HubertB Posted December 18, 2022 Share Posted December 18, 2022 17 hours ago, shark64 said: Such an elegant plane. Homestretch i see on this one. Looking good. I am with Oliver on this one. I remember reading that the « straight » radiators of the P-38 and P-40 were more efficient aerodynamically and produced less drag than the shark-mouthed ones of the earlier versions, but nothing beats the look of the cowlings around the loooong reduction gearbox of the Allison. Give me an XP-38 any time for the looks … As for the painting, I know you don’t want to rush and the Christmas period is not the most propitious for modelling, but why not finish this one before starting an entry for the GB ? You seem to have overcome most hurdles and have the juices flowing … Soooo … keep it coming, as you say Hubert 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted December 19, 2022 Author Share Posted December 19, 2022 Thanks Hubert I'm starting to lean Oliver's and your way and finish the P-40 first or at least when letting paint and decals dry. do some preliminary work on the Revell/Monogram Kingfisher and then back to the P-40. Never thought that much about the radiators as which style/angle of the grill was most efficient but rather how the design lent itself to being a canvas for painters. 😉 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CANicoll Posted December 20, 2022 Share Posted December 20, 2022 Wow, I missed this over the weekend. The big bird is looking terrific - very smooth and NO hint of the nose alignment shenanigans of earlier. I had to go back and look at the build to date. As usual, your work is amazing. The cockpit is so detailed and that IP is amazing. Now comes your stellar painting and can't wait to see result. Definitely think Oliver and Hubert have the right idea - keep going on the Hawk, but also work in the GB start. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted December 20, 2022 Author Share Posted December 20, 2022 Thanks Chris, very much appreciated. I'm pretty sure at this stage, I'm going to keep working on the P-40 and finish it and then do my GB entry. Just seems the mojo is working in high gear and painting the "Big Bird" is going to take time and all my attention. I'm planning on doing the cammo work as a combination of masks and free hand and normally, it goes pretty slowly. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CANicoll Posted December 20, 2022 Share Posted December 20, 2022 2 hours ago, Peterpools said: Thanks Chris, very much appreciated. I'm pretty sure at this stage, I'm going to keep working on the P-40 and finish it and then do my GB entry. Just seems the mojo is working in high gear and painting the "Big Bird" is going to take time and all my attention. I'm planning on doing the cammo work as a combination of masks and free hand and normally, it goes pretty slowly. I hear you and you are making good progress on the P-40. The markings on that bird are iconic so very much looking forward to seeing how yours turns out. I'm looking at doing a 'Black Cat' so the painting on that is a LOT easier ! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted December 20, 2022 Author Share Posted December 20, 2022 Chris The cammo pattern on the P-40 is one thing but what is going to add to the complexity is all the lumps and bumps that I need to go over. One such area are the machine gun fairings on top of the nose - the cammo line of brown and green goes right over them. Surely is going to be a lot of fun Yup, an all black Cat - perfect paint scheme for sure. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CANicoll Posted December 21, 2022 Share Posted December 21, 2022 I'm going for simplicity since I'm whacking off the tail. Yeah, I do love the AVG P-40s but that masking is something to work with. But I have every confidence in your skills! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted December 22, 2022 Author Share Posted December 22, 2022 CAMMO – UNDERWAY Well, no time like the present to start working on the P-40’s cammo. I went back to my opening post for the build and prepared the Mr Color paints as per my research. During the build, I thought I might switch over to Mig Acrylics but not having much experience with them at this stage of the game, I stayed with Mr Color. I decided to free-hand a good deal of the cammo and see how it went. First I blocked out the tan and green areas to get me in the ballpark. Then with my H&S Infinity CR Plus air brush and a .2 nozzle, I started refining the cammo patterns. Not perfect but way better then I though this aging builder would do. Very little over spray and I see a bit of touch up work is still needed. I’m pretty happy with the results as where she stands right now. Hopefully in a day or two, I’ll mask out the gray undersides and then start thinking about the clear gloss and decaling. 8 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shark64 Posted December 22, 2022 Share Posted December 22, 2022 well thats looking rather nice. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted December 22, 2022 Author Share Posted December 22, 2022 Thanks Oliver - starting to look like a real P-40 - can't wait to start decaling and adding all the markings. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazzaS Posted December 23, 2022 Share Posted December 23, 2022 Woohoo! Nice paintwork. ....exciting! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocRob Posted December 23, 2022 Share Posted December 23, 2022 Some of the color borders look masked Peter, how could you spray them that well? Maybe I haven't understood your process. the sharp lined borders look final, on others, I still see some primer, right? Anyway, the P-40 will look great with the iconic paintjob. Cheers Rob 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlrwestSiR Posted December 23, 2022 Share Posted December 23, 2022 Peter, the paint came out great. Good idea to stick to the Mr Color. It's a paint you know how to use and doesn't need learning any new handling tricks. Try the Mig paint on a test kit and see how it works. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted December 23, 2022 Author Share Posted December 23, 2022 Thanks Gaz Finally looking like a P-40. Still need to do some touch up work but with the weather and storm we're in, no way to paint and vent until late this weekend. Just felt good to do the cammo and the juices are really starting to flow now. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted December 23, 2022 Author Share Posted December 23, 2022 Rob My hands are nowhere as steady as they once were and I did a mix of free hand and some masks. I know there is a definite difference in the outline edge but as I continue doing the touch up work - a lot of the sharper edges are softened up. Next cammo paint job will be done one way or the other but not mixed. No primer is showing through but when doing touch up work with the brown paint, it seems to dry a bit lighter as it's so thin and is almost opaque in nature. I'll most likely go back and play with the edges using the green this time and the blend should be better. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted December 29, 2022 Author Share Posted December 29, 2022 DECALING UNDERWAY Ready to decal and I still needed to make the final decision on whose P-40 I would replicate with the kit decals and decided on Tex Smith’s mount. I was surprised at how well the decals conformed and went down on the plastic. Unfortunately, the rivet and panel line details are so delicate, no amount of Micro Sol would allow the decals to show the panel lines and rivets under them very well. Using the full size color callout/foldout as my decals placement guide, there was a problem. The upper wing Chinese roundel markings are too small. The plans show them to be much larger then underside roundels but but the reverse is what on the decal sheet. The first and last pages of the instructions are removable (awesome idea and so very useful throughout the build), shows the decals as supplied and opposite from the gorgeous full size color callout layout sheets. Seems the QC team was out to lunch on this one. The large roundels should be 31.64mm and the smaller ones 24.78mm. I decided to go with what was provided in the kit, looks good and moved on. The decals are excellent, adhere well, are quite thin and all in register. My surfaces are very smooth and slippery and yet, the decals tended to grab a bit too quickly – you have to stay on your toes. Normally I use Mr Color Clear Gloss #46 for surface decal prep but this time, I decided to try Tamiya Clear Gloss Lacquer LP-9 and the results were excellent. It’s now a tossup between the two as to what to use in the future. I wasn’t comfortable using the red fuselage two-part decal stripes and decided to just mask it out and a good decision for sure. There are a small amount stencil data decals that were added and except for the prop decals, all are readable. All in all, the decals are top flite. Still lots of work to do on the undersides but I'm getting there 7 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlrwestSiR Posted December 29, 2022 Share Posted December 29, 2022 That looks great Peter. Glad to hear the decals work well. I've got a GWH Mig-29 that's basically covered in decals. Carl 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bomber_County Posted December 29, 2022 Share Posted December 29, 2022 Stunning Peter, camo looks perfect as usual and the decals look like the went down perfectly. What did you use as a gloss coat prior to decals……….this is going to be very nice indeed…… 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harv Posted December 29, 2022 Share Posted December 29, 2022 Looks great !!....harv 👍 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landlubber Mike Posted December 29, 2022 Share Posted December 29, 2022 Beautiful work as always Peter! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shark64 Posted December 29, 2022 Share Posted December 29, 2022 Its so starting to look the part. Nice work on the decals. How dirty(weathered) is this going to be?. Pete, time to come to the dark side and build a helicopter....LOL 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted December 30, 2022 Author Share Posted December 30, 2022 Thanks Carl. I have to say, GWH's decals were superb and they should be a dream to use. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted December 30, 2022 Author Share Posted December 30, 2022 Thank Phil I decided to try Tamiya's Clear Gloss Lacquer LP-9, thinned with Mr Color Self Leveling Thinner 1:1 and couldn't be happier with the results - smooth as silk and no issues at all. I usually use Mr Color Clear Gloss #46 but Tamiya's clear lacquer gloss is easily the equal. . 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted December 30, 2022 Author Share Posted December 30, 2022 Thanks Harv Finally, I'm getting there and I think I can see the finish line 🤞 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted December 30, 2022 Author Share Posted December 30, 2022 Much appreciate Mike: painting and decaling are my favorite part of any build and it was a pleasure to finally reach this point in the build. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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