iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 14/10/2026

Amazingly, the spotted thick-knee's eggs on the pavement survived the thunderstorm the other day. It's still very protective.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

Abby's happy place is the kitchen. Ever hopeful that something will fall. Luca is less hopeful.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 12/10/2026

Yesterday we visited a place out beyond the mine dumps of Krugersdorp: Cowboy Town, a Wild West-themed kind of flea market. Shops filled with all sorts of odd things, tatty antiques, CDs, food stalls, and more. If you needed a cup to complete your set of 1970s melamine crockery, this is the place.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 12/10/2026

Ooh, the first couple of books in Nerine Dorman's Winter Mage series arrived. Not often I get actual printed books! Looking forward to these.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

Last night we went off to see The Final Countdown "mixtape" show at Silverstar Casino. Quite enjoyable, lots of well-known hits and good performers. The sound settings were a bit off; high freq voices were a problem. Silverstar Casino was strangely empty, virtually no people in the restaurants.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

Huxley waiting for a snack.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

So Microsoft is reducing features in Microsoft 365 Family. Going from 1TB of storage per user (6TB in total) to a 2TB shared pool. I have nearly 1TB on my own account. Given that OneDrive is to me the major feature of Microsoft 365, that's a huge downgrade. Price won't go down, of course.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Making some model progress. The Heller Alpha Jet kit is rather spartan on detail, and fit is not too good. I saw pics of the aicraft ejection seats though, and they're bright blue. Interesting. The little Helldivers are cute, and easy to build. Limited cockpit detail, LOL.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Moon over cloud this morning.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

I made a start on this month's model kits this afternoon.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

A bird waved wings at me on my morning run (I think it was a Spotted Thick-knee), and then I saw these eggs on the pavement where it was.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

05:30. 06:30. Now 07:30 and time for a run.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Huxley trying out the new carpet.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

My modelling room has been rearranged a bit with my new display cases. Now I have knick-knacks in a case, and many models in the new cases, plus models on my shelves above my desk.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Golden skies today after a day of rain yesterday.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Luca playing with his ball in a foam box.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Yellow Wing: This is 9-52, an SBD-5 Dauntless training aircraft assigned to VN-9 at NAAS Saufley Field in Florida, USA, in 1945. It was painted in sea blue with high visibility yellow wings for recognition and training.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

It's based on a picture taken on 15 June 1944 showing the aircraft over Saipan en route to bomb Aslito airfield during the opening days of the Battle of Saipan, part of the Mariana Islands campaign. It was painted in the mid-war tri-colour sea blue/intermediate blue/white scheme.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Bomber 18: This is a Douglas SBD-5 Dauntless dive bomber, number "18," from Bombing Squadron 16 (VB-16), part of Carrier Air Group 16 aboard the other USS Lexington (CV-16).

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Barbara Jean: This is S-1, the SBD-5 Dauntless flown by Maj. Christian C. Lee, commander of VMS-3, based at St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, in Spring 1944. VMS-3 was the "Atlantic" squadron, painted in dark gull grey & white, used for anti-submarine patrol/convoy escort, though they didn't see combat.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Leppla and his gunner had scored 7 kills from their dive bomber, and the kill markings are on the left side, along with the "red Indian" squadron emblem. Leppla, then LtJG with Navy Cross + Gold Star, was shot down and MIA on 26 Oct 1942. It was painted in the early war blue grey/light grey scheme.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Leppla's Scout: This is the SBD-3 Dauntless flown by Ensign John A. Leppla of scouting squadron VS-2 from the carrier USS Lexington (CV-2) on 7-8 May 1942 during the Battle of the Coral Sea (Lexington was lost on the 8th).

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Each of these tiny planes is an actual example of one of the real WW2 aircraft. I spent much more time on research than on the actual models. The decals are fun: each individual number and dash is a separate decal, and even the stars-and-bars consist of 3 decals.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

It's actually quite straightforward, the build is easy, and then it's masking and airbrushing, followed by details in enamel, and I did oil washes for weathering and to get the red of the characteristic slotted dive brakes on the Dauntless.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

It was a daunting task building these, but I was undaunted. I built four tiny Trumpeter 1/350 scale Douglas SBD Dauntless models.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

The moon last night, in scudding clouds before the rain.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Last night we went to an art display by Kat's colleague Tanya. Luigi's Pizzeria in Olivedale lets artists display their work there, and it's such a brilliant idea (and of course their food is excellent too). Tanya's art is amazing; we really liked some of the paintings.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Tonight's moon is almost metallic.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Went to the SANBS weight loss clinic to donate blood - no. 80 today. BP 111/67 @ 64bpm. They asked me to donate plasma next time, and said I have veins they dream on.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Sunday sunrise, after a bit of rain overnight and this morning. Time for a run?

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

At Comic Con there was a Turkish nougat store. They sell by weight, and it was more expensive than I expected, but it is so delicious.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Saw so much at Comic Con Joburg today. Lots of interesting things to buy or view.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

The fine blue walkway line decals on top were really stressful to apply. One pic includes in the same scale the first ever jet aircraft, the He-178, as a size comparison.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

My kit was second-hand, and some clear parts were missing, though luckily not the canopies, which had already been painted; I did need to repaint and add the gold tint to the glass. The decals had a long cut across the decal sheet.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

The model includes a single Red Beard nuclear bomb in the bomb bay. The cockpit was quite nicely detailed. I did have a bit of filling and sanding to do, but many of the seams were well-placed.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Fit was mostly OK, but there were some issues: windshield doesn’t fit without rounding it off, the instrument panel glareshield is way too big, and actually blocks the windshield, some part numbers in the instructions are wrong, one part shown wrong way around, and some decals incorrectly labelled.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

I built it as XR222, which is in the Imperial War Museum Duxford. The kit was not the greatest, but not terrible either.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

The Airfix 1/48 BAC TSR-2. The TSR-2 was a beautiful supersonic strike/reconnaissance aircraft that was tested and then cancelled for political reasons in the 1960s, first flying in 1964. The Airfix kit of it is huge but fortunately not wide, and it looks good in white.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Masking the rudder on a 1/350 scale Douglas Dauntless so that I can do the red and white stripes.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Wheels! When you talk of 18-wheelers, you're not normally thinking about big British bombers.

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Graeme @claidheamhmor.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

The tiny sparkle of Venus in between the dusk clouds.

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