Page 55 - Model Airplane International - Issue 175 (February 2020)

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Oils really can bring a model to life and I have really stops the landing gear looking so fi nishing touches that really complete the
used black oils to add some more surface “clean”. The wheels where painted in Tamiya model. The small pitot tube was added, and
interest and to add forced shadows, or XF-85 Rubber Black and then drybrushed the canopy was unmasked. Unfortunately,
ambient occlusion. I applied some fi ne lines with a lighter grey to enhance the tread on the due to the amount of sanding that took
of thinned black oil paint along panel lines tyres. place around the canopy section, there was
and then blended them to add shadows and an irritating amount of dust underneath the
dimension. This is such a simple technique The Finishing Touches canopy, far too much to ignore. I gently
that really adds to the model. The same With the build quickly approaching the removed the central canopy section with
treatment was given to the underside, with the fi nishing line, it was time to add those small a blade and then dusted and cleaned the
spent ammunition shoots and landing gear. canopy, inside and out. At this stage I was
The landing gear itself was weathered looking at the interior and I was really happy
in a more subtle manor, some oil from AK with the work I had done, so, I decided that I
interactive was added to the moving would have the canopy posed open, this was
parts of the legs, This, glue open using CA glue, I used CA so that if
though only a small it breaks off it will be a clean snap rather than
detail a bend. Then painted the canopy frame with
RLM66 to fi nish off the cockpit area. The wing
lights where added last, for no reason other
than the fact that I completely forgot about
them and luckily for me, they are a perfect
fi t, these were glue in place and then painted
with clear red and clear green. The cannon
access doors were glued in using CA glue and
a support rod was added to either side and
once again, the fi t of these door were perfect.
To fi nish off the build, some Infi ni Rigging Line
was added from tail to canopy. ■

FINAL VERDICT

This is a new tool by Revell, and it really shows. This kit is simple fantastic. No, Revell kits will never compete
with the likes of Tamiya for detail, fi t and engineering, but these kits are released for a specifi c price range and
market. I cannot express how good the value for money is with this kit, For around £35 you get a beautiful aircraft,
in a large scale, with a fully detailed cockpit, gun bay and two full engines and a choice of marking options with two
stunning schemes. There are going to be some minor bumps in the road when building this kit, but it is nothing that
some basic modelling skills cannot overcome. If you can deal with some minor fi t issues, then this kit is sublime. I
had an enormous amount of joy building this kit and I thank Spencer Pollard for allowing me to build this kit for you
to all see. Revell really have knocked this one out of the park.

Issue 175 - www.modelairplaneinternational.com 55