1/72 Smer F4U-1A Corsair

Gallery Article by Radim Schimmer on Nov 20 2003

 

Heller reboxing

This kit I first time built at least  15 years ago. It wasn’t on level I could leave in my display case, so it laid for years in box with another competed kits of similar age. Finally I decided to use it for some surgery practice. I stripped paint (using sodium hydroxide), re-filled seams, rescribed some panel lines, cut and repositioned flaps. Wings were already molded in parts allowing with some additional work and scratchbuilding place them in folded position. Entire model was airbrushed with Agama alcohol based colors. 

 

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Original kit decals were of course destroyed during paint stripping. I had some spare decals for US Corsairs, but I wanted to have New Zealand marking (simply because majority of my kits are US and I want to have my collection various and if possible I use less common markings). All decals except yellow numbers 278 were printed using color laser printer on clear or white decal sheet, 278’s were from spares box. For setting decals I used future, for panel lines emphasizing future tinted with brown and black. Final coat was airbrushed Humbrol satin varnish, exhaust and gunpowder stains were done with pastel chalk.   

Happy modelling.

Radim Schimmer, Brno, Czech Republic

      

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