This is my
first Longbow model. The first thing you notice when you unpack the box,
is the huge amount of parts and the inevitable fact that you can't close
it anymore. So you have to build it I guess ;o) The Hasegawa kit comes with
everything you need. The detailing is exquisite, and at first I decided to
build it OOB. I had the opportunity to use Eduard's Zoom set that included
PE seat belts, displays, various small parts and pieces for upgrading the
cockpit.
Once you start
building everything goes quite smooth and fast. Except the lower joint of the 2
halves. Sanding removes almost all rivet details and since they are protruding
from the plastic restoring them is a pain. There are number of small fiddly
items such as various antenna which need attention when handling the model.
I added two more
things, a spare tank to get a asymmetrical load, and some home-made RBF tags on
the weapon mounts.
Click on
images below to see larger images
Painting was
done with MM enamel colors - first an overall coat of army helo drab,
followed by a lighter shade rof postshading. Next came oil washes with
lamp black and raw umber and at last MIG pigments were used. I had huge
problems when every single decal silvered although I used gloss coat, but
I fixed that, with some nitro thinner and to top everything. On a late
night fix-her-up session it went flying from the desk I worked on....breaking
a lot of stuff, but was repaired in no time with a whole bunch of curse words.
So that's it.
It's a complex model and I enjoyed it completely. I need to thank my
friends from my modeling club MK GRUNF for helping me with lot's of things
and especially two ARC-ers Jon and Brock for helping me build this
eggbeater.
Mario
Click on
images below to see larger images
|