Does anybody have any links or tips for working with 1/350 aircraft? Mine turn out like what you would find prepacked at the dollar store. I found some good pics but they were lacking in narrative. Any help would be appreciated.
Well the first thing is to start with good ones. Otherwise there’s no getting past a lump of plastic.
Trumpeter makes a lot of good ones, and so does L’Arsenal.
Flat paint only except I paint the canopies black gloss.
All I can say is… patience… when working with these itty-bitty birds. I have a fleet of 1/350 Sukhoi’s that had 18 parts per plane. But, they are fun in their own way and tons of oddball ways to display them.
I’ll second Bondoman’s tip–I’d use Trumpeter’s kits, or something similar, if there is such a thing. I’m using their 1/700 aircraft with my WWII carriers.
Here’s a link to Ken Roberto’s build at Modeling Madness, of Trumpeter’s Lexington in 1/350, with shots of the aircraft:
www.modelingmadness.com/…/robertolex.htm
Len used the technique of painting the aircraft with the interior color first, then the final colors, so the interior color can be seen through the canopies. I have seen this model built up at shows, where the modelers also used that technique, and in 1/350, it’s definitely noticeable. If you’re doing jets, with tinted canopies, it might not be useful.
Len also built Trumpy’s Hornet:
www.modelingmadness.com/…/robertohornet.htm
using the same technique.
I think the idea of casting aircraft in clear is probably the biggest innovation in ship kits in 40 years, and when I first saw those Trumpeter aircraft, I thought, “Why didn’t someone think of this before?” Probably would have added too much to the cost of production for Revell, Hasegawa, et al. to have done this back then.
Anyway, hope that helps!
Brad