1/48 Kinetic Mirage 2000BG - Hellenic Air Force

[doogsatx]

Pulling this one out of the stash to have some fun with - in Hellenic Air Force livery!



The HAF 2000s are a lot cleaner than most Greek aircraft, but they still get pretty scuzzy...





Aftermarket for this one is surprisingly deep - I'll be using Eduard's interior set, which looks pretty good for a change, as well as a set of Aires bangseats. These come with PE belts, but I may go ahead and port the Eduard color belts over. Mind isn't made up on that front yet.

I'll also be using Master's turned brass pitot tube, plus an Aires exhaust nozzle (unless it's just too nightmarish to fit).

I did an initial test-fit today while the kids were playing outside. With only sprue cutters, it was a bit rough, thanks to flash, but even so the major components fit more or less well. The wing-fuselage joins will be the kit's biggest challenge, but again, I'm hoping flash cleanup will turn what looks rough into something relatively pain-free.

[TRM]

Nice to see you hitting the Air-bench again Doogs!! Beauty of a wingy too!! Count me in!!

[doogsatx]

Jan 25, 2015 16:09:36 GMT -5 TRM said:

Nice to see you hitting the Air-bench again Doogs!! Beauty of a wingy too!! Count me in!!

Yeah, having only armor on the go is a bit tedious to me, especially with both Leos in the whole suspension-and-tracks stage!

I want to get something 1/32 up and running, but there are some kits just over the horizon that I think I want to break into right away - Kitty Hawk's F-86D (in Texas ANG markings!) and Wingnuts AEG G.IV - so I'm hesitant to start anything big at the moment.

[doogsatx]

Lots of de-flashing last night. The wings fit a LOT better now that the crud has been cleared, though the upper wing/fuselage gap is still going to be a bit tricky.

Other work got underway getting the cockpit sorted ahead of paint-and-PE. Happy to report that the Aires seats fit rather well. The side consoles and IP faces have been shaved down, so tonight it'll be priming and painting the interior gray.

[deafpanzer]

Love the cockpit... it pays to buy aftermarket sets!

[doogsatx]

Well [insert expletive of choice]...

Last night I painted the cockpit. All well and good. Then I went to start adding the Eduard PE bits. Yeah.

The IP backing plates are too big. As in, wider than the IP combing. So they have to be cut down to fit. Which means the pieces that sandwich down on top also have to be cut down. Which never seems to go well with color PE. On top of that, the side console pieces are too wide, meaning they'll either interfere with the fit of the cockpit into the fuselage, or the seats into the cockpit.

And because the raised detail had to be sanded away to accommodate the PE, there's no going back.

So plans are changing.

I'll be taking the rest of the aftermarket and putting it into a Mirage 2000C. The two-seater will go back into the box...and longer term, now that the cockpit is basically screwed, it'll be getting this treatment:

[tigrazor]

You mean a WASHING? Why not...Of course they look cleaner, theyre paid with German money