1:48 LaGG-3

A fighter glued together from wood

The LaGG-3 came about at a time when Soviet industry was economizing on aluminum, and its airframe was therefore formed of pressed laminated birch veneer impregnated with resin. It was heavy, demanding to fly and among airmen it earned a reputation as a merciless machine; even so the factories delivered more than six thousand examples and some batches served long into the war. Progressive lightening changed the shape of the canopy and of the rear part of the fuselage, so the individual batches differ noticeably from one another. That is exactly why it is worth verifying which batch your kit captures.

What has to be finished first

A mask does not tolerate an uneven base. Before it comes onto the model, the seams between the fuselage halves must be filled, the transition behind the cockpit sanded down and the glazing degreased. On a freshly filled surface the film sticks crookedly and when lifted it tears the filler away with it. Only a level and dry surface holds a crisp edge.

The scope of the set

Supplied are a pair of cockpit masks, outer and inner, and one set of masks for the red stars. The cut self-adhesive pieces are intended for painting a model; neither plastic parts nor varnishes are in the package.

Stars and the rest of the markings

A sprayed star holds its shape even on an undulating surface, where a decal would struggle to settle. Tactical numbers and lettering stay on decals, which are applied over a gloss interlayer after the masks are lifted. If you are building the model with part of the canopy slid back, separate the corresponding piece of film before gluing and keep the frame sprayed separately.