Airfix 1/72 Shorts Tucano T.1 ZF290 (A03059)

Hi,

As a surprise build (not my scale or subject) I built this alongside the F-14D. Not my usual 'thing', my interest was piqued by a Tucano job-lot sale and the rest, as they say, is history. I fancied something uncomplicated (yeah right!) and with a monochrome scheme that I could whip together in under a week and make with no reference other than the boxed instructions.

There was a nasty bubble in the canopy that set me back a few days while I waited for Airfix to send me a replacement (excellent service BTW, I received it in two days).

Anyone reading this and contemplating building one - you need a LOT of weight in the nose to prevent this from being a tail sitter. I'd recommend drilling out the backs of the exhausts to fill with lead, fill the nose cavity as much as possible, fill the nose gear bay, put lead in the leading edge of the wings - ANYWHERE! With a light puff of air this still falls back on the tail!

Oh, and the decals stick like nobody's business. I added a tiny drop of Sunlight dish wash liquid to the decal water to break down the surface tension and this seemed to help.

On to the pics - I've included the extra seat detail as you just can't make it out through the glistening canopy.

















You can just make out a sneaky ball bearing in the nose gear bay