I could not sleep soundly and once again corrected the paint at the exhaust pipes, gently grinding the unevenness on the aluminium coating. Is it better? Maybe a little. But all the micro inequalities drive me crazy. Nevertheless, the work is moving forward. Nevertheless, the work is moving forward. The cowling was painted and the main gear were assembled. The flaps are photo-etched elements. The tires have an imitation of deflection. We'll see if everything fits together in the end...

3 attached images. Click to enlarge.

@lgardner Thank You! When you do the 100 Watt bulb test, you can see unevenness in some places in the light, and even worse, a few debris, which, despite the sterilization of the areograph, some miraculously crept into the paint mixers ... Nevertheless, I am satisfied enough with the effect of trying the new paint. Vallejo Metal color is worth attention for the next projects. The paint, most importantly, is durable. It is not damaged by masking tape. Hope weathering will take it well too...

Looking great, @lis! The aluminum shade is mor even and smooth now, it is noticeable from the pics.
I am lazy smoothening things, leaing them "as is", calling them "uneven - more realistic" 🙂
The Aftermarket pitot looks much better than the stock kit one.
Looking forwadrd to your progress!

Today I recived decals from Rising Decals. So I can continue my work. All decals is in place. In second photo are visible some imperfections of kit, which I could not remove.

2 attached images. Click to enlarge.

I agree with Erik @airbum, @lis.
The "imperfections" are not that noticeable...
Nevertheless, yoy can hide them with weathering 🙂

Weathering is characterized by the fact that painting imperfections, even on a bright metallic surface, are even more visible. I used oil wash black brown, and deep black, on the exhaust pipes. Overall it seems that the bottom of the plane came out better, smooth.

2 attached images. Click to enlarge.

@fiveten Thank You! Today final clear coat. Mabye main gear assembly.

That's all folks! Work is done. From extra parts I used only small Eduar PE set, and Radio wire from Ammo Mig. The last hour of work and the assembly of the main landing gear, antenna and canopy was a nightmare. the model can be classified as very difficult, even though it is small and inconspicuous. Nevertheless, I think I learned a lot during this construction. The more ancient D3A1 was much better. Some solutions, such as a canopy or an antenna, seem completely ill-considered. The antenna can only be mounted with quick-drying glue. The mounting location has a symbolic recess, no socket, which would ensure the stability of the mounting. The canopy gives the impression of being completely mismatched. At first I used clear glue from Tamiya, second I gave some drops of extra thin cement from Tamiya. Some difficulties and precision required the assembly of the riflescope, but it somehow worked. For the less brave, I recommend following the second version of the manual, just shorten it and stick it. Maybe I'll write an article later, for now I have to catch my breath with a non-alcoholic beer and clean the workshop. Enjoy photos in Rising Sun 🙂 maybe my irritation with the final assembly was caused by the second dose of the vaccine on cowid 19 😉

To make me forget. the antenna cable, which shared the main cable and connected to the fuselage next to the cabin, was not made due to the lack of an idea how to do it permanently and professionally. I have no idea how to attach the second cable vertically to the fuselage to the taut line ...

14 attached images. Click to enlarge.