This 1994 1/48th Hasegawa C.205 Veltro kit release is another fine example of their crisp molding with finely scribed detail and good fit, presenting the model maker with a good base to work with and no real headaches.
Notable Kit Features:
Good raised cockpit details
Finely scribed panel lines and exterior details
Better than average parts fit
Good overall shape
Build Inspiration:
My main inspiration for this build was to get a good representation of the Italian desert "Smoke Ring" camouflage scheme. I decided on the markings of Tenente Colonnello Duilio Fanali who ended up as CO of 155 Gruppo at Lecce in late 1943 when he transformed to the Allied side after the Armistice of Cassibile.
Heads-Up Report:
Some ejector pin marks
Deepening of some of the engraved panel lines, especially in the control surfaces will improve the look (the panel lines are really fine)
The pit behind the engine firewall and in the open wheel wheels could use some detailing if you are so inclined.
Hasegawa designed the C.202/205 kit family to offer the range of early Folgore to late model Veltro with a minimum rework involved. The actual aircraft vary a bit if you care about this level of detail. There are a few areas of the kit that require some attention if you want to get it correct. As I was focusing this build series on the paint finish I did not venture into any corrections here and even managed to add errors of my own.
If you want to get into the finer points of these aircraft types, I will recommend looking at Werner Scheibling's builds: Macchi C.205 by Werner Scheibling (Hasegawa 1/48) (hsfeatures.com)
Kit Additions / Modifications:
Built Out of the Box with the exception of the custom decals
Finishing Touches:
The kit has the typical desert finish colours of Verde Oliva over Nocciola Chiaro applied with the "Italian Smoke Ring" design. This upper surface combination was worn over the undersurface of Gregio Azzurro Chiaro. The base camouflage colours were airbrushed on with a bit of variance to achieve a weathered effect. I initially considered airbrushing the smoke rings however decided that the look may be more easily achieved by brush. The green "Smoke Ring" camouflage was hand painted with a select pointy brush using carefully thinned paint (enough to properly flow and still cover in one pass). Magnifiers, patience, multiple reviews of reference photos for proper shape of the smoke rings, and a steady hand got the job finished in less time than I had first thought. A coat of Pledge floor finish was used to get a gloss coat in order to prepare for decals and washes. After these two stages were complete a dull coat using Model Master clear was applied.
The After-Build Report:
I would recommend the 1/48th Hasegawa C.205 Veltro kit as a very good starting point for a C.205 build, as they still produce the best Macchi kits available in 1/48 scale (it is much better than the earlier Tauro kit). If you want to get into the finer points, break out some reference books and add some detail of you own to bring the kit up a notch.
Note: the 1/48th Italeri kit is simply a re-box of the Hasegawa kit.
So, for such a straight-forward build, using a well fitting kit, how did I find a way to muck this one up? (you might ask) If you caught the glaring error on this 1/48th Hasegawa C.205 Veltro kit build, a tip of the hat to you, as you must know your Italian fighters well (or have built this kit before). As you know I usually build more than one kit at a time and I was building the 1/48th Hasegawa C.202 kit at the same time. These two kits have a lot in common, but differences between them as well. In a moment of not paying close enough attention, I cemented the C.202 rear wheel assembly to the C.205 kit (and of course) cemented the C.205 rear wheel to the C.202 kit, managing a double play error! I did such a good job cementing the parts that I decided not to damage the builds by trying to cut and switch. I also considered modifying the rear gear to look more like it should, but in the end wanted to get to the paint job, so these two kits now serve as yet another example of what can go wrong during a build (especially when you are managing (or should I say not managing) more than one build at a time!
Feel free to comment or ask any questions - Keep on building, gain experience, challenge yourself if you like, but try not to stress yourself out over the build - it is suppose to be an enjoyable hobby after all - Cheers