Hi

Rustoleum silver spray cans found at the hardware store work for me, even in 1/48 for bare metal finishes. A bit dull but great for the aluminum finish "look"

The best finish metalizer is the SNJ, your pigment graduation es very best....i oportunity look a P-51 finished with SNJ...the metal apareance is fenomenal.

Hello everyone. I also do 1/48 WWII aircraft. I'm currently working on a Spitfire Mark V. Although I haven't done any bare metal finishes myself yet, most of the guys in our modelling club swear by Alcad. It has to be airbrushed, you can't brush paint it on, but one of the things that everyone likes about it is after it drys, you can take an old T-shirt and polish it. The more you rub the brither it gets, so by polishing the panels different amounts, you can achieve a very realistic bare metal finish. I have also heard Testor's silver Leaf (spray can only) works well, but don't know if you can polish it like Alcad.

Stephen Craig

I have tried both SNJ and Alclad II, both have their pros and cons. For polishing Alclad try SNJ polishing powder. I am also in the process of trying aluminium foil as described in Fine Scale Modeler July 2002, skinning a P-38 in metal. It's an excellant artical, by Bucky Sheftall. Bucky, if you are out there I've got about a million questions for you. I'm try out different methods to get the different panel effects and it's looking promising. Aluminium foil not only looks better than a painted metal finish but is alot cheaper too.
Mal

holdfast; I build the same subjects you described in your opening post and lean more toward allied schemes, but I build all airforces.

Hi TF51GREG,
The reason I model all combatants and all types is because there are so many coolmodels out there. I prefer allied stuff though. I don't think the model companies do enough allied stuff especially Brit. My wish list would include all the Britsh medium and heavy bombers, in 1/48. My FSM vote is for the Vickers Wellington in 1/48. What a model that would be
Mal

Same thing for me. I also like several Sci-Fi subjects but the bulk of my collection (mostly unbuilt) are 1/48 WWII aircraft from several nations.

The Monogram PBY-5A and Arii Ki-45 are in the 'in-progress' status for that subject category.

Natural metal finishes look cool, although I have yet to do one really well. As for subject matter, WW2 prop planes are my favorites. I especially like the P-47 - at 1/48 scale, it's a good size for my ten thumbs.

my past modeling adventures have been mostly of helis and jets.Then I built a
1/32 F-4u and had it on display at a local shop.It was there about 2 weeks when
a collector offered me $$$$ for her. Then he ordered one plane a month from me.
Since this happened I have sold many WW-2 aircraft to many different collectors.This a very popular time frame to model.I enjoy it alot,in allscales
As far as the metel finish Alclad II is the best ,it is very easy,just follow the instruction and you can't go wrong.The second best are the Model Master line
again just follow the instruction. Good luck in modeling to all , see ya
Davey5

Hi Holdfast. My interests are pretty much in line with yours. I build mostly 1/48 scale WWII all combatants. I agree that some of the best kits avilable are in that category. I also have built a few Korean War era jets, Mainly because of the great F-86, F-84 & Mig 15 kits available. My built collection is a few over 200 models and about the same number unbuilt (haven't inventoried in a while). Just finished the Gladiator kit from Roden which is very nice, and have started the new Tamiya P-47-D Razorback which is a fantastic kit. For natural metal finishes, I use Alclad II, Testors Model Master, Floquil Old Silver and SNJ depending on the effect I want and my mood on that day. All have their pluses and minuses but excellent results can be obtained with all. Have never used BareMetal foil except to mask canopies as I wonder about the archival quality of the adhesive. May your next model be the best ever.
Rich.

Welcome to the group! I have interest in WWII aircraft as well. If you have any questions about F4U's come knock at my door. I'll be glad to help you out.
Dave

I also like th enatural metal finish - tho I normally will only model american aircraft (1914 - current). I also read that article on using aluminum foil. Currently working on a f-100 super sabre in 1/48.

Before I started that, I used the alum. foil finish on a pair of hasagawa napalm tanks - they came out looking great (after about 4 attempts). I use to use SnJ as a metalizer finish, but ran out of a source for it.

I even tried used the alum foil as a canopy mask - but found that the microscale glue left way too much residue behind making cleanup a real PITA - (pain in the backside). maybe I used too much adhesive or burnished it too much - dunno,
but I'm not going to try that again.