flying abilities. When he progressed to be part of a team, he learned about trust in both his leader and the other team members. The Red Arrows were not the first RAF team. An RAF pageant was held at Hendon in 1920 with teams from front-line biplane squadrons. In 1925, No. 32 Squadron RAF flew an air display six nights a week entitled " Defended" at the British Empire Exhibition. Similar to the display they had done the previous year, when the aircraft were painted black, it consisted of a night-time air display over the Wembley Exhibition flying RAF Sopwith Snipes which were painted red for the display and fitted with white lights on the wings, tail, and fuselage. The display involved firing blank ammunition into the stadium crowds and dropping pyrotechnics from the aeroplanes to simulate shrapnel from guns on the ground. Explosions on the ground also produced the effect of bombs being dropped into the stadium by the aeroplanes. One of the pilots in the display was Flying Officer C. W. A. Scott, who later became famous for breaking three –Australia solo flight records and winning the MacRobertson Air Rac with co-pilot Tom Campbell Black in 1934 At the first RAF Pageant, held at Hendon in 1920, the old First World War aircraft were being seen as becoming 'old-hat', and they were gradually being overtaken by the modern, fast aircraft, that were flying in even closer formations than had been seen before. At the first pageant some of the best formation flying to be seen was the Sopwith Snipes of the , (CFS). These pageants continued until 1938, when, with the build up to the Second World War, the last displays were completed by biplanes.

The last RAF aerobatic teams to fly biplanes are with Hawker Fury, Gauntlet and Gladiator aircraft. In 1938 three Gladiator aircraft of No. 87 Squadron were the last aerobatic team in the RAF before World War II.

After the Second World War, jet powered aircraft began to be seen, when three De Havilland Vampires, led by Sqn Ldr M. Lyne, gave displays.

Later No. 54 squadron forms a team from six aircraft and later flew F 1 aircraft, led by Sqn Ldr RW Oxspring, and No. 72 Sqn flew seven Vampire aircraft. In 1950 the 54 Sqn's aircraft were the first jets in Britain to be fitted with a white Smoke System. No. 600 Sqn had a team of six Gloster Meteors and 64 Sqn had a team of five Meteors.

The Vampires were followed by the , and in 1950 the first formal naming of aerobatic teams in the began.

An instructor from the Central Flying School, Flight Lieutenant Caryl R Gordon, led a team of four Gloster Meteor T7 (The Meteorites) aircraft as the Central Flying School's official team during the 1952 and 1953 seasons. The Meteorites were the first RAF display team to be given a name; until that time display teams were known only by their squadron numbers. The Meteorites aircraft retained their standard bare metal (silver) colours; towards the end of the season they gained high visibility yellow anti-collision training markings. The Meteorites disbanded at the end of the 1953 season. In 1955 54 Sqn flew the Hunter F 1 and were named 'The Black Knights' in 1956. In 1956, 43 Sqn were 'The Fighting Cocks', flying Hunter F 1.

In 1957, the CFS had 'The Sparrows', flying, first of all, Hunting piston engined Provosts led by Fl Lt J. Kingsbury, before they converted onto the Jet Provost Trainer (T) Mark (Mk) 1 led by Fl Lt N. Griffin.

In 1955 No. 111 Squadron forms an unofficial team from four Meteor F8 aircraft. In 1956 they move on Hawker Hunter F6 and became the official RAF aerobatic team. In the same year the four aircraft are specially painted in black. They receive the name . Next year Black Arrows increase their number, first of all to seven aircraft and then to nine aircraft under the leadership of Sqn Ldr RL Topp. In 1958 the Black Arrows increased to sixteen aircraft, and, during the they loop a formation of 22 Hunter aircraft twice, to open their display, before the six outside aircraft break off the formation. This twenty-two aircraft loop remains a record up to the present day.

In 1959, CFS had 'The Redskins', flying two Jet Provost T Mk 1.

In 1961 No. 92 Sqn, the Blue Diamonds, (initially named 'The Falcons'), became the official aerobatic team of RAF. Under their leader, Sqn Ldr RWP Mercer they flew 16 blue-painted Hunter aircraft and during their display they split into two formations of 7 and 9 aircraft.

In 1962 the official aerobatic team of RAF became The Tigers from No. 74 Squadron. They were equipped with nine English Electric Lightning F. 1A aircraft and are the first team in the world to uses aircraft capable of reaching Mach 2 (twice as the speed of sound).

In 1963 the official aerobatic team of RAF were the Firebirds, of No. 56 Sqn. which also fly nine English Electric Lightning F. 1A aircraft but they are in a natural metal finish, with red spines, fins, wing and tail plane leading edges. In 1963, because of the escalating costs of these fighter aircraft, this is the last RAF team to use fighter aircraft.

In 1960, CFS had formed 'The Pelicans', flying, first of all, the Jet Provost T Mk 3 before they moved on to the more powerful Jet Provost T Mk 4. In 1962 from the Central Flying School based at Kemble Airbase is formed a aerobatic display team, flying four standard painted Jet Provost T Mk4, equipped with white smoke generators. The team is successor of the CFS team The Pelicans formed in 1960. At the next year the planes received bright red color scheme and increased to six. In this formation the Red Pelicans performed abroad in Belgium and France. In 1964 the team becomes an RAF official aerobatic team replacing the Firebirds and performing at the airshows in Belgium, France, Netherlands and Norway. At the end of 1964 season the Red Pelicans performed together with the . In 1965 after the creation of the Red Arrows, the team is reduced to four and the smoke system is removed. Red Pelicans were disbanded in 1973.

In 1960, No. 4 Flying Training School, (FTS), at RAF Valley, 'The Yellowjacks' began flying from five yellow-painted T Mk 1 under leader Fl Lt Lee Jones, who was ex-Black Arrows member. The Yellowjacks exists until 1965.

In 1967, CFS had 'The Skylarks' with the De Havilland Chipmunk T Mk10 from Little Rissington airbase. The aircraft are in standard training colours with "Skylark" badge at the tail and a green lightning flash added to the fuselage sides. The team's remarkable performances are at Silverstone Grand Prix and in Germany. The Skylarks aerobatic team was disbanded in 1971. The other Flying Training units also had their own Display Teams.

In 1965 the College of Air Warfare, based at RAF Manby, formed a Jet Provost team named The Magistrates. The team was renamed following the end of the 1967 season. From 1968 this team became The Macaws - from the first letters of the Unit, MAnby College of Air Warfare (also the Macaw is a kind of parrot). In 1969 the team receives a now color scheme in white, red and grey with parrot painted at the nose. The Macaws visited countries like Germany and France in 1973, but unfortunately this was the last year for the team.

No 2 FTS had 'The Vipers' (JP T Mk 4), 'The Blue Chips', (Chipmunk), and 'The Bulldogs', flying the Scottish Aviation Bulldog.

In 1968 from the Royal Air Force College at Cranwell is formed Cranwell Poachers, flying on four Jet Provost T.4, as in 1965 from this College is formed another Jet Provost team. In 1969 the team receives special color markings. In 1971 the Cranwell Poachers remove the Cranwell from the name and became just The Poachers. In same year they moved to Jet Provost T.5 aircraft. The Poachers existed until 1976 while they were disbanded as an economy measure. The Poachers was the last RAF Jet Provost aerobatic display team.

In 1963 No1 Flying Training School based in Linton-on-Ouse, Yorkshire formed another aerobatic team - the Linton Gin, flying Jet Provost T.4. The history of both teams from No1 FTS is very interlaced and incomplete, so it's hard to tell the exact history of The Blades and Linton Gin. Linton Gin team exist until 1969. The Blades aerobatic display team was formed in 1963 from No1 Flying Training School at Linton-on-Ouse, Yorkshire. The team flew four Jet Provost T.4 aircraft and T.5 from 1970, both painted in standard white-red colors. In 1973 the Blades change the name and became the Linton Blades and added a blue color painted on the top of the fuselage and the tail, but at the end of the year the team was disbanded.

No 3 FTS had the 'Gemini Pair' (JP T Mk 5) and 'The Swords', (JP T Mk 5). The Aircraft

Gloster Gauntlets Hawker Fury

Tiger Moth No 87 Squadron Gloster Gladiators

No 87 Squadron Gloster Gladiator No 87 Squadron Gloster Gladiator

No 87 Squadron Gloster Gladiators No 54 Squadron de Havilland Vampires – The Black Knights

No 54 Squadron de Havilland Vampires – The Black Knights No 54 Squadron Hawker Hunters F.1's – The Black Knights

No 54 Squadron Hawker Hunters F.1's – The Black Knights 92 Squadron Hawker Hunter F6 – Blue Diamonds

Central Flying School Gloster Meteor T7's – Meteorites (First RAF Display team to be given a name) 43 Squadron Hawker Hunter F1's – Fighting Cocks

74 Squadron Lightning F.1A's – Tigers 56 Squadron Lightning F.1A's – Firebirds

56 Squadron Lightning F.1A's – Firebirds 111 Squadron Hawker Hunter F6's – Black Arrows

111 Squadron Hawker Hunter F6's – Black Arrows No1 Flying Training School Jet Provost T4 – Linton Gin

No1 Flying Training School Jet Provost T4 – Linton Blades No2 Flying Training Squadron Jet Provost T4 – Vipers

Central Flying School Jet Provost T4 – Red Pelicans All information used in this article is sourced from the Internet. John Currie RED ARROWS

The Red Arrows, officially known as the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, is the aerobatics display team of the Royal Air Force based at RAF Scampton. The team was formed in late 1964 as an all-RAF team, replacing a number of unofficial teams that had been sponsored by RAF commands. The Red Arrows have a prominent place in British popular culture, with their aerobatic displays a fixture of British summer events. The badge of the Red Arrows shows the aircraft in their trademark diamond nine formation, with the motto Éclat, a French word meaning "brilliance" or "excellence". Initially, they were equipped with seven Folland Gnat trainers inherited from the RAF Yellowjacks display team. This aircraft was chosen because it was less expensive to operate than front-line fighters. In their first season, they flew at 65 shows across Europe. In 1966, the team was increased to nine members, enabling them to develop their Diamond Nine formation. In late 1979, they switched to the BAE Hawk trainer. The Red Arrows have performed over 4,800 displays in 57 countries worldwide.

Red Arrows Folland Gnat In service with Red Arrows from 1964 – 1979

Red Arrows BAE Hawk T Mk.1 in service 1979 – Present

Red Arrows with the US Navy John Currie A Splash of Color and a Chemistry Lesson (maybe?) A recent e-mail thread about Tamiya paint recipes spawned further discussion about mixing and thinning the paint, which led to further discussion on paint chemistry. Here is a brief summation of the discussion. I will warn you, though--paint chemistry is a bit of a minefield. You could fill volumes on the subject, and I'm still wrapping my mind-grapes around some of the ins and outs. Here is what’s what, as I understand it… A few definitions: Drying: Evaporation of solvent Curing: Polymerization of the binder Next, let’s discuss paint itself. What we call paint is nothing more than a suspension of a solid in a liquid or semi-liquid material. The solids may be natural--usually powdered minerals--or man-made, and are called pigments. Pigments are what make that bottle of Sea Blue Gloss look like Sea Blue Gloss. The liquid is called the binder (you’ll also see it referred to as carrier, base, or vehicle, all three of which are either misleading or incorrect) and it contains various solvents, resins, dryers, hardeners, and other substances into which pigments are mixed. Together, they make up what we call paint. Some paints also contain additional solvent that dilutes or reduces the paint to a workable consistency. In a simple world, paints can be waterborne or solvent-borne. One has a binder that can be diluted with water or other compatible solvent, the other’s binder needs a petroleum distillate or compatible solvent. Easy, right? It’s about to get more complicated… Logically, that leads us to thinners. Most of what we call “paint thinners” aren’t single chemicals. They are blends. Blends of what, you ask? Read on… In a nutshell, our solvent options are water, alcohols (examples being Butanol, Ethanol and Methanol), organic ketones (such as Acetone, Isobutyl Methyl Ketone, Toluene, and Xylene), turpentine (a distillate of tree resins), and petroleum distillates (usually Mineral, or White, Spirits). Water, alcohol, and the ketones are mixable. The ketones and the distillates are also mixable. But water and alcohols aren’t mixable with the distillates. Got it? Let us continue… Water-borne paints can be thinned with a mix of water and alcohols, and perhaps small amounts of organic ketones, too. Some may also contain aqueous ammonia—ammonia and water are what they call “covalent stable binary hydrides”, and are also intermixable with each other and with organic ketones. Products marketed as “Enamel Thinners” are usually a blend of Mineral Spirits and one or more organic ketones, with an emphasis on the former. Some—mainly the products artists use—can also contain turpentines. What we call simply "lacquer thinner" is a blend of organic ketones and alcohols. You'll see it called "cellulose thinners" in the European publications. Onward 2K… I am only going to dip the very tips of my toes into the world of catalyzed paints, otherwise known as 2K, Two-stage, or 2-pack paints. Car modelers are drawn to these paints, simply because they lay down thin and don’t take weeks to dry/cure, and when they do cure, they usually cure harder than standard hobby paint and stand up to wet sanding and polishing (“cut and buff”) better than the ordinary hobby paints. Some come in a base coat/clear coat system where the first (base) coat cures to a flat finish and the gloss is imparted via a clear overcoat; others come as a single coat system. These paints have an epoxy or urethane binder, and their curing mechanism is quite different from the evaporative processes that single-stage paint (the stuff we normally associate with our hobby). Rather than drying/curing through evaporation or coalescing, they cross-link and polymerize only in the presence of a chemical catalyst. Suffice to say, the base, the catalyst, and the reducers are highly toxic and require extensive PPE in order to be employed safely—in an industrial situation, one would have to take several classes, pass several tests, and require a fitted respirator (and possibly even a forced breathing apparatus) in order to even get into the paint booth AND then be required to go through recurrent training every year. More so than our “standard” hobby paints, they are classified as HAZMAT, and disposing of unreacted or uncatalyzed paint is an issue—you cannot simply toss it down the drain or into the bushes in your yard. With the advent of the Tamiya spray can lacquers and the current crop of acrylic lacquers in bottles, I don’t see a reason to use 2-stage paint for a model. Your mileage may vary… On to single-stage paints… Artists use linseed oil and the pigments to make their paints--we call them simply "oil paint" based on their make-up. The linseed oil binder lends a workable property to the paint, and as it dries by evaporation it leaves behind linseed oil’s inherent resins that then polymerize (“harden”) and trap the pigments, creating a film of color on the surface to which it was applied. These paints thin well with petroleum distillates such as turpentine or Mineral Spirits and not so well with alcohols or water. They can be thinned with organic ketones, but they tend to separate and flash quickly, leading to a poor film. What we call enamels--Humbrol, Model Master--are more properly called alkyd enamels. They have a petroleum-based binder (usually a blend containing Mineral Spirits), and that is mixed with pigment and thinned with a compatible solvent to a fluidity suited for brushing. As it dries, the solvents in the binder evaporate and the resins in the binder polymerize upon contact with the oxygen in the air, trapping the pigments just as with the linseed oil based paint. They thin well with the ketones (lacquer thinner) and the distillates, more so mineral spirits and ketones than turpentine. Believe it or not, latex paints are also enamels. They are not latex in the sense that they contain latex rubber (they don’t), they are merely an aqueous dispersion in a waterborne binder. The drying mechanism is different—the binders don’t harden, per se. The solvents (water and dispersing agents) evaporate, and the binder hardens through a process called coalescing where the pigment dispersion joins together to create a film. The thinner of choice is water, although mild alcohols can be used. True lacquers originated by mixing wood alcohol--Methanol--with lac, a secretion from the insect of the same name OR by using the sap from the Toxicodendron vernicifluum tree, also known as the "Chinese Lacquer tree" or “Varnish Tree”. The former is used by mixing the powdered lac with alcohol. Once applied, the alcohol evaporates and the lac crystallizes, creating a protective film over the substrate. The latter is applied in a wet layer and allowed to dry naturally--as it dries, it polymerizes and solidifies into a shiny, durable finish. Pigments or dyes could be added, buy usually they were left out to yield a tinted clear coating. Both of these can be classified as “Shellac”, and alcohols are usually the thinners of choice. In both cases, they can be partially dissolved with further application of the shellac. One of the most common examples of this is called “French Polishing”, where a pad made from cotton is moistened with thin shellac and then rubbed on to a base coating of previously applied shellac. This polishes the finish to a near mirror shine when done properly. What we commonly call "lacquers", however, are properly called "nitrocellulose lacquers", where the binder is a resin derived from the nitration of cotton and other plant-based fibers. These, too, can be partially re-liquefied when they are re-coated. These are the so-called “fast drying” lacquers, and are usually applied by spraying. As an aside, did you know that cotton is perhaps the purest form of nitrocellulose in nature? Use that on your smartass Uncle Bob next Thanksgiving when he wants to try and stump you with trivia... Enter acrylic… Now, here’s where it gets confusing. Throw the word “acrylic” into the discussion, and oh, the fun we’ll have! Well, not really. It is actually quite simple… The use of the term "acrylic" has been misappropriated over the years, to the point where many people think it equates to “aqueous”, “waterborne”, “water soluble” or “water reducible”. That’s not so. Acrylic paint binders are products based on monomers and polymers based on the structure of acrylic acid, which consists of a vinyl group and a carboxylic acid ester or a nitrile addition. That’s a fancy way of saying that it is a liquid that will polymerize and harden—exactly what a paint binder is supposed to do. The difference is that this binder is synthesized in a chemical plant. A binder made from Acrylic Acid can be mixed with water, organic ketones (Xylene, Toluene, etc.), or organic solvents such as (wait for it) alcohols. Some prefer the weak end of the spectrum; others require more oomph to thin them. Given that lacquer thinners are blends of ketones and alcohols, that explains why you can thin that bottle of Tamiya Acrylic with lacquer thinner. The GSI/Creos ("Gunze Sangyo") Aqueous range can be thinned with lacquer thinner, too. Why? They have a similar binder. Both paints have an acrylic binder that leans more to the waterborne spectrum than it does the solvent-borne side of the spectrum, which is why they also thin with alcohol or water, but the lacquer thinner and it’s ketone chemistry makes it a superb thinner. The modern acrylic lacquers (Mr. Color, MRP, Hataka Orange Line, AK Real Colors, and the Tamiya LP line), likewise, use a binder that can be thinned with an organic ketone. Their composition leans more towards the ketone only end of the spectrum, explaining why alcohol and water won’t work. What about Vallejo? Vallejo (like Mission Models, Lifecolor, and Ammo by Mig) uses a polyurethane binder (they call it a "hybrid resin/polyurethane base") that is more compatible with the ketone spectrum that it is with water or alcohol. Again, water and alcohol can technically work, but the more the thinners range to the ketone spot on the spectrum, the better. My head hurts… Now, here’s the kicker. When you spend upwards of $50 on a kit and another $20 on paint, the easiest way to get great results is to spend another $5 on the paint manufacturer’s recommended thinner. Why? Because they designed the stuff! Why play home chemist? It will cost you in the long run. Stick with whatever the paint manufacturer tells you to use--and yes, Tamiya’s literature does state that you can use lacquer thinner to thin their paint. Alternatives If there ever was a “Universal” paint thinner for acrylics, it would run to the organic ketone spot in our spectrum. In fact, I would bet lunch that the Ultimate Airbrush Thinner for acrylics is a blend of ketones and alcohols. Squadron’s Universal Acrylic Thinner has quite an odor to it as well. These two would be my choice for an alternative acrylic thinner for paints other than Tamiya and GSI Aqueous Acrylics. You’d have to test compatibility first, of course… Mr. Leveling Thinner products work well on both the GSI Aqueous, Acresion, and lacquer lines, as well as the other lacquers out in the world. They don’t do so well with the polyurethane paints, though… As for enamels, hardware store lacquer thinner works well for them. Why Tamiya in the first place? Why do we emphasize Tamiya Acrylics so much? On one of the forums, consensus was that Tamiya would pretty much own the U.S. hobby paint market when Testors left, simply because it is widely available. Tamiya's acrylics debuted about the same time as Model Master—1982, and was the second* acrylic widely available to the hobby. Over the years, they have tweaked to formula a few times, but I don't think I've ever been in a hobby shop or a store that carried models that didn't have a Tamiya rack somewhere. *Polly-S was the first hobby "acrylic"--Polly-S was water-borne latex enamel, for those who never heard of it. Now, some of you might question my chemistry. My two college-level chemistry classes happened way back in 1982/83 when I was a wet behind the ears Aeronautical Engineering student at The Harvard of The Sky (Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University), and both sections and accompanying labs were taught at oh-stupid-thirty in the morning. If you can fill in some blanks or correct me, I welcome the input. Ralph Nardone Members Builds and Works in Progress during Self Isolation Michael Carra – Tamiya - 1/72 scale M-3 Stuart. David Koopman – Tamiya – 1/700 scale DKM Scharnhorst (In Progress).

David Koopman – Minicraft/Hasegawa 1/72 Bf109-E7. Norm Foote – Revell – 1/25 scale 48 Ford “Greased Lightning”. Rick Broome – Revell – 1/48 scale 1931 Cadillac.

Jim Hamilton – Faller – 1/87 scale Buildings European various (In Progress).

Tom Wingate – Dragon – 1/35 scale Schwerer Panzerspahwagen Kommandowagen. John Currie – Italeri – 1/72 scale AC-119K Stinger and AC-119G Shadow conversion (In Progress).

John Currie – Tamiya – 1/35 scale Syrian Panzer IV Ausf J (In Progress). John Currie – Hobby Boss – 1/35 scale V-100 (In Progress). Tom Wingate – Dragon – 1/35 scale Firefly

Mike Martucci – 1/24 scale GTO. Mike Martucci – Fujimi – 1/20 scale Ferrari 248 F1 (2006). Hub Plott – Hobbycraft – 1/48 Curtiss XP-42, P-36 to XP-42 using the Wilde Sau conversion set. Mike Martucci – Testors – 1/24 scale Ferrari F40. Hub Plott – Aeropoxy – 1/48 scale Bristol 138a high altitude research aircraft (In Progress).

Eric Schrowang – Mirror Models – 1/48 scale D7 Dozer. Well thats all folks

John