were used throughout
the painting process.
The hull walls and
floor were airbrushed
using a darkened version
of RAF Interior Green,
which, when dry, was
highlighted using lighter
shades of the original colour.
Weathering and rust washes were
then added using shades of brown,
black, and red brown. The only
other colours used were yellow and
red, for highlighting various control
levers and detailing the rolled life
rafts in the rear hull. Sadly, the
latter items proved to be entirely
hidden once the hull was closed up.
Eduard set FE849 features
colour-etched harnesses for allcrew positions. These were added,
though as I didn’t want to totally
hide the cushion detail that I had
painstakingly scratch-built using
Milliput, I arranged them so that
they hung down onto the floor as
if thrown off in haste by the crew.FOLDED OR SPREAD
You have to decide very early in
the building process whether or
not to model the wings in their
folded or spread positions, and I
prevaricated over this dilemma
for some time. Indeed, even before
one finishes detailing the interior
the decision must be made, for
there are pairs of holes that require
drilling if the wings are to be
spread, and these are indicated
on the inside of both wing roots.
I drilled these as directed by the
instructions, deciding that I could
fill them again if I later chose the
folded-wing option. By page twelve
of the twenty three page booklet,
however, the decision has to be
finalised prior to wing construction,
as modifications to the upper wing
must be made. This involves cutting
slots out of the central upper
wing section, and different holes
require cutting depending upon the
option chosen. Such modifications
suggest that this is perhaps a kit for
relatively experienced modellers.
The large wing sections are
perfectly moulded and split
horizontally – so ten wing
sections in all when one includes
the central upper wing section- while a choice of central spars
provides the attachment points
for the upper wings and ensures
structural integrity. Convincingly
subtle ribbing effects span the
wing surfaces, and this effect is
echoed on the separate control
surfaces and flaps, where the rib
and fabric effect is authentically
reproduced. Alternative wing root
inserts are provided, once again
depending upon your choice of
wing position. From this point on,
it is clearly indicated throughout
the instructions which parts are
intended for the wing-fold option
and which are not. There were
no issues during wing assembly
(other than my overzealous
application of cement melting
the soft plastic in one area).
WATERTIGHT
Closing up the hull was a chore,
for despite my having masked all
of the mating surfaces, clamps,
pegs, and innumerable rubber
bands were required to force the
joints together. I could find nothing
hampering the fit despite several
dry runs, so I can only assume
that I had cemented something,
somewhere, slightly out of line,
because the kit’s engineering had
otherwise been spot-on. There
was therefore, some filler required
along all of the main fuselage joints.
The upper decking sections
were cemented in place to complete
the hull (which hid the majority
of the internal detail, much to mydispleasure). I had pre-assembled
the engine compartment –
remembering to first paint the
interior black – and this structure
too was added to the hull. Airfix
have cleverly engineered the engine
mounting struts so that both fore
and aft structures are moulded
as complete sections, with the
four individual struts radiating
from a central hub. This means
that there is no messing about
trying to set the correct angles.
The central hubs makeup part
of the engine structure and have
positive location points. The main
struts also slot solidly into the hull
top, providing a strong mount for
the upper wings. It should be noted
that the engine sits slightly off-
centre and at an odd angle, which is
clearly indicated in the instructions.
The hull was completed with the
addition of the upper tail section
and the tailplanes, and once again,
solid mounting points ensured
no alignment issues. I found the
fit of the separately moulded
elevators to be a little sloppy,
however, so I mounted mine on
metal pins. I also needed to reshape
the elevators’ mating surfaces
before they would sit neatly in
a drooped position. The rudder
too benefitted from the addition
of metal mounting pins and the
addition of brass actuating arms
from the Eduard external detail set.
At this stage. the canopy was
left off for ease of painting (and
to provide access to the interior,
for reasons to be described later),WWW.SAMPUBLICATIONS.COM • MARCH 2018 • 79
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