There's
not many choices available when speaking of a Hawkeye model in plastic.
Fujimi did it a long time ago and its availability has been on and off. Heller
used the same moulding as Fujimi's but in a different kind of plastic.
Upon
opening the box, I found a detailed plastic parts and superb landing gear
struts. Cockpit is basic with a floor, bulkhead, 2 seats, 2 figures, decal
instrument, and control columns. The clear parts are thick but the interior still
can be seen through it. I added nothing to the cockpit and begun the main
construction phase.
I
tried to use CA glue for the construction but I found the plastic
"refuses" to bond together. So it came the Revell glue which is a very
good type of plastic glue. It melt the plastic and hard as the plastic in about
2 hours.
Construction
stage was a horror. There were no single parts that fit together. I used filler on
almost every joint! The nose was entirely re-shaped.
Click on
images below to see larger images
I
was about to slam this model during this stage but I managed to remember
that this model was a commission job.
When
I finally finished the construction, I found it relaxing to paint this model in
a single Light Ghost Grey color. I pre-shaded the model before applying Model
Masters paint.
Finishing
the painting stage, there was another thing to do. I put the radome into its place
and...........a
tail-sitter it was !!!
I
(thought) I had put enough metal leads inside the front fuselage but it
proved wrong. This was the second time I wanted to slam it again....
I
took a whole week break before went back to the model and with a clearer
mind, I found some places in wheel wells where I can put more weight. Phieeww....,
it worked. I added some walls to cover the additional weight and repainted
the white wheel wells.
After all the
tiny-things glued in place, the model looks quite beautiful, at least from 3
feet away. The landing gears do enhance the look of this watch-bird and I am
happy to see a smile on my customer's face when I delivered this model to him.
He
surely didn't know anything about my plan to slam this model, not once but twice
! :)
Alex
Click on
images below to see larger images
|