The Fee is still waiting its turn. Hopefully I'll be able to summon up the phlegm to get the booms done after the Pfalz are completed.
Had a good week though and was able to make some good progress for the Kaiser. The D.IIIa lower wings were modified to the more rounded shape Plus the lower wings for both were glued in place. I made a simple styrene jig for this and the strength and alignment looks good to me. Some thinned down Mr Surfacer was brushed along the joins with a 000 brush and I made good on the gaps with tiny pieces of rolled up 1200 grit sandpaper that were dipped in soapy water.
I also scored and bent the elevator of the D.III down a bit then cemented it in place. I decided not to worry about resetting the ailerons, as more often than not the photos I looked at showed them pretty level. I kept the rudder straight too, although I might put it to the side on the D.IIIa if I'm feeling adventurous.
I also did an experiment in creating national markings. 1/144 is often difficult inasmuch that aftermarket accessories are almost non existent. Black crosses without white outlines are not available, so I had to try making my own. Home printing them wouldn't be crisp enough. So I made a cutting template instead.
This one is for the upper wing (I wish some brass etch manufacturer would come up with a set of these!). The cross was marked onto a sheet of thin silver sheet, then carefully cut out. The shape is hard to get perfectly symmetrical so it took a while.
Once the template was made, a bit of black decal was selected and an initial straight edge cut into it. The lower end of the cross is lined up with the straight edge then the rest of the outline is scored around with a sharp scalpel.
My scalpel wasn't so sharp, but never mind. Plus the decal was a bit thick too as it was a piece that I'd given a heavy coat of black, for use when making model walkways. However the principal seems to work well. In theory a good set of templates should yield an unlimited supply of markings with no visible carrier film.
Here's a pic of the test piece. As you can see I was pretty rough with it, but with some proper care it should do the trick.
