This
is my model of the most modern French fighter available in noticeable numbers at
the outbreak of World War 2. It had been amongst the best fighters just a few
months before the start of the war but it quickly started to get outdated. It
was to be replaced by the better Dewoitine D520 (another surprising Hasegawa
release) but this latter machine never was to be delivered in sufficient
numbers. Hence the MS406 turned out to remain one of the workhorses of the
French Air Force during the early stages of WW2.
Building
That
is a very nice little kit that builds quite easily. As almost everyone knows by
now, Hasegawa small fighters usually are accurate, sharp, easy to build, boast
beautifully engraved panel lines but lack details in the cockpit area. I
therefore used a Hi Tech set that provided resin and PE parts, mostly to detail
cockpit, wheel wells (just a hollow part in the Hasegawa offering), flaps and
landing gear.
Cockpit
general colour is a greyish night blue while flaps and wing inner parts are
painted in the French chamois colour, which is a light tan.
Click on
images below to see larger images
|
|
|
|
Painting
This
model actually has been revamped, as I had done some time earlier with a Me262
model (look out in the Gallery area).
I
originally followed the Hasegawa instruction sheet. My model built in a nice
little kit but I never was impressed with its colours that I generally found to
be too light. After some researches my original feelings proved right. As this
kit is not widely available and I found its general construction quite
acceptable, I simply decided to repaint my model. Some paint scrapping was
exercised there before I started my repaint process. I based my colours on some
documents and on some articles found in French magazines (tribute to OS, the
colour master – amongst his wide abilities in modelling).
Chart
of paints follows – based on Gunze paints :
-
Gris
bleu clair (light greyish blue – under surfaces) : 85% H67 + 15% H11
-
Kaki
(French Khaki) : 90% H80 + 10% H329
-
Ombre
calcinée (Dark Brown) : 85% H84 + 15% H333
-
Gris
bleu foncé (Dark greyish blue – upper surfaces) : 85% H56 + 15% H325
Just
by chance, I was able to give my model the same identity after repaints as the
one it had before the repaint process. The same livery turned out to be
available from the Hasegawa sheet and from a Carpena decal sheet that I used in
the reconstruction.
Eric
|