Eurofighter Typhoon "Bronze Tiger"

Ron Garcia
Oof! This model will definitely test your decaling skills! The kit itself is pretty easy to build. Any problems with it I already detailed in the comments section of the 04568 version, so I'll concentrate on the decals.

First of all, leave off anything that will protrude before you start applying the decals. This includes the landing gear doors and maybe even the nose landing gear itself. Besides the obvious stuff like antennas and such, I left off all four parts B76, both parts B77, both parts A38, and both elevon actuators. All these things will definitely interfere with decal placement. I already attached the landing gear doors but had to snap them off (luckily, I always use CA glue for those after they are painted) because the decals butt right up to the landing gear wheel wells.

Decal 23 fits over the nose landing gear wheel well. I had to carefully cut the clear film from it so I could slide it over the already installed nose landing gear. Decals 60 and 61 also required surgery to make them fit on top of the intake. I sliced all the stripes apart and jigsawed what I thought made it look nice.

I suggest that you apply the decals in this order: pylons and external fuel tanks, the entire bottom, and finally the entire top and sides.

Start with the pylons and tanks just to get some practice in so you know what you're getting yourself into! Decaling the fuel tanks was actually quite difficult because the decal numbers are repeated in several different views. The first one you do will probably be quite confusing.

The next session, tackle the bottom but give yourself plenty of time to finish it so you can line everything up with the other decals. This session was the most time consuming because of the sheer amount of decals that need to be placed. I cut off a molded on antenna near the aft section because I was unsure of where to slice the decal to drape it over it (I glued it back on afterwards). There is another molded on antenna near the radome, but it is too tiny to cut off. However, if you carefully slice decal 99 lining up the two center squares on it, it'll slip over it with no problem.

Finally, do the top and sides at the same time so you can line everything up. There are less decals so this section isn't as tedious. The only trouble I ran into here was on either side of the fuselage in the crack above the intake, the decals that go there just wouldn't line up. I cut the stripes apart on them to make them look right.

Whew! That was it. It was a very time consuming job to say the least!

There are a few other things I should mention.

This one is a no brainer, but use decal setting solution! There are lots of nooks and crannies that the decals need to conform to, so this is a must. The decals worked perfectly with Miro Sol and Micro Set.

I painted my kit Tamiya X-33 Bronze. I then overcoated it with Tamiya X-26 Clear Orange. This combo is not as orange as the real paint scheme, but I knew it wouldn't be since I tested it out beforehand. My version looks like a very shiny warm bronze, and I liked the look of it when I tested it out.

Not all the decal stripes will line up - I know, shocker! - but they will be close enough that a small touch up of black will do the trick.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention Alistair and his company Aerocraft Models. The canopy has a nasty seam on it that needs to be removed. I buffed it out, but in the process I must have over stressed the plastic. When I test fitted the canopy over part E83 it suddenly cracked at least a few centimeters. Luckily, Aerocraft Models came to the rescue. I ordered the Eurofighter EF-2000A replacement canopy from them. The canopy was crystal clear and fit perfectly. It does require a steady hand with a Dremel cutting disk to remove the excess resin so be careful if you go this route.

Once finished, the kit looks great. It really stands out next to the many grey aircraft on my shelf. My wife even liked it, so there's that. Was it worth it? I think so, but it took a lot of work. If applying decals isn't your thing, this kit is an easy skip.