So lets just start by saying I remember one of my very first kits way back c.1977 being a Matchbox Lysander, and I've loved the aircraft ever since. Now that I build almost exclusively 1/48 it was only a matter of time before I sprung for Eduard's Lysander Mk.III Profipack.
In the box the kit looks nice enough with a few bits of resin and some nice PE, mostly for the cockpit. With a fairly low parts count (most parts seem to go in the cockpit), I decided to give it a shot about a week ago.
A few days later I was ready to chuck the damned thing in the bin. It really is not a great kit. The are zero alignment pins anywhere on the kit. And while detail is nice, especially in the cockpit, but it just wanted to fight me at every step. Once it came time to fit the 5-piece greenhouse canopy/windshield affair and the associated wing carry through I decided it was time to pack it back up and find a less stressful hobby.
But after a few days at the coast I decided to power on through and see what I could do with it without putting in too much frustration. So here she is.
Kit decals for a 161 Sqn machine in 1942 were used, because I like the SOE machines, but didn't want to do the all over black scheme also included. I masked the grey/green with Silly Putty for a hard edge and if I'd been in a better mood with it would have done the same for the black, but the example hanging in the main hall at the Smithsonian Udvar Hazy Air and Space Museum Annex seems to have a softer edge on the black, so masking was skipped and I freehanded it. It's not my best build ever but I am glad I followed through and now have a good "4-footer" of one of my favorite WW2 aircraft on the shelf.
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