GusMac Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 Hi All, two firsts here - my first WIP post to a forum and my first kit painted with an airbrush, so a bit nervous but on we go. First here's the kit. Will be done with Aires cockpit set and Linden Hill decals. Plan is to do it as a Syrian aircraft which was shot down over the Bekaa Valley on 9th June 1982 as part of Operation Mole Cricket. I was 15 then and fascinated with air tactics and this followed on very quickly after the Falklands conflict. Remember being amazed at how the suppression of the SAM sites was done. Started on the Aires cockpit. Relatively straightforward to work out the fit and position of the sidewall pieces. Not entirely happy with colour of the tub as it's too blue to my eye but I haven't worked out a method I'm happy with for consistently mixing colours for airbrushing. Went with out of the bottle Citadel Temple Guard Blue - saw comments saying their Hawk Turquoise was a good approximation to SBT but it's discontinued and this was said to be the closest current colour. Doesn't look too close to me but too late it's staying now. Details painted with Tamiya acrylics then gloss coat, MIG dark wash and matt coat. Next step is the seat so more fun with the pe seatbelts. All comments and advice welcome, Thanks, Gus 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulo Lopes Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 Hi! For a beginner with the airbrush, it seems quite nice. You picked a great kit I´ve had the opportunity to build on this forum, although in a different version. If you need any tips of my WIP, you can see it, below, in this section. I will be following this WIP with great interest. cya Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted January 15, 2015 Author Share Posted January 15, 2015 Thanks for the comments guys. Just one quick question Paulo - does it need any weight in the nose for balance? Never built anything this big with a tricycle undercarriage so not sure how to determine if it does and haven't found anything online. Just remember too many tailsitters from when I built 1/72 stuff as a kid, including an Airfix Mig-27. Cheers, Gus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulo Lopes Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 Hi Gus! You can be sure that you'll need a lot of weight. No less than 30/40 gr. Remember that the rear fuselage includes a full Tumanski engine and has a complex wings gear. cya Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted January 25, 2015 Author Share Posted January 25, 2015 Prize to any manufacturer who comes up with fabric seatbelts for modern aircraft! Boy, I hate the pe seatbelts. Maybe I need a better magnifier and proper bending tools but these are just such a chore. I've only used the fabric ones a couple of times but just soooo much easier. I realise that modern belts would be considerably more complex than the WWII ones that are available but surely there would be a market for them. Anyhoo, I'll have something to post once I've stopped cursing at these and got something which looks vaguely presentable to attach to the seat. Gus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted January 31, 2015 Author Share Posted January 31, 2015 Finally got the seat to a point where I'm reasonably happy with it. Still not entirely happy with the pe belts but they're as good as I can get them with my skillset. I did try using masking tape to manufacture a set and just use the buckles from the pe but they looked even worse. First time I've used the Mig washes on this kit and I think I'm being a bit heavy handed with them. It certainly looks worse in the pictures but even to my eye they look a little OTT. Possibly need more of a gloss coat before I apply them but I gues trial and error will improve things with time. Lastly for this update, got a nice big hunk of lead in the nose which should be enough to keep it on all three wheels. Next is joining the halves of this forward section. This will be my first attempt at using the Tamiya Extra Thin to 'fuse' the plastic so fingers crossed it goes well. Any comments, advice, etc welcome. Gus 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted February 21, 2015 Author Share Posted February 21, 2015 A bit more progress to show. Only get limited bench time with work, two dogs to walk and two teenagers to ferry around so things take time. Anyway, got the front section sealed up. Have to say I'm loving the Tamiya Extra Thin to fuse the plastic as it gives an excellent join for sanding down, etc without filler. Think my rescribing skills need a bit more work but I'm happy with the outcome and it's certainly pushing my skills along. Got the main gear bays painted and weathered. Happier with the finish, I definitely think less is more with the enamel washes. Got the centre section with the wing mechanism done and the top of the gear bays finished. Also filled the holes in the wings for the transport tanks and have prepped and primed the next set of sub-assemblies - engine pipe, afterburner ring, splitters and intakes. Not much detail out there on the colour of the intake interior so I'm going with RLM Grey (Tamiya XF-22) as it looks close enough to me. One question I have is that I've got some Mr Surfacer 1500 that I'm hoping to airbrush but how much, if any, thinning does it need? I use Mr Levelling Thinner if that's of significance. Thanks for any suggestions, Gus 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators JeroenPeters Posted February 21, 2015 Administrators Share Posted February 21, 2015 Love the seat. A pretty big kit you don't see built that much. Great weathering possibilities too.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wingco57 Posted February 21, 2015 Share Posted February 21, 2015 Very nice paintwork Gus, very interesting subject too. Keep them coming. Cees Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted February 22, 2015 Author Share Posted February 22, 2015 Thanks guys. Certainly having fun with this but painting the engine will be a test as I've never airbrushed anything like that. I'm also only realising now just quite how big this is. I know the measurements given are correct but it doesn't seem quite so big until you actually have it in your hand(s)! Might need to clear a few things to have room to display this. Cheers, Gus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted March 8, 2015 Author Share Posted March 8, 2015 Evening all, a bit more progress. Got most of the sub-assemblies completed and got the engine painted and installed. Apologies for the quality of the photos, don't have a fancy set up, just my phone. The green isn't quite as vivid in reality as it appears here but it's a bit heavier than I was hoping for. I'm still getting the hang of the best settings on the airbrush set-up and think I'm spraying with too high a psi a lot of the time. I've also just got a couple of the cheap knock-offs from pleasedshop which Doogs recommended, so I don't think the trigger action is as good as I'd get with a decent brush. Plan is to play around with these two a bit more then buy the 'proper' version. At the moment the H&S Ultra seems the better of the two if these are any guide at all. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted March 20, 2015 Author Share Posted March 20, 2015 No photos this time as currently progressing through the purgatory that is filling, sanding, rescribing, repeat ad infinitum!! Got the 3 main fuselage sections joined and although the rear sections don't need much work the front sections definitely do. There's a 'step' in the sidewalls of the intakes where the two sections join which is a pita. May just be the way I've put it together as I don't remember too many others commenting on this. Now it's all together get a better idea of the scale - it's actually slightly smaller than the Revell Ju-88A1 so should be able to get it on the shelf as long as I keep the wings swept back. Pics to follow once I've got her in a condition to prime. Cheers, Gus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted March 26, 2015 Author Share Posted March 26, 2015 Quick query for Paulo, or anyone else who's built one of these. The tail has a virtually flat bottom edge which doesn't conform at all with the profile of the upper fuselage - large gap which is going to need filling and give a weaker join than I would prefer. Have I done something wrong or is this a known issue? Thanks, Gus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted April 15, 2015 Author Share Posted April 15, 2015 Okay, all primed up and ready to progress. Learning so much as I go forward with this. Firstly, how hard it is to take pictures with any sort of decent contrast of a black aircraft under artificial light! Now I see why people invest so much in their photographic set-ups. Everything is primed in Mr Surfacer 1500 which went on nicely but it was a bit of a shock how long it took to do this with the airbrush, even with the 0.5mm needle. Pretty happy with how the joints have come up after all the prep - not up to the standard of most of you on here, but a million miles better than anything I've managed before. However, my scribing skills definitely need a bit of work. There are a couple of rescribed panel lines, especially on the topside where the forward two fuselage sections join, that look as though I've done them with a trenching tool!! Think a bit of Vallejo filler wiped down with alcohol should hopefully fill them a bit but still leave enough detail to show as a reasonable panel line. Anyway, next step is work on the landing gear then onto the main painting. All comments, suggestions, etc welcomed. Cheers, Gus 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted June 21, 2015 Author Share Posted June 21, 2015 Well, finally an update. Should be titled 'My Adventures with an Airbrush'! Most of the main painting done - just got the Apex and Aphid missiles, the speed brakes, rear exhaust and the dielectric panels to paint then it will be time for a gloss coat. Given this is the first time I've airbrushed anything, I'm pretty happy with the outcome. Not to the standard of most on here, but compared to anything I've done previously it's miles ahead. It's certainly been fun learning about just how much you can thin the paint (all Tamiya) and still get good coverage. The H&S Evolution is really easy to use and clean and the locking mechanism is handy for the hamfisted like me so you don't get too much paint at once. I think one lesson is that the black basing technique is great for fairly monochrome schemes but it's hard to get a lot of contrast with it on a camouflage scheme like this. There's more contrast to the naked eye than is obvious here but it's definitely harder to see under the green than the desert yellow or flat earth. Used Blu Tack to do the differentiation between the camouflage and it's not bad but I think I need to work on being more consistent with the thickness to get even feathering at the boundaries. Any comments, advice, etc welcome. Certainly if anyone has advice for how to get a reasonable effect for the inside of the tail pipe I'd be keen to know. The Russian engines seem to give a 'greenish' patina to the inside and I'm not sure how best to get that. Cheers, Gus 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted July 27, 2015 Author Share Posted July 27, 2015 No pics this time but I've found the answer to something that had puzzled me. Revell are such a big manufacturer that I was always wondering why their paints got so few mentions on the forums - few mentions of the enamels but virtually nothing for the acrylics. Having just tried to thin the acrylics for airbrushing I can see why - they thin like ****! Maybe they're better with a different thinner, I use Gunze self levelling which has been great with anything else tried, but not good with this. Only the exhaust left to finish then I need to make some masks for the serials in Arabic, so hopefully some pics soon. Gus 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted August 16, 2015 Author Share Posted August 16, 2015 Some more progress to report. All the small areas painted, dielectric panels, outer exhaust, etc. Made my own masks for the arabic numerals on the serial numbers. Printed them onto Tamiya's kabuki sheets and cut out with a sharp blade. Pretty happy with the outcome for a first attempt. Three out of the four are pretty sharp, the fourth is a bit smudged but I reckon after it's weathered etc it'll just look a bit worn (I hope). Next step is the gloss coat. As I've posted elsewhere I could only get Humbrol acrylic gloss at the LHS and I'm twitchy about how it'll work over the Tamiya acrylics. I'm even twitchier about trying Future as a gloss so I might just order some Tamiya gloss online and wait. I've got this far without any foul-ups for once and I don't want to jinx it now. Any suggestions or experience with this combo welcome. Ta, Gus 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted September 30, 2015 Author Share Posted September 30, 2015 Evening all, a bit more progress to report. Gloss coat on - I remembered I had some Tamiya rattlecan gloss clear that I'd decanted, so went with that. I tested the Humbrol acrylic gloss with the Tamiya acrylics and wasn't happy with the results, didn't give a consistent finish, so I gave that a miss. The decals are the Trumpy kit ones for the stencils which went ok except for a few of the smallest ones on the missiles which just disintegrated. They've settled quite nicely with a little Microsol. The Syrian insignia are from the Linden Hill 'Non-aligned Floggers' set. Printing, etc is excellent but they just seem a little thick - even with copious applications of Microsol and Mr Mark they haven't settled quite as well into the panel lines, etc as I'd hoped. Maybe it's just my unfamiliarity with the decal softeners but the final result wasn't quite as nice as I thought it might be. Decals have had a top coat of gloss so now it's on to weathering. Plan is to use the AMMO panel line washes which are supposed to be fairly idiot proof - well here's the test, give them to an idiot and see what happens! Not going to go too heavy on the weathering as the photo references I've got show a relatively clean airframe just before it was shot down. I'm fully signed up for Doogs' arguments for honest critique, so any suggestions, etc, please fire away. This is so far beyond anything I've tried before so all ideas, comments, etc welcomed. Cheers, Gus 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wingco57 Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Looking good Gus, Regarding Revell Acryllics, I must say I have nothing but positive experiences with it. Thinning is no problem as long as you use their own brand of thinner. And it smells great tooooooooo................... Cees Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted October 1, 2015 Author Share Posted October 1, 2015 Thanks Cees. That's good to know about the Revell thinners, especially if they smell sooo good. Another noxious smelling modelling product is just what I need to stay in my wife's good books! Gus 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted December 5, 2015 Author Share Posted December 5, 2015 Evening all, finally another update. Well, it now has legs! Since the last update it's had Mig's Ammo and Production Line panel line washes, some oil work to simulate oil leaks, etc, flat coat with decanted Tamiya rattle can and then the landing gear and doors added. The dielectric panels have been left with a satin finish as that's what the pictures seemed to show but I'm not entirely sure it's correct. Thoughts? Having only ever tried the clay-based Flory washes before, the enamel washes were easier to work with and cleaned up better. However, that may just be down to the quality of the gloss coat I put down - I think I left it a bit light as I was worried about runs, pooling, etc. Next time I think I'll try the Tamiya X-22 with the mist coat of Mr Levelling thinner which Doogs and others seem to really like. Last steps are to get the weapons on, a few antenne, etc and the air-brakes then it'll be my first completed build on any modelling site. Any comments and advice on the weathering, etc welcomed. Gus 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeMaben Posted December 6, 2015 Share Posted December 6, 2015 Coming along very very nicely Gus :thumbsup2: 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted December 22, 2015 Author Share Posted December 22, 2015 Right, I'm calling this done. Seems to have taken an age to get these last few bits done but I suppose that's just the run up to Xmas. I've posted this in the Completed Builds for anyone who wants to see more. Gus 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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