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Tamiya's !/48 scale MiG 15 bis Completed


GazzaS

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First of all....   What is 'bis'?  I know there were other planes from other countries that also got the 'bis' designation.

Anyway...   hello friends.

Foiling a plane is one of those things that requires a particular mood.  At first, it's really difficult until you get the hang of it.  After that, each model gets easier and if you don't wait too long, you won't lose the muscle memory in your hands. 

A tiny mote of dust....   or a little tear can result in you peeling off a panel, swabbing off the glue with isopropyl alcohol.  And repeating the whole process again.

But the magic of real metal....   how the light moves across it as your viewing angle changes....   can't be mimicked by any shiny paint.

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This Tamiya model didn't come with seat belts...  I made them with Tamiya tape with painted buckles.

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Making the foil bend across and around complex curves is a skill that takes a little time to learn.

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This is one wingtip.  The starboard wingtip viewed from above and below.  And it's covered by one piece of foil.

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The cowl ring is also one piece.

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But I must admit that the exhaust end is two separate pieces.  But that's ok.  There is a seam line that facilitated making it in two pieces.

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As you can see, I have a long way to go.  The best way to foil, is to master the hardest pieces first.  Wing roots, Wing tips, Canopies, and cowlings are the most difficult.  After them...   The rest is easy.

 

I hope you enjoy the trip with me.

 

 

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Nice to see you work with foil

And yes not easy but it gives a nice result.

I have tryd a few times but i have to give it a go in the future.

I have used difrend brands of alu foil to give some panels different shine.

Looking forward to see more.

 

Mark

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2 hours ago, mark31 said:

Nice to see you work with foil

And yes not easy but it gives a nice result.

I have tryd a few times but i have to give it a go in the future.

I have used difrend brands of alu foil to give some panels different shine.

Looking forward to see more.

 

Mark

Thank you Marc.  I hope you get to foil again, soon.

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2 hours ago, Martinnfb said:

Fantastic, will definitely follow with interest. 🪑

 

Cheers

Martin

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Glad to pique your interest, Martin.  The Tamiya pit has nothing on the real one.

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Kaiser woke me up at four.  It's either let him out, or pick up dogshit in the dining room.  So....   Consequently I decided to make it a big day at the bench.

I had been contemplating the big fillet that holds up the rudder and elevators.  It took me about 8 attempts to get the right shape.

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In the end I had to prepare a giant piece and surround the fillet.  

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The slicing you see is to relieve tension as the  foil stretches and shrinks.

 

When you apply the cement to the foil, it has zero tack.  Your foil sheet will look like this.

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You have to let it dry to a hazy state before it becomes tacky and looks like this:

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Now you can cut off pieces you need to burnish them to the model.  If your sheet sits for a couple of hours it will dry completely and lose any sticky properties.

Since I spent so much time at the bench today I was able to complete most of the wing surfaces.  It's been a cloudy, Yucky day.  Here are some pics taken in the cloudy afternoon light.

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Happy modelling!

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5 hours ago, mark31 said:

Great work on the foil

This is my work few years back on a F-100

I have to get it back on  the bench one day

Maybe strip it down and start over

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Mark

Mark

Nice foil work on your Super Sabre. Adding your pics together with Gaz's work, it's a skill I need to learn. I know you previously mentioned using different foils for the various panels but which foils and types of foil?

 

 

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2 minutes ago, Peterpools said:

Mark

Nice foil work on your Super Sabre. Adding your pics together with Gaz's work, it's a skill I need to learn. I know you previously mentioned using different foils for the various panels but which foils and types of foil?

 

 

Just difrent brands of foil ftom difrent companys.

The are difrent iff you take a close look and also the are difrent thicknes.

You can also sand the foil in difrent directions. 

You can use the shine side ore the Matt side..

Hope this helps.

Will put here back on the bench but first i need to finish a model.

 

Mark

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1 hour ago, mark31 said:

Just difrent brands of foil ftom difrent companys.

The are difrent iff you take a close look and also the are difrent thicknes.

You can also sand the foil in difrent directions. 

You can use the shine side ore the Matt side..

Hope this helps.

Will put here back on the bench but first i need to finish a model.

 

Mark

Mark

Thanks for the information and yes, it helps a ton.

 

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19 hours ago, mark31 said:

Great work on the foil

This is my work few years back on a F-100

I have to get it back on  the bench one day

Maybe strip it down and start over

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Mark

Thank you!  I really like the look of that tail.  You really should pick it up again.

 

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18 hours ago, DocRob said:

Impressive work Gary, you can't beat the real thing. Thank you for showing your progress step by step. I'd love to try it on a very simple kit someday.

Cheers Rob

Thank you, Rob.  My first foiled model was the Hasegawa P-47 Razorback in 1/48.  My second was Tamiya;s N1K1 in 1/48.  My third was the 1/49 scale Otaki Ki-44.  The fourth was Monogram's 1/48 scale B-29.  The fifth was the 1/32 scale Italeri F-104 Starfighter.  Sadly, the panel lines are trenches ruining the look.  The N1K1 was probably the easiest.  I no longer have any pictures to share...  but I actually foiled the propeller hubs on all four Hamilton Standard props for the B-29.  Sadly, I rescribed much of the B-29 and my scribing was shit...   so I pitched it.  I still have the other three.

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They're all slowly oxidizing under their protective coatings.

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17 hours ago, Martinnfb said:

X2

just woke up and checking my phone in the washroom as usual, most impressive result. Uber metal 

 

14 hours ago, Peterpools said:

Gaz

Foil work looks brilliant and thank you for the mini tutorial - another tool in my tool kit.

 

Thank you, fellas...   glad you are enjoying.  

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Well friends...

    Lemme tell ya...   I was confounded for at least two hours by one piece of foil.  Well...  it wasn't one piece.  It was the 10 pieces that failed prior to the one that I could deem successful.

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And that is what foiling is.  Many pieces are easy.  But the difficult pieces have to be worked out.  You have to get the shape right.  You have to make the right cuts to relieve stresses.  And you have to figure out the perfect way to burnish the metal down around obstacles.  And the windshield...  it was hell to work around.   It took me eight attempts to realize that burnishing from front to back would not work, and that I should try it top to bottom.   And after all of that, you may still find a mote of dust under the foil, necessitating a new piece.

You will also need some special materials. 

70% Iso...   for wiping off old glue and cleaning your brush.  

Lightweight oil....   for lubricating your blade prior to slicing foil.

1/2 inch flat brush....  you could use smaller...   but trust me....it's the optimum size.  Special brush care....   while working, keep your brush in a cup of water.  When finished, clean your brush with Iso....   and when it dries, clean it again with Lacquer thinner.  Otherwise, your foiling on the next day will be contaminated with dry bits of glue still trapped in the bristles.

So anyways...   after three or more hours of foiling I added a whole 8 panels.  That leaves only easy panels....   Hopefully. 

Here is today's bling.

 

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Wonderfull foil work

And yes i know the feeling of your atempts for the hard places to foil.

But when it is going down right you can look at it and say thats a job wel done.

Looking forward to the next update 

 

Mark

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Hey Gary come on, at least you spared masking the canopy :D. Earnestly, I really like your results, foiling looks so very different from painting and thank you for explaining your method so thoroughly. It may help in the future, only if....

Cheers Rob

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