Tabla de contenidos para May 2020 en FineScale Modeler

Victory in Europe, or V-E Day, was the beginning of the end of World War II. Meanwhile, the war in the Pacific raged on for three more months. But the six years of horrific battles, attrocities, deaths, and almost unimaginable destruction in Europe came to an end 75 years ago, on May 8, 1945. We mark that happy day with this issue. As we’ve said before we’re here to honor the men and women who sacrificed for our freedom. One way to do that is to build replicas of the machines of war, which helps us modelers get closer to that history, and those who lived through it. It’s often their stories that inspire modelers to build a specific project. To that point, our Aaron Skinner offers a stunning T26E3…

Wallpaper to spiff up your screen! Feel (or at least see) the Fury on your computer when you download this wallpaper image of Kitty Hawk’s 1/48 scale FJ-2. Read Chuck Davis’ review of the “Navy Sabre” on p. 56. More how-to and new product videos That’s right, we are not only doing our monthly New Product Rundown and weekly Single Shots of individual kits that we receive here at FSM HQ, but now master modeler Kenneth Childres is doing fun Skill Building how-to videos to provide tips and techniques to help you make the best models you’ve ever produced. These are short and sweet, so take a look!…

Nothing makes me feel more connected with military history than looking at old photos. I try to put myself in the place of the people in the pictures and imagine what it was like to ride on the back of a Sherman tank or in an M3 halftrack. So when Takom released a 1/35 scale Tiger II with a full interior and the Porsche turret design, I knew which photo I wanted to re-create. In the picture, a knocked-out Tiger II sits abandoned in a bomb crater. It’s painted with white 11, and surrounded by American GIs — I bet they couldn’t resist the opportunity to pose with the King. To make an accurate diorama, I did some digging to find the story behind this tank’s demise. I unearthed that…

Mention World War II Messerschmitt aircraft and the Bf 109 will immediately come to mind, but the Me 410A-1 also deserves a look for its effectiveness in night fighting and attacking daytime Allied bombing runs. This German heavy fighter, known as the Hornisse, or Hornet, first came online in 1943, being developed from the Me 210, but with considerably more horse power (1,730), a new wing design and longer fuselage. The result was an increase in cruising speed to 360 mph, a top speed of 388 mph and the ability to climb to 33,000 feet. In all, 1,189 were built, including the A version, touting two MG 17 machine guns, plus two MG 151/21 cannons in the nose. For my build, I turned to Fine Molds’ 1/72 scale Me 410A-1…

Want to see more? You can! Pick up a copy of Great Scale Modeling 2020, on sale November 17. Inside, you'll find a whole new NordicCon gallery for your viewing pleasure. Go to KalmbachHobbyStore.com to reserve your copy today. Each year, the Minnesota Military Figure Modelers (MMFS), Oddball Modeling Group (OMG), RPM Twin Cities, and the Twin Cities Aero Historians (TCAH) combine forces to hold NordicCon, a modeling contest at the end of September. The theme for 2019 was “Back to the Movies.” As usual, there were tremendous models across the spectrum of genres. Here are just a few. The 2020 show will be held Sept. 26, in Inver Grove Heights, Minn. For info, go to NordicCon.com.…

When Chad Bowser of Manheim, Pennsylvania, built Tamiya’s 1/48 scale Mustang Mk.III (No. 61047) as an Australian fighter in Italy in World War II, he wanted to give the fighter a well-used finish. His only modification on an otherwise out-of-the-box build was cutting the clear parts to pose the canopy open. After prepping the airframe, he airbrushed a primer layer of Mr. Surfacer 1500 black. Then, starting with the underside color — medium sea gray — he applied light layers of thin paint letting the black show through. “The paint is mottled on in totally random squiggles until the paint is built up to the coverage I want,” Chad says. “It’s better to err on the side of not enough coverage than too much because you can always go back…

A well-known result of aircraft serving in the Mediterranean theater during World War II was the fading of their ANA 616 sand over neutral gray or azure blue paint scheme. Harsh desert sun faded the sand to a sunburned looking hue known as desert pink. I wanted to create a U.S. Army Air Forces Liberator from that era and my choice was easy, Hasegawa’s B-24D (Kit No. E28) in 1/72 scale. Making it more attractive, it came with decals depicting The Squaw during its war bond tour livery. The Squaw was an early model B-24D, part of the 98th Bomb Group, 343rd Bomb Squadron that arrived in what was then Palestine in July, 1942. Assigned to the 9th Air Force, The Squaw survived 71 missions in the Mediterranean, including a…

Germany’s Gray Wolves roamed the Atlantic virtually unopposed during the early years of World War II, harrying North Atlantic merchant vessels. Sometimes operating in “wolf packs,” U-boats inflicted heavy losses and almost eliminated Britain’s lifeline. After the U.S. entered the war, along with the development of more sophisticated anti-submarine tactics and detection equipment, these underwater hunters became the hunted. I modeled U-96, which completed 11 war patrols under several commanders. U-96’s keel was laid in September 1939, and it entered service a year later under the command of Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock. He and his crew went on to sink 28 ships with U-96. The inspiration for the book Das Boote, U-96 sank on March 30, 1945, during a U.S. bombing raid on Wilhelmshaven, Germany. Kit: 1/144 scale Revell Type VIIC/41 U-boat…

At long last, Kitty Hawk has released an FJ-2 Fury — the “Navy Sabre” — in 1/48 scale. Build options are plentiful, with cannon bays, cockpit, wing folds, wheel wells, and landing gear, all fully detailed. Kitty Hawk includes more underwing stores than are accurate; in addition to drop tanks, the instructions show mounting Sidewinders, incorrect for the FJ-2. A small photo-etched metal (PE) fret includes seat belts and small details. All five marking options are for natural-metal jets, typical for the FJ-2. Also included are two nicely cast resin figures, one pilot ascending and one ground crew member. Construction of the interior calls for a British green color, hemp, which I assumed was incorrect. However, videos and photos online confirm Kitty Hawk got it right. I used Tamiya cockpit…

Following up its big 1/48 scale Space: 1999 Eagle transporter released in 2015, MPC has scaled the ship to 1/72 scale which makes it about 14 inches long. The kit includes a stand, optional compressed and extended landing gear to pose it on the ground or in flight, and markings for three spacecraft. I also used MPC’s aftermarket metal engine bell set. I followed the instructions and assembled the crew module followed by the fore and aft walkways, painting subassemblies as I went. In Step 7, make sure the short end of parts 14 and 15 are attached. I painted the tubular frames then glued them in place around the walkways, setting the parts aside to dry completely. Next, I jumped to Step 21 to build the cargo/passenger pod and…

Welcome to the world of Gaslands from Osprey Games. It’s a post-apocalyptic car combat game with simple rules, and a decidedly Mad Max aesthetic. The best part: Rather than proprietary figures, it’s designed to be played with inexpensive die-cast cars — Hot Wheels, Matchbox, and the like. Building these doomsday automobiles is quite forgiving and creative. No welds are going to be perfect. Paint jobs are going to be shoddy. Everything can be as dirty and damaged as you like. For this project, I went digging through mine and my brother’s old collection. There were models from the ’70s to ’90s As I sifted through the bag, one model stood out: A Majorette Cadillac limo. In the picture above, you can see what a “beauty” it is; creamy, off-white luxury…

The first operational American heavy tank, the Pershing, arrived in Europe in the closing months of World War II. Actually, only 20 made it in time to see combat against German Tigers and Panthers to prove the worth of the concept. One of those encounters, between a T26E3 Pershing of the 3rd Armored Division and a Panther within sight of Cologne’s cathedral was immortalized by a Signal Corps cameraman. That footage gives views of the American tank from several angles as it makes its way down the rubble-strewn street. Using Tamiya’s Pershing, I set out to replicate the tank, designated Eagle 7 by its crew, as it appeared during that battle on March 6, 1945, using stills from the film as reference. Building it meant reproducing damage and stowage. Project…

The Jagdtiger was the heaviest and most armored vehicle to see combat in World War II. Developed from the already massive King Tiger tank, the tank destroyer mounted a 12.8cm gun in the casemate; fewer than 80 were completed before war’s end. The Jagdtiger has been a popular kit subject; if manufacturers had a King Tiger, a Jagdtiger would follow. Takom’s all-new Jagdtiger is molded in light gray plastic with sharp details and no flash. Features include link-and-length tracks, optional parts to build early or late production versions, decals for five Jagdtigers, and a small photo-etched metal (PE) fret that supplies engine screens. No figures are provided. Note: Some steps are marked as -1 and -2 illustrations. This indicates differences between early and late vehicles, but Takom never states this…

Molded in light gray plastic, Dora Wings’ Lysander features fine recessed panel lines and good representation of the fabric on the wings and fuselage. A small photo-etched metal (PE) fret provides seat belts, cowl flaps (both open and closed), the boarding ladder, and other small details. A resin part connects the cylinders to the exhaust collector and vinyl masks help to paint the extensive canopy. Decals provide markings for three aircraft. Step 1 shows adding the spinner to the prop, but not shown is that Part E22 is the spinner backplate. That part is shown in Step 8 as the compass — it is too big! The cowl comprises three parts with no locating pins. Before the glue set, I used the engine mounting plate (Part A2) to refine the…