The Little World

Every instruction sheet for a model airplane seems to commence with work on the cockpit. This may be a simple as an old Airfix pilot-on-a-shelf to the most complex brass and resin aftermarket kit. I sort of like doing this are and sort of don’t. So I look around for a way of postponing the work and doing something else instead.

The Italeri RB-66B has good big wings, tail planes, and engines. The fuselage halves are very precise. The wheels and landing gear are sturdy and big enough to be hard to lose – so they can all be un-sprued and cleaned up. Relevant parts can be cemented carefully and seams minimised.

I was wrong, by the way. The kit has all inscribed panel lines. I am going to make sure they are all connected when the filler applications are finished. I’ve a new tool for this from Ustar that seems to be very easy to use.

The temptation to use the ultra-thin cements on wing edges is strong, but the cement bond is sometimes quite weak. I have taken to always using Mr. Cement Deluxe for these structural joins. A coat on each surface and then a fast refresher before clamping the parts together means a complete seal and bond. It takes a little longer to set, but I am in no hurry.

A note about cements. I continually use the Mr. Cement lines and find that they evaporate gradually over a period of months in the bottle – the residue becomes thicker. So I buy fresh cement and top up the bottle. I honestly do not know exactly the consistency that’s in there.