Fieseler Fi 103 RE-4 Piloted Flying Bomb	Bronco, 1/35 scale
by Brett Green

Description

Here is my Bronco 1/35 scale Fieseler Fi 103 RE-4 Piloted Flying Bomb.

This was a fast and enjoyable build, and considering the scale and subject matter is an interesting crossover between military and aircraft models.

Surface detail is heavy, but does lend interest to the otherwise relatively featureless airframe.

I built the model straight from the box. The cockpit is bare (as was the real thing) but the kit-supplied harness straps add a little life in this area. I used Airscale instrument decals on the simple instrument panel, and painted one of the bezels yellow for a little variety. I applied a woodgrain effect to the floor using thinned oil paint over Tamiya acrylics, and the interior sidewalls were painted silver.

The larger plastic parts are really more like a snap-tite kit. Fit is so tight that glue is almost unnecessary for the warhead and main fuselage parts. On the other hand, there is a biggish gap between the wings, the horizontal tail planes and the fuselage, mainly at the bottom join. White Milliput was used to deal with these gaps.

The inclusion of the trolley is a nice touch. I managed to lose one of the hinge halves for the handles, so I only installed the one at the rear.

The model is painted using Gunze acrylic paints. The RLM 81 Brown Violet is actually Gunze H78 Olive Drab, while the others are from their Luftwaffe range - H417 RLM 76 Light Blue and H422 RLM 82 Light Green.