A-10C Blacksnakes

This Italeri A-10C has a good balance between level of detail and ease of construction. I do not know much about the recently released 1/48 Academy A-10C kit, but I think, despite the inaccurate nose shape, it is a vast improvement over the Revell and Tamiya kits of the identical aircraft. I even prefer this kit over the 1/48 Hobbyboss versions, as I feel their kits are overly engineered. For my build of this aircraft model, I feel I went a bit overboard on the aftermarket parts. Here's a list of these items: 1. Eduard 4884 A-10C 1/48 exterior PE for Italeri kit. 2. Eduard FE1026 A-10C 1/48 Zoom interior PE for Italeri kit. 3. Eduard FE1027 A-10C 1/48 Zoom seatbelts for Italeri kit 4. Eduard EX477 A-10C 1/48 Die-Cut Flexible Canopy Mask set. 5. Master 1:48 A-10 Thunderbolt II GAU Avenger Gun Tip and Pitot Tub detail set. 6. Quickboost QB 48 173 A-10A Thunderbolt II Correct 1/48 Resin Fan Blades Set. I also installed a sniper targeting pod that was taken from an Academy 1/48 F-15C kit. The kit parts have recessed panel lines and good rivet detail. There are enough ordinance to load up every weapon pod on the aircraft. I used an airbrush to initially primer the model in acrylic flat black, followed by the correct light ghost gray and dark ghost gray camouflage colors. I then gave the exterior surfaces a coat of Future Floor Wax prior to fixing the decals. The decision to go for the Fort Wayne, Indianna version with the blacksnake nose art was a no brainer. Finally the kit was given a protective coat of matte clear enamel Rust-oleum from a spray can before weathering and panel washing. The kit is recommended for intermediate to advanced builders with some airbrushing skills. The kit and ordinance will take considerable time to paint and decal. Application of stencil decals is tedious. However, with time and patience an accurate replica of this intimidating aircraft can be built.