The Little World

The primer stage emphasises just how small this fighter is. And how much effort was put into streamlining it in an art-deco fashion.

The side panels fit very well, the horizontal tail plane locks the fuselage halves together, and the tailpiece smooths the rear.

I’ve followed the practice of temporarily sealing the landing gear covers with putty to allow them to receive the same priming and eventual paint colour as the rest of the underside. It’s certainly the point in the build when you discover whether the moulders have made a precision job of it or just botched along. Some kits I’ve attempted cannot be built with wheels up or panels shut as they just do not fit.

The cooling openings in the cowling are sealed with putty – as are the exhaust openings. I’ll anticipate the next post by telling you that the teardrop-shaped exhausts were fine to dig out but the cowling slots were a mistake. Next time I need to seal such small regular spaces I’ll use short pegs of balsa wood – they’ll come out cleaner.