mikeymize

Thanks Ken. As I said I've still got weathering and last touches but I'm pleased with the outcome thus far. I'll post some final pics after that's done. As far as your build goes when you get your punch set do you think you'll add some future or something for the glass on the gauges? I've heard a lot of people do this. The work you've done so far is certainly very meticulous and I'm looking forward to what comes next!

Thank you Mike for the compliments!

Yes I will be using Future for the glass.  I have used it before and it works pretty good.  It does take several coats to get the effect.  Here is one I did before for the F-4E:

Ken 

Hi gang! Imageshack has upgraded their site so let's see if I can get the hang of it.

Here is something interesting totally unrelated to our build subject, but since the weather has been discussed many times here, this relates to that!

I was loading some tools behind the seat of my truck (it's an extended cab) and discovered this bottle of Diet Coke that had been forgotten. It's been there a couple of months at least and has been subjected to numerous freeze/thaw cycles, several of which have been sub-zero and once even down to -13!

The full bottle on the left is the one that was froze, with an empty on the right for comparison. It is now taller, larger in circumference, and the trademark Coke "contour" has been flattened! It had the Coke logo embossed into that area along with a patterned texture, but this is all but gone, and barely visible as the plastic was stretched outward, it flattened all this out as well. You can also see the increased volume of the bottle has the soda now well below the usual area up in the neck.The label appears distressed as well!

It is also has no fizz left in it what so ever and I have no intention of drinking it!

That's all about that, as I thought it was kind of interesting....

Ok, back to the build!

I have been working, when I can, on the missiles. I need to at least mount the AIM-120's as they hang above the extended landing gear, and I didn't want to have to fight them to get them into place. Obviously, painting the stripes is a big PIA with all the masking involved.

The results:

I notice they are not exactly perfect in size, but who is going to notice? (other than me of course!)

I plan to do a wash to bring out the detail and also I plan on adding  a couple of data decals from my spares box to give them a bit more realism. Only tiny bugs will be able to read them in any case, so what they say is unimportant...

The decal sheet is an old Micro-scale F-4 Phantom data sheet I picked up as a close-out years ago for a buck each! And I have three of them! They have come in handy a few times as I needed to replace a few damaged kit decals! Like I said before, at this scale, you really can't read them anyway!

Note the blob of Silly Putty used as a convenient work stand!

Jim

jimbot58

Hi gang! Imageshack has upgraded their site so let's see if I can get the hang of it.

Here is something interesting totally unrelated to our build subject, but since the weather has been discussed many times here, this relates to that!

I was loading some tools behind the seat of my truck (it's an extended cab) and discovered this bottle of Diet Coke that had been forgotten. It's been there a couple of months at least and has been subjected to numerous freeze/thaw cycles, several of which have been sub-zero and once even down to -13!

The full bottle on the left is the one that was froze, with an empty on the right for comparison. It is now taller, larger in circumference, and the trademark Coke "contour" has been flattened! It had the Coke logo embossed into that area along with a patterned texture, but this is all but gone, and barely visible as the plastic was stretched outward, it flattened all this out as well. You can also see the increased volume of the bottle has the soda now well below the usual area up in the neck.The label appears distressed as well!

It is also has no fizz left in it what so ever and I have no intention of drinking it!

That's all about that, as I thought it was kind of interesting....

Very cool that it didn't split the bottle open and spill all over the inside of your truck!  Even though it is diet so has no sugar, it still would have been quite a mess.  Shows the strength of those bottles!

Ken

jimbot58

Ok, back to the build!

I have been working, when I can, on the missiles. I need to at least mount the AIM-120's as they hang above the extended landing gear, and I didn't want to have to fight them to get them into place. Obviously, painting the stripes is a big PIA with all the masking involved.

The results:

I notice they are not exactly perfect in size, but who is going to notice? (other than me of course!)

I plan to do a wash to bring out the detail and also I plan on adding  a couple of data decals from my spares box to give them a bit more realism. Only tiny bugs will be able to read them in any case, so what they say is unimportant...

The decal sheet is an old Micro-scale F-4 Phantom data sheet I picked up as a close-out years ago for a buck each! And I have three of them! They have come in handy a few times as I needed to replace a few damaged kit decals! Like I said before, at this scale, you really can't read them anyway!

Note the blob of Silly Putty used as a convenient work stand!

Jim

Very nice work on those missiles Jim!  Incredible when you consider the scale!      That is one thing I always hated doing, masking.  But if you don't do a good job at it, it can really take away from any paint job.

You got a really good deal on those decals!  A very wise investment.

Cool idea using the silly putty to hold small parts, thanks for sharing that!

Ken

Hi Everyone,

A little more work on the Hoosier Hotshot cockpit:

And here is a shot of the headrest:

Ken 

Ken: That IP looks perfect! Wish I could do one that looked that good!

Mike: That Coke bottle is bizarre - I guess the repeated freezing and thawing warped the bottle as you said. Little surprising to be it didn't burst but I guess the plastic had enough 'give' to keep it flexing.

Those missiles turned out great, don't think I could see something that small much less mask and paint it.

Gamera

Ken: That IP looks perfect! Wish I could do one that looked that good!

Mike: That Coke bottle is bizarre - I guess the repeated freezing and thawing warped the bottle as you said. Little surprising to be it didn't burst but I guess the plastic had enough 'give' to keep it flexing.

Those missiles turned out great, don't think I could see something that small much less mask and paint it.

Thank you Cliff!  I am hoping I can get the F-84E's instrument panel looking as good.  It will be an experiment using the hole punch on the photo etch.  It sounds good in theory!   

Ken

That is looking good Ken! You're the one who is meticulous, though I don't doubt working in a larger scale would make that easier to get into that level of attention to detail. You can only attain so much at smaller scales.

I am wondering something: as we are rapidly approaching the month of February, will the Group Build start afresh with the third annual?

Here is something that caught my eye: I see Revell Germany has released a 1:72 scale German U-boat, the U-505, which was captured by the Allies in '44 and eventually was donated to the Chicago Museum of Science and Technology in 1954. Here's the thing: when I was a kid, I traveled with Mom to Chicago to visit relatives. One of my Uncles took us out on his boat on Lake Michigan, and I remember seeing a submarine moored at a dock somewhere. It looked very old and was covered with rust. Now I wonder if this sub was what I saw? The photos I looked at strike something in my memory, but that was so long ago. Around 40 years or so (OMG! 40 Years!!!!) I guess it has been restored and moved into it's own climate controlled enclosure at the Museum. Sounds like an interesting museum, if I ever get to Chicago again.

Follow this link for a video of them moving the (Wow! It's big!) sub:

U-505

Jim

jimbot58

That is looking good Ken! You're the one who is meticulous, though I don't doubt working in a larger scale would make that easier to get into that level of attention to detail. You can only attain so much at smaller scales.

I am wondering something: as we are rapidly approaching the month of February, will the Group Build start afresh with the third annual?

Here is something that caught my eye: I see Revell Germany has released a 1:72 scale German U-boat, the U-505, which was captured by the Allies in '44 and eventually was donated to the Chicago Museum of Science and Technology in 1954. Here's the thing: when I was a kid, I traveled with Mom to Chicago to visit relatives. One of my Uncles took us out on his boat on Lake Michigan, and I remember seeing a submarine moored at a dock somewhere. It looked very old and was covered with rust. Now I wonder if this sub was what I saw? The photos I looked at strike something in my memory, but that was so long ago. Around 40 years or so (OMG! 40 Years!!!!) I guess it has been restored and moved into it's own climate controlled enclosure at the Museum. Sounds like an interesting museum, if I ever get to Chicago again.

Follow this link for a video of them moving the (Wow! It's big!) sub:

U-505

Jim

Hi Jim,

Thank you for the compliments!

Yes, I have already started thinking about the badge for the Third Annual Berny Memorial Group Build.  It will be here sooner that we think!  Everyone can carry over whatever they are building to it.  And they can still have their pick where they want to display it when it is finished, the Second or the Third.

That is pretty interesting about the U-505.  Chicago is only a 2 hour drive from where I live.  I may have to go and pay it a visit.  Of course I will take plenty of pictures!

Ken

Son Of Medicine Man

jimbot58

That is looking good Ken! You're the one who is meticulous, though I don't doubt working in a larger scale would make that easier to get into that level of attention to detail. You can only attain so much at smaller scales.

I am wondering something: as we are rapidly approaching the month of February, will the Group Build start afresh with the third annual?

Here is something that caught my eye: I see Revell Germany has released a 1:72 scale German U-boat, the U-505, which was captured by the Allies in '44 and eventually was donated to the Chicago Museum of Science and Technology in 1954. Here's the thing: when I was a kid, I traveled with Mom to Chicago to visit relatives. One of my Uncles took us out on his boat on Lake Michigan, and I remember seeing a submarine moored at a dock somewhere. It looked very old and was covered with rust. Now I wonder if this sub was what I saw? The photos I looked at strike something in my memory, but that was so long ago. Around 40 years or so (OMG! 40 Years!!!!) I guess it has been restored and moved into it's own climate controlled enclosure at the Museum. Sounds like an interesting museum, if I ever get to Chicago again.

Follow this link for a video of them moving the (Wow! It's big!) sub:

U-505

Jim

Hi Jim,

Thank you for the compliments!

Yes, I have already started thinking about the badge for the Third Annual Berny Memorial Group Build.  It will be here sooner that we think!  Everyone can carry over whatever they are building to it.  And they can still have their pick where they want to display it when it is finished, the Second or the Third.

That is pretty interesting about the U-505.  Chicago is only a 2 hour drive from where I live.  I may have to go and pay it a visit.  Of course I will take plenty of pictures!

Ken

I was just trying to figure out how large that kit would be-my figuring comes up with about 42 inches! My work bench is smaller than that! I would need to build an addition on to my work room to display it!

jimbot58

 

I was just trying to figure out how large that kit would be-my figuring comes up with about 42 inches! My work bench is smaller than that! I would need to build an addition on to my work room to display it!

Scale Hobbyist has it listed for $69.99.  It is a Revell of Germany 1/72 scale version.  It is currently listed as backordered.

http://www.scalehobbyist.com/catagories/Ship_Models/RMG00005114/product.php?kw=U-505 

Ken

Son Of Medicine Man

jimbot58

 

I was just trying to figure out how large that kit would be-my figuring comes up with about 42 inches! My work bench is smaller than that! I would need to build an addition on to my work room to display it!

Scale Hobbyist has it listed for $69.99.  It is a Revell of Germany 1/72 scale version.  It is currently listed as backordered.

http://www.scalehobbyist.com/catagories/Ship_Models/RMG00005114/product.php?kw=U-505 

Ken

I'm not actually looking to buy one. I just thought it was interesting.

Thanks Ken, I think I'm going to have to roll over into Part III, I thought I'd be done in time but things aren't working out that well.

I know what ya'll mean on those large kits, after I got the 1/350th 'Trek' Enterprise and opened the box- where the blazes am I going to put the friggin' thing if I ever do get it built!?!

jimbot58

Son Of Medicine Man

jimbot58

 

I was just trying to figure out how large that kit would be-my figuring comes up with about 42 inches! My work bench is smaller than that! I would need to build an addition on to my work room to display it!

Scale Hobbyist has it listed for $69.99.  It is a Revell of Germany 1/72 scale version.  It is currently listed as backordered.

http://www.scalehobbyist.com/catagories/Ship_Models/RMG00005114/product.php?kw=U-505 

Ken

I'm not actually looking to buy one. I just thought it was interesting.

That is cool Jim.  I myself always liked the subject of submarines.  I actually built the old Revell 1/260 Polaris sub when I was a kid.  You know the one with the hull that opened up to show the interior.  I had almost completely forgotten about that kit until I was looking at the U-505.  That sure brings back memories!

Ken

Gamera

Thanks Ken, I think I'm going to have to roll over into Part III, I thought I'd be done in time but things aren't working out that well.

I know what ya'll mean on those large kits, after I got the 1/350th 'Trek' Enterprise and opened the box- where the blazes am I going to put the friggin' thing if I ever do get it built!?!

No problem Cliff!  I never got to that Zero that I had listed on your group build.  I still want to build that, so maybe this year I will enter that again in your Japanese Group Build Part III.   

Ken

Hi Everyone,

I did a little more work on the Hoosier Hotshot cockpit.  This first picture shows a resin piece that I had to cut off the mold block.  I am not sure what it is, I will have to ask Don this Friday at our IMPS meeting.

Here is a picture of it after I cut it off.  Boy is it small!

 Here is the cockpit tub.  After staring at pictures I decided that some of the areas that I had left chromate yellow should be flat black:

As you can tell, they are going to take a couple of coats to cover:

Here is the throttle still attached to the resin mold block.  You can't tell in this picture but I painted it aluminum:

And here is that unidentified piece painted red:

Ken

Gamera

Thanks Ken, I think I'm going to have to roll over into Part III, I thought I'd be done in time but things aren't working out that well.

I know what ya'll mean on those large kits, after I got the 1/350th 'Trek' Enterprise and opened the box- where the blazes am I going to put the friggin' thing if I ever do get it built!?!

I know what you mean! I still have Monogram's Big, Bad and Beautiful release of the B-52D. I got as far as ready to attach the wings and then I stopped! First off, how was I going to handle it at my limited space work bench, and second: where was I going to put the friggin' thing once I built it? Wing span is around 30 inches or so and over 2 feet in length?

Jim

Hi Everyone,

A little more progress on the Hoosier Hotshot.  Tonight I worked on the ejection seat:

Ken 

Son Of Medicine Man

Hi Everyone,

A little more progress on the Hoosier Hotshot.  Tonight I worked on the ejection seat:

Ken 

Nice Ken, but I wonder, is the seat back not padded? From this photo, I see the same thing. Not very comfy was it? lot's of bare metal showing through here.

Fell asleep as soon as I got home, so no work tonight. Now I'm up, it's 1 am and another one of those nights. I'll try to lay down later when I feel sleepy again. I have to get more rest as I need to be in early as there are auditors coming in and I need to be ready for that. Lately I often wake early in the morn after having bizarre vivid dreams.

A little work I achieved over the last few days:

Washed the Missiles: You see the decals I added to the AGM's.

Also did a semi-gloss overcoat of the tailfins and did a test fit:

Another view from the top:

You can see that two of the "NO STEP" decals on the leading edge silvered on me. Not too happy about that.

Jim

jimbot58

Son Of Medicine Man

Hi Everyone,

A little more progress on the Hoosier Hotshot.  Tonight I worked on the ejection seat:

Ken 

Nice Ken, but I wonder, is the seat back not padded? From this photo, I see the same thing. Not very comfy was it? lot's of bare metal showing through here.

Fell asleep as soon as I got home, so no work tonight. Now I'm up, it's 1 am and another one of those nights. I'll try to lay down later when I feel sleepy again. I have to get more rest as I need to be in early as there are auditors coming in and I need to be ready for that. Lately I often wake early in the morn after having bizarre vivid dreams.

A little work I achieved over the last few days:

Washed the Missiles: You see the decals I added to the AGM's.

Also did a semi-gloss overcoat of the tailfins and did a test fit:

Another view from the top:

You can see that two of the "NO STEP" decals on the leading edge silvered on me. Not too happy about that.

Jim

Hi Jim,

Thank you for the compliments! 

No, there is no backseat padding.  I think that is because the pilot is wearing the parachute on his back while sitting in the seat.  And there is not much of padding on the bottom seat either.  The olive drab that you see painted in the picture is the bottom cushion.  The pilot also wore a G-suit, so I don't know if it offered any additional padding.  These were the first generation ejection seats.

I know what you mean about sleep.  I have been fighting with my doctor to refill the correct dosage of sleeping pills for me.  I get mine through a mail order pharmacy, that is the only way I can afford them.  For some reason when he refilled my prescription he chose a lower dose than what I had been taking.  It was not a decision that I needed to start taking a smaller dose, he just simply screwed up.  Now it is like trying to pull hen's teeth to get him to fix it.

Nice work on those missiles!  They look fantastic!     

And nice work with those tail fins!  They turned out great!     

From the picture I can't tell where the decals are silvered, so it looks fine to me!!

Ken

Jim: I have to admire your dedication- I haven't used a wash on 1/48th scale missiles- much less 1/72nd! That's some attention to detail! Not sure about the silvered decals other than loading them up with decal setting solution like Micro Sol (the one with the red label). If that doesn't work you might try taking a little Future or other clear gloss and trying to get it to flow underneath the decal.

Ken: Nice job there on the seat- love how the seatbelts came out.

Jim, the missiles look fantastic; very realistic. Too bad about the no steps. I have used solvaset  in the past for that along with some matte cote and had reasonable results. Is it possible to trim around them now with an exacto perhaps? Both you and Ken have great attention to detail; impressive!

mikeymize

Jim, the missiles look fantastic; very realistic. Too bad about the no steps. I have used solvaset  in the past for that along with some matte cote and had reasonable results. Is it possible to trim around them now with an exacto perhaps? Both you and Ken have great attention to detail; impressive!

First off, it now comes to my attention that Imageshack is now a subscription only service and my "free" trial ends in only 25 days! The subscription is only $1 per month but it kind of galls me. If I don't subscribe, does that mean they will dump my 700+ photos I currently have uploaded there? I guess I'll have to pay if I don't want all the photos here to go away!

Here is a photo uploaded to Photobucket:

Here what's going on: I cemented the missile in place on the left side of the aircraft, (our right in the photo) and here I tried a test fit of the landing gear (the wheel is not cemented and just dangling there! It's not really tilted!). You can see how close everything is down here between them, and why I wanted the AIM-120's in position first! It's going to be very busy down here once all the gear doors and everything else is in place!

On the photo left is a repair- the Eduard set had me carve away the supports for the missiles and add some thin PE strips! I found the missiles would not lay in place properly this way and decided to forgo the Eduard parts. I was wise in that I decided to only do one side as a test first. I cemented a couple of styrene blocks in place and when dry, I cut and filed the new pieces to match the missing mounts. I did get a little carried away and cut away too much of the rear mount. Here I have cemented in a new replacement and once cured, I will work more carefully to trim it away to the correct shape.

As far as my silvered decals, I carefully scrapped away the decals exposing the paint underneath. I then resprayed the dullcoat over the area. It's very unlikely anyone will know they are gone, but the messed up decals stuck out like a sore thumb! (In my eyes they did!) Besides, you can barely see the good ones being low-vis!

Jim

Gamera

Jim: I have to admire your dedication- I haven't used a wash on 1/48th scale missiles- much less 1/72nd! That's some attention to detail! Not sure about the silvered decals other than loading them up with decal setting solution like Micro Sol (the one with the red label). If that doesn't work you might try taking a little Future or other clear gloss and trying to get it to flow underneath the decal.

Ken: Nice job there on the seat- love how the seatbelts came out.

Thank you Cliff for the complement!  I really appreciate it.

Ken

mikeymize

Jim, the missiles look fantastic; very realistic. Too bad about the no steps. I have used solvaset  in the past for that along with some matte cote and had reasonable results. Is it possible to trim around them now with an exacto perhaps? Both you and Ken have great attention to detail; impressive!

Thank you Mike for the compliment!  I really appreciate it.  Yes, I think Jim and I are addicted to detail!

Ken

jimbot58

mikeymize

Jim, the missiles look fantastic; very realistic. Too bad about the no steps. I have used solvaset  in the past for that along with some matte cote and had reasonable results. Is it possible to trim around them now with an exacto perhaps? Both you and Ken have great attention to detail; impressive!

First off, it now comes to my attention that Imageshack is now a subscription only service and my "free" trial ends in only 25 days! The subscription is only $1 per month but it kind of galls me. If I don't subscribe, does that mean they will dump my 700+ photos I currently have uploaded there? I guess I'll have to pay if I don't want all the photos here to go away!

Here is a photo uploaded to Photobucket:

Here what's going on: I cemented the missile in place on the left side of the aircraft, (our right in the photo) and here I tried a test fit of the landing gear (the wheel is not cemented and just dangling there! It's not really tilted!). You can see how close everything is down here between them, and why I wanted the AIM-120's in position first! It's going to be very busy down here once all the gear doors and everything else is in place!

On the photo left is a repair- the Eduard set had me carve away the supports for the missiles and add some thin PE strips! I found the missiles would not lay in place properly this way and decided to forgo the Eduard parts. I was wise in that I decided to only do one side as a test first. I cemented a couple of styrene blocks in place and when dry, I cut and filed the new pieces to match the missing mounts. I did get a little carried away and cut away too much of the rear mount. Here I have cemented in a new replacement and once cured, I will work more carefully to trim it away to the correct shape.

As far as my silvered decals, I carefully scrapped away the decals exposing the paint underneath. I then resprayed the dullcoat over the area. It's very unlikely anyone will know they are gone, but the messed up decals stuck out like a sore thumb! (In my eyes they did!) Besides, you can barely see the good ones being low-vis!

Jim

Wow that sucks Jim about Imageshack!  I sure hope that Photobucket doesn't follow suit!

Great recovery job there on the Growler!  You are right, those are very close quarters!  It looks great!  You have done an outstanding job on it!     

Ken

Jim: Hope you're going to put a mirror underneath so people can appreciate all the detail you added to her underside.

That sucks about ImageShack. Frankly I'm getting more and more annoyed at PhotoBucket though. They've changed the format of their site and I find it more difficult to use. Even more, their mobile app used to be great- I could snap a photo with my phone and upload it with a few taps. Now you have to scroll though ALL the photos on your phone and it wants to lock up before you can get very far. I'm thinking about removing it from the phone since it's almost useless now.  

Hi Everyone,

Well our monthly IPMS meeting was cancelled because our chapter president had to work.  Big bummer.  And we did not have our December meeting because it was so close to Christmas.

I ordered the Punch and Die Set from RP Toolz today:

Here is a link to their website:

 http://rptoolz.unas.hu/en/ 

I will be using this to punch out the instrument dials from the Eduards color photo etch.  Then I will glue them into the AMS resin instrument panel.  At least that is what I am going to try to do.  We will see how well it works.

Ken

Punch and die set looks cool; I'm sure it'll go according to plan. Dittos on the photo bucket staying free. Speaking of which: attached some final pics of the Lee. Not the best admittedly but it was a good diversion. M