Aircraft Evaluation Criteria

AIRCRAFT EVALUATION CRITERIA

Elimination of flash, mold marks, filler and pusher marks originating from the mold, registration marks (as in Monogram and some Revell kits) and similar mold-related errors,
Elimination of joint marks not present on the real aircraft,
Correction of faulty contour lines (thinner than required radome, leading edge, wings advancing on the wrong line, etc.), Reconstruction of details lost during filling and correction to bring them to the same point as the general detail level of the model,

Wings and horizontal stabilizers: Unless there is a special condition originating from the aircraft, they should be at symmetrical angles when viewed from the front,
Top view: Wings and stabilizers should be aligned on both sides based on the centerline of the aircraft,
Multiple vertical stabilizers: They should be placed at symmetrical angles to the fuselage when viewed from the front and aligned when viewed from the side,
Air intakes and engine outlets: They should be aligned correctly when viewed from the front, rear, side and top,
Landing gear: When viewed from the front, back, side and top, the landing gear elements must be properly aligned with each other and the fuselage,
Ammunition etc.: All ammunition must be properly aligned with each other and the aircraft.

There must be no surface problems caused by adhesives or leveling on transparent parts,
Gaps that may occur at the junctions of the sun visor, canopy and other transparent parts with the fuselage must be filled,
All transparent parts must be scratch-free and free from stains caused by the mask.

Parts given thick in the box of the kit must be thinned or changed. For example, trailing edges of wings, fins of ammunition, landing gear covers, edges of open covers, etc.
Openings such as landing gear slots, air intakes, exhaust outlets must be closed appropriately so that the inside depth of the model is not visible.
Barrels and various air scoop details must be drilled and opened.
Attention must be paid to whether the details added to the model are to scale or manufactured very close to their scale.
The ammunition-type extra parts attached to the model must match the overall model in terms of detail level and the loading must be compatible with the loadings made on the real aircraft.
The detail sets used (metal, photo etch, resin, etc.) must be applied to the model properly, and especially the PEs must be shaped in accordance with the surface of the model.

The surface of the model must not bear traces of the construction phase after painting (glue, sandpaper, fingerprints, etc.).
The finishing of the model must be smooth. If irregularities found on the real aircraft used as a basis are reflected on the model, they must be supported with documents.
There must be no brush marks, feathering, or brush hair in the paint,
There must be no orange peel effect, cracking or dusting (in places such as wing roots, right-angled connections, etc.) in the paint,
There must be no brightness differences caused by incorrect application of the varnish layer.
The paint transitions must be realistic, and there must be no blurring caused by masking errors. Paint transitions must be made to scale in accordance with the documents, without allowing spitting caused by overspray.
The frames of transparent parts must be sharp, clear and smooth.
In case of reflection of atmospheric effects (aging, wear etc.), scale should be taken into consideration, documented real aircraft should be taken as reference (region of use, conditions etc.) and these effects should maintain their integrity in general of the model (such as not putting an excessively aged cockpit on a ex-factory exterior paint). If there is a special situation of the modeled aircraft, this should be supported with documents.

Decals should be aligned properly (if there is a special situation of the modeled aircraft in such markings, it should be documented, thus proving that the modeler did not make a mistake and that the current special situation is reflected exactly).
In some aircraft, ready-made decals are used instead of painting in such markings. If there is an oddity arising from the application in real decals and these are reflected on the model, it should be documented.
Whether the decals are wet or dry, they should look as if they were painted on the surface, air bubbles should be eliminated, surface lines should be absorbed and there should be no silvering caused by the matte surface.

The colors of the paints, even from the same company and produced in the same way, may have slight color differences from batch to batch. Different usage areas affect the paint in different ways. All paints fade due to both atmospheric conditions and sunlight. In addition, the distance you look at also affects your perception of the tone of the paint. Poor application and maintenance cause color problems in real aircraft. Therefore, except for major errors (painting the Red Arrows aircraft in green color, etc.), acceptable color differences do not affect the model’s conformity to reality. However, if there are serious differences in the color of the model compared to the color it should be, they should be documented.