The Little World

But it’s no great honour, either…

I’ve no idea if Tevye built model airplanes, but if he did, he would have been philosophical about it. For my part I accept the inevitability of gaps and defects and the need for a good fill and sand.

AIrfix, on the other hand seem to have decided to declare this kit a no-fill zone. The only work has been trimming parts from the sprue trees and winkling out one piece of flash from in between the window frames.The fuselage was cemented in sections, allowing for near-perfect alignment. No sprue goo was needed at all.

You might question the open bomb bay doors at this stage of the game, but these were Airfix’s decision. As they were suspended perfectly on their hinges, I was loathe to cut them off and close the bay. All it would need was some foam packing and putty to protect the detailed framework inside during painting. I save all the old cell-foam I come across for just this sort of purpose. It is free to cut up and can be used to fill in place of more expensive material.

Other people have written about using dampened tissues or paper towels for this bulk filling. Never had much success and the damp seems to affect some paints.

The business of stretching masking tape over openings sometimes works if the edges have enough of a flat spot to allow the tape to cling. However, there is nothing more off-putting than getting halfway through a spray coat and discovering the tape has lifted. I try to be extra-two-layer safe these days.

As they say in India – it’s better to be safe than sari…