GusMac Posted February 28, 2018 Share Posted February 28, 2018 Haven't posted any progress on this to date but have been beavering away for the last few weeks. The kit, which I'm sure all are familiar with. Goes together like a dream with very little problem and very little seam work. This is the current state of play. Cockpit done and installed but didn't manage to get any pictures at that stage. Used the HGW seatbelts and painted and weathered everything using Ammo's RAF cockpit set. First time I've used the HGW belts and although fiddly they weren't too difficult. I followed the tip I've seen mentioned on a few forums to leave the buckles on the sprue until you've threaded the belts and it certainly helps. Primed with Mr Surfacer 1500, then Vallejo Metal Color pale burnt metal on the leading edges and wing roots. Applied frisket with a toothpick and sponge to try and replicate chipping and foot traffic. Never tried this before, so will be intrigued to see how it turns out after painting. Leading edges painted and masked off - not really visible here as the Tamiya tape and Gunze yellow appear almost identical! Next step is the paint job for which I have Ammo's late RAF colour set. Hope to get started on that this weekend. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocRob Posted March 1, 2018 Share Posted March 1, 2018 Now that is what you had hidden from us . Well done. These Tamiya kits are really great, you can fully concentrate on painting and weathering. While labouring with my TA-152, I tend do daydream of these shake and bake kits. Thanx for sharing the HGW-buckle tipp, sounds real helpful with the fiddely construction of the belts. Cheers Rob 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted March 1, 2018 Author Share Posted March 1, 2018 Thanks Rob. I can't claim any credit for the buckle tip as it's just something I'd seen elsewhere but it does make things a lot easier. Without it I think you'd need 3 hands to assemble these. The last couple of LSP kits I've done are also Tamiya, F-15C and F-16CJ, and the difference in fit quality even between these and this is amazing. They just seem to be making huge leaps forward every time. I'm not really interested in the F4 Corsair but I'll be interested to see what their next offering is. I feel your pain with the Ta-152. I've done the Trumpeter Mig-23 and P-47D and neither were a barrel of laughs. The P-47 also had lots of extraneous internal detail which just made fit an issue, similar to the ZM stuff. You're beating it into shape though and I'm sure it'll end up looking great. We have major snowstorms here in NE Scotland at the moment so hoping to get some good time on this at the weekend, too snowy to go anywhere! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocRob Posted March 1, 2018 Share Posted March 1, 2018 Hi Gus, I built that F4 Corsair and it was a pure pleasure, I can highly recommend that kit. The only issues arose by using aftermarket stuff from Brassin which looked great, but caused some trouble. The Spit you are building was also on my wish list but I could resist, but have no idea for how long. My excuse for not getting one is that I'm uncertain, if I should take the iconic IX or the XVI with the bubble top. I fiddled a set of HGW-belts together without knowing about your tip and it worked, but I can imagine that leaving the parts connected will make it a lot easier. We also have huge storms on my island, but without snow. but other than you, my benchtime is shortend by that, because there are power failures and lots of things to repair in the house and garden. The rest of the day is filled with trips to different shores and watching (and photographing) enormous waves, I definitely don't want to surf. But it is a spectacle I don't want to miss. The TA-152 got little attention but is more or less prepared for painting. Poco a poco (little by little) like my spanish fellows used to say. Cheers Rob 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted April 10, 2018 Author Share Posted April 10, 2018 Bit more progress to show on this.... Main paint done on the bulk of the fuselage and the main engine parts and everything gloss coated. All main paint work done with Ammo's Late WWII RAF colours set. All insignia done using Maketar masks and Gunze colours. First time I've used masks for the roundels and they are very fiddly but worth it for the result you get. The chipping with the frisket looks a bit stark at the moment but hopefully will settle with the weathering. Next step is a quick once over with the micromesh then weathering... 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocRob Posted April 10, 2018 Share Posted April 10, 2018 Hi Gus, that's what I call progressing. The paintjob looks great and I really like the result of using masks for the insignia. Cheers Rob 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted April 11, 2018 Author Share Posted April 11, 2018 Thanks Rob. The masks do give a great result with a bit of care and patience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted July 17, 2018 Author Share Posted July 17, 2018 Well, things have progressed a bit! Bench time has been very sporadic, so never seemed to get round to taking pics, but this is now done. I'll post more in the finished builds section. Just a couple of pictures to show I did finish the engine and was quite happy with the weathering. BUT I just couldn't get the damn thing to fit correctly with the engine covers, so most of it got dumped to give a reasonable fit. Although the rest of the kit goes together like a dream this is a real disappointment. I thought it was just my cack handed assembly skills but I've seen Chuck's build on LSP and he's had similar issues and his skills are WAAAY above mine, so that was a slight boost. Anyway, I've got a couple of major DIY projects to do on the house so I suspect my next build won't be starting until into the autumn. Got a couple of ideas but I think it'll be a grubby Hellenic A-7 as I want to try and push my painting envelope a bit. As always, comments, critiques, etc welcome. Cheers, Gus 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichO Posted July 18, 2018 Share Posted July 18, 2018 DANG! Good job on the engine. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted July 18, 2018 Author Share Posted July 18, 2018 Thanks Rich. Just a pity most of it went to make the covers fit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocRob Posted July 18, 2018 Share Posted July 18, 2018 Your Spit is looking great, you should be proud with that result. The paintjob looks just right with the shading effect and the dots of colour add some contrast. It's a pity that you encountered so many problems with the great looking engine. That dosen't sound tamiyaesque. At least you can see the convincingly finished exhausts. Some more shots with the neutral lighting, like the first one would be very welcome. Cheers Rob 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted July 27, 2018 Share Posted July 27, 2018 Wonderful work on the Spit ... surely looking real good Keep 'em comin Peter 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted July 27, 2018 Author Share Posted July 27, 2018 Thanks Peter. There's always things to improve on, but I'm fairly happy with this one. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harv Posted July 28, 2018 Share Posted July 28, 2018 That looks great ! Good job......Harv 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted July 28, 2018 Author Share Posted July 28, 2018 Thanks Harv. Next up is a Greek A7 but it will have to wait until autumn as I have a heap of DIY to keep me busy until then. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bomber_County Posted August 4, 2018 Share Posted August 4, 2018 Great engine, I nabbed a screen shot for archives. I know what you mean about no benchtime due to diy etc etc..... Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted August 4, 2018 Author Share Posted August 4, 2018 Thanks Phil. Yeah, the DIY never seems to end. Don't mind though if a couple of weekends with a paint roller gets me peace to model for the rest of the year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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