EmperorKai Posted December 19, 2018 Author Share Posted December 19, 2018 Nick- I know how you feel, but hey, no kit and no build is perfect. Heaven knows my shelf of doom is standing room only at this point... Of course, after starting the paint, I noticed that I missed the gun camera port on the left wing root. And like you and the landing gear, that will probably be the first thing I notice now I'm debating whether to do the new Revell Spitfire kit or stay with my France 1940 theme and do an early Hurricane next. I usually get bored doing the same thing back to back (Spitfires in this base), but it would be interesting to compare the two kits. Thanks for looking in on my build! Kai 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmperorKai Posted December 19, 2018 Author Share Posted December 19, 2018 PAINTING UPPER SURFACES I originally started on the undersides, but the paint peeled up when I went to start masking, so I had to strip all the paint off and start over. I don't remember ever running into that problem with Tamiya gloss black before, but I think I'll stick with Gunze for the black base coats. After lots of back and forth over the last 3 days, I've got the upper surface colors airbrushed in. Using Vallejo colors here and finding it to be a very pleasant experience, though I did find that the Model Color doesn't mix will with the Model air- the airbrush spit clumps when I tried to lighten the base colors. Looking forward to working on the undersides next. Kai 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harv Posted December 19, 2018 Share Posted December 19, 2018 Oh yeah !!.......harv 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazzaS Posted December 19, 2018 Share Posted December 19, 2018 That camo looks great! Uneven enough to look right, but not so uneven that it looks like it was done on purpose. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drifter Posted December 19, 2018 Share Posted December 19, 2018 Superb. The cammo is spot on. Well done. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wingco57 Posted December 19, 2018 Share Posted December 19, 2018 This is turning out extremely nice. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted December 19, 2018 Share Posted December 19, 2018 Kai Cammo looks great - smooth and even. Model Air has been my go to acrylic for years and no problems at all. I thin it only with Vallejo Thinner with no problems. I’ve never tried mixing Model Color and Model Air but always assumed MC was just a thicker version of the same paint. Looks like it’s not. My vote would be for a Hurricane for your next build. Keep ‘em Comin Peter 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Clunkmeister Posted December 22, 2018 Administrators Share Posted December 22, 2018 Good grief! How did I miss THIS? Beautiful build, Kai, you’re showing us again that you’re a true Master builder. Those scratchbuilt extras are stunning, and your camo? Just WOW! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martinnfb Posted December 25, 2018 Share Posted December 25, 2018 Smooth as silk, love it ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmperorKai Posted December 26, 2018 Author Share Posted December 26, 2018 Have been distracted with the holidays- I hope very much that everyone had (or better yet, is still having) a wonderful and safe Christmas. Thanks very much my friends for the encouragement! Kai 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmperorKai Posted December 26, 2018 Author Share Posted December 26, 2018 With all the merriment and festivities, I managed to get squeeze in some time at the workbench. For the undersides, I used Vallejo Model Air Insignia White and Black, though I toned down the black with 6:1 mix with insignia white to leave some room for tonal variations. White was laid down first followed by panel lines and dabbing with grey and light tan oils. A thinned white mix was then airbrushed over this to tone down and blend the overall effect. The night black side was done in similar fashion. I've also started decals, but I'll post more on that shortly once I take a few more pics. Thanks for looking! Kai 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martinnfb Posted December 26, 2018 Share Posted December 26, 2018 Lovely build my friend, I am stunned by your attention to fine detail. Cheers Martin 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmperorKai Posted December 26, 2018 Author Share Posted December 26, 2018 Thanks Martin! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grunhertz Posted December 26, 2018 Share Posted December 26, 2018 Excellent work 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazzaS Posted December 26, 2018 Share Posted December 26, 2018 Painting up nicely! Gaz 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted December 28, 2018 Share Posted December 28, 2018 Kai Some mighty fine air brush work .. looking so good Keep 'em comin Peter 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmperorKai Posted December 29, 2018 Author Share Posted December 29, 2018 Thanks my friends- will have some more pics in the next day or so... almost done now! Kai 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted December 29, 2018 Share Posted December 29, 2018 Kai Looking girward to your Spit crossing the line Keep ‘em comin Peter 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmperorKai Posted December 30, 2018 Author Share Posted December 30, 2018 Couple of updates- the build is starting to move faster, but also running into a challenge or two... DECALS Initially, I was a little intimidated at getting the very large decals to all fit in the relatively small space that the fuselage sides provide. So, to start, I cut out pieces of paper and fixed them to the sides using Tamiya tape. This turned out to be a very fortunate as the roundels ended up needing to be shifted forward to accommodate the "DW" right side. The Eagle Edition decals went on very nicely and laid down nice and snug with Tamiya Mark Fit (under) and Solvaset (on top). I did run into one issue where it appears I had applied too much Solvaset which burned through the upper wing roundel decal. Ugh... I considered removing the roundel and replacing with another roundel, but I didn't have another suitable replacement set of decals and really didn't want to stall out or run the risk of screwing up the paint work I had already done. Ultimately, I cut a patch of blue from the unused underwing roundels and applied it over the top of the blemish. Not a perfect solution, but it's not very noticeable at this point. The decal instructions didn't provide much guidance regarding the order in which the decals should be placed. At one point, I applied the walkway stripes on the upper wings over the top of the roundel before realizing they should have gone on first. In the end, I let them dry and then scraped them off using a fresh blade, which worked out well enough. After pouring over internet pics, it also appears that early Spitfires had fairly minimal stenciling or were covered over by other markings. I ended up skipping most the the stencils and just applied the ones that reconciled with Mk.I images I was able to find. Applying the decals is my favorite step of the build, and usually have little or no trouble. In this case, considering how smoothly this project has gone so far, guess I was about due for something to go sideways. With the decals squared away, I started on the panel wash which I will cover as a separate post. Kai 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmperorKai Posted December 30, 2018 Author Share Posted December 30, 2018 PANEL WASH For the second part of my update, I wanted to share some pics of the finishing process. I used Mig Dark Wash for the most part, though I did stray with some grays where needed. Aside from that it was mainly and exercise in applying the wash and trying my damndest to NOT break the antenna and pitot tube off. I'll let the pics speak for the rest. Hope you enjoy and thanks much for looking in on my build. Kai 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martinnfb Posted December 30, 2018 Share Posted December 30, 2018 I just noticed the river being punched by beading tool. Wow. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazzaS Posted December 31, 2018 Share Posted December 31, 2018 Kai, The Wash and decals look great. The large fuselage markings are my favorite Roundels on any aircraft. I always thought little roundels ugly. Looking sweet! would hardly know it was such an old kit. Gaz 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wingco57 Posted December 31, 2018 Share Posted December 31, 2018 Blimey!!! That's fantastic. Those codes really fight for every inch available on the fuselage. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grunhertz Posted December 31, 2018 Share Posted December 31, 2018 Lovely work sir. A friend of mine has just released insignia masks for 610 sqdn but looks like you did just fine without them 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmayhew Posted December 31, 2018 Share Posted December 31, 2018 looks wonderful never had solvaset do that to eaglecals but you made a good recovery! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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