Sommaire pour July 2018 de FineScale Modeler

During the summer of 1943, now 75 years ago, massive German and Soviet armies engaged in a sprawling battle outside the Russian city of Kursk. Although the clash involved millions of foot soldiers supported by aircraft and artillery, Kursk is regarded as one of the largest tank battles in history. The invading Germans were heavily outnumbered in men and tanks and other armor. But the Germans had better, more-sophisticated weapons. As the battle dragged on for weeks, the Germans, having advanced little, pulled many of their forces back to protect Germany from invading Allied forces moving north through Italy. Reportedly, the Red Army lost 1,614 tanks and self-propelled guns at Kursk. That was more than a third of the armor it had on the battlefield. German losses are said to…

For military modelers, there’s no better way to get to the heart of a historical event than to model a specific vehicle. It’s one thing to build a PzKpfw III Ausf M — but quite another to model the one with turret number Red 421, 15th Panzer Regiment, 11th Panzer Division, at Kursk in 1943. It was filmed on the march with other vehicles in the same unit, and I found several photos of it posted by the Bundesarchiv (German federal archive) in the Wikimedia Commons. These references revealed several individual quirks and characteristics that I incorporated in the model. I built Dragon’s PzKpfw III Ausf M/N (No. 9015) and swept the aftermarket for details I thought would bring the model closer to Red 421, including: • Aber PzKpfw III/StuG…

In the past, every time I finished a military vehicle I displayed it on a plain wooden base. Boring! Wanting to kick it up a notch, I recently starting adding grass, twigs, and branches. Now, my vehicles fit their surroundings. This method of making grass is easy to do and does not require a lot of time — perfect for a busy modeler who still needs to finish the vehicle! Materials • Tamiya masking tape• Super glue• Celluclay• Sand• Elmer’s glue• Woodland talus rock debris, field grass, dry wood, and tree branches• Verlinden static grass (No. 0044)• Humbrol green and yellow enamels…

Drama on the high seas! Sink the Bismarck! Battle of Midway! Defeat the Yamato! For the most part, though, the Allied victory at sea in World War II was a matter of endless escort missions in which monotony, fatigue, and the sea itself were formidable enemies. Much of this drudgery was done by Flower-class corvettes. Built at low cost by small shipyards, they were tough and seaworthy — though they rolled and pitched so badly that seawater seeped into the ship through hatches and doors. With no food refrigeration aboard, crews lived mostly on corned beef and powdered potatoes. It wasn’t until 2014 that these corvettes became available in 1/350 scale plastic, thanks to Mirage Hobby. They were worth waiting for — good kits you can build from the box…

While Modelcollect is new to aircraft, it has been producing 1/72 scale armor for a few years. So, projects like this 1/72 scale B-2 and Modelcollect’s announced B-52 and B-1 constitute quite a leap. My first impression of the parts in the box was good, influenced by the beautiful cover art and packaging that includes foam inserts protecting the upper and lower halves of the outer wings and center section. Pre-decorated photo-etched instrument panels are included, along with a single-part, clear windscreen and an impressive decal sheet designed by TwoBobs Aviation Graphics and printed by Cartograf. The kit features moderately detailed wheel wells, a bomb bay with a pair of rotary weapons launchers, engines with intake and exhaust trunks, an extended boarding ladder, and separate flaps and butterfly drag rudders/ailerons.…

Designed by British naval architect George Thurston, the Kongo-class battlecruiser Hiei served the Japanese navy during World War I. After modernization in the 1930s, which included extra armor, aircraft catapults, and a new superstructure, Hiei was part of the task force escorting the carriers that launched the attack on Pearl Harbor. The ship was crippled and sunk off Guadalcanal in November 1942. Kajika’s waterline kit represents Hiei shortly after it was commissioned in WWI. The crisply molded plastic parts feature scale-fine — and consequently fragile — masts with integral yardarms, sharp rain gutters over the portholes, planking on decks, and nice ship’s boats. The main and secondary guns have recessed muzzles, and the funnels are one-piece affairs. No flash was present, and mold seams were insignificant. The clear 11-step instructions…

The ultimate descendent of Avro’s famous Lancaster bomber of World War II, the Shackleton performed maritime reconnaissance for the Royal Air Force through the Cold War. In the 1970s, a dozen airframes were converted into airborne early warning platforms; that’s the version represented in Revell’s new kit. The slightly soft gray plastic shows good surface detail with a combination of recessed lines and rivets and a few raised features. All of the control surfaces are movable. Unfortunately, minor flash and some mold seams mar many of the parts. You’ll need to spend time on cleanup before assembly. The fuselage consists of four parts, with the front fuselage halves ending just aft of the cockpit. Joining each pair was easy, but the seam between the assembled halves required filler. Interior details…

Arguably the prettiest Japanese fighter of World War II, the Kawanishi Ki-61 Hien, was referred to as "Tony" by the Allies. Tamiya, which released a 1/48 scale kit of the streamlined thoroughbred a year ago, now offers a 1/72 scale Ki-61-Id (No. 60789, $27). Surface molding on the airframe includes some of the finest recessed panel lines I’ve seen with petite raised ribs on the fabric-covered control surfaces. Details abound in the cramped cockpit with a two-part seat, walls with structural and mechanical fixtures, and an instrument panel that has molded switches and bezels to be detailed with decal dials. The kit provides markings for three late-war Hiens. To aid finishing your Tony, Tamiya offers a set of decals for the striking mottled camouflage (No. 12683, $4.50). Fits are first-rate…

Robert Raver of Crystal Lake, Illinois, describes the Luftwaffe’s mottled camouflage as one of the most visually interesting finishes you can apply to a model. That’s part of the motivation behind his build of Eduard’s 1/72 scale Focke-Wulf Fw 190A-8. Not content to work with just the kit’s contents, he added every detail set Eduard made for it. Those enhancements include photo-etch (PE) for the cockpit, exterior, and flaps, and Brassin resin and metal for the cockpit, engine, wheels, and fuselage guns. Not satisfied that it was detailed enough, he also scratchbuilt the gun bays at the wing roots with styrene and wire. He painted the model with RLM shades mixed from Tamiya acrylics and thinner. “I start with about a 50/50 ratio of paint to thinner and adjust as…

When the Soviet army’s towed heavy artillery proved cumbersome and slow to reposition around Stalingrad, the State Defense Committee ordered the development of a self-propelled gun capable of taking out German fortifications. The resulting SU-152 carried the powerful 152mm ML-20S howitzer on a modified KV-1S tank chassis. First used during the Battle of Kursk, the vehicle earned the nickname Zveroboy, Russian for beast killer; the concussion from its high-explosive rounds could blow the turrets off German Tigers and Panthers. Bronco released kits of early and late SU-152s; the main differences are roof ventilators, a shell-ejection port, and a large splash guard added after the vehicle’s combat baptism at Kursk. So, the early version (No. CB35113) can be built to represent one of the 21 vehicles which served in the summer…

CHRIS PIONKOWSKI EAU CLAIRE, WISCONSIN Chris finished Tamiya’s 1/35 scale FlaK 88 with Testors Model Master enamels, artist’s oils, and Vallejo acrylics. He says, “The unbuilt kit sat in my collection for 35 years, with a friend complaining about it for more than 20 of those years. So, I finally built it and gave it to him for his birthday!” STUART SHAKESPEARE ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA After building Tamiya’s 1/48 scale Bristol Beaufighter, Stuart wrote: “Last year I was in an auto accident, and during my recovery I picked up scale modeling as a pastime after a 20-year hiatus. I am amazed at the vast array of modeling products and manufacturers now available, and the improvement in quality of both models and accessories is breathtaking.” Crediting FSM books for newly learned…

Knowing the FSM staff to be relentless punsters, I lead off this article with a growing sense of tread and hopes that I can get things rolling before the topic gets tired. In the regular rotation of our “Builder Basics,” we align ourselves with beginners and intermediate modelers to be sure we are not so inflated with expertise that we motor past essential techniques. More-accomplished modelers may consider the subject of painting wheels beneath them — exactly where wheels should be, generally speaking. Models have as many different types of wheels and tires as there are ways to paint them. I’ve tried to track techniques that will apply to most of them, and you may find ideas here that will pump up one of your projects — extra mileage, as…

The J-31 is, or at least will be, China’s fifth-generation fighter. It made its public debut at the Zhuhai Airshow in 2014 and, to date, only two have been built. Trumpeter’s medium gray parts show fine, recessed panel lines. A small photo-etch (PE) fret provides a harness, and decals supply markings for two aircraft. The ejection-seat comprises six parts, including a separate seat cushion, two arms, an ejection handle, and rear rail as well as the basic seat. Detail is good, as is fit, although I sanded the sides of the cushion to make it easier to slip into place. The PE harness was too big, so I trimmed it. Decals controls and dials settled over raised detail on the instrument panel and side consoles with help from Microscale Micro…

Stanley Kubrick’s 1968 science-fiction epic, 2001: A Space Odyssey has its share of fans and detractors. But whatever side of the fence they come down on, viewers come away from the film in awe of the special effects, especially the spacecraft, which have long been lauded for realism. Fans who have waited 50 years for a plastic kit of Discovery — the ship that carried David Bowman and Frank Poole to Jupiter — can rejoice in Moebius’ kit. (Short-run resin kits have been offered by several manufacturers in the last 20 years.) Once you are done celebrating, clear room on your workbench — the finished model is more than 41 inches long and spindly as all get out. I worried about running my Discovery into walls, the edge of the…

Modern in 1934, Polikarpov’s I-16 was the mainstay of the Soviet Union’s air force when Germany invaded in 1941. ICM’s big-scale I-16 comprises 103 gray and eight clear parts as well as decals to mark four aircraft. Recessed and raised panel lines are sharply molded, as is the fabric texture on the wings. Rudder and elevators are movable. The starboard upper-wing half was warped in my kit, so I clamped it for fit. A thin strip of styrene filled a gap at the wing root, and I used a little putty to blend the join between the rear of the wing and the fuselage. These were the only glitches in an otherwise trouble-free build. The instrument panel is a clear face with molded bezels and gray plastic backing plate to…

Red Army uniforms changed some during World War II, but they were almost always khaki, a delightful greenish-brown. So, when I painted Evolution Miniatures’ 1/35 scale Soviet soldier (No. 35152) I applied various shades of khaki. Altering colors used on the shirt, jacket, and pants helped to show wear in the chaos of war. After cleaning up the resin parts, I pinned the soldier’s foot to mount him in a pin vise. Then I primed him with Tamiya sky gray acrylic. Next Issue Joe will be back in October, but we have a surprise coming next issue. Grab September’s FSM if you’re game! Paints used Andrea Khaki Set, which includes: • Base A-1 (Vallejo alternate Russian Green 70.894• Base B-4 (Vallejo alternate a mix of Green Brown and Chocolate Brown•…

I’ve always been intrigued by the beginning stages of the Battle of Kursk, when German armor crossed miles of wheat fields in the southern Soviet Union. My 1/35 scale diorama depicts a German regimental front-line command area set up below a Soviet railway embankment. A hardly noticeable stream lazily winds its way through the area from a culvert below the rail line. Visiting is a general and his staff from the Grossdeutschland division. Other troops are heading for their assembly areas. This diorama took 400 hours over the course of 12 months to complete — whew! The scene is busy with action. In all, there are more than 40 figures, two horses, three tanks, two support vehicles, one halftrack, and two motorcycles.…

There is something about U.S. Navy training aircraft that catches my eye every time. A North American SNJ? Sure. The new T-6 Texan II? You bet. Even the TA-4 Skyhawks do it for me, along with the TA-7C Corsairs, not to mention the venerable T-28. When Matchbox came out with its Buckeye way back when, I bought the kit and had every intent of building it someday. But Wolfpack’s 1/72 scale kit of the T-2 (No. 10005) changed everything. Now I had to build a Buckeye! Having seen a couple of color photos of gray-over-white T-2s, I chose that scheme for an aircraft from NAS Point Mugu’s Pacific Missile Training Center (PMTC), remembering that a friend had given me a set of black dry transfers for the triangular emblem on…

While its stablemate, the Camel, fought at lower altitudes, the Sopwith Dolphin ruled the upper air — at least until it was pressed into service delivering small bombs to the trenches, along with many other Royal Flying Corps aircraft. With reverse-stagger wings, the Dolphin had a distinctive shape to go along with its superior performance. Wingnut Wings’ Dolphin comes in a trim 154-part kit that includes optional armament, propellers, and even night-flying equipment. There are five decal options with numerous painting notes for each. Look closely at the many photos in the instructions for the locations of stencil decals not mentioned in the profiles. There’s also a rigging diagram; pay attention, because cables for the radiator controls and the optional wing-mounted Lewis guns are easy to miss. Typical of Wingnuts,…

The army of Taiwan (formally the Republic of China) uses a unique hybrid tank. Known as the Brave Tiger, the CM-11 mates an M60A3 hull with an M48A3 turret mounting an M68 105mm gun, the type used on early Abrams. As a development of the Patton, the tank is designated M48H, with the H standing for hybrid. Takom’s new CM-11 features one-piece vinyl tracks that join with a metal pin, photo-etch (PE) details, clear plastic vision blocks, and decals for four vehicles. After adding the road-wheel swing arms to the lower hull, I checked alignment with a straightedge. The breakdown of the road wheels is unusual. The inner wheels are single parts, but the outer ones have separate tires that include the lip of the wheel and provide more detail…

As the tide turned in World War II, Axis commanders sought a defense against round-the-clock Allied bombing. To counter night attacks, Germany and Japan sent up night fighters. Not having the resources to produce specialized aircraft, Japan pushed existing planes into the role. Originally designed for high-speed reconnaissance, Nakajima’s C6N, known to the Allies as “Myrt,” proved especially capable despite the absence of onboard radar. At least six C6N1s were converted with obliquely angled 20mm or 30mm cannons. Based on its 2002 Myrt, Hasegawa’s C6N1-S includes white-metal parts for the 20mm cannons, ammo cans, and braces supplied in white metal. The cockpit features a floor and separate side panels, but no seat belts. I used the instrument panel decal but omitted the other interior decals as they were too thick…

In the catbird seat I was 7 or 8 when a childhood buddy who lived four houses away got me interested in aviation. His dad was a pilot for Eastern Airlines. One Saturday morning, he brought both of us out to the airport and let us hop aboard a Boeing 727. We had the honor of sitting in the cockpit. My friend sat in the captain’s seat, and I in the co-pilot’s seat. It was the neatest thing I had ever experienced, and I could not wait to get home to tell my family and friends. We had bragging rights that weekend. – John C. Backenstross Fayetteville, N.Y. Motor City planespotting I grew up about three miles away from Detroit City Airport. During summer vacations in the early 1950s, I…