More Shapeways Custom Aircraft

Here are my latest Shapeways 1/144 prints. I have not been able to find tail decals for the Short Bomber and Caudron G4 and, based on my last experiments, my hand is not steady enough to paint them free-style. Hopefully someone will make such decals eventually for a retrofit. Meanwhile, I am happy with the Shapeway models.  This time I used Frosted Ultra Detail (FUD) plastic for the SE5a's. As delicate as they are, I think this was worth the additional cost. Also given how expensive Wings of Glory SE5a's have become, a Shapeway model is a good alternative and a simple paint job. The Short Bomber, like my earlier Handley Page 0/400 was a joy to make and paint.

Short Bomber by Kampfflieger

Flight of SE5a's by Decapod

 

Caudron G4 by  Kampfflieger 

Caudron G-4 on reconnaissance near Verdun in 1917

Caudron G-4 on patrol near Laguna Niguel in 2014

The Red Baron (2008) "Der rote Baron"

For a great WWI movie about the war in the air, I recommend The Red Baron "der rote Baron" (2008) starring Matthias Schweighofer as a perfect Rittmeister Manfred Freiherr von Richthofen.

The movie was criticized for some historical inaccuracies, but overall I think it is a very good movie with interesting characterizations, a plot and great aerial combat scenes. His red Albatros of Jasta 11 is nicely portrayed.

Gotha G. V (Von Korff)

Last month I started collecting Wings of Glory WWI. I have added a few fighter aircraft and I played a trial game with John and Jack last weekend. I just located a hard to find German heavy bomber from the same series, the Gotha G. V. This looks like a really beautiful model.

Von Korff's Gotha G.V

The Rules and Accessory pack adds a lot of nice features to the game and is well worth buying. It doesn't take long playing the basic game to feel the need to graduate to the most advanced rules. This system is very playable.

The earlier incarnation of Wings of Glory, Wings of War WWI also has some nice models which are fully compatible with Wings of Glory. You don't need the earlier rules but a few of the aircraft look good...if you can find them. This is a very collectible series as reflected in the prices. Even the Gotha G. V from the current range was sold for twice the listed price. Scarcity and collectibility matter.

WW1 Flight: Two Different Experiences

First, I purchased on STEAM a new release of a four years mature flight simulator that looks only at WW1 but in considerable depth. What an experience!

After many mishaps, I'm beginning to get the hang of "Rise of Flight: Channel Battles Edition", a couple of safe take-off and landings anyway. I tried my hand flying a big Felixstowe flying boat, and landed it safely on a river in France, totally amazing experience. This is flying, not a flight sim. The Training Missions are vital. 

In a totally different vein, somewhere between a miniatures and a board game, my first set of Wings of Glory arrived today, a Dual Pack featuring an Albatross D.Va and a Spad XIII. Very nice, smaller than I expected and the same with the cards, but an excellent use of space. I'm impressed. I'll try a few solo rounds tonight.

Unusual to have two ways of experiencing WW1 flight, both look very good in their own, very different ways. I missed both of these in their earlier releases but I've found them now.