1:48 Tamiya Grumman F4F-4 Wildcat

And here is an example of what I'm talking about. 

2013-05-19 22.56.15 by brittvallot, on Flickr

Now the final color after a coat of future and a clear flat finish will make this a bit darker, so I compensate for it.  This was a frustrating fact I learned early on in my first couple of builds. The answer why has less to do with art and more to do with science.

2013-05-19 22.57.10 by brittvallot, on Flickr

The light isn't directly on it here but you get the point.

2013-05-19 22.58.55 by brittvallot, on Flickr

some post shading showing heavier weathering

2013-05-20 01.33.55 by brittvallot, on Flickr

Here you can also see the trim tab in place.

Next I painted the skid walkways.  I never put decals down.  I don't like how they turn out.  They're too boring for me.  When I paint these on there, I leave a little of the under surface show through in places.  Based on the typical gait pattern of the average adult and along with the whole "don't step on a crack or you break your mother's back" theory, I try to predict the most worn parts and surfaces of the wing.  Also, if you've got your guys servicing certain panels more than others....hoses and what not dragging along the aircraft and such, then you can expect more wear relative to that spot.  Just makes sense. ;)

2013-05-20 00.13.53 by brittvallot, on Flickr

The next thing you notice is how I've "lightly" scratched away some of the new paint surface in the manner of natural wear and tear.  Acrylic paints lend themselves to this quite well.  I've seen how others accomplish this same thing, but I feel less confident with those approaches in my hands.  The Alclad maintains it's surface and looks real nice I think.

2013-05-20 00.13.35 by brittvallot, on Flickr

But tell me what you think.  Also, since this is the first time I'm participating in a forum I want to take the opportunity to ask how some of you go about this first hand.  Methods...outcomes?  I can be honest and say I am somewhat ignorant of how other paints like acrylics vs. enamels work out and how this particular process would work.  I've only ever painted with Tamiya acrylics because I hoped to keep consistent with painting.

Next, I painted the dark blue fields that the star insignia go onto.  I like doing it this way in some instances mainly when I know I'm going to heavily wear a plane.  I find it adds another dimension of depth to the color.  Anything else seems to look a bit off.

2013-05-21 16.09.32 by brittvallot, on Flickr

2013-05-21 16.09.52 by brittvallot, on Flickr

2013-05-30 01.48.01 by brittvallot, on Flickr

This photo above here shows Carl's white 2 on the fuselage.  I've found this to be a very unique looking 2 that seems to have been an upside down/inside out 5 no doubt used out of making use of what you have when you don't have much.  There's a decal sheet from Cutting Edge I think that does it right.  Other than that you're on your own.  So in the interest of making something my own, I drew out my own stencil to scale, cut it, and painted that bad boy on there.  This took me two attempts to cut it out right and I couldn't be happier with the results.  I think I nailed it.  If they're are any graphic design guys out there, tell me what you think. =]

2013-05-30 01.30.55 by brittvallot, on Flickr

2013-05-30 01.29.16 by brittvallot, on Flickr

Also, I forgot to mention when I paint whites on an aircraft like this, I almost never use just plain stark white.  Here I added a little Tamiya Buff [XF-57] to Tamiya Flat White [XF-2] to come up with a warmer looking white.  ...it's the little things... =]

I'm really enjoying watching your build. I have one question in regards to the natural metal finish, have you tried a different paint brand other than Alclad? It's kinda pricey for me, and I was wondering if another type would give a similar result, or if the Alclad was just that much better.

Glenn

Actually Glenn I know just what you mean.  I've always spaced out my buys over time on an "as needed basis."  What I've used in the past to place that aluminum aircraft base coat was Tamiya's Flat Aluminum [XF-16].  A much cheaper alternative!!  Mostly, I did it out of being brand new to all of this and not knowing any other way of going about it.  I have an SBD-1 flown by Joseph Sailer Jr that I'm thinking about putting on here to ask about.  I started that one in Flat Aluminum and even had a Flat Aluminum wash along weathered parts of the fuselage which I think worked out nicely.  So I would steer you in that direction. =]  

I'll try to get a photo up here later on to show you what I mean.  But I honestly can't praise the Alclad enough.  I'm finding it to live up to it's reputation.  Here's a site that I know of that does an excellent job of describing how it all breaks down:    www.swannysmodels.com/Alclad.html

But definitely the Tamiya Flat Aluminum.  It's an acrylic, but in terms of results...I like it. 

I use that to complement the actual paint surface though.  Not to stand alone.  I don't think it has enough character to do that for a natural metal surface.  Model Master has a metalizer which is an enamel I believe that I seen to work very well.  It requires buffing I think and time to set which I can't really help you out with since I've never fooled with it.  Perhaps someone else here can add on to this.  I have seen it in stores to be cheaper though.  I would suggest looking into that. =]

I don't think you need input from us...I think we need to be asking you questions. What a great in-progress thread you've got going. It's looking absolutely beautiful. The one bit of input I'll put in is about the weathering. This is my opinion, mind you. Being an artist, your finish has an "artistic" look to it, which is absolutely fine and very pleasing to the eye. To me, though, weathering like that doesn't capture the realistic look. By that, I mean the artistic style weathering has almost a uniform appearance. When you look at actual pictures, though, the weathering in regards to individual panels and such is rather random. I hope you don't take this as a critique of you model. It's a discussion that has been on-going for quite awhile in the modeling community, especially when the "Spanish" method of weathering hit the scene. It's very pleasing to the eye, but not very realistic. In the end, it all depends on what you want out of a model. It seems you're striving for realism, so I thought I'd put forth my thoughts, for what they're worth.

No, not at all Darren.  I enjoy the criticism.  It's another way of seeing something outside your own perspective.  When it comes to modeling, I'm still reaching out and learning as I go, but I only know one way.  So I just do the best with what I've got.

I sat back and laughed after I thought about your post just now (one of those "Hmpf" moments), cause I actually try to work towards the dirt and grease, and wear and tear occurring randomly...but....I know there's a cause behind every effect.  So maybe I do let my thinking and planning get the better of me here and there.  Something to think about. =]  

I can tell you that I pick the plane I'm doing based on the heroics and service of the pilot.  So I research everything I can about the man, the plane, the time period, etc.  When it comes down to the plane, I compile all the photos I can on it before I start.  So I do my best to represent what was happening with the plane.

Tell me more about this spanish method of weathering.  Is this a reference to Vallejo and MiG? Or something else entirely?

The Spanish method is having very prevalent preshaded and darkened panel lines with faded panels. It has a very uniform appearance. I'll try and find a picture and post it to show what I mean. Your work with the small details (dirt, grease, stains, etc) is quite nice. I'm more referring to the panel lines and faded center panels, which is why I referenced the "Spanish" method. Let me see if I can pictures of what I'm talking about. Pictures will be much more illustrative.

Since I'm a jet guy, here's a link to another modeling site where a gentleman finished an F4D Skyray. This is a good example of what the "Spanish" method is. It's very artistic and pleasing to the eye, but it's nowhere near what the real thing looks like. The second link shows what the real plane looks like.

s362974870.onlinehome.us/.../index.php

www.fiddlersgreen.net/.../Douglas-Skyray.html

In the second link, there is a picture of a dirty Skyray (scroll down), but you'll notice that the weathering is not uniform across every panel line. Some panels you simply can't see. Others tend to get dirty. The majority of pictures show them to be relatively clean, though. Hopefully this will be better than my lame attempt at trying to describe it!

Ahhhhh. I see.  I agree.  Sometimes I think it's overdone with the heavy preshading and what not.  I try not to let it get away from me, but I do find it to be an effective means of revealing the underlying structure and ribbing of the aircraft.  On my SBD-1, I did this more with oils after my coat of future.  I only hit the lines that were huge joints for the plane with preshading.  On this one, I wanted to see how painting these features on there first would turn out.  I suppose the panel lines behind the cockpit along the spine are a bit heavy.  I'm looking at it now.  I think I'm starting to agree with you.  Now I'm not going to be able to stop looking at it. lol

Definitely post those pics though.  I'm happy to learn. =]

Yes.  I definitely agree.  It's definitely an example of what I try to avoid. I think it's fine for some folks, but I'm looking more for realism.  One thing we were taught in school was, "trompe l'oeil" which is french for tricking the eye.  It's another thing I consider when I'm approaching these scaled down versions of reality.  Some things I leave a bit exaggerated so they are at least getting noticed whether you realize it or not.  Your brain is pulling all this information together in an effort to create something it recognizes. I try to balance things that stand out from afar without being to dominant a feature up close.  I do feel like the spine of this Wildcat is too much now.   Now I'm going to have to go back and fix it! LOL.

This is really great work bvallot! I have really enjoyed this wip so far as you have provided a lot of insight into your techniques.

Thanks Eric.  If you have any useful tricks up your sleeves...please share 'em.  I think the most frustrating thing for me is placing the radio line on the antenna mast.  It may take me up to a week to finally get it on there.  I'll be showing you that too.  I like how it turns out, but i sure could do without the stress.

Maybe you have a better way. =]

Done with the 4th's festivities.  Now I'm trying to finish posting these photos.

On to the engine. 

2013-05-14 00.15.15 by brittvallot, on Flickr

2013-05-30 01.45.09 by brittvallot, on Flickr

I've dressed this engine up a little with some brass rod and stretch sprue for the wiring harness and ignition cables.  It was a bit of a challenge to squeeze it in there around everything already glued in, but it'll happen.

2013-05-29 23.22.23 by brittvallot, on Flickr

Some of this next phase I'll move though more quickly.

I always prefer to build up the exhaust manifold on these prop engines.  The more I can build up a truer piece by piece engine...the more I feel my plane comes to life.  With the Quickboost engine in here there just isn't any room for it. =[   However, I still made some cuts to allow for the ends of the exhaust that I made out of aluminum tubing to fit in nice and snug where they belong.  It gives a better sense of depth that is lacking in the kit exhaust tips.  And they're thinner.  

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Primed them.  Painted them a dark brown, then a slightly lighter red brown in a spotty fashion.  The light grey on the tips and interior is making up the lead deposits from the high lead content in the fuel the Allied Forces used in the day.

2013-05-30 01.50.19 by brittvallot, on Flickr

Here's the cowl put on, cleaned up and resanded/repainted.  This white 2 was just too small to make a stencil for and after numerous efforts, I broke down and just decided to trust my hands and paint it on myself. Twice.  I do things like this quite nicely and I was so relieved to get this the first try on both sides.

2013-06-11 12.34.45 by brittvallot, on Flickr

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2013-05-30 21.47.24 by brittvallot, on Flickr

The only real decals on this are the stars and victory flags.  I got the idea from my best friend who happen to mention it when I was complaining about the Corsair I was trouble shooting.  So I cut them carefully from the decal sheet and pop em on there.

2013-06-11 16.59.53 by brittvallot, on Flickr

2013-06-12 15.16.45 by brittvallot, on Flickr

The panel just aft of the cockpit had an access door for the fuel tank I believe it was.  Help there if I'm wrong.  It's missing on the kit.  I scribed it in very lightly

2013-06-12 15.17.26 by brittvallot, on Flickr

On the dash I've started by airbrushing some Flat Black [XF-1] and then taking a small brush and dry brushing some Flat Aluminum [XF-16] and red brown that I've lightened with Flat Yellow [XF-3] and marking some spots I would imagine getting dirty.  Then, I'll come back with the Flat Black again and dry brush to reduce it where it seems over-worked.  The gun reflector starts with a drop of the Flat Aluminum and covered with a thinned out drop of Metallic Grey [XF-56].  Later you'll see a thin piece of Acetate cut to fit the glass here, and I've thinned out some Clear Green to paint it and seal

it with future.

Also, here's a chance to see that leather headrest pop out a bit with some pretty, worn leather colors happening there. =]

Next I gave the canopy a little love and thinned out the back side that will be visible so it's closer to scale. I had given some thought to purchasing a Rob Taurus set for this build, but they've been out of stock for so long that I'm beginning to think I'll find 9mm ammo again before I ever get to see one of these. =D

2013-06-12 22.45.15 by brittvallot, on Flickr

Here it is with all of the last touches of oils and what not done up and the flat coat to seal it.

2013-06-13 03.08.32 by brittvallot, on Flickr

I'll take a scalpel and lightly pick at the screws along the cowl to show the work on taking off the panels.  You'll see that Alclad coming through there. =]

2013-06-13 03.09.07 by brittvallot, on Flickr

2013-06-13 03.09.37 by brittvallot, on Flickr

I haven't really spoken about the under surfaces much yet.  The third formation light (amber) is not apart of the kit and had to be scribed in.  I start the light with a reflective color like Flat Aluminum here.  Then I'll place a the appropriate color from Tamiya's clear section...Clear Red, Clear Blue, and Clear Orange.  Lastly, I'll place a small drop of future to seal it and set it off from the flat surface around it.  That will help to make it pop from further out (even though it won't be well seen from underneath).

When I begin painting, I start with the under surface color first and bring it up a little higher than what I need to.  This over lap allows you some wiggle room to find that "line" you're looking for between your colors in your paint scheme.  I'll tape it off and pull the surface back off the plane some to allow for a slight amount of overspray.  This keeps that line from appearing too sharp.  Some were sharper than others.  Some were quite worn away.  It'll just depend on the individual aircraft.

2013-06-17 12.09.30 by brittvallot, on Flickr

You can also see in this photo where I've attached the anti-sway brackets for the fuel tanks I'll be putting on next.  These were cut and filed to shape from a sheet of tin.

And I needed to go back and repaint the hubs on the wheels.  They were supposed to be Light Grey. 

This next photo is skipping ahead to the Alclad on the drop tank.  I robbed these drop tanks from Hobby Boss' F4F-3 for Butch O'Hare.  I think they're a little nicer. I wasn't crazy about the braces and brackets the Tamiya kit provides.  I also did my best to detail them up from a Wildcat reference book I found.  I realize there were several kinds of braces to modify the drop tanks to fit the Wildcat, but the I went with these since they fit the only photos I could find in detail.  After I committed, I would later see a pair of brackets on the ground in the Marion Carl pic on his Wildcat that seems to favor the Tamiya's kit more.  C'est la vie.

2013-06-16 11.08.31 by brittvallot, on Flickr

Brackets only:

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And here they are painted.

2013-06-17 14.55.42 by brittvallot, on Flickr

Fuel line, sway braces, anti-sway bracket and receiver

Sorry this photo isn't quite in focus.

This is a really nice Wildcat.  Great work on it.

Are you going to give her a pilot?  That Wildcat's looking good!

Gary

Thanks Gary.

I've been trying to figure that out for the last couple of planes I did.  I do find I like seeing just the plane for what it is.  When I put them up on my wooden base (I'll include a pic later) without a pilot, it seems like a phantom pilot is in there behind the stick.  It has a certain appeal.  But to see a pilot in there I don't suppose would take away from any detail in the cockpit.  I'm just reluctant to try.  Maybe I'll do a couple of them this weekend and see how they look.  I think my biggest concern is that they won't hold up to the same level of detail and take away from the plane.  Making a convincing face is the real trick here I believe.

Any suggestions?

Personally, I don't think you could do much to improve or detract from that build, it is fantastic!

So I felt moved to try painting up one of my pilot figures I have from a Corsair kit.  Here it is Gary.  I think I turned out better than I thought they would.  I might try to touch up the face a bit more.

photo-4 by brittvallot, on Flickr

photo-5 by brittvallot, on Flickr

Here I thought it'd be nice to see the pilot next to these drop tanks while I had them off.  It literally looks like they streamlined 55 gallon drums and put them on a plane.  They're huge aren't they!

photo-3 by brittvallot, on Flickr

And here are the other pics I've been promising.  The first two are of the Flat Aluminum wash on the Dauntless. The other is the Boyington's Corsair I have mounted.

photo-1 by brittvallot, on Flickr

photo by brittvallot, on Flickr

In better light the aluminum shines more. 

photo by brittvallot, on Flickr

photo-2 by brittvallot, on Flickr

Now I'm finding that the pilot won't fit in the Aires cockpit.  uggggh!  I might try filing some of the sides down a bit, but I'm not sure if it's worth it.  Anybody else run into this problem before?

Britt, the pilot looks good, but it's the suck that he won't fit.  Have you thought about "thinning" him some, especially on the figure's lower part?   Good luck!  

btw, the Dauntless and Corsair look great too!

Gary

Gorgeous Dauntless!

Thanks Darren.  I'll take some better photos of these two another time and post.  I would like to share them here.  They are the most recent builds prior to this Wildcat.

I took your advice too on the panel lines.  I went back and lightly touched up the panel lines along the fuselage on both sides.  Blending them into the a more uniform color along the paint surface has made all the difference.  The kit itself already does a fine enough job of casting the shadow necessary to display the panels.  I think I let too much show through when I began putting on my blue-grey.  I started getting used to it and stop thinking objectively about what I was seeing.  It happens! =]  I may leave the upper wing surface alone though.  I'm afraid to over work what I've got on there already.  But the fuselage isn't getting walked on the same so it needed some attention.

I'm much happier with it now.  So kudos to you.  And Thanks.

So, I've finally cut, sanded, and stained and sealed the wooden base for this Wildcat.  I've got a theme going with the colored stains for Marines pilots (walnut) and Navy pilots (dark cherry).  This one is in walnut of course.  I've bent a brass rod (5/32 I think it was) around a small paint can to keep it smooth and even.  It still takes a bit of fooling with to gently get it just right after you're done with setting everything together.  I'll be showing that finally and I retouched the paint along the spine of the fuselage...so there's that too.

One thing I forgot to mention...I placed the finest mesh I could find at the time over the oil coolers along the wings.  Just recently I found something a little finer on spruebrothers, but I think this suffices. 

2013-07-21 16.04.40 by brittvallot, on Flickr

The radio line is one of the most delicate and difficult things for me to tackle.  I pull these as thin as I can, attach them to a thin piece of brass rod (.02mm), let them set up, tack them onto the rudder and pull them forward to the mast.  This becomes a very frustrating process.  If any of you have a particular trick you like to use, I would greatly appreciate hearing it.  I really enjoy mine, but man it tests my patience. =P

2013-06-26 13.10.33 by brittvallot, on Flickr

2013-06-26 13.08.34 by brittvallot, on Flickr

Next is the prop.  It's been primed and done in the Alclad black gloss then duraluminum.  The flat black is Tamiya's acrylic flat black.  Flat Yellow tips taped off and painted last.  The hub is Alclad's white aluminum.  I wanted something a little brighter since everything I'd been seeing seems to shine a little lighter.  I think I'm going to stick with it.

2013-07-21 14.51.34 by brittvallot, on Flickr

Also, along the hub I've taken a thin brush and gently placed a few drops of Alclad's pale burnt metal to add some depth.

And here it is.  Please mind the mess from my box o' supplies.  I don't have a light box or slide photo set up, so I'm using the lamp in my dining room. 

2013-07-21 14.59.11 by brittvallot, on Flickr

2013-07-21 15.00.06 by brittvallot, on Flickr

One happy accident I found was that Tamiya's "shaft" for the prop allows it to spin freely.  So I opted not to  glue it in any fashion which allows it to spin easily.   Here it is. =]

2013-07-21 15.11.23 by brittvallot, on Flickr

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2013-07-21 16.35.55 by brittvallot, on Flickr

That looks great. I will let you know what I have used for my radio wires. A Fly Fisherman gave me some .0031 monofilament fishing line made by KROIC. It's French, I think. Before attaching it I use a Black Sharpie permanent marker to color it. Then after attaching it I shrink it with a match head. That's the tricky part. Kitchen match heads provide too much heat. It will snap instantly. ( Trust me, I know ). So I figured out that if you use the matches from a standard pack it will work. Just light the match then blow it out. Hold the warm match head near the wire and KEEP IT MOVING. Repeat as necessary. I did my P-39 with this stuff 2 years ago and it has stayed tight. It is a 1/48 scale plane so the wire may be a touch too small, but I like the looks of it. I would rather it be a touch too small than a touch too large. It looks pretty real. I'm sure that the others here at FSM have more experience than I do with radio wire, but this is something that you can try sometime to see if you like it. Thanks for posting the pictures for the F4F build. It looks great. Someday I hope to get to that level.                          Bob

Gorgeous Wildcat bv!!