discussion 1:48 Smer Macchi Castoldi M.C. 72

[colin m]

Well, I saw this in a shop and thought, it looks alright.
I wasn’t expecting much from an old kit, but lucky me, I got a lot of free plastic.



Having had a bit ok a play with it, it seems locating pins are a suggestion, rather than an aid to location.
As you can see, a fully comprehensive decal sheet is included. And yes, that’s it for the instructions.

Whilst there isn’t many parts, clean up time is going to take a while.


However, there’s always room for a bit of improvement. There’s 24 exhaust ports to open up and tidy up.


There’s no cockpit at all, so this old RAF gunner will henceforth be known as Marco.
Marco, might be in for a colour change.
Right, it’s time for a bit more filing and scraping.

 

[Steve-the-Duck]

Noice
Bit of a rarity that, and, as with most Smer stuff, you've got a bit of work there. Nice detail on it too
But is it really 1/48 or, like their CR.42, 1/50?

Wish I still had my photos of the real beast at Vigna de Valle. Just have to make do with my Bancaero seaplane racers book

 

[minitnkr]

The Italians sure made pretty airplanes. Are you going to do the rigging?

 

[Jim R]

A nice challenge you've got there Colin
I'm sure you will end up with a worthwhile model.

 

[Steve-the-Duck]

The Italians sure made pretty airplanes. Are you going to do the rigging?

Yeah, the rigging on this beast is more like really thin spars than wires - probably due to the extra stresses involved. Thin rod rather than stretched sprue would be my go to, but that's just me. Also, most of the photos show the pilots wearing white coveralls with no life jackets or 'chutes. Every bit of weight saved, right?

There's that big 1/32 resin slab of this, which looks SOO pretty... I can resist! Racers are not 'service' 'planes

Bu-ut... Pre-tee

 

[minitnkr]

.....life jackets & chutes are not pretty & would disturb the lines of his coveralls......

 

[Steve-the-Duck]

.....life jackets & chutes are not pretty & would disturb the lines of his coveralls......

What he said

 

[flyjoe180]

An interesting build to watch Colin.

 

[HAWKERHUNTER]

An interesting build Colin. Certainly some clean up to do on the parts.

 

[colin m]

But is it really 1/48 or, like their CR.42, 1/50?

The box says 1:48, I doubt it would make that much difference.

Are you going to do the rigging?

Oh yes, I don't mind a bit of rigging.

Thin rod rather than stretched sprue would be my go to, but that's just me

I'll probably just use fishing thread, but if you know where I can get some flat rod, I'll have a look at using that.


I'm off to find the sun, so it will be a good few days before I resume this build.

 

[Steve-the-Duck]

Flat rod? Hmm, Slaters Plastikard (yes, with a 'k') do a range of rod and strip that might be of use?

 

[yak face]

Excellent project colin , ive often considered having a bash at this kit. Fabulous looking aircraft , although the paint job will probably be more challenging than the rigging ! As for the rigging I’d be tempted to try acupuncture needles . I know theyre not flat but youre going to struggle to find anything flat thats rigid enough . Ive used them before and once cut to size ( a pair of dividers helps to get the measurement) they look great. The biggest ones are about 100 mm , should be big enough .

 

[Geoffers]

Nice one Colin, looking forward to watching you put this together

The racing planes of this era really were beautiful aircraft.

Geoff.

 

[colin m]

Bad news, well for Marco the pilot. He’s sacked. His heart wasn’t in the right place.
So, at last, vindication for drinking all that wine, and saving the foil tops, I’ve made a seat.


And a vague attempt at an IP which you really can’t see in the fuselage.
The pit has also had a bit of work just to liven it up a bit.

Which finally meant the fuselage halves could be slapped together.

As you can see, the seams are ‘present’

In many places, the fuselage actually lined up, well vaguely.

 

[flyjoe180]

Bad news, well for Marco the pilot. He’s sacked. His heart wasn’t in the right place.
So, at last, vindication for drinking all that wine, and saving the foil tops, I’ve made a seat.
View attachment 1280048

And a vague attempt at an IP which you really can’t see in the fuselage.
The pit has also had a bit of work just to liven it up a bit.
View attachment 1280049
Which finally meant the fuselage halves could be slapped together.
View attachment 1280050
As you can see, the seams are ‘present’
View attachment 1280051
In many places, the fuselage actually lined up, well vaguely.

Belts look nice Colin. Good luck with the fuselage.

 

[Steven000]

Seat looks great Colin, good idea opening up those exhausts, will make the fuselage much more interesting, have fun!