Latest progress shots:
Beats the F outta me what Minicraft was thinking with the engine exhaust stubs. For them to be installed correctly, you'd have to actually cut out slots in the sides of the engine nacelles for them. Guess I should have taken a look at that more closely before getting to this stage. Oh well, frak me. So I just took the easy way out (this is a whiff, so I say it works, wink-wink) and attached them to the sides of the nacelles. It looks like some goofy-ass steel box with the exhaust stubs coming out the sides. Maybe I can explain it away as some marine modification to the Daimler-Benz DB601s or something.
Decided to not do the white winter patches and removed the masking from the canopy, it came out pretty good and the pics don't show it, but those basic interior details I added early on to the inside really help the overall looks. Naturally I didn't use the right RLM shade of gray for the interior, but I have broken beer bottle and a bad attitude that says it works the way I did it.
I added a coat of Future to the camouflage to give it some durability while I added more details. That's why it has a glossy appearance in this shot.
Underside view. I took some styrene strip and shaped the leading and trailing edges to form the extra cantilever strut that goes from the float to the engine nacelle.
Reverse angle on the underside. There's a notch in the main float struts that allows the flaps to lower and you can see the cantilevered outboard strut better. Under the wing center section is the torpedo shackle.
Next step will be working on the props and adding details. I have some photo-etch ship stuff that I used on an airport diorama that will work well as boarding ladders that will run from the aft section of each float to the lower fuselage just aft of the wing root trailing edge, much like the boarding ladders on the Heinkel He 115.
