WWI Air Wargaming
in Miniature
Part II

Modeling and Painting the Miniatures

1/144th Scale

by Bill Rutherford

This scale is quite a bit more straightforward because far fewer compromises were made in producing the models. Generally, all the parts you need to build a fully-strutted model come with the kit. The only problem occurs when the detail parts are miscast, which, sadly, is the norm, not the exception.

I've got a couple of Skytrex fighters together using the supplied struts, but normally, I wind up using .030" - .045" diameter brass rod (available at most hobby shops and craft stores), cut to length, for struts. It's a bit of a pain because unless you cut things exactly to length, you find yourself doing a lot of filing, shortening the struts that stick out through the holes in the wings after assembly. Brass struts look much better than kit-supplied struts, I think, because the kit-supplied ones are quite a bit too thick. One might wonder about the appearance of round struts - the prototypes were teardrop in section - but careful painting will give the illusion of shape (see below). Be careful if you try to use the kit-supplied struts as patterns for your new ones because I've often found the kit-supplied ones to be not-quite the right length...

As previously noted, cyanoacrylate glue - the thicker, gap-filling variety - makes a good filler for the wings' strut-holes. These kits are quite a bit heavier than the 1/300th scale variety, so joint strength is more important when gluing. I've always used cyanoacrylate with good effect, but epoxy is a good alternative.

I've heard, at conventions, people talk of rigging these models. I recommend against it for two reasons: a) The models themselves typically aren't perfect replicas - rigging them mixes fine detail (rigging) with basic detail (model) and the results aren't always pleasing, and b) You're building these things to play with. Even with careful handling, joints and parts will flex and bend just a bit - not enough to crack paint or pull parts off, but enough to stretch or slacken rigging, with unappealing results.

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