Online Reader Gallery October 8, 2020
10 scale models including Boba Fett’s ship, a Tiger I at Leningrad, and a Hawker Typhoon
October 7, 2021
You can submit photos of your scale-model masterpieces to
FineScale Modeler.
Below are this week's selection of fantastic models:
Caleb Randolph
Sarasota, Florida
Caleb scratchbuilt this 1/120 scale giant steam-powered tarantula tank from the 1999 film Wild Wild West using styrene and a few 3D-printed parts.
Paul Fernandez
Birmingham, England
After discovering cracks in the decals in Fujimi’s 1/72 scale A-7E, Paul scanned the sheet, fixed the damage in Photoshop, and printed a new set of markings. He loaded the Corsair II with missiles and bombs from a Hasegawa weapon set to reflect the ordnance used in Desert Storm.
Alan Crockett
Hamilton, New Jersey
After seeing a photo of a prototype StuG III Ausf B, Alan built Tamiya’s 1/35 scale kit to match the image as closely as he could.
Albert Tureczek
Aarhus, Denmark
Albert backdated Cyberhobby’s 1/35 Tiger I 1943 to be one of the first operational Tigers at Leningrad in early 1942. The changes included a revised exhaust system, the spare link holder on the front armor plate, and relocated tool holders.
Charles Palia
Lisle, Illinois
“This is a Bandai Star Wars 1/144 scale Slave I kit I received from my son, Matt,
for Christmas,” says Charles. “I'm a firm believer that no matter what your age, you should
always get a toy for Christmas. This was his gift to me.” He built it straight from the box and painted it with Tamiya acrylic applied with cotton swabs. To photograph it, he added cotton balls to the base and used a cloud background from his HO scale model railroad layout.
Dan McCudden
Toronto, Canada
Proving that there is life left in older kits, Dan built Tamiya’s venerable Tamiya 1/35 scale Type 97 Chi-Ha into an exceptional model. He replaced the frame antenna and added plating to the sponsons. He camouflaged and weathered the Japanese tank with Tamiya, Model Master, Humbrol, and Testors paints, and used black watercolors to pick out details.
Jeremias Luchina
Yerba Buena, Tucuman, Argentina
Jeremias converted HobbyBoss’ 1/48 scale Mirage IIICJ to the Brazilian Mirage IIIEBR with a set from Aconcagua Resin Models and some scratchbuilding. Patient masking and marking from Aztec Decals produced the colorful anniversary scheme; he painted with Humbrol enamels. “This picture was taken after a restoration job since this model, as well as almost my entire collection, was damaged when a shelf in my display cabinet fell down,” he said.
Dunwich was one of the airplanes used by the ill-fated 1930 Miskatonic University Antarctic Expedition, according to Mario. He modified Heller’s 1/75 scale Couzinet 70 Arc en Ciel wit Eduard resin turbochargers to boost the plane over the 24,000-foot pass through the Mountains of Madness. “I scratchbuilt the cargo doors, intercooler vents, and the ski adaptors for the landing gear,” he says. He printed the decals himself. Nice work, Mario! Cthulhu himself would approve.
Doug Webb
Slidell, Louisiana
Doug painted Hasegawa’s 1/48 scale Hawker Typhoon, including the invasion stripes, with AK Interactive Real Color lacquers. The rest of the markings came from the kit decals and the weathering included chipping applied with a silver pencil.
Bob Taylor
Sterling Height, Michigan
“This is Italeri’s 1/35 scale Vosper MTB,” says Bob. “I built it as the up-gunned 1942 version.” His additions include Accu-armor 20mm cannon on the bow, scratchbuilt gun rail and splinter mats, and twin .303-caliber Vickers K guns on the torpedo tubes from Italeri Commando Jeep. He camouflaged the vessel with Tamiya grays and weathered with pastels.