Administrators James H Posted September 17, 2016 Administrators Share Posted September 17, 2016 Sometimes, a kit really grabs you. For me, that grab was the new Yak-3, from Special Hobby. A simple kit, and in some cases, a bit of a diamond in the rough. I don't mean that disrespectfully, but it does need just a few tweaks here and there, and maybe more so that the recent Tempest. It also doesn't have any alignment pins, unlike the new Tempest. It feels a little retrograde, in alignment with previous SH releases.....but better. Does that make sense? This is the scheme I'm going to build. This one is a little different because it has a Tricolour rudder, without the standard Russian star. This kit needs a few tweaks here and there, to aid fit, and when you work out what those tweaks are, then assembly is pretty straight forward. It's not as fraught as it initially looks. As with most things I build these days, here is the rough, taped together kit, minus its tweaks to make it fit better: Looks can be deceiving, and you will need to do a few remedial things to make this fit better. One of them is to reduce the ridge on the upper wing, aiding fuse alignment, by 50%. Do this and all gaps close, magically, with no need for any putty. Maybe a smear of Mr Surfacer, and that's it. Quite neat. The clamp here is to align and secure the underside plate for the rear radiator section. Nothing too traumatic. The cockpit on this model is excellent. I should know, as this is one of my favourite areas, and I like my pits to be comprehensive and engaging. Of course, you can always add more here, but the resin parts included are superb, and you will need to remove the crap moulded radio receiver before you can add the resin replacement. The rudder pedals are also resin, as is the primer pump. The pit fits to the upper wing, but not before you build the undercarriage wells, paint and weather them. Paint on this model is generally from MR PAINT, and here is the Blue-Grey underside work: I'll post more of this when I start to assemble the main components and add some paint. I hope you like it. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BevanBrooks Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 Like it? Love it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark 'ozzy' Ostler Posted September 18, 2016 Share Posted September 18, 2016 Hi James, thanks for sharing your exellent reviews and model skills to all of us fellow kit constructors. I want one of these Yak's and when they arrive in Australia I'll snatch one of the shelf. I've been wanting to get a start on a Russian subject for quite a while, but I'm a big fan of radial 'donks' myself, but reading a article about the Normandie pilots that flew 'yaks over Konigsberg' is now a definite must have! So I will watch and learn as I admire the quality of your builds enormously and thanks for building a subject that I'm keen to get a start on. Regards...Oz 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Fran Posted September 20, 2016 Administrators Share Posted September 20, 2016 how the hell I miss this? Looks terrific mate! Fran Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kagemusha Posted September 20, 2016 Share Posted September 20, 2016 Lovely work Jim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mikester Posted September 20, 2016 Members Share Posted September 20, 2016 Looking good, Jimbo! I need this kit! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polsen Posted September 22, 2016 Share Posted September 22, 2016 Very interesting James, pit looks nice. Keep us posted, Cheers, Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uncarina Posted October 7, 2016 Share Posted October 7, 2016 James, Very nice and inspiring work! Any updates? By the way, Maketar is releasing a mask set for this kit. Cheers, Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators JeroenPeters Posted October 7, 2016 Administrators Share Posted October 7, 2016 super-tight work!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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