Building scale model airplanes is a lifetime hobby and can be a very rewarding. This is a hobby that can be done from the age of 10 and up. Before I get into my guide on how to build plastic scale model airplanes, I need to explain every step necessary in order to begin. Scale models are artistic projects because they require paint and many intricate painting techniques as well as precise construction.

Scale model building is a hobby involving the building of replicas of real-life and fictional vehicles on a smaller scale. For example, there are scale models of airplanes, cars, boats, tanks and even Star Wars vehicles. Common scale sizes for plastic aircraft models are 1/144, 1/72, 1/32 and the common one being 1/48.

The basic materials needed for model building include:

• Hobby Knife
• Plastic model cement (glue) or super glue
• Sand paper of various grits
• Paint brushes
• Spray primer (for Acrylic paints)
• Paint (can be applied with an airbrush, spray paint or a brush)
• Magnifying glass
• Paint thinner/brush cleaner (at local hobby shop)
• Paper towel supply

This is an activity that takes time. Often, people spend weeks or even months working on model airplanes to make them look realistic and detailed. As a result, it’s very time consuming and so I recommend that this activity is done with at least a half hour to spare each time you work.

Paint selection is an essential key to success. There are many paint types and colors you must choose carefully for your project. For scale model building, there are two main categories of paints: oil based and water based. Of those two the most commonly used types are enamel (oil based) and acrylic (water based). Enamel paints dry slower but adhere better to plastic. However, since they are oil based, paint brushes must be cleaned with an oil based cleaner (as opposed to water).

On the other hand, acrylic paints are easier to work with because they mix well with water and dry faster. However, they do not bond very well to plastic,  so you must spray the whole plane with  a primer before you paint the plane’s main color(s). The range of colors for these two types of paints is nearly the same. Likewise, the handling of enamel and acrylic is fairly similar so the choice between  the two types depends on personal preference.

There are several local hobby shops Wildwood/Ballwin area. Hobby Town USA is a hobby shop along Manchester Road that has remote controlled vehicles, static scale models, rockets, toys, hobby supplies and more. Michaels and Hobby Lobby are also good stores to buy model airplanes, paints and hobby supplies.

In the next part is this series, I will post my full guide on how to build model planes step by step.