Andreas Weber built a beautiful model of the reconnaissance Mustang F6C “‘AZEL”, describing in detail the modifications and techniques used. Another Arma Hobby Mustang masterfully crafted by Andreas is the subject of an article in the latest issue of the German magazine ModellFan.
Read Andreas Weber’s comments to photos from his build:
1. The installation of the finlet parts B18/B20 unfortunately led to the loss of surface details. Visible here is the restauration of panel lines, an even surface and finally the positioning of surface details. Photos of the original served as source, where and how many rivets, screws or bolts were to be placed.
2. To make “’AZEL” look like a Mustang also from the front, the author drilled through the sway braces and the representation of the pads on top of the tanks and threaded through with bristles of a toothbrush. Drill holes in the pylons accepted the steel rods in the tanks for a sturdy installation.
3. Glueing the combat tanks under the pylons would leave a gap between the sway braces and the relevant load. Some research pertaining to the combat tank and plumbing revealed most of the details needed to recreate an authentic installation.
4. The author deemed it an approach to align three of his shooting angles with the camera positions of the three original colour photos. Due to variations in focal length and relative position of the former photographer to the Mustang, the author’s approach was not 100 % spot on. Close inspection of the “old” photo revealed darker bands around wings and flaps, outside of the black ID one inboard.
5. This shot also served as a blueprint to conceive a “zone system” for five Alclad colour shades (4 aluminum hues + steel). The degree of gloss was achieved by thin layers of Acrylic Matte Varnish Permanent from Vallejo – and the lack of it under the engine and on the mid-fuselage.
6. Well visible are the bands over wings (adjacent to the edge curve) and flaps (close to the outboard edge). The authors guess is, that “older” identification bands were overpainted in a fresh silver dope and therefore slightly brighter than the rest of the wings. But how come, that the bands under the flaps were so dark?
7. Unlike the original shot, here is one from a slightly elevated angle: The nose with details of the main landing gear, where the narrow green and yellow bands around the landing gear legs were added. Also, the sway braces of the pylons got correctly connected via setscrews to the combat tanks and their relevant plumbing lines were installed. Some spots of small red colour highlights repeat the red elements of the spinner and the checkerboard marking.
8. Not too spectacular, but more focused on the fuselage, the sleek design and the finish of aluminum panels and their relevant degree of gloss come hopefully across well. The cooling flaps were posed open and the elevators deflected to breath some „life“ into the model.
9. Even a small base such as this one from DIO72 enhances the impact of a model for a presentation and „‘AZEL“ is no exception – and saves the efforts to conceive and construct a real, much more complex diorama. The pilot is a 3D-printed figure from Reedoak. The idea is to have a base that can be used for other models of the same size.
See also:
- Buy P-51 B/C Mustang™ Expert Set and other Mustang™ model kits online in the Arma Hobby shop link
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