A-40 1:72

Looks simple from the start 

I decided to build it with full interior - I something I don’t even do on the 48th tanks - but hey, it’s an aircraft after all 😉 

The proposed tracks are crude, and would be a pain to apply… so I decided to use a PE set from Part, which was intended for an T-70… not sure if they actually differed, but that was the most pragmatic choice, and I think it looks good. 

Hmmm, not much visible in terms of interior in the end, but I know it’s there. 

Next question = how to paint it… Antonov probably got a regular T-60 which was 4BO, so I used the corresponding AK shading set. You can actually see it a bit. The wings ended up in regular dark green, as known from contemporary VVS camo  

First fitting = the alignment of the wings to the tank is not trivial 

Time for rigging. AK’s magnetic spaghetti made a mess of it, but I prevailed. A lot of tenacity required for this activity. 

Yeas, it’s nearly Christmas 🙂
After this one, and the Gladiator running at the same time, I have enough of biplanes for a while… 

It’s impossible to balance the model, so it wouldn’t be a tail sitter. I thinned the booms and the tail, but to no avail… something else was needed 

I didn’t want to attach it the base for good. Btw, the decals are bad - they fall apart when applying  

I considered adding some sort of small hook to the base… but that didn’t work either with the grass for a proper alignment 

A crew, to add some flavor… not sure if they actually had tank helmets, but it would make sense. Sold in pack of 3, needed just two 

And here’s the solution… the guy in the rear I holding the tail up, while the other crewman in the front nonchalantly smokes his mahorka  

I like how it worked out