I usualy work just on one kit, but at this special occassion, when I got second "Scooter" as iModeler award, I decided to build both together, each one in different version. After few days, I must say it looks OK and everything goes well.

I started with cockpit, after surfacer coat I sprayed Tamiya 50 % Dark Sea Gray + 50 % White, then shaded with lighter shade in the middle of flats and with darker shade in corners.

Side panels are lightly oversprayed with "almost black" - just to get dark look, but not black. I did not darker the panels with same overall intensity, but I created darker and lighter areas to reach better look.

Details are painted with water based Vallejo acrylics for brush. Corners are highlighted with diluted black acrylic. The dirty floor in front of pedals is sprayed with diluted Brown. Some scratches were added with acrylic black pen. In case of too high contrast I used finger to lower it.

Inner fuselage sides are just sprayed with basic color, then shaded with very diluted black and finaly the lines highlighted with black acrylic (painted with brush).

I will paint the rest of details with acrylics.

The build is quite straightforward, there are no difficulties, it is just important to save excellent Hasegawa panel lines and riveting as much as possible.

3 attached images. Click to enlarge.

No dry brush anywhere, just acrylic painting. One side of fuselage is stil without a lines highlighting just for comparison.

very nice Martin

Guys, small progress, fuselages on both versions are glued together and wing for F version is almost done. E version is still waiting for final sanding of flap section...

The most mistake of the kit is leading edge of the wing - The wing should have no step between flap section and the top of wing surface, there should be smooth profile... So I decided to not skip this and fix it... It took some time. Also cleaning of fuselage join was not so easy...

However, it is still excellent kit and there was almost no other additional work needed.

For F version I bought some extra photoetch set including very nice details in wheelbays and complete brakes. Now I am trying to put all antenas and small parts on to main body and complete small parts before painting.

After this (or beside this...) I will continue with E version.

4 attached images. Click to enlarge.

Bernard, in case you don't like photoetch part, then skip these brakes, may be you can use just covering plate to get better look. The rest is easy to apply. I am not photoetch fan - too many lost parts, too little, sometimes nobody knows there is photoetch.. But sometime there is no other - relatively cheap - option (Flaps, brakes etc...)..

Does anybody have a rear photo of exhaust nozzle? There are two parts to be added to each side of nozzle cover, but I don't know what it is nor how it should look... I just noticed many Skyhawks without it... I found only this one photo, but there are some covers mounted additionally.

I would like to see how it is paintet, if there is a hole etc... Thank you

1 attached image. Click to enlarge.

Hi Halvar, yes there is always a risk of breaking something. I glue them with that Tamiya cement too, and that one is the best, because the connection is not fragile like you would use cyanoacrylic glue.

I am trying to be very careful and add these tiny parts as the last ones, when everything else is done - so no more sanding nor riveting or panels renewing should be done. Sometimes i break something. It happened and it will happen again one day again 🙂 However, I started to believe in my skills and I know I am able to create most of lost parts if some disaster comes. evergreen profiles, sheets and metal tubes are a must, but sometimes the new part is better looking than original from the box 😀

And I have one big help - adjustable modelling stand made by JH models. With this feature the risk of breaking of losing something is minimized.

Very nice work so far!

Good start, small correction would be needed, but the masks work well.

2 attached images. Click to enlarge.