scratchbuilding 1/32 ww1 flyer

Hi there,

Unless you want to sculpt the figure in total, I'd like to suggest that you use a 1/32 figure with a suitable pose. You should have a couple of pictures of the pilot you wish to model. Take your base figure and remove all surface detail that does not match your reference such as uniform, belts, buckles etc. Leave the hands and face unharmed. Use any epoxy putty type of medium to make the new uniform by adding small amounts at a time. Work on one area at a time. Remeber the order in which the real clothes are put on. Start with the pants, then the boots, then the fronthalf of the jacket, then the backhalf. While the jacket is still pliable add belts with lead foil so as to impress it into the putty. Add pockets and seams while the putty is still soft. Creases can be made by rolling thin strips of putty, placing them in position and blending them into the base. Let dry and paint.

Hi there,
It seems that I have misposted my original reply. Scratchbuilding figures is not as difficult as it seems at first. Unless you want to sculpt your own figure, I suggest that you take a figure with the basic pose that you want and get photo references of the subject. Take the stock figure and remove all surface detail so that you end up with a "naked" figure. Use a two-part epoxy putty to build up the figure starting with the trousers, then boots, then jacket. The jacket should be done in two main halves, since you can and will destroy your work if you work on the one halve when the other has not set. Use thin rolls of putty for the creases, and set belts and straps into the soft putty. Lead foil works best. Make buckles out of thin wire and loop it through the belts. The headgear can be sculpted from putty or left out altogether. Paint and finish when totally dry. Use steelwool to sand it before painting and remember to prime.

All the above posts pretty much sum up my advice, but here is a little on working with epoxy putty. Depends of course on what brand you use, but I use milliput, and I find that it is too soft and sticky to work with for the first half hour or so. If you find the putty you are using is too soft at first, have a little patience. Apply it to the area and get it well seated and stuck on, then walk away for a little while, exactly how long will depend on the type of putty, experiment first with a small amount.
Once it has become a little more rubbery, then start to work with it, forming the creases and folds etc. Epoxy putty does respond well to water, so use this and a cheap paint brush to smooth the putty out before it is dry.

I use tooth picks that have been soaked in super glue, then sanded smooth, they work really well for pushing the epoxy around and formingthe creases, and they are cheap and disposable.

hope this helps

Phil

thanks

Is there a good figure I could use for the base without doing a ton of modification, all I'm looking for is a man seated fairly normally, legs in front of him(it could even be 1/35). I looked through all the model catalogues at the model shop, and the owner looked on the net, but we couldn't find anything!