Atlas Cheetah E Scaleworx Conversion

[GusMac]

Thanks chaps.

Rob, another advantage of the conversion is that John supplies new main undercarriage legs with a metal core within the resin, so hopefully they will more than do the job.

I've got the resin tail on and I'm trying to get all the resin pieces added that are aft of the main gear so I can check the sit with the big resin nose taped on. That way I'll still have the chance to add some weight around the front wheel well, if required, before I attach the nose.

I'll post some further pics soon.

[GusMac]

Update time.

I've got all the resin bits attached now other than the nose so I can do a final assessment of whether I need to add any weight before I seal the front.

Everything fits really well with only minimal filler required to smooth things in. I thought getting the canards off the casting blocks might be a nightmare given the curved surface where they attach to the fuselage but John has done a superb job at the casting stage and a few passes with a sharp blade were all that was needed.

In an effort to get a good strong join with the nose I've blatantly copied what Mistral did on his build on LSP and glued a thin styrene disk to the back which will be joined with Tamiya Extra Thin and hopefully give a good strong weld. Again, looks like it shouldn't need much filler so hopefully primer soon!

[harv]

Wow, that's a lot of work ! Looking good....harv

[BlrwestSiR]

That looks great. Nice to see you overcoming all the hurdles the base kit is throwing at you, nevermind the resin. 

Carl

[GusMac]

Thanks fellas. To be honest watching Kai and Alberto fight with the base kit, I don't think the resin has added any extra work really. Certainly not enough to out weigh the enjoyment of the conversion. 

[Kaireckstadt]

Great progress Gus! She looks really awesome with all the Cheetah bits added! Now you have also managed all the challenges of the kit! Can‘t wait to see paint on her! 

[Peterpools]

Gus

Looking so good

Keep 'em comin

Peter

[GusMac]

Just fitted the nose as a test fit showed there was enough weight in that big lump of resin to ensure it isn't a tail sitter. Bit of filler required and I'll post some pics after it's sanded to a finish

[GazzaS]

All of that resin looks great!  Can;t wait to see it painted.

[DocRob]

I'm with the guys here Gus, your resin work is awesome and will make the Cheetah look great and different from the 'normal' Mirage.

Cheers Rob

[Peterpools]

Gus

Add me to the party .. looking so good and glad the nose weight issue is behind.

Keep 'em comin

Peter

 

[GusMac]

Thanks fellas. I'll post some pics of it with the nose on tomorrow.

Then primer time.....    and all the flaws become clearer! 

[Kaireckstadt]

51 minutes ago, GusMac said:

Thanks fellas. I'll post some pics of it with the nose on tomorrow.

Then primer time.....    and all the flaws become clearer! 

Can’t wait to see them Gus.

So we all have a „weekend of flaws“ in front of us ? You, Alberto and myself are close to priming. I‘m sure there will be some flaws to correct...

[DocRob]

The 'Plane of Pain' club inaugurates 

Cheers Rob

[Peterpools]

My weekend of flaws seem to take a good week to fix.

Keep 'em comin

Peter

[GusMac]

The schnozz is on...

Small amount of filler required but mainly due to me using the styrene sheet to attach it.

Pitot is just placed in the hole I drilled to check the fit. It and the refuelling probe will be left off until the end of painting and they are just too prominent to last without being pinged off at some stage.

Weather has been apocalyptic here so I foresee a weekend of primer.

[Kaireckstadt]

That looks great Gus!

I forgot that it has an inflight refueling probe. Lots of new stuff on the Cheetah!

Can‘t wait to see it in the paintshop!

Can you post a picture of the livery you plan?

[GusMac]

Hi Kai

This is the plan...

Whether I can pull it off is a different matter!

Still not sure what paints I'll use. I've tended to use Tamiya acrylics or Ammo paints recently but I've doubts about both for this. Tamiya due to the lack of close colour matches and Ammo as the gloss paints are quite fragile in my experience and may not stand up to all the masking needed. I'm also pondering whether to use gloss or just the best colour matches and use the gloss coat to get the necessary finish.

Anyway primer is the first step.

[GazzaS]

That will be an eye-catcher for certain!

 

[Kaireckstadt]

Great scheme! Have you ever thought of AK-Colors? They really have a wide range. If you use a glosscote in the end the complete scheme will be easier to paint from my point of view. And it works! The Tamiya glosscote is really very good. A friend of mine paints airliners with Tamiya flat white and then Tamiya glosscote. Or you use the special one from AK. 

Looks awesome! 

[Peterpools]

Gus

WOW! What a gorgeous looking paint scheme. I’be been slowly switching over the MiG and Model Air for health reasons but in this case, Model Color would be my choice.

Keep ‘em comin

Peter

 

[GusMac]

Thanks for the suggestions fellas.

Tamiya X22 is my go to gloss coat, thinned with Mr Levelling it has always given me decent results, so that'll be the plan for this one.

I've used the AK Extreme Metals and was mightily impressed by them but no experience with their other products. They do seem to have a good colour range.

Does anyone know if their acrylics are 'true' acrylics or are they solvent based like the Tamiya ones and can be thinned with Mr Levelling? Also are the lacquer based Real Colour ones really smelly? My wife has an issue that precludes me from using anything too noxious so that might be a deciding factor.

[Kaireckstadt]

55 minutes ago, GusMac said:

Thanks for the suggestions fellas.

Tamiya X22 is my go to gloss coat, thinned with Mr Levelling it has always given me decent results, so that'll be the plan for this one.

I've used the AK Extreme Metals and was mightily impressed by them but no experience with their other products. They do seem to have a good colour range.

Does anyone know if their acrylics are 'true' acrylics or are they solvent based like the Tamiya ones and can be thinned with Mr Levelling? Also are the lacquer based Real Colour ones really smelly? My wife has an issue that precludes me from using anything too noxious so that might be a deciding factor.

I always thin AK Real Colors with Gunze Leveling Thinner. No problems up to now. 

 

[BlrwestSiR]

1 hour ago, GusMac said:

Thanks for the suggestions fellas.

Tamiya X22 is my go to gloss coat, thinned with Mr Levelling it has always given me decent results, so that'll be the plan for this one.

I've used the AK Extreme Metals and was mightily impressed by them but no experience with their other products. They do seem to have a good colour range.

Does anyone know if their acrylics are 'true' acrylics or are they solvent based like the Tamiya ones and can be thinned with Mr Levelling? Also are the lacquer based Real Colour ones really smelly? My wife has an issue that precludes me from using anything too noxious so that might be a deciding factor.

Rob, the AK Real Colors are solvent based. They do have an odour to them but I don't think it's as strong as Mr Color. As Kai said, they can be thinned with Mr Color Leveling thinner without issue. Generally, their armour colours (clear lids) are dead flat while their aircraft (black lids) range has a satin finish. 

[DocRob]

11 hours ago, GusMac said:

Does anyone know if their acrylics are 'true' acrylics or are they solvent based like the Tamiya ones and can be thinned with Mr Levelling? Also are the lacquer based Real Colour ones really smelly? My wife has an issue that precludes me from using anything too noxious so that might be a deciding factor.

I had mixed results with AK's older Acrylics (Not the Real Colors and not the 3rd Gen) and thinner. Some mix with Mr. Levelling Thinner, some went goo. When I use the AK's, I try first, mixing them on a small sheet of plastic.

Cheers Rob