1/48 Revell F-15E Progress Thread

Wow!....keeps getting better.

Alrighty, here's where the rubber is meeting the road.  I mentioned several pages back that my intention was to take little bits of weathering from several different pics of Mud Hens and use them together on this build.  The result would be a plane that will have a fictional (and perhaps unrealistic) weathered look to it.

Generally speaking, these planes do tend to be relatively clean.  Only occasionally are they filthy...but every now and then they are.  I've taken a bit of artistic liberty in my weathering because, frankly, I enjoy doing it and I really like other people's builds that have convincing weathering.  Also, I find clean to be fairly boring.  As a result I'm at a point where the weathering on this build is a little more Navy like than Air Force.

So, here's where I'm at now.  There are about 4 layers of additional weathering in these pics.  I tried to keep it realistic in the sense that the dirty areas are places that normally get dirty...I just amplified them a bit.  Tell me what you think:

In the pic above you can see that I've used a silver Prismacolor pencil to draw the scratch marks on the in flight refueling door. I did this in the gun muzzle, too, but you can't see it in any of these pics.

The pic above shows how shiny the Alclad II high shine paint is.  I'm very happy with how it turned out.

One area that does seem to be commonly dirty is the area around and aft of the landing gear.  I really made an effort to make this convincing.  And you can see that I've attached the SNIPER XR pod.

I'm sure you've noticed that I have attached the gear and the Royal Resin wheels.  I needed to sand them down a bit because apparently I didn't do a very great job cutting them out of their casting blocks.  Also, the left wing sat about 2mm higher than the right wing.  I was scratching my head over this one considering the wings are molded with the upper fuselage part.  So I sanded the left wheel down a bit more.

I've attached the 600 gallon tanks and the GBU-31 to the pylons.  Sorry for the blurry pic above.

You can't really see it in the pics but I re masked the windshield and touched up the ragged frame.

Dean & T3ch, thank you very much!

bvallot

Maybe you've mentioned this previously somewhere that I've overlooked, but what kind of thinner have you used with your oil paints?

dflu78

Absolutely beautiful work. This kit is a real hidden gem considering you can get it for cheap at Hobby Lobby or Michael's. I built it last year and I'll be building it again now that I've gotten over my fear of Alclad. You're work on the rear is superb. As far as those things that go bang bang....wow...some of the best I've seen.

Absolutely beautiful work. This kit is a real hidden gem considering you can get it for cheap at Hobby Lobby or Michael's. I built it last year and I'll be building it again now that I've gotten over my fear of Alclad. You're work on the rear is superb. As far as those things that go bang bang....wow...some of the best I've seen.

Maybe you've mentioned this previously somewhere that I've overlooked, but what kind of thinner have you used with your oil paints?

That's getting better and better! It's inspiring me to build my Tornado a bit faster lol.

The bombs look outstanding!....like the rest of your project!  

Wirraway, thank you!

Ok, I've applied a flat coat.  I airbrushed a 50/50 mixture of Liquitex Matte and Semi Matte.  It ended up being very matte, though.  Not really what I wanted but I think it will be ok since I'm going to apply some oil filters and a flat surface is better for that.

You can see that the Alclad II high shine paint on the metal areas has held up very well even after being masked.

And here's a "hold your breath" moment...removing the mask from the clear parts:

There was a little bit of a ragged edge on the windshield but nothing I can't fix.  I've also added the coaming part that separates the front cockpit from the rear.

This has been a great thread to follow/.  Your skills are very obvious.  Thanks again

Dre & Eagle, as always I appreciate the kind comments!

bvallot

Fly-n-hi this is a great WIP.  I've been following it for a while now.  I've definitely concluded that I'll just have to throw a jet in the build list every so often.  Lots of useful tips here as well and plenty to think about.  I usually don't jump into a thread unless I have something useful to add or something to ask. This time it's something to ask. =]

What kind of filter did you use on the ordinance.  I'm thinking about trying one out on a dark green and dark earth camo scheme for the AVG P-40.  In the past, I've done all the subtle variations with an airbrush.  This time I wanted to try something different.  What color filter would you figure would work best on this scheme?  Maybe even just the green?

As far as the P-40 goes, I'm not sure what colors would be best.  It sort of depends on how much weathering you've applied with the airbrush I believe.  Obviously, you'll want to use some greens that are lighter and/or darker than the OD and some browns that are lighter and/or darker than the tan color for panel shading and variation.  You can also use a dirty color to spot filter the entire plane...or at least the areas of the plane that get the dirtiest such as the areas that get stepped on alot.

In any event I would probably use the AB to apply some pre/post shading and use some oil paint for filters.  Stay tuned to this thread because I'm planning on adding a few oil filters.  I've also been playing around with the Tamiya Weathering Master sets and they seem very promising.

Fly-n-hi this is a great WIP.  I've been following it for a while now.  I've definitely concluded that I'll just have to throw a jet in the build list every so often.  Lots of useful tips here as well and plenty to think about.  I usually don't jump into a thread unless I have something useful to add or something to ask. This time it's something to ask. =]

What kind of filter did you use on the ordinance.  I'm thinking about trying one out on a dark green and dark earth camo scheme for the AVG P-40.  In the past, I've done all the subtle variations with an airbrush.  This time I wanted to try something different.  What color filter would you figure would work best on this scheme?  Maybe even just the green?

I agree with Dre, it just keeps getting better!  Outstanding work!  Thanks again for taking the time to post these great pics!

Eagle90

This just gets better and better!   Nice tip on weathering the ordnance, BTW.   That's definitely something I overlook, but not any more.

Ok, here's a very pic heavy update.  

I have advanced a few steps but I forgot (again) to take pics off all the steps...sorry.  What I have done is applied an oil wash to the panel lines, applied the decals, faded the decals with a very thin mix of faded Gunship Grey, added the antennas and GPS blister and added the anti sway braces.  

The weird shiny stuff on the metal part is liquid mask to keep the next flat coat off.

I should mention that the camera flash really brings out the graininess of the paint over the decals especially on the tail.  It looks way better to the naked eye.  

The light grey round spot on the fuselage behind the gun vent is the GPS antenna.

Most of the oil wash ended up being wiped off of the model.  I might have too many layers of paint that may have filled the lines a bit too much.  At first this bugged me but now I think I like the random look of the dirty spots.

The decals went on very well.  There were only a few silvered areas and they were easy to deal with.

The gloss coat did drown out the paint fading a little but thats ok.  I'll be adding some more after this step anyway.

So after the gloss coat, oil wash and decal fading I think I'm up to 12 layers.  I don't know for sure now...I've lost count!

Dean30

Looks brilliant! I never heard of a sealer from Alclad either so I will be definitely getting some.

Nathan T

Very nice work. Bombs look right on, very realistic. Excellent metallizer work too.

RobGroot4

Ordnance is always tough when it comes to weathering because generally the weapons sit in a fairly sterile magazine until needed, away from the weather.  Then they tend to sometimes get messy handprints all over them during loading so the weathering is very light, or very dark in small patches.  I think you nailed the subtle effect perfectly.  I also love the seeker lenses on the GBUs, you'll have to tell us how you did it!

Groot

As for the seeker heads;  I just cut off the tips, placed a drop of clear drying glue to the end, let it dry (hanging nose down) and brushed some Tamiya Clear Yellow onto the lens.  It was a very simple process.

Ordnance is always tough when it comes to weathering because generally the weapons sit in a fairly sterile magazine until needed, away from the weather.  Then they tend to sometimes get messy handprints all over them during loading so the weathering is very light, or very dark in small patches.  I think you nailed the subtle effect perfectly.  I also love the seeker lenses on the GBUs, you'll have to tell us how you did it!

Groot

Very nice work. Bombs look right on, very realistic. Excellent metallizer work too.

Looks brilliant! I never heard of a sealer from Alclad either so I will be definitely getting some.

Here's a good update.  I've masked off and painted the bare metal areas at the rear of the fuselage.  I painted the areas Alclad II Gloss Black then applied Stainless Steel.  It turned out great!  

I sealed that with Alclad II Aqua Gloss and then highlighted the panel lines with a very thinned out layer of Alclad II Jet Exhaust.  The Aqua Gloss did not diminish the high shine of the Stainless Steel at all!  I'm afraid I may have gone a little heavy on the panel line shading, though.  The camera's flash really hides it so its hard to see in these pics but with the naked eye its quite a bit darker:

I also laid down some thin strips of tape and tried to recreate the burnt skin around the (APU?) vent:

T3ch & Dre, thanks!

I've added a filter to the bombs to make them look more weathered and used.  I think they turned out pretty good but I'm curious if you guys think it looks good.  Tell me what you think:

I agree, those are great looking weapons.  What did you make the seeker heads out of?  

Great looking weapons!

Thanks guys!

I've decaled and flat coated the weapons.  I've also added my own clear seeker heads for the GBUs and painted them clear yellow:

Is a frog waterproof???? HECK YAH, let's see it.

Patrick

She's shaping up nicely. I also brush on the Future instead of air brushing it, works great.

Dean, Tojo and Bish,  thanks!

Ok, she's all glossed up and ready for decals!  I decided to use Future as a glosscoat for this build.  On my last build I used Liquitex Acryilc Gloss Varnish and it turned out great but I had a little bit lift with some masking tape.  Since I still have to mask the metal part of the exhaust I decided to use Future just to be safe.  I brushed it on with a large flat brush:

In the pic below you can see that I changed the chaff/flare configuration.  Having three red panels drew too much attention I thought.  Plus, many of the pics I saw had black panels mixed in with the grey and red panels:

Here's a good view of some of the painted detail on the vertical stabs:

I used "The Detailer" to wash the vents:

Really nice work on this, looking great.

Really fantastic work,lots of attention to details pays off

You're really taking your time with this and it shows, you're gonna have a great looking Eagle when done.

Hey guys,  I've got another update...

After the salt weathering I did another light post shade to bring back a little of the fading that was lost.  At this point I have 9 layers of paint on this thing!  In the pic below (which is out of focus...sorry) you can see a little of the detail on the nose.  I also went over the windshield seam to fill it in and repainted it so that it is more seamless now:

This pic (also out of focus) shows some of the detail painting.  I saw a pic of an F-15E with a lighter panel at the beginning of the engine humps so I added it to mine.  You can also see that the rudder on the left vertical stabilizer is painted a lighter color as if it is a replacement part: