Page 30 - Model Airplane International - Issue 175 (February 2020)

KIT BUILD

I decided to add some notional
detail to the cockpit, since the
glazing is quite extensive. Seats
were sourced from the spares
box or scratchbuilt, as was the
instrument panel and console.

paper templates offered
a cleaner fi nish. It's
worth repeating that the
Minicraft transparency is
only correct for the early
airframes, the -J having only
single windows at the lower front
(the location occupied by the AN/AAR
electro-optical missile warning sensors) and
lower footwell positions.
Painting And Decals
I started painting with the usual primer coat,
in this case Ammo of MiG's One Shot Grey,
which builds well and dries to a smooth
fi nish. Inevitably this revealed some fl awed
joints which needed remediation – not a
simple job since some of the joints persisted
in re-appearing, even after fi lling. I don't
know if it was my poor technique, or that
the plastic didn't take to the Tamiya extra
thin cement I was using, but in a couple of
cases I ended up gouging out the joint with
and wings they can be brought together, the needs to be masked; at the time of writing a scraper and fi lling the resulting trench with
large shaped tabs on the wings proving useful there were no commercially-available sets thick superglue. Finally, when I could apply the
although not infallible in alignment, with some so I was obliged to revert to a sharp scalpel, colour coats, I used a mixture of Mr. Hobby
sanding and packing being necessary. The cutting the masks in-situ for the fi rst model, greens, ranging from lightened H420 for the
fi lling of the longitudinal seam had left the then going to the trouble of scanning, re-sizing protective membrane and some walkway
wing centre box section with a smooth plain and printing the glazing panels from the areas through mixes of H320 and H302 for
surface, so in both models, only the major original Minicraft decals and fi xing these over the control surfaces and H70(RLM02) for the
transverse joints were re-scribed, in line with a length of masking tape to act as patterns. faded base colour; selective masking allowed
the reference images I could fi nd. Both methods worked reasonably although me to emphasise certain panels and panel
Before painting, the complex cockpit glazing I did think that cutting the masks from the lines. For the special marking C5, I painted

The exhausts can be improved by careful thinning with a knife The pre-drilled holes in the lower wing for the external tanks need to be fi lled, since RAF machines were only rarely seen with them.
and fi les, and smoothing with Liquid Poly.

The very thin wing sections suffered from a bit of warping so I Each engine only needs four parts, and the fi t to the front of the nacelles is excellent.
supported them during gluing by clamping to a steel rule.

30 MODEL AIRPLANE INTERNATIONAL - February 2020

TWELVE LABOURS OR. ORE.indd 30