1:48 Su-31 Engine With Removed Cowls (Quinta Models)

The exposed powerplant of the Su-31 in 1:48

Removing the cowlings turns an aerobatic machine into a completely different scene. Out come the radial of cylinders, the finning of the heads, the bundle of exhausts, the oil lines and the mount structure by which the engine is held to the airframe. Mechanics take the cowling off competition machines between flights as a matter of routine, so a scene with an open nose is faithful, not invented.

The package offers exactly this form of the nose section for a model in 1:48 scale. The difference from the cowled variant is not only in the number of parts: an open nose also changes the way it is built, because it is painted and assembled in layers from the back forwards.

When a small part breaks

• Do not throw the broken piece away; even a small fragment goes back more accurately than a new one can be made.
• Join a thin component through a pin made of wire, as the fracture surface alone will never stand up to handling.
• Drill the hole for the pin with a pin vise, as a power drill will tear a thin wall.
• Fill a missing piece with a gap-filling glue and shape it with a needle file once it has cured.
• Coat the repaired place with primer; under a matte surface the trace of the work disappears.
• Put the work aside as soon as your hand stiffens, as most breakages come from tiredness and haste.

An exposed engine also goes well with telling a story: a few tools on a tarpaulin, a ladder by the fuselage and a mechanic at the cylinders turn a mere model into a scene. Paint the individual parts separately while they are freely accessible and only then join them into a whole. Tools, paints and the aircraft kit are not in the delivery.