Oh wow, that's some nice work!

Very nicely done

Nicely done!  I like the bombs especially, great weathering on them.

Thanks, John - can't wait to see it!

CHemteacher - thanks! Yes, I wanted the exhaust staining to look scuffed, as I see that a lot in references. After paintng the stains, I used a Q-tip dipped in thinner, blotted most of it off on a paper towel, then smudged at the paint to remove it.

I was also thrilled to find reference photos showing bombs on an A-36 in the same timeframe what did NOT have the yellow stripes on them. So, no need to mask and paint! But yes, I have numerous pics of bombs sitting outside rusting, and since most parts of an aircraft are aluminum and therfore don't rust, I wanted to add some of that to the mix on this build.

-BD-

Nicely done.  My A-36 has just had decals applied and is waiting on some weathering and odd bits being attached before its done.  Hope to share it soon.  Thanks for the inspiration.

John

Thanks, Shipwreck! Bombs were torn up with rust streaks and Abteilung 502 "Dust" oil paint.

Mike - thank you! I faded the national insignia with ivory white oil paint. I dotted it on and then ground it into the finish with a stiff brush (after a clear coat to protect them) and then wiped away. The wings also got hit with the desert yellow salt weathering a bit, but I kept my spraying away from the insignia so I wouldn't tint them weird, so it was subtle.

TempestJohnny - thank you! I wanted this one dirty and was happy to use it as an experimentation platform.

-BD-

Brandon,

Let me add my cudos to this build of yours. Looks great!

Question: How did you go about fading the national insignia? Was it faded along with the rest of the wings/fuselage by airbrushing a diluted shade of gray or something like that? Since I know next to nothing about fading I thought I'd display my ignorance hoping to learn something.

Max - Thanks, also, Eye in the Sky? Hmm, maybe it's time to build my Cuban MiG-21R...

John - Thanks!

Joe - Thank you! It's good to be back. Hopefully I can make it stick this time around.

-BD-

Very nice, Brandon, great fading and weathering.

Looks like a great end to this build. Well done, BrandonD!

I'm getting excited to build my F-6B for the Eye In The Sky GB, I’ll definitely use this as my inspiration. 

Thanks, guys!

Bob - I had sprayed a really lovely brownish black sooty griminess for the exhaust...and then looked at a reference pic of that particular aircraft and saw all the light gray streaking. So annoying, but I wanted it right.

Aggieman - thanks! That was the intent with this one, and it was a lot of new techniques for me.

-BD-

Great job!  Looks well worn.

Well, as they say, better late than never?

This thing kept getting put on the back burner, as did modeling in general, but it's now off the bench.

To recap:

1/48 Accurate Miniatures A-36 Apache.
Barracuda wheels
Mr. Paint paints
Salt weathering, oil staining and some streaking effects were used on the airframe, and the bombs are Gunze olive drab with oils and rust effects.

I think that's it. Thanks for following along even if it's been almost a year to complete!

-BD-

Ok, I got the decals on. These markings are actually for sale for $0.99 on Sprue Brothers, so I icked up an extra set with an order Iplaced a while back because I was worried about the bomb markings baing difficult.

As it was, I did tear a fuselage star, so I scrapped it and pulled one off the second sheet, but it was due to impatience on my part and not a problem with the decals.

They went down ok, but they appeared to just sit on top of the detail, and I was worried they'd take a lot of work. But no, they responded really well to Micro Sol, and they snugged down into all the panel lines and details, including the formation lights on the underside.

The "B" letteringis translucent, and the yellow numbers below can be seen through it, so I may use my spare sheet to double up the "B" decals and eliminate that.

Once that's done, I'll clear it and get to town with the oils to fade and streak it more.

Thanks for looking.

-BD-

Thanks, all!

BK - as for getting this, the Mr. Paint paints make it a breeze. They're pre-thinned, so I shoot them straight out of the bottle. I use 15-18PSI and my Sotar 20/20 with a 0.2mm needle. Takes a little practice, but the main thing is not to hose the blnd coat on too much, which I frequently do, haha.

-BD-

Great looking paint finish you've achieved there. My so far unattainable, constant quest

I’m impressed. It seems like the finish of a kit is much more of an art form now than when I was last building avidly. Preshading, panel washes, and maybe an oil filter (if you were wild and crazy) were all normal, as was some paint lightening in the panels. Now there’s black basing, people are masking insignias, and filters galore. For example, the first OD pic looks a little odd to my eye, but when you tied it in with the top coat? Phenomenal!

Cant wait for more progress.

Looking Good BD. I love how you paint and would like to someday pull off your shading. Ill just have to keep at it.

BK

Well, I got the thing together, and then hit the underside with Mr. Paint Neutral Gray after painting the yellow theater bands and white tail flash.

I tried some shading/texturing I haven't done before and hated it, so I reshot the Neutral Gray and will attack it with oils later.

After that, I went to the topside with the Mr. Paint Olive Drab (the "up to 1943" color, as even though this plane is depicted in '44, it was built earlier and therefore carried the earlier paint scheme.

I then mixed the MRP with Tamiya Desert Yellow for lighter tones, and then mixed the MRP with Tamiya RAF Dark Green and Black for darker patches before blending with another coat of MRP Olive Drab.

Next step will be to vary a few panels, then add decals and attack it with oils.

-BD-

lawdog114

Nice start Brandon. Cockpit is Stellar.

 

Thanks, Joe!

I've got the fuselage together on this now, and am just dealing with some small seam work around the carburetor intake up top. I have some Mr. Paint Olive Drab on the way I want to try out, so I can't wait to get it ready to go.

-BD-

Bish

 

 

BrandonD

Thanks, all!

Bish - I am hopeful that Eduard will bring one out following its upcoming P-51D. They're pretty good at filling in versions, like they are with their Bf-109, Fw-190 and MiG-21. Though they haven't done early Spitfires, much to your chagrin, I'm sure ;)

Gamera - there are a lot of these around still, but they'll probably go up in price eventually. I got this one on eBay within the last year, and I think I spent something like $25 with shipping.

-BD-

 

 

 

 

Yes indeed, i don't know how i cope with a decent early Spitfire.

Would be nice to see a company like Eduard do some ealy 109's. There are kits out there, but from the smaller companies. But the pre warstuff does seem to be overlooked.

 

Yeah, I agree that it would be awesome to see Eduard fill out the pre-E 109s. When they announced the Legion Condor kit, I was hoping we'd get a Bf-109D, but they stuck with their E-1/3 kit.

-BD-

BrandonD

Thanks, all!

Bish - I am hopeful that Eduard will bring one out following its upcoming P-51D. They're pretty good at filling in versions, like they are with their Bf-109, Fw-190 and MiG-21. Though they haven't done early Spitfires, much to your chagrin, I'm sure ;)

Gamera - there are a lot of these around still, but they'll probably go up in price eventually. I got this one on eBay within the last year, and I think I spent something like $25 with shipping.

-BD-

 

Yes indeed, i don't know how i cope with a decent early Spitfire.

Would be nice to see a company like Eduard do some ealy 109's. There are kits out there, but from the smaller companies. But the pre warstuff does seem to be overlooked.