by Jonathon Adams

This is my AMT Star Wars A Wing Fighter entry. The kit is built "out-of-the-box" with no add-ons or customizations except for the stand (more on that later). This kit is currently out of production and I purchased it on-line this year to add to my collection. After seeing the post for this contest I figured it was karma.

As for the build, this model couldn't be any simpler to assemble. It was originally a "snap-fit" model, but I removed or trimmed most of the connectors for a cleaner glued finish. The pilot lacked quite a bit of detail, but thanks to an exacto knife and some spare time, I cleaned him up quite a bit. I did sand down the severity of the raised panel lines and closed the seams up on the engines and rings.

After assembly came the paint job (my favorite part). My choice of paint schemes was not the "standard" maroon/white/black motif seen on screen and suggested in the instructions, but instead a green/gray/black theme seen in expanded universe publications and in a Target exclusive toy. I saw this toy when it came out and loved the paint job, when I purchased the model there was no option for me, it had to be the green. I painted the entire model in "light gray" and the center highlights/engine bodies in medium green. I then trimmed out the rear of the top and bottom body and fins with a darker "gunship" gray. After drying, I painted the black stripe down the center and on the canopy frame, as well as the guns on either side. After that dried, I drew all of the panel lines with gel ink and smudged them to bring out the designs. I then dry-brushed steel accents on the engines and guns. After that I used a very fine detail brush with chrome to dry-brush the chipped or exposed paint throughout the top and bottom of the body/fins/engines and guns to give it a very used look. Finally I applied 3 black charcoal washes over the entire model (heavier in some areas, ie. gun sides/engines/rear) to really bring out the highlights on this small fighter. After finishing, I used a very light coat of dulcoat to even everything out.

The stand that came with this model was the typical 70's/80's AMT clear plastic thing that wasn't very useful. I simply painted a wood disk plaque in black and then painted the Rebel Alliance logo onto that in chrome. The post was painted in flat black and attached to the stand/model and that's what is in the pictures. All was built as instructed, and I hand painted the entire model. I know this was wordy, but for a model that is only about 7" long, I found a lot of interesting ways to bring it to life. Overall a very fun model, and hopefully a quality entry into my first contest!

Image: Right/rear view

Image: Cockpit

Image: Cannon

Image: Front

Image: Engine

Image: Top