English Electric Canberra B6

This is Aeroclub's Canberra 1:48 semi-vac formed Canberra B6 in the pre 1960 markings of 139 "Jamaica" Squadron RAF.  The kit provides vac formed fuselage, wings, and canopies with injection moulded forward fuselage, tailplanes and undercarriage bays/doors.  The cockpit interior, ejection seats, undercarriage legs and nosewheels are in white metal and the engine intakes, exhausts and mainwheels are wonderfully cast in resin - a true multi-media kit.  All of the components are well made and wonderfully detailed.  The kit instructions are comprehensive and worth studying before starting assembly. 

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The engineering of the main gear bays is excellent, incorporating the main wing spar and ensures a strong connection between wing and fuselage.  The injection moulded tailplane and rudder halves need to be sanded down as if they were vac fomed to ensure a scale thickness joint but this is no chore as the main fuselage and wings need to be sanded anyway.  Following assembly and filling around the wing/engine joints, I primed the model with grey auto primer and then gave it a couple of coats of "Nissan  Silver" auto paint before polishing with SNJ powder.  The tip tanks required some re-profiling at the connection with the wing tip undersides to ensure a good fit and I
 added the wing tip lights, tank nose lights and cable conduit from spares box plastic bits.

The kit decals were used for the all over silver 139 Squadron B6 with additional black decal stripe cut into individual perforations to form the cut marks around the canopy, entrance door and rear ejection seat cover.

 A superb kit from Aeroclub - roll on with the B2 and PR9 versions.

Darius Aibara

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