SPA Modeler

This year saw more completions than in 2024, mainly due to my returning to retired life and me now having more bench time again available. So here we have my Class of 2025, in no particular order



1, Takom 1/35 A-4/V-2 Missile



2, Bandai 1/12 Imperial Stormtrooper



3, AMT 1/48 P-51D Mustang



4, Tamiya 1/48 YF-16



5, Hobbycraft 1/48 P-35A (Shelf of Doom completion)



6, Tamiya 1/35 Komatsu LAV



7, Tamiya 1/48 M1025 HMMWV



8, DML 1/35 M4A3E8



9, Dragon 1/35 MIM-23 Hawk Missiles on M192 Launch Trailer



10, Nichimo 1/35 M4A1 on D-Day, last but not least. This has been an on and off project for years (not shelf of doom), and this year I finally completed the final bits of final detailing & weathering

Here’s to a more productive 2026…

Not a bad bit of work for the year Carlos - I'd be happy with those. Hard to pick a favourite, as they all look excellent!

Impressive stuff Carlos. The M4A3E8 and P-51D are my faves!

Great year Stik. I recall all but the wading Sherman - very cool. And the commander crouched in the cupula with the binoculars is just an awesome pose. And I was so impressed with your Hawk missiles I put that on my xmas wish list and got the AFV kit. Well done!

Stuart wrote: ↑Fri Jan 02, 2026 11:59 am

Not a bad bit of work for the year Carlos - I'd be happy with those. Hard to pick a favourite, as they all look excellent!

Thanks Stuart. For scope of effort and results, I’d pick the Sherman, as I poured all I could into it. But the Hawk was a super fun rapid project. And the Stormtrooper was pure fun like being a kid again….

cbaltrin wrote: ↑Fri Jan 02, 2026 12:01 pm Impressive stuff Carlos. The M4A3E8 and P-51D are my faves!

Thanks Chris! Those were the two most involved projects of mine for the year.

keavdog wrote: ↑Fri Jan 02, 2026 12:04 pm Great year Stik. I recall all but the wading Sherman - very cool. And the commander crouched in the cupula with the binoculars is just an awesome pose. And I was so impressed with your Hawk missiles I put that on my xmas wish list and got the AFV kit. Well done!

Thanks John! I’m looking forward to seeing how the AFV Club Hawk builds up for you. It looks to be a better & more detailed kit than what Dragon put out. The wading Sherman had a very long gestation. I originally bought it as a partially assembled started build off of eBay many many years ago, then it sat there while I wondered what to do with it. Several years back I decided to do an Omaha Beach tank, but when I got to the 95% point it stalled, probably due to moving here. Then last year I decided to build a diorama around it for the 80th anniversary of the landings and was working on that set up until this summer when a coworker gave me an item to take that diorama idea in a different direction, so I did the last bits and called this one finished. Now I need a new wading stack set up for the revised diorama Sherman…

I can see why you'd pick the E8, that was a fab build . I also like the wading Sherman - I just wish someone would kit a DD version!

Happy New Year, Carlos! What a superb year. The AMT which I believe is ex-Otaki is one I own; it’s one of the better quarter scale versions out there, and clearly shows that extra something that comes from your love of “Empire of the Sun.”



G-PSID at Duxford, after returning from filming 'Empire of the Sun' in Spain (also with G-HAEC and N51JJ)

Stuart wrote: ↑Fri Jan 02, 2026 1:34 pm I can see why you'd pick the E8, that was a fab build . I also like the wading Sherman - I just wish someone would kit a DD version!

Thanks Stuart. I am in 100% agreement about the DD Sherman as a mainstream kit.

speedgraflex wrote: ↑Fri Jan 02, 2026 3:10 pm Happy New Year, Carlos! What a superb year. The AMT which I believe is ex-Otaki is one I own; it’s one of the better quarter scale versions out there, and clearly shows that extra something that comes from your love of “Empire of the Sun.”



G-PSID at Duxford, after returning from filming 'Empire of the Sun' in Spain (also with G-HAEC and N51JJ)

Happy New Year Bruce! Thanks for the photo of "Tugboat" in her "Empire of the Sun markings. Thats the one that did the slow mo flyby in the film. And yus, the AMT/Otaki/Arii/Airfix kit is still a solid choice for making a P-51D.

I didn’t know these were CG from ILM.