Eduard 1:72 Lavochkin La-7 profi pack.

[Shelliecool]

Decided to start work on building my Eduard Lavochkin La-7 profi pack kit, while waiting for the Vampire to dry. This is my first Eduard kit, first glimpse at photo etch, and first Soviet aircraft.

The box and contents are perfectly presented, only one (very shiny) sprue, along with photo etched parts, masking and a detailed sheet of decals. Makes me think attention to detail is important here. I'm considering finishing the aircraft in the colours of Lt.Col. S. F. Dolgushin, having achieved over 500 missions and was regarded as a fighter ace of WWII. 

 

 

[Shelliecool]

I'm making what feels like very slow progress on the La-7. I began painting the interior of the cockpit and instrument panel with Mr.Hobby acrylics (first time using these), and the brush painting looked atrocious. I'm unsure if those is because of the type of paint or the shiny plastic. Quick trip to the local toyshop I've armed myself with a small pot of Humbrol primer.

tonight I've painted the light gull gray over the primer, and achieved slightly better results, although I'm still not completely satisfied.

 

Edited April 4, 2017 by Shelliecool
Spelling mistakes

[Shelliecool]

Progress remains slow with this one. The primer helped the paint adhere a little better, and I have managed to paint the seat and instrument panel pieces. I then began applying the photo etch pieces to the cockpit walls. I must admit to being slightly daunted by the minute size of these however, all went well (apart from losing one piece for a few minutes) and I managed to manoeuvre them into place using cocktail sticks.

 

 

[Shelliecool]

Made some progress today, I have fixed the control colum and photo etch pedals to the floor of the cockpit, and secured the seat to its mountings (all of which went smoothly).

I've also attached the exhaust and covers, this was extremely fiddly but I got there in the end. Finally I've attached the 2 pieces of fuselage together, securing them in place with a peg and tape till the glue dries. More soon.

 

[Shelliecool]

So things are moving along slowly, but I'm finally starting to appreciate the quality of this kit. So, I have fixed top and underside of the wing together, they fitted together nicely (although took a few extra pegs to hold it tight).  

 

 I have attached the photo etch harness to the seat and control panel, all a little fiddly and the super glue seemed to stick better to my fingers than the pe. 

Today I have fixed the seat and control panel into place, with little as a guide I made sure to test they are right and sat the fuselage on the wing (control stick clear and safe). I have also built the nose and props, using the A32 markings of Dolgushin. 

 

[Beard]

Nice work. I have one of these in the stash, which a friend gave me (he's a 1/48 builder and had bought it after a drink so hadn't noticed the scale), and it's interesting to see one being built.

[Shelliecool]

1 hour ago, Beard said:

Nice work. I have one of these in the stash, which a friend gave me (he's a 1/48 builder and had bought it after a drink so hadn't noticed the scale), and it's interesting to see one being built.

Its a nice kit, just discovering all the little differences to the Airfix and Revell kits I'm used too.

Michelle 

[dfqweofekwpeweiop4]

Try using Halford's Grey Primer (spray can), it should help the paint adhere to the plastic better. This is an earlier Eduard kit, newer kits like their Hellcat and Fw190 are much nicer. I find Mr Hobby/Gunze paints horrible to brush paint with but I believe they are good to airbrush with.

 

thanks
Mike

[Shelliecool]

Thanks Mike, so it's not just me having trouble painting with them?! The little test pot of primer did help, so I will pop in Halford today. I tried thinning the paint down loads but it didn't help much. They are nice kits tho, 

i also have this one in my stash so want to perfect my painting techniques with the paint.

Thanks Michelle. 

[Shelliecool]

Finally starting to take shape, I have attached the wings to the fuselage and glued the engine cover into place. I then fixed the prop together and attached the nose to the aircraft.

 

[Shelliecool]

OK, so I'm really starting to enjoy and appreciate this little kit now. I have filled a couple of gaps between the nose and undercarriage today, and painted a white undercoat for the red, as well as painting the props.

 

I have also fashioned an area in the back of the cockpit for radio equipment, and painted afew buttons on it. All in all not a bad few hours of work.

 

Edited April 14, 2017 by Shelliecool

[Shelliecool]

Back after an Easter break, and my first attempt using Humbrol rattle can primer (went better than I expected, more through luck than judgement). While allowing the primer to dry I attached the Pe mirror into the canopy, this was a bit of a nightmare at the tiny thing kept pinging off here, there and everywhere! 

 

I have applied the masking supplied to the canopy, I was a little daunted by this as it's so small, but it saved so much time compared to the usual drama of masking canopies yourself and went on really well.

once the primer was dry I began tackling the metal exhaust shield by giving the metallic paint a black undercoat, with the aim of achieving greater depth of colour. I have also given the nose a white Base coat, ready for the red detailing.

 

[Shelliecool]

So been afew days since my last post, I have been busy however! Firstly I have applied a coat of black to the heat Shields, followed by a coat of Mr.Metal Color 213, to add a weathered/ deeper effect to the metal. I decided to do some preshading to the panel lines using oil pastels, and then began the arduous task of painting the underside of the aircraft using Mr.Hobby H323. I have to admit Mr.Hobby and I are having several arguments as the paint is a nightmare to brush😤, even with a good undercoat. I have applied several well watered down coats, and am beginning to think I am unwittingly creating a weathered effect by accident! 

 

 

[Shelliecool]

I have sealed in the blue underside of the aircraft using Quick Shine, not totally happy with the paint effect but with some careful weathering I think it will look ok.

Next I have applied a thinned down coat of Mr.color H23 to the nose of the aircraft,  even with a thin undercoat of white my painting nightmare continues😤😤. It seems Mr.color acrylics are horrible to brush paint. That said, the aircraft is really starting to come to life. 

I have also begun painting the undercarriage (the paint is much better when brushed on small areas). I have assembled the wheels and tyres, this part of the kit is a little gem, separate wheels and tyres means a nice clean, and much more realistic finish!

 

[Shelliecool]

Getting rather annoyed with Mr.color, I decided to paint a coat of Revell red over the top to even out the coverage, I have attempted to match the reds the best I can and am feeling happier and less annoyed with the whole project 

once the red was dry I sealed it in with a coat of Quick Shine, and got on adding a thin layer of Tamiya Bronze and another thin layer of Mr.Metal 213 to the heat shield. I'm hoping the effect makes it look slightly dirty and heat exposed, I have also sealed that in place with some Quick Shine.

while this was drying I decided to get on with assembling the undercarriage, and here my new nightmares began! I attached the dampers to the undercarriage doors, glued the pe torque links in place and set about gluing the very fine pe cables onto these. Now, gluing these onto anything other than my fingers or the tweezers was easier said than done, and after many expletives were shouted and lots of hair pulled out I finally got them to stick (more luck than judgement). I have painted these tonight and attached the wheels.

finally tonight I have added a light coat of white to the tail and rudder. 

[Shelliecool]

Minor progress today, I have given the tail a final coat of white, and once dry sealed it in with a coat of Quick Shine. 

while the varnish was drying I began a spot of preshading, on the wings and fuselage using oil pastels. I have also filed down the middle section of canopy. The plastic is so thick it was unable to sit over the rear section in the open section, I will temporarily fix it in place tomorrow ready to paint the main body and canopy in grey. Once painted I aim to remove the middle piece of canopy and coat it in quick Shine to tidy up any scratches. 

 

[Shelliecool]

After fixing the centre canopy temporarily in place, I began painting the grey fuselage. As Ive not had the best experience with Mr.Hobby acrylics, I opted for a light Base coat of Humbrol 64 before a further thinned coat of Mr.Hobby H317. This worked much better,  and I ended up with nice even coverage.

I am leaving it to dry ready for a coat of Quick Shine tomorrow to seal it in place.

 

[Shelliecool]

After giving the body of the aircraft a coat of Quick Shine, I decided to paint the silver/chrome rings around the nose of the plane. The kit includes decals for this, but I felt masking and painting the rings may look more authentic, so I have given them thin coats of Humbrol 191. While waiting for them to dry I have also started adding the decals to the aircraft. Being my first Eduard kit I was unprepared for how thin the decals are, and found applying them very fiddly. Whereas Airfix and Revell kits allow you to move the decals into place, Eduard seem to stick instantly. However, I am happy with the job so far, and love this little kit. 

 

 

[Shelliecool]

Took me a while, partly because the decals are very thin, but I finally got all the decals on and sealed them in with a coat of Quick Shine. I think she looks pretty awesome with the decals in place. 

 

I have also been working on a spot of weathering. I gave the underside a coat of Revell black and mud mix weathering powder, allowed it to dry slightly before rubbing it off in the direction of airflow. I did the same with the top of the aircraft, this time with a white/grey mix to give the effect of sun bleaching. 

i then gave the panel lines a quick pin wash, and added some light Chipping. 

Finally I added some smoke from the gun ports using weathering powders, and a little smoke from the exhausts.

 

[rob Lyttle]

It's a great looking plane and a real nice result.

I first got interested in the La7 when I saw a write up on a large, radio control, professionally built model. It looked so awesome in the flyby pictures, I was hooked!

I built a 1/48 kit in the"93" version you're doing, and liked it a lot.

Really like what you done so far!

[Brandy]

She's looking very nice indeed with the decals and weathering, just enough colour to make it interesting!

 

Ian 

[Cookenbacher]

That's looking great Shelliecool, excellent brush painting and weathering.

[Shelliecool]

I've started to add the finishing touches, starting with the undercarriage. I attached the tiny PE struts to the front undercarriage doors with Gorilla glue (sounds easy, but it stuck to my fingers easier than the plastic), and left this to dry while I attached the front gear and wheels. This again was terribly fiddly, and the joints merely butt up together! However, I applied my Gorilla glue lavishly and hoped for the best. I then attempted to glue the rear wheel in place, this is only held in with one tiny butt joint (surly this can't hold!), so again I used a little extra glue just to be sure.

Later, I attempted to attach the rear undercarriage doors. Quite a simple task really, until I dropped one that I had applied glue to! 15 minutes later I found it stuck to a wheel 😂. Disaster averted I carefully attached it to where it belonged! 

 

 

[Beard]

That looks very nice indeed. 

[Cookenbacher]

Agree, that's looking great.

 

It always feels like the build is just about finished and then the landing gear takes as much time as all the rest together.