1/72 Eduard L-39ZA Albatross

Gallery Article by Allan “Spongebob” Hernandez on Mar 15 2011

 

Greetings from the Philippines! This would be my first submission on ARC and I’ll make sure it won’t be the last. The kit is Eduard’s 1/72 L-39C which I built as an L-39ZA of the Libyan Air Force. It does look handsome being built out of the box, however, I wanted to show the model with open panels and details and make this Albatross even better. All of the alterations on the kit were scratchbuilt  using photos of the real aircraft I sourced from the internet and all the finely built Albatross models in ARC’s gallery as my reference. I used styrene bits and pieces, soda can, wires, model parts from my own “boneyard” and any item I came across until it looked good in my eye. Alterations made were:

  • Open avionics bays (forward and aft fuselage)

  • Boarding steps

  • Dropped flaps

  • Additional cockpit and seat details

The kit has it’s minor challenges but everything can be fixed with some putty, super glue and sand paper. I choose to finish the model with Libyan makings using Gungze Sangyo Mr.Color paints sprayed through my Tamiya Sprayworks set.  I also painted the emblems on the model since there were simple enough to do.  Decals and stencils were sourced from the kits’ sheet. 

Click on images below to see larger images

  

  

The model was my entry for the 2010 IPMS Philippines Scale Modeling Competition held last November under modified jets category.  I may have ended second best in the category (which was deservedly won by Super Mario’s A-7E)  but the complements I received was enough to make me feel a winner.  I would like to present this as my tribute to the master modelers who’s works I can never equal, namely Allan “Buck” Agati (whose 1/72 EA-6B from years ago inspired me to do a lot better, Super Mario whose model’s are consistently SUPER, and to Tim “Buccanneer” whose choppers will always be my benchmark and to Spidey, Jim and Doc Hermes (who christened me with my call sign) and all IPMS-BA members (whom I should know had I been attending the meetings, hehehe). 

Special thanks to Tim  and to whoever took pictures of my Albatross were the credit is due (I’m too lazy to take my own! (‘’,) ) MABUHAY! 

Greetings from IPMS-BA

Allan “Spongebob” Hernandez

Photos and text © by Allan “Spongebob” Hernandez