MiL Mi-1

[Meliodas2019]

amazing what a coat of paint can do , keep up the hard work Neil, nice job looks great

[RangerNeil]

A bit more done - some progress but mainly a step back I'm afraid. I finished the underside blue and I think it looks quite good. Given its a very thin waterbased acrylic that dries fast there are no brushmarks visible - that AKAN paint seems to level nicely which surprised me given all the comments I've read on the issue of acrylics drying before they can level... Maybe airbrushes in Russia as rare as they are in this house??

Anyways - whilst looking at the nose during the painting I found I could not stomach the fit of that canopy glazing - the gap between the fuslage and the base of the screen looked hideous so I dug out the filler/putty and using a tiny jewellers scredriver worked a bead into the gap as per the photo below. I can honestly describe the fit of all the glaxing parts on this model as total sh*t!! I've been rubbing the cockpit doors down gently to fit into the apertures and they are almost there - but there is a hell of a gap between the top of the door and the canopy - got to be a good 1.5mm so I am thinking I will fit the doors in an open position as I lack any sort of plastic material to make up a filler piece with. There really is no excuse for this degree of poor quality - I don't like poking holes at kits and their manufacturers as sometimes we are lucky those kits exist so it gives an idea of how bad this is. I was going to apply the decals tonight but that will have to go on hold for a while.



(You can also see how poor my first attempt at using Maskol was!!! )

[digger303]

A bit more done - some progress but mainly a step back I'm afraid. I finished the underside blue and I think it looks quite good. Given its a very thin waterbased acrylic that dries fast there are no brushmarks visible - that AKAN paint seems to level nicely which surprised me given all the comments I've read on the issue of acrylics drying before they can level... Maybe airbrushes in Russia as rare as they are in this house??

Anyways - whilst looking at the nose during the painting I found I could not stomach the fit of that canopy glazing - the gap between the fuslage and the base of the screen looked hideous so I dug out the filler/putty and using a tiny jewellers scredriver worked a bead into the gap as per the photo below. I can honestly describe the fit of all the glaxing parts on this model as total sh*t!! I've been rubbing the cockpit doors down gently to fit into the apertures and they are almost there - but there is a hell of a gap between the top of the door and the canopy - got to be a good 1.5mm so I am thinking I will fit the doors in an open position as I lack any sort of plastic material to make up a filler piece with. There really is no excuse for this degree of poor quality - I don't like poking holes at kits and their manufacturers as sometimes we are lucky those kits exist so it gives an idea of how bad this is. I was going to apply the decals tonight but that will have to go on hold for a while.



(You can also see how poor my first attempt at using Maskol was!!! )

You have your work cut out for you is this project. In regards to using maskol I also found it difficult to use and have since changed brands. I found maskol to be thick and sticky. I eventually threw mine out when it went hard. I have since found out liquid mask can be thinned with either water or ammonia and that may have been a way to improve it's properties.

[Kevthemodeller]

This kit is fighting you at every stage, got to admire you for sticking with it Neil you're making what looks like an awful kit look good

[jmurphy18]

I also bow to Kev for sticking to this!!!

[digger303]

I also bow to Kev for sticking to this!!!

The boy has loads of stamina

[RangerNeil]

I also bow to Kev for sticking to this!!!

The boy has loads of stamina

Nah - just too old/thick/stupid/bloody minded* to know when to give in!!

* delete as appropriate...

[jmurphy18]

I also bow to Kev for sticking to this!!!

The boy has loads of stamina

Nah - just too old/thick/stupid/bloody minded* to know when to give in!!

* delete as appropriate...

ROTFL! in other words this darn pice of plastic is not gong to beat me..... Where is the hammer, bondo & CA glue

[RangerNeil]

ROTFL! in other words this darn pice of plastic is not gong to beat me..... Where is the hammer, bondo & CA glue

That too....

Got a bit more done tonight - we are nearly there now!! The decals are all on, nose paint retouched where I did someting about the gap between the screen and the fudelage. Not wonderful but believe me - it looks a million times better now. Just need to:

• Fit the doors.

• Fit the tail rotor.

• Repair the pitot head.

• Fit the main rotor.

• Sort out a base for it.

And the Mil will be done.







Don't know what happened to that cabin window - it was put in with PVA glue. The fit is typical of ALL the glazing components on this kit.

[Meliodas2019]

looks great Neil, nice job

[jmurphy18]

This looks great Neil! Excellent job

[RangerNeil]

The Mil is now 99.999% complete. I am just beating the bet way od doing the radio aerial that rund from the pole on the rotor cowl to the pole bown by the tail rotor. Its a 20cm length and I'm having trouble getting sprue to stetch that long, that thin, so I don't know if I will keep on trying or resort to superglue and fine thread. This is how it looks right now. A hell of a lot of lessons learnt and re-learnt and I am the first to admit it could have been a hell of a lot better!!

[Kevthemodeller]

Superb result Neil, how you kept with it I'll never know I wouldn't have even attempted it

[jmurphy18]

awesome Neil!! Looks sweet.
Nicely done here

[Meliodas2019]

Stunning model great job Neil

[digger303]

You finished or almost....superb will power. Looks good.

[RangerNeil]

You finished or almost....superb will power. Looks good.

Thanks Digger I appreciate the kind words. these two have been a nightmare intro back into modelling but having said that -and don't collapse laughing - I am tempted to try the Mil again to see how much better I can get it now that I know in advance where all the problem issues are.

The Mil is 99% finished - as is the Kamov- I can't make my mind up about that aerial though. Runs from the post on the rotor tower to the post on the fuselage towards the tail rotor. I've tried stretching sprue but getting sprue to go that thin for a length of 20cm is tricky to day the least and thus far I've failed dismally. So I am weighing up whether to use thread super-glued to the posts. Or to do nothing at all.
Decisions, decisions..

[digger303]

You finished or almost....superb will power. Looks good.

Thanks Digger I appreciate the kind words. these two have been a nightmare intro back into modelling but having said that -and don't collapse laughing - I am tempted to try the Mil again to see how much better I can get it now that I know in advance where all the problem issues are.

The Mil is 99% finished - as is the Kamov- I can't make my mind up about that aerial though. Runs from the post on the rotor tower to the post on the fuselage towards the tail rotor. I've tried stretching sprue but getting sprue to go that thin for a length of 20cm is tricky to day the least and thus far I've failed dismally. So I am weighing up whether to use thread super-glued to the posts. Or to do nothing at all.
Decisions, decisions..

Ezy line is very popular and comes in 3 different gauges.
I sometimes use very thin brass wire. I drill a hole at right angles and bend the wire to match. It is a very resilient material.

[RangerNeil]

<snipped>

Ezy line is very popular and comes in 3 different gauges.
I sometimes use very thin brass wire. I drill a hole at right angles and bend the wire to match. It is a very resilient material.

Wire - why didn't I think of that?? Thanks Digger. I have access to some very thin stuff here that would be ideal. II'll give it a try

[RangerNeil]

Final post on here as I've declared it finished and put the photos in the Reveal section. I took Diggers suggestion and used some thin wire for the aerial between the rotor head post and the tail boom post. Doesn't look too bad really.
Kit has been a bit of nightmare - what with a load of excess flash and exceedingly poor fit of the clear parts. But at some point I'd like to try another build with all the lessons learnt applied to see if it turns out better.
My thanks to everyone for sticking with the seemingly endless posts on this one. The support was much appreciated during the dark hours!!