The model depicts a
plane from the 23rd IAP, Dzemgi air base, which is situated in Komsomolsk na
Amur, in the Russian far east. The markings come from the excellent Linden Hill
set, from which I chose the "Red 55" with the very effective shark
mouths on the intakes. This aircraft in question had quite unfaded appearance in
the reference photos, so the colours are rather clear here too - especially when
compared to the usual worn and faded looks of the Russian Flankers. Some
weathering was made with diluted black enamel and the same method was used also
in highlighting the panel lines. The paint job was made completely with hand
brush by using Humbrol enamels.
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The "Sharkmouth
of Dzemgi" was done mostly OOB, at least for the fuselage and main parts.
Photo-etch parts used in the cockpit, afterburners and various inlets and
outlets come from the kit. Also the seat is original with some modifications.
Being made from white metal, it actually felt somehow more real than the
aftermarket seat I was going to use! I added some harness and other minor parts
to the seat, which also acts as a ballast. Some wiring was added to the landing
gears, not only acting as brake lines, but also as electric wire for the landing
lights. I scratchbuilt some details to the gear wells too, including some fuel
hose and wires and also tried to imitate the electronics equipment in the
front landing gear well.
The FOD guard of the "Red
55" could be the later version, whereas the kit provides the earlier
three-holed variant. I chose not to modify it as it's made from white metal
and is quite a precisely detailed masterpiece. Only the two support bars were
added from thin plastic sprue.
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The variation in colours on
the engines and the engine covers was made with ordinary enamel paints. First
the covers were painted with silver, then a hint of blue, brown or black
was mixed with Satin Cote and a bit of silver again and brushed according to
pictures of the real machine. The final extra details were the infrared sensor 's
"ball" made from ball bearing, IFF rods made from PE and the
amber coloured HUD lens that was achieved simply by colouring the lens with
orange highlighter pen and then applying Future on top of it.
Jan
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