Fixer

@georgeusa I think that vertical stabilizers require additional care to position them at appropriate angle. I decided to attach them after painting the wings to make masking easier, but It might be actually wiser to glue everything together first. As for the PE parts, its mostly undercarriage details and covers, if you want them realistically thin, the set might be worth it. But you could try to scratch build these from a styrene sheet as well, since inner detail is barely visible both in front and main gear.

Kyushu J7W Shinden prototype interceptor. Hasegawa 1:72 kit with EDUARD PE set 72183.

MR Paint, Alclad II and AK Xtreme Metal

Messerschmitt P.1101 by Huma Modell in 1:72 I obtained this one second hand with some missing parts, namely the engine and the undercarriage. Huma's P.1101 is not their best release, fit is poor and details almost non-existent. Thus, I decided to make this as low-effort as possible, to serve as a testbed for some modeling techniques and metalizer paints.

That elongated head gives it Giger vibes.

ASF-X Shinden II from the Ace Combat series of video games. Hasegawa in 1:72 scale.

I never said that. As mentioned, my build uses both kits (bought them together cheaply second-hand as an incomplete package along with some resin and PE add-ons) and they are clearly very different. I have Academy's Komet but only with two seater fuselage so I am planning to do it in Russian captured scheme for a change. It will be standing on it's own, hence I could use the obviously better Academy's tractor for this presentation.

Heller's Messerschmitt Me 163 on the Scheuch-Schlepper from Academy kit in 1:72 scale. The plane has rescribed panel lines, both models include some scratch and also Part PE elements. Painted with Vallejo Air in alleged Erprobungskommando 16 scheme.

Nope, I don't like the "armless" design. Might do XV95, XV107 or KX139 someday, but for now I've switched to MG Gundams.

TBH I put all the guns that were available on this kit. Might be against the rulebook, but I don't play with these figures anyway.

T'au XV104 Riptide Battlesuit by Games Workshop in 28mm scale.

T'au XV88 Broadside Battlesuit by Games Workshop in 28 mm scale.

TR-5 Harpy in "Norma" paint scheme from the anime Crusher Joe. Hasegawa 1:72 kit. Painted with Mr. Color and coated generously with automotive 2K gloss.

Just don't make the same mistake I did with the loadout - blue stripes mean training munitions

I did some careful marbling over the main coat with light greys and browns and also airbrushed some heavily thinned dust colored oil enamel here and there to simulate sand, Also panel wash using both dark greys and sand colors. Nothing really elaborate and if I did this model again I would probably black base it instead and preshade/marble prior to laying main color. One other thing I didn't have at the time but would highly recommend now is using the Ushi "Trinity Splatter" stencils (or similar product) to simulate irregular paint wear on top of main color..

With Hasegawa's F-15s, you never know what you'll get in the box. The base is a rather old kit from the 80', but "E" variants (not all of them though) have a few new sprues that bring more modern quality. Anyway, this has been quite tiresome build that felt more like chore towards the end, especially trying to marry it with extensive PE set and the resin. I bought it around ten years ago, when there were no good alternatives. Today, I'd go for G.W.H. or at least Academy release. Having said that, I still bought another Hasegawa F-15DJ (basically the same kit as "E") set for its aggressor paint scheme

F-15E Strike Eagle from Hasegawa kit, enhanced with Eduard PE and resin seats and exhausts by Aires. Asymmetric loadout has been used during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Chengdu J-20 5th generation prototype fighter. Tried recreating the paint and weathering basing on scarce photos available on the net.

@Tarkas To be honest I buy models basing on their looks, rather than creating some kind of "theme" collections. If it looks "cool" to me, I buy it I still got "MiG-37" from the same era which I guess can supplement my F-19. I am thinking of a making it in old MiG-29 grey-green paint scheme.

For silvering decals, you might try carefully airbrushing them over with Tamiya Extra Thin glue. But only if they were applied over acrylic varnish, like Tamiya x-22 or Gunze H101. Never tried this on Printscale decals though, so it advisable to use some test model first. I also have this kit in my stash, but in my case I am planning to use paint masks from Montex with a fancy snake painting along the hull. But just thinking of applying the mask on this corrugated surface makes me put this kit away. Indefinitely. Other than that the kit looks very nice with a subtly worn look.

H @John R This marking comes with AModel 72341 kit. There is also 72337 presenting second(?) prototype. Decals are nice and thin but very delicate. As for the canopy, it was wider than the hull, so I glued it on, sanded down to align with the hull, then retraced the joint line. Only issue is that some of the residue got inside and fogged the windows, which I learned only after removing the masking tape from almost finished model ☹️

CMC Leopard by AModel with some scratch built detail for undercarriage and cockpit. The quality is typical for this producer, biggest issue being the oversized canopy. Finished model is around 10cm/4in both in length and width.

Grumman X-29 by Hasegawa, enhanced with RES-IM photoetched fret and some scratch built detail in the wheel bays. I first saw this aircraft in "F-29 Retaliator" game on 286 PC in the early nineties and was immediately captivated by its unique design. Imagine my disappointment when it turned out that the real thing was only an experimental plane and never carried any armaments

That and the F-29 Retaliator by Ocean Software, although it was 286 PC in my case I actually did a model of Grumman X-29 few years ago, maybe I'll post it here as well.

@SAT69 Fuel tanks needed some additional putty in the back section and wing flaps are a bit loose. Other than that I don't recall any particular issues.