Hasegawa 1/48 Macchi MC-202 Folgore (Lightning)
By Terrence J. Miesle
History
Evolved from the underpowered, under-armed, radial engined but quite maneuverable and soundly designed Macchi MC-200 Saetta, the MC-202 Folgore employed the Daimler-Benz DB-601 in-line engine and more powerful armament to become the definitive Italian W.W.II fighter aircraft. The Folgore featured wings of unequal length to counteract engine torque, as did all the 2XX series Macchi fighters. Gone from the fighter is the semi-enclosed cockpit pilots lobbied for on the Saetta. The Folgore fought in North Africa, Italy and the German Eastern front. It is generally considered to be the equal of the Allied fighters arrayed against it, and fought well alongside those fighters following the fall of the fascist Italian government. The MC-202 fought with several nations, including the Luftwaffe (an interesting color scheme). The aircraft I’ve modeled served in Libya until the Italians withdrew, then was one of 12 Folgores to serve in the Russian campaign; a well-weathered aircraft no doubt. The Kit As we have come to expect from Hasegawa this kit is molded in a light grey styrene on slender sprue. It is a typical Hasegawa 1/48 aircraft kit, and could benefit from some extra detailing in the cockpit and wheel wells. The canopy is in two parts, which will allow a good view of the cockpit interior. There were no apparent shortcomings or mistakes in the molding of the model. The Jaguar detail set is also well known. It is cast of tan resin, of excellent quality both in detail and casting. The cockpit sides required no unusual trimming, and fit well in the fuselage sides. Interior A bit of color here and there bring the office to life, instrument faces are black, while the panel is the same color as the cockpit. I painted the seatbelts light grey. The cockpit floor required a bit of trimming to fit within the locator slots. As with all detail sets, careful dry fitting will point out each of these little problem areas. The instrument panel also required a bit of thinning to fit in the small slots on the side panels, this was obvious from the casting overlap. The rear armor fits in a small slot in the cockpit flooring, this piece needed thinning as well but fit very nicely when complete. I used the Hasegawa lever assembly along the right side of the seat. Fuselage and wings The fuselage was glued together with Tenax 7, reinforced with GFS along the back of the joints where possible for added strength. The wing interior sections were airbrushed with Gunze-Sangyo (GS) H315 Blue Grey (Grigio Mimetico), the underside color. The Jaguar engine wiring and tubing part was painted H315, and colors added to various tubes and wires where applicable. The width of this part did not allow proper fit within the wing or fuselage. It was pared to size and superglued in position with the brace from the kit. The wing bottom was attached with superglue, then the upper wings were test-fitted. One came up a bit short so some very thin styrene was added. These were attached with Tenax-7 and the joints were sanded smooth where needed, most obvious in the front along the root. The rear section of the lower wing is also a bit short, I filled the area with superglue and sanded smooth. Any damaged panel lines were re-scribed at this time. The horizontal stabilizers were also added at this point. Cleanup and painting After the grey underside was masked off, Tamiya Flat white was used as primer for the rest of the aircraft. Following white primer the areas to receive yellow, a fuselage band, nose and spinner, and the wingtips were masked. The rest of the aircraft was then painted GS H310 Light Hazelnut 4 (Nocciola Chiaro 4). I realized afterward that I should probably have painted the yellow bands first, oh well. After this, I applied a light drybrushing with lightened hazelnut brown, concentrating on areas of high resistance and control surfaces. Spots and patches were airbrushed freehand with GS H065 Dark Olive Green 2 (Verde Oliva Scuro 2). I didn’t do a great job at this, but from what I’ve seen, the painting crews weren’t too concerned about overspray either. Masking was removed and repositioned so TMM Chrome Yellow could be applied in the proper areas. Masking was removed, the model allowed to rest for a few days, then decals were applied. The Gunze-Sangyo paints I used were gloss paints, so decals could be applied directly. Decals I used the Aeromaster MC-200 decal sheet and some markings from the Hasegawa sheet to mark the ‘202. It contained the insignia I needed for this aircraft. These decals are very thin and well printed. I was suitably impressed. I use MicroSol setting solution with decals, though it may not have been needed. After decals were set, two coats of Testors Dullcoat sealed the model. Black wash with TMM Flat black was also followed with Dullcoat. After this, drybrushing then some paint chipping. I weathered the landing gear pieces prior to installation, so the gear bays could be easily accessed for washes and drybrushing. Final construction and weathering Landing gear, pitot tube, prop and spinner, and other remaining parts were added after the painting stages the canopy was attached with white glue. The Jaguar exhaust stacks were painted Metalizer exhaust and drybrushed TMM silver. Monofilament fishing line was added and painted Poly Scale Grimy Black for the antenna with TMM Aluminum mountings. The tires were also painted Poly Scale Grimy Black. Conclusions and observations The fit of the wing/nose area on this model requires special attention. This was compounded by the somewhat bulky gear bay detailing of the Jaguar details set. I had to do a bit of superglue filling and sanding to repair the area. The lower wing section here is fairly thin, and provides a tenuous joint. This was solved, rather ham-handedly, with liberal application of superglue. I learned, after the fact, that isopropyl alcohol makes a better thinner for Gunze-Sangyo paints than what I had been using. As a result my green spots were a bit larger and sloppier than I would have liked. I was also disturbed to find the lacquer slightly damaged the finish of those spots. I repaired them a bit with drybrushing and subsequent sealing with Gunze-Sangyo flat sealant. All said, I really enjoyed learning a few new tricks about painting these Italian planes. In fact, I’ll probably build a few more Italian aircraft to round out the hanger. Craftworks will soon release their 1/32 scale Macchis. I highly recommend these kits. I had the chance to see them at the RCTHA show in October, and was most impressed. Source: Aero Detail 15: Macchi C.200/202/205 Dai Nippon Kaiga Co., Ltd. August 1995
Jaguar’s cockpit sidewalls were glued in place with cyanoacrylate (CA) glue and these fit very well. The interior was painted with Testors Model Master (TMM) Interior Green, as were all related parts i.e. flooring, instrument panel, seat, were also painted at this time. After sealing with TMM Dullcoat, I applied generous black wash with dilute TMM flat black. Several progressively lighter (TMM Flat White mixed with TMM Interior Green) dry brush stages brought the details back to the forefront.
As the Blue Grey color is similar to the color of Hasegawa’s plastic, no primer was used. The underside was painted GS H315 without the oil cooler or radiator attached, so the grey color would be uniform. The various parts, which also would receive this color, were painted on the sprue. The radiator interior then received TMM Chrome silver, then a quick black wash followed by drybrushing with GS H305 to highlight the framework.
Weathering
ISBN4-499-22651-1