Category: subassembly
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Dassault Ouragan – Part Two – Taming The Pit
I must complement Valom. They are not terminally annoying. The fuselage halves for the Dassault Ouragan fit with few gaps. The wings go together sweetly – very little fettling in the landing gear well. The nose intake splitter and tailpipe are paragons of precision. Then there is the cockpit… It is well-moulded and reasonably proportioned…
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Dornier Do.17Z – Part Two – A FROG Of A Different Colour
The experience of the FROG Dornier is interesting. The kit is an older mould and has raised panel lines but no rivets. I don’t mind as it will have a dark finish anyway. But it is an older kit. Thus the fit in some places is approximate. The fuselage is excellent, the wing box assembly commendably…
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Mitsubishi A6M – Part Two – I’m In Trouble With IPMS
Apparently if you paint parts on the sprue trees you are a bad boy. This was the experience of Phil Flory a while ago when he was seen to be doing this – he was taken to task by some enthusiasts in IPMS for not taking the hobby seriously. Seriously. The instruction leaflets, modelling books,…
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Mitsubishi Ann – Part Five – Fillet Of Mitsubishi
With soy sauce and a few fish eggs… Actually the Ann took more filler than I expected to get a smooth fuselage/wing interface. I didn’t mind – I’d done the hard yards with those pins so the filler was worth it, Note that the Ann’s undercart is one of the chief charms of the design…
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Mitsubishi Ann – Part Four – I Know Trouble…
I know trouble when I see it. I know it even better when I wallow in it. That’s fun, but not as much fun as steering around it. As I have done with the Mitsubishi Ann. The sterling quality of the fuselage, wing, and tailplane castings were evident when I dry fitted them. But they…
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Mitsubishi Ann – Part Three – Together With A Creak
That’s creak as in a small sound – not creek as in a small brook, or Creek as in a large Native American tribesman. The small sound started occurring when I dry-fitted the fuselage halves. This is one of the least favourite parts of a kit – at least when the kit comes from middle…
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Mitsubishi Ann – Part Two – A Simple Story
If you have a good story to tell, tell it simply. No need for magic tricks, special effects, or complex plot lines. If your story has any merit to it, the simple approach is fine. People will be interested. They will also be grateful. Likewise a model airplane kit. If you have a simple plane…
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Lockheed Electra Junior – Part Three – The Bare Torso
The two colours of plastic in the Lockheed kit were startling on the sprue trees but have become less so when assembled together. As they will shortly disappear under an undercoat and then silver they are of no consequence. Of greater import is the splendid fit of the structure. Making up the twin-rudder tail separately…
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Lockheed Electra Junior – Part Two – A Surprising Amount Of Fit
Experience with Czech short-run kits can be mixed. Fit issues, over-complex construction, and unclear instructions all loom every time you pop the box top or open the side door. However, the first stages of the Electra Junior have been pleasant. The cockpit is a resin casting. though nowhere near as complex as it might have…
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Curtiss Hawk Model 75 – Part Three – Trench Warfare
The fit of the parts on the Revell Curtiss Hawk was very good – square, plumb, and true, but the top surfaces of the wings stood clear of the fuselage fairing by a good millimeter on both sides. If this part was subject to no stress nor expected to flex in any way, it could…
The Little World 