Attention Comardes! Official Pride of Mikoyan-Gurevich GB Launches....

Great start, Dre! The detail in that resin cockpit is awesome. Is it kit or aftermarket?

PB, it is an AM Avionix set.   The detail isn't quite as crisp as an Aires set, but it'll do.

I'm going to omit some of the really fiddly bits on the bang seat as I couldn't get them to stay attached for love or money.

It will take some largish lumps of milliput to get the tub to sit right in the fuselage as there's no real locating pins or what-not to help seat it.

PB,

Are you or someone working on a patch for this GB. If not I MAY be able to help. I'm no computer graphics guy or anything but I might be able to come up with something simple.

Steve

Steve, if you have time to make a patch I'd appreciate it! Just got a new computer this week so I'm wrestling with getting all my data back in order.

PB,

I'm going to have to switch to a different  kit/subject. This thing is just c**p. I installed the wings last night and the seams were just too much. I've already sanded off almost all of the detail due to the rest of the filling work that needed to be done. If this were a 1/48 it would be different, but 1/72, boy, I don't think there will be anything left but putty when I'm through.

I will do some research and come up with something else.....I thinking a MiG 3.

Steve

No problem! Sorry the kit turned out to be a dog. :-( But definitely jump back in with something else.

I'm not going anywhere, in fact I'm eying the Trumpeter 1/48 MiG 3. I'm tired of so so kits and want to build something that's nice for a change.

I know that feeling! I've tackled a couple of Eduard's limited edition releases of old kits. :-) The Trumpeter MiG 19 is supposed to be a straightforward build (excepting the NMF).

I spent some serious time this weekend doing tedious detailing in the cockpit, launch rails, and landing gear legs.

First, I started late Friday night to detail paint in the cockpit tub and side walls but made no real progress as my mind was full of good ideas for other areas...

then on Saturday I started cutting very thin strips (slightly less than 1mm wide) of .010 sheet plastic to dress up the launch rails that will remain empty.   I may go back and add these strips to all the other rails as well.  You can see the fixed rails on the left and unfixed on the right- with the mounting lumps that fit into divots on the missiles.

Early Sunday morning saw me painting the small missiles white and the landing gear legs light grey...I'll use some large missiles left over from a Su-27 build to cut down on time wasted.

That's pretty much all I got done on Saturday and Sunday as there was a lot of TV sports to be watched!

Monday I was off of work so I began to detail the landing gear legs using some reference pics I found online and some plain old imagination.

I used .010" unpainted lead wire to make the static hydraulic tubes and .025" lead wire (painted flat black) to make the flexible rubber tubing that are seen in the areas of movement on the real aircraft.    Self adhesive lead foil cut into very fine strips was used as the retaining straps...    I also had to make the connectors out of 1/16" plastic rod that was drilled out to make it into tubing as I didn't have any plastic or brass tubing of that size.

and here's the products I used on the gear legs- lead wire of .010" and .025" for the hydraulic lines, anodized blue copper .010" wire for the light wiring, self-adhesive lead foil for the straps and something called "Mirage Eyes" for the landing light on the nose gear.   I've only seen this product once at a local HobbyTown USA and I bought both placards at that time.   I've never seen it since, but it might be found in a craft store.   It's a pretty neat thing- clear lens with an iridescent backing that have a black spot in the center- they look very much like some high discharge lights I've seen on other aircraft.

and...  that's all for now!

Ok PB,

What do you think of this for a patch?

I tried all night to get the MiG logo on the patch but I'm an electronics technician, not a graphic designer. I figured the logo was on the tail anyway so that would be good enough.

"Dammit, Jim...."

No worries about the logo, the patch still looks great. Thanks for putting it together.

Dammit Jim, I'm a doctor not a web graphics designer.

I'll need to put in several hours of reading and experimenting to understand my new picture software.

Did you want to go with it and put it on the front page, or want me to keep working on it?

Looks good, Modelcrazy.

Yeah, looks good as-is, unless anyone has any objections?

I wouldn't object to the patch as is, but I do have a suggestion. I think there is a bit too much "empty space" at the bottom. Maybe make the plane look bigger by cropping/zooming, or just crop out most of the empty space. This is just a suggestion, though. Feel free to ignore it; I won't be offended!

Can do, I'll have a cropped one up today, and maybe a different angle ad well to choose from.

Ok guys, pick one,

Thanks for working up a badge!

I vote for #2.....

Yeah, I like 2 better as well.

Put me down with Revell's 1/48 Mig-29 with Eduard's AA-10's

Welcome, Matt! Glad to have you.

Will add your MiG-29.

I many use my Academy missiles as the quality of the Eduard is extremely high.

Well... after a long weekend of squinting at a tiny brush I'm happy to say the cockpit painting and weathering is finished and it is installed in this MiG-29!

man, that's a tight work space!

and as was promised, it took a goodly amount of MilliPut to anchor this large resin tub to the top fuselage shell as there is nothing to correctly locate the aftermarket tub to the plastic.

and how it looks with the front HUD cowling just fitted into place- I still need to add the HUD screen and glue this down.

Dre, it looks like one could climb right in and strap down.  That's some very nice work dude!  Very impressive indeed.  I've been thinking about my MiG-27 plans lately; can't decide whether to spring for some "dress up" stuff from Eduard or not.  I might try to scratch something together instead.  Decisions, decisions.  Meanwhile my Skyray and Intruder taunt me from their half-finished state!!    Where can I get some more time, and motivation?!?!

Gary

Crikey, Dre, that's great work. Wish my cockpits came out that good.

Holy cats Dre, did you use a shrink ray on a actual 29 cockpit? that looks......real.

I've ordered the Trumpeter 1/48 Soviet MiG-3 Late Version Fighter. I should be getting in in about a week.

PB,

did you want to go with the patch you liked, #2?

Yeah, I was about to ask about the patch. I'll use #2. Thanks!

Ok, added to the intro post. Steve, note that I linked the photo directly to your Photobucket account, so we might go over your account viewing limit?

Sorry dude. don't know what happened to the patch. Here it is again.

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Thanks for looking at the cockpit, guys.   Added decals and some spot paints to the missiles last night and finished adding .010" plastic strips to the launch rails and filled in the mounting holes for the outermost wing stations as this MiG will only carry 6 wing rails, not 8.

Also worked on the honking big seam/step in the engine nacelles...  lots of putty used here to raise the interior by about a 1mm.

Thankfully, I'll be adding the massive fuel tank to this area so I don't have to be too precise in cleaning up the mess in between the nacelles but the outer surfaces and undersides will get a wet sanding and polishing treatment or two.

Lots of piddling little work as I procrastinate closing up the fuselage and attaching the wings..