Italeri 1/32 Macchi Mc.202 Folgore

[Troy Molitor]

Suspense is an understatement.  This will be fun to see come out alright.  

[scvrobeson]

Cool way to plan for the paint scheme while still allowing the green to be pre-shaded.  Really looking forward to the reveal. 

Good call on the Gunze shades, I've got a couple of Italian projects in the future pipeline, so those will be helpful.

 

 

 

Matt 

[Javlin1]

5 hours ago, Thunnus said:

Thanks Matt!

 

 

Thank you for the comments! I think they come a few months too late for me to practically consider them.  Some of them I was aware of.  The venturi will be belly-mounted as I've filled the hole in the starboard side of the fuselage.  After discovering that the Series VII probably had the earlier stabilizers without the horn balances, I made an economic/practical decision to keep on going since I had already expended funds on the AiP replacements and did not wish to modify the kit parts nor spend any more money on aftermarket parts. My resource says that this machine had the windscreen armor so I'm ok with kit-supplied part.  Small bumps?  Maybe I can do something about that.

 

The paint stage is fully underway now.  After the white areas have thoroughly dried, they are masked off.

 

It's time to paint the grey undersides using Mr Hobby Aqueous Light Grey (H-324).  The paint is thinned with Mr Leveling Thinner using a 1:1 ratio.  This gives me a very thin paint which sacrifices coverage but I gain a smoother finish and more control over the pre-shade effect.

 

MLT is a very "hot" thinner.  As the grey is sprayed, it sort of sinks into the black pre-shade layer, slowly bringing up some of the black to the surface as it dries.  Because of this, it is important to monitor the paint coverage and go back and touch up spots that looked ok when you sprayed but now look too dark.

 

After the grey dries, the demarcation between the upper and lower camo colors is masked off.

 

The model is ready to receive the smoke ring masks, which I've traced from the kit decals.  But before I do that, let's run through the process using the horizontal stabilizers as a test run.  One mistake is using Oramask as my masking material.  This stuff works great but is translucent grey and all but disappears when applied.  I should've used the yellow Tamiya masking sheets for better visibility.  Not wanting to waste all of that Oramask, I decided to soldier on.

 

After the masks are applied the brown color is sprayed on.  This color is called Nocciola Chiaro 4 and should be represented using Mr Hobby Aqueous H-310 US Brown (FS30219). But as you can see, I grabbed the wrong bottle of brown paint, which I did not realize until just BEFORE applying the brown to rest of the model.

 

Once the masks are removed, the smoke rings are clearly defined and these areas can now be filled in carefully with green.

 

The green color is called Verde Oliva Scuro and I am using Mr Hobby Aqueous RLM 71 Dark Green for this shade.  Using my Iwata HP-B Plus, it was relatively easy to fill in the empty spaces to create these smoke rings.

 

Test complete, it is now time to apply the smoke ring masks to the rest of the model.  I have two good photo references of the port side.  One is of the actual aircraft (MM9042)...

 

The other is this clear photo of MM9044, which I am assuming to have very similar characteristics to MM9042.

 

Placement of the smoke rings will be based on these photos for the port side only.  I've produced a set of mirrored smoke rings to give me a bigger palette to choose from.  The rest of the placement is based on the kit instructions but I've purposefully tried to change the orientation of the rings to deviate from the appearance of a build using the smoke ring decals.  As you can see the masks are very difficult to see

 

Using the correct brown this time (H-310), the Nocciola Chiaro 4 is sprayed onto the model.

 

We'll let this dry and the fun part begins in earnest when I remove the smoke ring masks!

 

 

Very interesting technique well outside the conventional mindset ...like it.

[Thunnus]

Thanks guys! Sorry to keep you in suspense! 

 

 

37 minutes ago, scvrobeson said:

Cool way to plan for the paint scheme while still allowing the green to be pre-shaded.  Really looking forward to the reveal. 

Good call on the Gunze shades, I've got a couple of Italian projects in the future pipeline, so those will be helpful.

 

 

 

Matt 

 

I referenced the color guide on the Stormo! website to match the camo colors to FS references.

https://www.stormomagazine.com/RegiaAeronauticaColorsinWWII_3a.htm

 

Light Hazel, Nocciola Chiaro 4 = FS 30219
Dark Olive Green, Verde Oliva Scuro 2 = FS 34052
Light Blue Gray, Grigio Azzurro Chiaro 1 = FS 36307

 

I then used AK Real Colors Conversion Chart to match FS numbers with Mr Hobby equivalents. 

https://www.ak-masters.com/app/pdf/RCEquivalenceDIG.pdf

 

This worked for the Hazel (Brown) and Gray colors.

FS30219 = Mr Hobby Aqueous H310 Brown FS 30219

FS36307 = Mr Hobby Aqueous H324 Light Gray JASDF

 

Couldn't find a Mr Hobby match for the green FS number but have read that Mr Hobby Aqueous H65 RLM 70 Black Green is a good match. My copy of H64 RLM 71 Dark Green sprays better so I am leaning towards using that with assumption that dark greens could easily fade to a lighter shade during desert operations.

Edited April 3, 2025 by Thunnus

[Thunnus]

Time to start peeling off the smoke ring masks!

 

This step took a while but eventually all of the masks were removed.

 

The patterns of the mottles are clearly outlined and just need to be filled in with the airbrush.

 

For this step, I swap from my Iwata HP-C Plus, which has a 0.3mm tip to the HP-B Plus with a finer 0.2mm tip.  The dark green color is called Verde Oliva Scuro 2 and I'm using Mr Hobby Aqueous RLM 71 Dark Green (H-64) for the smoke rings.

 

Since an airbrush sprays a cone-shaped pattern, the closer you get the airbrush tip to the model, the finer the line you will be able to get. So painting the smoke rings was a lot of close-up airbrushing work, constantly shifting the model and hand positions.

 

I'm not a great airbrusher so the "color by numbers" aspect of this technique made painting the smoke rings much easier.  Just fill in the empty spaces!

 

Finishing the smoke rings represents the end of the major painting stage.  But still lots of work to be done.  I'll have to inspect the paint work closely and apply touch-ups as necessary so I'm leaving the other masks in place for now.  Photo references verify that the small teardrop-shaped bumps on the engine cowling were absent so these were shaved off. Obviously, it would've been much cleaner to do the removal BEFORE painting but sometimes these less-than-ideal situations arise.

 

The horizontal stabilizers have been stripped and re-painted since they were painted in the wrong color.  These can now be placed in position to give us a look at the paint work so far.

 

After a few touch-ups, I removed some of the masks to inspect the demarcation lines.

 

The paint on the engine cowling needs to be restored but overall, the camo painting is done.

 

A look at the painted Quickboost spinner in place.

 

[D.B. Andrus]

On 4/1/2025 at 11:36 AM, Thunnus said:

Thank you Michael!  Reference builds establish a road map and yours definitely guided me around a few potential pitfalls.  Hopefully this build can serve in a similar way to others who choose to build this kit.

 

 

Thanks John!

 

 

Hah!  Thanks Mike! 

 

 

 

Thank you Jay!  I consider the Folgore one of WW2's iconic aircraft so I'm very grateful to have a modern tool kit.  It's not a bad kit by any means but... it could've been much better without much effort on Italeri's part.

 

 

Thank you!  The mask cutter is definitely a game-changer and allows that much more flexibility when it comes to markings.

 

 

Thank you Dennis!

 

 

I considered it Tony... and I'm gonna say no.  It's not a complicated fix but its not super simple either.  One issue for me is that the gun cover is attached and the joints have been sealed with putty.  Re-scribing will put pressure on the cover and may compromise the joints, which I don't want to do over.  Another issue is the depth and width of the round fasteners.  They cannot be replicated exactly with the tools that I have.  To do the job right, I'd have to replace all of them so that the fasteners all look the same.  And honestly, the oval fasteners don't bother me too much.  I can live with em.  Sorry.

 

 

Thanks John!  I felt that, with the wing spar, gluing the upper wings first would help ensure correct dihedral.  As opposed to doing it the traditional way and trying to close that gap last by pushing the wing tips up.

 

 

 

Almost to the main painting stage but I decided to paint the Quickboost prop blades first.  After a primer coat, the blades were sprayed with Tamiya AS-12 silver and then hairspray before the black was sprayed on.  The leading edges of the blades were lightly chipped and then I masked them to paint the tips yellow and bases silver.

 

The yellow tips were confined to the front of the blades.  The back tips were left unpainted to represent wear.

 

The blades were sealed with a gloss coat before the Macchi factory decals were applied to the front of the blades.

 

The blades were then given a flat coat and then treated with a couple rounds of salt weathering.

 

The completed prop blades...

 

I may do a test of the camo painting, including the smoke rings on the horizontal stabilizers, which are still unattached.  The stabs are treated to my customary pre-shade mottle pattern.

 

The underside grey color is called Grigio Azzurro Chiaro (FS 36307) and will be represented by Mr Hobby Aqueous Light Grey (H-324).

 

 Beautiful work, John, as always! 

 

BTW, where did you source those neat little blue clips? They look perfect for smaller part work.

 

Cheers,

Damian

[Thunnus]

15 minutes ago, D.B. Andrus said:

 Beautiful work, John, as always! 

 

BTW, where did you source those neat little blue clips? They look perfect for smaller part work.

 

Cheers,

Damian

Thank you Damian!  The clips were from Amazon. Search "mini clamps with vinyl grips" and they should pop up.  They are very handy but be aware of their grip strength, which is high.  If part is not secure and slips, the resultant PING can send a small part flying.

[JayW]

You have alot of great paint jobs to compare this too.  This one looks really complicated, would you not agree?  And god - it must have taken forever to get all those smoke rings finished.  It looks so authentic. 

 

Oh and while I am at it, I too have a HP-C and I am having trouble with it, depending on which paint I use.  In some cases the air will not stop blowing out of it even though the trigger is relaxed, bleeding down my compressor.  In other cases, the paint comes out either not at all or too little compared to the air, again depending on the paint.  All this despite some pretty meticulous cleaning after painting, and a couple of deep cleans per the Iwata instructions.  I think I am going to have to give it a really deep cleaning requring much disassembly over and above what they say.  Can you share your aribrush cleaning practices?  

[Thunnus]

Thanks Jay!  The smoke ring painting did take a long time but it was methodical and I was able to plow through it without too much mental struggle, which I was worried about when I first envisioned trying to freehand these smoke rings using reference photos.

 

Airbrush issues eh?  The way that airbrushes are designed, there is physically nothing stopping paint from going backwards into the airbrush, all the way to the nut that locks the needle down.  Periodically, I will unscrew that rear portion of the airbrush and clean it using wire cleaners.

 

I believe that this issue is affecting your Valve Piston (I751). Normally, a downward press of the trigger will allow compressed air to enter the airbrush.  Upon release of the trigger, the Air Valve Spring should push the Valve Piston back up, shutting off the air supply.  I'm guessing you've got paint/gunk hindering that Valve Piston from returning to its default position.

 

 

What you need to do is remove your needle and that rear portion of the brush including the Needle Chucking Guide, Needle Spring, Spring Guide and Chucking Nut.  Once that is removed, you can pull out your Trigger.

 

The Valve Piston is held in place with an o-ring (Valve Piston Packing).  You can see the Valve Piston in my HP-C Plus below.

 

 

You can remove it by pushing it up and out with a toothpick from below.

 

 

Clean the piston and also the surrounding area where it sits and apply some lubrication.

 

After you put it back together, the air valve spring should return the piston back up to default position after every trigger press.

[Thunnus]

After I inspected the painted smoke rings, I decided to remove the remaining masks.  The right side tail cross...

 

The left side cross...

 

The fuselage band...

 

There are some tiny areas of overspray that I can correct but otherwise, this turned out well.  Biggest relief?  No paint pull-up at all! The removed bumps on the engine cowling have been repaired and repainted.  I've also painted the cowling gun troughs black.

 

I still need to fix the paint transitions around the wheels wells, the exhausts and the cockpit but the next major step will be the painted markings.
 

[Furie]

Great work John.
Your trick with the smoke rings made with masks is really ingenious.  

[IainM]

That is looking absolutely gorgeous!!! Really enjoyed seeing how you managed to do those smoke rings!

[Gazzas]

That paint job really looks the business, John.  I like those funky little clips, too.  I'm currently using alligator clips that I took to the grinder to make the tips finer.

[LSP_Kevin]

Just fantastic, John! You really have a way of achieving all the things you set out to do on a model.

 

Kev

[scvrobeson]

That's looking spectacular!  The plan of masking the smoke rings to fill them in seems to have worked really well.

 

 

 

Matt