On the Workbench - The Heavy Mob

Known among flyers as 'heavies' - these are usually multi-engine types like the Avro Lancaster, B-17 Flying Fortress and anything that is big, heavy and having many, many engines. Even in model form you can very rapidly reach the stage where you end up with a whopper of a thing that takes over the living room table (much to the chagrin of family members).

First on the bench is the Revell Lancaster. A quick internet search will show some concerns about the kit's wing dihedral - it isn't quite as much as it should be on the real thing. In every other respect the kit is a delight to build. For a model maker this always poses an issue. 'Do I correct an otherwise excellent kit or build it as is?'.

I happen to have a completed Airfix Lancaster in my own collection to compare the wings to (Airfix is regarded in this instance to have the correct angle on their model) and the difference was not obvious unless you sat them beside each other. The Revell kit wings do have some angle on them - just not as much as the Airfix offering. In fact most non-aeroplane people wouldn't know what a wing dihedral necessarily was; so it may be a complete non-issue for the majority of the population.

That's the long-winded way of me saying I built it pretty much out of the box. I had a go at airbrushing the camouflage pattern freehand using some pencilled templates as guides. The edges are a bit more feathered than I would ideally like but when the thing is viewed overall it looks pretty good.


Next on the heavy list is another Arado E555 Amerika Bomber. I originally bought two of these kits and enjoyed building the first one to such a degree that I thought I'd continue on a high and build another one. Because why not?

RLM 02 (Grey) and RLM 71 (Dark Green) make up the upper surfaces. RLM 65 (Light Blue) is the underside colour. Splinter camouflage is quite a lot of fun to mask and paint - the current plan is to have some yellow recognition markings painted on the wingtips and tailfins.

The third candidate is the C-47 Douglas Dakota - the famous transport and general do-it-all aviation workhorse. This is actually the first Dakota I've built in 1/72 scale and probably won't be the last if this kit is anything to go by.

If you fancy making a 'biggish' model but don't relish the idea of a big parts count - the Airfix C-47 is a good option that goes together pretty well. The fiddliest bits were the clear parts (the front windscreen is fitted from the outside).

The above photo shows the current state of proceedings - waiting for some transfers/decals after being coated with a few layers of Klear.

Also in the works but not pictured yet is a B-24 Liberator - the old Airfix offering in 1/72 scale. Thanks to having lots of loose fitting moveable parts and being a subject of the 'phantom riveter' - that should be entertaining....

On the workbench - the Amerika Bomber and a Raptor

Arado E 555 'Amerika Bomber'

I've wanted to do one of these for a while for a couple of reasons.

1) I like flying wings.

2) Luft '46 is a virtual playground for a modelmaker - because it was essentially where the engineering people went a bit mad. After all, they never had to build the things - so they could do what they liked...

3) It looks like a spaceship even by modern standards - in a similar vein (although nowhere near as big) as the Vulcan.

Combine a Luft '46 Flying Wing that looks like it's straight out of Flash Gordon with virtually free reign in the colour scheme department - what's not to like? It also helps that it's a pretty good kit - top marks for Revell in terms of fit, ease of assembly and the overall quality of the finished product. In 1/72 scale it comes out about as big as a B-25 or Ju 88 - so a fairly manageable size when completed.

I don't exaggerate when I say that it is possible to assemble the majority of the airframe in a weekend. Revell went for the 'less is more' approach when it came to parts - the main body/wing assembly is made up of two pieces and the tail planes, engine pods, etc. are added as the build goes on.

Since this thing never flew and thus was never painted - you can pretty much go with whatever Luftwaffe camouflage takes your fancy. In this case - the choice was a two-tone splinter camouflage.  Colours used were from the German late-war palette - RLM 84 (Light Sky) for the underside, RLM 82 (Olive Green) and RLM 81 (Brown Violet).

After a not-inconsiderable amount of time picking off the masking tape - it was then time to fit the landing gear, gear doors and other bits/bobs. This is the finished result which looks pretty good.

Lockheed F-22 Raptor 

Also on the go (also from Revell in 1/72 scale) is a F-22 Raptor. This is a pretty good kit as far as muggins here is concerned - no real issues with fit or finish. HOWEVER.

I'm not sure what precise colour the USAF actually uses for the leading edges of their F-22s - but they evidently didn't share the specifics with Vallejo paints. The result is a pretty bright grey along the edges of the wings and tail(s). I don't think it looks too bad, but it's a bit more of a stark contrast than the real thing.

Sometimes however you just have to run with it and finish a model despite one or two misgivings halfway through. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. The finished product looks like a Raptor and is pretty smart overall - the decals really do bring the thing to life and add a bit of relief to what would otherwise be a big grey stealth plane.

Both of these coming soon to a certain auction site near you...