Thanks Andy, and yes, I was quite surprised, and slightly irritated, as the fit seemed good during test-fitting. But the gaps have now been sorted.
Got the drop tanks off the casting blocks, cleaned-up, fuel filler and drain plugs added, and fitted to the wings.
Neil Burkill at Paragon did an excellent job when he cast these tanks, as the fit at the wing leading edge is perfect.
However, as the top face of each tank, where it meets the wing surface, is concave, there is very little contact with the wing, so a simple 'fix' was the addition of strips of plastic card.
PICS 1 to 3. The tanks were removed from the casting blocks by repeated scribing, then simply snapped away. The remaining excess resin was easily scraped off, and then filed and sanded smooth, and the drain plug added, just discernible inside the circular 'flange', scribed into the underside. The fuel filler was also scribed, and the fasteners replicated by small holes.
PIC 4. After trying to attach the tanks using CA adhesive, it was evident that there was very little surface contact, so strips of plastic card where glued in place with CA, and these were used to glue the tanks in place. A thin bead of CA was then run around the edge joints of each tank.
PICS 5 and 6. The tanks in place, nicely conforming to the leading edge with the correct shape and profile.
PICS 7 and 8. How the model looks to date, with the drop tanks fitted, and those gaps attended to.
As I made the mistake of having a nap this afternoon, and longer than planned, I'm wide awake now, so i'll continue with the model, and try to get the final bits fitted, before preparing to prime the model ready for painting.
Thanks again to all for looking in, and I'll be back soon -ish.