Scale aviation modeller international

the surface after the first coat,

such as dust, hair, or scratches,

especially where I have filled and

sanded parts to blend them in. I

started with 600-grit sandpaper,

moving progressively on to finer

grades, working slowly and

frequently, and checking the

surface under a strong light.

I removed any dust that had

settled into the recessed panel

lines with a brush, and I was ready

to start painting. I started with

the olive drab anti-glare panel,

which, once dry, was given a coat

of Matt Cote before being masked

off. I also prepared the tail fins,

which were airbrushed red and

white on the outer sides. I opted

to paint the code letter ”E” using

a mask cut from Post-It notes,

since the paint on the decal sheet

was a bit on the bright side and I

was afraid the colour would not

match the paint I was using.

Now the time came to add the

metallic paint. For natural metal

aircraft, I prefer Alclad II lacquers.

This paint requires a gloss black

undercoat to give the colour enough

depth; I used Tamiya’s TS-14 Gloss

Black because it’s tough and fast

drying. While the larger areas were

sprayed straight from the can, I

decanted some paint and airbrushed

it into the harder-to-reach areas.

This surface preparation was the

most time-consuming process in

this build, involving numerous

cycles of sanding and priming until

I achieved an acceptable result.

Despite my best efforts, I can

always find another tiny hair,

a speckle of dust, or a minor

scratch, making perfection almost

impossible. Therefore, I always

prioritize the focal areas that

will reflect the light and reveal

any blemishes, such as the upper

sides of the fuselage and wings.

I started

with a basecoat of

Polished Aluminium.

I found that a misty

application works better

than spraying in the direction of

the airflow, which leaves visible

faint streaks. Alclad II paints are

touch-dry after a few minutes.

They are also pretty tough and do

not pull up with Tamiya masking

“THE HASEGAWA KIT IS A MODERN,

STATE-OF-THE-ART TOOLING”

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