discussion Revell 1/72 Junkers F.13

[Dave Ward]

My ASU-57 is rapidly reaching a conclusion, my thoughts turned to my next build. I've nearly started this a few times, but it has finally demanded my attention.
This is an original Revell moulding, dating from 1992 - it's been reissued several time with different decals.
Even though it has the least fancy decals, I'm going to go for the seaplane version.
The F.13 had the trademark Junkers corrugated skin, and it was the first all-metal transport aircraft. There were 322 examples made, and saw worldwide use in the 30's.
It's not a complicated model, but surprisingly large for a single engined 1/72 aircraft.
I'll be putting up some sprue shots tomorrow..............
Dave

 

[Tim Marlow]

This isn’t a run of the mill aircraft is it......nice Jazz age Junkers.

 

[Dave Ward]

I do like to make models that aren't that common! I was hoping to source a Valom 1/72 DH Albatross for a reasonable price, but no luck. Valom make some interesting short run kits, like the Bristol Bombay, or one which caught my eye a Handley-Page Sparrow. My father was evacuated from Belgium in one of these, after being wounded in the 'Market-Garden' operation in 1944 ( he was well up on his aircraft! ). He had a long scar on his leg for the rest of his life.................
Dave

 

[Dave Ward]

Sprue shots: parts are pretty well moulded, very little flash.

Wingspan will be 24.5cm quite large for a single engined 1/72 aircraft.

Decal sheet & the version I'm doing- bigger tail, aluminium, with black underwings & bands - with the fine corrugations, the fewer decals the better!

A few detail shots


The main problem will be the under fuselage joint & how the corrugations line up, but only after removing the bits from the sprue with minimal damage!
Dave

 

[Guest]

I hope you’ve bought an XL-size bottle of decal solvent for this kit

 

[Dave Ward]

I've got some Humbrol Decalfix at the back of the shelf, which is pretty agressive, so fingers crossed
Dave

 

[David Lovell]

looking forwards to this one Dave, like the way you chop and change subjects never a single genre. Dave

 

[Gern]

I wish you luck with those attachment points!

 

[Dave Ward]

Plastic cut and assembled, the wings, tail & floats

Careful removal from the sprues has ( almost ) left no traces on those corrugations. I remembered to open the holes for the float struts in the bottom of the wing, before adding the top ( and filling two superfluous holes ). The floats fitted together well, despite them being 4 pieces each, without any internal formers.
The main finish is aluminium, so any flaws will show up much more than normal, so dry fitting & adjustment, rather than use of filler will be the aim.
Dave

 

[Dave Ward]

I've primed the wing, floats & tail black, ready for their aluminium topcoat ( after masking )

The fuselage needs a bit of fiddling, the windows only fit from inside, so I'll mask the interior, spray round the windows, take the interior mask off, add the windows, then mask the window area only to finish the overall metallic spray..............
There's quite an interior, a floor, a bench seat & 2 armchairs for the passengers 3 bulkheads. 2 seats & control columns for the pilots & and an instrument panel - none of which will be really visible..........
Dave

 

[colin m]

A most interesting subject Dave. The plastic looks really good.

 

[Dave Ward]

Revell are very variable in their kit quality - some are very good, but others are pretty dire - I'm talking about their own tooling, not any reboxing. The Junkers is one of the better ones, even though the moulds date back to 1992. One problem I've encountered is the colour call outs on the instructions - they're so small I had to get my magnifying glass out to read them!
Dave

 

[Guest]

Revell USA was not very good, in my experience, and in the 80s a lot of Revell Germany kits were actually Revell USA reboxes. The kits designed in Germany tended to be better, I think. They have certainly greatly improved over the last few decades.

 

[Defiant911]

Sprue shots: parts are pretty well moulded, very little flash.

Wingspan will be 24.5cm quite large for a single engined 1/72 aircraft.

Decal sheet & the version I'm doing- bigger tail, aluminium, with black underwings & bands - with the fine corrugations, the fewer decals the better!

A few detail shots


The main problem will be the under fuselage joint & how the corrugations line up, but only after removing the bits from the sprue with minimal damage!
Dave

This looks like a nice model Dave, I have a thing for or the boat planes at the moment. Will enjoy this build.

 

[Dave Ward]

I masked the wings up.....................


I used AK 3rd Generation Aluminium for the first time by airbrush - it looks odd from the bottle, white!

You have to get the mix just right, in the end, it was just a few drops of water, to get it to spray properly. No water, it wouldn't spray at all, and just a bit too much, it wouldn't cover & just blew around the surface. Once it was sorted, it looked OK


I'm going to seal the wings with gloss varnish, then put the decals on, for ease of handling, as I anticipate that they may not want to lie down
Dave

 

[Dave Ward]

Wing Decals applied - copious amounts of Humbrol Decalfix, which is pretty aggressive...............


It has worked pretty well, but I have one or two spots on the other positions, where it hasn't pulled the decal down. I've pierced these with a pin & reapplied the Decalfix. In certain lights, it looks odd, because the decals are matt finish & the wing is gloss! I'll leave all to thoroughly dry overnight, the seal everything with gloss varnish. Not as bad as I thought, but I wouldn't care to apply any larger decals over the corrugations...................
Dave
.

 

[colin m]

I think you've done really well with those decals. It had potential to be a night mare.

 

[adt70hk]

Hi Dave

That's looking really good. Hard to believe that they are actually decals.

Keep up the good work.

Andrew

 

[Dave Ward]

Humbrol Decalfix is a single solution bottle - it can be very aggressive, and if the decals are a bit fragile, then the outcome is not good. Instead of soaking decals in water, Humbrol advise you to use the Decalfix solution. In this case it has worked pretty well, but for decals on a smoother surface, I'll revert to my usual AK 2-part stuff
Dave

 

[Guest]

I was fearing the worst about applying the decals when I first saw this kit, but you’ve certainly tackled them well.