Category: Soviet aircraft
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Yakovlev-3 – Part Four – The Silver Bird
Encouraged by the silver paint coat on the Yak-3 I went ahead and added the decal stripes and stars. The decals were good – they released quickly but were not fragile and I surprised myself with how well the red side stripes went. The fact that the pre-decal clear coat was Mr. Hobby Superclear UV…
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Yakovlev-3 – Part Two – It Fits…
It fits…where it touches. And this is a no-touch model… It was all going swimmingly ( until the modelling bench hit the iceberg and the band started playing ” Nearer, My God, To Thee… ” and I was cheerfully impressed with the cockpit tub of the new Amodel Yak-3. The fuselage sides have a useful,…
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Yakovlev-3 – Part One – Never Slow Down Past The Kit Aisle
I was just going to Hobbytech for a pot of paint…I told myself…I noticed that my lacquer bright silver was running very low and I wanted to stock up. The paint aisle was easy – I found the Mr Color Bright Silver and grabbed it. They make a number of other forms of silver paint…
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Lavotchkin 5-FN – Part Three – Decalling The White Bird
The paint job on the Lavotchkin was simplicity itself – if you discount the fact that you spend a lot of masking tape doing it. Fortunately the bigger bits can be done with the cheap DIY store stuff instead of the thin hobby shop rolls. They do the details. Now, remember I was nervous about…
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Lavotchkin 5-FN – Part Two – The Russian Jig
It’s like an Irish jig…but with vodka. My first impressions of the Zvezda kit were not wrong – it is well-built. The cockpit was adequate, without being overly complex, and Ivan, the pilot, fit well into his seat. Unlike Airfix aircrew, I did not have to Douglas Bader him to get him into his seat…
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Lavotchkin 5-FN – Part One – First Russian
I was idling though a hobby shop that has few aircraft – they specialise in figures and games – when I remembered that they sometimes have cheap airplane kits. I think they are stocked as a sop to the shoppers rather than a serious attempt to earn money…but I am prepared to be condescended to…
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Macchi C.200 Saetta – Part Three – Fascist!
And proud of it – so proud that they wore a stylised image of fasces as an air force insignia on the Italian Air force planes in the early part of WW2. Of course it featured largely in political imagery as well and was promoted by Mussolini for all sorts of purposes. It went out…
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The Kids In The Candy Store
For a number of years I avoided going into hobby shops. Whether I thought they were passé or whether I thought I was more sophisticated…I don’t know. The result of this was I missed out on some of the really great hobby experiences – things that came and went while I was somewhere else. Now…
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Internal Report No.2 – Glorious $ 5 Plan
Wood morning Comrades. Is report of victory in Glorious $ 5 Plan. Polikarpov I-15 glorious Soviet fighter plane now complete and ready for display at Uszhitmi Air Display as soon as cows driven from field and mud dry up. Hero workers cheer valiantly as aircraft put on truck for transport to show. To valuable to…
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Internal Report No.1 – Glorious $ 5 Plan
Glorious $ 5 plan going to schedule. Aircraft will be ready for Uszhitmi. ICM plastic somewhat softer than bourgeois Airfix plastic, so worker need to be careful on trimming sprue. Would benefit from micro clippers as seen in Micro Mark catalog. But all fixable with putty. Leading edge of one wing not up to specification…
The Little World 