Vanja #66 Posted August 1, 2014 Share Posted August 1, 2014 Hello everyone, this is a bit of local-patriotism build, though subjects seem to be interesting all over the net. This will be a dual build, though concerning these two kits consist of a single sprue each, it's hardly going to be a long build (this mostly being the reason I've put Me-410 on hold, since I'm having a bit of I-don't-have-a-new-model-for-more-than-a-couple-of-months-now crisis). OOB mostly, there's not a lot of info on them out there and they were very simple anyway. And small... Don't want to bother anyone with too much history, here are some nice articles concerning one of these and another Czech kit with a few lines on their history and service in Royal Yugoslav Air Force - IK-2 and IK-3. BM kit reviews - IK-2 and IK-3. Some photos of old... Schemes... This was the second prototype, add a number 3 on the side and that's what I'm going for (No. 2111)... This is scheme of Sgt. Dušan Vujčić's IK-3 (No. 2162, last to be produced), scored 3 victories during fight for Belgrade in April 1941. So, here we go... IK-3 was a bit of concerning interior detail... ... so it was gone and replaced. Got it's wings together... This is how the wells look like. No, they're not left bare because someone at Azur was too lazy, this is how they actually looked like. Not much to do in IK-2 cockpit (not much info, maybe better to say). Both wings compared... IK-2 was colourless inside - so aluminium it is... So far, all I've changed on it was a bit of work (wire) on the joystick. Here's some paint on IK-3 legs, IP and joystick (also recieved a bit of wire)... Mix of Humbrol RLM76 and just a droplet of 101 green took care of Rogožarski Siva (gray), IK-3 interior, undercarriage and bottom colour. Colours at the time were mixed by workers in the factories, so there were differences even on camo, let alone cockpit... Instructions suggest using Mr Color RLM65 (C115), but that's way too dark... Thinned it too much, forgot to run the brush over a rug to get excess thinner off. Doesn't matter, second coat was a sure thing in the morning anyway. Got a bit of colour on PE and IP film... That's it for now, thanks for watching... 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomjw Posted August 2, 2014 Share Posted August 2, 2014 Nice one. A bit different so I will follow with interest. Tom. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitch K Posted August 2, 2014 Share Posted August 2, 2014 Thanks for posting this - I'm very keen to build both of these kits, so I'll be following what you find out with great interest. Also, if you have locally-derived information that we don't have access to over here, I know that I (and I suspect others) will be really keen for you to share it. Both kits look like they'll build up nicely - looking forward to seeing more! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stew Dapple Posted August 2, 2014 Share Posted August 2, 2014 Nice start Vanya, I've always had a soft spot for the IK-3 in particular as it looks like the result of a night of passion between a Hurricane and an MS-406 Looking forward to seeing your progress and, as Mitch says, any insights you might have into the kits and their construction Cheers, Stew 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanja #66 Posted August 2, 2014 Author Share Posted August 2, 2014 Glad you like it, folks... Thanks for posting this - I'm very keen to build both of these kits, so I'll be following what you find out with great interest. Also, if you have locally-derived information that we don't have access to over here, I know that I (and I suspect others) will be really keen for you to share it. Both kits look like they'll build up nicely - looking forward to seeing more! At first, I planned on going to Aeronautical Museum here, to try and get some documents concerning these two. Turns out I don't really have to, since not a few modellers did that before me and I've found some nice threads on local forums. One in particular stand out and I'll use it for reference. Turns out I'll have a bit more work to do in cockpit of IK-3, chop and probably replace vertical rudder, change a few things on it's legs and a few more details should do it. As for IK-2, not so lucky, I'm not finding anything new or useful. After Germany invaded Yugoslavia, most of our airplanes were either sabotaged (all of surviving IK-3s were scrapped - 6 weren't operational and 2 that survived the fights) by Germans or our people destroyed them, to prevent them being used against us. A few IK-2s were given to Croatian Air Force (of course, being same country before war, a couple of them were stationed in Croatian bases as well), they went for team Germany, so, you know - go team... That makes me believe all of their documentation was given to Croats as well, which would explain lack of it here. After the war, Ikarus went for jet-engined aircraft development. Makes you wonder have they even bothered going trough any old documents... Nice start Vanya, I've always had a soft spot for the IK-3 in particular as it looks like the result of a night of passion between a Hurricane and an MS-406 Looking forward to seeing your progress and, as Mitch says, any insights you might have into the kits and their construction Cheers, Stew It shouldn't be any surprise that IK-3 looks so similar to them. RYAF had Hurricanes and Bf-109s a bit later, engineers were using mostly German and French standards and even after the war we had a good amount of cooperation with French engineers. IK-3 was reported to be an all-out improvement on Hurricane and had better maneuverability than 109. It also had 200 HP less than 109, DB-600 series doing the business... Still, it was IK-3:11 Luftwaffe:4, so not a bad result... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanja #66 Posted August 2, 2014 Author Share Posted August 2, 2014 (edited) A bit of work today... IK-2 was only up for a bit of weathering... Dry brushing PE panel... Joystick painted and detailed. Everything must go! Inside... And then, first signs of trouble - that top middle instrument looks very strange. Not to mention entire IP looking waaay too far... Right, so... that wasn't gonna work. Let's see exactly what's wrong... Ah, there we go, IP IS too far away. To my great joy, that meant removing both the panel and it's... panel, support panel (that thing gray-coloured keeping it attached to fuselage). IP itself is now glued to the canopy, where it should be, without the top middle instrument. Seems that instrument is necessary, but I couldn't get it in there so... This pic also suggests the floor was different, my rudder pedals were acceptable and that there are a few small panels inside after all... Also, and I had a feeling this would bite me, seat was in fact - a bucket seat, nothing near the kit part. Keeping it true to Murphy's law, I've stumbled upon this picture 5 minutes after closing up the fuselage... I should probably mention that I'm doing work on both birds almost simultaneously - each thing inside both cockpits was done one after the other. This morning I've found that IK-3 thread mentioned above, so I've worked based on it. Given that IK-2 was it's predecessor and transitional model, I should have guessed their floors and seats should be near identical (much like I've wrongly guessed that IK-2 also had a circular head rest, that's gone too)... Oh, well, I'll fix what I can and live with the rest of it. It's a small canopy anyway. As for the other, cockpit is a bit busier now... Wells looking dirty (a strange colour appeared on the photo, it's dark brown in person)... Instruments getting in there as well... Joystick will follow them shortly... I'll need to scratch build the seat and belts and we should be good for a closing statement after that.. What I can say about these kits is that the fit is good (IK-2) and very good (IK-3). Fuselages could really do with gluing pin-marks, I guess it's mostly like this with short run kits. IK-3 has a bigger flaw concerning vertical rudder, though. Other than that, all other flaws can be classified as - it's a plastic kit, sometimes you're simply limited when making it. Thanks for watching, cheers... Edited August 16, 2014 by Vanja #66 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanja #66 Posted August 3, 2014 Author Share Posted August 3, 2014 Moving on... After adding two remaining pieces of frame (left to add after removing that hideous wall) and adding a bit of aluminium in there, I've went on to try to hollow out exhaust pipes. Should be worth that extra effort once I get to painting. Smoothing out fuselage seams and a bit of filler... Tail wings and rudder added. Even though wing were meant to be glued without any pins to aid proper positioning, it's a snug fit and therefore very precise... Filler around the radiator all sorted out... And sure enough - wings... Hm, needs a bit of filler (my mistake, or should I say - "interventions")... All the struts added. Drilled a couple of holes in those intakes in front of 'em... Canopy dry fitted - it seems my intervention was needed, it clicked in its place nicely... IK-3 only got some small things sorted. Radiator outlet needed a frame... Same exhaust modification as for IK-2... ... and gun nozzles opened after that. Thanks for watching, cheers... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitch K Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 REALLY useful. I'm spotting lots of things to look out for, so hopefully I can avoid the same things! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanja #66 Posted August 4, 2014 Author Share Posted August 4, 2014 (edited) Glad to see this is useful to you... Not a whole lot of work done today, all of it on IK-2. She's ready for a bit paint tomorrow... Finishing details like tail wing struts and cabels all around were added, with more or less success... Preparations for struts and cables at the back - drilling. Holes everywhere, so I could use them to position PE parts and wires correctly. Azur got it's reference points in instructions correct, less so on the length of rear struts, but it's not a big thing to cut them a couple of mm short. Wires trough the holes and begin tensioning. Couldn't apply as much tension as I wanted (after all, there's only so much you can do with plastic before breaking it), so they're a bit crooked, but I'll go with it (first two attempts were even worse). This is the length I left underneath... Not much of cable-alignment, but at least their position is correct. Win struts also got a few... Aileron balance is critical... ... as is proper sight. Here's where we are now... Only propellers need a bit more attention here... Thanks for watching, cheers... Edited August 4, 2014 by Vanja #66 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanja #66 Posted August 7, 2014 Author Share Posted August 7, 2014 Got slowed up a bit the last few days, but made it up this evening. I've had to slowly paint IK-2 (Humbrol 56 aluminium and a mix of Matt 28 and Alu 56 in 2:1, brush painted, free hand), not to end up with silver parts with plastic still seeing trough... Here's what it looked like... Contrast between these two looks way too much, right? But here's how it looks without flash... It depends a lot on the angle, obviously. Something to compare it with... Had a thought of going over aluminium with acrylic lacquer, satin finish, though very glossy for satin. Some leftovers used for testing (different applications - brush strokes - as well, the middle one turned out all right)... Got carried away afterwards and... got it done. Basically... I was pleasantly surprised with decals, they are great, used Revell Decal Soft, no silvering what so ever... No varnish before or after decals were applied, so that's something. If nothing else, they're maybe a bit too thin for me, so I got into a tricky situation or two, but that's mostly because I was rushing into it. It can probably be seen on pictures that I tried painting the flag on the rudder, but that was getting nowhere fast - white being tricky to paint as ever. Those decals are slightly longer than they should be and I was worried they'd be a pain to cut in the end. Small scissors did away with 'em swiftly, another pleasant surprise... Weathering is really mild, just to bring it to life a bit... Tyres got a bit of pastel dust on them as well, again - very subtle. The only thing I'm thinking about now is should I give it a couple of coats of acrylic varnish over the metal bits or not. It should probably be shinier than it is now, but I worry it would make it look unnatural with this "dirt" on it... Suggestions very welcome. Needless to say, there'll be plenty more pictures in the RFI thread... Thanks for watching... 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitch K Posted August 7, 2014 Share Posted August 7, 2014 Nice work. I'll have to get me one of these when the Hurri moves on a bit! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkoZG Posted August 7, 2014 Share Posted August 7, 2014 Hi, sorry to spoil the party somewhat, since you invested a lot of effort here, but Azur's IK-2 kit is highly inaccurate and looks more like some racer than real fighter plane. You can see the comparison of Azur parts with those from old but excellent Guano kit and with detailed photos of real plane here: http://www.maketarstvo.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=23481&highlight=ik2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stew Dapple Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 Hi Vanya, Lovely job and a nicely done model of an unusual aircraft, I look forward to seeing more pictures in the RFI thread Cheers, Stew 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomjw Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 Turned out very nicely.very impressed. Tom. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanja #66 Posted August 8, 2014 Author Share Posted August 8, 2014 Hi, sorry to spoil the party somewhat, since you invested a lot of effort here, but Azur's IK-2 kit is highly inaccurate and looks more like some racer than real fighter plane. You can see the comparison of Azur parts with those from old but excellent Guano kit and with detailed photos of real plane here: http://www.maketarstvo.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=23481&highlight=ik2 Actually, like I've written above, the whole point of this build was to get things done fast and easy, so no, not much effort was invested. Even with that in mind, I couldn't let some of those errors go untouched... To be honest, I think you can even see most of those very corrections, even with limited number of photos, since Azur made their instructions with drawings of the real thing, not their model (and not to mention what I managed to find online)... Don't have time to name them all right now, so if anyone would like me to, it would be no problem. As for "looks more like some racer than real fighter plane", that's a bit harsh isn't it? I'd rank myself a trained novice in modelling, still I was able to make some significant adjustments in there... If I was to make a model of IK-2 as accurate as possible, I'd give myself a month to build it, not 15 days (along with its younger brother)... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitch K Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 Hi, sorry to spoil the party somewhat, since you invested a lot of effort here, but Azur's IK-2 kit is highly inaccurate and looks more like some racer than real fighter plane. You can see the comparison of Azur parts with those from old but excellent Guano kit and with detailed photos of real plane here: http://www.maketarstvo.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=23481&highlight=ik2 Actually, like I've written above, the whole point of this build was to get things done fast and easy, so no, not much effort was invested. Even with that in mind, I couldn't let some of those errors go untouched... To be honest, I think you can even see most of those very corrections, even with limited number of photos, since Azur made their instructions with drawings of the real thing, not their model (and not to mention what I managed to find online)... Don't have time to name them all right now, so if anyone would like me to, it would be no problem. As for "looks more like some racer than real fighter plane", that's a bit harsh isn't it? I'd rank myself a trained novice in modelling, still I was able to make some significant adjustments in there... If I was to make a model of IK-2 as accurate as possible, I'd give myself a month to build it, not 15 days (along with its younger brother)... Two points here. 1: Quoted from a review of the Guano IK-2 on Internetmodeller.com "... There are some notable inaccuracies: • Wrong shape along the trailing edge of the wing • Fuselage too deep from top to bottom • Horizontal stabilizers too wide • Wheels too small • Panel lines on wing completely wrong..." This list would certainly not suggest to me that the kit is "excellent". 2 The Guano kit appears sporadically on fleabay and is (AIUI) out of production. Comparing the photos I have of the IK-2 (not a large collection, I admit) with pictures of the Azur kit, I would not call it "highly inaccurate" by any common measure. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanja #66 Posted August 8, 2014 Author Share Posted August 8, 2014 I've read Marko's post thoroughly and I feel that it would be much easier to correct Azur's (even the canopy, it doesn't seem lowered to me, but it does have squared windshield instead of rounded) kit than Guano's... Not to mention differences in obtaining one of them... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkoZG Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 Sorry, my comment about racer look wasn't adressed to you, but rather to Azur, due to streamlined windshield. Regarding the quoted review of Guano kit, I can only say that comparison with photos of the real plane tells different story. Since there is no surviving example, I would stick to the photos unless my eyes deceive me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitch K Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 Marko, Vanja - I intend to take careful note of both of your observations when I build mine. I'll be checking my references carefully, and when I post my WIP thread you'll both be able to pick holes in what I do! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanja #66 Posted August 10, 2014 Author Share Posted August 10, 2014 Sorry, my comment about racer look wasn't adressed to you, but rather to Azur, due to streamlined windshield. Regarding the quoted review of Guano kit, I can only say that comparison with photos of the real plane tells different story. Since there is no surviving example, I would stick to the photos unless my eyes deceive me. I got that you were referring to Azur's kit and I still think it's not that bad. Struts can be sanded down, tail wings can be brought that 1-2mm up, wings have correct shape from what I've seen other manufacturers make them look like (and photos also suggest that). Canopy can be corrected to some extent just by painting it inside windshield edges (making them rounded), but for full correction you'd need a full redo. Czech Master resin model seems the best to me, only wheels seem wrong. Anyway, back to IK-3... Belts and seat built from scratch... Seems a bit of an improvement over kit's seat. Soon after that... Radiator set as well... At which point I realised I haven't put joystick inside... Took care of seams after some time, for glue to set... Underneath the engine, the intake was sculpted a bit too rough, it follows side contour which wasn't really the case... Got some filler in there as well... Propeller isn't what you'd call correct, it went anti-clockwise and kit's parts make it go clockwise (like IK-2), so I've got that sorted before painting it. Also, leg were a bit too short and rough on details, so I improved them a bit... Thanks for looking, cheers... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stew Dapple Posted August 14, 2014 Share Posted August 14, 2014 Vanya, you've done a very tidy job on the nose gun apertures, but I cannot see how you did it - did you drill the main slots and tidy the blunt ends with a craft knife? Or perhaps carve the whole slot? Cheers, Stew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanja #66 Posted August 15, 2014 Author Share Posted August 15, 2014 Thanks, Stew, I've done it first by drilling out (0.6mm drill) just a bit where the nozzles are, then removed the rest of it with a simple razor. After that I tried cleaning it up as much as possible by pointing the drill to the nozzles. This way it could just shave off small bits of plastic ruining the rounded contour. So, your guess was very right, it was a combination of both... Painting time... Lower side painted and masked (it's the same shade used for interior). Canopy frame painted free hand. After this first coat of interior paint, ocher was applied over it and got cleaned up (pointy toothpick ends do this kind of job nicely, don't they)... Much like IK-2, Azur Frrom instructions provide you with more or less correct look of this aircraft. Model's canopy isn't correct, outer windshield struts should be at an angle. This being a quick build, I've decided to go with kit part and this inaccuracy is another reason why I skipped correcting the vertical rudder. Ocher on the upper side and masked fully... As for these three colours, I found out that generally if you used Revell 16 for ocher (darkened just a bit), Revell 84/Humbrol 98 for dark brown and Revell 361 for dark green you wouldn't be far off... More of it here (in Serbian) - http://www.maketarskikutak.com/index.php/topic,11666.0.html Spinner is another thing shaped wrongly and it's lacking surface details. Tried making another one with some old bombs/drop tanks, but it didn't work out and didn't want to risk damaging kit part beyond repair so I went with it. Cutting some slots and adding that center nozzle improved it a lot, though... Wheels almost set to go (further corrections required obviously), legs need just a bit more work... Thanks for watching, cheers... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanja #66 Posted August 15, 2014 Author Share Posted August 15, 2014 Here's the rest of the colours... It's worth pointing out that these are my personal mixes, I've tried making them as close as possible to what I saw, we'll see if I was any good at it... Unmasking tomorrow morning, as good a way to start your day as any... Thanks for watching, cheers... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stew Dapple Posted August 16, 2014 Share Posted August 16, 2014 Hi Vanya, Thanks for the information regarding the gun troughs, that is much clearer now She's looking good - can't wait to see her with the masking tape off Cheers, Stew 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitch K Posted August 16, 2014 Share Posted August 16, 2014 Here's the rest of the colours... It's worth pointing out that these are my personal mixes, I've tried making them as close as possible to what I saw, we'll see if I was any good at it... Unmasking tomorrow morning, as good a way to start your day as any... Thanks for watching, cheers... Vanja, there was a post in the Yugoslav Hurricane thread saying that the colours were quite variable anyway! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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