1:48 Jak-1B

A cut-down spine and bubble glazing

The Yak-1B is the late form of the first production Yakovlev fighter. On it the designers lowered the fuselage spine and seated a bubble canopy on top, so that for the first time in this line the pilot could see behind him as well. The armament was simplified to a single twenty millimeter cannon firing through the propeller hub and one heavy machine gun above the engine. Machines in this form came to units from the spring of 1943, and French volunteers on the Eastern Front flew them too.

The scope of the set

In the package there are two masks for the glazing, one for the outer and the other for the inner side, and two masks for the national insignia. The framing can thus be sprayed from both sides, which shows precisely on a bubble part: the inner frame shows through the clear plastic and its absence strikes the eye. The insignia are sprayed in your own shades, so the color of the star matches the shade the rest of the machine is painted in and does not stand out from it like the film of a decal.

Gloss belongs under the film

Disappointment with masking does not arise during spraying but already when the film is stuck on. Self-adhesive film beds down along its whole length only on a smooth base. A matte finish has a scattered surface full of microscopic peaks, and the edge of a mask cannot be pressed into those. If you lay a thin coat of gloss varnish under the masking, the edge adheres completely and the sprayed transition comes out as sharp as a cut. After the masks are off you then take the gloss layer over with a matte or semi-matte finish according to how worn you want the machine to be. The side benefit is considerable: from a glossy surface the film peels away without taking paint from the edges of the frames with it.