DocRob

I have some pics, which show braided ignition wires in a coppery color, but more so with black or grey lines. The Anyz spark plugs, I used, have an angled connector for the wire. You can carefully push the braided thread onto these, good looking, but not scale wise. Like you said, working with lead wire is much easier, it cuts with only the slightest push of a knife, glues well with CA and keeps it's desired form, if not touched during the process. The 0,3 mm variant fits best to my eye for this 32 scale ignition. Cheers Rob

Thank you for showing the instructions error. I'm more or less sure, I will build the P-51 without bombs, but if my chosen plane had the racks, I have to find out. I will keep your advice in mind. I never tried to brush paint with Ak's Extreme Metals. I assumed, their coverage would not be sufficient. I like Tamiya's LP colors for the task, flows and covers well and 'silver' has a nice steely look. Cheers Rob

Your oil rendering really pops on the NMF, I like it a lot. I tend to weather my planes from very light to heavy use and incorporated various techniques to do so. I never used oils on NMF, but having recently bought a Tamiya Mustang, there is the mule. Thanks for your how to descriptions, which are very helpful. Like you, I switched from Alclad, because of their fragility, but my go to metals are AK's Extreme Metals, which are great to spray, look truly metallic and are robust. Cheers Rob

Very nice progress, the 262 is coming together nicely. Not sure about the 'onions'. On my momentarily halted Arado 234 build I will paint them off black, faded with different hues. Cheers Rob

Excellent paintjob Gary, finish line in sight. Cheers Rob

Thank you Kevin, I'm happy that I switched to the lead wire instead of Anyz braided thread. It would have looked right in 24 scale. My late decision made the approach a bit bumpy and the result is not perfect, but I feel better now. Cheers Rob Thanks Gary, I did what I thought I have to do for a decent front presentation of the engine. For now there will be only a few more engine shots, with the big P&W mounted to the fuselage, an area where I struggled with my first Corsair build, using the Brassin engine. I hope this time alignment will be easier, as the engine is only held in place by the various exhausts and after that the cowlings have to fit. Cheers Rob

Thanks Gary, but there will be even more engine pics. Today, I finalized the wiring. I used 0,3 mm lead wire from PlusModel for the job. The braided Anyz thread just didn't look right. There were four different length of cables, from which I cut nine each. I started to wire the front plugs and the backside of the front cylinders and last the wires for the second row. I used CA glue to attach the wire. By the time, I decided to use lead wire instead of the Anyz stuff, I already glued the ignition harness to the engine. That made the assembly a bit more difficult and led to the decision to not paint the lead wires. I've seen so many pictures with different colored cables, brown, grey, black,..., so I think I can get away with it. Some touch ups here and there and the engine can be called done. On the Eduard.com page you can find PDF manuals for all their products, in this case, I used the manual for the F4U-1A engine set. It proved to be very helpful. Cheers Rob

You are looking at every little mistake as a builder and painter naturally, but I have to say, I really like what I see. All the extra effort will show. If you build something it's like under a magnifying glass, only you use. Take a step back and feel proud about your achievements, Gary. Cheers Rob

Great looking finish. There is nothing to say against a white treatment of the surfaces. There is great contrast to the darker camo shades and it has a blending effect. I've done it on ZM's TA-152, which operated mainly under wintery conditions around Berlin in the winter of 44/45. I found it convincing to replicate the cold conditions. Cheers Rob

Thank you Phil, how can a Tamiya Corsair being SOD-ded? Ah, the rear window issue. If I remember right, my Birdcage had overpainted back windows, which may make things easier. Cheers Rob

I continued with engine painting and assembly. All metallic tones are from AK's Extreme Metallic range, matte aluminum for the cylinders, polished aluminum for the ignition ring, stainless steel for the propeller shaft. The only exception is Alclads Exhaust manifold, which was used exactly for these parts. It's my go to base for prop plane exhausts. The black fairings were sprayed with Tamiya's semi-gloss lacquer black and then rubbed with steel pigments from Uschi van der Rosten by hand. The same treatment received the gear casing, which was sprayed gray and then got some pigments rubbed in, which enhances the casting appearance. Details like nuts and bolts were picked up by brush, using different LP metallic colors. The first pic shows the usefulness of panel liner, left side with, right side without. And this is where I am now. I'm still undecided, whether I use the braided line, which on top of the size issues darkens through sucking the CA up. Maybe I switch to lead wire. Cheers Rob

This is a beautiful engine, you built there, Irishman. The braided line looks fantastic. On my build it seems to be a little over scaled and I still am not decided if I use it. The spark plugs are beautiful, but also more 1/24 than 1/32, I think. For your build they should have been perfect. The ones with angled connectors are very delicate. I needed 12 for my wanted 9 . Cheers Rob

Thank you John, these Corsairs are pieces of beauty, as a kit and in real live. Kit wise, I think this is absolutely top notch with injected styrene. Cheers Rob

Cool thang Martin, I bought a disc sander from Proxxon last year, which really helped for my wooden sailing boat build. I wouldn't use it for resin though. Just too many particles in the air, even with the vac cleaner added. Cheers Rob

Meanwhile I finalized the last preparations, before painting the engine. I glued on the spark plugs, cut flush from the resin sprue and added the oil? tubing on the top front of each cylinder. These are made from folded pe, which were left from my Corsair build 15 years ago. To let them appear more tube like, I applied CA glue with a toothpick to the folded front sides, to prevent a visible gap. Cheers Rob

This is, what I have planned for my Monkey, Paul. I will use Tamiya's lacquer paints, which are great to work with. They can be thinned with Mr. Levelling thinner without problems. I usually mix them up to two thirds of thinner and one third of LP-color. I used Tamiya's Lacquer paints on different occasions and they are perfect for car and motorcycle modelling. My Ford GT and my Ducati Panigale build of last year were exclusively painted with LP-colors. The most tempting and simultaneously rewarding part of bike builds is the replication of the different materials with their typical shine and reflectivity, like plastic and metal. Modern bikes call for more than chrome and aluminum, you have different types of steel, light metals like aluminum, anodized or not, titanium, magnesium, right down my alley Cheers Rob

Thank you Dave, I will keep your recommendation about the axles in mind. Your Gladiator has a perfect finish to my eye, congratulations. Cheers Rob

I like the layered NMF effect a lot. I used splatter masks and steel sponges on non-reflective surfaces so far, but never on aluminum. The chipping fits the state of the aluminum, so far so good. Cheers Rob

Gary the Riveter , nice job with these tiny nuisances. It will look fantastic under some paint. Cheers Rob

Another fine build. I like the paintjob, as it's hard to get a NMF finish weathered realistically. The spills though, I don't like too much , but that's nitpicking. Cheers Rob

Again, very nice Dave. Were there any difficulties through the build?. I have the same kit and plan to build it soon, but in silver dope livery. What's the meaning of the Munich Crisis title in relation to the Gladiator? Cheers Rob

Very nice, painting and weathering are up to your usual high standard. Cheers Rob

I have the same in stash, along with a dedicated decal sheet for some special versions of the monkey. It will be a fun-in-between build for me in the next time. Cheers Rob

Well worth showing the pics Dave . A great build and paintjob, but the interaction between the figure make your Ninack stand out. Cheers Rob

Unfortunately, your pics don't show. A shame, given your usual brilliant work. Cheers Rob