The Little World

And ready for the party.

I am not going to make invidious comparisons between the Academy Texan and that of Hobby Boss – I have enjoyed building each maker’s version. The faster build on the latter model is in part due to the simple construction, though this in turn is due to what must be very complex moulding techniques. In any event I am pleased with both results on different levels.

You can also figure that I have gotten a bit faster with my building through experience. I can get to the bits where I make mistakes earlier in the piece. I do not make the same mistake twice, but there are so many new ones that I need never go without.

The custom colour came out very well, and there is enough in the pot for another fighter plane of the same period – it’ll just be a case of whatever turns up first in the shops or at the fairs. I am also going to be on the lookout for more Israeli decal sheets in the aftermarket stalls, though the roundels should be easy enough to make on the inkjet.

I will say that the aircraft is not dirty enough yet to be a good copy of the one in the IAF museum. I may have to attack it with the matt spray again – the real one has filthy dirty windows as well as the weathered paint. My grandmother would have been out there scrubbing and scolding…