1:72 LANCASTER DAMBUSTER

The night the crews flew to the dams

In May 1943 a special squadron took off with modified Lancasters to attack the dams in the Ruhr. The machines had the bomb bay opened out, pivoting mounts for a cylindrical bomb spun up before release, and a pair of spotlights under the fuselage whose beams crossed exactly at the height from which the bomb bounced along the water. Two dams gave way, but the price was high: of nineteen machines, eight did not return.

When the subject is large, 1:72 is not a small scale

The span of the bomber exceeded thirty-one meters, so even reduced to one seventy-second the finished model spans over forty centimeters and its cockpit is physically larger than a fighter's cockpit at twice that scale. Masking makes just as much sense here as on larger models, only the inner face of the glazing is no longer dealt with. In the package you will find a mask for the cockpit glazing for the outer face and one insignia.

• Subject: a British four-engine heavy bomber in a special fit
• Scope: the outer face of the glazing and one insignia film
• Prepared for the kit by Airfix in this scale
• Covers the cockpit as well as the gun turrets with their divided panes
• No decals, as the markings are applied in paint

The large glazed parts of this subject have many small panels, so plan the work over two sessions and do not hurry. Lay the film with a dry hand and press each piece down around its whole perimeter. If paint bleeds anywhere, let it dry and remove it with the tip of a toothpick dipped in thinner rather than by polishing the whole pane.