Scale aviation modeller international

the cockpit would not be as much

of a focus as usual. But look at

the photos, (or better still, if you

can, see it on the Milton Keynes

stand at selected model shows in

2018), and judge for yourself.

Now it was time to bring the

cockpit module together, making

sure to remember to trap the nose

wheel leg into its bay. This is one

downside of the kit’s construction,

which I suspect is caused by the

design of the real aircraft: I could

not work out a way to leave the

undercarriage off until near the

end and at the same time retain

a strong assembly for what was

likely to be a relatively heavy

model. You must take particular

care of the nose wheel leg from

now on, as the support for part

of the nosewheel door (the part

sticking out rearwards from

near the wheels) is particularly

vulnerable: ask me how I know!

INTAKES AND INLET

TRUNKING

There are no major issues with

the intakes. Each is a simple box

structure, with a guide vane

assembly which is painted in a steel

colour. The trunking parts also

incorporate a turbine

front; this seems quite

small compared with

the diameter of the

jet pipes. Discussing

this with the Editor, we

came to the conclusion

that this was a trompe

l’oeil effect to make the

intake trunking appear

full-length, longer than it

is in the kit. It’s somewhat

academic, as the engine faces

are very difficult to see once the

fuselage is assembled. But I did

paint the turbine faces aluminium,

then, to bring out the blade detail,

highlighted them with bright silver

and gave them a thin black wash.

MAIN WHEEL WELLS

These are another simple

box structure; there is a good

representation of the interior

structure, and even what appears

to be a small control panel in each

well. Again, these are painted

steel, which seems

to be the main colour

outside the cockpit. Once

dry, I dry-brushed with

aluminium followed by a

thin black wash to bring out

the detail of the structure.

The main undercarriage

doors can also be assembled

now (but fitted later),

adding a small fairing to each

(Stages 85, 86, 88, and 90).

UNDERCARRIAGE

This is quite a complex assembly,

although once I’d worked out

how the parts fitted together

in relation to each other, it was

straightforward. It needed care

to align everything correctly, as

the fit is not particularly positive.

I would recommend tacking it

together with a small amount

of glue, or even leaving a joint

unglued – I’m not sure which one

though – to allow easy adjustment

later. Once assembled it does

produce a good representation

of the Foxbat’s complex legs.

The colour of both the main

undercarriage and the nose wheel

legs is light grey, with oleos

and other hydraulic jack parts

in bright silver. Conveniently,

the light grey is the same colour

as the main airframe, so that

neatly avoided one problem –

masking the undercarriage while

painting – but did mean leaving

the oleos sections unpainted

until after the main paint job.

JET EXHAUSTS

This jumps ahead in the

instructions somewhat, but the

main jet pipes can be assembled

and painted while waiting for

something else to dry. To make

the masking somewhat easier,

I left the outlet pipes (Stages

58-61) off until after the main

paint job was complete. I painted

the assembly using Vallejo

Metallics Jet Exhaust, but left any

significant weathering until later.

FLYING SURFACES

The fin/rudder assemblies

incorporate the fuselage side panel

Fuselage side panels on, and drying. Fuselage side panels on, and drying.

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