F4U-1A Corsair
Tamiya 1/32
Yup, breaktime from the Special Hobby Tempest Mk.II. At first, it did me in but I’ve put way too much work and sweat into her and just need a good break from the aggravation and then I’m back to finishing the kit, no matter what! My break is going to be the Tamiya F4U-1A Corsair, built OOB. No AM at all, well maybe just a change of the tires as I’m out to lunch on rubber tires. This is my second Tamiya Corsair, as I built the F4U-1 Birdcage when the kit was first released and WOW, what a kit then and still is now.
I’ve been plugging away on the Corsair for the better part of a week’s time and have made some nice, enjoyable and relaxing progress; the front office and fuselage internals are completely done and ready to be buttoned up. OMG, not a single fit issue, no issues with unclear instructions and zero frustrations. I guess the old saying is true, you get what you pay for.
Paints used so far:
MRP Light Gray Primer
Ammo by MIG Acrylic Interior Green – air brushed. I love MIG acrylic paints as they shoot beautifully and dry to with a brilliant eggshell finish. I do thin Mig paints with their own thinner.
Brush painting: Model Air and Tamiya acrylics.
Back then, Tamiya’s PE was stainless steel and does give you a fight here and there, being mighty suberin when it came to bending and gluing the seatbelts and shoulder harnesses in place, even with annealing. I did manage to have some CCA creep out from under the harness, form a nice blob on the seatback and this required a bit of fancy dancing to remove it without removing the harness.
So far, I’ve completed the first 19 steps, used a bit of artistic license with some of the colors for the knobs and that’s it.
I’ve often heard Tamiya kits labeled as ‘Shake and Bake’ and truthfully, I just don’t get it. The kit does what it’s supposed to: parts fit, assembly without frustration, the instructions are easy to follow and no questions on part orientation. This is what we pay our hard-earned money for. We complain about other brands having all sorts of fit and accuracy issues and what was the manufacturer thinking? Then label kits such as Tamiya and ZM as shake and bake because their kits were engineered correctly. For my money, I’ll go Tamiya and ZM all the time.
The enjoyment for me is in building and painting and not fighting a fit and correction war. Time to get off the soapbox, head off to the dentist 🤔 and then back to some serious modeling.
Next Up: the Big P&W R2800
Thanks for checking in
Peter