Scale Aviation Modeller International Vol.22 Iss. 05

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THE WORLD’S FAVOURITE AIRCRAFT MODELLING MAGAZINE

14

LB DE O

S! LD UI

Zvezda’s’ 1/48th scale

PETLYAKOV PE-2

INSIDE

GOURGEOUS GUSTAV Eduards New 109G-6

CIVIL MATTERS

Marquette Vickers Vimy

SEA

FLANKER A FURNITURE VAN Junkers J.1 in 1/72

PATROUILLE DE FRANCE Magister in 1/48

CLARKES FIELD Luft 46 Me262 HGIII

385-Cover-2-0516.indd 385

Airfix’ 1/72nd

AVRO SHACKLETON

Printed in UK

MAY 2016

Mark 1 New 1/144 Kit

Vol 22 Issue 5

TINY BUFFALO

£4.50

In 1/48th scale

Eduard’s 1/72nd

MIG-15

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MAY 2016

Contents

Scale Aviation Modeller International May 2016 • Volume 22 • Issue 5 reviews

MAY 2016 to make sure the fuselage halves will close up before reaching for the glue, noting also that the rudder needs to be trapped between the halves of the fin. The rudder itself has two pins to align it, as well as the representations of the hinges, but by removing the pins, and with a bit of careful trimming, it is possible to pose the rudder slightly deflected. I did this, but in truth, I’m not sure the effect is worth the faff. The wing halves fit without trouble, having remembered to drill out the locations for the underwing tanks if they’re to be used, and the wings and stabilisers attached to the fuselage. Fit is again excellent, albeit with some relieving of the thickness of the locating tabs being needed. I smeared the joints with filler, probably unnecessarily since clean-up almost completely removed it. I decided to fit the canopy parts temporarily before painting, to simplify masking, with the intention of ultimately having them opened. After dipping the three parts in Klear, applying the Eduard masks and painting the cockpit decking grey, they were attached with white glue. The undercarriage is nicely detailed and comes with optional wheel hubs which avoid the need for masking. The parts were painted, treated to a dilute brown oil wash and set aside.

Manufacturer Kinetic Scale 1/48 Kit nuMber K48062 type Injection moulded panel lineS Recessed partS Lots

T

he Sukhoi Su-33, NATO reporting name Flanker-D, is an allweather, carrier-based twin-engined air superiority fighter designed by Sukhoi and manufactured by Komsomolskon-Amur Aircraft Production Association. It is a derivative of the Su-27 “Flanker” and was initially known as the Su-27K. First used in operations in 1995 aboard the carrier Admiral Kuznetsov the fighter officially entered service in August 1998, by which time the designation Su-33 was used. Following the break-up of the Soviet Union and the subsequent downsizing of the Russian Navy, only 24 aircraft were produced and

attempted sales to China and India fell through. Compared with the Su-27, the Su-33 has a strengthened undercarriage and structure, folding wings and stabilators, specifically for carrier operations. The wings are also enlarged compared to land-based aircraft for increased lift. The Su-33 has upgraded engines and a twin nose wheel, and is air-refuellable. In 2009, the Russian Navy ordered the MiG-29K as a replacement for the Su-33. I was very excited to be asked to do a quick build of this kit, as the Su-27 family has produced some very interesting aircraft, and I can only hope that the fact Kinetic have made a kit of an aircraft of which only 24 were built means they will be doing some of the other variants as well. The box is full of excellent looking plastic with some thoughtful packaging to protect the exhausts and the remarkably moulded missiles, a sheet of very flexible brass and a decal sheet designed by Crossdelta (printed by Cartograf) and it all looks very, very nice. As it was a “quick build” I decided to just get on with it and avoid getting bogged down trying to find vast amounts of reference material, so…

Mig-15 uti assembling this area. They would have you construct the bay inner sections first from four main parts that simply butt join and then install this completed assembly into the provided receptacle. I would have thought it easier to fit them one by one into the space provided to insure a perfect fit with less chance of making a mistake, but what do I know? Actually, on the subject of the instructions, I’m not totally sure about them in general. Personally I prefer the traditional line drawings to shaded, CAD produced images, and the placement instructions just aren’t accurate enough in a lot of places (especially with small parts where the orientation is unclear not helped by the part looking nothing like the illustrations as well) and random bits of CAD file appear from time to time just to confuse the issue. Some parts aren’t numbered, occasional ones float there, identified but with no suggestion of where to fit them, while some parts are numbered incorrectly and handed parts (numbered differently on the sprue) are called out with the same number on the instructions. OK, the chances are you have made a few kits if you’re tackling this one

MiG-15 uti “Weekend”

“ The Sukhoi Su-33 is an all-weather, carrier-based twin-engined air superiority fighter ” and you can work it out, but these instruction errors seem to happen more often than I would like these days and this one is a real shocker, frankly. I don’t remember this sort of thing in the days when I started making kits all those decades ago. Proofreading seems to have died a death… Anyway rant over (almost)! One thing I did like to start with was that all the parts I used up to stage 5 came off basically one sprue (except the ejector seat and all that was on one sprue except one part and some etch) which made a pleasant change from trawling four or five sprues just

for one assembly as I have done on another kit recently. But then the instructions took a further turn for the worse. I’m assuming that anyone who has ever built a model will ignore most of stage 6, it is inconceivable that ANYONE would fit the undercarriage bay doors (main and nose), with their actuating struts, before they’ve even joined the fuselage halves together. SERIOUSLY?!?! So many instructions have you attach fragile and small, sticky-out parts at early stages just inviting you to knock them off during the rest of the build, but this is the worst I can remember seeing. Bonkers…

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tYpe Injection moulded Plastic

T And the drawings here show the main gear doors installed explicitly open (but also in a way closed) and positioned relative to a part that doesn’t get fitted until stage 9 and then every subsequent drawing shows them closed.

I moved onto stage 7, intake trunking to engine faces. There’s some etch involved at the engine face, the way the part is made and the drawing on the instructions implies that the vanes should be bent in their frame but it isn’t

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1/48 Fouga Magister

Feature

285 plastic, 6 styrene, 2 clear, PartS 28 white metal, 46 Photo etch tyPe Injection Moulded Decal OPtIOnS 5

“ aMK have excelled in providing a very well engineered and detailed kit ”

aerobatic display teams. With its distinctive butterfly tail and big glider heritage wings, there is little chance of mistaking it for anything else. The instructions indicate the kit is based on scale drawings by Mr. Philip Avonds who, incidentally, also did illustrations for the recent Mushroom Monthly Publications book by Tine Soetaert, entitled ‘Fouga Magister’. I was lucky enough to have been given a copy of the book and referred to it throughout the build, as well as other references online.

The instructions are supplied as a well-detailed glossy booklet and are well laid out and easy to follow. Decals are provided for five different aircraft: a Luftwaffe machine in grey/green camouflage, two silver and dayglo machines from the Belgian Air Force, a Patrouille de France aerobatic team machine and a bright red aircraft in Belgian markings looking for all the world as if it was one from the Diables Rouges, the Belgian Air Force aerobatic display team. However, the markings as supplied are for MT-48, a Belgian Air Force machine that flew solo displays between 2002 and 2005.

As a change from natural metal and a few Russian stars, I’d decided to finish the model as the Iraqi Air Force option. Priming and pre-shading was conventional, and Tamiya XF-23 Light Blue, XF-59 Desert Yellow and XF-64 Red Brown were the colours of choice, masked with tape and Blu Tack. Future prepared the airframe for decaling. The decals worked quite well, releasing quickly but being rather thick, although they settled with Micro Sol. As well as the main markings, two complete sets of stencils are provided, one for aircraft built in Russia, and one for Czechoslovak machines, these being the ones I used since I believe that the

majority of export UTIs were the latter. After a diluted oil pin-wash of Burnt Umber, the airframe was dulled down using a thin coat of Citadel Purity Seal from a can, and some MiG pastels were used to add minor staining.

the kit decal sheet, note the excellent representations of the seatbelts

conclusion

great fit and moulded detail, and a straightforward build – truly a weekend project. should you

wish to add some additional detail, however, a quick look at the instructions for the ProfiPack version on eduard’s website suggests that there are a number of parts which would be useful, even if you don’t use everything. Recommended unreservedly, with thanks to eduard for the review sample.

the main airframe complete, the minimal amount of filler needed is evident

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No indication is given in the instructions on using the photoetch seatbelts and I forgot about them until after priming the seats in white. I used a cigarette lighter to anneal the brass to make it more pliable and then superglued them to the seat, before brush painting them a light blue colour. Painting instructions are slightly off as Magister seats were not black as indicated but a golden brown colour with a brown leathercoloured cushioned back, though some photographs suggest the seats may even have been varnished wood. The control columns seem a little tall, however, I left them as they were, as trying to measure and compare to the real thing was way beyond the necessary. The black interior was lifted slightly with some scuffs added from

a silver pencil, which was also used to add some light ‘scribble’ on the instruments to hint at dial markings. Two parts, D34, are the canopy actuator handles and are shown mounted at 90 degrees into the cockpit sidewall. I changed them to a forward position as they would be with the canopy closed. With everything assembled, the cockpit looks very acceptable out of the box. I did think about building this as a clear body version, but the desire for a properly painted model won in the end. That said, as part of the review, I decided to build and add the detailed interior, just to show what it looks like. Made up from four separate sections, the complete interior was built in an evening, the fit is that good. I used the white metal main spar

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which attaches to the front of the main fuel tank. The metal is quite hard and needed a file to take off the faint seam line, which was reassuring as it meant it was more than strong enough to support the joints. The fit of the parts into the fuselage was very precise and neat and once slotted into position it only required a small touch with liquid solvent just to secure the joint. At this point I also added the white metal spars for the tailplanes, these slotting in very neatly before securing with superglue. The front of the ‘Secondary Gas Tank’ also forms the rear bulkhead of the cockpit and should be painted black instead of the indicated ivory. As this was simply a demonstration of how the interior

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Fouga Magister

Avant Garde Model Kits 1/48th scale Fouga Magister Review by Jonathan Davies

PAinting And deCAlS For the final painting and decaling I used the kit-supplied items, but with some removals and a small aftermarket add-on. As a thank you for all the help received, one decal option is for WR963 as she was in service with 224 Sqn RAF based at Gibraltar in the 1950s. The SPT has repainted ‘963 in the same scheme of Medium Sea Grey upper surfaces with the rest white (The brown stripe I have added to the wing leading edge is to represent the wood

ShACk AttAck I

A quick build of the new Airfix 1/72 scale Avro Shackleton by Alec Smith

shall start this article with an open admission, I have a distinct fondness for the Avro Shackleton, and it sits quite happily for me in my short list of favourite aircraft. I was fortunate enough to see several of the AEW.2s at airshows around the U.K. during the 1980s and early 90s. I have also over the last year been able to visit and go inside MR.2 WR963 that is being restored hopefully to flight once again by the Shackleton Preservation Trust (SPT) at Coventry Airport. Therefore to someone like me, having two model companies release 1/72 scale models in very short succession has been fabulous. As some will remember I was given a final production test shot of the Revell AEW.2 kit at the end of 2015 (SAMi Feb 2016) and so I wanted to build the Airfix MR.2 as a comparison.

The Airfix kit was developed with a great deal of help and assistance from the SPT and the final decal sheet depicted ‘their’ Shackleton as she was when she started her RAF service. I fully intended the build to be a straightfrom-the-box , and to finish the model as WR963 as in service in the 1950s. This did not happen!! The good people of the SPT started offering guided tours of WR963 at the end of January 2016 and as the day was free I decided to go over. This allowed a good chance of exploring ‘963 in daylight and at my leisure, a selection of the pictures taken on the day form a walk around to accompany this build. Why does this matter? I hear you ask. Quite simply it made me decide to complete the model as ‘963 was on that day in 2016.

ConStruCtion The Airfix kit as supplied is a Shackleton MR.2, but from the initial teasers, they will add an AEW.2 boxing at some point. For me this made life somewhat easier, why?, because ‘963 although she started as a MR.2, she then became an AEW.2 and she is now slowly being returned to MR.2 configuration. Therefore at the moment she has a

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A quick build of the new Airfix 1/72nd scale Avro Shackleton by Alec Smith

1/48 F-4C Vietnam War

Feature

Feature

Detailing the 1/48 Academy F-4C Phantom by Bob cantrell Photography by Mike Middleton

Scale 1/48 KIt tYPe 12294 KIt tYPe Plastic injection moulded

Vickers VIMy

“ This 1/48 offering from Academy is without doubt one of the finest F-4 kits on the market ”

Maquette’s Vickers Vimy Commercial. Britain’s first real airliner in 1/72 by Peter Ibes

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he Vickers Vimy was a British heavy bomber aircraft of the Great War. It was quite successful both as a military and civil aircraft, setting several records in long-distance flights in the interwar period. The best known of those is probably the first non-stop crossing of the Atlantic Ocean by Alcock and Brown in June 1919. The Vimy Commercial was the civilian derivate of the Vimy with a completely redesigned large diameter plywood fuselage that could transport 10 passengers in relative comfort. In a time when most passenger planes were mere converted bombers, the Vimy Commercial can be considered Britain’s first purpose designed airliner.

Instone AIr LIne

One of the operators of the Vimy Commercial was S. Instone & Company Limited. The company had operated a private service from Cardiff via London to Paris since 1919, but in April 1920 it started a public service between London and Paris, flying as Instone 446 MAY 2016 • SCaLe aViatiOn mODeLLer internatiOnaL

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Scat XXVII

Detailing the 1/48 Academy F-4C Phantom by Bob Cantrell

Kinetic’s 1/48th scale Su-33 by Peter Marshall

Scale 1/48 KIt nuMBer 4809 305 Plastic, PartS 17 Clear Decal OPtIOnS 3 aDDItIOnal Techmod decal IteMS uSeD sheet TM48 020

open wheel-bay on the finished model. These parts are of course duplicated should you wish to model both engine nacelles closed, but you also get the option of displaying a nicely detailed engine on the port side. For the ‘wheelsup’ version you get four nicely sculpted crew figures, though they are somewhat under-scale and are certainly much smaller than the superb Aires figures I had to hand as a comparison. The page in the instruction

booklet dedicated to the framemaps became invaluable as I jumped from step to step and flicked back and forth through the booklet in an effort to hurry the build on. There is however one strange anomaly that caused me some head-scratching until I realised its existence. Sprueframe ‘J’ as illustrated in the instruction booklet, actually has the identification letter ‘C’ moulded onto the frame. As there are already two correctly marked ‘C’ frames containing duplicate engine

nacelle and propeller parts, it all got rather confusing as I searched for a frame that I was convinced I didn’t have. The pale grey parts are flash-free and nicely detailed with finely engraved panel lines and subtle rivet detail. My initial impressions of the kit were all positive. Being a new release there are at the time of writing this article no after-market accessories to be had for the Zvezda kit, so what you see here is pretty much what you get in the box.

GETTING STARTED

The initial eight stages and three sub-assembly stages cover the construction of the Klimov VK105

engine and supporting framework. Comprising some forty parts, each engine component is tagged by a part number, a secondary number which refers to the colour painting guide at the back of the booklet, and on occasion a third number referring to its sub-assembly stage, and care must be taken initially not to get all of these numbers mixed up. There are some very nicely engineered features in this kit which include the wrap-around trailing edges on the upper wings, the wrap-around leading edges of the vertical tail fins, and delicately moulded detail. I noted that there were quite a few injectionpin marks on the inside of the fuselage and wheel bays, which I immediately began attacking with a sanding-burr. But as I began

construction it became apparent that the majority of these are cleverly hidden behind bulkheads or under panels – another very nice touch. One other thing that soon became apparent was that the often thick sprue attachment points, were more resistentent to filing and sanding than was the soft plastic surrounding them. This left some unsightly little ‘bumps and dips’ in places that refused to flatten out entirely even under the rasping teeth of metal files. Only in one area was this phenomenon particularly problematic, however, and that was on the inside face of

one of the tailplanes, where that surface comes into contact with the straight edge of the elevator. Here I finally resorted to cutting away the ‘corrugated’ plastic with a scalpel and cementing a strip of plastic card over the distortions. Filler was used to smooth the area out, and a new hole drilled through the plastic card strip to take the elevator tab.

Air Line. The airline was short lived, as in 1923 a Government committee recommended that all main British airlines should merge. Following this recommendation, Imperial Airways was created on 1 April 1924, absorbing the assets and routes of Instone Air Line, together with those of Handley Page Transport, Daimler Airways and British Marine Air Navigation Co Ltd.

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1/72 Vickers Vimy commercial

MiG Killer – Mud Mover

Manufacturer Academy

Manufacturer Zvezda

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

In true Russian-doll style, a thin, end-opening outer box which is adorned with some fabulous artwork, opens up to reveal a second, top-opening inner box made of more substantial corrugated card. Inside this is a single plastic bag stuffed with 435 parts moulded in a fairly soft, grey plastic. In all there are twelve grey sprue-frames, one clear frame, a small sheet containing three decal options and a very busy twelvepage instruction booklet. The black and white instructions are very well laid out and the diagrams are clear and nicely drawn. Construction is spread across 42 numerical stages with additional alphabetically listed sub-assembly stages running down the side of most pages. So for example, stage 22, the assembly of the ‘wheels-down’ closed starboard engine nacelle, is made up of sub-assemblies 22a, b and c, which includes a multi-part engine ‘rear-end’ and assorted pipework that can be seen through the

mixture of the fixtures and fittings of both versions. Fortunately most of these necessary parts are on the Airfix sprue. The area that needed some careful manual adjustment was the bomb bay doors, as although the AEW radome has been removed she is still fitted with the split bay doors whilst the restoration team hunt for a set of the long MR type. Apart from my self-inflicted

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Eduard’s 1/72nd scale MiG-15 UTI “Weekend” by Huw Morgan

COVER FEATURE 390 Sukhoi Su-33

warped fuselage, and correcting that caused a slight fit issue for the main canopy and roof lights.

Shack Attack

looks, I decided against painting the rest of the interior detail as it would be completely hidden once I completed the model. The fuselage halves fitted together very well, almost snapping into place. This was quickly followed with the underside panel, again the fit being excellent. Whilst that was setting I turned my attention to the radio shelf behind the cockpit. The exact equipment fitted varied widely depending on the nationality and the year. As supplied, the fit is pretty generic and in fairness, is close enough for most practical purposes and it looks reasonably close to the French version which was what I wanted. One thing to note is that the top of the bulkhead which separates the

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version Revell might do next???) but for both kits this is almost immaterial. The nose and tail sections in the Shackelton are black, and the rest of the internal detail can hardly be seen! I did attempt to paint up the interior of the Airfix kit to represent the real thing, and in order to see anything I have had to leave the entrance door and emergency hatches off/open, fortunately they all open inwards and so they can just be left off. One area for me that Airfix have scored really high is the clear parts, due to them all being designed to be fitted at the very end of the build. They are all attached from the outside, just watch the amount of paint that goes into the openings. As mentioned I had a slightly

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Tamiya, and moulded in crisp grey, white and black plastic, with some excellent details. Construction started with the cockpit, which builds up into a neat module, and the instrument panels have raised details which, when carefully painted, really come to life. The next stage was to work on the wheel wells and their sidewalls. In hindsight I should really have left the undercarriage legs off until later as it hindered the build, and I knocked mine off at least three times! The wheel wells fitted neatly into the lower wing, and the upper wing section then sealed everything in. Next was the jet intakes and exhaust cans, which have some nice surface detail. The cockpit tub was fitted to the lower front fuselage section, which then fits to the lower wing section, and then

“ The initial eight stages and three subassembly stages cover the construction of the Klimov VK105 engine ”

I and assistance from the SPT and it shows. There are certain areas of detail accuracy on the kit that do stand out, especially when compared to the Revell offering. The most noticeable are that the rear propeller blades are narrower in diameter, the roof lights are correctly staggered, the ‘spark plug’ on the fuselage for the phase 3 mods is the correct large size, and all of the windows are there. There is also much better detail in the wheel bays, and much more detail in the fuselage, some of the Revell interior is actually for a MR.3 (I wonder what

have to confess to knowing very little about Russian wartime aircraft. Indeed, it has remained an unspoken rule of mine never to build anything that would end up adorned with stars, either red or white. This bias may in part be excused by my growing up in a world overshadowed by the prospect of imminent incineration under a hail of Soviet and American nuclear missiles – the Cuban Missile Crisis happened the year after my birth. Or perhaps it was all the time I spent wearing NBC (nuclear, biological, chemical) suits during my years as a Cold War warrior that is responsible for my prejudices. Or it may just be a healthy preoccupation with all things British and German – who knows. The fact remains that only two Russian aircraft have ever really appealed to me: one being the rugged-looking and eminently functional Sturmovik and the other being the more graceful and possibly less well known, Petlyakov Pe-2 ‘Peshka’. So when Ed’ announced that he had one of the new Zvezda kits up for grabs, well, I grabbed it. The Russian kit manufacturer too is one that I have little knowledge of other than occasionally seeing their adverts in SAMI, and it was one of those adverts that first alerted me to the existence of the new 1/48th scale Pe-2. The Zvezda advertisement boldly proclaims that their products are ‘innovations in model kits’, but do the contents of the box match the rhetoric?

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ne of the most iconic symbols of the air war over Vietnam was the mighty F-4 Phantom. Operated by the USAF, the US Marines and the US Navy the ‘Rhino’ was used in the air defence, ground attack, reconnaissance and defence suppression missions, making it a true ‘jack of all trades’. This 1/48 offering from Academy is without doubt one of the finest F-4 kits on the market, well on a par with

ConsTruCTion

This starts with the cockpit as might be expected. Rudder pedals are separate as are the throttle levers on the left hand consoles. The white metal castings include two purpose made nose weights which are superglued under the cockpit tub as indicated. The instrument panels have just enough detail to show the exposed rear faces and the panel detail can be picked out with a silver pencil or dry brush as desired. The seats are made of five parts, although I would recommend leaving off the seat cushion, part D4, as the Magister was fitted with a bucket seat, the cushion being the parachute pack worn by the pilot.

Eduard’s MiG-15 UTI is a 2015 tooling issued to complement the singleseater fighter. The “Weekend” format follows the usual trend of plastic-only construction with, in this case, two decal options: a silver Soviet airframe (Blue 739) from 1968 as flown by Yuri Gagarin, and a sand/brown/light blue ship of the Iraqi Air Force in the 1980’s. For the sake of convenience, I got hold of the Eduard masking set, but it’s worth noting that for the same price as the basic kit and masks, one could buy the PriofiPACK version, and get a precoloured photo-etched set as well. The instructions are Eduard’s typical glossy, coloured booklet and lead one immediately into constructing the seats and cockpit. This whole

brown wash to bring out the detail without overpowering it, and added lead granules as nose weight. With the fuselage halves assembled loosely, a quick trial with the wings and tail taped in place suggested a bit more lead would be safer, so I added about another 3g under the cockpit floor. The jet pipe is assembled from two halves and an end piece which has a representation of the engine rear face, although such is the length of the pipe virtually nothing will be seen once built. The fit of the cockpit and jet pipe is very precise in the fuselage, and some care and dry fitting is needed

Feature

PESHKA challenge of shortening the bomb bay doors, and thus adding an extra bulkhead because I wanted the rear section open, the build was every bit as enjoyable and straightforward as expected with a new-tool Airfix kit. The fit is generally fine (just watch paint on mating surfaces) as long as the construction sequence is followed. Sadly for me I actually had a slightly warped fuselage that did cause a couple of irritations in fit at the final stages, mainly around the main canopy and roof lights. It was at this stage I received a set of the recent Barracuda resin replacement wheels, and I would recommend them to all, as the kit ones have less detail, and more importantly the main wheels come in 2 halves. The kit, as mentioned, was developed with a great deal of help

it’s not an aeroplane! I’d decided to pose the Eduard MiG with the canopy open on a hard standing, so wanted to add some life to form a mini-diorama. Brengun’s photo-etched boarding ladder (BRL72077) was the first component, painted a faded red, but I wanted to add an airfield vehicle too. Omega K offered the ideal option in the form of a ZIL-157 airfield refueller. (OM7204) The ZIL truck appeared in many forms, being roughly equivalent to the Dodge ‘Deuce and a Half’ 2½ Ton truck of WW II. Widely used by Soviet and Warsaw Pact forces in a number of guises, the ZIL was also often supplied to Soviet allies as part of the support deal. The Omega K kit is rather nice, having a full chassis made up of 25 parts, an interior for the cab, and very nicely detailed wheels. Three short lengths of brass rod are provided for the axles, allowing the simple tweak of bending the outer ends of the front axle to give some steering articulation. I replaced the hand grips on the tank with wire, and substituted plastic tube for the hose containers. Painting was straightforward, the entire model being sprayed Tamiya XF-13 JA Green and the prominent ‘inflammable’ Cyrillic logos applied to the sides of the tank before an overlay of XF-59 Desert Yellow and XF-60 Dark Yellow was laid on in thin coats to build up a worn, battered look where the green showed through in subtle and explicit ways. I did some dry-brushing with the JA Green and I used some of the kit markings for the contents labels, and stole some 1/144 scale Iraqi flags from a Printscale MiG-29 sheet (144-012) for the cab doors. The tyres were painted Tamiya XF-85 Rubber Black, and some dark pastel staining on the tank, and lighter dust on the wheels, completed the picture. I’m now looking for some 1/72 figures that might represent Iraqi pilots or ground crew.

MiG-15 UTI

O

The KiT

On opening the box, you are presented with a very well packed set of sprues. The majority of the kit is moulded in dark grey plastic, clear of flash and with finely engraved panel lines. Also included is a clear plastic fuselage which if used with the optional parts for the full interior, allows the modeller to build this as a full display model showing the interior construction. There is also a small fret of etched brass as well as a plastic tray of white metal castings, designed to replace some of the plastic parts in the kit. These white metal parts are some of the cleanest and neatest I can recall seeing in a model kit or from the aftermarket.

the kit

assembly is very cleverly done, and I particularly liked the way that the cockpit sides are curved to mimic the construction of the real aircraft, leaving the space for the intake ducting between them and the fuselage sides. The moulding is slightly simplified in detail, but the fit is terrific. I added a bit of detail to the seats in the form of simple plastic strip for the elbow guards and painted those and the ejector handles red for a splash of colour. Decals are provided for the seat belts and for the first time I’ve come across, they really look the part. I gave the whole cockpit tub a faint

1/48 Petlyakov Pe-2

MAY 2016

Zvezda’s 1/48th scale Petlyakov Pe-2 by Jay Blakemore

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KIt INFO

KiT inFo

Avant Garde Model Kits 1/48 Fouga Magister Review by Jonathan Davies, Aerobatic Display Teams SIG

vant Garde’ from the French means literally ‘advance guard’, referring to works that are experimental and innovative. It is also the brand of a relatively new company, AMK, seemingly from China, producing some very interesting kits. The Fouga Magister is a wellestablished trainer of French origin, used by many airforces around the world and the mount of many

he Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 needs very little introduction to anyone with more than a passing interest in jet aircraft development. Emerging immediately after WW II, and leaning heavily on captured information on advanced aerodynamics (bearing a strong resemblance to Kurt Tank’s Focke-Wulf Ta 183 in particular) and bought-in British engine technology, the MiG-15 first flew in 1947, quickly establishing its combat credentials in the Korean

War and subsequently over Suez. In its various versions, over 12,000 units are known to have been built, with the overall total including unofficial copies (irony there, then!) possibly exceeding 18,000 spread across around 45 national Air Forces. The MiG-15 UTI two-seat trainer was used by most operators, many being built in Poland and Czechoslovakia, and by China. The UTI retained a single-cannon armament for weapons training.

reviews

Quick Build

Scat XXVII

Fouga Magister

‘A

panel lineS Recessed

StatuS New Tool

Kinetic’s 1/48th scale Su-33 by Peter Marshall

Scale 1/48

Scale 1/72 product code 7433

plastic, no of partS 80 10 clear

Sukhoi Su-33

KIt nuMBer 88004

Manufacturer Eduard

decal optionS 2

390

Manufacturer Avant Garde

Painting

Eduard’s 1/72nd scale MiG-15 UTI “Weekend” by huw Morgan

ConstruCtion

Starting with stage 1, the cockpit, the detail is really good with some lovely moulding, but having been provided with some coloured etch by a company I’ve never heard of (Dream Model) I used that and while it’s possibly not up to the standard we’ve come to expect from Czech Manufacturers it is still better than anything I could paint. One problem I have with the pre-painted stuff is trying to find a match for their colours but I had something similar in the stash so that was OK. Stage 2 was the ejector seat, it’s very nice but a bit over complicated IMHO and if it wasn’t for the (aftermarket) coloured etch seat belts it would have been rather bare. With the etch it looks good but it would possibly benefit from a resin replacement. Stage 3 is putting the cockpit bits together, still very nice, and stage 4 is the nose wheel bay which all fits together extremely well. The main undercarriage bays (stage 5) are nicely detailed and the instructions have an interesting approach for

kit info

Kit inFo

Kinetic’s 1/48th scale Su-33 by Peter Marshall

KIT INFO

Feature

Sukhoi su-33

another. The port windows in the kit appear to be in approximately the right location, so using those as a template I partly filled some windows using plastic sheet and cut out new ones in the starboard side so they lined up with those in the port fuselage. The fuselage is basically an empty tube, so I scratch built a new floor and added bulkheads, and created a cockpit interior. To add seats in the passenger cabin I purchased several metal etch sets of the PART World War One seats, to which I added supports from Evergreen plastic 1 mm rod. All the interior bits were painted wood by first spraying a light sand colour, and after this had dried I brushed on heavily thinned red-brown enamel for a wooden lacquer appearance. The cockpit was further adorned with some small handles and knobs which were painted with some drops of bright colours. The windows from the kit were rather thick and distorted, so I cut windows from pre-masked acetate sheet, glued these in place using white glue, and closed the fuselage up. Fit here was actually not too bad, so just a bit of Tamiya putty and a bit of sanding, and the job was done. Dry-fitting the lower wings, I noted that either the door to the passenger cabin is too far to the front or the wings were too far aft. The fuselage door of the Vimy Commercial opened downwards, but with the wing placement of the kit, it would rest on the wing. Therefore the slots for the wings were lengthened forward by 5 mm. The lower wings were then glued in place, and after drying, lots of Tamiya putty was slabbed on to fair them in. While this dried I assembled the engines (with new exhausts from Evergreen rod),

Peshka

Zvezda’s 1/48th scale Petlyakov Pe-2 by Jay Blakemore

1/48 MesserschMitt Me 262A-1A

FeAture

Me 262A-1A

Tamiya 1/48 Messerschmitt Me 262A-1a with Antares resin conversion set by dick Clark

iNFO

1/48 Sukhoi Su-33

wheel struts, tailplane and upper wings. I also added the rudder and aileron control cables on the tail and wings, using 1 mm rod and 0.3 mm steel wire, and put them aside.

A touch of coLour

The fuselage was now sprayed with several thin layers of Tamiya TS-15 blue from a spray can. This gives a durable and shiny dark blue colour. The fuselage was then masked and all remaining bits and pieces, including the pre-assembled ones, received a coat of metallic silver. Only the struts and propellers were painted a light sand colour first and then brush painted with thinned red-brown enamels to give them a wooden look, the same technique I had used in the cabin interior. The masking was then removed and the remainder of the kit assembled as per the Maquette instructions. With that done, and after a few touch-ups, the entire model received a coat of Klear in preparation for decaling.

“ The end result looks great to me,

I

Manufacturer Tamiya Scale 1/48 KIt nuMBer 61087

must admit, until the Editor sent me this Antares conversion the Me 262 HG III had pretty much flown over my head. The pace of technological advancement in wartime Germany never ceases to amaze me, particularly in the field of aviation. While the development of reliable jet engines hit many a stumbling block, it seems the entire German aviation industry was preparing any number of ingenious designs to make the most of these power plants just as soon as they became available, and we may count ourselves fortunate indeed that they did not become available in time and the Luftwaffe did not receive these aircraft.

and without the Maquette kit this conversion would have been a lot more difficult ”

The Messerschmitt Me 262 needs no introduction in these pages. Along with the Gloster Meteor it was the first jet aircraft to enter active service and in its short blaze of glory it must surely have seen more rapid development than any other jet since. Some variations never got any further than sketched designs; others, such as the ultimate 262 development, the HG III (Hochgeschwindigkeit – High Speed) made it as far as wind-tunnel models being actively tested and a test airframe being under construction when the war ended.

The kiTs

The basis for this build was to be Tamiya’s lovely A-1a, although not much would be left by the time I’d finished! Added to this would be Antares’ resin conversion kit, comprising intakes, engine pods, jet outlets, belly section, wings and a choice of two tailplanes, with a fuselage extension for the butterfly tail and a lower rear cockpit section with a vacformed Renncabine (literally, racing cabin) canopy, In

fact, the kit includes two canopies, great for those who routinely mis-cut vacform canopies! I added some Luftwaffe etched seat belts from the spares box. The resin is fairly good although it does have a few pinholes, particularly along the trailing edges. However, panel lines are extremely fine; I would have preferred these to be more sharply defined, though.

The build

For a brief while, construction follows the recommended route according to Tamiya’s instructions. However, even at Stage 1 I would recommend making changes. I found I needed to remove the lower section of the rear bulkhead, up to the level of the underside of the cockpit tub – and don’t bother fitting part B23 as it will only get in the way and won’t be seen. I left the guns out of the gun bays in order to leave as much room for lead weight as possible, should it prove necessary. (As it turned out, I could have added the guns and not worried about weight as my model just about sits on its nose wheel. The addition of the guns would just make it sit that bit more positively on the front wheel.) I realize where HobbyBoss got

the idea of the metal nose landing gear bay from, as this kit has the same option, although this one is perhaps better cast. Use it, but don’t fit the nose wheel leg at this stage. I did fit the actuator strut, as this cannot be added later; I fitted it dry and then taped it up out of the way. The nose undercarriage/ gun bay and cockpit fit as per the kit but, again, don’t bother fitting the equipment (Parts C5 & C6) inside the fuselage, as they won’t be visible. Now you can close the fuselage up, and that’s where standard kit construction ends and the butchery begins! The first piece of resin I fitted was the belly section which includes the main wheel bays. I have to say Antares’ instructions are rather vague and this piece didn’t seem to fit very well. I had to cut away sections of the rear lower wing root to allow the part to slot in, but it seems too short for the opening – I wonder if the Antares parts were designed for a different base kit? But I had a HobbyBoss kit to hand for comparison and that seemed to present the same problem. To close the gap I simply cut a section from the rear of the Tamiya wing section and glued it in the gap, so it’s not a great problem. I now decided to remove all the

rest of the resin parts from their casting blocks, performing this task in my spray booth with the fan on to draw the dust in – and wearing a breathing mask as well, as resin dust is nasty, carcinogenic stuff. Another area where Antares’ instructions are none-too-clear is with regard to where to cut. On some parts, such as wings and tail surfaces, it’s obvious; on the jet intake and outlet sections, less so. So I just cut what looked like the resin bases off, reasoning that if I cut too much off I could always make up any shortfall with plastic

card inserts. The next job was to glue the intakes and jet pipes to the main engine nacelles. I attached the intakes first, aligning them with the wing root line. The mating of these two sections raises my only major disappointment with this conversion set, as the intake trunking does not remotely match up between these two parts. One could attempt to remove some of the front of the main nacelle section, and/or put filler in the intake section to blend the sections into one-another, but I felt this

BuILdIng the MAquette kIt

Amazingly an injection-moulded kit of this civilian pioneer is offered by Polish firm Maquette (made in Russia), but all is not well with this one. The Maquette Vimy Commercial kit consists of parts from the ancient Frog/Novo Vickers Vimy bomber, plus a new, very basic passenger fuselage and some other small additional airliner parts such as the nose wheel. The box also has a rather rudimentary set of instructions and a decal sheet for the Instone Air Line ‘City of London’, also included are markings for an air ambulance and troop transport. The bomber parts show the

All the components of the Antares conversion set. All that will be left of the donor kit will be the fuselage forward of the tail section!

age of the mould, with a lot of flash and ejector pin marks. The new fuselage parts are cleanly moulded, though there are some big accuracy problems. While the fuselage length is to scale, the window and door

“ The basis for this build was to be Tamiya’s lovely A-1a, although not much would be left by the time I’d finished! ”

arrangement is wrong. Maquette tried to incorporate features of the commercial, ambulance and transport versions in the same fuselage, resulting in the port and starboard windows not sitting directly across from one

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Vickers Vimy

The right fuselage half prior to closing up. You will need to remove the lower part of the rear cockpit bulkhead; this has not been done here as i did not realise the necessity

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Maquette’s Vickers Vimy Commercial. Britain’s first real airliner in 1/72nd by Peter Ibes

Clark’s Field

Tamiya 1/48 Messerschmitt Me 262A-1a with Antares resin conversion set by Dick Clark

REGULARS 396 News 398 Czech Out 400 Creative Times 402 First Look 404 Accessories 410 Decals 414 Reviews 462 Books & Media

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EDITORIAL

Welcome to Scale Aviation Modeller International

MAY 2016

Volume 22 • Issue 5 PRODUCED BY HOBBYZONE LIMITED UNDER LICENCE FROM SAM PUBLICATIONS 21 Kingsway, Bedford MK42 9BJ Telephone: +44 (0)1234 211245 Fax: +44 (0)1234 325927 Email: [email protected] Use the above address for back issue orders, subscriptions, enquiries or book orders. Note that we cannot undertake research into specific or general aviation queries and that there may be some delays in responses from the contributors, as they are not based at the editorial address. PUBLISHER SAM Publications GROUP EDITOR • Andy Evans [email protected] EDITOR • David Francis [email protected] ASSOCIATE EDITOR • Tim Upson-Smith [email protected] The editorial emails are ONLY to be used for editorial submissions. They are NOT for subscription payments or queries, back issues or Modellers Datafile orders. Please send all of these to the Media House address detailed at the top of this column. STUDIO MANAGER • Jonathan Phillips PAGE DESIGN & LAYOUT • Andy Folds PRE-PRESS PRODUCTION • HobbyZone Limited PRINT PRODUCTION • Stephens & George Ltd SAMI TEAM • Paul Bradley • Geoff Cooper-Smith • Andy Evans • John Fox • Andy McCabe • Tim Upson Smith CONTRIBUTORS THIS MONTH • Huw Morgan • Carmel Attard • Konstantinre Malinovski • Kevin Shaw • Don Robson • Carmel Attard • Peter Ibes • Bob Cantrell • Jay Blackmore • Jonathan Davies ADVERTISING SALES • Mark Willey [email protected] DISTRIBUTION • COMAG Tavistock Road, West Drayton, Middlesex UB7 7QE Tel: 01895 433777 NORTH AMERICAN DISTRIBUTION • Disticor 695 Westney Rd South, Suite 14, Ajax, Ontario, Canada L1S 6M9 Tel: + 1 (905) 619 6565

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Scale Aviation Modeller International

T

he evenings are lighter, the days warmer and spring will have well and truly sprung by the time you read this, and like many modellers I am in the midst of the spring blitz on my workshop. Over the winter I have started a number of modelling projects and as we rapidly approach the summer when my modelling takes a bit of a backseat to outdoor pursuits, it is time to finish these off. Every year it is the same, I start in September with the aim of never having more than one project on the bench. Over the winter months various new kits will come in demanding immediate attention on the work bench, and as I write no less that two armoured vehicles, one sci-fi kit and three aircraft projects are now scattered around on every available flat surface. Some are almost complete and a few have their major parts clipped from the runners just to see how they would fit. Am I the only one who does this? The problem is that I know that if I consign them back into their boxes, most will never see the light of day again. Or even worse some small but important part or assembly will disappear into that black hole that lurks in the corner of my workshop, and is the only explanation as to where so many parts disappear never to be seen again. My annual spring clean frenzy normally starts at the beginning of April and is normally finished by early June with a number of newly finished kits sitting proudly on my shelf. Or alternatively in the bin as I muck things up by rushing to get them finished before the high temperatures in my loft space drives me out for the summer. I will also have cleaned and serviced all my airbrushes and all my paints and decals will be sorted and stored away in an orderly

fashion. Hopefully I will also have completed the process of putting every brass and resin set I have purchased over the last year in the relevant kit box so it is ready for immediate use. So in the summer my modelling is curtailed to the bare minimum though I do have the annual pilgrimage to the US Nationals and a few shows around the UK to keep my modelling juices flowing. Then in September my family say goodbye to me as the ice hockey season starts in the UK and my Saturday nights are booked up, the loft is not cool enough for me to go into modelling overdrive most evenings. Normally with a new project that I am sure will win a medal at Telford in November - it’s never happened yet but I always live in hope! We have also carried out a small spring clean of the magazine - a return of proper models to the cover is the most obvious. But we have also carried out some small changes to the contents leading to more modelling articles and reviews for you to read than ever before. I hope you enjoy the latest issue of your magazine.

David Francis

Editor [email protected]

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Next on sale 26th May 2016

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1/48 SUKHOI SU-33

SUKHOI SU-33 KIT INFO

Kinetic’s 1/48th scale Su-33 by Peter Marshall

MANUFACTURER Kinetic SCALE 1/48 KIT NUMBER K48062 TYPE Injection moulded PANEL LINES Recessed PARTS Lots

T

he Sukhoi Su-33, NATO reporting name Flanker-D, is an allweather, carrier-based twin-engined air superiority fighter designed by Sukhoi and manufactured by Komsomolskon-Amur Aircraft Production Association. It is a derivative of the Su-27 “Flanker” and was initially known as the Su-27K. First used in operations in 1995 aboard the carrier Admiral Kuznetsov the fighter officially entered service in August 1998, by which time the designation Su-33 was used. Following the break-up of the Soviet Union and the subsequent downsizing of the Russian Navy, only 24 aircraft were produced and

attempted sales to China and India fell through. Compared with the Su-27, the Su-33 has a strengthened undercarriage and structure, folding wings and stabilators, specifically for carrier operations. The wings are also enlarged compared to land-based aircraft for increased lift. The Su-33 has upgraded engines and a twin nose wheel, and is air-refuellable. In 2009, the Russian Navy ordered the MiG-29K as a replacement for the Su-33. I was very excited to be asked to do a quick build of this kit, as the Su-27 family has produced some very interesting aircraft, and I can only hope that the fact Kinetic have made a kit of an aircraft of which only 24 were built means they will be doing some of the other variants as well.  The box is full of excellent looking plastic with some thoughtful packaging to protect the exhausts and the remarkably moulded missiles, a sheet of very flexible brass and a decal sheet designed by Crossdelta (printed by Cartograf) and it all looks very, very nice.  As it was a “quick build” I decided to just get on with it and avoid getting bogged down trying to find vast amounts of reference material, so…

CONSTRUCTION

Starting with stage 1, the cockpit, the detail is really good with some lovely moulding, but having been provided with some coloured etch by a company I’ve never heard of (Dream Model) I used that and while it’s possibly not up to the standard we’ve come to expect from Czech Manufacturers it is still better than anything I could paint.  One problem I have with the pre-painted stuff is trying to find a match for their colours but I had something similar in the stash so that was OK.  Stage 2 was the ejector seat, it’s very nice but a bit over complicated and if it wasn’t for the (aftermarket) coloured etch seat belts it would have been rather bare.  With the etch it looks good but it would possibly benefit from a resin replacement. Stage 3 is putting the cockpit bits together, still very nice, and stage 4 is the nose wheel bay which all fits together extremely well. The main undercarriage bays (stage 5) are nicely detailed and the instructions have an interesting approach for assembling

this area. They would have you construct the bay inner sections first from four main parts that simply butt join and then install this completed assembly into the provided receptacle.  I would have thought it easier to fit them one by one into the space provided to insure a perfect fit with less chance of making a mistake, but what do I know? Actually, on the subject of the instructions, I’m not totally sure about them in general.  Personally I prefer the traditional line drawings to shaded, CAD produced images, and the placement instructions just aren’t accurate enough in a lot of places (especially with small parts where the orientation is unclear not helped by the part looking nothing like the illustrations as well) and random bits of CAD file appear from time to time just to confuse the issue. Some parts aren’t numbered, occasional ones float there, identified but with no suggestion of where to fit them, while some parts are numbered incorrectly and handed parts (numbered differently on the sprue) are called out with the same number on the instructions.  OK, the chances are you have made a few kits if you’re tackling this one

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“ The Sukhoi Su-33 is an all-weather, carrier-based twin-engined air superiority fighter ”

and you can work it out, but these instruction errors seem to happen more often than I would like these days and this one is a real shocker, frankly. I don’t remember this sort of thing in the days when I started making kits all those decades ago.  Proofreading seems to have died a death…   Anyway rant over (almost)!  One thing I did like to start with was that all the parts I used up to stage 5 came off basically one sprue (except the ejector seat and all that was on one sprue except one part and some etch) which made a pleasant change from trawling four or five sprues just

for one assembly as I have done on another kit recently.  But then the instructions took a further turn for the worse.  I’m assuming that anyone who has ever built a model will ignore most of stage 6, it is inconceivable that ANYONE would fit the undercarriage bay doors (main and nose), with their actuating struts, before they’ve even joined the fuselage halves together.  SERIOUSLY?!?!  So many instructions have you attach fragile and small, sticky-out parts at early stages just inviting you to knock them off during the rest of the build, but this is the worst I can remember seeing.  Bonkers… 

And the drawings here show the main gear doors installed explicitly open (but also in a way closed) and positioned relative to a part that doesn’t get fitted until stage 9 and then every subsequent drawing shows them closed. 

I moved onto stage 7, intake trunking to engine faces.  There’s some etch involved at the engine face, the way the part is made and the drawing on the instructions implies that the vanes should be bent in their frame but it isn’t

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expressly stated.  I did a quick Google search (there I go looking for references!) and yes, you do need to bend each vane through 90 degrees, there are 23 of them on each part (which appears to be correct) and it is a bit fiddly but you soon get into the swing of it…  Parts F3 and F4 are (incorrectly) shown as the same, it’s obvious which goes where but it makes it unclear which of F14 and F15 goes with which.  Test fitting I found it much easier to install F14 and F15 into the outer parts of the trunking (parts F5 and F16, (though this is really stage 9)) where it’s obvious which goes where, and it is also easier to position the engine fronts to the sub-assembly this way than the method suggested by the instructions. Next I am going to skip ahead a few steps to stage 14 where we install the really nice arrestor hook (six parts!  two of which you have to play guess the numbers of, but we’re getting used to that, aren’t we?) and some weapons pylons, one under each inboard wing section (possibly the best detailed kit pylons I’ve ever seen, BTW).  So back a bit… Stage 8 seems a little sparse, it has you fit two parts.  I’m not sure you needed a whole A4 sheet to tell you that (though there are

a couple of random, unidentified floating parts as well, but I ignored those), and then stage 9 where, as discussed, I fitted the parts from stage 7.  Stage 10 was adding a few bits for the undercarriage area and then the undercarriage itself is covered in stages 11 to 13.  The nose gear is a kit in its own right being made up from 26 parts, and is very nice. Though I assembled it I didn’t fit it at this time, it’s too easy to damage though it’s certainly more substantial than the normal Su-27 item!  Take care with the FOD guard parts, I’m pretty sure I followed the instructions correctly but I ended up with them in reverse order, as I found when I

tried to fit the wheels.  It MAY be that I got it wrong, or it may be that the instructions did, anyway the largest guard goes at the bottom, nearest the ground. The main gear is a good representation of the real thing and again quite a few parts are involved but having assembled them all I didn’t fit them to the model till nearer the end of construction. Having already done stage 14, I went straight to stage 15

which would have you fit more undercarriage doors and the rear ventral fins.  I again left all this for the moment as I felt some painting was called for first.  So onto stage 16, the exhausts and very nice they are too and I think Kinetic must be quite proud of them, given how well they’ve packed them in their own box. The internal section doesn’t have a particularly positive fit so be careful as it would easy to have it extend too far out the back of the outer section. The afterburner flame holder is pretty complicated and under-instructed (there, I’ve blamed the parts, not

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the instructions.  Because I’m not mentioning them again, am I?) but it looks like it’s a very nice representation of the real thing. It’s far enough down the exhaust to not matter too much if you do muck it up but it is very striking. With the exhaust completed I checked I could add them after joining the fuselage halves after stage 17 which consists of fitting a few cockpit bits and joining the fuselage halves together.   Stage 18 and 19 cover the forward cockpit area and the canopy structure.  It’s probably one of the best kit canopy assemblies I’ve ever seen, it really annoys me how sparse most canopies are but not in this case, there’s lots of internal structure but the instructions are a bit unhelpful as to exactly how the parts are arranged.  Stage 20 would have you fit both parts of the canopy to the fuselage, I fitted the front section but left the main section off for now. 

“ It’s probably one of the best kit canopy assemblies I’ve ever seen ” The air brake is most of stage 21 (I fitted it closed but it looks really good open though I didn’t feel it was appropriate on my model). On to making up the inner flaps in stage 22, the vertical tails in 23 and attaching the nose in stage 24 (without any of the fiddly bits, it’s probably worth mentioning that the kit part breaks where the real thing hinges so if you wanted to do a maintenance diorama you have the option), next came the outer flaps and outer wing sections in 25 and 26 which are a brilliant representations of the control surfaces. It was at this point I thought I would do some painting as there was no way I would be able to mask and paint the inner vertical tail surfaces if they were attached, and as I was also going to fold the wings as well, painting was obviously going to have happen before final assembly.  I should just mention that the fit of the

wings is surreal, I have never seen an injection-moulded kit where that many tiny tabs would fit so perfectly into so many tiny slots.  State-of-the-art is sometimes a term overused but in this case I feel it’s justified. 

PAINTING AND DECALS

Painting was a bit of a problem, not just what colours to use (as there appear to be quite a few different schemes both historically and extant, two-tone, threetone, lighter, darker, some bright blues, some toned down) but in detail painting too; as looking at pictures there are variations in metal and dielectric panels as well.  The overall scheme instructions (monochrome unfortunately) call for Gunze paints (including a 70/30

mix for one of them) without telling you what the colours actually are and which I don’t have, and finding alternatives either in FS or my preferred Xtracolor was a bit tricky.  I had decided on Xtracolor X601, 602 and 603 which are described as various Flanker blues but unfortunately I only had a dried up tin of 601 and everywhere I looked was out of stock of all of them.  Your editor provided me with a tin of 601 but they appear to have changed the mix and the newer tin was much lighter than both my previous tin and what I initially had in mind to do one of the very blue schemes (which was basically the stuff in the old tin!).  So, in what I understand to be the spirit of the Russian military, I used what I had to do one of the more subdued schemes that I had fairly good pictures for, and damn the consequences. I’m not big on masking but it had to be done and there were four days or so of rolling Blu Tack, cutting paper masks, painting and

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repeating. The paints I used were X208 RLM76 for the lightest blue/ grey, X601 Flanker Medium Blue and a 66/33 mix of X160 Synthetic Haze Blue/X125 Intermediate Blue for the darkest colour. Now I had a box full of painted parts that needed a bit of detail work, like the leading edges, which are painted either a bare, dull metal or a odd shade of grey or maybe a mixture of the two, before I could apply decals and topcoat.  The decals are really good, as you expect from Cartograf/Cross Delta but be aware that markings, as well as colour schemes, have changed over time.  I have seen pictures of the eagle on the tail and the flag near the cockpit showing different sizes and in different positions to those supplied/suggested, along with other less obvious differences.  But I went with what I had and with the decals applied and a coat of semi-gloss to seal it all in it was time

to put the jigsaw together, which is basically what stage 27 to 29 cover.

CONSTRUCTION CONTINUED

I now added the detail parts to the vertical tails, the top aerials are really nicely done and I think some of the etch is supposed to be attached to them?  It’s not mentioned but they’re not used for anything else and they kind of look the part, so I fitted them anyway.  I now fitted the inboard flaps, the vanes under the rear fuselage, the inner horizontal tail parts and then it was time for the folded wings.  With carrier aircraft I feel folded wings are a must, not least because the kit takes up a lot less space on the shelf but in this case the wing mechanism is so good it would be a shame not to show it off.  The links and struts to fit the wings folded were actually the hardest part of

the kit, they required a bit of work to get them to fit and allow the wing fold detail to match up, but after a couple of tries I got there in the end. The individual etched ‘Odd Rods’ aerials at the nose and tail were a joy (not!) as were the pitch/ yaw vanes, and this kit is getting seriously hard to pick up as you now have so many small parts to knock off. And there are still the canards, outer horizontal tail parts and the missiles to fit! I next attached the tail parts and the canopy and then it was time for the weaponry to be added. The missiles are amazing, one-piece mouldings for the R-27 Alamos are something else but the R-73s (I believe incorrectly identified as R-27s on the instructions) have more etch than I would like but look pretty good if you take your time.  As it was I had some resin R-27s from Plus Model and used them, these are a lot more work and while the IR versions look better than the kit ones the radar

ones look a bit short in the radome department.  That said they do give you the option of posing the fins slightly offset and have alternative noses with seeker covers which I thought added a bit more interest.  With the missiles fitted I added the canards, the nose pitot and did a last bit of topcoat semi-matt vanish where required and it was done!

CONCLUSION 

This is gorgeous.  It’s actually quite difficult to explain how much I enjoyed making it, just about every time I picked it up

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FEATURE

something just fitted exactly where it should and made me smile, I got an absurd amount of satisfaction making it.  And as a ‘quick’ build I was really pleased how it went. I know there are people on the editorial team who, when required, can knock stuff out in a few days; this took me a little under three weeks and it’s the first time (I think) that I’ve been doing remedial touchup painting round the decals at one end while still building the other end, but it was kind of fun! The instructions, however, let it down badly but, with the proviso that I didn’t do any really deep digging for references, this kit is still wonderful (and I would say that just about every detail I DID search for, the plastic reflects pretty nearly perfectly).  I know it’s only January and I don’t do

a kit of the year anyway but if I did this would likely be it, and I’m worried that everything else for the next twelve months will be a disappointment.  This is the best release from Kinetic I’ve ever built, I just hope they are planning to do some more of the Flanker derivatives and the fact there are two seats in the box gives me hope that they are.  This is easily 9/10, and it’s only the instructions that lost that last mark. My thanks to Lucky Model for supplying us with the Kinetic kit to build before its official release.

REFERENCES

Best references I found: • http://scalemodels.ru/modules/ photo/viewcat_cid_104.html • http://walkarounds.scalemodels. ru/v/walkarounds/avia/ after_1950/Su-33_details/?g2_ page=1

• http://walkarounds.scalemodels. ru/v/walkarounds/avia/ after_1950/su-33/?g2_page=1

“ This is gorgeous.  It’s actually

quite difficult to explain how much I enjoyed making it, ” WWW.SAMPUBLICATIONS.COM • MAY 2016 395

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NEWS

May News

News and forthcoming products from around the world.

W

ith many manufacturers taking time off for the Easter break it has been a really quiet month on the new announcement front, but we have made up for this with an exclusive look at the new Eduard Bf 109G and Attack Squadron’s F2F-1, both in 1/48 scale. (see pages 402 & 403) If your company or product is not featured and you would like it to be please contact us at the editorial email address.

SUBSCRIBERS’ APRIL PRIZE DRAW WINNERS; Mr Wallace, UK Mr Offutt, USA Mr Whyburn, USA Entry to the monthly prize draw is FREE to all subscribers

Kitty Hawk There are details of the marking options for the Kitty Hawk Super Etendard which is due to be released about the time you read this. Special marking are supplied for three of the six examples including two Tiger Meet schemes, as well as the three standard camouflage schemes applied to the type during its long service with the French navy. The other two options are unsurprisingly from Iraq and Argentina.

Red Roo Some years ago CMR Models released a spectacular 1/72 Short Empire flying boat which was a great market success. They did intend to follow it up with kits for the extemporised armed versions used by the RAF and RAAF but they never did appear. For Australian enthusiasts Red Roo have released a conversion kit which enables the completion of any one of the five armed C-Class boats used by the RAAF. It consists of resin parts for the gun position wind deflectors and for the clear bomb aiming cupola, brass castings for bomb racks and armament, a scribing template and a comprehensive decal sheet that includes markings for all five aircraft operated by the RAAF during WW2. Note that these aircraft are quite different to the four Empire boats used by the RAF which were a more involved conversion. The 18-page, full colour instruction sheet is a highlight of the conversion kit. It includes full conversion instructions and clearly sets out which parts apply to which aircraft. Each of the five aircraft has a section devoted to its history, camouflage and marking schemes, including the various changes at different times during the aircraft’s service life. As the CMR kit is still available this conversion may encourage military aircraft modellers to try something quite different. RRR72166 1/72 Scale RAAF Short C-Class Empire Flying Boat Conversion for the CMR Kit This item will be available from the Red Roo web site www. redroomodels.com or from Blackbird Models in the UK at http://www. blackbirdmodels.co.uk/

Great Wall Hobby More information has been revealed on the new GWH 1/48 scale T-33 Shooting Star and this looks like it will be the most accurate kit of the type to date. Markings are supplied for the Luftwaffe example with the black tulip markings around the nose, a rather plain Italian example and the more colourful example seen on the box top.

Fisher Model and Pattern After the recent release of the their 1/32 scale Meteor two-seat trainer conversion, work is now well advanced on a NF.11 night fighter conversion based on the HK model Meteor F.4.

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NEWS

Czech Out

Our Monthly look at News from the Czech Republic by Tim Upson-Smith

S

ome new releases this month as well as some welcome re-releases, to tempt the wallet. Of course the Eduard new-tooling Bf 109G in 1/48 scale is the big news and I am sure will be very popular, but the one that caught my eye this month is the very obscure Miles Libellula from CMK/Planet, I like things that are a little different… If your company or product is not featured and you would like it to be please contact us at the editorial email address.

AZ This month from AZ we have a new version of the ever popular 1/72 Bf 109, the G-14AS, which will be available in two boxings: a foreign/captured box and a Luftwaffe boxing. This month sees some rereleases from AZ, the first of these is the 1/72 scale Gloster Gauntlet, being released in no less than three different boxings, Finnish Air Force, RAF and RAF Munich Crisis. Also in 1/72 scale we find a re-release of the Auster AOP.III with three decal options, Australian, Israeli and Czech. Lastly in 1/72 scale is the Spitfire VIII in RAAF markings. For airline fans we have in 1/144 scale a re-release of the Tupolev Tu-134 in Air Koryo markings.

RS The Avro Rotas in 1/72 scale are still on their way and as soon as they become available we will let you know! I must confess I am really looking forward to building at least one of these…

Eduard By the time you read this the all-new-tooled 1/48 scale Bf 109G-6, will have hit the shops; Eduard very kindly sent us a pre-release example which is previewed elsewhere in this issue. May’s releases from Eduard have a distinctly Czech feel to them with the release of a limitededition boxing entitled MF, celebrating the MiG-21 MF and M in Czech and Slovak service. In the box you will find along with the plastic for one MiG, a 100-page+ book on the MiG-21MF/M in Czech and Slovak service (the book is in Czech, but an English translation will be available), colour photoetch, masks and a decal sheet covering no fewer than 39 options! The decal sheet is partly printed by Cartograf and Eduard and even features two Czech MiGs with pinup nose art; I would love to know the story behind those and for how long they sported them. This kit will be limited to just 1,500 examples and is bound to sell out quickly. Seeing a very welcome return in 1/48 scale in a ProfiPACK edition is the Avia B.534 III series. This one has been unavailable for a while now, so restock whilst you can! Also re-released in a ProfiPACK edition is the 1/72 scale La-7 with marking options for eight Soviet and Czech schemes. In the Weekend line, Eduard are continuing with their re-release of their First World war catalogue, this month seeing the return of the 1/48 scale Nieuport Ni.11. As ever a busy month from Eduard, to keep up to date with all of the accessories released by Eduard visit their webpage at www.Eduard.com .

Brengun New this month from Brengun we have news of a new range of 1/144 plastic kits, the first of which are two boxings of the Bachem Ba 349 Natter. Both versions will have two full kits in the box. Also new this month is a 1/72 scale Spitfire Mk IX floatplane… As always there is also a nice selection of photo-etch sets and accessories, so keep an eye on www. brengun.cz for all the latest releases.

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MAY 2016

Special Hobby/CMK/Planet Models

Fly

The folk at Special Hobby have been very busy over the last few weeks working on the moulds for the 1/32 scale Tempest, which will be available in both Mk II and Mk V versions, full test shots of the models should have taken place by the time you read this, so fingers crossed! As well as the Tempest moulds Special Hobby have been working on the new moulds for the 1/72 scale Fairey Barracuda Mk II/III. When the Tempest moulds are ready work will continue apace on this one. In the meantime whist we wait patiently for those, we can look forward to the following a lot sooner! First up is the Heinkel He 178 V1 in 1/48 scale, this is the original Condor kit, which has been unavailable now for some time. It has been re-boxed with the new Special Hobby label and with new updated full colour instructions. Next in 1/72 scale is the Reggiane Re.2003 prototype, again this is a re-release, featuring photoetched parts and a vacformed canopy. The third release for April is the 1/72 scale Me 163A. The model kit contains the plastic parts from the earlier-released Condor C72001 model of the Me 163A. This new boxing comes with a new decal sheet, nicely detailed resin cockpit parts and a PE-fret. If you can wait Special Hobby have announced that they will be releasing the Me 163A with a Sleuch Slepper tractor and trailer which will solve display issues for the type. Also announced as coming soon, is a kit in 1/72 scale for fans of French jets, the Vautour IIN with Cyrano radar. CMK/Planet Models have one new release in 1/72 scale this month that I am looking forward to, the Miles Libellula, in resin with white metal undercarriage and vacformed canopy. Alfred from Special Hobby showed an early test shot of this kit to myself and David Francis at the Nuremberg Toy Fair, hoping I think to puzzle us… as we are both ‘enthusiasts’ we knew what it was instantly! As ever keep an eye on the Special Hobby website www.specialhobby.eu .

The 1/32 scale Hurricanes will be shipping by the time you read this. We hope to bring you a closer look at this kit next month. Fly have released some extra goodies to go with the

kit, in the form of a vacform canopy, canopy masks and resin cannon barrels.

Valom Now available from Valom in 1/72 scale, are the Fokker T.V and the Ryan L-17A/B Navion in FAU markings. Still coming soon we can look forward to: •7  2101 Heinkel He 119 V4 (What if) •7  2112 Grumman J2F-6 Duck Handley Page Harrow and Handley Page Sparrow In Valom’s ever expanding range of 1/144 scale First World War aircraft kits are a Bristol F.2b Fighter and Rumpler C.IV which should be available soon.

Kovozavody Prostejov (KP) The new KP 1/72 scale Piper 18 is getting nearer, and the new 1/72 scale Spitfire Ib is also now available joining the already released new early mark Spitfires from KP. I am not sure of the provenance of this one, but KP have announced an Aero C3. I have the original KP kit of the Aero in my stash and from the sprue shots I have seen it is not a re-boxing of the original. www. kovozavody.cz

Mark 1 As mentioned last month Mark 1 announced the release of three boxing of the Brewster Buffalo, in 1/144 scale. I was going to prepare a preview of the kit for this issue but the plastic got the better of me, so for more infomation on the kit please see the build review in this issue! Surfice to say I liked it!

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Sposored by Creative Models www.creativemodels.co.uk

PREVIEWS

Creative Times A Selection of new releases now available from Creative Models

ME262B-1A/ Avis Cs.92

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INFO

SCALE 1/48 KIT NO. HBB80380

JUNKERS JU-87D “STUKA”

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AVIA B534 LATE SERIES QUARTO COMBO ( CONTAINS 4 KITS) MANUFACTURER Eduard

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ME262B-1A/ AVIS CS.92 MANUFACTURER Hobbyboss

PRICE £16.99

SCALE 1/144

MANUFACTURER Trumpeter SCALE 1/32 KIT NO. TU03217 PRICE £52.99

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SUPERMARINE SPITFIRE MK.XVI BUBBLETOP

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Avia B534 Late Series Quarto Combo

DECAL OPTIONS 2

STATUS Revised Tool

STATUS Revised Tool

PRICE £14.99 DECAL OPTIONS 8 STATUS New Decals

SCALE 1/48 KIT NO. 84141 PRICE £14.99

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SAAB J-32B/E Lansen

Legion Condor Bf109 & He-51 INFO

SAAB J-32B/E LANSEN MANUFACTURER Hobbyboss SCALE 1/48 KIT NO. HBB81752 PRICE £36.99 DECAL OPTIONS 2 STATUS Revised Tool

Messerschmitt Bf109-G2

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MANUFACTURER Eduard SCALE 1/48 KIT NO. ED1140 PRICE £29.99 BF109 + DECAL OPTIONS 4 4 HE 51

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MDF Scaled Down #4 By Paul Bradley The Sea Fury was perhaps the embodiment of the last generation of piston-engined fighters – sleek, light, powerful, fast, and maneuverable. These particular attributes were precisely what had been called for thirty-years previously when the RAF wanted something akin to the Fw 190 that was then plaguing their Spitfires, but also to go up against the nimble Japanese fighters over the South East Asia and Western Pacific theatres. Just too late for that war, the Sea Fury proved itself in combat over the skies of Korea; even downing a MiG15 to prove its dogfighting abilities. Coming at the sunset of the piston fighter era, the Sea Fury had a relatively short service life. This new MDF Scaled Down from acclaimed author Paul Bradley brings to life the full story of the Sea Fury, with concise and authoritative text, historic photographs, colour artwork, a walk around and schematic diagrams.

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FIRST LOOK!

Previews GORGEOUS GUSTAV Eduard 1/48th scale Messerschmitt Bf 109G-6 Late (2016) by David Francis

M

any manufacturers have at some time or another made a mistake with a new kit and in 2014 it was Eduard’s turn. There had been a lot of hype surrounding the release of their new Bf 109G which was to form the basis of a whole family of late mark Messerschmitts during 2015-2016. But all was not well: at first the online experts found a number of small detail errors that Eduard could have fixed but the nail in the coffin was the revelation that the kit was actually scaled incorrectly and was nearer 1/45 scale. So for only the second time I can recall a manufacturer completely scrapped the moulds and went back to the drawing board (Trumpeter’s Wildcat 1/32 was the first). So move on two years and we have an all-new kit of the Bf 109G and my first action was to compare it to my plans, and I am glad to say it matches spot on with all my references. On opening the box you will find

four sprues and the detail on these parts is among the finest I have ever seen, treading carefully the line between too shallow and too deep. It is obvious from the start that this is the basis of a whole family of 109s with multiple propellers, wheel hubs and canopies on the runners not required for the markings supplied in the box. I am not going to give a blow-byblow on the build as there are only a few ways you can construct a small fighter like the 109, but I will give you an idea how detailed this kit is by looking at the cockpit. We start with fifteen basic plastic parts which include the complete fuel line on the starboard side being moulded

in clear. This with careful painting makes it easy to reproduce the clear viewing section of the real thing. But that is not all as twenty-six pre-finished etched brass items can add even more detail if you want to. And you do get a choice as items like the multi-part brass instrument panel are also supplied as a far simpler plastic panel, which you can paint or use the supplied instrument decals. This is a theme on this kit because options abound from separate control surfaces to optional canopies. And as well as a full etched-brass fret this kit also supplies a full set of masks for the canopy and wheels. As you would expect Eduard have really gone to town on the decal options for this kit with no fewer than five schemes, all of which have Reich Defence Bands and include two in very plain finishes for those who worry about applying a mottle camouflage. To say the stencils supplied are comprehensive is an understatement as over 100 images are contained on their own decal sheet.

CONCLUSION I am not an expert and I am sure many of those will appear over the next few months to highlight that a panel line is 1mm out of place. But looking at the contents of this kit out-of-box I think this is a definite candidate for the best Messerschmitt Bf 109 to date. And I am sure over the next few months we will see many more boxings based on this kit as well as loads of brass and resin extras from Eduard’s other product ranges. By the time you read this I am sure the Info Eduard newsletter will have details of their plans as well as useful historical information, so visit the website at www.eduard.cz to download the latest and previous issues of this worthwhile read. Our thanks to Eduard for providing this kit in advance of its UK release.

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MAY 2016

GRUMMAN F2F-1

INFO

Attack Squadron’s 1/48th scale Grumman F2F-1 by Andy Renshaw

MANUFACTURER Attack Squadron SCALE 1/48 PRODUCT CODE 48036 www.attacksquadron.pl

A

s an aficionado for an US Naval aircraft, I was quite excited to see a company producing a pre-war USN biplane! This somewhat forgotten era rarely gets many kits, most likely because of the fairly short service life and limited use of the subjects. The Grumman F2F-1 is no exception being that only 55 were produced, serving four years in frontline service; however its success propelled Grumman onward to produce decades of famous naval aircraft. Attack Squadron’s resin rendition of this little fighter might be only the second time it has been produced in 1:48, with the first being a vacuform kit that is now decades old. Attack’s model is 3D designed, and the masters were 3D printed. The resin castings not only provide an accurate shape of airframe, but also the panel joints, various fasteners, raised rivets and Dzus fittings are faithfully reproduced. The castings themselves are flawless, and are produced in a nice grey resin.

Of interest is the overall simplicity of the kit, as many assemblies are cast as one piece thus eliminating a lot of tedious small parts. Photo-etch is kept at a minimum, and only where logical. Having built several of the excellent Accurate Miniatures F3F kits (the F2F’s successor), there is some interesting similarity to the breakdown of the parts and how the kit assembles, which is encouraging for a biplane as this hopefully means this little resin kit will fall together just as nicely. Some notable features are a full engine with exhaust ring and pipes, full cockpit, and nicely reproduced landing gear. Instructions are clear diagram style with straightforward callouts for the parts. Decals are provided on a 12×17 cm sheet allowing the modeller to build almost all F2F-1s produced,

with six marking options specifically called out: four from US Navy squadrons and two from US Marines. Decals look good other than the USMC Eagle-globeAnchor, as this looks a little fuzzy and lacking some of the finer detail. Also fonts for the “F2F-1” on the tricolor tail appear to be in two sizes when they should be a consistent size. The rest of the supplied numbers and letters look good, so one may just wish to paint the tail and cut up the other text for the proper black and white “F2F-1”. Overall this looks to be a sweet gem of a kit. I am really looking forward to getting a start on cutting the resin and getting this assembled! Highly recommended for any pre-war USN/ USMC aviation fans or those who just want a little different subject on the display shelf! Our sincere thanks to Attack Squadron for providing the sample kit.

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ACCESSORIES

Accessories Finescale Model World

Pilot Replicas To go with their new SAAB Tunnan kit, Pilot Replicas have released a multi-media kit of the Dodge WC-52. This aircraft was used to tow the aircraft as well as for general duties around the airfield. The kit supplies parts in both resin and brass and includes markings for six examples used by the Swedish Army and Air Force.

1/48 SCALE

48-R-044 Dodge WC-52

CONCLUSION A really useful addition especially if you have a Tunnan and the associated pilot figure operating the controls that Pilot Replicas released last month. Bearing in mind that Dodge produced over 60, 000 units which served all over the world, I am sure many other uses can be found for this kit by both aviation and military modellers. Our thanks to Pilot Replicas for this pair of releases which can be seen on their website at www.pilot-replicas. com and in due course will be available from Hannants in the UK.

Many scale aircraft modellers may not know this company, as they come from the railway modelling side of our hobby. But do not let that put you off as I am a firm believer in attending model railway shows as I believe they produce some of the best dioramas you can see. And of course many of the tools and techniques can be used in both aviation and military modelling. Now FMW have sent us a selection of products that are applicable to all types of modellers.

Modellers Prep Set This set supplies a selection of different abrasives used to prepare your model for painting. The prep set compromises 4 sheets of 1000, 1500, 2000, 2500 grit wet-and-dry paper (140mm x 58mm) and 2 sheets of red Scotch pads (fine) 76mm x 45mm and 2 sheets of grey Scotch pads (extra fine) 76mm x 45mm.

CONCLUSION This is just a small selection of the items available from Finescale Model World and if you use static grass on your models have a look at their static grass applicator at www.finescalemodelworld.co.uk. Many thanks to FMW for supplying these items for review.

Paint mixing pots This set supplies ten 25ml clear pots perfect for mixing paints and two-part resins before using on your latest project.

Clear Coats FMW have produced two water-based varnishes, the first produces a high gloss finish while the second produces a dead flat finish. By mixing the two you can also get a satin varnish if you prefer it for your model

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MAY 2016

Airscale Mig Metal Colours For a number of years most modellers have relied on lacquer-based paints to apply their metallic finishes, and those manufacturers who have tried to make an acrylic metal finish have fallen short of the mark. Now Mig have stepped up with their Metal acrylic colour range. I suspect many modellers will use an airbrush to apply these and they do work very well, but they can also be brush-painted with reasonable results. Once cured they are quite tough though I was surprised that when I tried to apply a Mig oil based wash - the paint lifted. This was easily resolved by applying a light coat of Future floor polish which provided the necessary protection without diminishing the metallic effect.

The initial release covers nine colours •  A.MIG-0190 Old Brass •  A.MIG-0191 Steel •  A.MIG-0192 Polished Metal •  A.MIG-0193 Titanium •  A.MIG-0194 Aluminum •  A.MIG-0195 Silver •  A.MIG-0196 Metallic Blue •  A.MIG-0197 Brass

•  A.MIG-0198 Gold •  A.MIG-0199 Copper

CONCLUSION Though these colours produce a nice effect I still think the Mig/Alclad lacquer based paints produce a superior finish to this acrylic version, as the metal looks less grainy. But those paints also have disadvantages like having to prime the model before applying and the quite strong odour which stops some modellers from using them, both issues that the acrylic metal paints do not have. They are also very easy to clean by spraying some isopropyl alcohol through the brush after use. So like many things it will be a case of giving them a try and seeing if they suit your painting style, and I have certainly added a couple of these colours to the regular-use part of my paint drawer. Our thanks to Mig for bringing these new paints to our attention.

1/32 SCALE AS32 DAN Modern Cockpit Data Plate and Warning sets This set supplies a selection of items including console labels, ejection seat danger warnings, ejection seat hazard warnings, specific warnings, data plates, and blocks of hazard labels.

ASC32 HAC Modern Cockpit Instruments This set features over 200 different instruments so will detail a large number of models.

Tamiya Many modellers will be very familiar with Tamiya masking tape which is a must-have addition to most workbenches. Now they have issued a new tape, which might earn a similar place on the bench. This new masking tape is designed specifically for masking curves and is flexible enough that masking a 1/48 scale camouflage pattern on a Skyraider was a piece of cake. The new tape is produced in a white colour and is available in three sizes of 5mm, 3mm and 2mm. The smaller the size the tighter the curve that can be achieved. On my Skyraider I used the 5mm and 3mm and found that these sizes easily coped with the tight curves around the fuselage. I used the white tape to mask the edges and then I masked inside the white lines

I have always been a fan of Airscale and most of my projects will feature some of their decals or etched brass at some point. But now Airscale have added what must be an early candidate for product of the year, in my view. Most aircraft are covered with placards and over the years Airscale have produced a number of sets for WW2 aircraft, but now they have come to the modern age. Like previous sets, data plates and warning labels in black and red for use on panels and the ejection seats. But what makes this set stand out is that it also supplies the yellow and black guard striped hazard labels seen around specific buttons and levers. These are something I have struggled to reproduce in 1/32 scale, let alone 1/48. Even better they also supply large sections of striped yellow/black decals in various thicknesses, perfect for the folding panels of an F-117 cockpit where I have failed to paint the stripes well enough. To accompany this set it will be no surprise that we have a set covering modern instruments and these include both traditional dials as will as screens, and unlike previous sets have a lot of coloured details which will really make them pop out.

1/48 SCALE AS48 DAN Modern Cockpit Data Plate and Warning sets As listed above in 1/32 scale.

ASC48 HAC Modern Cockpit Instruments As listed above in 1/32 scale.

with yellow tape. After a good spraying session the tape was easily removed and there was no paint creep under the edges, very impressive. With over 20 metres or over 65 feet in each roll you should be able to finish a good few models. Our thanks to the Hobby Company for drawing this new product to our attention, and it’s now available from Tamiya stockists as well as many online stores.

CONCLUSION These sets combined with the modern etched brass sets make it easy to detail a number of cockpits, and I will also find a use for them on my latest armour and sci-fi models as well as their intended subjects. These new sets can be ordered from the website at www. airscale.co.uk and many dealers around the world including Sprue Brothers, and Hannants are also stocking the range. Our thanks to Peter Castle of Airscale for supplying the review samples.

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ACCESSORIES

Eduard Brassin This month’s releases mainly concentrate on 1/72 subjects which is in line with the plastic revolution that Eduard launched last year. It will be of no surprise that we have a number of sets aimed at Eduard’s own Fw 190 family, and most impressive is the multimedia cockpit that combines stunning resin with Eduard’s prefinished etched brass. Finally in this scale we have two types of wheels complete with masks for the Airfix Shackleton, while Trumpter’s new 1/72 MiG-29 Fulcrum gets a full weapons set that includes ten missiles as well as ten pylons to hang them from. In 1/48 scale Eduard continue to concentrate on things under wings with a set of AIM-4G Falcon missiles perfect for the recent Trumpeter F-106, and a set of wheels with masks for the ICM Ju 88. Moving to 1/32scale we have a LAU-10 Zuni rocket pod, a nice touch here is that two tail caps are provided for either an empty launcher or one with rockets loaded. Finally we have a set of resin wheels for the Italeri Mirage IIIC, for which you have different hubs depending on the type of brake disc fitted to the aircraft you are modelling, and the detail on these parts is far superior to that supplied in the kit. And of course wheel masks are also included to make painting easier.

M2 Browning Machine Guns

MiG-29 Weapons Set

Mirage IIIC Wheels and Masks

Product No: 672-092 Designed for: Various

Product No 672-100 Designed for: Trumpeter

Product No: 632-076 Designed for: Italeri

1/48 SCALE

CONCLUSION

Fw 190A-5 cockpit Product No 672-096 Designed for: Eduard

AIM-4G Falcon Missiles Avro Shackleton MR.2 Wheels and Masks Product No: 672-097 Designed for: Airfix

1/72 SCALE

Avro Shackleton AEW.3 Wheels and Masks

AIM-9B Sidewinder AAM

Product No: 672-098 Designed for: Revell

Product No: 672-036 Designed for: Various

WGr.21 Rocket System for Fw 190 F-4J Phantom Exhaust Nozzles Product No 672-079 Designed for: Academy

Product No 672-099 Designed for: Eduard

Product No 648-187 Designed for: Various

Junkers Ju 88 (Early) Wheels and Masks Product No 648-2444 Designed for: ICM

1/32 SCALE LAU-10/A Zuni Rocket System Product No: 632-074 Designed for: Various

What is there to say that I have not said before, Czech Resin manufacturers are the benchmark that other manufacturers are judged by, And Eduard continue to prove this every month with sets that are beautifully detailed and far better than anything that can be achieved in plastic. The full range of Eduard products can be seen on their website www. eduard.cz. You can also see the monthly newsletter which supplies a wealth of background and reference material on their new releases. Our thanks to Eduard for supplying the review samples.

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MAY 2016

Red Roo Project Ingara was a synthetic sideways looking radar capable of producing high-resolution ground mapping images at long range developed by Australia’s Defence Science and Technology Organisation. The test radar unit was housed in a streamlined radome mounted on the lower fuselage of an RAAF Dakota. The electronics were mounted inside the fuselage and operated by a crew of three. Exceptional results were achieved and after the completion of flight-testing, the radome was eventually removed from the aircraft before it was retired

and sent to the Fleet Air Arm Museum at Nowra. This Red Roo Models conversion will fit either the new Airfix or older Italeri C-47 kits and comprises four well cast parts in grey resin, a cast brass pitot, a photo-etched fret, wire, plastic card and a decal sheet with ARDU markings for the single Project Ingara aircraft. All national markings and

PRECISION PRODUCTS

stencils are included. The eight-page instruction booklet covers the history of Project Ingara, reference photos, construction diagrams plus colours and markings.

1/72 SCALE RRR72143 1/72 Scale ARDU C-47 Dakota - Project Ingara

CONCLUSION This is a high quality conversion that will deliver a unique finish to your Italeri or Airfix Dakota. It is uncomplicated enough that anyone who can build the Airfix kit will easily be able to handle this conversion These items are available from the Red Roo website www. redroomodels.com or from Blackbird Models in the UK at http://www. blackbirdmodels.co.uk/

Fairey Firefly Out Now! MDF Scaled Down #3

Now stocking Albion Alloys Metal and Connecto products VISIT www.sampublications.com for more information

“SAM Online Offer”

SAVE 10% on all metal products by using code ‘METAL10’ * at the checkout.

*Terms and conditions apply

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In this new MDF Scaled Down book, author Paul Bradley looks at the history and development of this famous British carrier-borne aircraft, and its operational use from World War II to the Korean War and beyond. Variants, Squadrons and Operators Walk Arounds Colour Side Views Model Builds and Kitography £9.99 Order from the SAM Shop

www.sampublications.com +44 (0)1234 211245

08/04/2016 16:43

ACCESSORIES

Scale Aircraft Conversions Just in from SAC are a number SAC of new releases, some aimed at biplanes from Gaspatch and Wingnut wings whose thin legs are ideally suited to a metal upgrade. Especially when one of the kits covered this month is Wingnut’s large and quite heavy model of the AEG G.IV. Other than the biplanes, all of this month’s releases are aimed at recent kits and once again SAC white metal legs for the Trojan have actually beat the Kitty Hawk model to the UK.

T-28 Trojan Landing Gear Product No: 32105 Designed for: Kitty Hawk Price: $19.95

1/48 SCALE F-16XL Landing Gear Product No: 48302 Designed for: Skunk Models Price: $18.95

1/32 SCALE

Salmson 2.A2 Landing Gear

AEG G.IV Landing Gear

Product No: 48303 Designed for: Gaspatch Price: $14.95

Product No: 32104 Designed for: Wingnut Wings Price: $17.95

Su-24 Fencer Landing Gear Product No: 48304 Designed for: Trumpeter Price: $19.95

1/72 SCALE Heinkel He 111 Landing Gear Product No: 72124 Designed for: Airfix Price: $16.95

CONCLUSION These sets are beautifully cast and a worthwhile upgrade for anyone whose models do the show circuit. These samples were provided by Scale Aircraft Conversions and will be available to purchase in the UK from Hannants and www.oxonianplasticfantastic. co.uk. The manufacturers also have their own website at www. scaleaircraftconversions.com. Our thanks to Ross McMillan for supplying the review samples.

ADDENDUM

SAC have identified a problem with two of their recent sets:

1/48 Scale •  48282 Spitfire Mk I/Vb (Ax) purchased before 03/25/16 has an incorrect main gear. •  48297 MiG-31 Foxhound (AMK) has a miscast nose gear. If you have either of these sets contact SAC to receive a free replacement for the faulty sets.

Ultimate Modelling Products Just received from Ultimate is their new Primer. This product has an acrylic base and can be sprayed straight from the bottle. As the primer is self-levelling it has a slightly rough feeling and can be applied with a brush or airbrush. If you are using an airbrush it is advised that you use a larger needle, above 0.4, with a high pressure of 30 to 40 PSI. A quick test spray showed that the primer could

deal with most small scratches and left a nice smooth finish perfect for a natural metal finish. This new primer is available in grey, black and white, and two sizes either 120ml or 60ml, though buying the larger size saves you a bit of money. Our thanks to UMP for supplying us with the review samples which can be purchased online from their website at www.umpretail.com.

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MAY 2016 SHESTO – exclusive suppliers to Europe

PRODUCT OF THE MONTH

LC8045LED

Cordless Folding Lamp An energy efficient LED Rechargeable lamp with Dimmer Feature

T

his portable, compact lamp is ideal for reading, craft, hobby as well as office use. It features a dimmable task light as well as a useful smaller night light

LAMP FEATURES: •  Dimmable LED task lighting & smaller night light •  Portable & rechargeable •  Energy efficient- Low heat emission •  Mini stand for desk use or hanging slot for night light •  2m USB cable for use through computer/laptop •  Mains UK/EU plug with USB slot

SPECIFICATIONS: •  Voltages available:220v-240v,50hz •  Voltage/current: DC5v, 500mA; 3w max •  Lamp size: 270 x 52, 53mm

•  Colour temperature: 5700-6300 kelvin •  Switch: touch switch with dimmer feature function for main light & small night light •  Charge time: 3 hours from empty •  Cordless usage time: 100% light 1.5hrs: 50% light 3 hrs; 10% light 8hrs •  USB cable: 2m (6’6”) for use with computer/laptop •  Mains plug- UK/EU option: USB output, Max.0.5A,5V; Input AC100240V, 50-60HZ

Now we have read the specifications, this is a lamp that I can really see coming in useful. The higher of the three colour temperatures 6300 Kelvin is equivalent to daylight; I am sure that I am not alone in doing my model making in the evenings under artificial light, so a daylight bulb is always very handy! This lamp being cordless can be placed anywhere on your bench without cables getting in the way, or using up valuable socket space! The area that the light covers is not huge, but then I actually looked at the space on my bench that I actually use for close work and the lamp more than covers this! So if like me you build in the evenings in a fairly small space this lamp will be a very worthwhile addition to your modelling armoury! My thanks to Shesto for supplying the review lamp. For more information on this and other products go to the Shesto website

www.shesto.com

or contact them directly via email at [email protected] or telephone

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DECALS

Decals Authentic Decals

Red Roo Decals Special Hobby have at various times released 1/72 and 1/48 kits of the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation Wirraway. As well as camouflaged examples uncamouflaged variants of this aircraft appear in silver dope and overall yellow schemes and both look quite striking. However all versions need stencils to add that extra touch. Red Roo in Australia have come up with a comprehensive set of stencils for just this purpose. The set includes a comprehensive diagram for placement.

1/72 SCALE AD72-68 A-10C Warthog with mission markings

1/48 SCALE RRD4852 CAC Wirraway Stencils

The A-10 Thunderbolt has been in service for over 40 years despite the Top Brass’s best attempts to get rid of it in favour of more glamorous types. There is something about the type that has always made it one of my favourite aircraft and I have built nearly every kit of the type ever produced in all 3 major scales. So when the latest envelope from Authentic Decals arrived I was very pleased to find a sheet of decals for the upgraded A-10C operating between 2008 and 2014 including a number from its time in Afghanistan. All of the options are in low-viz greys, and six have the distinctive sharkmouth marking on the nose. As is normal full colour instructions are supplied with number keys printed on the decals and the instructions to ensure everything goes in the right place. But they only show profiles of the port side and I would welcome at least one plan view.

1/72 SCALE RRD7257 CAC Wirraway Stencils These items are available from the Red Roo website www.redroomodels.com or from Blackbird Models in the UK at http://www. blackbirdmodels.co.uk/

•  A-10C 78-0674 “FT” based at Bagram AB, Afghanistan during 2011. This option has a blue fin tip containing a white lightning flash and a full colour sharkmouth on the nose •  A-10C 78-0712 “DM” based at Riverside AFB during 2009. This option has had a white fin tip and carried the new USAF badge on the fin. •  A-10C 79-0114 “KC” based at Bagram AB, Afghanistan during 2014. This option has a large USAF badge on the mid-fuselage; •  A-10C 79-0119 “KC” based at Bagram AB, Afghanistan during 2014. As option 3.

•  A-10C 79-0135 “FT” based at Bagram AB, Afghanistan during 2008. As option 1. •  A-10C 79-0138 “FT” based at Bagram AB, Afghanistan during 2008. As option 1. •  A-10C 80-0178 “FT” based at Bagram AB, Afghanistan during 2008. As option 1. •  A-10C 80-0252 “FT” based at Bagram AB, Afghanistan during 2014. This had a black/ white chequered fin tip with a sharkmouth on the nose. •  A-10C 81-0981 “SP” based at Spangdahlem AB during 2011. This option has a yellow fin tip with lightning flash. •  A-10C 81-0990 “FT” based at Bagram AB, Afghanistan during 2008. As option 1.

CONCLUSION This sheet was always going to be a winner for me and as always leaves me eager for the next announcements, especially as it will be the Russian version of the A-10, the Su-25 Frogfoot in a digital scheme. Our thanks to Authentic Decals for the review sample which in the UK can be purchased from both branches of Hannants, and the full range and worldwide stockists can be found on their website www.olimpmodelsgroup.com.

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MAY 2016

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CONCLUSION Another inspiring set of decals from this Swedish manufacturer, and it had me searching the loft to see if I had a Tamiya Storch hidden away to put them on. To see other examples from this company’s range visit their website at www. rbdstudio.se and I thank them for supplying the review sample.

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•  Fieseler Fi 156, S.14B, 3809, 9 F6, Karlsborg, 1948 •  Fieseler Fi 156, S.14B, 3825, F11, Nykoping, 1961 •  Fieseler Fi 156, P-4, 803, F3, Malmen, 1938. •  Fieseler Fi 156, S.14B, 92, F3, Malmen, 1945. •  Fieseler Fi 156, S.14B,12, F21, Kallax, 1960 •  Fieseler Fi 156, S.14B, 26, F11, Skavsta, 1954 •  Fieseler Fi 156, S.14B, 92, F3, Early Scheme, Malmen •  Fieseler Fi 156, S.14B, 3814, 97, F9, Save •  Fieseler Fi 156, S.14B, 3814, F9, Bonzo, after retirement. •  Fieseler Fi 156, 3823, F-17, Kallinge.

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08/04/2016 16:43

DECALS

Xtradecal The latest decals from Xtradecal which for a change are all in 1/72 scale. The first three sheets are all for the A-7 Corsair II in probably the most colourful period for US Navy markings. If you purchase all three sheets you will be able to reproduce twelve of these attractive schemes and I would say it is a very hard choice as to which one that I would build first. A lot more subdued is part 6 in the on-going series “Yanks with Roundels” and covers the Wildcat F4F-4 and FM-1 including an option with the small SEAC roundel and an example that carries US stars during Operation Torch. As is normal each sheet has instructions with colour profiles and colour notes using this manufacturer’s own Xtracolor range.

1/72 SCALE X72-240 Colourful USN Corsairs Vought A-7B/E Corsair II Part 1 (4) •  1. Vought A-7B 154370 AF/500 VA-205 Green Falcons NAS Atlanta 1976. •  2. Vought A-7E 158830 AC/300 VA-37 Bulls USS Saratoga 1978. •  3. Vought A-7E 158673 AC/402 VA105 Gunslingers USS Saratoga 1972. •  4. Vought A-7E 160866 NG/300 VA-145 Blue Diamonds USS Constellation 1981.

X72-241 Colourful USN Corsairs Vought A-7B/E Corsair II Part 2 (4) •  1. Vought A-7B 154479 NM/401 VA-215 Barn Owls USS Franklin D. Roosevelt Bi-Centennial 1976. •  2. Vought A-7E 156831 NG/331 VA146 Blue Diamond USS Constellation 1978. •  3. Vought A-7E 157563 AG/500 VA-12 Clinchers USS Independence 1972. •  4. Vought A-7E 158842 AD/401 VA-174 Hellrazors NAS Cecil Field, FL 1976.

X72-242 Vought A-7B/E Corsair Part 3 (4) •  1. Vought A-7B 154390 NM/510 VA155 Silver Foxes Oriskany 1975. •  2. Vought A-7E 157459 AA/300 VA-83 Rampagers USS Forrestal 1971. •  3. Vought A-7E 159970 AC/400 VA-105 Gunslingers USS John F. Kennedy circa 1970’s. •  4. Vought A-7E 159640 AE/704 VA87 Golden Warriors USS America 1970’s.

X72-243 Yanks with Roundels Pt 6 Grumman Mk IV/Mk V Wildcats (F4F-4) (8) •  1. Grumman Martlet Mk IV, FN121 0-9Z 888 NAS HMS Formidable Operation Torch 1942. •  2. Grumman Wildcat Mk IV, FN296/A 892 NAS HMS Archer.

•  3. Grumman Wildcat Mk V, JV338 S-X 882 NAS HMS Searcher 1944. •  4. Grumman Wildcat Mk V, JV377 6-C 822 NAS HM Scorcher 1944. •  5. Grumman Wildcat Mk V, JV381 Y3-Q 759 NAS RNAS Yeovilton 1945. •  6. Grumman Wildcat Mk V, JV406/P 881 NAS HMS Pursuer 1944. •  7. Grumman Wildcat Mk V, JV435/S 890 NAS HMS Atheling 1945. •  8. Grumman Wildcat Mk V, Unknown/D 1832 NAS RNAS Eglington with D-Day stripes 1944 (F4F-4).

CONCLUSION The Corsair has always been one of my favourite aircraft and with many of the old Microscale sheets released in the 1970s and 1980s now long unavailable I sure that many will be pleased to see the SLUF getting such unexpected attention. The Wildcat is a lot less colourful type but for fans of the Yanks in Roundels series this aircraft is a very important addition. Our thanks to Hannants for supplying the review samples.

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Mastered-Adverts-AV-0516_AV-0606 08/04/2016 16:28 Page 413

One-stop shopping for modellers Order online at www.hannants.co.uk

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for Mail Order

Mach 2 MACHGP064 1:72 Armstrong-Whitworth Argosy Decals RAF ...............................................£45.99 Mach 2 MACHGP065 1:72 Armstrong-Whitworth Argosy Decals RAF ...............................................£45.99 Mach 2 MACHGP066 1:72 Armstrong-Whitworth Argosy Decals BEA ...............................................£45.99 Mach 2 MACHGP067 1:72 Armstrong-Whitworth Argosy Decals ELAN .............................................£45.99 Mach 2 Injection moulded model kits for the experienced modeller. Modelling skills required

We stock the largest ranges of plastic, resin and vacform kits, accessories and conversions, photo-etch sets, paints, airbrushes, tools ands books. Everything under one roof from Academy to Zvezda. We specialise in decals and stock ALL available sheets from just about every manufacturer in existence. We carry over 50,000 items from all over the world.

UK Distributors for MPM, Eduard, IBG, Bronco, Kittyhawk, Kinetic and many more. If it’s advertised or reviewed in this magazine try us first. We probably have it in stock now. Mail Order:

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REVIEWS

Reviews SPITFIRE MK XVI BUBBLETOP

Supermarine Spitfire Mk XVI Bubbletop by Don Robson

T

KIT INFO

SPITFIRE MK XVI BUBBLETOP MANUFACTURER Eduard SCALE 1/48 PRODUCT CODE 8285 NO OF PARTS 62 plastic, 9 clear STATUS Revised, ProfiPACK edition DECAL OPTIONS 5

he Spitfire Mk IX was an aircraft that was continually being updated. However, when it was decided to fit a new engine the mark number was changed to XVI. The engine in question was the Merlin 266 which was built under licence in the USA by the Packard Motor Company. It differed from British-built Merlins in that it was built using the metric system of measurement. The Merlin 266 was rated for low altitude operations and most Mk XVI aircraft in this role had clipped wings to enhance their roll rate.

Other changes were the fitting of a broader chord rudder and of course the teardrop ‘bubble’ canopy, although not all XVIs had this feature. Both the Mk IX and XVI were produced in more numbers than any other mark, even though they were designed as stopgap aircraft.

THE KIT It comes in the usual sturdy top-opening box with all the sprues bagged in plastic for protection, with the clear parts on a circular sprue which is bagged separately. There are five main sprues of plastic parts, including two types of wing. There are nearly fifty parts on the sprues which are not needed for this model but which will no doubt come in useful for future projects. As this is a ProfiPACK kit, also included in the box are a set of masks for the canopy and a sheet of etched parts, mainly for the instrument panel and seat belts. Two sheets of decals are included, one of which is stencils. The instruction sheet is on glossy paper; the eight pages being A4 size. Five pages in full colour are taken up with the various decal options. The colours suggested

for the parts are called out in Mr Hobby numbers, as and when required.

CONSTRUCTION Most of the build was taken up with the cockpit area. This comprised two lower, inner panels to which were attached the seat, its support bulkhead and the instrument panel bulkhead. Etched parts were supplied for the instrument panel and also the armoured panel behind the seat. The seat belts were also added at this point. The cockpit parts were painted before any assembly. The cockpit assembly was fitted inside the two fuselage halves together with a front bulkhead and the part which locates the tail wheel. After a quick check that I had not missed anything, everything was closed up. As mentioned earlier there is a choice of two wings. This depends on which markings you are using, the difference being the undercarriage bulges on the upper wing or lack of them. Holes need to be drilled in the lower wings for bomb carriers if required, before joining. There are radiators fitted to each wing which are made up from six parts each. Careful assembly here will reap rewards on completion. With the wings being the clipped version, two end plates are supplied; one is in clear and one in normal grey plastic. Two of

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MAY 2016 the cannon in the wings of the model I was building needed shortening as the armament had been removed with only the covers showing. Before fitting the assembled wing to the fuselage it was time to fit the exhausts to the cut-outs in the fuselage. Having already assembled an Eduard Spitfire I knew this was a problem area. I think this stems from Eduard allowing for a complete engine to be fitted to the model. Because an engine is not supplied a compromise has been arrived at regarding the exhausts. Two panels are fitted to the two exhaust blocks before this is fitted to the fuselage. It looks straightforward in the instructions but I found it confusing in practice; maybe it’s just me? The tailplanes have the elevators as separate parts, I fitted these deflected slightly for effect. With the rudder fitted, that was the aircraft finished. I left the undercarriage items off until the end but these were easily assembled and painted as the tyres are separate parts. Suspension links are supplied as etch parts. After painting, the four-bladed prop is sandwiched between the back plate and nose cone. The prop is attached via a simple hole in the front of the fuselage.

PAINTING AND DECALS There is a choice of five markings (A to E). The first one is SL549 of No.17 Squadron RAF, based at Farnborough Air Base, 1950, all over silver. The second one is TD138, No.317 Squadron RAF, Ahihorn Air Base, Germany, Spring – Summer 1946, grey/green upper camouflage, and medium sea grey lower. The third one is TB702, flown by Cpt. P.G.J. Albertin, No.340 Squadron RAF, B105 Airfield (Lingen/ Drope) Germany, May, 1945, French markings and same camouflage as TD138. The fourth one is RW393,

“ Without all the etched parts this kit builds into a good replica of a late mark Spitfire ”

No.601 Squadron RAuxAF, 1949, as it competed in the Cooper Air Race, all over silver. Lastly is TE199, flown by Air Officer Commanding, No.21 Group RAF, Swinderby Air Base, 1948, painted all over dark grey. I decided on the first one, spraying the model with Humbrol metallic silver. Having arrived at this point in the construction I thought I was near the end; how wrong I was. The problem was the decals; being very thin they tended to curl up on themselves. There are quite a few stencils to apply to the model; remember to apply the stencils first. With most of these carefully applied I started with the

roundels and they went on no bother at all. However, when I came to do the squadron markings I must have left the decal in the water too long and it separated from the backing paper and curled right up. It took me ages to get it unravelled. This is the first time this has happened to me, so be careful and only allow seconds in the water before removing them. With decaling finally completed I gave the model a coat of Klear and applied a small amount of weathering. All the fiddly bits were now added, such as wheels, propeller and canopy.

CONCLUSION

Without all the etched parts this kit builds into a good replica of a late mark Spitfire. It is considerably improved with them and would be suitable for most modellers to attempt. Extreme care would be needed if using the kit decals, but replacements are easily available from various sources. The instruction sheet is clear and concise and benefits from being in a larger format. I have enjoyed making this kit and recommend it to all. I must thank Eduard, again, for supplying this kit for review.

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REVIEWS

JUNKERS J.I

THE FLYING “FURNITURE VAN” Eduard’s 1/72nd scale Junkers J.I by Konstantine Malinovski

KIT INFO

JUNKERS J.I (PROFIPACK EDITION) MANUFACTURER Eduard SCALE 1/72 PRODUCT CODE 7046 Grey Styrene NO OF PARTS 63 parts, PE fret STATUS Rebox DECAL OPTIONS 4

J

unkers J. I – despite its cumbersome look and handling (nicknamed “Furniture Van” by its crews) it was truly a revolutionary aircraft. It was the first all-metal aircraft to enter mass production, the first aircraft that sported adequate armor protection, and the first intentionally built for low-level ground attack. It was also

used for supply drops to cut-off units on the front line. Production started in summer 1917 and by the end of the Great War 277 aircraft were built. During its short career the Junkers J.I saw a lot of action on the Western Front and was considered as a useful and valuable asset by the German High Command. The findings during the design, production and use of the type had a tremendous impact on aviation technology and thinking. This kit is not new in itself. It was produced by Eduard about 10 years ago, and was warmly received by the scale modelling public. With this new reincarnation Eduard has improved what is a good kit in itself with the added small fret of photo-etched parts. In this case the PE set is of the traditional unpainted variety and provides mostly radiator grilles, safety belts and control horns. There is very little anyone can say to add to what already has been said in the previous reviews so I would rather concentrate on the possible ways to improve on what is given in the box.

The basic kit, as mentioned above, covers all the bases and overall can be rated as well above standard. The PE fret added to the kit goes a long way to enhance the detailing as it provides some nice touches to the cockpits and new radiator grilles, basically the whole new rear machine gun, and the top of the engine cylinders. The PE control horns are also welcome, however the kit’s plastic ones are not bad at all and for some builders might be a more preferable option. Three different types of tailplanes and rudders are provided along with three options of stabilizers. This optionality requires you to make a decision on the painting scheme early on, and attention to the instruction sheet as the guide for the correct choice of parts. In terms of references, one would benefit having a look at the old Windsock Datafile brochure on the Junkers J.I, which is always a must for any modeller of a WWI subject, and the building brochure/guide for the superb Wingnut Wings 1/32 model kit. The quality of research and the attention

of detail put into the development of Wingnut Wings kits is truly stunning and as a side effect their work may and should be used for modelling the subject in other scales, by visiting their website In terms of accuracy the Eduard kit seems to capture the outline of the original very well and the dimensions largely correspond to the drawings from Windsock publication. The big challenge for all kit producers is to accurately replicate the corrugated surfaces (of which the J.I has plenty). According to the latter publication the corrugations width on Junkers J.I surfaces was 1 ¾ inch on the real thing, which means that there should be around 2 and a bit corrugations per 10 scale cm. I used RB Models scale ruler to count the number of corrugations, and it seems Eduard is spot-on in this tricky area. The construction process of the kit is absolutely straightforward and does not present any issues until the moment of installing the upper wing. I chose the ‘modular’ approach to building this kit, first building and painting the main parts and then assembling the components together.

CONSTRUCTION The assembly begins with detailing and painting the cockpit areas and the engine. The photo-etched parts provided in the kit do enhance the appearance and cover most of the traditional areas of detailing. I chose the plastic control column over the PE one as, in my opinion, it looked a bit more convincing than smaller but flat PE one, and also decided to add a few smaller things to the pilot’s cabin (like a couple of levers and control wires).

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ůďŝŽŶůůŽLJƐWƌĞĐŝƐŝŽŶDĞƚĂůƐĨŽƌDŽĚĞůDĂŬĞƌƐ WƌĞĐŝƐŝŽŶƐůŝĚĞĨŝƚŵŝĐƌŽƚƵďĞƐ͕ƌŽĚ͕ƐƚƌŝƉ͕ƐŚĞĞƚĂŶĚĂŶŐůĞĂŶĚĐŚĂŶŶĞů͘

Then I scratch-built the radio box in the rear cabin. Frankly, and running ahead of things, I should not have bothered with the cockpit at all as the wide upper wing over the opening completely obstructs the view into it. Ah, well, I know it is all there… Similar to Eduard’s Albatros D.V kit the engine is a very simple affair and represented only by its block of cylinders. It has nowhere near the finesse and detail provided in Roden kits, but given the size of the opening, the lack of detail is perfectly justified and acceptable. The bulk of the engine is completely covered and the top of it is taken care of by the photo-etched part. With care and a little bit of dry fitting the fuselage assembly causes no issues, but when the stabilizer was inserted (make sure you choose the correct one corresponding to the version you want to build) small gaps were revealed between the parts. Nothing particularly tragic, more of a surprise given the overall quality of the kit. Fixing it with any kind of putty should not take more than a couple of minutes, but mind the delicate corrugated surfaces. The tail attachment should not be a problem as the fit there is not an issue. The important part is not to try and attach it to the fuselage the same way as on most aircraft kits. The tailplane of the real Junkers J.I had two attachment points to the fuselage and did not follow the contours of the latter. In fact there was a noticeable gap between the upper decking of the fuselage and the lower surfaces of the tailplane. Eduard does not reflect this in the instruction sheet. I also was not happy with the solid representation of the air intakes and instead of drilling the opening in them, chose to scratch build new ones from thick foil. There are also a few other details omitted by Eduard, which could enhance the finished model. The pilot’s windscreen and rear view mirror are very easy to scratch build. I would also suggest adding the auxiliary stand and hand grab to the gunner’s ring. The prominent compass on the port wing was sourced from an Akira set of WWI dials. I also used Part’s photo etched strips of WWI lacing to imitate these details on the fuselage. As I was not sure how Eduard lozenge decals would behave I opted to glue them on after decaling. In hindsight I can say that it would have been better

to glue them to the fuselage prior to decaling and then put the decals on top of them and then paint the laces… I’ll save this thought for the next time I build a Junkers J.I. And finally I found that Part’s PE propeller boss is a much better representation than the one in the kit and used it. It also made painting the propeller much easier. As mentioned above, the biggest challenge in building this kit is the wing attachment and alignment. The wing itself is thick, large and heavy, so there is a lot of stress on the properly thin struts. Extreme care is required and a lot (and I mean A LOT) of patience in placing and aligning the top wing. Here I made a mistake typical for many: I did not pay enough attention to the kit instruction sheet. The instruction sheet recommends drilling out location holes on the fuselage and gives the exact positions for them. It is highly advisable to do this early in the construction process, as it will save a lot of effort and pain later on. The final touch in building this kit is assembling and building the rear machine gun. The kit part is rather basic and does not look convincing at all. In this boxing Eduard addressed this issue with the photo-etched parts which help to detail the ammunition drum and replace the whole gun barrel cooling jacket with the proper perforated one. The modeller will have to roll the flat PE part to get the gun barrel and it is not an easy task even for an experienced model builder. For this review I used the PE parts and I am relatively satisfied with the result, however for the next build I will most likely use a Roden machine gun from a spare parts box, as those still look better.

ŽŶŶĞĐƚŽʹĂŶĂŵĂnjŝŶŐƉƌŽĚƵĐƚ LJŽƵĐĂŶŶŽǁĐƌĞĂƚĞϯƐŚĂƉĞƐĨƌŽŵůďŝŽŶůůŽLJƐŵŝĐƌŽ ƚƵďĞƐ͘tŽƌŬƐǁŝƚŚŽƵƌďƌĂƐƐ͕ĂůƵŵŝŶŝƵŵĂŶĚŶŝĐŬĞůƐŝůǀĞƌ ƚƵďĞʹĨƌŽŵϬ͘ϰŵŵŽ͘Ě͘ƚŽϭ͘ϰŵŵƚƵďĞƐŝnjĞƐ

&ůĞdž/&ŝůĞĂŶĚůďŝŽŶůůŽLJƐĂďƌĂƐŝǀĞƐʹ WƌŽďĂďůLJƚŚĞŵŽƐƚĐŽŵƉƌĞŚĞŶƐŝǀĞƌĂŶŐĞŽĨĂďƌĂƐŝǀĞƐ͕ŐůƵĞ ĂƉƉůŝĐĂƚŽƌƐĂŶĚĨŝŶŝƐŚŝŶŐƉƌŽĚƵĐƚƐĂǀĂŝůĂďůĞͲŝŶĐůƵĚŝŶŐ ƐŽŵĞŽĨƚŚĞŵŽƐƚƉŽƉƵůĂƌŵŽĚĞůůŝŶŐƚŽŽůƐĞǀĞƌƉƌŽĚƵĐĞĚ͘

Dƌ,ŽďďLJ;'ƵŶnjĞ^ĂŶŐLJŽʹ'^/ƌĞŽƐͿ ŶŝŶĐƌĞĚŝďůĞĂƌƌĂLJŽĨƉĂŝŶƚƐ͕ƚŚŝŶŶĞƌƐĂŶĚƉƌŝŵĞƌƐʹǁŝĚĞůLJƐĞĞŶĂƐƚŚĞďĞƐƚ ƋƵĂůŝƚLJƉĂŝŶƚĐƵƌƌĞŶƚůLJŽŶƚŚĞŵĂƌŬĞƚ͘ƚŚŽƌŽƵŐŚůLJƉƌŽĨĞƐƐŝŽŶĂůƉƌŽĚƵĐƚĂŶĚ ĂĐŽƌƌĞƐƉŽŶĚŝŶŐůLJǁŝĚĞƌĂŶŐĞŽĨĐŽůŽƵƌƐ͕ƉƌŝŵĞƌƐĂŶĚĂƐƐŽĐŝĂƚĞĚƚŽŽůƐʹLJŽƵ͛ůů ǁĂŶƚƚŚĞǁŚŽůĞƌĂŶŐĞŝŶLJŽƵƌŝŶǀĞŶƚŽƌLJ͘

CONCLUSION

Overall, the kit leaves a great impression and builds into a great replica, which will stand out in any collection. It is easy to build, acceptably accurate, unusual and affordable – what else can one want? The addition of PE parts is of a great value and goes a long way to improving the finished model, but automatically suits this kit for more experienced modellers. My thanks to Eduard and the Editor for giving me the chance to build this model.

hƐĐŚŝǀĂŶĚĞƌZŽƐƚĞŶ ŶŝŶƐƉŝƌĞĚĂŶĚŝŶƐƉŝƌŝŶŐƌĂŶŐĞŽĨŵŽĚĞůůŝŶŐĂŝĚƐ͕ĚĞĐĂůƐĂŶĚĚŝŽƌĂŵĂ ĂĐĐĞƐƐŽƌŝĞƐ͘tŚĂƚƐƚĂƌƚĞĚŽĨĨĂƐĂƐŵĂůůƐĞůĞĐƚŝŽŶŽĨǁŽŽĚŐƌĂŝŶĚĞĐĂůƐŚĂƐ ŐƌŽǁŶŝŶƚŽĂůŝƐƚŽĨŵƵƐƚŚĂǀĞŝƚĞŵƐĨŽƌƚŚĞŬĞĞŶŵŽĚĞůůĞƌ͘ZŝŐŐŝŶŐƚŚƌĞĂĚƐ͕ ŽŝůƉĂŝŶƚĚƌLJŝŶŐĂĐĐĞůĞƌĂƚŽƌ͕ƐĐĞŶŝĐĚŝƉůĂLJƐĂŶĚŵƵĐŚŵŽƌĞ͘

For details of your nearest dealer/stockist/distributor please contact: email: [email protected] website: www.albionhobbies.com tel: 01202 511232 Dealer enquiries welcome WWW.SAMPUBLICATIONS.COM • MAY 2016 417

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REVIEWS

MIG-15 UTI Eduard’s 1/72nd scale MiG-15 UTI “Weekend” by Huw Morgan

KIT INFO

MIG-15 UTI “WEEKEND” MANUFACTURER Eduard SCALE 1/72 PRODUCT CODE 7433 PANEL LINES Recessed TYPE Injection moulded Plastic plastic, NO OF PARTS 80 10 clear STATUS New Tool DECAL OPTIONS 2

T

he Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 needs very little introduction to anyone with more than a passing interest in jet aircraft development. Emerging immediately after WW II, and leaning heavily on captured information on advanced aerodynamics (bearing a strong resemblance to Kurt Tank’s Focke-Wulf Ta 183 in particular) and bought-in British engine technology, the MiG-15 first flew in 1947, quickly establishing its combat credentials in the Korean

War and subsequently over Suez. In its various versions, over 12,000 units are known to have been built, with the overall total including unofficial copies (irony there, then!) possibly exceeding 18,000 spread across around 45 national Air Forces. The MiG-15 UTI two-seat trainer was used by most operators, many being built in Poland and Czechoslovakia, and by China. The UTI retained a single-cannon armament for weapons training.

THE KIT Eduard’s MiG-15 UTI is a 2015 tooling issued to complement the singleseater fighter. The “Weekend” format follows the usual trend of plastic-only construction with, in this case, two decal options: a silver Soviet airframe (Blue 739) from 1968 as flown by Yuri Gagarin, and a sand/brown/light blue ship of the Iraqi Air Force in the 1980’s. For the sake of convenience, I got hold of the Eduard masking set, but it’s worth noting that for the same price as the basic kit and masks, one could buy the PriofiPACK version, and get a precoloured photo-etched set as well. The instructions are Eduard’s typical glossy, coloured booklet and lead one immediately into constructing the seats and cockpit. This whole

assembly is very cleverly done, and I particularly liked the way that the cockpit sides are curved to mimic the construction of the real aircraft, leaving the space for the intake ducting between them and the fuselage sides. The moulding is slightly simplified in detail, but the fit is terrific. I added a bit of detail to the seats in the form of simple plastic strip for the elbow guards and painted those and the ejector handles red for a splash of colour. Decals are provided for the seat belts and for the first time I’ve come across, they really look the part. I gave the whole cockpit tub a faint

brown wash to bring out the detail without overpowering it, and added lead granules as nose weight. With the fuselage halves assembled loosely, a quick trial with the wings and tail taped in place suggested a bit more lead would be safer, so I added about another 3g under the cockpit floor. The jet pipe is assembled from two halves and an end piece which has a representation of the engine rear face, although such is the length of the pipe virtually nothing will be seen once built. The fit of the cockpit and jet pipe is very precise in the fuselage, and some care and dry fitting is needed

The kit decal sheet, note the excellent representations of the seatbelts

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MAY 2016 to make sure the fuselage halves will close up before reaching for the glue, noting also that the rudder needs to be trapped between the halves of the fin. The rudder itself has two pins to align it, as well as the representations of the hinges, but by removing the pins, and with a bit of careful trimming, it is possible to pose the rudder slightly deflected. I did this, but in truth, I’m not sure the effect is worth the faff. The wing halves fit without trouble, having remembered to drill out the locations for the underwing tanks if they’re to be used, and the wings and stabilisers attached to the fuselage. Fit is again excellent, albeit with some relieving of the thickness of the locating tabs being needed. I smeared the joints with filler, probably unnecessarily since clean-up almost completely removed it. I decided to fit the canopy parts temporarily before painting, to simplify masking, with the intention of ultimately having them opened. After dipping the three parts in Klear, applying the Eduard masks and painting the cockpit decking grey, they were attached with white glue. The undercarriage is nicely detailed and comes with optional wheel hubs which avoid the need for masking. The parts were painted, treated to a dilute brown oil wash and set aside.

PAINTING As a change from natural metal and a few Russian stars, I’d decided to finish the model as the Iraqi Air Force option. Priming and pre-shading was conventional, and Tamiya XF-23 Light Blue, XF-59 Desert Yellow and XF-64 Red Brown were the colours of choice, masked with tape and Blu Tack. Future prepared the airframe for decaling. The decals worked quite well, releasing quickly but being rather thick, although they settled with Micro Sol. As well as the main markings, two complete sets of stencils are provided, one for aircraft built in Russia, and one for Czechoslovak machines, these being the ones I used since I believe that the

It’s not an aeroplane! I’d decided to pose the Eduard MiG with the canopy open on a hard standing, so wanted to add some life to form a mini-diorama. Brengun’s photo-etched boarding ladder (BRL72077) was the first component, painted a faded red, but I wanted to add an airfield vehicle too. Omega K offered the ideal option in the form of a ZIL-157 airfield refueller. (OM7204) The ZIL truck appeared in many forms, being roughly equivalent to the Dodge ‘Deuce and a Half’ 2½ Ton truck of WW II. Widely used by Soviet and Warsaw Pact forces in a number of guises, the ZIL was also often supplied to Soviet allies as part of the support deal. The Omega K kit is rather nice, having a full chassis made up of 25 parts, an interior for the cab, and very nicely detailed wheels. Three short lengths of brass rod are provided for the axles, allowing the simple tweak of bending the outer ends of the front axle to give some steering articulation. I replaced the hand grips on the tank with wire, and substituted plastic tube for the hose containers. Painting was straightforward, the entire model being sprayed Tamiya XF-13 JA Green and the prominent ‘inflammable’ Cyrillic logos applied to the sides of the tank before an overlay of XF-59 Desert Yellow and XF-60 Dark Yellow was laid on in thin coats to build up a worn, battered look where the green showed through in subtle and explicit ways. I did some dry-brushing with the JA Green and I used some of the kit markings for the contents labels, and stole some 1/144 scale Iraqi flags from a Printscale MiG-29 sheet (144-012) for the cab doors. The tyres were painted Tamiya XF-85 Rubber Black, and some dark pastel staining on the tank, and lighter dust on the wheels, completed the picture. I’m now looking for some 1/72 figures that might represent Iraqi pilots or ground crew.

majority of export UTIs were the latter. After a diluted oil pin-wash of Burnt Umber, the airframe was dulled down using a thin coat of Citadel Purity Seal from a can, and some MiG pastels were used to add minor staining.

CONCLUSION

Great fit and moulded detail, and a straightforward build – truly a weekend project. Should you

wish to add some additional detail, however, a quick look at the instructions for the ProfiPACK version on Eduard’s website suggests that there are a number of parts which would be useful, even if you don’t use everything. Recommended unreservedly, with thanks to Eduard for the review sample.

The main airframe complete, the minimal amount of filler needed is evident

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REVIEWS

REPUBLIC P-47M THUNDERBOLT Special Hobby’s 1/72nd scale Republic P-47M Thunderbolt by Kevin Shaw helps to make a better end result every time, in my experience.

BUILD

KIT INFO

REPUBLIC P-47M THUNDERBOLT MANUFACTURER Special Hobby SCALE 1/72 PRODUCT CODE SH72324 PANEL LINES Recessed TYPE Injection moulded Plastic plastic, NO OF PARTS 64 3 clear, 10 Resin Academy kit with STATUS extra parts and resin details

I

DECAL OPTIONS 5

have never made a Jug in my life, but I saw the opportunity when I revived the reviewers’ monthly listing, and took the challenge. So it began, the first dilemma, what markings to do, as there were three stunning options supplied in the box from the 56th FG out of RAF Boxted in 1945. The 56th ‘stayed in it’ for the duration in the bomber escort role, and with air superiority in place, applied some wonderful, flamboyant schemes on their warplanes. I had two Revell Jugs in the shop stock, so headed into the loft and, relinquishing my money to the business account, ‘bought’ them for myself. (Amanda was so overwhelmed that there would be three Jugs now sat on the dining room table in varying production line states). This difficult financial business decision would however allow me to not only practice Jug techniques prior to completing the Special Hobby model, but also allow me to make all three aircraft from the 61st, 62nd, and 63rd Fighter Squadrons. Lifting the lid gives the modeller three Academy grey sprues forming the basis of this kit with Academy clear parts, plus a specialist M Model sprue, resin tanks and wheels, and etched metal airbrakes in the deal. I always get over-excited at extras like this when included in the price of the kit, as it

I started as always by painting internal parts and internal fuselage, as well as wheel wells, undercarriage doors and the like on the sprues. Cockpit detail was good, but it saddens me to report that some ‘shaving’ of the cockpit structure had to be carried out prior to fuselage close-up, so the fuselage could in fact ‘close up’. It seems to be a recurring theme in 72nd scale at present, particularly with 40’s fighters. The AZ Model’s 109 I completed at the same time had similar issues, and it is a ‘bit of a bind’ when you put effort into an interior, only to have to remove some of it for a good fit. Wing assembly was excellent, and fitting onto the fuselage was good without any filler being required. Again (and sounding like a stuck record but a point well-made, I feel), how can the kit fit together so well everywhere else, but be let down by the cockpit fitting into the body of the airframe? I digress, but it was frustrating as the rest of the kit was superb, no filler being needed at any point externally. The resin parts are extremely well made, the big fuel tanks adding so much more to the overall result, and of course detailed ‘weighted’ main wheels and tyres (usually an extra cost of an

add-on) really help the overall look of the completed Jug. I chose to complete the Special Hobby P-47M in the colours of 421140, The P-47M of Capt. Walter Flagg of the 63rd FS / 56th FG, RAF Boxted, 1945. The two-tone blue camo scheme certainly a first for me. An initial coat of silver on the undersides (followed by another as I didn’t prime this one up) taking it half way up the side of the fuselage was followed by Tamiya taping so the Camo coat could be applied. Dark blue 25 overall looked fantastic in its own right really, looking like a contestant in the ‘best Patrouille de France impersonator’ stakes. Once dry, the Camo was completed with 247, a grey to all intents and purposes, but providing the perfect contrast to the dark blue and looking just like the

lighter shade of blue once in place. For reference, I had gathered the following Humbrol colours for use on all three schemes (a mix of acrylic and enamels for the gloss colours, as I have nothing but bad words for gloss acrylic colours, I’m afraid): -

61st FS (Black A/C) • Undersides 11 • Upper surfaces 85 • Red cowling and rudder 19

62nd FS (Grey and green camo) • Undersides 11 • Upper surfaces 127 Grey and 30 Green • Red cowling 19 • Yellow rudder 69

63rd FS (Two-tone blue camo) • Undersides 11 • Upper surfaces 25 Dark blue and 247 Lighter shade • Red cowling 19 • Blue rudder 47

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“ This kit is very comparable in

terms of construction, look, and dimensions to the older Revell offering. I would still opt for this kit ”

Generic colours for all three • ‘Zinc’ wheel wells and inside cowlings 81 • Inside Cockpit 140 • Matt varnish 49 Weathering was performed with my trusty Tamiya set (Item 87080) utilising soot for the camo airframes, and rust for the black aircraft.

DECALS AND FINISHING I used Humbrol Decal fix as I always do, but have learnt from past experience, and now only apply it AFTER the decal is on to the surface, and not before. Two things about decals coming from the Czech Republic is that they are ultra-thin so hate a pre-coat of the liquid stuff prior to application (as they tend to want to decal themselves, wrapping round everything like a hungry snake), and they come off the carrier in water in around 0.5 of a second. Good for long decaling sessions as it saves time, not so good for the time you lose should you have to give chase with a scalpel around the “plate of death”, only to watch them attach to all sides of the scalpel blade like a barnacle when you catch them. With the decaling complete, a coating of Humbrol clear 49 was applied to ‘matt and tone’ everything into the same layer, then Tamiya weathering deployed to grime down the airframe to represent a well-used state.

CONCLUSION

Did I mention the cockpit fitting? Other than that, this is a grand model kit, and with extra parts supplied, builds into a great looking Thud / Thunderbolt / Jug / P-47 (circle your choice in black ink only). And as an added extra for this review, a direct comparison to the Revell kit! It sits higher on its legs, but overall, is very comparable in terms of construction, look, and dimensions to the older Revell offering. I would still opt for this kit simply due to the extras provided, and the mass offering of wonderful colour schemes from the 56th in the box (five different airframes). As ever, huge thanks go to Special Hobby for this review sample, and Wicor Models of Portchester for adding to my ever growing collection of acrylic paints since converting me to them.

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REVIEWS

LETOV S.328 Special Hobby’s 1/72nd scale Letov S.328 by Carmel J.Attard

KIT INFO

LETOV S.328 MANUFACTURER Special Hobby SCALE 1/72 PRODUCT CODE SH72326 TYPE New Tool grey plastic, NO OF PARTS 76 8 clear parts DECAL OPTIONS 3

T

he Letov S.328 was a twoseat, single-engine biplane regarded as a robust generalpurpose type of aircraft that continued to be involved during extensive operations well into the Second World War. It had an all-metal structure with wings and fuselage fabric covered, and the type has outlived many more modern successors. Development of the S.328 commenced in the early thirties. The first prototype S.328 made its maiden flight on 19th July 1933. Minor modifications were carried out and

the type proved competitive with comparable designs from abroad. In spite of the lack of overseas orders, in 1934 the Letov Company had to rely on substantial confirmed domestic orders by the Czechoslovak Army, to become known as the S.328 MNO. The type was modified to include a Skoda Su-32 type machine gun mounted in the rear cockpit, which led to a shift in the centre of gravity causing lateral stability problems and it also effected the aircraft’s behaviour in the spin. The Czech Air Force took delivery of the 61 S.328/1 aircraft in 1935 and continuous production was maintained at Letov’s Prague-Lethnany factory by a succession of orders for production series I-IV with some modifications mainly to the upper deck of the biplane. In March 1939 German troops occupied Bohemia and Moravia and the S.328 was still on the assembly lines into 1940, when a total of 406 S.328s had been completed. A small series of a floatplane version was also produced, capable of target towing. The first series of the S.328 was fitted with a Walter-built Bristol Pegasus 11-M-2 offering 635 h.p. at sea level. Simultaneously there was development of the S.328M with a Vr 36 in-line engine, and from this version were evolved the S.428 and later a more powerful S.528 with a Walter-

built Gnome-Rhome Mistral Major 14-cylinder radial engine developing 800 h.p.at 5,000m altitude. Immediately after the occupation of the Czech Republic S.328 multi-purpose aircraft were pressed into service with the Luftwaffe, while others were passed to the newly created Slovak Air Force and were used for bombing, reconnaissance, attack sorties and in a heavy fighter role against enemy aircraft. The Luftwaffe used them in training units, glider-towing units and also in the liaison role with a number of combat units. The S.328 was also used in the German invasion of Poland and in 1941-42 they also fought against the Soviet Union on the Eastern Front where they proved effective against Soviet Partisans. Surviving S.328s went on to be flown in rebel hands during the Slovak National Uprising in 1944, flying bombing sorties especially against enemy convoys in the mountains. The S.328 also saw service with the Bulgarian Air Force nicknamed Vrana, or Crow. They were used in anti-sergeants missions and even for maritime surveillance where one is reported to have sunk a Soviet submarine. Following a pre-soviet coup in 1944 the Bulgarian S.328s were used against their Axis allies until they ended their service at the end of the war.

THE KIT Every so often it is fun to branch out from a routine theme and build something completely different, and the Letov S.328 was a case in point as I forget when I last built a biplane. The Letov S.328 had been produced before by the Czech company KP in 1/72 scale and the kit was typical of the era 20 years ago. Recently Special Hobby released a completely new kit with all the detail to produce an S.328 with a leval of detail never seen before. The Special Hobby kit comes moulded in medium grey plastic with many detail parts, particularly comprising the complete tubular structural interior, detailed radial engine and the twin machine gun assembly. As normal with SH kits one finds parts which are not for use but are a good indication that they will go for a future issue of the kit but in a different version. The indication in this kit is that there are parts for a floatplane as there is a set of struts that hold the floats. These should not be thrown away as they make good replacements for the KP kit ones, if you have that kit to build, as this vintage kit contained a lot of flash which was hard to clean up. The SH kit plastic parts come on three runners comprising fuselage halves, tailplanes, rudder and propeller

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MAY 2016 on one fret, another has the two mainplanes, and the third fret has all the interior detail, wing and wheel struts, wheels, and machine guns and engine parts. Then there is a separate fret for the clear parts comprising three very clear rectangular windows, two circular clear parts for wing lights, three tiny lights and the windscreen. The fuselage parts contain good fabric covering to its dorsal sections, and overall realistic representation of the fabric detail. The kit decal sheet originates from Italy’s Cartograf. The 12page instruction comes in colour. My kit has three S.328 liveries, two of which have yellow recognition segments typical for Eastern Front operations. These markings are in addition to the upper olive green and silver under surfaces. There is one machine from the 3rd or 4th production series which comes with a somewhat large but accurate and original national markings for the Slovak state, and in addition also has German markings for when the aircraft was involved in the Polish campaign. The German crosses were to serve to protect Slovak machines from being targeted by Luftwaffe fighters or Wehrmacht AA fire. Another machine represents yet another 3rd and 4th production series of the 3rd Squadron Slovak Air Force based at Skvirana airfield, Ukraine, Eastern front summer 1941.

CONSTRUCTION There are 9 stages of construction and care is needed to preserve the fine engraved lines and fabric surface texture. No moulding pins are present which can often be a bonus in ensuring alignment of the major parts with some care from the builder. The fuselage halves and wing parts were carefully separated from their runners using an X-acto saw, and the flash which was minimal and more often nonexistent was trimmed off and the areas smoothened with fine sanding paper. The cockpit interior detail with a complete tubular interior structure that goes all the way inside the fuselage, is a sub-assembly by itself. This carries two floor sections that are fixed at an inclined angle to conform to the kinked tube structure. Other details attached

to these are crew seats, compass, small gadgets, camera, side consoles, machine gun stand and pivot mounting and two instrument panels, control stick, rudder pedal bar, etc, which all add to the finely detailed interior on the fuselage sides. The interior is all aluminium finishes with a grey instrument panel and other details in black and white. Before cementing the subassembly interior structure to one side of the fuselage, there are two clear side windows that fit precisely and need only be secured with brush-application of Future, and by doing so this will preserve the neat clear parts themselves. The complete fuselage assembly was then glued and the fuselage halves closed and glued together. The tailplanes are added, and also the crew windscreen since this might prove difficult to fix when the upper wing is in place. On a model with an open cockpit, detail such as the gun assembly is added at a later stage which will help in making the masking easier. The twin machine gun assembly iwas assembled and painted, to be added at the final stage. The next stage involved planning the rigging for the wings. These were drilled using a pin drill of 0.4mm diameter and no less than 8 drilled holes were made to each side of the wings.. The exact location of these holes was first marked with respect to the position of the wing struts. The holes go right through the wing section and were time consuming to avoid breaking the delicate drill. The lower wing was then

assembled to the fuselage and checked for correct alignment in relation to the tailplanes, which were already in place, by viewing from the front elevation. At some stage I also located a crew figure from my spares to use as pilot, and a standing crew figure was also located so that I could add a crewman to the gun position area when taking pictures of the model in ‘in flight’ configuration. My appeal to manufacturers is that accurate crew figures should be included with the kit for those who like them. The engine’s Townend ring is split in two parts and these were now joined together before adding the assembled radial engine. These parts were painted in grey, black and silver in accordance with the instructions. Two small engine exhaust pipes protrude to the outside of the ring at the lower section and I drilled the end of these open. Very little filler was needed for the ‘wing to fuselage’ joint. The Slovak machine that I chose had Luftwaffe Dunkelgrün 71 upper and silver under surfaces with Gelb 04 yellow forward ring and yellow wing tips and fuselage band. These areas were first given an undercoat of white followed by Model Master yellow 15146. Upon drying well these areas were masked. At this stage only the upper fuselage area that is covered by the upper wing was painted in Dunkelgrün 71. Before airbrushing this area both the cockpit and gunner areas were masked with tissue paper that covered the already painted interior and instruments. The three windows, one at the bottom and two at the fuselage sides were also covered with Tamiya tape cut to the exact shape of the clear part. The nest stage was to add wing struts and the upper wing to the model. But before doing so and in order to avoid too much stress on the model, the small rigging holes were drilled to the top wing too. The wings were then glued to the struts ensuring correct alignment. The assembly was then allowed to dry overnight. Arrangement for the undercarriage struts could have benefited if parts D48, D1 and D2 were moulded in one piece rather than as rather fragile separate parts. I also added two machine guns to the leading edge. The kit only supplied

the underwing gun fairing. Two drain holes were added to the rear fuselage and also the wheels hubs had two such drain holes deepened. Rigging was now added using invisible mending thread fed through the upper wing holes. I prefer this method to using metal wires as there was double rigging at 4 places and it was easier using thread for the best parallel rigging results. Each thread was tensioned and a knot made, a tiny amount of super glue was added to each hole and there the thread in tension was secured. The surface areas at the drilled holes’ locations were smoothed using needle files and smooth sandpaper. The remaining job was to continue with the rest of the paintwork, applying the underside silver before masking, and applying the upper green Dunkelgrün 71 etc. One should point out that both the footstep at the port fuselage side and the stepped antenna on the leading edge of the starboard wing were replaced with items made from metal wire. The model was given an overall coat of Future applied by hand brush. The decals which were of fine quality were applied to the kit. After allowing time to dry a light sheen coat of Alclad 2 Klear Kote was applied to the kit and all masking was then removed. The matt-painted wheels were added to the wheel struts, and the machine guns put in place retaining the swivel feature of the gun arrangement. In parallel with this build I also built a KP Letov S.328, making additional changes wherever it was possible. This was completed in Bulgarian AF markings. And despite its age this kit made a good but less detailed companion to the SH Slovak machine, and made a pleasant view photographing them together.

CONCLUSION

To sum up, the assembly went smoothly despite it being a long time since I last built a biplane, and I easily added another piece of history to my military model collection I would like to thank Special Hobby for supplying the kit for me to review.

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REVIEWS

Quick BUILD

BREWSTER BUFFALO Quick Build Mark One Brewster Buffalo in 1/144 Scale by Tim Upson-Smith

CONSTRUCTION Inside the end-opening box you will find two complete kits, each kit with two grey sprues and a clear sprue plus a decal sheet with markings for four options, and an instruction sheet. The markings options are reproduced in full colour on the instruction sheet and are at 1/144 scale meaning you can use them to help make the paint masks, especially useful for the camouflaged examples. There are parts on the sprues for both the early and late versions, but the instructions make it clear which cowling, propeller and fuselage end piece you use. Construction could not have been easier; the cockpit was painted aluminium with the separate instrument panel painted black. Only the panel and seat are provided for the interior, but with the canopy framing little can be seen anyway. I am sure, though, that the aftermarket will come to the fore and provide a detailed interior and a vacform canopy in due course.

I assembled the airframe leaving off the engine and cowling as on my chosen scheme the cowling was yellow. I masked the canopy with small strips of 1mm wide tape before gluing it on with Micro Kristal Klear. The undersides were then sprayed grey before masking off for the topside colours. I had decided to build one of the Finnish Air Force options, as the only surviving Buffalo is a Finnish example. I used Tamiya Olive Green which when dry was masked using Blu Tack for the black camouflage pattern. Whilst waiting for this to dry I had painted the engine and propeller black and the cowling white in preparation for a coat of yellow. The undersides of the wing tips were also sprayed yellow as by now everything else had dried. The instructions suggest that the prop blades should be metal, but period photos show black as an option with or without yellow tips. I went without the yellow tips as I had forgotten to paint them before the black. The undercarriage had been pre-sprayed grey and this

KIT INFO

A

s mentioned in last month’s Czech Out column, Mark 1 have released a new 1/144 Brewster Buffalo, in three different versions. It was my intention this month just to write a preview of the kit, but I got a bit carried away and built one!

BREWSTER F2A-1 AND B-239 1 Models MANUFACTURER Mark / Jach SCALE 1/144 PRODUCT CODE MKM14444 panel PANEL LINES Recessed lines 20 grey plastic NO OF PARTS parts and 2 clear parts TYPE Injection moulded Four markings Two US DECAL OPTIONS options, Navy and Two Finnish Air Force

was added with the wheels and aerial. After a couple of gloss coats of Johnson’s Klear the decals were added; they settled down really well and were a joy to work with, the yellow tail band was a bit tricky, but I think that was more my fault! Another issue which was also my fault was lining up the Finnish markings, making sure all the arms of the blue swastika were in the right place was quite tricky in this small scale, something which you do not have worry about with British roundels! The model then received a matt coat and the aerial wire was made from stretched sprue, and with that added the model was finished.

CONCLUSION

I started the model on a Friday afternoon and had finished it by the Saturday evening, something of a record for me! The fact I built this model in

less than two days hopefully suggests how much I enjoyed this build. If you like the smaller scale or want to give it a go this kit would be the ideal introduction, as out of the box it is a pleasing replica and I am sure could be super-detailed if desired. My thanks to Michal from Mark 1 for supplying us with the review sample of this kit.

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REVIEWS

Quick BUILD

SHACK ATTACK I

A quick build of the new Airfix 1/72nd scale Avro Shackleton by Alec Smith

shall start this article with an open admission, I have a distinct fondness for the Avro Shackleton, and it sits quite happily for me in my short list of favourite aircraft. I was fortunate enough to see several of the AEW.2s at airshows around the U.K. during the 1980s and early 90s. I have also over the last year been able to visit and go inside MR.2 WR963 that is being restored hopefully to flight once again by the Shackleton Preservation Trust (SPT) at Coventry Airport. Therefore to someone like me, having two model companies release 1/72 scale models in very short succession has been fabulous. As some will remember I was given a final production test shot of the Revell AEW.2 kit at the end of 2015 (SAMi Feb 2016) and so I wanted to build the Airfix MR.2 as a comparison.

The Airfix kit was developed with a great deal of help and assistance from the SPT and the final decal sheet depicted ‘their’ Shackleton as she was when she started her RAF service. I fully intended the build to be a straightfrom-the-box , and to finish the model as WR963 as in service in the 1950s. This did not happen!! The good people of the SPT started offering guided tours of WR963 at the end of January 2016 and as the day was free I decided to go over. This allowed a good chance of exploring ‘963 in daylight and at my leisure, a selection of the pictures taken on the day form a walk around to accompany this build. Why does this matter? I hear you ask. Quite simply it made me decide to complete the model as ‘963 was on that day in 2016.

CONSTRUCTION The Airfix kit as supplied is a Shackleton MR.2, but from the initial teasers, they will add an AEW.2 boxing at some point. For me this made life somewhat easier, why?, because ‘963 although she started as a MR.2, she then became an AEW.2 and she is now slowly being returned to MR.2 configuration. Therefore at the moment she has a

mixture of the fixtures and fittings of both versions. Fortunately most of these necessary parts are on the Airfix sprue. The area that needed some careful manual adjustment was the bomb bay doors, as although the AEW radome has been removed she is still fitted with the split bay doors whilst the restoration team hunt for a set of the long MR type. Apart from my self-inflicted

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challenge of shortening the bomb bay doors, and thus adding an extra bulkhead because I wanted the rear section open, the build was every bit as enjoyable and straightforward as expected with a new-tool Airfix kit. The fit is generally fine (just watch paint on mating surfaces) as long as the construction sequence is followed. Sadly for me I actually had a slightly warped fuselage that did cause a couple of irritations in fit at the final stages, mainly around the main canopy and roof lights. It was at this stage I received a set of the recent Barracuda resin replacement wheels, and I would recommend them to all, as the kit ones have less detail, and more importantly the main wheels come in 2 halves. The kit, as mentioned, was developed with a great deal of help

and assistance from the SPT and it shows. There are certain areas of detail accuracy on the kit that do stand out, especially when compared to the Revell offering. The most noticeable are that the rear propeller blades are narrower in diameter, the roof lights are correctly staggered, the ‘spark plug’ on the fuselage for the phase 3 mods is the correct large size, and all of the windows are there. There is also much better detail in the wheel bays, and much more detail in the fuselage, some of the Revell interior is actually for a MR.3 (I wonder what

version Revell might do next???) but for both kits this is almost immaterial. The nose and tail sections in the Shackelton are black, and the rest of the internal detail can hardly be seen! I did attempt to paint up the interior of the Airfix kit to represent the real thing, and in order to see anything I have had to leave the entrance door and emergency hatches off/open, fortunately they all open inwards and so they can just be left off. One area for me that Airfix have scored really high is the clear parts, due to them all being designed to be fitted at the very end of the build. They are all attached from the outside, you just need to watch the amount of paint that goes into the openings. As mentioned

I had a slightly warped fuselage, and correcting that caused a slight fit issue for the main canopy and roof lights, that needed a little sanding and filling.

PAINTING AND DECALS For the final painting and decaling I used the kit-supplied items, but with some removals and a small aftermarket add-on. As a thank you for all the help received, one decal option is for WR963 as she was in service with 224 Sqn RAF based at Gibraltar in the 1950s. The SPT has repainted ‘963 in the same scheme of Medium Sea Grey upper surfaces with the rest white (The

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REVIEWS

brown stripe I have added to the wing leading edge is to represent the wood de-icer strips that are now fitted), but with some detail differences. Firstly they have not repainted all of the upper wing walkways as yet, nor have they added the large underwing serials. They have kept all of her code letters, but they are in a different font to those used by the RAF in the 1950s. Added to this are a couple of commemorative names either side of the cockpit. This meant using something other than the kit code letters, and a solution came about from AlleyCat Models who have now produced a small decal sheet for the correct font letters and included the names as carried in 2016.

CONCLUSION

Having built both kits it will be wondered which one I think is the

better. They both have their merits, and at the moment are different enough for me to simply say that Airfix do the best MR.2 and Revell the best AEW.2! Some will prefer the Revell surface detail (even if the rivets are dents); personally after wandering around ‘963 a few times I think the Airfix detail is probably a better representation in the scale. However I am certain many will in fact buy and build both kits and will have a fun time doing so. Personally I think that we modellers should be grateful to both companies for bringing out Shackleton models, and encourage them to produce more similar items. My thanks to Airfix for producing the model (and my wallet for buying it), BarracudaCast for the wheels, AlleyCat Models

for the extra decals and of course the Shackleton Preservation Trust people for the friendly welcome when I visited ‘The Old Grey Lady’ Ermintrude, Avro Shackleton

WR963. For more info please visit www. alleycatmodels.co.uk and www. avroshackleton.co.uk

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General side view of the starboard side

Avro Shackleton WR963 ‘Ermintrude’ from Jan 2016

WALKAROUND

By Alec Smith

Detail view of the starboard engine nacelles

Detail view of the main undercarriage

Starboard rear fuselage

The nose and lower portside. This clearly shows the section changed on the bomb bay doors

Port tail plane and rear fuselage, the silver strip is a natural metal de-icer strip

General view of port wing underside

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REVIEWS General view nose on of her parked at Coventry

Starboard tail plane

Tail wheel detail

View to highlight the different prop length

A peek inside a main gear bay

Detail view of tail wheel bay

The port wing with props and engine nacelles as viewed from the cockpit

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Looking down the rear fuselage, note the various colours. The White box is the tail plane spar

Detail view of the radar scopes, highlighting the various colours, and that when powered down the display is a bright yellow, but goes black under power.

Rear radar operator station seat area, more brown everywhere low down. Note the ashtrays on the main spar

The fuselage interior immediately by the crew entrance door, note brown not black floor

Overview of the Starboard wing from the emergency hatch

The pilots seat and controls, fuselage interior now black to the nose

General view of the nose, in MR role, the gunners seat with aiming window below. Fake gun barrels are fitted; and SPT hope to add the turret at some point. To give a gauge of size there is a comfortable 6ft clearance from floor to roof.

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1/48 PETLYAKOV PE-2

PESHKA

Zvezda’s 1/48th scale Petlyakov Pe-2 by Jay Blakemore

KIT INFO

I

have to confess to knowing very little about Russian wartime aircraft. Indeed, it has remained an unspoken rule of mine never to build anything that would end up adorned with stars, either red or white. This bias may in part be excused by my growing up in a world overshadowed by the prospect of imminent incineration under a hail of Soviet and American nuclear missiles – the Cuban Missile Crisis happened the year after my birth. Or perhaps it was all the time I spent wearing NBC (nuclear, biological, chemical) suits during my years as a Cold War warrior that is responsible for my prejudices. Or it may just be a healthy preoccupation with all things British and German – who knows. The fact remains that only two Russian aircraft have ever really appealed to me: one being the rugged-looking and eminently functional Sturmovik and the other being the more graceful and possibly less well known, Petlyakov Pe-2 ‘Peshka’. So when Ed’ announced that he had one of the new Zvezda kits up for grabs, well, I grabbed it. The Russian kit manufacturer too is one that I have little knowledge of other than occasionally seeing their adverts in SAMI, and it was one of those adverts that first alerted me to the existence of the new 1/48th scale Pe-2. The Zvezda advertisement boldly proclaims that their products are ‘innovations in model kits’, but do the contents of the box match the rhetoric?

MANUFACTURER Zvezda SCALE 1/48 KIT NUMBER 4809 Plastic, PARTS 305 17 Clear DECAL OPTIONS 3 ADDITIONAL Techmod decal ITEMS USED sheet TM48 020

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

In true Russian-doll style, a thin, end-opening outer box which is adorned with some fabulous artwork, opens up to reveal a second, top-opening inner box made of more substantial corrugated card. Inside this is a single plastic bag stuffed with 322 parts moulded in a fairly soft, grey plastic. In all there are twelve grey sprue-frames, one clear frame, a small sheet containing three decal options and a very busy twelvepage instruction booklet. The black and white instructions are very well laid out and the diagrams are clear and nicely drawn. Construction is spread across 42 numerical stages with additional alphabetically listed sub-assembly stages running down the side of most pages. So for example, stage 22, the assembly of the ‘wheels-down’ closed starboard engine nacelle, is made up of sub-assemblies 22a, b and c, which includes a multi-part engine ‘rear-end’ and assorted pipework that can be seen through the

open wheel-bay on the finished model. These parts are of course duplicated should you wish to model both engine nacelles closed, but you also get the option of displaying a nicely detailed engine on the port side. For the ‘wheelsup’ version you get four nicely sculpted crew figures, though they are somewhat under-scale and are certainly much smaller than the superb Aires figures I had to hand as a comparison. The page in the instruction

booklet dedicated to the framemaps became invaluable as I jumped from step to step and flicked back and forth through the booklet in an effort to hurry the build on. There is however one strange anomaly that caused me some head-scratching until I realised its existence. Sprueframe ‘J’ as illustrated in the instruction booklet, actually has the identification letter ‘C’ moulded onto the frame. As there are already two correctly marked ‘C’ frames containing duplicate engine

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FEATURE

“ The initial eight stages and three sub-

assembly stages cover the construction of the Klimov VK105 engine ”

nacelle and propeller parts, it all got rather confusing as I searched for a frame that I was convinced I didn’t have. The pale grey parts are flash-free and nicely detailed with finely engraved panel lines and subtle rivet detail. My initial impressions of the kit were all positive. Being a new release there are at the time of writing this article no after-market accessories to be had for the Zvezda kit, so what you see here is pretty much what you get in the box.

GETTING STARTED

The initial eight stages and three sub-assembly stages cover the construction of the Klimov VK105

engine and supporting framework. Comprising some forty parts, each engine component is tagged by a part number, a secondary number which refers to the colour painting guide at the back of the booklet, and on occasion a third number referring to its sub-assembly stage, and care must be taken initially not to get all of these numbers mixed up. There are some very nicely engineered features in this kit which include the wrap-around trailing edges on the upper wings, the wrap-around leading edges of the vertical tail fins, and delicately moulded detail. I noted that there were quite a few injectionpin marks on the inside of the fuselage and wheel bays, which I immediately began attacking with a sanding-burr. But as I began

construction it became apparent that the majority of these are cleverly hidden behind bulkheads or under panels – another very nice touch. One other thing that soon became apparent was that the often thick sprue attachment points, were more resistentent to filing and sanding than was the soft plastic surrounding them. This left some unsightly little ‘bumps and dips’ in places that refused to flatten out entirely even under the rasping teeth of metal files. Only in one area was this phenomenon particularly problematic, however, and that was on the inside face of

one of the tailplanes, where that surface comes into contact with the straight edge of the elevator. Here I finally resorted to cutting away the ‘corrugated’ plastic with a scalpel and cementing a strip of plastic card over the distortions. Filler was used to smooth the area out, and a new hole drilled through the plastic card strip to take the elevator tab.

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1/48 PETLYAKOV PE-2

“ The more you have to cram

CONSTRUCTION MOVES FORWARD

As already mentioned, the instructions begin with the construction of the engine and this is more than adequate straight out of the box, though I decided to add the spark plug leads that run down the engine sides, using small lengths of stretched sprue curled into shape. With the main engine block completed and set aside for the cement to harden, I skipped through the instructions to see what else could be tackled at the same time – there was plenty. I began work on the detailed fuselage interior, the engine bays and wheel-wells, the wheels themselves, the bomb bay, the wings and the tailplanes. Everything went together perfectly with just a little trimming required. Though there is a need for some

into a fuselage the more clamps you need to keep it all in ” adjustment to the angle of the oval tail fins when attaching them to the tailplanes. Without adjustment these form a snug, ninety-degree angle with the tailplanes, but as the tailplanes fit into the fuselage at a jaunty incline, so the tail fins will naturally angle inwards towards the top if not adjusted. This is incorrect, as on the real aircraft the oval fins stand vertically. There are four multi-part tunnels to be built for the air intake ducts in the wing leading edges and care must be taken not to get these assemblies mixed up,

which is easily done as they all look pretty much alike. I numbered each one as I built it and drew a corresponding number on each inner-wing location. Despite this, when I came to cement the

tunnels in place on the lower wing-halves, two appeared to have been misnumbered as they didn’t fit snugly into their recesses. It transpired that they had been numbered incorrectly, though whether this was my mistake or a misnumbering of the individual parts in the instructions, I could not tell by this stage. The airframe interior is

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FEATURE not actually covered by the instructions until step 25, and it is somewhat refreshing to begin a build somewhere other than the cockpit. The interior detailing is extensive and includes more than fifty individual parts. It is a shame that a metal fret is not included for the smaller details such as levers, trim-wheels and seat harness, as next to the diminutive crew-figures the controls appear clunky and over-size. The three-piece pilot seat is nicely detailed, but is let down by the featureless, flat cushion on the seat back. I chose therefore to sculpt a new cushion from Milliput and added an etched harness sourced from amongst my spares. Harnesses were also added to the rear gunner/radio operator’s chair.

PAINTING THE INTERIOR

There are some very good pictures to be found on the Internet of the interior of a ‘Peshka’, but they are of a modern restoration project and I was not convinced that the bronze-green colour used on this example was entirely authentic. It certainly differs from the colour suggested for the airframe interior in the instructions, which is Gull-

Grey. The colour references used throughout the instruction booklet are for the Humbrol range of paints only, so if you use another manufacturer’s products some research may be in order if like me you are new to Russian aircraft schemes. I chose to base-coat the fuselage interior with a mix of Humbrol medium grey, brown and a touch of black. Once this ‘dark’ enamel base-coat was touch-dry I airbrushed medium grey highlights into the centre of each panel, then gave the lower areas of the cabin area an over-all dusting of the lighter grey. This I hoped would help to create the illusion of depth in the upper reaches of the fuselage interior when viewed through the transparencies, once the fuselage halves were closed-up. Dry brushing a yet lighter shade of grey over the raised detail in the cabin area would further add to this effect and bring out the moulded detail. Control panels and other details were then

picked out in black, yellow, red and blue where appropriate. Once all the base colours were thoroughly dry, enamel washes mixed from dark red-brown and black-brown were used to create further depth to recessed areas, and streaked grime on flat surfaces.

METAL COAT

Various sub-assemblies including the propellers, oil-tanks and the engine mounting frame were initially given a base-coat of Alclad Aluminium in preparation for the colours to come. There is disagreement in the instructions as to the colour of the propeller blades. In the construction stages they are tagged as being red-brown whilst in the painting guide they are described as being black. I decided to paint them a very dark brown to simulate faded black – or indeed heavily weathered brown, thus hopefully being able to appease both camps. When touchdry, the dark brown enamel was

then ‘washed’ off the leading edges of the propeller blades using a thin brush dampened with white-spirit, to reveal the aluminium base-coat. Later the blades would be further weathered with increasingly light shades of brown-grey dry-brushed over the dark brown. The spinners too had received a coat of dark brown over the metal coat, and this colour now became a ‘shadowcoat’ for the white enamel in which the spinners would be finished. For painting the spinners I used a technique similar to that used to paint the fuselage interior, where each panel centre is airbrushed with a lighter shade allowing the darker base-coat to show through at the panel edges. The spinners were now carefully airbrushed with white enamel, leaving the ‘shadow-coat’ visible at the edges of the back-plate and along the centre line of each spinner. Not allowing the enamel to harden completely, the locking nuts on the end of each spinner were then ‘washed’ with white spirit to reveal

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1/48 PETLYAKOV PE-2

the metal coat beneath, and finally, once the enamel was thoroughly dry, the spinners were further treated to staining using heavily thinned brown and black enamel. Brightly coloured spinners can add an exciting focal point in contrast to what is an otherwise drab airframe, therefore a little careful painting can pay dividends to the eventual look of a finished model. Photographs I had found on the Internet of a recovered wartime engine, showed it to have large areas of bare metal. I therefore decided to replicate this, firstly by spraying the entire engine with Alclad White Aluminium followed by a coat of black enamel. The enamel was then ‘washed off’ selected areas to again reveal the Aluminium base-coat. The instructions and the photographs were in agreement as to the green colour used to paint the extensive metal tubing that wraps about the engine, and these items too were weathered slightly by washing and scratching away some of the green enamel in which they were sprayed to reveal the metal colour beneath.

CLOSURE

Before the fuselage halves can be closed up, the semi-circular windows at the waist-gunner’s position, and the large oval observation windows in the fuselage sides, need fitting. As the latter are so prominent I decided it would be a good idea to give them a nice lustre, and I set about polishing them with a soft cloth and a tube of Tamiya finishing polish. It was a mistake. Rather than buff up to a nice shine, the soft plastic used in the Zvezda kit became very dull. I next set about the oval windows with Micro-cloths and the full range of Tamiya polishing pastes, using even finer grades of each to achieve my goal. I was left with two very cloudy and opaque oval windows. The progress of the model now hinged on these two, cloudy transparencies. I toyed with the idea of contacting Zvezda to see if replacements could be procured, but decided instead to try one last thing. Reaching for my

bottle of Pledge floor wax, I dipped the transparencies into the acrylic liquid and left them overnight to drain and dry. By rights it shouldn’t have worked – the application of acrylic floor polish shouldn’t have caused the multiple microscratches on the transparencies to disappear. But it did work and the scratches did disappear, and the following day I gratefully secured the oval windows with their new acrylic lustre to the fuselage sides using PVA glue. The more you have to cram into a fuselage the more clamps you need to keep it all in, and it took a lot of clamps and rubber bands to close up the fuselage halves. Despite this there were still some areas that resisted the pressure, and partial hairline gaps remained along the upper and lower fuselage join that needed a smear of filler once the cement was dry. With the cigar-like body closed-up, the pre-assembled wings slipped neatly onto the two sets of spars jutting from either side of the fuselage. These spars make up the front and rear walls of the bomb bay and run the width of the fuselage to protrude through slots cut into the wing-roots. They provide very solid anchor points for the wings and set the dihedral with little room for error. All that remained was to slot the tailplanes into their deep recesses in the aft fuselage and assemble the engine nacelles onto the lower wings, and the airframe was more or less complete. Some filler was needed around the engine nacelles and a smear just to camouflage the wingroot joints, but as I used Milliput for these areas there was no sanding required, just the wipe of a dampened finger to clean off any excess. Only the fuselage centrejoint needed substantial sanding,

with the inevitable re-scribing of the subtle panel lines. Finally, using masking tape and a new scalpel blade, I set about cutting masks for the transparencies. I had decided to leave the majority of the glazing off the airframe until after painting, with the exception of the flat, lower-nose panel, which proved to be a poor fit. In fact it wouldn’t fit at all, not until I had used a scalpel to shave a considerable amount of plastic off the inner-edges of the fuselage recess. I secured it with liquid cement as I wanted a permanent and solid join here to add rigidity to the otherwise delicately moulded nose.

THE NIGHTMARES BEGIN

The build was going well – too well, and it was perhaps not the time to try something new, but I did. I applied a base-coat of Vallejo Surface Primer to the airframe. This acrylic primer airbrushes straight from the jar and dries

to an almost white, satin-sheen finish. It was a product I had not used before, but having left the primer to harden for 48 hours, the results looked very good. It dried beautifully to reveal some problem areas that I had known would need further attention and were the reason I had used the high-build primer. Using MicroMesh cloths I set about gently working on the visible join-line that ran some of the length down the centre-line of the fuselage. Being more used to enamels, I had dampened the sanding cloth with water and this was a mistake, as the primer immediately started lifting from the plastic surface. Silently chastising myself for trying to wet-sand a water-based product, I set about undoing my mistake by now dry-sanding the raised edges

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FEATURE of the peeling primer. This didn’t work either as more and more of the white acrylic lifted from the model to reveal a patchwork of grey plastic. Not only was the primer lifting from the immediate area upon which I was working, but also from areas where I was handling the model. It seemed that the acrylic was adhering to my rubber gloves more readily than to the model itself. After several attempts to make good the damage I decided reluctantly that there was nothing for it but to strip the entire model of the primer. It took many hours of tedious sanding, scrubbing and stripping away the unwanted acrylic using lengths of masking tape. Wet & dry sanding sheets were used for any stubborn areas of primer and tooth picks, dental scrapers and a tooth brush were used to clean out the recessed panel lines as best I could. Despite this, row upon row of subtly moulded rivets and much of the recessed detail remained filled with primer that proved impossible to clean out entirely. During the stripping process several cemented seams had cracked open under my heavy handling and the fragile bomb racks had been damaged. Worse still, I was now way behind my self-imposed schedule.

SHADOW-COAT & GLOSS-COAT

The kit provides decals for three aircraft: White 01 of the 12th Guards Dive Bomber Regiment; White 7 of the 40th Bomber Regiment, 2nd Squadron, Black

Sea Fleet, 1944; And White 26 of the 34th Red Banner Regiment, 276th Bomb Group, 1945. All three aircraft are finished in the three-tone camouflage of dark grey, tan and dark green although the camouflage patterns differ slightly. The decal sheet is small but fairly comprehensive and includes clocks for the instrument panels and a few black stencil details for the bombs. I chose to model White 7, simply because I liked the patriotic slogan stencilled across the nose with its accompanying lightning flash. Having reglued and reworked the fuselage joints and without the benefit of a primer, I resorted to my usual practice of base-coating the entire model in a heavy, darkcoloured enamel coat which would act as a shadow-coat in much the same way as described above. In previous articles I have called this method ‘solid pre-shading’, but I have decided that I like the term ‘shadow-coat’ better. Partly because it sounds more dramatic, but also because it more accurately describes the results achieved using this method. It is also possible to sand out any small imperfections using wet sanding cloths, if this enamel coat is sprayed on heavily enough in problem areas – which is exactly what I did. In this instance

“ I chose to model White 7, simply

because I liked the patriotic slogan stencilled across the nose with its accompanying lightning flash ” I used a dark grey enamel for the shadow-coat, as this would leave me with only two further camouflage colours to paint on the upper surface. Problems plagued my every attempt to paint this model. The shade of green recommended by the instructions is Humbrol 116, but this is a very dark green similar in hue to the grey in which I had base-coated the model, and so I decided instead to use a brighter green more closely matching

the box-top illustration. Having spent an hour rolling Blu Tack sausages and masking the model for the first camouflage colour and a further hour airbrushing, the olive green enamel that I had chosen – Humbrol 80 – dried to a revolting and sickly yellowish-green that bore little resemblance to the colour indicated by the tin lid. After pondering the problem and making a couple of lame attempts to darken the colour, I decided there was nothing for it but to respray the entire area with dark grey and start the process again with a totally

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1/48 PETLYAKOV PE-2 different shade of green. Returning to the model having left it to dry overnight, I made more Blu Tack sausages and more paper masks and this time loaded the airbrush with Humbrol 105, which was a slightly darker, medium green. I attempted to build the colour up slowly within individual panels as is my usual practice, but by this stage so much of the subtle surface detail had been obliterated in the aftermath of the Vallejo primer incident, that individual panels had disappeared entirely. In the end I simply sprayed the unmasked areas with a solid coat of Humbrol 105, hoping that I could later bring life to these areas using airbrushed highlights. With the green enamel dry and after further masking, I applied the last of the three upper-camouflage colours. The kit instructions recommend Humbrol Tan 118, which according to the tin lid is a pleasant nutty-brown colour, not dissimilar to that in which the aircraft illustrated on the box top is finished. In reality it turned out to be a much paler but not unpleasant buff, which again bore little resemblance to the tin lid but did match the illustrations I was using as reference. Finally the undersides were masked off and Humbrol 65 was applied as per the kit instructions. It had seemed a long slog, but finally the model was completely covered in paint. I wasn’t at all happy with the look of the painted airframe, however, and I knew no matter how successful I might be in applying highlights and weathering, the beautiful Zvezda kit that I had started with such enthusiasm would never now look its best, and with that realisation so my enthusiasm for the project began to wane. There are no national markings on the upper surface and so I next set about adding highlights to the camouflage colours to add interest, especially in this area. I also attempted to paint in some of the lost detail, picking out access panels, ailerons, rudders and trim tabs with a dark black-brown enamel. I used Humbrol Tan 118, mixed with the camouflage colours, to create faded versions of the original shades. These colours were airbrushed in a haphazard fashion to give the appearance of wear, paying particular attention to the upper fuselage, wing and tail trailing edges and panel centres. The undersides were treated to a streaking wash of red-brown and grey enamel, on top of which I applied a further light dusting of blue to blend the colours together. When I was reasonably happy with the look of the weathered airframe, I sprayed the entire model with

several coats of enamel gloss varnish. Once thoroughly dry, the glosscoat was sanded flat using wet Micro-Mesh cloths in preparation for the decals. It is imperative that a thoroughly smooth and glossy surface is achieved at this stage to prevent ‘silvering’ of the decals. The ‘silvering’ phenomenon that can often be seen within the clear carrier film of decals, and which can ruin the look of a finished model, is the result of trapped air bubbles forming beneath the decals as they settle onto the model’s surface. Air pockets can form if the surface upon which the decal sits is undulating, intersected by panel lines and raised details or greasy. Air is also often trapped beneath a decal if it is moved about too much before being allowed to settle or if it is handled too aggressively. A highly polished surface on the model in combination with a setting solution usually prevents air from gathering beneath a decal and allows easy positioning. Repeated applications of a setting solution may be required on thickly printed or old decals, which softens them and encourages them to conform to the moulded detail beneath. Care must of course be taken when ‘flatting’ and polishing the gloss coat, and it is imperative that you apply enough gloss varnish to the model to prevent rubbing through. Only experience can guide you in this respect.

THE NIGHTMARES CONTINUE - DECALS

It was immediately apparent when applying the first red star to the fuselage side, that the Zvezda decal sheet had been printed slightly out of register. With no alternative commercial decal sheets available for the Pe-2, I decided to replace the national markings with items from the CAM decal range – sheet

number 48-A029, which contains an assortment of red stars in various sizes – and utilise what I could from the kit decal sheet. If I thought my build nightmares were behind me I was mistaken, for the decal process, usually a relaxing downhill sprint to the finish line became a costly experience to test my patience, leading to further delays in what was becoming a thoroughly exasperating build. The Zvezda decals are incredibly thin and the carrier film rather elastic, and when it came to applying the patriotic slogan to the nose, it curled over on itself at the edges and was only rescued with copious amounts of Micro Set and much coaxing with a soft paintbrush. Unfortunately the transparent nature of this decal meant that the yellow lightning flash appeared a sickly green against the camouflage colour beneath, so that I would later mask around the edges of the lightning flash using strips of low-tack masking film and airbrush some yellow enamel over it. When it came to applying the national markings from the CAM set I encountered real problems. These decals come in two parts: the white background with red border which is applied first, followed by the solid red central star. Initially the white background decals settled nicely onto the polished surface of the model, but failed to sink into the panel lines or along the rudder hinge line on the tail fins. I decided to cut the latter decal along the rudder hinge line with a scalpel and applied more setting solution. This seemed to do the trick, and so I applied the red stars with more setting solution and left them overnight to settle down. Unfortunately they didn’t settle down but wrinkled horribly, and there was nothing for it but to pull them off the kit

using lengths of masking tape and start the process again. Luckily there were enough stars left on the CAM sheet for a second pass. This time, however, the white background stars refused to settle, and when I tried manoeuvering them into place they simply fell apart. I had by now exhausted my stock of appropriately sized red stars and was forced to order a new set – paying a premium for express delivery – from the Hannants website. When they arrived I realised that I had ordered the wrong ones as these lacked the red outline to the white border. But being determined to get the model as near finished as I could that weekend, I went ahead and used them. However, these too broke up despite the most delicate handling, and having spent a considerable amount of time making the best I could out of a mosaic of broken red and white star fragments, these too wrinkled and separated when I applied small amounts of setting solution in a vain attempt to get them to lie flat. So out came the masking tape again and off came yet another set of red stars. Trying to remain positive despite these latest setbacks, I was soon back on the Hannants website looking for alternative decals with which to furnish my Peshka.

THE LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL

I decided to move forward with the final stages of assembly whilst waiting for the new decals to arrive – this time a set from Techmod: set number TM48020. I continued with construction as I didn’t want the build to grind to a halt yet again. The simplistic representations of machine gun barrels which protrude from the

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FEATURE nose of the aircraft were replaced by lengths of Albion Alloys metal tubing. Next I began to assemble the multi-part undercarriage. The instructions would have you build and mount the undercarriage before attaching the wings to the fuselage, but I thought it more sensible to wait until the painting was complete. The main components of the undercarriage legs slipped effortlessly into their respective locating holes within the wheel bays, but they are delicately moulded and I found it necessary to build the multi-part legs up in stages, allowing each stage to set before moving on to the next to ensure that they sat correctly. The exposed port engine was mounted next. The only real support for the engine comes in the form of two narrow intake ducts situated at the extreme rear of the engine. These protrude at right angles from either side of the engine, curving out to wedge against the inside face of the nacelle. But the ducts barely reached the nacelle walls, and so to make this precarious joint more positive, I first glued two small squares of plastic card to the ends of the ducts. The engine was then securely wedged between the inner walls of the engine nacelles and glued in place. The engine must be positioned so that the tubular framework – which was glued to the engine block earlier in the build (step 8) and which protrudes from the rear of the engine – passes beyond the nacelles and into the wheel bay to butt against the main component of the port undercarriage leg. It is imperative therefore that when gluing the framework to the engine in the early stages of the build, that you position it correctly despite there being no obvious locating holes to accommodate it. This latter, rather tenuous joint is important as it prevents the engine from rocking up and down on the axis created by the precarious duct joint. The entire undercarriage and engine structure is rather flimsy, and I doubt that it will stand the test of time without cracking at some point. When the Techmod decal sheet arrived it proved to be the best looking thus far. The Russian national markings were printed in perfect register and in dark reds, as compared to the orange-red of the kit decals and the pinkish-red of the CAM sheet. I encountered some problems with these decals too, however, as the transparent carrier-film at the edges of some of the stars wrinkled very slightly despite or perhaps because of the application of Micro Sol setting solution. Having never in the past

encountered such problems when applying decals, I was forced to conclude that I had perhaps contaminated the surface of the model when originally ‘flattingback’ the gloss-coat – perhaps using water contaminated with oil or grease. The answer would have been to strip the national markings off yet again and further flat the surface of the model using clean, warm water containing a spot of washing-up liquid. But I wasn’t certain that what remained of the gloss-coat would allow a second pass with sanding cloths, and to be honest, I wanted nothing more at this stage than to finish the model and move on to something new. So as the decal wrinkling wasn’t too extensive, I did a ‘quick fix’ instead. Using a fresh scalpel blade I pierced the raised areas at the decal edges and applied spots of Micro Sol, which seemed to have the desired effect of ‘sucking’ the raised edges of the decals onto the polished surface of the model. Only after the top coat of varnish was applied, however, would I know for certain if the ‘quick-fix’ had worked completely. I now hurried through the final stages, retrospectively adding the lower machine gun and ammunition feed, the undercarriage and bomb-bay doors, the hoop aerial under the nose, the upper machine gun and the transparencies. The entrance hatch in the lower nose, which had been temporarily taped in place during painting, was now removed and posed open, and an application of eggshell enamel varnish – a mix of satin and matt varnishes – was sprayed over the entire airframe to give everything a uniform finish. Once the top coat was dry I threaded the aerial wire through the minuscule hole that I had previously drilled through the aerial mast, securing the ends to the tail fins, and that was it – job done. Or maybe not. Having been informed by the editor that I had another week in which to finish the project, as he was away, attending a rally in Nuremberg, Germany – or was it a toy fair? I felt almost compelled to do a bit of extra work on the model. I had decided latterly that I wanted to display the oil tank area at the rear of the exposed engine, which would be

“ An important Soviet dive-bomber

that is as near perfect as you’re going to get straight out of the box ” all but invisible once I pressed the upper rear section of the engine cowl into place. I had left this cowl section off to allow better access to the engine during construction, and I decided that liked the look of the exposed oil tank. The decision having been made, accuracy dictated that I now scratch-build a spar; which was clearly evident in a photograph I had found of a downed Pe-2 with an exposed engine. The spar was fabricated from plastic card and Evergreen strip, painted and highlighted in shades of grey to match the rest of the engine compartment and then glued in place to span the rear of the engine. It may not be entirely accurate, but it is better there than not there at all. With the new spar in place and the propellers added, my Peshka was finally finished.

CONCLUSION

There is a Russian proverb that says: This is just the flower, the berries will come soon.

We might put it slightly more prosaically, but if the proverb is true and this kit really is nothing compared to what will come, then I long to see what awaits us in the future from this company. With the release of the 1/48th scale Pe-2, Zvevda have given us a state-of-the-art kit of an important Soviet dive-bomber that is as near perfect as you’re going to get straight out of the box. Despite this having been the most troublesome and frustrating build I have completed in a long while, those frustrations were due largely to problematic paint products and to my own incompetence. If I were forced to find a fault with the kit then it would be the decals, which were out of register and so thin as to be transparent. That having been said, this may be the first Zvezda kit that I have made to date, but I don’t think it will be the last, and I would recommend it highly.

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1/48 FOUGA MAGISTER

FOUGA MAGISTER

KIT INFO

Avant Garde Model Kits 1/48th Fouga Magister Review by Jonathan Davies, Aerobatic Display Teams SIG

MANUFACTURER Avant Garde SCALE 1/48 KIT NUMBER 88004 285 plastic, styrene, 2 clear, PARTS 6 28 white metal, 46 Photo etch TYPE Injection Moulded DECAL OPTIONS 5

‘A

vant Garde’ from the French means literally ‘advance guard’, referring to works that are experimental and innovative. It is also the brand of a relatively new company, AMK, seemingly from China, producing some very interesting kits. The Fouga Magister is a wellestablished trainer of French origin, used by many airforces around the world and the mount of many

aerobatic display teams. With its distinctive butterfly tail and big glider heritage wings, there is little chance of mistaking it for anything else. The instructions indicate the kit is based on scale drawings by Mr. Philip Avonds who, incidentally, also did illustrations for the recent Mushroom Monthly Publications book by Tine Soetaert, entitled ‘Fouga Magister’. I was lucky enough to have been given a copy of the book and referred to it throughout the build.

THE KIT

On opening the box, you are presented with a very well packed set of sprues. The majority of the kit is moulded in dark grey plastic, clear of flash and with finely engraved panel lines. Also included is a clear plastic fuselage which if used with the optional parts for the full interior, allows the modeller to build this as a full display model showing the interior construction. There is also a small fret of etched brass as well as a plastic tray of white metal castings, designed to replace some of the plastic parts in the kit. These white metal parts are some of the cleanest and neatest I can recall seeing in a model kit or from the aftermarket. The instructions are supplied as a well-detailed glossy booklet and are well

laid out and easy to follow. Decals are provided for five different aircraft: a Luftwaffe machine in grey/green camouflage, two silver and dayglo machines from the Belgian Air Force, a Patrouille de France aerobatic team machine and a bright red aircraft in Belgian markings looking for all the world as if it was one from the Diables Rouges, the Belgian Air Force aerobatic display team. However, the markings as supplied are for MT-48, a Belgian Air Force machine that flew solo displays between 2002 and 2005.

CONSTRUCTION

This starts with the cockpit as might be expected. Rudder pedals are separate as are the throttle levers on the left hand consoles. The white metal castings include two purpose made nose weights which are superglued under the cockpit tub as indicated. The instrument panels have just enough detail to show the exposed rear faces and the panel detail can be picked out with a silver pencil or dry brush as desired. The seats are made of five parts, although I would recommend leaving off the seat cushion, part D4, as the Magister was fitted with a bucket seat, the cushion being the parachute pack worn by the pilot.

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FEATURE

R “ AMK have excelled in

providing a very well engineered and detailed kit ”

No indication is given in the instructions on using the photoetch seatbelts and I forgot about them until after priming the seats. I used a cigarette lighter to anneal the brass to make it more pliable and then superglued them to the seat, before brush painting them a light blue colour. Painting instructions are slightly off as Magister seats were not black as indicated but a golden brown colour with a brown leathercoloured cushioned back, though some photographs suggest the seats may even have been varnished wood. The control columns seem a little tall, however, I left them as they were, as trying to measure and compare to the real thing was way beyond the necessary. The black interior was lifted slightly with some scuffs added from

a silver pencil, which was also used to add some light ‘scribble’ on the instruments to hint at dial markings. Two parts, D34, are the canopy actuator handles and are shown mounted at 90 degrees into the cockpit sidewall. I changed them to a forward position as they would be with the canopy closed. With everything assembled, the cockpit looks very acceptable out of the box. I did think about building this as a clear body version, but the desire for a properly painted model won in the end. That said, as part of the review, I decided to build and add the detailed interior, just to show what it looks like. Made up from four separate sections, the complete interior was built in an evening, the fit is that good. I used the white metal main spar

which attaches to the front of the main fuel tank. The metal is quite hard and needed a file to take off the faint seam line, which was reassuring as it meant it was more than strong enough to support the joints. The fit of the parts into the fuselage was very precise and neat and once slotted into position it only required a small touch with liquid solvent just to secure the joint. At this point I also added the white metal spars for the tailplanes, these slotting in very neatly before securing with superglue. The front of the ‘Secondary Gas Tank’ also forms the rear bulkhead of the cockpit and should be painted black instead of the indicated ivory. As this was simply a demonstration of how the interior

looks, I decided against painting the rest of the interior detail as it would be completely hidden once I completed the model. The fuselage halves fitted together very well, almost snapping into place. This was quickly followed with the underside panel, again the fit being excellent. Whilst that was setting I turned my attention to the radio shelf behind the cockpit. The exact equipment fitted varied widely depending on the nationality and the year. As supplied, the fit is pretty generic and in fairness, is close enough for most practical purposes and it looks reasonably close to the French version which was what I wanted. One thing to note is that the top of the bulkhead which separates the

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1/48 FOUGA MAGISTER

cockpit from the radio shelf has a rather inconvenient ejector pin mark, which I removed by careful scraping of the part with a fresh scalpel blade. The intakes came next, each one being three parts. There was an ejector pin mark on the inside faces, but the ones on the outer sections will be hidden. The trunk section fitted almost seamlessly into the intake fairing and once the solvent had dried, a quick swipe over with a half round file and everything looked very tidy. The actual engines are almost a kit in themselves, although they will be hidden from view unless you plan to use the clear fuselage section or model the aircraft with open panels. You should note that with the intakes and fully built engines in place, you have a complete intake duct to the primary compressor face with an engine and exhaust, all in one line. In terms of thoroughness, this is quite astounding. One issue I noticed with the engines was the rather prominent locating pin and corresponding hole inside the exhaust pipe. That was easy enough to remove, but odd considering the finesse of everything else up to now. I removed these before painting the interior of the exhaust in

a sooty black which seemed to be standard. There are two parts on the sprues, A2 and A23 which don’t appear anywhere on the instructions. They look as though they could be the heat shield that goes inside the engine compartment to protect the fuselage? Once I had the intakes and engines complete, I inserted them into the fuselage. I found the left intake to be a slightly more awkward fit, although in fairness, this may be more down to my not being careful enough when constructing the now unnecessary interior. The right hand intake fitted near perfectly with no obvious joint lines on the top and only a minor line underneath. Considering the complexity of moulding of this item, I was very impressed. Adding the engine covers and exhaust fairings I encountered a rare spot of trouble. The plastic kit fairings were not a great fit with the engines installed, as they fouled the end of the exhaust. The metal versions, however, were a superb fit. On closer inspection it seemed that the plastic parts have the fairing extending all the way back whereas the metal parts have a small notch removed to allow them to fit round the exhaust. The most obvious reason for this would be

to allow the modeller to build the kit with an engine removed, when the fairing would be fully visible. I decided to use the metal parts, which meant removing a small piece from the engine cover, clearly indicated on the instructions. I also discovered the need to get the engines mounted just right as the fit of the metal part is very dependent on the accuracy of that. This is an example of how the accuracy of the kit does not allow for any sloppy work from the builder. There are several small intakes on the engine covers which I left off until I had completed any (minor) filling that might be needed. I needed some filler on the underside of the nose section as I had a slight step as well as a similar but smaller step on the upper tail area. You are also told to add two parts D38 to the exhaust area, which appear to be oil pipes for making smoke. Leave these off on the Patrouille de France machine. The team only ever made smoke from the left engine and the oil injector pipe is not visible in any picture I could find. The wings gave no trouble at all. Each gear bay has three wall sections to be installed, along with the main gear leg mounting point. Each part fitted cleanly and precisely and I was able to dry fit everything first before applying a drop of solvent to cement everything in place. Again, be careful to press the gear bay walls fully into place so that they don’t foul the fit of the two wing halves. This is important as they really are that tight a fit. The airbrakes are also added at this stage and AMK have given you some very nice etched brass for this. Magister airbrakes retain their glider heritage and the brakes extend as three ‘petals’ above and below each wing. For extended airbrakes, AMK have supplied a

panel, with slots, into which you insert three separate airbrake petals. If like me you prefer the airbrakes closed, then there is another panel with closed slots to use. Either way, the panel is designed to drop into a cut-out on the wing surface. I am always wary of this approach, however, I was very happy to see the brass panels drop into place without any fit issues whatsoever. Even the depth of the cut-out was spot on. The flaps are supplied in two forms allowing them to be modelled as extended or closed. I prefer closed for my aerobatic models, but did a dry run with the extended type to see how they looked. On the real machine they extend on rails and this is captured very well in the model. I refrained from actually adding the undercarriage and gear doors at this stage as I could see them being knocked off very easily. My next step was to assemble the butterfly tailplanes. These went together very well, but I would advise dry fitting them and then trying them as a fit against the fuselage. If you haven’t got the tailplane supports absolutely right you will notice it. I ran a file down the slot inside the tailplanes before sticking them together just to ease the fit. I also found it useful to reduce the size of the locating stub ever so slightly. Once the wings and tailplanes were all dry, these were attached to the fuselage. With the tailplanes I used a file to reduce slightly the dimensions of the metal strut as I hadn’t quite got the supports square which made the fit slightly off. Reducing the metal slightly gave a little wiggle room. With superglue on the metal and a drop of solvent into the joint, they matched up very well. A tiny touch of filler was needed just to complete the joint. The main wings

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FEATURE went on in much the same way. What I really liked here was how the metal struts held the wings square and firm – a very nice piece of engineering. There was a very slight gap between the wing and fuselage, which needed a slight amount of filler, but otherwise the joint was near perfect, Whilst everything was setting up, I assembled the tip tanks. AMK supply two types of tip tank but little indication as to which to use so you will need to do a little research. In my case, building the Patrouille de France aircraft, it seemed the smaller type were more appropriate. The fit on them was again near perfect with just a drop of Mr Surfacer required to fill a couple of small marks on the seam line. I say small, I could only really see them against the light under a magnifier. A little tidying on the mounting point and the tanks were added to the wingtips with no filler required. My next stage was the nosegear, which for the Fouga Magister, is perhaps the least attractive aspect of the aircraft. The major part of the construction includes two side frames, a top brace and a gear leg. Fit is slightly loose requiring a pair of gripping tweezers to hold everything in place while making sure the parts align before applying superglue. In fairness this is not a reflection on AMK who have moulded this difficult setup very nicely. I used the metal gear here to add a little extra weight into the nose section. Previous balance tests had shown the kit to be on the edge of being a tail sitter, even with the added weight. Once everything had set, I added the structure to the nose and let it dry, fit again was excellent. Adding the nose section itself was straightforward enough. The lower section comes as two halves which go together without issue, provided you are careful removing the sprue stubs. The fit onto the fuselage was tight but required no further attention. Even though my model wouldn’t use it, I took the opportunity to dry fit the gun pack, just to see how it looked. Comprising six parts, including ammunition feeds, it went together very well and fitted very neatly in the nose section just on top of the nose gear. I had neglected to

paint the nose gear bay, but based on previous experience, I wasn’t too worried as once everything is together and closed up, there’s not a lot to be seen. Removing the gun pack I added the unarmed nose sections, adding a little extra weight in place of the guns, just to be sure. Now I added the remaining sections to enclose the nose section, I found a little work with a fine file was required to reduce the pieces very slightly to insure a good fit. I also had to use a little filler but it was clear that If I had been a bit more careful at earlier stages, this would have been less likely. I also added the half loop aerials using the metal versions. I used the metal ones as I figured they would be more robust, especially when cleaning up and handling the model. I also added the radio deck to the rear of the cockpit at this stage in preparation for adding the canopy. The panels for the top rear section of the fuselage were added next, taking care to add the correct ones for the variant you are building. The instructions are nice and clear in this, however the fit of the parts I found slightly disappointing considering the overall excellent fit of the rest of the kit. The instructions also show to add the whip antenna at this stage. The instructions also indicate the aerial fit based on which machine you are building. It was only after adding them that I discovered the fit as indicated for the Patrouille de France aircraft is incorrect. Forget part E1, a small triangular aerial and use part D40 instead, as indicated for the Belgian machines. Pictures also show that the team carried a small triangular aerial under the nose, so I used the indicated part E3, despite the instructions showing to the contrary. The periscope was now added

to the inside of the centre canopy section. It fits very well, although make sure you mount it carefully as the top part dovetails in on top very neatly. Masking the canopy wasn’t too bad for the most part, although the rearmost section had very indistinct framing making it quite hard to accurately mask the small windows. On the front section, you are supposed to add two small pieces of etch to represent deflectors. These pop out when the canopy is jettisoned, disturbing the airflow to make it easier to bail out. I didn’t add them yet, but planned to add them at the end, remembering to paint one side black so it matched the interior framing. With the canopy masked, I was able to attach it to the airframe, again the fit is extremely good. Once the glue had set, I airbrushed black for the interior colour, followed by a grey primer to

bring everything back to about the same tonal value. The undercarriage doors were fitted with their etched brass mounts/hinges at this point as well, but leaving them on the sprue as they needed priming on both sides. The hinges are supplied as a flat piece of etch which you have to bend into a bracket, a squared-off ‘U’ shape. Whilst the etch has fold lines in it, these didn’t seem to be in quite the right place meaning the hooks that formed the hinge part were at the wrong angle. I had to do a little careful tweaking to get these to fit properly. It may be just me but the two-part nose door proved quite troublesome as the smaller part is connected via etch to the larger part. Once I eventually managed to get it all together, everything was given a coat of white primer ready for the paint shop

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1/48 FOUGA MAGISTER PAINTING

The instructions specify some interesting colours for the Patrouille de France aircraft. The red is given as Flame Red, FS11310 or RAL3000 whilst the blue is given as Traffic Blue, FS15065 or RAL3001. The French Air Force, I am told, don’t use RAL or FS colours, perhaps understandably. So the challenge was to find suitable colours. It could be that these are close matches, but I was unable to find a specification for the French colours so I couldn’t check. Finding model paints in the given colours was a challenge – RAL3000 being the only one I could locate, but I had experienced problems with that before. I find Revell enamel difficult to get on with, while Vallejo advise you not to spray their ordinary RAL3000, probably as it contains cadmium and the Vallejo Air RAL3000 was a different shade of red. Wanting to use acrylics, I spoke with Paul Fitzmaurice at Modelling Tools http://www.modellingtools.co.uk/ who helped me locate a suitable blue which turned out to be Ultramarine from Vallejo’s Game Air range. It sprayed well enough over white primer but did seem to be quite a delicate finish. The red initially started as Vallejo Air Ferrari Red but as this proved patchy in finish I stripped it back with Revell Paint Remover and reprimed and resprayed with Tamiya XF-7 Red. Note that for the tail you just need to paint the elevators red, this is not clearly illustrated in the painting instructions. The remainder of the tailplanes can be left blue. Once everything was dry, I sprayed several light coats of Johnson’s Klear, thinned with isopropyl alcohol and a couple of drops of Winsor & Newton acrylic flow improver, which produced a nice even sheen for decaling. The interior of the undercarriage bays is ivory and whilst the nose bay is rather well hidden, the main gear bays are a bit more obvious. With the blue overspray inside, experience suggested the usual Games Workshop Bleached Bone would not have the coverage I wanted with normal brush painting. So, masking around the bays, I sprayed Alclad white primer tinted with Alclad transparent yellow. The primer gives excellent density and the addition of the yellow tint gave a superb match to the

Games Workshop colour. Finally the undercarriage legs were given a coat of Alclad White Metal over white primer.

FINISHING

Decaling commences with the white striping. Take care not to bend the decal as you cut it out or trim it, as a crease will cause it to crack, which you only discover when you try to slide it off the backing sheet. I started with a nose stripe first and this is in three parts, all of which went on quite well. Then, applying the wing stripe I encountered a major problem. Apart from being translucent and showing the red/ blue demarcation underneath, they are also the wrong shape. The decal doesn’t quite extend from wing root to wingtip as it should and it is also deeper in chord than it should be. Another small issue was the gold team badge on the port side of the nose. This was also slightly transparent allowing the demarcation between the white decal and blue paint underneath to show through. I used Mr Setter and Mr Softer which worked well on the decals, and on more stubborn ones I used Daco strong solution which also worked as well. One obvious omission from the decal sheet were the pilot and crew names which appeared on the left side just forward of the canopy. This is quite a glaring omission and in my attempts to locate which pilot should be named, I also found that the code, VP 585 is wrong. Aircraft VP was serialled 565, not 585. Once the decals were on and dry, they were sealed with another coat of Johnson’s Klear before being masked for spraying to correct any errors. Once that had been achieved, a number of coats of Klear were then used to restore an overall glossy finish. Finally I added the undercarriage and the clear lenses to the nose and tip tanks. The undercarriage was quite fiddly and needed a little pressure to get everything to lock into place. I

would strongly recommend using the metal legs as these will ensure some extra resilience against the handling required. The innermost and outermost undercarriage doors also needed a little careful handling to get them to fit securely. The clear parts could not have been a better fit and the tip tank lenses look particularly effective. The two clear panels on the side just under the canopy, however, needed a lot of work to get them to fit. I lost one in the process as it pinged off into the carpet forcing a replacement to be scratched up from some clear plastic sheet.

CONCLUSION

AMK have excelled in providing a very well engineered and detailed kit. There are a few small areas in construction which proved tricky and the seats were not as accurate perhaps as they could be. One could argue that the undercarriage doors are perhaps over engineered for most people, however, on the whole, this is a very nice kit to

work with and you have plenty of options for detailing with or without the clear sections and open panels. My only real gripe is with the quality of the decals which, given the overall quality of the actual kit, were surprisingly poor. The translucency of the white decals coupled with poorly sized wing stripes was extremely disappointing and frustrating. This prompted me to look at the other decals more closely and some of them also have minor printing issues e.g. the orange panels for the Belgian machine appear patchy close up and the yellow sections on the MT48 aircraft appeared to have a different shade of yellow as a border. So, would I recommend it? Yes, because despite the decals and a few small fit and minor accuracy issues, the build is superb. Berna and Max Decals already produce some superb aftermarket decals, as do Wingman as part of their reboxing of the Kinetic kit. My thanks to Avant Garde for providing the review kit.

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1/48 F-4C VIETNAM WAR

SCAT XXVII

MiG Killer – Mud Mover

KIT INFO

Detailing the 1/48 Academy F-4C Phantom by Bob Cantrell Photography by Mike Middleton

MANUFACTURER Academy SCALE 1/48 KIT TYPE 12294 injection KIT TYPE Plastic moulded

O

ne of the most iconic symbols of the air war over Vietnam was the mighty F-4 Phantom. Operated by the USAF, the US Marines and the US Navy the ‘Rhino’ was used in the air defence, ground attack, reconnaissance and defence suppression missions, making it a true ‘jack of all trades’.  This 1/48 offering from Academy is without doubt one of the finest F-4 kits on the market, well on a par with

Tamiya, and moulded in crisp grey, white and black plastic, with some excellent details.   Construction started with the cockpit, which builds up into a neat module, and the instrument panels have raised details which, when carefully painted, really come to life. The next stage was to work on the wheel wells and their sidewalls. In hindsight I should really have left the undercarriage legs off until later as it hindered the build, and I knocked mine off at least three times! The wheel wells fitted neatly into the lower wing, and the upper wing section then sealed everything in. Next was the jet intakes and exhaust cans, which have some nice surface detail. The cockpit tub was fitted to the lower front fuselage section, which then fits to the lower wing section, and then

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FEATURE

“ This 1/48 offering from Academy is without doubt one of the finest F-4 kits on the market ”

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1/48 F-4C VIETNAM WAR

the upper fuselage slots onto the completed lower section. Strips of lead were then fixed inside the nose cone to avoid a ‘tail sitter’, and the underwing pylons were fitted next along with the wing and centreline tanks. Now for the outer wings and their associated flaps, and the rudder section were all fitted, and the cockpit was masked off ready for painting. The entire model was given a coat of Tamiya Light Grey Surface Primer and once dry, the panel lines were pre-shaded with Black. Next the undersides were sprayed with Model Master Light Grey, and the upper surfaces were airbrushed with Model Master Flat Earth, Light Green and Dark Green for the disruptive camouflage pattern. The rear metallic sections at the rear of the Phantom were sprayed with Alclad Gloss Black followed by a coat of Alclad Chrome and Alclad Airframe Aluminium and then oversprayed with some Alclad Pale Gold for a heat stained effect. The nose cone was then painted Flat Black and the entire model was given a coat of Johnson’s ‘Future’. All panel lines were washed with black, and the decals applied. The stencils

were quite a tedious job to apply, as there are hundreds of them! Once dry the model was treated to a coat of Winsor & Newton acrylic flat varnish, and the wheels were suitably painted and fitted along with the wheel well doors and the lower airbrakes. The underwing stores came next, and I chose a mix of bombs and missiles, and after few touch-ups here and there, the build was complete.

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Mastered-Adverts-AV-0516_AV-0606 08/04/2016 16:29 Page 451

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1/72 VICKERS VIMY COMMERCIAL

VICKERS VIMY

Maquette’s Vickers Vimy Commercial. Britain’s first real airliner in 1/72nd by Peter Ibes

T

he Vickers Vimy was a British heavy bomber aircraft of the Great War. It was quite successful both as a military and civil aircraft, setting several records in long-distance flights in the interwar period. The best known of those is probably the first non-stop crossing of the Atlantic Ocean by Alcock and Brown in June 1919. The Vimy Commercial was the civilian derivate of the Vimy with a completely redesigned large diameter plywood fuselage that could transport 10 passengers in relative comfort. In a time when most passenger planes were mere converted bombers, the Vimy Commercial can be considered Britain’s first purpose designed airliner.

INSTONE AIR LINE

One of the operators of the Vimy Commercial was S. Instone & Company Limited. The company had operated a private service from Cardiff via London to Paris since 1919, but in April 1920 it started a public service between London and Paris, flying as Instone

Air Line. The airline was short lived, as in 1923 a Government committee recommended that all main British airlines should merge. Following this recommendation, Imperial Airways was created on 1 April 1924, absorbing the assets and routes of Instone Air Line, together with those of Handley Page Transport, Daimler Airways and British Marine Air Navigation Co Ltd.

BUILDING THE MAQUETTE KIT

Amazingly an injection-moulded kit of this civilian pioneer is offered by Polish firm Maquette (made in Russia), but all is not well with this one. The Maquette Vimy Commercial kit consists of parts from the ancient Frog/Novo Vickers Vimy bomber, plus a new, very basic passenger fuselage and some other small additional airliner parts such as the nose wheel. The box also has a rather rudimentary set of instructions and a decal sheet for the Instone Air Line ‘City of London’, also included are markings for an air ambulance and troop transport. The bomber parts show the

age of the mould, with a lot of flash and ejector pin marks. The new fuselage parts are cleanly moulded, though there are some big accuracy problems. While the fuselage length is to scale, the window and door

arrangement is wrong. Maquette tried to incorporate features of the commercial, ambulance and transport versions in the same fuselage, resulting in the port and starboard windows not sitting directly across from one

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FEATURE another. The port windows in the kit appear to be in approximately the right location, so using those as a template I partly filled some windows using plastic sheet and cut out new ones in the starboard side so they lined up with those in the port fuselage. The fuselage is basically an empty tube, so I scratch built a new floor and added bulkheads, and created a cockpit interior. To add seats in the passenger cabin I purchased several sets of the PART World War One seats, to which I added supports from Evergreen plastic 1 mm rod. All the interior bits were painted wood by first spraying a light sand colour, and after this had dried I brushed on heavily thinned red-brown enamel for a wooden lacquer appearance. The cockpit was further adorned with some small handles and knobs which were painted with some drops of bright colours. The windows from the kit were rather thick and distorted, so I cut windows from pre-masked acetate sheet, glued these in place using white glue, and closed the fuselage up. Fit here was actually not too bad, so just a bit of Tamiya putty and a bit of sanding, and the job was done. Dry-fitting the lower wings, I noted that either the door to the passenger cabin is too far to the front or the wings were too far aft. The fuselage door of the Vimy Commercial opened downwards, but with the wing placement of the kit, it would rest on the wing. Therefore the slots for the wings were lengthened forward by 5 mm. The lower wings were then glued in place, and after drying, lots of Tamiya putty was slabbed on to fair them in. While this dried I assembled the engines (with new exhausts from Evergreen rod),

wheel struts, tailplane and upper wings. I also added the rudder and aileron control cables on the tail and wings, using 1 mm rod and 0.3 mm steel wire, and put them aside.

A TOUCH OF COLOUR

The fuselage was now sprayed with several thin layers of Tamiya TS-15 blue from a spray can. This gives a durable and shiny dark blue colour. The fuselage was then masked and all remaining bits and pieces, including the pre-assembled ones, received a coat of metallic silver. Only the struts and propellers were painted a light sand colour first and then brush painted with thinned red-brown enamels to give them a wooden look, the same technique I had used in the cabin interior. The masking was then removed and the remainder of the kit assembled as per the Maquette instructions. With that done, and after a few touch-ups, the entire model received a coat of Klear in preparation for decaling.

“ The end result looks great to me, and without the Maquette kit this conversion would have been a lot more difficult ”

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1/72 VICKERS VIMY COMMERCIAL DECALS, DECALS, DECALS

Although I noted the decal sheet had a few errors, I decided to use them anyway. But then disaster struck! When I dipped the large black wing markings in water, they broke into a dozen pieces!! The white fuselage codes didn’t fare any better. Now what? Who would produce a decal sheet for such an obscure model? Luckily for me Mika Jernfors from Arctic Decals came to the rescue. Working with Mika a new decal sheet was created that has all correct markings to replicate the Instone Air Line Vickers Vimy Commercial in all its different liveries, but also the company’s Airco D.H.4 as a bonus. With the new sheet decaling was a piece of cake. The pre-series set I received came without instructions, so using period photographs from the Internet as a guide, I selected the right combination of markings and placed them on my model. After allowing the decals to dry they were sealed in with a coat of clear varnish.

HOME STRETCH

I now carefully removed the masking tape from the windows of the passenger cabin and added the windshield for the pilots from acetate sheet. Then began the daunting task of rigging this beast. Working from the inside out and in multiple sessions, I added all wires by cutting pieces of 0.3 mm steel wire to the correct length and glued these in place with a drop of superglue. You don’t want to work on this for too long, as you will loose concentration, so it took me several days to complete. The last bits were the control cables that go from the tail to the fuselage,

for which I used the elastic rigging from Uschi van der Rosten, which is available in the SAM Publications shop.

CONCLUSION

The end result looks great to me, and without the Maquette kit this conversion would have been a lot more difficult. I was let down a bit by the quality of the kit and especially the decals, but I can definitely recommend the Instone Air Line sheet produced by Arctic Decals. The set will be available soon from Mika’s website: www.arcticdecals. com.

A PLEA FROM THE EDITOR

I hope readers enjoy the Civil Matters feature but at the moment the cupboard is bare, so if you build any type of civil aircraft please consider sharing it by submitting an article to the editor [email protected]

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1/48 MESSERSCHMITT ME 262A-1A

ME 262A-1A INFO

Tamiya 1/48 Messerschmitt Me 262A-1a with Antares resin conversion set by Dick Clark

MANUFACTURER Tamiya SCALE 1/48 KIT NUMBER 61087

I

must admit, until the Editor sent me this Antares conversion the Me 262 HG III had pretty much flown over my head. The pace of technological advancement in wartime Germany never ceases to amaze me, particularly in the field of aviation. While the development of reliable jet engines hit many a stumbling block, it seems the entire German aviation industry was preparing any number of ingenious designs to make the most of these power plants just as soon as they became available, and we may count ourselves fortunate indeed that they did not become available in time and the Luftwaffe did not receive these aircraft.

The Messerschmitt Me 262 needs no introduction in these pages. Along with the Gloster Meteor it was the first jet aircraft to enter active service and in its short blaze of glory it must surely have seen more rapid development than any other jet since. Some variations never got any further than sketched designs; others, such as the ultimate 262 development, the HG III (Hochgeschwindigkeit – High Speed) made it as far as wind-tunnel models being actively tested and a test airframe being under construction when the war ended.

THE KITS

The basis for this build was to be Tamiya’s lovely A-1a, although not much would be left by the time I’d finished! Added to this would be Antares’ resin conversion kit, comprising intakes, engine pods, jet outlets, belly section, wings and a choice of two tailplanes, with a fuselage extension for the butterfly tail and a lower rear cockpit section with a vacformed Renncabine (literally, racing cabin) canopy, In

fact, the kit includes two canopies, great for those who routinely mis-cut vacform canopies! I added some Luftwaffe etched seat belts from the spares box. The resin is fairly good although it does have a few pinholes, particularly along the trailing edges. However, panel lines are extremely fine; I would have preferred these to be more sharply defined, though.

THE BUILD

For a brief while, construction follows the recommended route according to Tamiya’s instructions. However, even at Stage 1 I would recommend making changes. I found I needed to remove the lower section of the rear bulkhead, up to the level of the underside of the cockpit tub – and don’t bother fitting part B23 as it will only get in the way and won’t be seen. I left the guns out of the gun bays in order to leave as much room for lead weight as possible, should it prove necessary. (As it turned out, I could have added the guns and not worried about weight as my model just about sits on its nose wheel. The addition of the guns would just make it sit that bit more positively on the front wheel.) I realize where HobbyBoss got

the idea of the metal nose landing gear bay from, as this kit has the same option, although this one is perhaps better cast. Use it, but don’t fit the nose wheel leg at this stage. I did fit the actuator strut, as this cannot be added later; I fitted it dry and then taped it up out of the way. The nose undercarriage/ gun bay and cockpit fit as per the kit but, again, don’t bother fitting the equipment (Parts C5 & C6) inside the fuselage, as they won’t be visible. Now you can close the fuselage up, and that’s where standard kit construction ends and the butchery begins! The first piece of resin I fitted was the belly section which includes the main wheel bays. I have to say Antares’ instructions are rather vague and this piece didn’t seem to fit very well. I had to cut away sections of the rear lower wing root to allow the part to slot in, but it seems too short for the opening – I wonder if the Antares parts were designed for a different base kit? But I had a HobbyBoss kit to hand for comparison and that seemed to present the same problem. To close the gap I simply cut a section from the rear of the Tamiya wing section and glued it in the gap, so it’s not a great problem. I now decided to remove all the

“ The basis for this build was to be Tamiya’s

lovely A-1a, although not much would be left by the time I’d finished! ” 456 MAY 2016 • SCALE AVIATION MODELLER INTERNATIONAL

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FEATURE

rest of the resin parts from their casting blocks, performing this task in my spray booth with the fan on to draw the dust in – and wearing a breathing mask as well, as resin dust is nasty, carcinogenic stuff. Another area where Antares’ instructions are none-too-clear is with regard to where to cut. On some parts, such as wings and tail surfaces, it’s obvious; on the jet intake and outlet sections, less so. So I just cut what looked like the resin bases off, reasoning that if I cut too much off I could always make up any shortfall with plastic

card inserts. The next job was to glue the intakes and jet pipes to the main engine nacelles. I attached the intakes first, aligning them with the wing root line. The mating of these two sections raises my only major disappointment with this conversion set, as the intake trunking does not remotely match up between these two parts. One could attempt to remove some of the front of the main nacelle section, and/or put filler in the intake section to blend the sections into one-another, but I felt this

All the components of the Antares conversion set. All that will be left of the donor kit will be the fuselage forward of the tail section!

The right fuselage half prior to closing up. You will need to remove the lower part of the rear cockpit bulkhead; this has not been done here as I did not realise the necessity

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1/48 MESSERSCHMITT ME 262A-1A

would make an awful lot of work, so decided to leave things as they were. It only shows when you look down the intakes, but it is a disappointment all the same. When it came to attaching the outlet sections to the nacelles I

checked the length of the wing root joint against the fuselage and decided I did need to add a plastic card shim to extend the overall length of the nacelles. Part of the wing root on the fuselage has to be removed in order to mate the

Here you can see the areas that need to be modified for the belly section to fit, as well as the gap along the rear edge

Cutting the tail pipe sections from their casting blocks with a junior hacksaw. To help me hold the part steady while I cut, I have embedded it in a lump of Blu Tack

nacelles to the fuselage; this is indicated, but again rather vaguely, in Antares’ instructions. When you’ve removed enough becomes clear as the nacelles do fit quite snugly along the fuselage sides. Before I did any work to blend the new nacelles into the fuselage, I gave the model a coat of grey primer to help me see where filler was needed. Then it became a case of fill, sand, prime and repeat until I was satisfied with the result. The wings required a little more of the same treatment, but fortunately only a little. The tailplanes were a straight replacement for the kit parts, although I did have to remove a sliver along the root to match the kit tail fin. It is easy to see which tailplanes are for the ‘standard’ tail and which for the butterfly-tail version.

have already commented, panel lines on the resin are extremely fine and most were already lost on the nacelles, so I have to admit some of them are made-up. I had to drill location holes in the resin belly section for the main undercarriage legs, working them into square-ish holes to locate the lugs on the kit legs. The undercarriage legs were fitted without glue for the photographs at this stage.

FINISH, VERSION 1

The engine nacelles have been fixed in place; note the plastic card shim inserted to make the length of the wing roots on the nacelles match those of the fuselage

Since one can build at least two versions of the HG III project with this conversion set, and considering that the less-modified versions were never more than drawing-board designs, I decided to finish this model as if it were a drawing in three dimensions, for the standard-tail version, and then go on to further convert it into the butterfly-tail variant with a proper ‘in-service’ finish. So for the first version I simply sprayed the model matt white, then drew on panel lines, etc. in pencil. As I

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FEATURE I have marked out the faint panel lines with a fine marker pen, although this didn’t help much in the end

After considerable effort filling, sanding, priming and repeating, I’m ready to fit the wings and tail surfaces

FINISH, VERSION 2

Once my photos were all done I removed the undercarriage legs again and prepared for the final modification. The tail was removed at the panel line immediately in front of the fin base and, after a little work, the replacement tail section plugged neatly in, with a minimum of work needed to

blend it to the fuselage nice and smoothly. There is no clear location for the tail fins, so I fitted one so that it looked about right according to drawings both in the instruction leaflet and in my other references. I then fitted the other to match according to my trusty Mark One Eyeball! After priming the tail section I

painted the undersides with Tamiya AS-5 Luftwaffe Light Blue. I did not mask up the undersides at all, since the aircraft is such a flat design; I reasoned I could just let the upper colours fade around the contours giving a typically Luftwaffe soft edge. The upper camouflage colours were built up using a splinter pattern of my own design; first an overall coat of Tamiya AS23 Luftwaffe Light Green, followed by splinters of AS-4 Grey Violet and TS-1 Red Brown. Masking removed, these colours were polished back partly to get rid of some raised edges between colours and partly to introduce some wear and tear. A couple of coats of TS-13 Gloss Clear were applied in preparation for decaling. The markings are all from various Me 262 models: this Tamiya kit, plus two of HobbyBoss’s versions. Being a design project, some markings have to be made up, particularly with regard to stencils, although those on the fuselage were placed according to

Tamiya’s instructions. I hope my placements make sense! The undercarriage needs care. The main wheel wells are too small for the kit doors, but I don’t think it shows with the gear down. The main wheels would have had to rotate through 90 degrees, so I positioned the actuator struts so that I felt this would work in real life. But due to this rotation, the square-edged doors need to be transposed. Also, the forward doors overlap, and would also act as speed brakes, so I think these would have needed modification. I think the whole system would have needed a redesign, but I felt this was beyond the scope of this project, so I fitted them so that it all sort of made sense (I think the narrow track of the undercarriage might have caused all sorts of problems, too. This might also be countered in a redesign). Thankfully the nose wheel all works fine as standard.

“ one can build at least two

versions of the HG III project with this conversion set ” WWW.SAMPUBLICATIONS.COM • MAY 2016 459

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1/48 MESSERSCHMITT ME 262A-1A Canopy fitted and masked with Bare-Metal Foil, the model is now ready for its intitial finish coat of matt white

CONCLUSION

It must be said, this is one mean-looking bird! It may be conjectured that this design could have made a serious attempt on breaking the Sound Barrier. Certainly, in pure design terms, it was streets ahead of anything else under serious development. What might have been! As a conversion this isn’t a project for the novice but we have to be glad such sets are available to the modern modeler. It does look rather gorgeous among my growing collection of 1/48 Storm Birds;

like the Hawker Hunter, it looks fast just standing still! Give me more! If you are interested in this subject or similar projects visit the Antares website at www. antaresmodesl.com They do a number of conversions based on the 262, Arado 234 and Fw 190 as well as complete resin kits.

“ This is one mean-looking bird! It may be

conjectured that this design could have made a serious attempt on breaking the Sound Barrier ” 460 MAY 2016 • SCALE AVIATION MODELLER INTERNATIONAL

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BOOKS AND MEDIA

Books & Media 1910-1935

INFO

I rather enjoy company histories and this one is no exception, taking us the reader from the beginnings of the company through the First World War and up to 1935, covering what for many will be considered the golden age of aviation. The book is illustrated AUTHOR John Clifford throughout with contemporary black YEAR 2015 and white images, PUBLISHER Fonthill Media not just of the ISBN 978-1-78155-360-2 aircraft but of those who flew them and the airfield at Hatfield and its surroundings. I am particularly fond of Art Deco architecture so the photos of the de Havilland offices under construction and in use were very welcome! This book will transport you back in time to the elegant era of the 20s and 30s, when de Havilland types ruled the civil aviation market. A good read, my thanks to Fonthill Media for supplying the review copy.

Spotlight On

Supermarine Spitfire V

An Illustrated History This new book from Amberley Publishing makes great use of the archives held by the Solent Sky Aviation Museum in Southampton. The images start with Pemberton-Billing aircraft and flying boats, before moving onto the golden age of flying boats, with several images of one I was not familiar with, the one-off Supermarine Air Yacht. The images show them under construction as well as flying and on the water. The middle part of the book looks at the Schneider Trophy racers, starting with the Sea Lion, before moving on to the S.4 to S.6B, which to me are amongst some of the most beautiful aircraft ever made. The next section looks at the most famous of AUTHOR Christopher Smith all the Supermarine products, the Spitfire, before moving on for a short look at the Supermarine YEAR 2016 jet age aircraft. PUBLISHER Amberley Publishing This book gives the reader an authoritative ISBN 978-1-4456-5124-8 short text on the company history and access to just FORMAT 128pp Softback some of the images held in the Solent Sky Museum archive. For fans of golden age aviation this book is recommended. My thanks to Amberley Publishing for supplying the review copy.

The Boy Airman An Absolute Stranger to Fear

INFO

INFO

This latest book in this series looks at the ever popular Spitfire and one of my favourite Marks, the V. The book starts with a short introduction, which is followed 42 A4 colour profiles and a central pull-out profile of RF-D of 303 Polish Squadron RAF, a scheme I did many years ago on my AUTHOR Robert Grudzien Airfix Mk V. Every user of the type is YEAR 2015 covered in these PUBLISHER MMP Books Stratus profiles, including ISBN 978-83-63678-81-4 amongst others FORMAT 43pp Hardback Greek, Portuguese, Italian and Turkish. MMP have started to produce decal sheets to go with some of their books and I hope that they do with this one as there are some really unusual schemes featured. My thanks to MMP Books/Stratus for supplying this review copy

Supermarine

INFO

De Havilland and Hatfield

AUTHOR Richard Petty YEAR 2015 and Sword PUBLISHER Pen Aviation ISBN 978-1-47384-905-1 FORMAT 189pp Hardback

The first half of this book is a general history of the First World War, the last chapter of which introduces the author’s father’s experience and his finding after his father’s death of a series of negatives taken during his father’s service on a Kodak ‘vest pocket’ camera. The second half of the book is based upon a speech given by the author’s father Hugh Mortimer Petty to his hospital colleagues in 1927. This section is profusely illustrated with superbly reproduced images taken with the Kodak camera. There are some errors with aircraft identification in some of the images; the aircraft on page 131 is definitely not a Bristol Scout… That said, this does not detract from the book and it is good to see these images being published, when countless albums and images have been lost. For the adventurous diorama builder the image on the top of page 163 showing a Sopwith 1 ½ Strutter wrapped around a ship’s funnel after being blown off its turret-launching ramp during a gale would be a challenge! If you are interested in First World War aviation and the Royal Naval Air Service in particular, this book is recommended. My thanks to Pen and Sword for supplying the review copy.

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MAY 2016

North American X-15

Boeing B-52 Stratofortress

1954-1968 (X-15, X-15B and Delta Wing models) Owner’s Workshop Manual

Warrior Queen of the USAF

Bloody Paralyser

INFO

The Giant Handley Page Bombers of the First World War

AUTHOR Rob Langham YEAR 2016 PUBLISHER Fonthill Media ISBN 978-1-78155-080-9

As stated in the introduction, no World War One Handley Page bombers survive and perhaps this may be why the type has largely been forgotten. The author hopes that his book goes some way to redress the balance and it is fair to say that he succeeds. The book makes great use of extracts written by those who flew and worked on the type which really help to bring it to life. In the middle of the book there is a section of black and white photos of the type as well as the ordnance it carried, its targets and the anti-aircraft guns used against it. This is a book which deserves to do well and hopefully it may inspire a certain manufacturer of large scale World War One aircraft to produce a model of the type! My thanks to Fonthill Media for giving me the opportunity to review this book.

FORMAT 192pp Hardback

INFO

747 - DC-10 – L-1011 This disc we have received from Aero Research Co is one for fans of civil aviation. It has 154 images of Boeing 747s, DC-10s and L-1011s. The majority of the photos were taken in the 1970s and 80s, all are in colour and show side views of the aircraft to best show off the many and varied schemes worn by airlines from around the world. One photo that really caught my eye shows a 747 operated by Sabena on a snowy apron. If you like civil aviation and are seeking references or inspiration this disc should provide it! My thanks to Aero Research Co for supplying the review copy.

Famous Russian Aircraft

Ilyushin Il-28 This latest book from this source has to be the definitive work on the subject. It is illustrated throughout with a mix of contemporary black and white and colour photos, cutaway drawings, extracts from technical manuals and colour profiles, as well as scale plans. The text covers the Gordon and development of AUTHOR Yefim Dmitriy Komissarov the type, through YEAR 2015 prototype into production and PUBLISHER Crcy Publishing Ltd its service life in ISBN 978-1-8578-0371-6 Russia and around FORMAT 336pp Hardback the world. The ‘in detail’ section will be invaluable if you have any of the available kits of the type in your stash. Books like this were inconceivable when I was growing up, as was ever seeing one for real, let alone several as I have done at the Czech air force Museum. If you are interested in Soviet aviation of the Cold War era this book is highly recommended. My thanks to Crcy Publishing Ltd, for supplying the review copy.

INFO

The First Jumbos

INFO

INFO

My first ever Haynes Manual was for my first car, an Austin Allegro, but not being too mechanically minded I was never brave enough to take it apart in the manner the book made out to be easy! Haynes Manuals have come a long way since then and they now cover a multitude of subjects, this latest title looks at the futuristic X-15, a design it is hard to believe is 60 years old. AUTHOR David Baker The book takes us through the projects which led up to the design and the legacy projects which YEAR 2016 came after. The book is illustrated throughout with PUBLISHER Haynes Publishing contemporary photos and extracts from technical ISBN 978-0-85733-767-2 manuals. There are no step-by-step pictures of how to FORMAT 188pp Hardback dismantle it, but as the chances of owning one are slim this is not a problem! If you have any of the available kits of the type in your stash then this book will give you the background history to it and plenty of scope for superdetailing it! My thanks to Haynes Publishing for the review copy.

The B-52 was conceived 70 years ago this year, with its first flight taking place in 1955. With the type’s various upgrades it is likely to be in service until 2040, just shy of the centenary of its conception. This book takes you through the background to the type, from the end of the Second World War, its predecessors AUTHOR Jeanette Remark such as the massive B-36, B-47 and YEAR 2016 the later ill-fated PUBLISHER Fonthill Media XB-70. The next ISBN 978-1-78155-467-8 chapters look at FORMAT 206pp Hardback the development of the B-52 and its production and the start of its upgrades, before moving on to look at its combat history. The last chapter looks at the type in service today and its latest upgrades designed to keep the B-52 flying for many more years to come. The book is illustrated with a number of black and white photos as well as having a colour section in the middle of the book. It is a real appreciation of the type and makes for a good read. My thanks to Fonthill Media for supplying the review copy.

SERIES Airliner Series PUBLISHER Aero Research Co. CAT. NO. 2014 FORMAT CD

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The definitive encyclopedia of model aircraft performed by the world famous modeler Diego Quijano and a selection of the best worldwide aircraft modelers, led by Mig Jimenez.Paperback,123 pages,full colour.

£21.99

F.A.Q for Constructing & Painting Dioramas. All that you need to know to build outstanding vignettes and dioramas stepby-step through over 380 questions and answers and more than 1300 high quality photographs.

£49.99

This third volume covers in depth through its 200 pages and more than 900 pictures the following subjects: Preparation and priming of all kind of surfaces before paint. Preshading for highlight panels and surfaces. All kind of camouflages, including base coats, monotone camouflages, chipped camouflages and the most complex multi-tone camouflages schemes. Airbrush highlights and fading. How to paint wood parts of all kind. Insignias, numerals and stencils. Shadings with inks.

£28.99

Announcing the ultimate Eagle publication for modellers and fans alike - a lavish, profusely illustrated, highly informative 84page magazine devoted entirely to this most iconic of fictional spacecraft in all its incarnations! Check-out Modelling the Eagle's must-read features,Brian Johnson interviewed by Mat Irvine!ïThe full production story behind the new MPC 22inch kit!,Building the new 22-inch kit!Building and converting MPC's 12-inch Eagle! ïBuilding MPC's deluxe lab pod.

£7.99

The Eagle Has Landed Aircraft Scale Modelling. F.A.Q. This book is a compilation of aircraft scale modelling techniques, step by step guides with hundreds of colour pictures for WWI, WWII, coldwar and modern aircraft, showing a wide range of painting and weathering techniques.380 pages, more than 2.500 images.

£47.99

Modellers Datafile 25 The Grumman F6F Hellcat a comprehensive guide. This latest Datafile from SAM Publications presents the story one of the US Navy’s most powerful and enduring aircraft the Grumman F6F Hellcat.Paperback,176 pages,Black/White & Colour photo's,line drawings,colour profiles.

£19.99

If there is one modeller that has distinguished himself over the last decade, due to his amazing dioramas, it is Aitor Azkue. This book shows off the very best of all of his work. With spectacular dioramas, more than 1800 images, step by step guides, and all of his tricks described in detail, there is no book quite like this. Inside the 292 pages of this essential book, there are 10 complete dioramas looked at in total detail.

£35.99

YOU CAN VISIT OUR WEBSITE: www. bookworldws. co. uk Stockists of the following subjects: Aviation, Military, Naval, Modelling, Railway, Motoring Major credit cards accepted, UK cheques payable to Bookworld Wholesale Ltd

The Weathering Magazine 14 Heavy Metal Top Drawings 30 Dornier Do 17Z/Do 215 by Mariusz Lukasik.Paperback,20 pages, plus pull out scale drawings,15 pages line drawings,colour profiles

£17.99

£15.99

Encyclopedia of Aircraft Modelling Techniques Volume 3 Painting.

Modelling the Eagle Encyclopedia of Aircraft Modelling Techniques 1: Cockpits.

The 28 page, A4 size booklet contains 16 sheets of 1:48 scale drawings, 7 sheets of 1:72 scale drawings and colour profiles of 4 planes, all with English and Polish captions. The P-51B-15-NA and P-51D25-NA drawings in 1:32 scale are attached as a folded A2 size sheet printed on both sides.

In this issue we examine how to paint all kinds of metals including a golden C3PO, aluminium aircraft, jet exhausts, rusty metal plates, and much more. We will also find how to use different types of paints and techniques such as lacquers, acrylics, and enamels to obtain realistic metallic surfaces.

£8.99

Photosniper 21 Ka-50 & Ka-52.Kamov design bureau was established in late 1940s after successful demonstration of single engine ultra-light Ka-8 type and its improved derivate Ka-10, which was maiden flown on 30th of August 1949.Paperback,96 pages,202 colour photographs

£17.99

Encyclopedia of Aircraft Modelling Techniques 2. Interiors and Assembly.This second volume covers in depth through its 160 pages the following subjects: Assembly, preparation and painting of landing systems, including wheels, undercarriage and landing gear. From basic painting to the most advanced detailing, scratchbuilding, making pieces in metal and resin, etc. Detailed and painting of interiors of any aircraft. For example: open panels, avionics systems, kit parts, scratch-built,and aftermarket kits.

£28.99

Monograph 63. FockeWulf Ta 152 The events of World War 2 proved beyond any doubt that the strategic bombing campaign greatly contributed to the Alliesí ultimate victory over Nazi Germany. British night bombing raids and daylight carpet bombing missions flown by the USAAF crews rained destruction on German cities killing thousands of civilians in the process.110 archival photos,20 redenders,10 pages pages A4 drawings

£18.99

UK POSTAGE SINGLE BOOKS £2. 50 TWO OR MORE BOOKS £4. 50 OVERSEAS AIRMAIL PLEASE ADD 15% OF ORDER VALUE MINIMUM £4. 50

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