Fifer54 Posted November 12, 2020 Share Posted November 12, 2020 I fancy having a go at this with an Italian beauty! I will be building the SMER 1/48 Macchi MC200 Saetta. There are two finishing options provided on the decal sheet. One is a machine in a green and sand "mottle" with grey undersides, the other in green uppersurface with grey underneath, captioned as "Greece 1942". I shall be following many (if not all) of the entries for this GB. Looking forward to Saturday when it'll be "Tally Ho, chaps/Horrido/Banzai/insert appropriate fighter jock slang here"! 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted November 12, 2020 Share Posted November 12, 2020 The variety of worthy entries to our GB just gets better and this one is no exception! What a lovely choice of subject. Only one page to the instructions so you'll have it done in time for tea and a flight round the living room on Saturday night 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifer54 Posted November 15, 2020 Author Share Posted November 15, 2020 On 11/12/2020 at 3:09 PM, Col. said: The variety of worthy entries to our GB just gets better and this one is no exception! What a lovely choice of subject. Only one page to the instructions so you'll have it done in time for tea and a flight round the living room on Saturday night Thank you, Col., for your kind comments. You are a little optimistic about the construction timescale. It was Saturday night before I got an opportunity to work on the beast! All I've done so far is a bit of interior and detail painting. Apparently Regia Aeronautica aicraft interiors were painted in Verde Anticorrozionale, and a suggested mix to create this was 1 part Humbrol 78 Cockpit Green plus 1 part Humbrol34 matt White, so that's what I did, and sure enough I got a pale version of Interior Grey-Green! I knew this was an old moulding, and I was prepared for primitive detail, a sparse interior and a bit of flash. Here is what I found: Those two little "loops" on the sprue branch opposite the venturi and what I believe to be the exhausts are actually supposed to be the scissor links for the undercarriage oleos! The shapeless blob opposite the flash-enclosed and ejector-pin-blighted tailwheel, I think is intended to be the engine air intake, which goes below the cowling between the exhaust pipes. So there's quite a bit of flash. I have healed the pilot's abdominal wound with a bit of filler(!) and assisted him to use the scalpel and sandingstick diet to lose weight and bulk and gain a bit of definition! I don't usually put staff in the office but with an open 'pit and such a sparse interior, I thought I'd better! While reseaching Italian WW2 flying clothing, I found a superb picture (on Pinterest, but I didn't save the link, and as I don't know whose copyright it is, I won't post it!) showing an Italian military pilot doing up his parachute harness, with an erk assisting him, in front of a MC202. It's given me lots of info regarding the pilot's flight suit, helmet, etc, but for me the most interesting thing about the pic is that the pilot is wearing sandals! And apparently without socks! 3 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted November 15, 2020 Share Posted November 15, 2020 (edited) That pilot figure looks like an extra from one of the Alien films. You're off to a good start there so I'll bid you the best of good luck finding all the parts within that flash and look forward to seeing your continued progress Edited November 15, 2020 by Col. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifer54 Posted November 17, 2020 Author Share Posted November 17, 2020 Thanks, Col.! My pilot has now recovered from his injuries and surgery, and has tried out the seat for size: There is no joystick in the kit, so I cut the warhead end off a FROG 1/72 60lb. RP to create a control column! The intrepid pilot then donned his flight suit, and sat in the office once again!: I attempted to fit the engine into the cowling, and found that there was no positive location to mount it to, so I made up a little frame and glued it to the back of the engine. This has given the engine a (relatively) solid mount, and set the front of the engine in (roughly) the right place as far as how far forward it sits in the cowl is concerned. it's not perfect but it'll do! This morning I've closed up the fuselage. A "filling & sanding" session will follow after the glue sets . . . (Ignore that IP in the foreground. It's from the Revell/MPM Hudson I'm working on ATM- I need to figure out a way to add it with THAT kit's fuselage closed up!) I think she's taking shape nicely. The components that were hiding in the flash have "scrubbed up" quite well, and while she'll never have Tamigawa detail standards, she's coming together . . . 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterB Posted November 17, 2020 Share Posted November 17, 2020 (edited) Hi Fifer, Interesting kit - the box art seems to be for a plane from 362a Squadriglia when part of 22o Gruppo Autonomo in Russia, which is not something you see very often., and according to my various books on the Mc 200 it would probably have had the same "poached egg" camo scheme I did on the 1.72 Revell kit I build earlier this year in the "Kit I built as a Kid" GB. I would post a link but I have yet to figure out how to do it! Cheers Pete Edited November 17, 2020 by PeterB 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hewy Posted November 17, 2020 Share Posted November 17, 2020 😁 nice thread , and a fine job so far for a fixer upper 👍 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted November 17, 2020 Share Posted November 17, 2020 Impressive progress and problem solving. Hopefully you find a way to encourage the Hudson's errant instrument panel into place as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifer54 Posted November 19, 2020 Author Share Posted November 19, 2020 On 11/17/2020 at 8:00 PM, Col. said: Impressive progress and problem solving. Hopefully you find a way to encourage the Hudson's errant instrument panel into place as well. Thanks, Col. I've made it fit by holding the kit fuselage upside-down, gluing (Tamiya cement, but not the Extra-thin) the IP's location and wriggling it into place with some angled tweezers! it wasn't difficult really, it's the rest of that kit that's giving me problems . . . Anyroadup, there's been progress with the Saetta as well! Most of the airframe is assembled now: And after allowing time for glue to set, and filling those wingroots, I threw some paint at her: that's the state of play at the moment, waiting for paint to dry. I'm trying to use up my enamel paints to make the switch to Acrylics, so drying takes some time . . . She's taking shape, just more paint, clear coat, decals, matt clear coat and final assembly to go! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifer54 Posted November 24, 2020 Author Share Posted November 24, 2020 I have kept on forgetting to take pictures of this build (as usual!), with the result that this model is now Finito Benito! and for once that's appropriate! More pictures in the gallery! And that has been my first entry to this GB. I think I can feel a Mustang (or 2) coming on. I will post more in the morning . . . 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted November 24, 2020 Share Posted November 24, 2020 Nice result Well done on producing such a nice model from a difficult kit and in such short time as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterB Posted November 24, 2020 Share Posted November 24, 2020 That has come out very well indeed. Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted November 26, 2020 Share Posted November 26, 2020 Well Dang that was Quick... Great work on your Macchi. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliffB Posted November 26, 2020 Share Posted November 26, 2020 Congratulations on a nice build (and on being on the first to intercept) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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