Have you decided to get into modeling, but don't even know where to start? In this article we will try to talk about the key nuances of the process, as well as give some tips for beginners that professionals should also refresh their memory of. First of all, we note that modeling requires enormous effort and a lot of time. Assembling models hastily means turning them from potentially perfect products into a pitiful semblance of a cheap Chinese knockoff. If you are ready to work hard to create a real work of art, welcome to the world of modeling! So let's get started.

Where does modeling begin?

Of course, with the purchase of the model itself. The catalog of our store contains a lot of kits for beginners and professional modelers. If you don’t understand anything about military equipment, choose a model that you simply like and seems easiest for the first assembly. If you are interested in military equipment and are well versed in it, you will probably find in the catalog exactly the model that you have always dreamed of seeing in your collection. If the model of the desired equipment is not available, contact a consultant; it is quite possible that it will be delivered to you on an individual order.

So, the model has been chosen - it’s time to start choosing tools. What do we need? Absolutely everything that is sold in the store, but it is often not possible to buy everything at once, and to assemble one model you may not need the tools that are needed to assemble another. There is a joke among modellers: “Choose tools intuitively, you will still forget to buy the most important thing.” Therefore, we will draw your attention only to the key and most necessary tools and materials.

The first thing every modeler should buy is glue, and a professional one at that. Superglue and PVA definitely won't work. It is advisable to purchase several glues at once in order to learn to understand the difference between them already in the process of assembling the first model - it is better to take second, helium and classic model glue. Next, we purchase a primer, a needle file, and sandpaper (with both coarse and very fine grains). Now pay attention to paints and enamels - for starters, you can buy colors that match the scheme of your model. However, in the future you will need absolutely all the paints and enamels presented in our catalog, you can be sure of that.

Next we move on to one of the main tools - brushes. It’s worth starting experiments from the very beginning, so buy a dozen brushes at once different sizes, types, forms and manufacturers. It may be more convenient for you to paint using an airbrush (spray) - if you have the money, you can buy that too. Don't forget to purchase a compressor for your airbrush. If you are not afraid of expenses, purchase all materials in the maximum variety. A novice modeler, like no one else, should conduct experiments and form his own style of assembly, priming, and painting.

Meet the model

As soon as you brought the model home, get ready for one of the most pleasant moments and hurry to lay out all the details on the table in front of you. It is at this time that you can plunge headlong into amazing world modeling and feel all its charm. Carefully look at all the details presented, understand how creative, complex and at the same time exciting the assembly process will be. It is very important that in the process of getting acquainted with the details you correctly assess the scope of the upcoming work.

You are now completely ready to assemble your first model. Prepare the work surface, separate the parts from the sprues. Try attaching several parts to each other. Understand how difficult this process will be, feel its beauty. Perhaps this is where we should end our first acquaintance with the model - put the parts in a box and put it aside. The time has come to begin professional training and create a full-fledged work surface and modeller's workplace.

Creating a workplace

Assembling a good model requires proper preparation workplace. It is advisable to have, if not a separate office, then a separate desk. You can refurbish your existing workplace or desk. To do this, remove everything unnecessary from the surface and from the boxes; from now on here you will only be engaged in assembling models. Believe me, you will have to store it in and on the table and spend a lot of free time here, so moving things and tools from place to place is extremely inconvenient.

A special rug for modelers is spread on the table. If possible, give preference to A1 format material. We already lay out all the necessary tools on it. Remember that you are creating your own workplace, so you can independently determine their sequence, degree of significance and, in accordance with these parameters, place them on the table in any order. Next, we arrange paints, brushes and other materials-tools.

Getting ready for assembly

In our case, preparing for assembly involves the need to understand: many things that you previously thoughtlessly threw away will now probably be needed by you. First of all, start collecting on an industrial scale all kinds of wires and their trimmings, pieces of plastic, sticks, glass jars and even caps from beer and vodka bottles. Don’t be surprised - in the future they will be very convenient to use to create a palette of colors.

At the same time, let me prepare you a little psychologically. The fact is that very soon you will acquire a truly exciting hobby that will take up the lion's share of your free time. At the same time, most friends and family, for objective reasons, will not quite understand your passion for creating models. Try not to conflict with them and pay enough attention to your family and friends. Believe me, this hobby can be successfully combined with the opportunity to be a great son, friend, brother, husband, dad and colleague.

Purchase of an aftermarket

We invite you to sit down at the table again and study the features of the set you purchased. Look carefully at the instructions and the parts laid out in front of you. You may well find, and most likely will, that many of them are either inaccurate, not well detailed, or simply not included in the set. That is why we suggest purchasing an additional detail kit (cockpit, photo-etching) in advance.

Working with afterlayout

Take a close look at the photo-etch kit you purchase and decide which design elements you will have to make yourself. We will not delve into the assembly process - there are instructions for this, and besides, the features of creating each new model are individual. Instead, let's point out a few key nuances works that a beginner should definitely take into account and that a professional should not forget about. We will include the following points as such:

• Careful attitude to instructions. Following it is the key to successful assembly of the model;
• Multiple checks. Before work, look at how the parts fit on the drawings. If there are deficiencies, it is recommended to correct them immediately;
• Remember the numbering. When cutting parts from the sprue, especially small elements, try to remember their numbering so as not to get confused in the future;
• Detail the internal elements. Many modelers advise taking photographs interior decoration designs to its final assembly;
• Be careful with small parts, it is almost impossible to find them on the floor - use boxes and crates for storage;
• Don't be afraid to spend time fixing a part. with defects visible to you - it will be much more difficult to correct an already assembled model;
• There is no need to be afraid of damage to the jointing during the grinding process., for example, primers - feel free to polish the surface, achieving it perfect condition;
• Experiment with tools: Remember that many household items can be useful in model making.

Remember also that the materials, paints, varnishes and enamels you use are completely safe for human health. The only thing you should be wary of is paints with very pungent odors. These, for example, include nitro paints. They are recommended to be used only when the hood is running, and in rooms where small children have access, they are usually not used at all.

Features of painting the model

Painting a model is a creative and at the same time complex process from a technical point of view. We have already described it in one of the articles posted on our website, so we will only note the points unknown to you.

Firstly, trust the manufacturers, but always check them. On various forums you can find messages about the discrepancy between the colors specified by the manufacturer real shades technology. Therefore, do not be lazy to check the original and choose the color scheme yourself.

Secondly, take your time special attention choosing a coloring option - some of them are presented in the instructions, some you will have to search on the Internet yourself. Make a choice in favor of the most complex design - only in this case will you be able to win your first “respect” as a modeler.

Thirdly, always use a primer (of course, if you are not working with nitro paints). It will help not only reliably fasten the surface of the model and the layer paint and varnish material, but will also smooth out roughness, numerous irregularities and other flaws.

Fourth, secure the parts to be painted on the holders and never touch them with your hands - one awkward movement and all the work will have to be done from the very beginning.

Conclusion

Don't be afraid to experiment. We have to repeat this again and again. Modeling is a combination of creativity and scrupulous study of instructions. Only in the process of assembling models do you gain invaluable experience, which is reflected in your equipment and allows you to form its individual style. Listen to the advice of experienced modelers, but always check them in practice - no one can be considered the ultimate truth. Be creative, learn from your mistakes and create real masterpieces. And we, for our part, are happy to help you with wonderful models and tools of the highest quality, presented in an incredibly wide range.

An interesting and great article about aircraft modeling, how to paint models correctly, what tools are needed and what needs to be taken into account when modeling aircraft.

The production and collection of prefabricated aircraft models occupies a very special place among the numerous types of modern technical creativity. Assembling models from ready-made plastic parts requires patience, precision, accuracy, good knowledge history of technology and, along with other types of modeling, is considered a real art. But it was he who was most unlucky. For some reason, many people believe that in order to assemble a model, the instructions included in the box are enough. And since after such work you end up with a one-color, dull model with glue smudges in your hands, what kind of creativity is there! Meanwhile, assembly is only part of the exciting work on a model of a particular historical car. We must also try to recreate her true appearance so that she looks just like the real one...

In this article we will try to teach you how to assemble models correctly
aircraft from sets of ready-made parts and will give several model designs for independent production. Among them there are also flying homemade products for recreation and entertainment.

Collect as accurately and reliably as possible

Imagine for a moment that they bought you a bright, beautiful box, inside of which there is small miracle— replica parts of a real aircraft made to exact scale. Of course, you'll want to get to work right away. But no matter how great this desire is, take your time!

In order to assemble a copy model as accurately and reliably as possible, you will have to spend a lot of work, and most importantly, learn how to work correctly.

Typical technological scheme making a prefabricated aircraft model according to the instructions included in the box is shown in Figure 1. However, most often it is not possible to work according to it: not all kits have glue, the correct coloring of the model is not always shown, not all kits include parts - decals with identification marks . Special paints are not available for sale either. That is why, when working on a model, listen to the advice given below; they have been tested many times by experience by a variety of modellers.

Rice. 1. Technology for manufacturing prefabricated models from polystyrene: a - painting small parts on the sprues; b - cutting parts from the sprue frame; c - piercing a tube of glue; d, e - applying glue; e - tightening glued units and parts with an elastic band; g - installation of parts; h - gluing the propeller; and - application of decorative stripes (so-called “invasion stripes”); j - application of spotted camouflage; l — markings for wavy camouflage; m - translation of identification marks.

First of all, never glue the model “tightly” right away. Of course, your desire to quickly see your “brainchild” assembled is understandable, but by rushing with gluing, you are dooming yourself to unnecessary trouble, and the model will never have quality look. Glue in such a way that you can disassemble the model without damage or remove the necessary parts without damaging them.

Agree that it is not very convenient to paint in assembled form chassis, rocket blocks, cockpit with a pilot inside, etc. And nothing good will come of it. That is why, in order to paint a small part, firstly, do not remove it from the sprue, and, secondly, use matches and plasticine to re-attach it, pushing the part onto them.

In some cases, in order to avoid gluing the part to the painted area later, you can use another method. On the part to be painted, such as an outboard fuel tank, mark where the pylon will be glued. Then glue a small piece of polystyrene to this place, simulating a pylon. After the glue has dried, paint the tank, which is very convenient to hold in your hands using this glued piece of polystyrene. Now break off a piece of polystyrene and glue it onto the pylon itself, also pre-painted. In this case, the joint will be clean and neat, and its strength will increase significantly.

In this way you can paint a wide variety of parts. If you are painting parts without cutting them off from the sprues, then protect the gluing areas with melted paraffin, or even better, with thick gouache: it does not leave greasy stains and is easily washed off with water.

Only after painting the small parts can you begin to assemble the main elements of the model. It really doesn’t present any particular difficulties, but a few words should still be said about applying glue to polystyrene parts. You can squeeze glue out of a soft polyethylene bubble through a small hole, and from a small glass bubble through a capillary tube. It is good to use a thin wire or needle for this purpose, and for large surfaces to be glued together, soft (squirrel) brushes No. 1, 2 and 4 (if the surface is especially large). The parts can be glued only after they have been cleared of flash, burrs and sprue residues.

If the kit does not contain glue, use toluene, mekol, “pear essence” available in hardware stores (in small quantities for such an important task, you can ask for it in the school chemistry room), solvent for nitro paints 647. Individual parts can be additionally used for greater strength. “cook” with an electric burner, setting it to the lowest heat.

During assembly, special attention is paid to maintaining the scale of the model and the quality of individual parts in terms of their proportionality. Most often, this requirement is not met by the landing gear struts and doors, the tail of bombs and missiles, etc. It is not difficult to shorten the struts, but to lengthen them you can take pieces of sprue plastic and process them accordingly. Sometimes the landing gear doors are excessively thick. This defect can be easily eliminated by rubbing them with sandpaper or needle files. This should not be done very quickly so that the plastic does not heat up.

Often, weapons on models of military equipment are shown very conditionally. This deficiency can be corrected using a metal rod or wire of the appropriate diameter. The tip of the rod must be heated and used to deepen the bed of a cannon or machine gun barrel, giving it a more believable appearance. You can also imitate the protruding barrels of cannons and machine guns by melting short wires into their stocks. Such “refinement” of the model often increases its strength, since parts made of polystyrene often fall off when cleaning models. And you still have to clean the models sooner or later, even if they are protected from dust by hoods or are in cabinets behind glass.

At the ends of the wings and on the fuselage (aircraft body), you can imitate flashing or marker lights or headlights. To do this, you need to make cutouts in the right places and insert into them carved from transparent, red or green organic glass"lights"

Antennas are usually made from fishing line, but it is better to use for these purposes a metal winding wire with a diameter of 0.1 mm, which can be taken from an old small-sized relay. There is another method, shown in Figure 2, - drawing threads from polystyrene sprues. First, the sprue is heated over the flame of a candle 1, then they try the heating level 2 and, spreading their hands to the sides 3, pull out the thread, keeping it away from the fire 4. True, for thin radio antennas this method is of little use, since the resulting threads are very fragile, but it the simplest and fastest. In addition, this way you can get quite thick rods, which can be very useful when working on models.

You should not make antennas from ordinary threads either: they very quickly become “shaggy” due to dust settling on them.

Often modellers do not install stretchers on biplane aircraft because of the apparent complexity of their implementation. It's actually quite simple. To tighten the guy lines, you need to use a heated needle or awl to make through holes in the wings at the places where they are attached, and then pull the guy wires through them, which are best made from wire with a diameter of 0.1 mm. Sometimes streamers are made from threads pre-impregnated with silver. After they are tensioned, in the places where they are pulled, it is necessary to drop a drop of glue such as “Moment-1”, BF or another. After the glue has dried, you need to trim off the excess threads, then fill the broaching areas, sand them with fine sandpaper and varnish them. If you do all this carefully, then after painting the broaches on the wings will be almost invisible.

Many purchased models have “underfilling”, uneven surfaces and other shortcomings caused by the aging of the molds on which they are made. To correct these imperfections, putty is required. It is practically not available for sale, and therefore you have to make it yourself. To do this, pour finely chopped sprue from the model into a hermetically sealed glass jar and pour
acetone. In a day the putty will be ready. It should be taken into account that it takes a long time to dry and can dissolve the plastic of the model. Therefore, before use, it is worth checking the putty on the sprue of the model on which it will be used. By the way, various simple parts can be cast from putty in molds.

Here are some tips on how to “revive” your models. Models with open cockpits, bomb bays, movable rudders, etc. look very effective. It is not difficult to make wings that fold on hinges for deck-based aircraft. This is easiest to do on those models whose wings fold upward. It’s interesting to make helicopters and transport vehicles, for example, with figures of “paratroopers” at open doors. Models that simulate engine operation look good. For example, ordinary 2.5 V flashlight bulbs can be inserted into the nozzles of jet aircraft, and a Uranus type battery (1.5 V) can be placed in the fuselage. The light bulb must be powered with reduced voltage to prevent the nozzles from melting. Most piston aircraft models easily accommodate microelectric motors. With their help you can rotate the propeller. The shaft is metal and connected to the electric motor using a flexible transmission, such as a rubber tube. In order to avoid its destruction, the shaft should be “passed” into the nose part in a tube, for example, from the refill of a ballpoint pen. Switches can be very diverse. All these modifications are not very labor-intensive, and almost everyone can do it.

From almost all models, with the help of small alterations, you can obtain various modifications of the prototype aircraft and even new ones. For example, from the N-60 “Gypsy Motor” model you can make a whole series of Soviet aircraft by A. Yakovlev - AIR-1, AIR-2, AIR-3, AIR-4. At the same time, new products are almost as good as factory ones.

Almost any model has hidden reserves, but in order to successfully find them, you need to familiarize yourself with the necessary drawings and descriptions of the aircraft.
In the same way, not only prefabricated models of aircraft are assembled, but also tanks, ships, cars, and models of space technology.

Paint cleanly and neatly

The appearance of the prefabricated model depends greatly on the coloring. In this case, for scales 1:72, 1:100 or 1:144, coloring and finishing become decisive. There can be no trifles in this work, because maximum reliability is the main requirement for a copy model.

So, about painting technology. Each experienced modeler has his own secrets and techniques for this work, but all of them are variations of two main methods: painting with a brush and using an airbrush (spray). The first method is relatively simple and accessible to everyone, especially novice modelers. The second requires a source of compressed air, an airbrush and much more, which somewhat complicates the possibility of its distribution.

When working with a brush, the question arises of what paints are suitable for applying to polystyrene, from which aircraft parts are cast. Just not nitro enamels! Nothing good will come of it - the nitro base corrodes the plastic, the paint dries quickly, stretches, and the surface turns out rough and uneven. For brush painting you need to use alkyd enamels. They have excellent hiding power, give a thin, even layer and a shiny surface. Their drying time is 6-12 hours depending on the temperature and thickness of the coating. You must have five primary colors: red, blue, yellow, white and black. With their help you can get a wide variety of colors, as well as any shades. If you can only find white alkyd enamel, don’t be upset - you can use art oil paints, which are sold in office supply stores, as dyes.

You can also use these oil paints as base paints - with thinner No. 2 (white spirit or turpentine). After drying, the surface painted with them becomes deeply matte, which is especially important for replica models of aircraft from the period of the 2nd World War. Artistic paints take one or two days to dry - this is their only drawback.

There is no need to specially prepare the surface of the model for painting with brushes, just wash it in warm water toothbrush with soap. By the way, about brushes: you need one or two round ones No. 1-3 for painting parts and two or three flat ones No. 5-9. The size of the brushes depends on the size of the model - the larger the model, the larger size you should take brushes. Brushes should be semi-hard, hair brushes (preferably from kolinsky, sable or badger). Stubbled for so fine workmanship no good. The sequence of applying the paint layer is from lighter to darker.

The airbrush provides a wealth of possibilities when painting models. Of course, working with it is much more difficult than with a brush, but it turns out perfect smooth surface, matte or shiny. In addition, the use of an airbrush allows you to transmit various types protective coloring (camouflage), imitate traces of use, repair, influence atmospheric phenomena etc.

The compressor from a household refrigerator is most often used as a source of compressed air, although it needs to be modified. First of all, remove the nichrome spiral from the starting box, replacing it with a piece of copper wire (all this, of course, can only be done on a compressor from a refrigerator that has become unusable, after consulting with your parents and with their assistance!). The spiral may not need to be replaced, but in this case the compressor may stop at the most inopportune moment. It should be remembered that the refrigerator unit is not designed for long-term operation, so do not let it run idle.

Often small droplets of oil fly out of the compressor outlet tube along with the air; their contact with the surface to be painted is extremely undesirable. Therefore, an oil filter or sump should be installed at the outlet, which will also play the role of a receiver - a storage device that smoothes out the jerky flow of air. It can be made from the inner tube of a soccer ball. From a rubber hose at least 2 m long, tightly fitted to the airbrush fitting, cut a piece about 0.5 m in size. Place one end of it on the compressor outlet tube and seal it with a clamp and electrical tape. Insert the second end into the chamber together with the end of a long piece of hose and also seal the connection. Aim for a complete seal to avoid loss of air pressure.

But what about those who were unable to get either an airbrush or a compressor? This is where a regular spray bottle can come to the rescue. This sprayer will also help when painting the model, however standard device Unfortunately, you can only use it 1-2 times, after which it becomes completely clogged with paint.

Simple modifications will help turn it into a reliable “spray gun”. To do this, you need to change the bending radii of the outer and inner tubes and shorten the shank of the outer one, as shown in Figure 3, a. The purpose of this upgrade is to enable the development and assembly of the device. The thin inner tube should slide out easily from the outer one. This will allow you to wash the spray gun parts in solvent after painting.

A little about the techniques for using such a sprayer. First of all, it is necessary to achieve a finely dispersed torch by changing the position of the nozzle. In this case, the length of the latter should be about 0.4 m. Before work, the paint must be filtered. You should always have a bottle of solvent for nitro paints on hand. As soon as the ink “cloud” becomes heterogeneous and clumps of paint begin to fly from the nozzle, the bottle of paint must be replaced with a bottle of solvent. A few pumps with a rubber bulb - and the device is ready for use again.

After finishing painting, do not forget to clean up everything after yourself and thoroughly rinse all parts with solvent.

A fairly decent airbrush sprayer can also be made using a microcompressor for supplying air to the aquarium and two empty rods from ballpoint pen(Fig. 3, b). You need to remove the balls from the rods, being careful not to deform them with the tips, and connect them at right angles to each other using an appropriate device (for example, a tin clip). Then you need to put a hose from the compressor on one rod, and lower the other into a jar of paint. The airbrush is ready to go. The paint supply can be adjusted either by changing the position of the rods or by using the adjusting screw on the compressor.

It may happen that you have a real industrial airbrush at your disposal, but without a compressor. As a pressure source, we can recommend an ordinary household siphon for preparing sparkling water (Fig. 3, c). In this case, there is no need to pour water into the container, but sequentially charge two cans of carbon dioxide at once. Connect the “nose” of the siphon to the airbrush with a rubber hose. One such charge lasts a long time.

But the last recommendation will no doubt be appreciated by those of you who have already taken part in exhibitions and bench modeling competitions. The fact is that bench models require. They treat themselves with a very “delicate” attitude and sometimes receive unwanted damage during transportation. But if the broken part is easy to glue (if only there was glue!), then it is very difficult to take with you an airbrush, compressor, or even just a spray bottle just to touch up the peeling paint here and there. Of course, this can be done with a brush, but on a surface “blown out” with sprayers, such repairs are immediately noticeable and only worsen the appearance of the model.

"Repair in field conditions“becomes quite possible if you use a simple pocket plastic inhaler, which can be converted into a spray atomizer in a matter of minutes (Fig. 4). Pass a thin tube or donor needle 3 through the lid of the jar, and to allow air to escape, make a hole in the lid or insert a piece of tube 4. Plastic hose 5 (it is included in the kit) is used to supply paint to the spray unit 6. Now pour nitro paint into a nylon jar from - under the glue for prefabricated models and you can start working.

It should be noted that nitro enamels are most suitable for painting models using all these devices. Before applying them, the surface of the model must be primed using a composition consisting of four parts of acetone and one part of glypthal primer GF-21. The components are shaken, after which they must be allowed to settle in a tightly sealed container. The resulting transparent pinkish liquid is applied to the model with an airbrush immediately before painting - thanks to this, the nitro paint is “welded” to the plastic.

Before painting, nitro enamel must be diluted with acetone or solvents (646; 647): the paint should be liquid, but not “transparent”. When working with an airbrush, follow these rules: press the paint supply button, pointing the airbrush away from the model, otherwise the first large splashes of blots may fall on the surface. Hold the airbrush at a distance of 15...20 cm, depending on the diameter of the nozzle and what parts are being painted. The hand with the airbrush must be in motion all the time, otherwise streaks may form on the surface. Remember that the complete drying time for nitro enamels is 1 hour, so each layer must dry thoroughly.

And now a few words about how to solve the problem with silver paint; you cannot do without it when making copy models.

Some plastic airplane model kits come with excellent silver paint. But here’s the problem - even if you are lucky enough to purchase such a model, as soon as you open the bottle, after a short time the composition thickens and becomes unusable. And this paint is not always enough, and replacing it with other compositions gives, to put it mildly, unsatisfactory results.

But it turns out that even using available pigments you can make excellent paint yourself. For this, in addition to aluminum powder from the usual kit available in hardware stores, you will need fir varnish (it can be purchased at specialized art stores) and solvent 646. The mixture is prepared in a cylindrical glass vial (for example, from penicillin), into which you pour two volume parts of pigment, and using a pipette, pour in one part of fir varnish and two more of solvent. The resulting mass is shaken. To lift pigment that settles during storage from the bottom, it is useful to place one or two balls from a bicycle bearing in a bottle.

Dries homemade paint 20... 25 min and on appearance After drying, it is practically no different from the “standard” paint.

But some modellers prepare this paint from a small amount (20...500 mg) of aluminum paste (not powder!) and solvent 646. Nitrovarnish is added to the mixture. You can paint with a brush or an airbrush. Before spraying, it is recommended to paint the model in white.

A concentrated solution of caustic soda (caustic soda) will help remove paint from already painted bench models, in which the model is immersed for 1-2 days. Before removing the paint, it is necessary to peel off the cockpit canopy, since transparent polystyrene becomes cloudy in this solution. To apply clear color boundaries to the model, it is easiest to make “masks” from wet newsprint or paint individual parts of the model (for example, the upper and lower surfaces of the wings) before joining them. Self-adhesive adhesive tape of the “scotch” type has too strong adhesive ability and often comes off along with the paint, so when using it, its surface should be powdered with talcum powder or tooth powder.

If you need to reproduce blurry camouflage, a mask cut out of thick paper or transparent film is held at a distance of several millimeters from the surface of the model, carefully spraying paint. This technique is quite simple, however, in order not to spoil the model, you need to practice first - “get your hands on” on unnecessary pieces of polystyrene or paper. But with some skill, camouflage spots can be applied without a mask.

After the model is painted, let it dry thoroughly before applying decals to it. If you need to get a matte surface, blow out the model with a thinly diluted nitro varnish from a long distance, after covering the transparent parts with masks - lanterns, headlights, etc. For the same purpose, you can use a colorless matte varnish or paint it with nitro paint with tooth powder added to it.

Naturally, when painting a model, a lot will depend on the design of the prototype aircraft itself and the materials from which it was made.

That's how they were, that's how they are

In order for the aircraft model you assemble to be truly of high quality, it must be as reliable as possible. And for this it is necessary to have a good understanding of the history of the development of aviation, to have an idea of ​​​​the technology of aviation production, the features of the use of winged equipment, its operation in different conditions. Without this, all your work may be in vain. Therefore, here we will try to briefly introduce you to what these or those aircraft were made of, what identification marks and emblems they bore. All this will help you in your work.

When assembling aircraft models from the period of the First World War, you should take into account that the hulls of most of them were made of wood and sheathed with aircraft-grade plywood or canvas impregnated with nitro-lacquer and therefore having a yellowish tint. The structure of the fabric that covered the planes was indistinguishable even on a real car (after all, the surface of the aircraft was carefully painted and polished), so there is no point in trying to reproduce it on a model. The biplane model should be painted before final assembly, and then the paint should be scraped off at the joints, because the glue will not provide a strong bond to the paintwork.

When painting, take into account the features of camouflage different countries. During the Civil War, Red Army pilots flew both aircraft captured in battle and those produced in domestic factories. The most common fighter aircraft were Spud and Nieuport, which were painted silver in the Russian and later Red Army. It is known that these machines suffered a lot of wear and tear, and their repairs were carried out in the field, so when painting parts that imitate canvas and plywood parts, you need to add a little matte white or light gray to the aluminum paint. This will give the effect of a faded surface.

English-made aircraft captured from the interventionists and White Guards were usually not repainted, and new identification marks were applied by hand directly to the blue-white-red English cockades. If desired, you can simulate patches on damaged parts fuselage or wing, painting them in a base color of a lighter shade. Usually the patches were shaped like a circle or a quadrangle.
On planes of the First World War period, with multi-color camouflage, the border of colors was clearly expressed.

On the planes of the Kaiser's Germany, the fabric covering of the wings and fuselage had the appearance of multi-colored polygons of regular geometric shape. It is interesting that the fabric arrived at aircraft factories having already been dyed at a weaving factory. But on a model, this type of camouflage is best imitated with a brush, although this work requires a certain skill. The paint of aircraft of this period was usually semi-matte, although the aircraft that had just rolled off the assembly line had a perfectly shiny surface, during operation they quickly lost their appearance.

When finishing and polishing a World War I model, you need to remember the following little things: the wooden propellers were carefully polished, so when painting the model propeller, you need to imitate the texture of the wood and its color. If the model is large enough, the screw can be made of wood or plywood and not painted. Metal cover for the screw hub - dull gray. The crankcase and engine cylinders are painted to resemble dull metal. To do this, you can add dark gray or brown or both in different proportions to silver paint. The cylinder pushers should be made of a bright silver color, and the exhaust pipes should be made to match the color of rust, which they acquired during long-term use. Machine guns must be coated with dark gray paint and in some places “aged” with brushstrokes to resemble dull metal.

The tires on the wheels of veteran aircraft had a pronounced gray tint, so before painting the landing gear wheels, you need to add a fair amount of white to the matte black paint or mix tooth powder into the shiny black paint. To imitate dirt streaks on wheels, add white paint to dark brown paint, mix thoroughly and carefully apply with a brush in the desired location. The main thing is not to put too much paint. Smoke streaks from exhaust gases are best applied with an airbrush, and the color of exhaust contamination on the fuselage can be dark gray or gray-brown. This work requires accuracy and thoroughness; when performing it, you should be guided by the rule “less is better than more.”

During the Second World War, various types of camouflage colors were used, which can be divided into three groups: “chopped” - camouflage with a sharp, geometrically broken border of colors; “wavy” - when there is a wavy border of colors; "spotted" - when various color spots are applied to the wings and fuselage of the aircraft. The border between colors could be blurry or clear. For replica models made on a large scale, this is a secondary issue, since in this case the color boundaries will look clear in any case, but a scale of 1:24 or 1:32 allows you to simulate the “blurring” of the color boundaries of camouflage.

The question of gloss level is important paint coating, applied to the model. Both too shiny and too matte paint on a model make it unreliable. Unlike cars, airplanes of that time, with rare exceptions, did not have a polished surface, but, on the other hand, we must not forget about the effect of scale. A 1:72 scale model from a distance of 0.25 m looks (or should look) the same as a real aircraft from a distance of about 18 m. And at this distance, even matte paint takes on a certain shine to the observer. Therefore, the most reliable is the degree of gloss, which is aptly named “ eggshell" This is a smooth, semi-matte coating, the shine reminiscent of the shell of a fresh chicken egg, produces the most benefits. new impression.

It should be noted that the exact shade of this or that color in which the aircraft were painted can no longer be accurately indicated even for those countries where the strictest instructions existed in this regard. Sun, rain, dew, renovation work, the inevitable aging of paint and even simply not stirring it well enough before use caused the most bizarre changes in the painting of aircraft.

When painting models, you need to know that before the war, most Soviet Air Force aircraft were painted light gray and silver. Then the main color became dark green with a slight brown tint on the upper and side surfaces. The lower planes were usually blue. At the beginning of 1941, instructions were adopted on camouflage painting of aircraft. They were repainted in the field, due to which the lower surfaces sometimes remained the original light gray color, and large round spots of brown or black were applied to the main green background. Sometimes spots of the original color remained on the upper planes, which created a very rare Soviet aviation three-color camouflage.

In the painting of Soviet aircraft during the Great Patriotic War, two stages can be clearly distinguished. The first (initial) was characterized by a wide variety of paint schemes, which was due both to the lack of sufficient experience in this area and to the suddenness of the attack by Nazi Germany. At first, all new aircraft of Yakovlev, Lavochkin and Mikoyan, the production of which had been mastered even before the war, were produced in the old protective coloring. From the second half of 1941, all aircraft leaving the assembly shops of aircraft factories received camouflage painting in the form of large spots of brown and green. Moreover, the brown paint had green tint, and green, on the contrary, is brown. This scheme was used for both day and night aircraft on almost all fronts. On most aircraft, the underside surfaces were painted blue.

During the first war winter of 1941 - 1942. the planes had winter camouflage in white-gray or white. The lower surfaces remained blue. Interestingly, in the spring of 1942, as a result of exposure to weather conditions, the so-called “spring” camouflage appeared on airplanes, when the original colors began to appear through the white paint.

While aircraft that typically operated during the day had blue undersurfaces (light gray was used only on some multi-engine aircraft), night aircraft had black undersurfaces. These were mainly bombers, transport and communications aircraft that flew behind enemy lines, for example Li-2, Po-2, etc. Sometimes these aircraft were painted on the top and sides with a special matte dark blue-green paint. Some planes were entirely black.

Other paint schemes were also used to paint Soviet aircraft. For example: grass green and black colors for areas with rich vegetation; sandy and brown colors - for the southern sections of the front; small spots brown on a green background - mainly in the south of Ukraine and the Caucasus in 1942-1943.

Some vehicles (usually multi-engine) even used three-color camouflage, combining spots of gray, green and brown-green (Li-2) or light green, ocher and black-green (Yak-6).

In the second half of the war, i.e. from the middle, 1943, the coloring of Soviet aircraft changed radically. It became more standard and was a combination of two shades of gray - darker and lighter, and at the very end of the war the planes had a monochromatic gray-green color. This applies primarily to such vehicles as the La-5fn, Yak-9, Yak-3, La-7, Tu-2, etc.

Among the Soviet Air Force aircraft, one cannot ignore a fairly large group of aircraft whose coloring differed from the standard one for completely different reasons. We are talking about aviation equipment supplied to us by our allies under Lend-Lease (military aid), as a rule, in its original form. Thus, English-made aircraft had spots of dark green and dark earthen (brown) colors, and later - combinations of gray-green and dark gray “sea” colors. The lower surfaces of these vehicles were either duck-egg colored or painted light grey. US aircraft were a solid olive (dirty green with a brown tint) color on top and light gray underneath. Only gradually were these cars repainted to Soviet standards. The use of radar equipment and the creation of fundamentally new jet technology has presented military specialists with fundamentally new tasks in camouflaging combat aircraft. That is why in the USA, Great Britain, Germany and some other countries engineers, doctors, psychologists, artists are widely involved in this work today, and the most modern technology is used.

In the first post-war years, most jet aircraft, especially our Soviet ones, were not painted at all and had a silver-gray color, which was gradually replaced by camouflage coloring. Aircraft such as Tu-16, Tu-20 and Tu-22 remained silver.

An interesting trend in aircraft camouflage was the so-called reverse-shadow painting scheme developed in the United States in the early 70s, used on interceptor fighters. Its effect is to level out the natural light of individual parts of the aircraft using different shades of gray: those areas that usually look lighter are covered with darker paint, and vice versa.

In the late 70s, tests of such a camouflage scheme were carried out by the British Air Force. In 1979, coloring with a reverse-shadow effect (three shades of gray) was adopted for the Phantom-2 air defense fighters, and a little later for the Lightning and Tornado fighters, and Hawk light combat training aircraft. Simultaneously with the introduction of a new camouflage color, the size of the identification marks was reduced, and pastel shades were used instead of bright blue and red colors. The brightness of various stenciled inscriptions was also muted. Although the identification marks and emblems of the squadrons have been temporarily preserved, if emergency circumstances arise, they will be painted over, according to the foreign press.

During the Anglo-Argentine armed conflict over the Falkland Islands (Malvinas), the issue of aircraft camouflage was also closely addressed by the British Navy. The Sea Harrier carrier-based fighters, which before being sent to the South Atlantic had a gray-white color traditional for naval aviation (and, according to British experts, the white paint on the lower surfaces of the aircraft was too reflective), became monochromatic gray. The white ring was removed from the identification marks. In addition, the squadron emblems were painted over, and bright inscriptions and symbols were removed.

The German Air Force developed its own camouflage scheme, which uses gray and green colors, as well as broken lines, which is reminiscent of the coloring of planes of Nazi Germany.

Work on creating new effective schemes The camouflage coating of aircraft is being carried out in various directions. Sometimes they take the most original forms. Thus, an experiment was conducted in Canada, during which a mirror image of its upper part (canopy, fin and other elements) was applied to the lower part of the fuselage of the CF-18 fighter. According to experts, this method of camouflage turned out to be very effective, since during training battles, pilots of “enemy” aircraft experienced serious difficulties in identifying spatial position CF-18 aircraft painted in this way and, naturally, the intentions of their crews. However, Canadian Air Force specialists have so far refrained from further disseminating this experience in order to “ensure flight safety in peacetime.”

The most suitable camouflage scheme for European conditions is considered to be alternating dark green and dark gray spots with zigzag edges. Buccaneer light bombers, Jaguar fighters and some other aircraft are painted this way. Phantom fighters are camouflaged with lighter colors: light green and dark gray spots on top, and light gray and white with a blue tint below.

Basic Nimrod patrol aircraft and Lightning fighter-interceptors, operating primarily over the sea, are painted so that they are not visible from above against the background of the sea, and from below - against the background of clouds.

In contrast, training vehicles must be bright so that they can be seen from afar. However, some of them, where issues of combat use are being tested, have the same camouflage as combat aircraft.

The camouflage painting of helicopters is similar to that of aircraft intended for operations against ground targets from low and extremely low altitudes. However, search and rescue helicopters are typically painted bright yellow.

Certain types of aircraft may be painted in other (non-standard) colors. For example, the Harrier vertical take-off and landing aircraft that took part in flights over Norway were painted white with black spots and stripes so that they would not stand out particularly against the background of the earth’s surface covered with snow and stones.

It is extremely important for modellers and collectors to be able to paint identification marks correctly, especially if they were unable to obtain a factory-made decalcomania. Here the already mentioned stencil masks with a cut-out image should come to the rescue.

When finishing a model, it is important not only to know the history well, but also to observe the measure and scale of identification marks, digital markings, “scratches” and “chips.” Otherwise, “metal” may appear where wood or fabric actually was, and identification marks can make even the most beautiful model unnatural. And, of course, a copy of a prototype aircraft cannot look like a machine that has been in dozens of air battles, just as an ace’s machine should not look like it has just left the assembly shop. That is why it requires painstaking, but very interesting and useful work to study the history of aviation, search for photographs and color images of copied aircraft, which will help supplement the model’s coloring with the necessary nuances.

Bonding various models is a type of collecting. What distinguishes him from the rest is the pleasure he receives more from creating the model itself than from the fact of purchasing it. A person who has at least once tried to glue a model of an airplane with his own hands will no longer be able to refuse it.

People have long dreamed of conquering the heavens. The idea of ​​​​creating a perfect aircraft occupied the minds of many eminent scientists and philosophers. To this day, aircraft designers are improving technology and honing their skills every year.

But what should mere mortals do, for whom piloting an airplane is just a pipe dream? The answer is simple - design. Moreover, today this does not require much effort. You just need to visit our online store that sells aircraft models or, without leaving home, order your favorite model for gluing or assembling an airplane in the online store.

In both options, you will receive a wide selection of models of different scale, type, and complexity of assembly.

In addition, you can purchase ready-made radio-controlled models.

Today, in the age of the Internet, people involved in aircraft modeling can communicate with each other on forums, share drawings and literature, and organize competitions.

For many of them, modeling became the embodiment of a childhood dream of heaven. And for some, it’s just a pleasant way to spend leisure time.

— your guide to the world of scale modeling!

At one time (the beginning of the 2000s) there was such a wonderful magazine about large-scale modeling - Scale models . It was produced for a relatively short time, about 2 years. Nevertheless, it collected and analyzed large number foreign materials, original articles written.

Of course, some of these materials are now obsolete. Simply because the quality of models has changed dramatically since then; new specialized products appeared that made some of the modeling technologies unnecessary. The majority of modern modellers do not have the amount of time for various kinds of problems that they had before.

However, there are a number of materials whose value does not decrease over time. Quite the contrary. After all, no matter how many models, materials or tools change, this is the foundation of understanding WHAT And HOW need to do remains the same.

That's why I decided to include MOST interesting articles from the magazine Scale models in the materials on our website.

Today I will start publishing the series HOW TO ASSEMBLE A PLANE MODEL , which examines the basic aspects of the work of a modeler in this direction.

An airplane flying in the sky makes any person who is not alien to the feeling of beauty look at themselves in fascination. A well-assembled model of an airplane can be as pleasing to the eye as a real one, and a whole collection of models can turn a simple apartment into an entire aviation museum.

Model manufacturers offer customers a large number of assembly kits.

These kits come with assembly instructions that only give an idea of ​​where to attach which parts, without saying anything about how to ensure that the assembled model resembles a “live” aircraft as closely as possible.

In this publication we will try to summarize domestic and foreign experience in assembling models. We are not discovering America - if you have already collected models, then you already know much of the following.

What if you forgot something?

TOOLS

To assemble a model, the model itself and glue are not enough. To assemble a model efficiently, you will need a lot of tools, mainly inexpensive ones - a model knife, tweezers, sandpaper, glue, masking tape and paints.

Model knives and cutters

The most important of all tools is good knife. For working with airplane models, a knife with a narrow blade is more suitable. The quality of the knife must be very good so that you do not have to sharpen the blade during operation. A surgical scalpel has proven itself well as a knife.

Skin

For stripping assembled model You will need at least two types of skins: coarser grains for initial processing and very fine ones for finishing. It is advisable to use waterproof sandpaper, since the grain is quickly clogged with worn-off plastic. Waterproof sandpaper should be dipped in water from time to time to wash away plastic filings.

Glue

The easiest way to assemble the model is with liquid quick-drying glue. It doesn't hurt to have a special glue for joining transparent parts.

putty
Special modeling putty absolutely necessary for sealing all sorts of cracks that form after gluing, leveling surfaces, etc.

Masking tape

Masking tape is widely used when assembling models. It can not only protect surfaces when painting or puttying, but also hold parts together during gluing. It is advisable to use as THIN as possible the tape.

Dye

A large number of paints for models are produced, from nitra to acrylic paints on water based. Finishing is best done with acrylic or oil artistic paint. In the latter case, the finished model in mandatory It is necessary to blow out with a semi-matte varnish so that the entire surface becomes homogeneous. Oil paint will give a matte surface, but the airplane model should have a slight shine.

Brushes

For painting you will need three brushes: a thin, a medium-sized and a large flat. It is advisable to buy artistic brushes with sable hairs. After use, brushes should be thoroughly washed and dried.

Workplace

A properly organized workplace is a big deal. It is preferable to have a separate large table for modeling, but you can also work on the kitchen table when it is free. Lighting plays an important role. In dim light, you may not notice defects in the models.

Tool location

The entire tool must be placed carefully and at the same time so that it is at hand. There is nothing worse than searching for a missing knife during the assembly process.

Files

It is good to store separated small parts in transparent plastic files - everything is visible and will not get lost. It wouldn't hurt to have an album for files.

Tweezers

In a complete model kit there will always be pieces of steel that are too small for the rough fingers of the modeller. In this case, tweezers are indispensable. It is good to have two tweezers: regular and with bent tips.

Airbrush and compressor

The vast majority of modellers cannot imagine the painting process without an airbrush and compressor. In any case, you will have to purchase an airbrush and a compressor if you really want to engage in modeling more or less seriously. An airbrush and a compressor will require the largest financial allocations, separated from the family budget.

Be prepared for this yourself and prepare your spouse (the latter is the most important!!!).

In addition, a number of camouflage painting schemes for aircraft (Italian, German) from the Second World War period can only be done with an airbrush.

Knife set

One model knife is sometimes not enough; it is better to get three: with sharp, cut and rounded blades.

"Extra Hands"

Small metal “alligator” clamps used by radio installers are a great help in this work. They are good for holding small parts when gluing and painting.

Drill

When assembling and especially when modifying a model, you often have to drill holes, so it makes sense to get an electric micro drill and a set of small diameter drills. You can also use a drill to process the surfaces of the model using different attachments.

Wire cutters

Separate parts from frames, bite off burrs, etc. It is best to use small side cutters. borrowed from the arsenal of a radio amateur.

File

A model with cut-out control surfaces looks much more realistic than one in which the rudders and ailerons are simply outlined by jointing. Cutting is best miniature saw made from a razor blade.

Hole puncher

Hole punchers different diameters useful for making stencils for identification marks, for example, Japanese circles " rising sun" Painted markings are preferable to decals.

It is hardly possible to list all the tools needed to assemble the model. In addition to the objective factor, there is also a subjective one.

TO BE CONTINUED…