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Complete! 1/48 Tamiya Ju-87 B-2 Stuka

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  • Member since
    January 2015
Complete! 1/48 Tamiya Ju-87 B-2 Stuka
Posted by BrandonD on Tuesday, August 25, 2015 2:37 AM

Hi all,

I am building this reboxed Italeri Stuka for the Battle of Britain group build and thought I'd share the progress here.

I originally started this before I had a decent airbrush and knew not to thin with water. So step one was sanding the old underside paint, and repainting the cockpit components. Fortunately I hadn'd done any assembly aside from bomb racks (which I cut off) and the instrument cluster.

I went with light-ish weathering on the cockpit and limited it to Flory dark dirt washes and dry brushing with Tamiya neutral gray.

There are a few fit issues on this kit, and I don't care for the way the shield over the instrument panel doesn't fit flush to the base of the windscreen, but I think I can live with it. I had to clamp the sides pretty heavily to ensure no gap showed between cockpit wall and fuselage, too.

While the engine is cool, and pretty decently detailed, the cowling fit is kind of terrible, and I decided to glue it all closed instead of allowing it to be removable as I'd initially planned. The gaps just looked too hideous when it was on. I drilled out the exhaust once I got it together before mounting it to the rest of the airframe.

I'm actually farther along at this point (I have half the splinter camo done), but the pics are on my phone, which is dead. So you'll get them tomorrow. This one will be in the RLM 65/70/71 scheme.

Anyone have any tips on painting and weathering the bombs?

Thanks for looking.

-BD-

  • Member since
    March 2015
  • From: Streetsboro, Ohio
Posted by Toshi on Tuesday, August 25, 2015 5:21 AM

I always look forward to you WIP.  There's so much to learn from you and many other forum members.  Without saying, such a challengeing kit yet, your skill to turn a kit into a work of art is breath taking.

Toshi

On The Bench: Revell 1/48 B-25 Mitchell

 

Married to the most caring, loving, understanding, and beautiful wife in the world.  Mrs. Toshi

 

 

  • Member since
    June 2014
Posted by BrandonK on Tuesday, August 25, 2015 9:03 AM

Looking really good. Looking forward to seeing this in paint. I have this one in my stash, glad to hear about the cowl fit. I'll watch for that when I jump on mine.

 

BK

On the bench:

A lot !! And I mean A LOT!!

2024 Kits on deck / in process / completed   

                         14 / 5 / 2  

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  • Member since
    April 2005
  • From: Piscataway, NJ!
Posted by wing_nut on Tuesday, August 25, 2015 5:39 PM
Gonna try and keep up with this one. Looking good.

Marc  

  • Member since
    February 2012
  • From: Olmsted Township, Ohio
Posted by lawdog114 on Tuesday, August 25, 2015 11:34 PM
Nice work so far. That interior looks great...

 "Can you fly this plane and land it?...Surely you can't be serious....I am serious, and don't call me Shirley"

 

 

 

 

  • Member since
    December 2002
  • From: Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England
Posted by Bish on Wednesday, August 26, 2015 12:44 AM
MMMMM, Stuka. Nice work on the pit. For the bombs, the centreline one should be RLM 65, the wing bombs Dark Green, I use RLM 71.

I am a Norfolk man and i glory in being so

 

On the bench: Airfix 1/72nd Harrier GR.3/Fujimi 1/72nd Ju 87D-3

  • Member since
    January 2015
Posted by BrandonD on Wednesday, August 26, 2015 1:24 AM

Thanks, Bish! I didn't realize they painted the bombs those colors. I would have (wrongly) assumed a dark gray.

I got some time with it tonight, and I got the RLM 71 down. I don't know if the colors look right. I always pictured the Stukas having a richer green color to them... Maybe a filter coat is in order once the decals are on. I don't know.

Anyway, here it is as it sits:

I used the Tamiya color guidelines for all colors. The 71 looks right on my 109, and it's the same mixture, so maybe I just have an incorrect picture in my head. I don't know.

-BD-

  • Member since
    August 2013
Posted by Jay Jay on Wednesday, August 26, 2015 8:35 AM

Man, your Stuka is looking great !  Thanks for sharing the GB on here too.

 

 

 

 

 

 I'm finally retired. Now time I got, money I don't.

  • Member since
    February 2007
  • From: Brunswick, Ohio
Posted by Buckeye on Wednesday, August 26, 2015 11:18 AM

Looks great so far!

Mike

  • Member since
    December 2002
  • From: Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England
Posted by Bish on Wednesday, August 26, 2015 11:47 AM

BD, the bombs were painted depending on whether they were primarily internal or external loads. The larger bombs, 500KG and up, were mainly external so were blue to blend into the undersides. The 50kg bombs were usually carried internally on larger aircraft, He 111, Ju 88etc, so there was less need for camouflage. Of course, this didn't work on the Ju 87, but they didn't paint the bombs for specific aircraft. I get most of the info from this site.

http://www.warbirdsresourcegroup.org/LRG/bombs.html

I am a Norfolk man and i glory in being so

 

On the bench: Airfix 1/72nd Harrier GR.3/Fujimi 1/72nd Ju 87D-3

  • Member since
    December 2002
  • From: Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England
Posted by Bish on Wednesday, August 26, 2015 11:56 AM

Those greens look fine to me BD. If you check the finished builds from the Stuka GB, there are a few in that scheme and i think your colours match up well.

http://cs.finescale.com/fsm/modeling_subjects/f/2/t/165475.aspx

I am a Norfolk man and i glory in being so

 

On the bench: Airfix 1/72nd Harrier GR.3/Fujimi 1/72nd Ju 87D-3

  • Member since
    January 2015
Posted by BrandonD on Thursday, August 27, 2015 1:19 AM

Bish - thanks for the link. I checked out the pictures, and I did a bit of research on the colors and found that there seems to have been a range even within the RLM specs, so I am going to keep it as it is. 

So I got the decals on tonight, then I finished up with adding all the stencils except the ones on the aerial, since I haven't installed that yet.

It looks like it's nearing completion, but I have some work to do on the ordnance now, and there are still actually quite a few pieces to add to the plane.

-BD-

  • Member since
    July 2015
  • From: Los Angeles
Posted by Plastic_Aviator on Thursday, August 27, 2015 2:19 AM

Oh man, that looks really good. love the colors and the way the decals pop. Are you going to weather it or leave it clean?

  • Member since
    September 2013
Posted by AdeB on Friday, August 28, 2015 3:40 AM
Looking very very good...yeah...rough it up!!
  • Member since
    December 2002
  • From: Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England
Posted by Bish on Friday, August 28, 2015 11:38 AM
I don't think there is any colour range, especially from this period, when you can say this colour should look like this or that. I use the same paint brand every time and don't have to mix my own, but I still get variations. Nice choice for markings, don't often see that insignia.

I am a Norfolk man and i glory in being so

 

On the bench: Airfix 1/72nd Harrier GR.3/Fujimi 1/72nd Ju 87D-3

  • Member since
    June 2013
Posted by bvallot on Friday, August 28, 2015 3:53 PM
Excellent job so far Brandon. I can't wait to put this kit in my line up. You're showing here that one shouldn't be too disappointed with it either. =] Very nice interior also.

On the bench:  

Tamiya F4U-1  Kenneth Walsh

 

  • Member since
    April 2015
  • From: New Hampshire, USA
Posted by UKguyInUSA on Saturday, August 29, 2015 7:11 AM

Great looking Stuka! Those RLM colors are a pain to get "correct" shades, then when you compare Model Masters to Tamiya, to Gunze Sangyo (sp), Humbrol and Model Air...their shades of the RLM colors are completely different from each other, too. I've always mixed my own shades since I decided not to  drive myself insane fretting over "correct" colors and if I think it looks good, I'm happy. And as you have stated, when you come across the RLM Color Shades, each one has different variations spread across the years they were manufactured. Filters and weathering are always a good method to tone, highlight and/or lowlight the finish.

Keep having fun!

Cheers Big Smile

  • Member since
    March 2012
  • From: Corpus Christi, Tx
Posted by mustang1989 on Saturday, August 29, 2015 7:21 AM

Gotta love those splinter camo schemes! Lookin' good Brandon. Really good.

                   

 Forum | Modelers Social Club Forum (proboards.com) 

  • Member since
    August 2013
Posted by Jay Jay on Saturday, August 29, 2015 9:51 AM

Outstanding work Brandon !  very inspiring.

 

 

 

 

 

 I'm finally retired. Now time I got, money I don't.

  • Member since
    December 2006
  • From: Phoenix, AZ
Posted by Fly-n-hi on Saturday, August 29, 2015 10:06 AM

Nice!  The interior looks great!

  • Member since
    May 2013
  • From: Indiana, USA
Posted by Greg on Saturday, August 29, 2015 11:06 AM

Looking good indeed!

Dumb question, are you saying this is a Tamiya kit but is really the Italeri kit re-boxed? I recently built the Italeri B2 and this sure looks familiar. If answer is yes, why would Tamiya be re-boxing a current Italeri kit?

I really like your idea of clamping the cockpit tub sides to the fuselage sides. I have gaps, never thought about that.

Finally, sure like the topside paint colors. Specifically, the visual contrast between the two RLM colors. I used Vallejo Model Air and the colors blend so much they need to be under some light just to show the two colors.

  • Member since
    December 2002
  • From: Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England
Posted by Bish on Saturday, August 29, 2015 1:11 PM

Greg, Tamiya re-box quite a few Italeri kits. This was just a random selection, but if you look at the last two kits, one is Italeri the other a Tamiya re box, both on sale at the same time.

https://www.hannants.co.uk/search/index.php?adv=1&product_category_id=&product_division_id=&manufacturer_id=&product_type_id=all_aircraft_kits&code=&scale_id=956&keyword_search=F-14&setPerPage=100&sort=0&search_direction=0&restore_search=&save_search_active=yes&save_search_name=&save_search=

And you can that Tamiya clearly mark it as a Italeri kit, but that the Tamiya costs a little more.

I am a Norfolk man and i glory in being so

 

On the bench: Airfix 1/72nd Harrier GR.3/Fujimi 1/72nd Ju 87D-3

  • Member since
    February 2012
  • From: Olmsted Township, Ohio
Posted by lawdog114 on Saturday, August 29, 2015 6:45 PM
That looks fine to me Brandon. I have trouble mixing Tamiya paints for RLM colors too. I switched to Gunze Aqueous for these as they look better to my eye. I look forward to the finish.

 "Can you fly this plane and land it?...Surely you can't be serious....I am serious, and don't call me Shirley"

 

 

 

 

  • Member since
    January 2015
Posted by BrandonD on Monday, August 31, 2015 11:00 PM

Thanks, everyone! I appreciate the discussion on RLM colors even though I'm sure many of you have had it a hundred times Big Smile. And thanks for all the kind words. This has been a fun build so far, so I'm glad you're all enjoying it.

I got some time with it this weekend and put down the last gloss coat, then a panel line wash.

I wanted to dirty this one up a bit because I feel like most of my builds have been pretty clean, and I liked the dirt on my Hurricane, so why not try something new? I decided to do salt weathering. I practiced on the underside, using a mixture of water and dish soap brushed onto the plane to hold the salt in place (the dish soap is just to break the surface tension of the water and keep it from beading up on the gloss coat.

Then I dumped salt all over it. I didn't have cheap sea salt, so I ended up using some of the fancier stuff Whistling.

I let it dry (mostly) before laying down a highly thinned coat of Tamiya smoke, which was probably too thin, as it seems to have had very little effect, if any. I then hinned some flat earth and shot it over the salt. Once that had dried, I blew off the salt with the airbrush (no paint) and then, for the parts that were stuck on, I wiped in the direction of airflow with a paper towel.

Here is the result:

I decided that while I went a little heavy in a few places, I really liked the random weathering and dirtiness, especially for a dive bomber working at low altitudes and flying through a bunch of debris, smoke and dust from planes in front of it.

Up top, I didn't like how stark the contrast was in the splinter camo, and how bright white the sweet Cartograf decals were, so I sprayed a REALLY thin mist coat of RLM 02 over the whole topside. Then I revisited the salt technique and used the black green color, hoping it would further tone down the contrast between the two as well as darken bits of the darker patches now that they'd been somewhat lightened with RLM 02. I thought the look was too subtle, so I salted it again and then hit it with a thinned coat of NATO black, sinc eit has a greenish tint to it.

Here is the result (kind of hard to see in the lighting, and it's a lot more cleaned up around crew walkway and wing root now):

Once that was all done, I wiped the plane with a damp paper towel to remove salt residue and clear coated it with Tamiya flat clear. I missed a few spots with the salt, but I used a Q-tip with Tamiya acrylic thinner to remove the staining (it didn't eat through the Alclad lacquer gloss coat into the colors below, so all is well).

I've now added a bunch of the little bits like dive flaps (which I'm glad I cut off and left till the end), control surface linkage, counterweights and those sorts of things.

I also used a short-bristled brush to smash some silver on the leading edge of the wings and the nose cone to simulate paint shipping there.

Now all that's left is some exhaust streaking, chipping around the wing root and final touch up around the canopy. Oh, and the ordnance.

-BD-

  • Member since
    December 2002
  • From: Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England
Posted by Bish on Tuesday, September 1, 2015 12:23 AM
Not seen that method of weathering before, I rather like the end result.

I am a Norfolk man and i glory in being so

 

On the bench: Airfix 1/72nd Harrier GR.3/Fujimi 1/72nd Ju 87D-3

  • Member since
    February 2014
  • From: Michigan
Posted by silentbob33 on Tuesday, September 1, 2015 9:10 AM

That weathering techniqe looks fantastic, I may have to steal it in the future.

On my bench: Academy 1/35 UH-60L Black Hawk

  • Member since
    March 2010
  • From: MN
Posted by Nathan T on Tuesday, September 1, 2015 9:59 AM

Real nice Stuka Brandon. That salt weathering can be tricky, but you pulled it off like a pro. Nice and sutble weathering. Yes

 

 

  • Member since
    May 2013
  • From: Indiana, USA
Posted by Greg on Tuesday, September 1, 2015 10:29 AM

Brandon, I've been curious about the salt method for a while now, thank you very much for the step by step explanation and pics. I think your results are great!

Everything is really coming together now.

Bish, thanks for the feedback on Tamiya reboxed. I see that it truly IS very clearly marked on thier boxes!

  • Member since
    December 2002
  • From: Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England
Posted by Bish on Tuesday, September 1, 2015 3:10 PM
No worries Greg. I never really understand why they do this. I am sure its a good deal for Itaeri because they must get paid by Tamiya and then Tamiya sell the same kits for more, so its a no brainer which kit you will buy if you have a choice. Tamiya also sell some of their armour kits with ICM figures.

I am a Norfolk man and i glory in being so

 

On the bench: Airfix 1/72nd Harrier GR.3/Fujimi 1/72nd Ju 87D-3

  • Member since
    January 2015
Posted by BrandonD on Sunday, September 6, 2015 11:59 PM

The Stuka is done! This kit fought me in a few places, and I didn't do myself any favors by breaking the tail wheel housing off and losing it forever. Fortunately I still had the wheel, and the housing is probably the easiest thing to scratchbuild, so I was able to fix it.

Anyway, here she is: a veteran Stuka of 3/StG2, based in France in August, 1940. A few things I would have liked to have done better, but she looks the part of a mean old bird.

All comments and critiques welcome, as always :)

Also, there isn't any white under the canopy. I think that's a weird lighting or photo editing quirk. It's black pastel chalk for exhaust streaks. I think I brought the highlights up too much. oops.

-BD-

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