Airfix is RIGHT after all

Well..... being myself an airliner builder for many years all I can say is that panels in scales 1/72 and less should be very soft (defintely matchbox trenches are OFF scale) and NO rivets at all. I just saw that effect in the Hendon RAF museum after staring at the Lancaster exhibit. I got very close to the aircraft and started to walk until I got an approximate 1/48 size and the rivets were almost invisible, then futher and...No rivets at all! Anyway, in older aircrfat they are present and with dirt and friction they become visible. This effect can even be produced with dry brushing even in some older airliners in 1/144. However the strokes should also be scaled down accordingly.
A better solution for my panel lines in airliners is to simply pencil them. In some models, specially the older jets like the Revell`s 707 and 727 with hamburger size rivets I sanded the fuselages and rescribed very soft lines or simply drew them with a pencil. Photos soon to be posted... as long as I find how to upload them from my Sony Cliè ... So the question remains....to scribe or not to rescribe

Cheers!!!!!!!!!

Albrecht

haha.. yeah.. I think some manufacturers tend to exaggerate details to prove that they did their research.

mayby but we need the feel effect, in the same way that in the old movies the bad guy ought to be ugly and dressed in black explain the vicious plans so to give time to the hero to reach the hideout and ofcource to laugh funny....lol in the same way it needs the ripple to say hey i am fabric.....

Quincy,

I agree completely on fabric effect. On all the real planes I've seen, I couldn't see the fabric weave at all. After dope and paint, the surface is as smooth as metal -- except it sags just a wee little bit between ribs.

I also agree that rivits would be impossible to see at scale. However, I don't expect my models to be 1 to 1 representations of each feature of a real plane. So, I like the rivits on my planes. Personal preference I guess. :D

Regards,

-Drew

Hi Quincy. you got it just right there and those are the reasons why i get rid of all rivet detail on aircraft kits smaller that 1/32. cheers.
Greg

One of my pet peeves on models has been the representation of rivets - If you take a standard MS20470AD4-4 rivet (1/8 in diameter and 1/4 in length w/a 5/32 head) and reduce to 1/72 scale and put a coat of paint over it, its going to be virtually invisible from more than 6 inches away from the model - panel lines will be more noticable. especially if they overlap on the 1 to 1 model - but still very fine on the 1/72. Even Dzus fasteners would be nearly invisible - unless you are modeling a well used aircraft with dark paint scheme - the paint on the fastener becomes chipped with use and stands out because it is now lighter than the surrounding surface.
However my greatest peeve (and Airfix has always been bad about it), is the representation of fabric surfaces (in all scales) - fabric is a weave, not a random pattern - besides you run into a scale effect - take a look at the sheets on your bed - then reduce that weave by 72 - its going to disappear - real fabric (whether linen or synthetics) is installed , shrunk and then doped - if you put the minimum required amount of dope on (three coats clear, three coats aluminum), and reduce that to 1/72 scale its going to be glass smooth - the only difference between it and the surrounding metal will be the gentle sag between the supporting surfaces - no need for the squiggly worm effect. Oh, well, thanks for letting me blow off steam.
quincy

considering the amount of riveting I've done, I build aircraft for a living, the only advantage to recessed lines is that they don't sand off as easy. there are too many combinations of rivets and panels to be totally 100% accurate in scale.

Hi all,

I've got no problems with raised panel lines. In fact, I think you can get a finer line, in a lot of instances, with a raised line instead of a recessed line. A lot depends on scale too. At 1/72 scale, it can be very difficult to see the difference between a recessed line and a raised one. At 1/48, possibly, and definitely at 1/32 or larger, the issue becomes more important.

The truth is that most planes will have a mix of recessed, flush, and raised panel lines.

Regards,

-Drew

If the panels were produced properly there would be a slight step in the panels that overlap- neither raised nor recessed. Recessed panels are better since it better represents the step - IMHO.

Thyamis,
Well done! Perhaps we all should get a good look at the original aircraft to get some of these kits in perspective.
Dai