1:48 FM-2 Wildcat - canopy mask In&Out (for Eduard kits)

The Wildcat: glazing frames from both sides

Double-sided stencils for the cockpit framing of the FM-2 Wildcat fighter in 1:48 scale. The inner side of the frame gets the interior shade, the outer the top coat, and that without a single brush stroke. On a sliding canopy it shows every time you push it back on the model.

A machine operated by hand

The Wildcat had landing gear retracted by hand with a crank in the cockpit and the pilot had to turn it several dozen times before the wheels tucked into the sides of the fuselage. The fuselage was short, deep and looked stocky, the wing sat in the middle and the armament consisted of heavy machine guns. It was exactly that simplicity and toughness that kept the type in service until the end of the war, long after more modern fighters had replaced it on the big carriers. A cockpit set high above the wing gave the pilot a decent view forward, but the frames of the glazing cut it into narrow strips. On a model the effect is exactly the opposite: the sharper those frames are, the more convincing the cockpit looks.

The spraying procedure

• Apply the inner pieces before the fuselage halves are joined.
• Press the edges of the stencils down with a soft eraser, not with a fingernail.
• Apply the shades from the lightest to the darkest.
• After lifting them off, look the frame over against the light and correct any runs.
• Seat the glass into the fuselage at the very end.

Intended for

• Modelers who build with the canopy slid back.
• Builders of naval aircraft of the Pacific.
• Those who want to see a clean frame through the glass as well.
• Those interested in machines operated from small decks.