Thanks, men..
I always wondered how this kit built up. I almost got one at the model show I went to, but then a guy was having 50% off Hasagawa kits, so I couldn't resist.
It builds up prety quick... The cockpit was pretty basic and begs for more detail than I put in,although I put in more than what I took pictures of.. I added the gun-breeches to the panel, and re-worked the rear gun quite a bit. Out of the box, it's pretty clunky, looks like a bad Lewis gun... Overall fit is pretty tight, but I'm waiting on new plastic for my vacuform to re-do the canopy. Closed, the kit one's fine (framing's a bit heavy though), but I want mine open... The crew figures are mummfied though.
Overall, it was definately worth the 12.00 I paid for it...
I've heard of the rubber method and think that might be easier then the hairspray method or salt. I've heard some bad things about the salt method.
The rubber cement method is "Old School", been using it since Shep Paine wrote about it in the 70s and, at the time, called it "the old rubber cement masking trick", lol... It's probably another one that was brought over from the Model Railroader Community...
I think the salt method is just re-inventing the wheel, but haven't tried the hairspray method... From what I've read though about it, it's not much different, so I never bothered with trying it...
Had this kit in one hand and the Ki84 "skeleton" kit in the other...chose the Frank and been regretting it ever since. That PE fuse is TOUGH!!
Heh.. I'm watching that build, Trouble... You're a better man than me, tackling THAT Mutha-Frank... Or a glutton for punishment, lol..
It's about done now, about to cut the exhaust stacks from some stretched-Q-tip handle tubing, and then I just gotta finish the weathering... And wait on the canopy material...