Eduard 1/48th scale Yak-3

Eduard 1/48th scale Yak-3 "White 1" Major Nikolai Denchik - Baltic Front Winter 1944 Model Built Nov 2005 to May 2006 1. The Eduard 1/48th scale Yak-3 ProfiPack was purchased as a bit of a bargain off EBay in October 2005. The money was raised by selling an Eduard P-40N that had been given as a gift from the same neighbour who donated the P-40M.....

2. As it had been a short time since I had built the identical P-40 kit I decided to effectively 'swap' one ProfiPack for another through EBay. It wasn't long before the kit was started. These photo's shows the virgin parts just before starting in late November 2005.	3. Here are the sprues for the model. I have read a very good review of this model which claims it is only the second WWII fighter that Eduard produced from scratch since their Tempest Kit. The Tempest was the LAST model I built and it wasn't bad....	4. EBay also came up with some very good references for the Soviet VVS including this hard-to-find Squadron/Signal In Action 'Yak Fighter'. The only other item I bought for the kit was an Aeromaster Decal set and White Ensign VVS GPW Enamel colours.	5. We kick-off the build in the cockpit with the photo-etch parts included by Eduard. Superglue is pooled in a blob on the water-bottle cap and then applied with the cocktail stick seen the in the bottom right-hand corner of this photo.

6. Eduard include various panels.	7. On the other side of the cockpit there is similar detail. In the middle of the photo is the radio (?) equipment box on the rear cockpit shelf.	8. By early December 2005 the wing has been assembled and the cockpit instrument panels have come together.	9. Picture taken in February 2006 - picture shows the fuselage temporarily taped together whilst the cockpit sides are cemented in place.

10. The taped fuselage and the cockpit after being taken apart.	11. Close up of the rear cockpit area showing the rear radio shelf which, at this point, is not glued in place. It was there to allow the seat to be positioned correctly.	12. Close-up of the cockpit after assembly. Note the seat back and the photo-etch seatbelts.	13. Another view....

14. The new photo-etch instrument panel compared to the plastic equivalent above. Note missing instrument replaced by a spare from the Eduard Do-217 set.	15. Pictured in March 2006 here we see the Cockpit after airbrushing in a black shadow undercoat and then the WUP Grey overcoat courtesy of White Ensign Paints.	16. The cockpit interior side walls at a similar stage to the previous photo. Careful airbrush technique maintains shadows around the interior tubing.	17. Taken only a few weeks later after cockpit wash & dry brush. The wing, fuselage and tail final assembly went together quickly. Here the tail is being cleaned up.

18. And again, a week later... The cockpit glazing has been added and blended in. All joints have been cleaned up and the undercarriage added.	19. A detail of the cockpit showing interior details. Note the aerial made from elastic thread on the left. It passes through a hole in the rear canopy leading to the tail.	20. A view of the undercarriage showing the copper brake line added. Subsequent research showed that this is not placed correctly but it is too late - it is superglued on now!	21. A view of the oil-cooler intakes showing the plastic card septum added. This was an odd omission by Eduard considering they include photo-etch components in the kit.

22. Pictured in April here we see the masking being applied to the canopy.	23. After the masking the underside blue and upper side grey was airbrushed on.	24. Later masking was applied for the upper green. The white parts are rolled 'BluTak' with in-fill from Tamiya masking tape.	25. Later a new Iwata Eclipse was used to apply some subtle weathering.

26. The next set of photo's, through to completion, are taken in May 2006. The model has now been weathered and Decals applied.	27. The Aeromaster Decals are just great. Some enamel black paint thinned with white spirit was used to pick out the panels lines.	28. Here the model is seen completed and laid out in the conservatory for photography on top of a vast array of blue cartridge paper.	29. The model has a display base as can be seen in later photo's. This will be a separate project. More photo's to follow....

30. A plan view of Yakovlev's finest. The camouflage pattern came from Erik Pilawskii's Book of Soviet Airforce colours of WWII	31. This Yak-3 has a suitably oily-look. Research suggests that the engine often leaked oil. Rough field service wouldn't have helped.	32. The dedication in Cyrillic is from a the staff of a Factory who bought the plane for the front.	33. The red spinner really makes for an attractive scheme. I am sure the experts could argue forever about the shade of red....

34. The underside is suitable mucky too to reflect its rough field use.	35. The vast majority of this kit was built straight from the box. Just like the Tempest before it this Eduard Profi-Pack offers everything.	36. The undercarriage looks suitably complicated and busy. Some washes and dry brushing bring out the detail.	37. The oleo strut was wrapped in Baremetal self-adhesive foil for that shiny-metal effect.

38. A good bright shot with the aid of the flash. Here we see the base on which the model will be, um... based.	39. As with previous projects this base will be another sub-project. It will be treated with polyurethane to seal it before french-polishing.	40. Detail of the cockpit. After the base has been treated and polished then a suitable top will be added to resemble a 'rough-field'.	41. Unlike previous bases these new ones are from a dark hard-wood not the previously stained pine. The effect should be beautiful.

42. Pictures added in September 2006 with the Yak-3 now benefiting from a custom made display base.	43. As the aircraft depicted is from the Baltic Winter Front in 1944 then there just had to be snow...	44. So the display depicts snow, ice and pools of ice-melt underneath the warm engine.	45. The effect is remarkably good from this angle.

46. The ice and snow is on a layer of model railway grass.	47. All of the grass, water and snow are 'Model Scenics' items.	48. The base comes with a trophy plate depicting what it shows.

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