To paraphrase The Most Interesting Man In The World, "I don't often build 1/48th scale airplanes - but when I do, I often build old Monogram 1/48th scale airplanes." This is, of course, the rather elderly but still quite nice Monogram 1/48th scale P-39 Airacobra, which has a reasonable amount of interior detail, pretty nice fit, and raised panel lines. It even has flattened main tires, but to me they don't just look flattened, they look flat.
This was supposed to be a P-39D, with the four .30-caliber machine guns in the wings. Which, after I'd assembled the wing, I realized that I'd forgotten to install. DOH! I read somewhere that the Soviets generally removed the wing armament from their P-39s to improve their roll rate, and maybe certain USAAF pilots did the same. I couldn't find my airbrush, so I brush-painted the model with Model Master acrylic olive drab, and used some old Humbrol paint for the interior green. How does one "not find" their airbrush? I store it in a little box, and I think I accidentally threw the box away during one of my intermittent declutterings of the workshop. Well, since my airbrush was a pre-Aztek Model Master job, maybe that's for the best...
I think there's a goof in the instructions. This same kit can be built as a P-39D or a P-39Q. The P-39D markings are for a USAAF unit in North Africa, and the instructions say it should be painted olive drab. The P-39Q is marked for a unit in the Pacific, and the instructions say to paint it sand. I think that's backwards. But since I had olive drab but didn't have sand, I rolled with it.
There are a couple of problems with the kit. One is that you can't install the nose landing gear after the fuselage is assembled. Another is that I just couldn't get the car-door windows to fit properly, and in the process of trimming and carving, I dropped the left-side window. I have a hard enough time seeing dropped model parts on the floor, but a clear part? Fuggeddaboudit. I'll find it the next time I sweep the concrete - or not, I'm good either way.
It's not going to win any awards, but it was fun. And I can't ask for more than that.
1 comment:
Aira that Cobra!
Post a Comment