FIAT cr42 n nightfighter in 1/40 scale

[yak face]

Got the carburettor intake shaped and fitted and added a couple of extra bits ( vent pipe , circular thingy ). Ive also fitted the struts that connect the undercarriage legs to the intake , these were made from shaped plastic rod as the kit ones were a bit chunky and too round. I’ll be giving this a coat of primer to blend it in then im hoping to start on the interplane struts. Im undecided over whether to attach the top wing before painting or after , theres virtually no rigging on this aircraft so thats not an issue , its just whether im going to struggle to get the paint between the wings.

[Guest]

I've no experience in such things but your first instinct above was to paint the top wing separately. I usually find that going with my gut pays off.

Drooling over the added details by the way, can't wait to see the finished article.

[Jim R]

Hi Tony
Skill and patience to turn this into a great model. Amazed at what you have achieved.
Jim

[yak face]

A few more little bits added today. Ive given the exhausts a plastic card collar near the end and drilled this for the stays which i made from bent brass rod. I also used this for the aerial attachment point on the fuselage top , the other end on the fin will just be glued into a hole ive drilled. Brass tube was again used for the twin pitot which was fitted into a hole drilled into the port front outer strutI. 've been test fitting and adjusting the top wing with lots of fettling to get a correct position . Once im happy with this the main airframe can begin painting. First thing up is the white band round the fuselage and while im at it i might spray the rudder white too and mask off the cross on the tail instead of using the kit decal. The top wing will be painted seperately and then ive got the tricky job of making masks for the fasces roundels, four of them!

[stillp]

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Looks as if it's being piloted by a giant spider!
Very impressive Tony.
Pete

[scottie3158]

Tony,
Coming on very nicely.

[yak face]

Got the white bits sprayed the other day so this morning they were cured enough to mask up .The main airframe and top wing have now been coated in UMP. Matt black primer , the final coat will probably be a patchy nato black , I’m still undecided whether to spray the metal parts of the airframe silver and give it a bit of hairspray so I can chip it a bit. While I was waiting for the paint to dry I had a go at making the masks for the underwing fasces roundels. I put some extra wide tape onto a piece of clear plastic and then fixed this over the decal sheet . By carefully cutting the shape I finished up with a mask that I can use to spray the white fasces onto the wing underside. I thought I had four to do but all reference ( and there isn’t a lot!) seems to show the top wing without any , just the underside of the bottom wings , so it’s only the two.

[AlanG]

Looking good Tony. Those cut out masks look good

[yak face]

After giving the whole airframe a coat of black primer I’ve decided to give the metal areas a coat of silver so masked up the fabric covered bits (wings ,tail planes , rudder and a section on the fuselage) and blasted on some Vallejo metal colour semi Matt aluminium. Once this was dry I gave it a misting with hairspray (elnette if you must know:smiling5
This will enable me to do some gentle chipping after the final black colour coat has gone on without any danger of straying onto the fabric areas. The final coat will be a combination of model air nato black and a few very dark greys misted on , just plain black would look a bit too unrealistic.

[AlanG]

Looks great Tony. I remember Stona (Steve) saying many moons ago that he added a drop of red to his black to make it more 'in scale'.

How do you rate the Vallejo Metal Colour paints? I am going to be using them on my NMF P-38 GB aircraft

[yak face]

Looks great Tony. I remember Stona (Steve) saying many moons ago that he added a drop of red to his black to make it more 'in scale'.

How do you rate the Vallejo Metal Colour paints? I am going to be using them on my NMF P-38 GB aircraft

I find them excellent al , no nasty alclad smell and I find they cover a lot easier too , never could get on with Alclad. They are very hard wearing once cured and don’t lose too much sheen when coated with the metal colour clear varnish , cheers tony

[scottie3158]

Tony,
Great work on the paint.

[yak face]

Got a couple of coats of Vallejo model air nato black on but the paint wasn’t very co operative. Kept clogging the airbrush and I still think it needs a bit more , I can see the silver through it in places.

[yak face]

After leaving the paint for a day or so to fully dry I’ve done the chipping and weathering. The hairspray technique worked beautifully , after wetting areas the paint could be scrubbed off with a stiff brush and very fine sanding sticks . The tricky bit is knowing when to stop , its all too easy to get carried away and end up doing too much. I’ve also taken off the masking for the fuselage band and rudder cross and was pleased to see no touching up needs to be done. Next job is the painted on markings and the few decals that I can use from the kit.

[scottie3158]

Tony,
The chipping looks nice and subtle.