I have a lot of 1/144th planes, but most of them remain unbuilt. I was attracted to this scale because I thought I could get many more models on my shelf than if I built them in 1/72nd or 1/48th. I also thought they might be an interesting challenge. You can still read through some of the English modeling magazines & find articles where someone has taken a 1/144th model and scratchbuilt an engine, superdetailed a cockpit, added figures, and so on. After building a few models, I became frustrated with painting, and went back to a larger scale. I do use an airbrush, but I found the masking of the canopies and other areas in 1/144th particularly challenging. I still use rattle cans sometimes on my larger models, but mainly for spraying primer or clear coats. Airbrushes really ramp up your ability to get realistic paint jobs, as well as putting the paint down in very thin coats. You can get a compressor and decent airbrush on Amazon for a lot less than you might think. They carry all of the big-name brands, but they also carry some unknown brands that cost significantly less and work just as well. Be sure to read the reviews before you buy because there are also a lot of airbrushes that are really just paper weights. If you get an airbrush, you will need to do some practice to get the results you want, especially in 1/144th. Hope to see some more builds from you soon.
