I built this kit several times as a kid, and once before as an adult (although I notice I haven't yet documented it on this site). I picked it up for $5 at a local swap meet, and used it to try out some more of the Hataka paints.

It goes together rather easily. As you might expect from a kit made for kids in the 1960's, it isn't detailed. The cockpit consists of the armor plate and a pilot figure (which I didn't put in). The wheel wells are devoid of detail as well. I have never built this kit as a Mk. IId, so that's the version I built.

I used Hataka paints for the azure blue on the bottom, the middlestone (labelled as 'Mid Stone' on the Hataka bottle) and dark earth on the top. I decided to try spraying the dark earth freehand, as I always find masking the curvy RAF camouflage to be a pain. I first outlined the curves with diluted paint using a microbrush, then sprayed. I was very pleased with how it turned out, and plan on freehanding RAF planes in the future.

I was not as pleased with the spinner and propellor. I tried spraying the spinner with Tamiya XF-7, using a mixture of denatured alcohol and Createx 4012 reducer, but the mixture must have been mostly denatured alcohol. The paint dried too quickly and appeared as a translucent pink. I then sprayed Polly Scale Pacemaker Red, but it still turned out poorly. I hand-painted the prop blades and that didn't turn out well either. Since I knew this model wasn't going to turn out that well overall, I hand painted the canopy too, and was reminded of why I shouldn't do that.

As with the Fw 190A-3, I used Glosscote and Dullcote for the clears. I used the kit decals. As the decals were probably a few decades old, I had to use very hot water, but they settled down okay.

Page last updated June 15, 2023.