Construction was pretty straightforward, as usual with Hasegawa kits, the only flaws being some slight assembly inaccuracies due to the aircraft’s complicated shape. Some putty was needed on the fuselage seams and the motor cowlings, which means that I had to rescribe some panel lines after the sanding operations. In order to make painting easier, I treated the motors separately. Be cautious with the ailerons, as they break loose very easily. I recommend to paint them aside and install  them after  the model is finished. The cockpit being very small and well detailed, I think no aftermarket parts are needed here. The wheels are also excellent – and in “weighted” condition – not a kit for resin providers also.

 Transparencies are very thin and clear. The sliding canopy covering a part of the fuselage, the better solution is to paint the kit first and install it afterwards. Due to their simple form, masking the windows is quite easy. Fine decals are provided to represent the white lines painted on the canopy sides to help the pilot estimate his angle of dive.

The armament provided includes both MK 101 and 103 cannons (don’t mix up the different gondolas !), plus two SC-50 bombs on underwing racks. No documentation being available on this subject, I chose the MK 103 because its square muzzle brake and anti-vibration barrel ring look “funnier” than the more classic MK 101. Two different types of exhaust pipes (early and late model) are also provided. Make sure to pick the right ones (I had to change mine…). An antenna mast is included for the early B-2. Decals represent the externally installed motor instrument panels (the cockpit being so cramped).

The aircraft is painted in a 79 (sand) camo with 80 (olive green) mottles, the under surfaces being 78 light blue. White Mediterranean front markings are displayed on the nose (quite a tricky masking job), the rear fuselage (a decal is provided , but I didn’t use it) and the outer under wing panels. According to the few available pictures, the mottling job should not be too dense. Except for the aforementioned victory marks and the quite usual infantry assault insignia  -in this case a “tank destroyer” badge- adorning the nose, no personal or unit markings are carried. After a little training, the “Focus” airbrush worked wonder on that camouflage. I recommend this fine tool to everyone. As usual, Tamiya acrylics were used (and self-mixed to match the paint chips in Monogram’s book “German camouflage colours”). The most difficult part  of the painting job was the three-colour spinners.

 After applying a protective gloss acrylic lacquer, I put on the decals (they went on fine, with no silvering, and they cover quite well). Then, brushed an oil wash of terracotta (easy on the weathering, these planes served only for three weeks !), and sprayed a few layers of  Micro Flat matt varnish (my new airbrush’s narrow muzzle doesn’t stand flat acrylic lacquers anymore – I had to find something new…). A little pastel powder to represent gunpowder and exhaust stains as well as tire wear gave the final touch.

 It was fun to build this excellent kit. I always liked the aggressive and typical “teutonic” look of the Henschel 129 (to me, it’s also the real “father” of the A-10 Thunderbolt II – another “ugly bird with a punch”) , and Hasegawa/Revell’s issue is a great improvement compared to the old Esci kit. Considering the superb Revell/Italeri 1/72 models (not forgetting Pavla’s nice Hs 129 A), I can say we now have a complete and accurate range of kits doing full justice to this lesser known, yet important and fascinating aircraft. Some day I’ll build a Rumanian !