The
Brazilian Air Force (FAB)
used the Fairchild
C-119G from 1962 to
1975. About a dozen planes
were received and
operated by FAB
until they were
eventually replaced by
the C-130H Hercules. Only
one squadron (2/1 GTT)
used the type,
mainly for transport duties
and paratroop drops.
The
model I've built
represents the C-119G
currently on display at the
Brazilian Aerospace Museum
(MUSAL), located in the outskirts
of Rio de Janeiro. It is the Italeri
1/72nd C-119G built
almost out-of-the-box. The
only improvements that
I've made on
the basic kit were
rescribing the panel
lines and polishing
the canopy and
side windows. Markings
came from the
FCM sheet number
72-04. Unfortunately, the
decals and the
painting instructions on
that sheet are not
very accurate. So,
when finishing the
model, I had to rely
on pictures and
notes that I took during
a visit I've made
to the museum few
years ago. Some of these
pictures are included at
the end of this article.
Construction
of this kit was fairly
straightforward, although
some putty had to be
used in the joints
between the two
booms and the
engine nacelles. A lot
of sanding was needed
to make those joints
invisible, specially because
part of that area
is painted natural metal. Care
was also taken
when aligning the
booms to the rest
of plane, as it is normally
the case with this
configuration.
I also
wanted to make the
joints between the
canopy, side windows
and the fuselage
as smooth as possible, so
that the model
would look more realistic.
In order to achieve that,
I've first dipped
the transparencies in a
local equivalent of Future
floor wax and,
after they had
dried, attached them
to the fuselage using
small amounts of superglue.
The wax protects
the transparencies against
fogging caused by
the superglue.
After
the transparencies had
been glued in position,
I removed all raised
frames and smoothed
all joints with
the fuselage using
increasing grades of wet
sandpaper (from 400 to
2000 grit). A final polishing
was done using
Blue Magic metal polishing
cream.
The
most difficult part
of this project was
actually masking and
painting the model,
particularly around the
wing root area.
The curved black
cheatlines require careful
masking and painting
to ensure that they
have a constant width.
Also, because the
model is partly natural
metal, one needs to be
careful with the
paint choice and
the sequence that
the colors are applied.
In my case, I've made
the mistake of initially
painting the whole
model with Testors
Aluminum Metalizer, masking
the other areas
and then airbrushing
the remaining colors.
However, when I pulled
the masking tape, most
of the Metalizer paint
came out with the
tape, and I had to redo
the whole
work in a different
sequence. Before doing
that, I had to remove all
the dried paint
from the model
with thinner. Once
this was done,
I've started the
painting sequence again,
this time leaving the
Aluminum to the end. I also
changed the Aluminium
paint to Xtracolor enamel
(X500 Duralumin), which
I find more resistant to
masking. Well, living and
learning, as they say...
The
FCM decal sheet
suggests Light Grey
FS36622 for the fuselage
side, but based
on my observations
of the real airplane, that
Grey is actually closer
to FS26473, although slightly
bluer. Also, the
Italeri instructions recommend
to paint the propeller
Black. But I've
found RAF Extra Dark
Sea Grey (Xtracolor
X4) to be a better
match. The interior of the
cockpit should also
be US Interior Green and
not Zinc Chromate
Green, as suggested in the
instructions.