This is the best time of year to start any project.

The last model I finished in 2021 was this Douglas SBD Dauntless. I picked the kit up from Rare Plane Detective (https://www.rare-planedetective.com/). They have a lot of old, rear stuff and are well worth a look.

This kit came out in the late 1950’s and was made by Hawk. It still says “Hawk” on the inside of the fuselage. The one I got was a Testors re-pop which came with Scalemaster decals that actually worked. I think it was made in the 1980’s. Scalemaster made some great decals back in the day. They are now long gone. The old Scalemaster decals in my stash have not surived as well as Aeromaster decals or the ones with old Tamiya or Hasegawa kits.

Why did I make this particular kit? Because back in the days when my modeling bench was populated with Testors Pla gloss enamel paint, a razor blade and a few paint brushes, I made this one when it was first issued. I thought it was the coolest thing going back then. It is long, long gone; probably the victim of a fire cracker.

This is more like what I am building these days – Douglas SBD-3 Dauntless. Accurate Miniatures (Built 2016) VB-6, Yorktown, Battle of Midway (This aircraft damaged in attack on Kaga.), June 1942. I got this kit along with an SBD with Operation Torch markings directly from AM in one box just as they were going out of business. I am sorry they did not make it as a business. Imagine what they would have accomplished in the past two decades.