Messages

4516

Forums Works / Re: Group builds

« on: May 10, 2011, 05:32:29 PM »

I took the liberty of making a list of the current proposals that we've talked about in this thread. This is just informal and we may always switch dates for the best participation of all members who want to join.

May:            Fokker D.VII
June:           Curtiss Hawk 75/P-36.
July:            Open, but Daniel has talked about doing an MV build at some point.
August:       MiG 21.
September: C.R. 42.
October:     Tentatively the F-84 Family?

I hope I haven't missed any that were discussed up to this point. The Japan Build should continue on for a while (in my opinion) and we can just add projects to it as we proceed. And, as always, I suggest flexibility to promote the most builders.

Opinions and suggestions are heartily welcome!
Scott

4517

Forums Works / Re: Group builds

« on: May 10, 2011, 08:17:06 AM »

We're talking about doing a GB of the various marks of F-84 later on this year. Stay posted for details.

4518

Warplane Art / Re: Armstrong Whitworth Albemarle

« on: May 09, 2011, 07:12:36 PM »

I'll continue to look for the article I have read. It's in my library somewhere, but no luck on the search just yet.

4519

Warplane Art / Re: Armstrong Whitworth Albemarle

« on: May 09, 2011, 05:35:04 PM »

I did a quick search and found a couple of reviews. The Valom kit sounds quite nice and is available through both the auction site and several hobby shops.

4520

Warplane Art / Re: Armstrong Whitworth Albemarle

« on: May 09, 2011, 05:00:07 PM »

Yes, off the top of my head I can think of a Contrail vacuform (and another whose name escapes me right now) and Valom was going to do a short-run kit, all these in 1/72.

4521

Warplane Art / Re: Armstrong Whitworth Albemarle

« on: May 09, 2011, 04:18:03 PM »

Excellent development program. It certainly captures the look of the Albemarle.

4522

Aircraft Modeling / Re: Group Build> Japan

« on: May 09, 2011, 04:16:11 PM »

Great progress!!!!!!

4523

Aircraft Modeling / Re: Some modeling techniques

« on: May 09, 2011, 04:02:17 PM »

Wouldn't it be even better if you'd cut the mask using the template, stick it to the wheel and then paint. Of course that way you'd have to work invrsely - first paint the hub and then the tyre?

Yes, Profa, you're correct--the inverse method works better on some wheel/tire moldings. Especially if the rims are recessed or the tire has a rounded shape to the sidewall. In those instances I usually use BareMetal foil or its equivalent to mask the painted rim, then paint the tire.

4524

Aircraft Modeling / Re: PZL P.11c LTD 1/48

« on: May 09, 2011, 07:16:57 AM »

I'm going to title this entry as "Don't throw anything away". As seen earlier, the decal sheet that came with this kit had some promise until it was water damaged during its life in storage. When I bought it I was disappointed that the decals were no good, but I decided to take a chance today to see what would happen.

I finished filling and sanding on the wing and painted the lower surface with a mix of ancient Humbrol 65 and some white. Then I shot both the national insignia and the wing with a liberal coat of clear. I had to soak the decal for fifteen minutes in water, another five in Microsol decal solution, and a further five minutes in water before the backing came loose. I didn't expect much when I applied the decal to the delicate corrugated surface of the wing, but, to my amazement, it laid down wonderfully with a little Microset. I'm pretty confident that I can use the rest of the sheet and now it's time to go back to work on the cockpit and fuselage.

The moral of the story is don't give up on even damaged materials as patience will sometimes surprise you!

4525

Aircraft Modeling / Re: Some modeling techniques

« on: May 09, 2011, 07:02:24 AM »

Here's another additional painting tip. Painting tires and wheels can be somewhat tedious at times. Using a circle template is a handy (lazy, too!) way to paint wheels.

I simply paint the tire black and then find the correct diameter opening on the template sheet. Then I mask the area around the needed hole to keep from overspray. Next offer the tire/wheel up to the opening, center it carefully, and airbrush the wheel the desired color.

Here are the four wheels for the F-106 project I've been working on.

4526

Warplane Art / Re: Armstrong Whitworth Albemarle

« on: May 08, 2011, 06:05:02 PM »

I just remembered we talked of Albemarles on WIX some time ago. Here is a great link: http://www.raf38group.org/albemarleindex

4527

Aircraft Modeling / Re: F-106 Delta Dart

« on: May 08, 2011, 05:44:03 PM »

They simply painted the bright orange/red on the tail and wingtips over the last markings the airplanes carried in active service. There are many photos here of the drones: http://www.f-106deltadart.com/drones.htm

I don't yet know which ship I'll build from these, but they're all rather neat looking. We took the guided tour through the AMARC storage facility in Arizona in the spring of 1988 and saw almost the whole F-106 fleet in mothballs.

4528

Aircraft Modeling / Re: F-106 Delta Dart

« on: May 08, 2011, 04:15:46 PM »

The crew chief of '074 showed me some really nice air-to-air photos the other day. One of them is of a four-ship echelon and two of the airplanes my friend worked on are in the flight. It turns out that the photos were taken by Keith Ferris when he was researching an F-106 painting.

I was searching for unrelated treasure in the shop yesterday and found my first F-106 that I built just after the kit was first released. I'm going to inventory it for missing parts, and if everything is there I'm going to rebuild it as a QF-106 drone. It should be fun!

4529

Aircraft Modeling / Re: Group Build> Japan

« on: May 08, 2011, 04:09:52 PM »

Really nice instruments mate

I did the instrument panel in the "first-build" stage of this model in the 1970s. Some of the side panels need some touching up but I left the main instruments alone. I was looking at some web threads showing modern Zero kits from Hasegawa and Tamiya and mine is a bit crude by comparison. The shape and surface detail are fine, though, and it'll make into a nice display model for my display case. I'm truly enjoying this "recycling" program of my old builds.

4530

Aircraft Modeling / Re: Fokker D.VII Group build

« on: May 08, 2011, 04:03:53 PM »

I must commend you on the hard work and research y'all put into finding the proper patterns and colors of these camouflage schemes. A friend of mine asked me once why I was custom mixing some paint for a stock car model I was building for a museum display. I told him that modelers should try to capture the true color for historical accuracy. It's great to see you doing that here on these important machines!

This thread is a great resource for those of us who haven't delved into the WWI flying machines.