I decided it’s time to add a 1/48 modern pilot to join my 1/48 WWII pilot that’s used for size comparisons for my completed kits. There is a surprising lack of offerings for standing modern pilots in 1/48 scale but I finally got my hands of a pair of them, courtesy of Plus Model. Even better, it’s a mixed gender pair. Inside the blister are 2 figures, a duffel bag and a small sheet of decals. An illustration serves as a color guide with no paint codes provided.
I decided to go with the female pilot as it’s more interesting and I prefer the pose. The sculpt looks good overall though I think the face lacks femininity. The pour tabs are small and easily removed.
Once the tabs are cut off and the cut marks sanded down, I scrubbed the figure with soap before pinning onto the cork base. First color on is black as a base.
Then I sprayed white at a 45 degree down angle to hit the spots where the Sun up in the sky will hit on a typical day. This will serve as a base for my highlights and shadows. I then painted with paints cut with a bit of glaze medium to reduce the opacity so the work done previously still shows through. For an added splash of color, I gave the figure a red undershirt. I also went with a tan flight suit to break up the monotony of everything being olive drab.
After the first wash, the figure still looks flat. So I went in to add highlights on the edges and ridges of the figure. I then spent some time tweaking the highlights and shadows by repainting, washing then repainting again.
I then added the shoulder patches from the included decal sheet.
After a final flat coat, I’m done. I think I still have a ways to go with painting faces but I can live with this result.
For what I intend to use it for, I think it looks good.
