A short update today. I am slowly adding the windows to the passenger compartments of both airplanes. There are seven individual pieces of glass to be added to each side for a total of 14 pieces. It takes about an hour to get the windows fitted in one plane. The Revell kit had the windows added from the inside, while the MPM and Italeri instructions wanted you to add them from the outside. There was no way the windows were going in from the outside, so I did all of the work from the inside. I got more proof today that the 3 planes all come from the same molds. The Italeri and MPM kits had gaps around the exact same windows that had gaps on the Revell kit. Hopefully tomorrow I can get the last two fuselages closed up, and then move all three down the construction trail. Cheers.

4 attached images. Click to enlarge.

Hi Matt (@matthewfdyer): Thanks for stopping by. I puzzled over securing these windows for a while. I planned to use some PVA to secure the windows, but most of the windows are so tight in the fuselage that all of the glue was forced out. Then I tried some thin Tamiya liquid put into the corners, but then I started worrying about marring the inside of the glass with the liquid glue. That's when I hit on the idea of using Future to cement the windows in place. You got to admit, it doesn't damage the surface of the glass. Will it hold the glass in place? To be determined. :0)

Thanks, Spiros (@fiveten). I guess we'll see if the added guidance in the Revell instructions are really needed to make things fit. We all know the precautions with limited run kits: test fit before glue. The next step after the fuselage is to add the nose section, so we'll see how it fits.

So George (@gblair), you should open up a window installation business for modelers. I'm sure there are many who hate the tedium of these sorts of tasks. Who knows, maybe you'll join the ranks of the 1 percent! 🙂

Seriously, good work on these. When I get to my Hudson's windows I will experiment with this approach to see how it holds up to the sanding I plan on doing to my windows. I am still also considering another idea you mentioned about backing up the windows on the inside with a clear piece of plastic.

Thanks, John (@johnb). I think the windows may have been the hard part. Easier from now on, I hope.

Hi, Greg (@gkittinger): Glad you dropped in! I normally avoid planes with these windows, and in the past I have used Krystal Klear for all the reasons you listed to fill this type of windows. I love getting a glob of Krystal Klear on a toothpick and spinning it around inside the window frame until it fills the window. I initially planned to do the same for these 3 kits, just to save some time. When the time for the windows came, I decided to try the kit windows using a couple of methods to cement them in place. I figured the info could go into my "bag of tricks" for future use. I don't think anything will be visible through the windows, so, in hindsight, I wish I had used the Krystal Klear. The whole window process was so tedious that I think the construction that follows will seem a lot easier.

George (@gblair), making good progress. It will be neat to see all three of these when they are completed. With regard to your earlier post, I looked at the Airfix side windows and they are also separate installations rather than one connected piece. They do have the benefit of having a landing around the perimeter which should aid in their retention.