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15 Articles

Are you ready for BAMM 2024?

We are! The first two successful events included the online model contest, sweepstakes, affiliated make-and-takes, and stories from readers about how they are introducing new people to the fun that is our hobby. This November will feature many of the same events — and maybe a surprise or two along the way. That means you have five months or so to finish up your entries for the contest. While you are at it, sit down with your modeling friends over coffee, tea, or something stronger and brainstorm what you will do to bring new people into the fold. You can organize a make-and-take at a local hobby store with your club or give a presentation at a youth group, library, senior center, or pretty much anywhere else people gather. Share some tips and…

Are you ready for BAMM 2024?

Holding small parts for painting Ed.: In a recent FSM Scale Model Basics video, we demonstrated several ways to hold parts, especially small ones, for painting. We asked if any of you had other techniques and received several suggestions. [Poster] putty on the end of a toothpick or skewer can hold a part, provided the putty has not lost its tack from other usage. Too much pressure from an airbrush may knock the part off, or a heavy hand with a paint brush may separate the part from the putty. Sticky putty on the end of a toothpick is also helpful for picking up small plastic parts and small photo-etched metal parts. – Robert Walker via FineScale.com I will superglue a straight piece of sprue in an inconspicuous area on the underside of some…

EXCLUSIVE CONTENT AT FINESCALE.COM

HeritageCon 16 model contest photo gallery The Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum in Mount Hope, Ontario, houses a terrific collection of warbirds, so it’s a great setting for a scale model contest! One of the largest model shows in Canada, the 16th annual contest featured more than 750 models on the tables and 2,500 attendees from all over Canada and the northeastern United States. Visit FineScale.com/show-galleries to see photos of some of the best models this year. Scale Model Basics how-to videos Don’t miss Scale Model Basics Season 3! FSM brings you a variety of how-to advice, from repairing scratches in clear parts to applying isopropyl alcohol to remove paint from your plastic kit parts. FineScale Modeler’s editors want to help you make your best models, so visit FineScale.com/videos to see tips about tools,…

EXCLUSIVE CONTENT AT FINESCALE.COM

AIRCRAFT 1/48 SCALE P-47D-30RA Thunderbolt advanced kit from MiniArt, No. 48029, $TBA. US B-24J Liberator from HobbyBoss, No. 81774, $159.99. WBR Macchi C.200 from Italeri, No. 2767, $43. P-47D-28RE Thunderbolt “Free French Air Force” from MiniArt, No. 48015, $TBA. Messerschmitt Bf 109G-10 from Revell, No. 15873, $18.99. B-26B Marauder from ICM, No. 48320, $154.99. WBR 1/72 SCALE Vultee Vengeance Mk.I/IA from Dora Wings, No. DW72038, $66.99. WBR Tachikawa Ki-54 Hickory Captured and Post War Service from Special Hobby, No. SH72485, $33.99. SIAI-Marchetti SF-260 EA/EU/D Late Bulged Canopy Type from Special Hobby, No. SH72433, $TBA. KF-21 ROKAF Boramae from Academy, No. 12585, $28. PZL P.11c Polish fighter “Rare Birds” from IBG Models, No. 72520, $11.76. Focke-Wulf Fw 190D-11 Sorau Factory Series from IBG Models, No. 72533, $TBA PZL P.24A/F fighter in Turkish service from IBG Models, No. 72553, $11.76. F-84F Thunderstreak “Reborn Luftwaffe” from Special Hobby, No. 72505,…

OLD SCHOOL MODELING

Introduced into Royal Navy service in 1962, the Blackburn Buccaneer attack aircraft served more than 30 years with British forces. But it had to wait until near retirement to see its baptism by fire with the Royal Air Force when Buccaneers were used to laser designate and bomb targets during Operation Granby, the British name for its involvement in the 1991 Gulf War. (South African Air Force Buccaneers carried out combat strikes in the decades-long Border War in what is now Namibia and Angola.) When Airfix released its beautiful, all-new 1/48 scale kit of the Royal Navy Buccaneer S.2C/D, I wanted to build it as one the Operation Granby bombers. Kits-World provided markings (No. KW148148), but I scratchbuilt the details and modifications. I planned to display the model with the starboard…

OLD SCHOOL MODELING

LEVEL UP your scale modeling

Completing a model building or figure painting project elicits a great sense of accomplishment. Now that it’s done, you can sit back, enjoy your victories, maybe think about how you might change your technique, put it on the shelf, and move on to the next project. However, to my way of thinking, this is like tacking a painted canvas to the wall with no frame. A nice piece of work is diminished for lack of the simple finishing touch of putting it in a frame, or, in a model’s case, putting it on a base. Just a few of the many reasons for putting your next model on a base include ease of movement and transportation, reduce potential damage at shows, provide information and context for the model, and simply setting the…

LEVEL UP your scale modeling

DRAWING INSPIRATION

When I build scale models, I like to try something new with each project. That may mean attempting a new technique, using a tool in a way I haven’t in the past, or tackling a building or finishing task that I’ve never tried before. This helps me improve, but more importantly, it gets me thinking outside the box and making things that people don’t often see, like a model car that looks like an anime cel illustration. For those unfamiliar, anime refers to Japanese-style animation. I was inspired by the Initial D series of shows and movies that centered on car culture, racing, and drifting. I took my painting cues from the animation’s cel-shading style. For me, a build like this is fun, simple, and if you find the right kit, inexpensive.…

DRAWING INSPIRATION

ANDRE RUPERT YPSILANTI, MICHIGAN This cool scene came out of Andre’s love for Superman and all things geeky. He wanted Superman opposing something imposing, so his daughter suggested Andre create a“Superman vs. Superman” vignette. He 3D-printed the Supermen (Supermans?) and decided to put a comic-versus-movie spin on it. Andre modeled the terrain, painted the model using Vallejo Game Air paints, and wired the Heat Vision for the final touch. He says the full build took about two weeks. DOUGLAS CORP CHARLES TOWN, WEST VIRGINIA Douglas 3D-printed 1/48 scale Gunstar 1 from the 1984 movie The Last Starfighter from Gambody. He created custom 3D-printed parts, like maneuvering engine nozzles, rocket launchers, clear cockpit instruments, and vacuum-formed clear canopies using Gambody files as the masters. Douglas scanned Toy Weaver action figures, re-posed them to fit in the…

MERDC demystified

After several decades of fielding almost nothing but overall olive drab or forest green, the U.S. Army and Marine Corps in 1975 adopted a set of four-color camo patterns developed by the Mobility Equipment Research and Development Center (MERDC). Eight patterns, with titles like Summer Verdant, Tropical, and Gray Desert, were created to help break up vehicle outlines in different environments with the idea that just one of the colors needed to be changed if the unit deployed to another locale. For example, the only difference between Summer Verdant and Winter Verdant is the second major color, light green, is replaced with brown field drab. A technical manual specified the patterns for each vehicle then in service and indicated that the patterns should be followed as closely as possible. The two…

MERDC demystified

Kitbash a better HUEY

Just as most modelers know that there is no such thing as the perfect kit, they also understand a new release of a subject is not guaranteed to correct the ills associated with an earlier kit of the same subject. I once corrected the then-new Hasegawa P-51 with wheels from a Monogram kit nearly a decade its senior. Sometimes, new releases feel like a step backward, so the only path to a more accurate model is to piece together parts from several kits. Twenty years ago, I built Monogram’s 1/48 scale Huey and painted it like a boneyard Navy UH-1E I destroyed as part of my job as a munitions developer for the Army. That kit had decent surface detail, but like many early Monogram kits, it contained a mix of…

Kitbash a better HUEY

THE EYES have it

While its origin is unclear, we all know the saying “the eyes are the windows to the soul.” As a figure painter, my goal may not be to capture the subject’s inner life, but there’s no denying that eyes are critical — if not the most critical — parts of the face to render accurately. No matter how well the rest of the figure is done, the realism of the eyes often spells the difference between creating an average piece and a showstopper. There is no reason for the terror that painting a figure’s eyes seems to induce in many modelers. By breaking the process down into a series of logical steps, even something as seemingly complex as eyes can be made more manageable — and maybe even enjoyable! With busts,…

THE EYES have it

Improve an IBG CENTAUR ’DOZER

I carefully sliced the kit’s three periscope covers from the upper hull with a hobby knife, sanded the areas flush, and glued the Dragon Churchill parts to replace them. After cutting off the handles indicated in the instructions and smoothing the spots with a sanding stick, I filled designated panel lines with Bondo Glazing & Spot Putty. To properly represent a Centaur bulldozer, I detailed the new turret-ring cover with a hatch and ventilator made from styrene strip and rod cut and sanded to shape. As the Allies pushed into Germany near the end of World War II, planners realized that rubble choking city streets would hinder advancing armor. While there were armored bulldozers developed by the British 79th Armoured Division, led by Major Gen. Percy Hobart, they were based on commercial tracked…

Improve an IBG CENTAUR ’DOZER

Trumpeter TBD-1 Devastator

Trumpeter announced its 1/32 scale TBD-1 Devastator years ago, and it is finally here. The kit includes numerous options, like folded or unfolded wings, open or closed canopies, bombs or a torpedo, open or closed cowl flaps, and lowered or raised flaps. One unusual option is the open bomb sighting doors under the cockpit. These doors peg the kit as an early build because they were later changed for simpler doors with two hinges instead of three. Not included are the gunners’ twin-machineguns seen on some Devastators. The easy-to-follow instructions do contain errors in the color diagrams: The “lemon yellow” VT-2 squadron color on the tail does not match the “chrome yellow” on the wings. Also, the wingtip navigation lights are just the tip of the molded-on lights, not the entire…

Trumpeter TBD-1 Devastator

Takom Tiger I Ausf E

Takom has now joined a wide field of manufacturers in producing a Tiger I kit. The Takom 1/35 scale Tiger I mid-production is a version specific to the tank ace Otto Carius. This initial release includes a nicely sculpted figure of him. Takom has done a beautiful job with the molded-on Zimmerit, and I didn’t need to use putty anywhere. The assembly consists of 26 steps, starting with the interior compartments. Those, while visible, end up mostly hidden after the grilles and screens go on. The running gear, though daunting, is a straightforward process with clear instructions. The linkand-length tracks are molded with properly hollow, separate guide teeth. Takom provides a jig to help with track assembly. Patience will help with the delicate parts. Another jig helps replicate the proper track…

Takom Tiger I Ausf E

MPC 1970 and 1971 Dodge Challengers

Late in 1969, Dodge introduced the Challenger, its first-ever “pony car.” (Yes, there is a debate about what differentiates a pony car from a muscle car and what cars belong to which category, but let’s leave that for another time.) MPC had been the source of all of Dodge’s scale model kits and promotional models since 1965, so it was a given that it would design and produce the first scale replica of the Challenger. Opening the kit, modelers found the parts molded in deep violet, a not-all-thataccurate attempt at the now-famous code FC-7 Dodge Plum Crazy Metallic. Under the standard Challenger R/T dual scoop hood resided a 426 Hemi with a non-stock intake/carb/air cleaner setup. There were no engine compartment sidewalls, leaving only the topside of underbody fenders visible to…

MPC 1970 and 1971 Dodge Challengers

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