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Review / Modelling report |
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More than a year after completing the previous Mirages, more Mirages were made. A Heller Mirage was made and finished as a Belgium Air Force Mirage 5 BA (V BA). The type entered service in 1970 as replacement of the old F-84F Thunderstreak. The Mirage V BA had no radar and was used exclusively for ground attack. The brake disks on the main wheels are slightly different as on a Mirage 3 ( III ) but the Heller kit parts were used. I retained the kit (raised) panel lines. The BAF Mirage was special as it had an arrestor hook fitted as well. The arrestor hook was made from strip. Other tiny intakes and scoops were added as weel from scrap. Some smaller intakes were made from card, particularly at the lower area near the canons (see page 1 as done at the other Heller kits...) The cockpit interior was mainly black. The model fin tip got a black edge and small ECM fairings made from thin rod and plastic card. Small anti-collision lights were made by cutting out nothes in the wing leading edge tip and , after painting red and blue, filled with Micro Kristal Kleer. Also suggested was the later installed chaff dispenser on the lower fuselage tail.
I had an old IPMS Belgium magazine (kit #54 of Summer 1984) and also a very old DACO decalset D7222 in the decal box and it had markings for a Mirage V of with code "BA 26". It sports a wrap around camouflage scheme applied after 1981 and indicates the appropriate Fed.Std colours. On the model were used these acrylics:
The camouflage pattern varies considerably
between individual Mirages of the Belgian Air Force. (note that older BAF
Mirages had light grey/white lower surfaces FS 36622).
The DACO decals were fine. The "yellow"
no step markings were used, but these vary between aircraft.
Some tiny cockpit
details were added as well from scratch.
After this, some areas got a light overspray with the airbrush using the same 3 camo colours. This "blends in" the decals into the model and gives a very good scale effect. After that, the model got a semi-gloss coat to get an even sheen and protect the decals. Johnson Future thinned with 20% iso propyl alkohol was used with some 10% Tamiya matting acrylic X21 "Flat base" mixed in. The canopy was painted and set open with some tiny mirrors added as well. The canopy at the rear can be fixed with a small piece of etched metal or aluminium BBQ plate bended bit and superglue. The Heller kit exhaust was covered with a red cover plate and some "remove before flight" vanes were added. A metal pitot tube was made from a piece of metal needle. That completed this kit which had
been in the unbuilt stack for far too long.
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![]() This old
Revell
kit #H225 has a very simple built-up with only a raw seat as interior.
It appeared in various boxes and releases (probably the same kit with different
decals? ).
This kit no. #H225-3800 , dated 1976
had green plastic.
What is special of this kit: multiple version choices are possible and it has a mix of raised and inscribed panel lines! And typical of the old days, a removable Adour engine is in the kit! (I kept this out). The parts are in rather hard green plastic.
For the Mirage 3 "R" versions, in this kit a clear reconnaissance nose is included. The cockpit has a panel and floor but the seat is very basic. A separate part for the lower nose Doppler fairing is in the kit. Opted was a model of a Lebanon Air Force Mirage III EL and this version had no doppler radar fairing below the nose so this part was not installed. The kit also comes with "bombs" besides the large fuel tanks (a very special configuration indeed developed by Dassault) and "Sidewinders" (but these supposed to be French Magic missiles?). OK, let's
start modelling
The model next got a first grey base coat. |
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After checking and correcting any flaws, the camouflage scheme was applied. The Lebanese colours seemed to be the Dassault company standard. Airbrushed colours used were Gunze Sangyo acrylics, with #308 for the lower surfaces, #304 for the olive drab and #305 mid grey. The demarcations between colours are "hard", so low tack masking film from Revell was used. It was cut in parts and set onto various areas looking at drawings and photos of real Mirages. There seems to be a sort of common pattern used at many air forces as standardized by Dassault.
I had very old ESCI decals with various roundels but are very bad and fall apart. I added at least 5 coats of Johnson Future varnish with the airbrush. But even than..... better use the Microscale Decal Film coat. I decided to apply for the roundels another approach: I found Austrian AF decals in the spares box and added green circles to get the Lebanese roundels. The needed "arabic numbers" were hand painted in black with a fine paint brush. The Lebanese flag came from the ESCI set.
As usual to prevent "decal silvering", the model got as other models a couple of gloss coats with the airbrush using Johnson Future, thinned with 40% Alkohol. The nose was painted black. Also red walkway lines are on Lebanese Mirage aircraft. Completing the model was similar as other Mirages, adding the landing gears that were painted aluminium and so on. Also, the small thin fueltanks were added. A couple of tiny pitot tubes near the wind shield were added from rod. Finally, the model got a semi-gloss
coat to get an even sheen and protect the decals.
LEBANON
This model fits nicely in my World
Air Forces model collection.
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![]() ![]() .... Continueing now with the very old Airfix kit (as described on previous page...) The Mirage III C will be made as an aircraft of the South African Air Force (SAAF) in the "apartheid" period of 1965. I believe a restored aircraft is in South Africa and it shows a metal area aft of the radar nose. This was set on the model as well. The Airfix kit exhaust part was lost
and a new one was made. It has at the rear a V shape, and this was
made from an old tank store.
The doors in the kit were very thick plastic bits, so new ones were made from thin aluminium foil (as from a BBQ through away plate). Use the kit parts as patterns, some extra layers gave inside rib detail.
Camouflaged, the model got light grey
Gunze
Sangyo 308 with a bit aluminium mixed in at lower surfaces, and green
Gunze 309 and Revell Aqua 88 "tan" acrylic paints applied with the airbrush.
The demarcations are "hard", so masking film was used.
Having a spare thin vacuform canopy
from the PJ kit, this was used in stead
of the thick Airfix part.
The SAAF national "castle" decals used came from an after market set called SAAF, they look as coming from Xtradecal. Please note to ensure the correct heading of the "springboks". Note that the number roundels varied in time (and also their style). A few red walkway lines from decals were added as well as the usual air brake "no step" panel. A couple of tiny bits like pitot tubes were added and the mirrors inside the canopy.
The kit is quite nice in the collection
despite being very old. A Mirage III CZ of the
SAAF! The South African Air
Force (SAAF) received 16 Mirage III CZ from 1963 and
also operated these from Waterkloof air base near Pretoria.
This SAAF Mirage is also a nice companion
to the SAAF Canberra made
over 15 years ago....
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Created this page September 8, 2015 |