The Aircraft:
Ask a group of
jet-heads what was the most beautiful fighter ever to grace the skies and
chances are, more than one will tell you it was the Hawker Hunter. There's
just something so 1950's about it, the stereotypical sleek, swoopy,
graceful lines of a first generation jet fighter, largely unencumbered by
bumps or blisters, it's just pure aerodynamics. The most export-successful
British fighter of the post-war era, the Hunter has served in some 19 air
forces in its lifetime. Though largely retired now, it is still possible
to see them fly under numerous civil owners, as well as a handful of
civilian contractors providing adversary aircraft for armed forces around
the world. Initially produced as an interceptor only, the FGA.9 version saw
the addition of air to ground capabilities, making it the most versatile
Hunter produced. |
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The Model:
While there have been a number of
Hunter kits over the years, it's hard to say it's been well covered, at least
until recently. The last few years have seen a veritable flood of new Hunter
kits: from Academy in 1/48, a comprehensive series of resin kits by PJ
Productions in 1/72, while Revell Germany released models in 1/32 and 1/144. And
as I've got the soapbox at the moment, I'd be remiss if I didn't do a bit of
begging and pleading for Revell to scale the 1/32 kit down to 1/72, as they've
done with so many other recent releases. (pleasepleasepleaseplease) The kit
itself is up to the usual high standards one would expect from Revell Germany -
accurate shape, fine recessed panel lines, good detail throughout, a sensible
parts breakdown and some very modeller friendly extras. The breakdown of the kit
makes it pretty clear that Revell intend to issue more versions eventually. The
dogtooth leading edges on the wings are separate parts, making it easy to tool
straight wings; the exhaust area is separate, allowing for an eventual
small-bore/non-parabrake tail; and the forward fuselage and spine could be
swapped out to do a two-seater. Even though rumours of future re-releases have
been limited, hopefully Revell hasn't abandoned these plans. The basic kit
represents an FGA.9, and while the Revell Germany release includes an additional
sprue to build a Swiss Mk.58, including revised gun blisters and Maverick
missiles, these are not included in the Revell Monogram boxing seen here.
For those looking for a relaxing
build out of the box, the model is quite well detailed for a 1/32 jet, however
detail oriented modellers should consider the KMC cockpit set which was recently
re-released by True Details. The kit 'tub is more than adequate, particularly
since it's painted black - detail largely disappears - but the KMC item can and
will improve things. Unfortunately, I missed out on it the first time 'round,
and True Details announced they were re-releasing it just after I'd sealed up
the fuselage halves (so you're welcome, anyone else who was waiting for a
re-release), and so an out of box build it was. Airwaves also do a resin seat,
which is extremely nice and well worth considering, while Paragon used to
produce a resin seat, and as they're about to re-start operations, it's entirely
likely it will be re-released.
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Construction:
As always,
construction begins in the cockpit. Revell did an excellent job here, and
there's only a few niggles to note. First off, the belts are moulded into the
seat pads, and they're pretty poor representations. As there's no pilot figure
included in the kit, it's wisest to remove the belts and make a new set out of
tape or lead foil. Also, all of the levers and knobs are done integrally with
the cockpit tub, sort of smooshed flat against the surface. I guess it's meant
to be a trompe l'oeil effect, but it just looks bad: chisel them off and replace
with styrene rod. It helps to paint the cockpit with an off-black overall, then
pick out the various components in pure black as well as other mixes of dark
grey, otherwise it will just be a big, black hole. As well, fit of the glare
shield is slightly tricky.
Next in line are the
intakes. There's a few ejector pin marks that need filling and sanding before
they can be glued together, but this is a simple matter. Once joined, a heavy
application of Mr. Surfacer 500 was applied to the seam lines and when dry, this
was smoothed out with acetone on a Q-tip. The turbine face was primed with Mr.
Surfacer before being sprayed with Alclad Aluminium. A final wash of clear smoke
adds depth to the turbine, highlighting the blades.
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Prior to joining the
fuselage halves, I added the rear empennage halves to each fuselage side. Test
fitting showed it could be a tricky, and very visible seam, and I felt it best
to join them this way, on a flat surface, so that any fit issues would be along
the top and bottom of the join, rather than all along its circumference. When
gluing the exhaust to the empennage, it's absolutely vital to make sure it's
VERY secure - some bands of styrene strip securing it inside the fuselage
wouldn't be a bad idea, nor would a heavily re-enforced bulkhead. You don't want
to have it pop loose once the fuselage halves are joined (another one of those
"ask me how I know" words of advice…). Also, resist the urge to glue
the forward fuselage parts to each fuselage half. While with most kits, it's
better to work with full left/right halves than fore/aft sections, because of
the way the intakes clip in to the fuselage this can not be done with the
Hunter. The fuselage goes together well provided you take your time to line
everything up properly, and work in sections. I used small dots of thin CA to
tack things in place before securing them with lacquer thinner, my liquid glue
of choice. Because of the separate spine, there's no need to worry about this
seam line on the fuselage halves. The spine itself simply clicks into place, and
is a press fit over the cockpit's rear bulkhead. Once the fuselage halves are
dry, add the intake and forward fuselage assemblies. Again, everything clicks
into place neatly for a near-perfect fit. The completed wings (don't forget to
open all the mounting holes for the pylons, antennae and bulges) simply slot
into place on the fuselage and the tailplanes on the tail. Quite remarkably, for
a 1/32 kit, it builds up about as quickly and easily as a 1/72 model.
Seam work was
pretty minimal, as the joins were all very good. Basic application of Mr.
Surfacer to smooth everything out, but there weren't any gaps or fit
issues to correct. The drop tanks, rocket pods and pylons were also built
and filled, and the assorted bits such as the ammo tubs, tail bumper and
airbrake mounting hinge added to the fuselage in preparation for paint.
Paint: |
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I wasn't
particularly keen on building a British Hunter only because that's what
most modellers do, and as the type has served in so many small air forces,
I felt it an excellent opportunity to do something out of the ordinary. It
was actually a tough choice narrowing down the selection, and I'd pretty
much decided to do an Omani Hunter in two-tone grey, but unfortunately the
Aeromaster sheet with those markings wasn't available locally. After a
request on one of the major modelling discussion boards however, a very
kind modeller sent me not only the Omani markings I was looking for, but
rather the full sheet. And as I had all the markings now to do a Hunter
from Abu Dhabi, I decided to go with it instead - as the model is built
OOB, there's not a lot of aftermarket detail to look at, so I felt the
camouflage would help hide this. |
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The clear
parts were masked off with thin strips of masking tape and maskol, bits of
tissue paper wadded up and jammed into the intakes to avoid overspray,
then the model was ready for paint. This came in the form of Model Master
II's WWII British shades - sand, dark earth and azure blue. Each was
applied first out of the bottle, then was lightened and sprayed again in a
light, misty, random pattern to simulate fading and weathering. It
shouldn't be anything that stands out, just a subtle, blotchy appearance.
As always, masking was done with paper templates scanned from the
instruction sheet.
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The base camouflage done, detail
painting commenced: the nose and tail were masked and sprayed black, the gun
plates and exhaust masked and sprayed with Mr. Surfacer then Alclad Steel, the
wheel wells masked, primed with Mr. Surfacer and sprayed Alclad Aluminium. I
also painted the drop tanks and pylons in a variety of finishes to simulate the
mish-mash of styles typically seen on aircraft ordnance. That done, the model
was glossed with Future in preparation for the decals.
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Decals:
As mentioned above,
major national insignia were from Aeromaster, Hawker Hunter Pt. 3. I'm
particularly pleased with the red cheat-line decals - they're dead straight, and
didn't tear on me. As the model looked somewhat barren with JUST these major
markings, I also added the stencil data from the kit. These are silk screened
"Invisa-Clear" decals, and were an absolute joy to use - very thin, no
silvering, and easy to move around the model's surface. Oddly enough though,
while the decals themselves are nicely printed, the "Pro Modeller Invisa
Clear" logo on the sheet is blocky and out of registration. Go figure.
Weathering
and Final Details:
Once the decals were dry,
the model was re-Futured to prepare for the wash. Once again, I used
watercolours mixed with dish soap and again, different wash colours were
mixed for the sand, dark earth and azure blue areas. They're just dark
enough to suggest shadows and dirt without jumping out at you as being
visible. This done, the model was matte coated with Testor's Dullcote, to
which I had added a touch of Humbrol Linen. This give the model a slightly
dusty, faded look and helps level out the surface, so the decals melt into
the background more. Again, I didn't want these to be particularly
noticeable, but rather another part of the overall impression. |
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The airbrush was loaded up with a
slightly more concentrated Dullcote/Linen mix and this was sprayed in a blotchy
manner over the surface to simulate further weathering. I also sprayed some
patches of Future here and there, to simulate areas burnished by the wind
in-flight.
Vents and intakes were picked out
with my mixture of Future and ink to add more depth, and this was also done to
the natural metal areas - this is the best way I've found to weather metal, as
washes tend not to look good. The smoke pools up in the corners and recesses,
giving a nice, and perfectly blended shadow effect. The various antennae were
also added at this point, the blade aerials on the spine being scratchbuilt with
styrene sheet per my (very limited) references of ADAA Hunters.
The landing gear was next, and
these are a complicated affair because of the breakdown of the doors and the
many individual struts. Fortunately everything goes together easily. The wells
were given a light once-over with clear smoke to bring out the details and add a
bit of grime. Also underneath, a fairly heavy coating of clear red, orange and
smoke paints was added to various panel lines, as hydraulic and fluid leaks.
British aircraft have a reputation for being leaky, and the Hunter is no
exception, so this is a crucial bit of weathering.
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As
a final touch, some of the access panels were picked out in different
colours, to look like they'd been repainted, and a few simulated
"repairs" were applied with zinc chromate and Pale Green paint.
These help to break up the surface a bit and add some visual interest.
Paint chipping was kept to a minimum, as my reference photos of African
and Middle Eastern aircraft show they're prone more to extreme fading than
paint chipping. I also added some hydraulic leaks to the upper surface,
streaking dabs of clear smoke with a finger. The final touches were the
two outer pylon ejector fairings, the bulges on top of the wings. Using
Aeromaster's decal placement guides, these mount in the middle of the text
portions of the roundels, which seemed wrong to me. |
I wasn't able
to find any references showing whether the text was continued over the
bulges, so the text looked "normal" when viewed from above. IF
the roundels are in the right spot, and IF the bulges to indeed cover the
text, I would imagine they are painted, but it's really more of a guess,
and I didn't want to gamble. I'm not particularly happy with how they look
though, to be honest, and might just paint the bulges aluminium, or
something COMPLETELY different, so they look bolted on. Were I to do it
again, I'd probably cheat and move the roundels inboard slightly. It might
not be accurate, but at least it would solve the dilemma! But then, this
is part of the fun(?) of modelling the more esoteric Air Forces. |
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Conclusion:
A thoroughly enjoyable build. I
don't venture into such large scales often, but it makes an enjoyable change
from a steady diet of smaller scale models. It forces one to look at things
differently, try new techniques, and allows one to practice and hone basic
skills on a larger canvas, resulting in better work on future models in smaller
scales. Revell's Hunter is a truly excellent kit, an enjoyably simple build
that's just begging to be scaled down to 1/72, so that modellers can build
shelves full of them.
Special thanks to Bill Clark and
Wally for their help.
Mike
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