Category: Soviet aircraft
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Polikarpov I-16 – Part Three – ¡Vistoso!
I am charmed with the way the Academy 1:48 model of the Polikarpov allows more space for decoration. Not a lot more – this is a small aircraft – but at least 1 .5 X the surface area to paint. The Spanish Republicans seem to have had a number of schemes – they were not…
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Polikarpov I-16 – Part Two – Dia uno
First club day working on the Academy Polikarpov and the job is flying along! There are fewer parts to this aircraft than the ICM 1:72 version but the contours are much the same. It is odd to find such a large scale ( for me ) with so little cockpit detail. But then again, so…
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Polikarpov I-16 – Part One – ¡Hola!
We are about to embark upon a Spanish adventure – and in an unfamiliar scale. I have already produced some aircraft in 1:72 from the period of the Spanish Civil War – an Antonov, a Potez, and a Dewoitine – all in Republican colours. I have also built a Polikarpov I-16 in 1:72 scale –…
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Tupolev ANT-5 – Part Four – Trebly Armed…
On a wing and a half. This model of the Tupolev ANT-5…or 4 – it’s hard to make head or tail of the Soviet numbering system – is a curate’s egg in many respects. The basic kit is buildable, but there are breakable parts that do so and then need to be joined with cement…
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Tupolev ANT-5 – Part Three – Afterthoughts
I pasted that title on because of the tail of this Soviet fighter plane. Sukhoi did a bang-up job of designing a fuselage for this one – the curved lines of he corrugated metal are superb. The fairings for the Rhone engine are massive, but give the front end a really sleek look. I cannot…
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Tupolev ANT-5 – Part Two – The Midget Submarine
It’s not really, but it looks like it – or Sherman from Sherman’s Lagoon. The actual fit of the fuselage halves for this Zvezda model is spot-on – only basic smoothing needed. The sesqui-wing needs some putty help, but even that is pretty minor. It encourages me to think that the rest of the components…
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Tupolev ANT-5 – Part One – Singapore Special
Singapore is a special place for Western Australians – a ” foreign ” Asian city-state…that is not foreign at all. We have come to recognise that it is a Williams Street with humidity. A Northbridge that is safe to walk around. A Canning Vale without the semis. It is also home to some good bargains…
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Polikarpov I-1 – Part Two – The Corrugated Cat
I think Junkers and Ford have a lot to answer for in what they did to aviation design. The Stuka and the Tri-Motor were certainly successful in themselves, when applied in the right way, but they must have led many others astray – Polikarpov amongst others. The temptation of a monocoque skin in corrugated aluminium…
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Polikarpov I-1 – Part One – One Tin Fighter
Captain Frugal here. I have been given an ICM kit – or I may have bought it…I cannot really remember. But it did not cost as much as the examples on the shelf of my local hobby shop. It is, however, every bit as good as the higher-priced spread, and good for me, too. The…
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JS-2 Tank – Part Three – Zvezda Economies
I am still making my mind up about the Zvezda kits. They seem curate’s eggs in many respects, but I have not built enough to be able to judge accurately. My first Russian kit was a MiG 15. It was chosen as the only kit of its type in that shop at that time –…
The Little World 