1:32 HURRICANE I EARLY

The Hurricane as it looked at the beginning

Hawker built the early Hurricane Mk.I still in the old way: a steel tube frame covered with fabric, a wooden two-blade propeller and a fabric-covered wing, which only later gave way to an all-metal one. It was this machine that in 1940 made up the numerically stronger half of the British fighter defense and shot down more German aircraft than the Spitfire. The brand itself keeps the early and the metal-winged form as separate items, which matters for the choice of mask.

Surface texture against a decal

Fabric coverings are not smooth. Between the ribs the surface sags slightly and a model imitates that with a fine undulation. A decal laid across such an area rests on the tops of the ribs and an air bubble is left between them, which can be dissolved with a softener, but not always without residue. Masking film, by contrast, is pressed into the hollow with a finger and the sprayed paint follows the shape of the surface down to the last fold. The difference shows mainly on the roundels on the upper wing surface.

• two cuts for the cockpit, separately from the outside and from the inside
• national insignia stencils, two pieces
• enclosed decals

Recommended procedure

It is a good idea to run a wooden toothpick along every rib once the film is applied, and only then to spray. Apply the paint in two or three thin passes so that it does not build up at the edge. That leaves the question of which kit the cut really fits, because the spacing of the frames differs between manufacturers by tenths of a millimeter and in a large scale such a deviation is apparent at first glance. Anyone unsure should lay the mask on dry once before painting. A kit is not part of the set.