Jon Kunac-Tabinor Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 A belated Happy Easter all! This was finished the other day. AMG's Kingcobra finished with Begemot's decals to represent an French Cobra of GC 1/5 "Vendee" based in Indochina around 1949. AMG's kit is very nice but needs some care in construction to ensure assembly is neat. The clear parts fit well with a little sanding around the door rims ( always an issue for the car door Cobra family) but their clarity is a little bottle glass! The model NEEDS nose weight - I had to add more into the nose gear bay and the underbelly tank as the lead in the nose wasn't enough. This is especially true if you extend the nose oleo to give a typical sit for the P-63. If I was to build another I'd use one of those "liquid gravity" type systems to fill every crevice in the nose and probably the wing leading edges too!! Most French Kingcobras show the nose wheel hub uncovered - so this was scratch built from plasticard and added to the separate plastic kit tyres. Gun barrels were replaced with Albion Alloys' tubing, and extra plumbing added to the wing tanks. Finish is decanted Tamiya silver acrylics, with panels picked out in tinted Tamiya silvers and Vallejo metal colours, the whole patchwork was then heavily post shaded and then blended using a mix of the base colour and Tamiya gloss. The Begemot decals were thin and unresponsive to my usual Mr Mark Setter but eventually settled using good old Micro Sol. They stick like limpets but if you use a little spit ( yep spit - an old Propagteam decal trick I remembered) as well as setting solution, then they slide around like an Ice lolly on a Morris Marina roof in August 1976 Final weathering with MIG Starship Filth oil brusher, and some airbrushed exhaust over the Galleria matt varnish. You'll note that the scale "Mecos" cleaned the engine access panel on one side while servicing the engine, rather than the the exhaust staining going "a la forme du poire" The P-63 was by all accounts a decent fighter that suffered from being 'last amongst equals'. It looks like it means business though, and French roundels always enhance any subject in my opinion. Hope you like her! All comments welcome as ever. On les aura! Jonners 37 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wez Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 (edited) Well I like that a lot! Well done Jonners 44 minutes ago, Jon Kunac-Tabinor said: then they slide around like an Ice lolly on a Morris Marina roof in August 1976 There's a mental picture to conjure with! The ice lolly was probably worth more than the car - certainly more useful. Edited April 24, 2019 by Wez speelung 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buzby061 Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 Great work, unusual to see one in French roundels & all the more welcome for that. A reminder of what my High Tech kit might have turned out like had I not binned it! Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Antti_K Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 Like Wez I like it a lot! Beautiful work. You "earn" extra points for that French paint scheme🙂 Kind Regards, Antti Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 Very nice indeed 👍 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob85 Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 She’s very pretty, great model and scheme! Rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spitfire31 Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 Beautiful model! The NMF looks just right for a workhorse – very convincing. Kind regards, Joachim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMCS Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 Lovley Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitchen Modeller Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 Looks great in this scheme - very nicely done - love the worn NMF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 WOW ... Very well done KingCobra ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72modeler Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 Jonners, That is without a doubt the best Kingcobra build I have seen in any scale! I loved the choice of markings, too- no disrespect, but I'm tired of seeing Soviet and plain Jane USAAF choices. Your bare metal and exhaust streaking are dead-on and VERY realistic. I can only hope to do my 1/72 kit half as good- I might even change my scheme from an overall orange RP-63 Pinball to a French machine. Well done! (A very capable aircraft, but by the time the engine/supercharger issues were tackled, it was not enough of an improvement to justify production when the P-38, P-47, and P-51 were doing the job. One can only wonder how things would have been different in the Pacific if the P-63 had been available instead of the low-altitude only P-39.) Ex-astronaut Frank Bormann owns and flies a beautifully restored P-63A and he has commented on what a great flying machine it is. Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baldy Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 Very nice! I like the oxidised metal effect you have achieved. Cheers Malcolm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephen8718 Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 wow that is a stunner. beautifully done and excellent weathering Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
noelh Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 I had no idea that the P63 had continued in service after the war let alone in French service. It's a very pleasing model. I always think the addition of French roundels add a certain 'Je ne sais quoi' to any aircraft. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F-32 Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 Lovely build, looks great in that scheme Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyot Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 Jonners that is an absolute beaut mate,........ in fact I`d go as far as saying that it is awesome,....... mega respect bud. I wanted to do an aircraft from the same unit using the old Special Hobby kit in the P-39/P-63 GB,...... but I gave it up as a bad job! Fabulous to see a French P-63 so well replicated mate, Cheers Tony Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
russ c Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 Really nice Kingcobra there, beautiful job Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BerndM Posted April 26, 2019 Share Posted April 26, 2019 Smashing Kingcobra, well done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Kunac-Tabinor Posted April 26, 2019 Author Share Posted April 26, 2019 Thanks all - glad you like her. It was an enjoyably satisfying build - and I've long wanted a French Kingcobra in the collection. Cheers! Jonners Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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