Jump to content

Airfix 1/72 Piper Cherokee Arrow (Finnish Air Force)


klr

Recommended Posts

Well, this seemed like a good idea at the time. How tricky could a simple little kit like this be? I should have known better. To quote Puck from "A Midsummer Night's Dream": Lord, what fools these mortals be 🙄

AVvXsEhzo0eg_EA636V1JDVF-7gjW0YkjEcAGQcs

 

AVvXsEg9iZE489MxlzidBEePzJdi4VjY2Ksp8ser

 

AVvXsEh_trS2m7XEyG9jnbxuSzM8L6G2Iin7Hd-i

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I knew there wouldn't be much to see through those typically thick 1970s Airfix transparencies, so no need to go to town on the interior:

AVvXsEiIJrqhOhrAt5TPoak6GQ-xvfpU4kn_D3qD

 

The lower port wing needed a lot of work:

AVvXsEgbNgoq_OhetvBn3vskTzJJd8CIq1irQt9y

 

From the top, things looked better:

AVvXsEgihaCgj4apT4PPzLXZbEqCfMxYz2b0jFB_

 

..., and eventually, from the undersides as well:

AVvXsEidYQUystRUvDQnOzlF6mYVvuN3-FfxyGl1

 

... and from head-on. Dry-fitting confirmed that the propeller unit should only be attached to the shaft after the fuselage had been assembled.

AVvXsEixuJYH9Cvizfhl514qBYU0hYcR7wSVNL0K

 

The windscreen was a poor fit, although quite how poor was not apparent at first.

AVvXsEgz4qoS0_mmwbHjJ7JLYTHltnjZ2RRO9kf7

 

Ready for painting, which I thought would be easy.

AVvXsEip3Zl4d2FCkmA2pJhoZ6QRr5hMjJ--YViL

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I had only intended painting the wheel wells and undercarriage doors as the first step, but since they were gloss white like most of the airframe, I just kept on going, and going.

AVvXsEi1c2LQN9dGM5jSJz1n35znEv_RMXYXoADu

 

AVvXsEj3epHdydj4_QJuIUT8vw9_0Sw4oEPs44Ke

 

Of course, it took about four coats of very slow-drying white paint:

AVvXsEiqOtcEagX7DiPXfvQH5dXaXscHso2X4HX9

 

AVvXsEgV9UOSnwKBWItmaLnfyEjCFT_Zzy1rKbXj

 

Now to the decals, which looked to be good, based on my previous experience with these 1990s Airfix decals. Oh no ... the stripe decals on the wings and fuselage were a nightmare, and even the roundels were temperamental. I also realised too late that there wasn't enough nose ballast, despite my best efforts:

AVvXsEhqLbLADekpI7Gqy6QKgQCM0ObOAOCpQ2oI

 

Last of all the undercarriage was painted and attached. The main wheel to undercarriage joins were very, very "loose". Also, the windscreen join still needed more work at all points.

AVvXsEgQnitzyCMaK7bmb5l58yJqsjjl1e9q6vRh

 

For the stripes, I had to cannibalise some spare walkway markings from an Italeri B-57 Canberra. Being printed by Zanccheti, these were of very good quality, but much wider than the original stripes, and I am still overpainting them down the the "correct" width. And that windscreen still doesn't look right ...

AVvXsEiEfa-wgscnkGBWOvQwsXCSWHqw2x6roH7U

 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...