GazzaS

Now the question is: Can you find a MiG 23 in NZ under which to sit and sip Vodka?

Just a small update... Added a spiral spinner decal from an Eduard Old Tool FW 190 kit. Also used some oil filters in three zones: White uppermost, Brown middle, and blue lowest. I hate waiting for stuff to dry. Thanks for looking! Gaz

Excellent!!

The tail came out perfect!

Nice wood effects! That's one part that befuddles me: Getting a good wood look on narrow frames.

Hi everyone, Thank you for the great replies! I'll a nswer some questions further down... After the update. When I bought the kit it was marked "missing one small decal" So, I paid $8 for it. Unbeknownst to me, the "small decal" was one of the upper wing Fasces. So, using White 17 of JG 77 as inspiration, I dug into my decals stash. I decided my safest bet for fictitious-though-plausible would be to make a plane for the Gruppen Kommandeur Siegfried Freytag. My reasoning was that the CO's plane would have some better markings than the rest of them... Here is my result: The first thing I did this morning, was to give the plane an overall wet sanding with 12000 grit micromesh. This gave me a smooth surface for the decals as well as evening out some of the paintwork. Then I began applying some 20 year old Tamiya Fw190 decals. The fuselage kreuze were each made of two decals to mimic the painted markings on White 17. I made the Herz As insiginia with my Silhouette Cameo cutter. They came out pretty so-so, mainly due to me. Interestingly, it would not make the hearts correctly. Instead of two nice lobes at the top of the heart, the heart formed in the program as a rounded triangle. So, I had to finish it with a little hand painting. I'm pretty sure my setup isn't perfectly balanced. I'm just muddling through really... but I'll tell ya what I've got. Airbrush: I was using an Iwata HP B+. It has a regulator at the back to limit flow. I use a shop compressor. Airbrush handling: Single handed, and I tired to keep the tip close to the painted surface with little success. I often find myself farther away than I started. The needle cap is on there pretty tight. It ain;t coming off without tools. Paint brand: I use artists acrylics in a tube and mix my own colors though I did start with some AK paints that gave me dry tip way too fast. I thin them with Future, and a mixture of glass cleaner and water with a bit of Glycerol as a flow enhancer. I have acrylic retarder... didn;t even think to use it! Pressure... the gauge is below knee level... hard to see. I just adjust up and down depending on how the paint is flowing. I have some Tamiya paints, though I didn't feel like using them. Probably would have been easier. But I would have had to mix colors, and more often than not, I waste paint that way. At least with the tube acrylics I can use a color recipe book and paint very cheaply. I admit I'm still learning to make everything work together. Maybe better next time. Thanks for looking! Gaz

Thank you Phil! I was surprised it came out as well as it did. Thank you, Ernie. Surely an airbrush master like yourself could do it. I think it would have gone nicer with enamel... But since I weather with oils, everything below has to be acrylic. Gaz

Will watch with interest, Bill. Alway's liked the nimble looking fighter. Gaz

She's a beaut, John!

Hi everyone, My first and most likely last attempt at smoke ring camo. I used acrylic paints and had to fight dry tip the whole way. And no matter what I tried I couldn't find the sweet spot, so there is very little uniformity in the rings. At least the fuselage band came out alright. I masked that. Hopefully, weathering, effects, and markings will make the smoke rings look a little better. Cheers! Gaz

Awesome!

This should be cool!

Great update, Peter!

My final Christmas gift arrived today: She'll be pretty in foil! Gaz

Postage from the US is killer. I only order from there in desperation.

Excellent Job, Kai! A very attractive result to be certain! Gaz

Thank you, Peter!

Thank you, Kai!

Just Awesome! I too have learned to put my pigments on last.

Of course! I couldn't warn you about the NZ air force cuz they don't have one.

Beware the Weta!

Great job on those tires. Wow!

Holy smokes! That's one big bird I just might make an exception for. I don't know what I'd do with it once finished... But learning all the detail of the beast would be great fun. God help me if anyone ever releases a large scale Bear Bomber: Gaz BTW... I love Ju-88s in all of their versions... But if I built them all in large scale, they'd all end up dust-covered, or in the bin. GAz

I'd swear you did more Corsairs than that! Sweet looking works all, John! ...though I like the P-51 most! Happy New Year!

And to you sir! May 2019 be blessed with good things and lots of bench time.