Scale aviation modeller international

a Master Model metal part found

in the depths of my spares box.

PAINT AND MARKINGS

Now the model was ready for a

base coat of Tamiya Grey Primer,

decanted from the rattle can into

my trusted Harder & Steenbeck

Evolution airbrush. I always

check for surface flaws after

priming, as they become more

visible and can then be polished

out before the final paint job.

After pre-shading all panel lines

I started applying the underside

colour RLM76 (Gunze/Mr. Hobby

H417) in numerous, highly diluted

layers, in order to let the pre-

shading shine through. On the side,

I also added photo-etch scissor

links to the main undercarriage

struts and prepared the photo-etch

landing gear doors for painting.

The upper surfaces were first

sprayed RLM82 (Gunze/Mr. Hobby

422 Light Green), then masked off

in a splinter pattern for the second

colour, RLM81 (Gunze/Mr. Hobby

421 Brown Violet). I’m not entirely

convinced by Gunze’s definition of

RLM81. I think it should actually be

a little bit darker, so I added a tiny

drop of black to tone it down. After

a coat of Alclad Gloss, the model

was ready to receive its markings.

I chose the very attractive

“Green 4” from Stab JG7, flown

by Theodor Weissenberger,

carrying a red-blue tail band. The

blue on the decal has a lighter

shade than appropriate, and for a

moment I contemplated painting

the band. Instead, just so that I

could still provide an objective kit

review, I used the Airfix decals.

The tail band was cut into

two halves to ease handling and

avoid wrinkles. It went on without

problems, although a copious

amount of setting solution had to

be applied to make it conform to the

fin shape contours. Airfix decals are

tough and take handling well, and

First layer of RLM82 Green, sprayed in several highly diluted coats Creating the characteristic splinter pattern using Tamiya tape

26 • MARCH 2018 • SCALE AVIATION MODELLER INTERNATIONAL

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