Revell 1/48 P-61 Black Widow, "Midnight Mickey" - Work in progress

Hi gents,

She is finally RFI:

http://cs.finescale.com/fsm/modeling_subjects/f/2/t/186817.aspx

Thanks for looking.

Best,

Nikola

crown r n7

most impressive.

 

Thank you very much Crown! Appreciated. :)

Best,

Nikola

most impressive.

Almost there... :)

A few more photos without the cling film protection...

It needs some edge cleaning and making it conform tightly to the shape which should't be a problem.

I am planning to fix them with a liquid mask so it is not cemented to the fuselage forever.

Thanks for looking!

Best,

Nikola

Hi gents,

This seems to work so far - tarps primed and painted with Tamiya Buff base coat.

Next, dry brushing and weathering.

Best,

Nikola

Hi gents,

I finally got the will to finish this bad boy so I started on the tarps (for the first time), as I said to cover all the problems with the canopy to fuselage fit and quality due to the kit being ancient and the molds being shot.

I mixed PVA glue with water (ratio completely arbitrary) and did a few test tarps with regular paper tissue. 

It looked ok, so I proceeded onto the model.

Next is priming and painting so I will see what I get.

Thanks for looking!

Best,

Nikola

Hi gents,

I lied when I said that the previous post was the last before the Ready For Inspection thread (the build is taking forever) 

Here she is with only the canopies, tarps and antennae left to be finished.

Thanks for looking!

Cheers,

Nikola

Ah, I see. Since I modeled the radar, I was going to leave the dome off, or at least make it removable. Maybe I'll do a clear sprue under the tail for this guy.

Hi ManSkirtBrew,

All in the radome. I took fishing sinkers and cut them into small pieces so I could squeeze them in as many as I can.

I also put an additional small piece behind the radar support plate (between the plate and the cockpit). But I see you've glued the plate already. 

Best, 

Nikola 

So where did you fit 60g of lead in the nose of this bird?

the Baron

You've got a great weathered finish there!

 

Thank you very much Baron! Glad you like it! Much appreciated.

Cheers, 

Nikola

You've got a great weathered finish there!

Hi gents,

Last update on the Widow before she goes into Ready For Inspection thread 

I have tried sponge chipping method for the first time, combining it with brush chip painting - I am not very satisfied with the result, but it turned out acceptable. I had better results with HS method. It is what it is, no further changes (might do some silver pencil details). Will have to practice a lot. 

Thanks for looking guys!

Cheers,

Nikola

ggatt_2

This is turning out nice. I like the looks of the Widow in OD/NG. I haven't built one of these in 30 years but there's a couple in the stash, and if I ever get around to building another, this is how it will be painted. 

 

Hi Ggatt,

Thank you! Appreciated.

Yes, the OD/NG scheme is very attractive on this aircraft, although the black scheme with red prop hubs really makes it a Black Widow. :) Got to do one of those as well one day. 

Best, 

Nikola

This is turning out nice. I like the looks of the Widow in OD/NG. I haven't built one of these in 30 years but there's a couple in the stash, and if I ever get around to building another, this is how it will be painted. 

Hi guys,

Just a quick update - Ailerons and flaps installed, and exhaust stains made with a 50-50 mix of Tamiya Flat Brown and Rubber Black followed by Tamiya Buff.

As usual, apologies for image quality. 

So close to wrapping her up.

Thanks for looking!

Best,

Nikola

Only the couple of prototypes had plain fiberglass noses. In action they were painted.

Hey thanks! I finally got started on mine and made a thread for my own progress.

Regarding weighting the nose, just do as Shep did-use a small bolt captured between the halves of the nosewheel, to secure to the base.

Hi B777, 

Thank you very much for your kind words! Much appreciated! Glad you like her so far.

She is definitely not an easy bird. :) 

Cheers, 

Nikola

Hi gents,

She has been salted and filtered with flat white. Then when the salt was removed she received another flat clear coat to get rid of salt ''fogging'' effect and an overall Desert Yellow filter.

She is now ready for exhaust stains, final gunk wash with Abteilung 502 Starship Filth, chipping and various final touches.

Thanks for looking!

Cheers,

Nikola

Hi Hilandr, 

It's all OOB. The radomes for both options came as regular opaque plastic. I just painted it.

Best, 

Nikola

Nikola

 Also, you will need a lot of lead in the nose so you don't end up with a tail sitter. Although they provide a clear post in the kit, I didn't like that, ditched the radar system entirely and filled the whole thing with lead. Almost 70g! 

Yes this is a huge problem!! When I built mine, I put about 1.5 oz in each engine nacelles, and I put another 1.5 oz under the pilot's seat. I never did get that front gear down. I ended up replacing the clear peg anyway. I had considered weighting the nose as you did but I put a lot of work in repairing the radar system and I had always thought that was what made this aircraft unique so I didn't. 

The nose on your model looks opaque,  did you buy the opaque nose "upgrade" or is that paint job tricking my old eyes? That's the way they were in real life. (If they didn't paint them black or OD green.)

Thank you very much Lawdog! Appreciated!

Cheers, 

Nikola

Outstanding...

Hi gents,

Just a quick update on this slow developing project 

Decals and the second gloss coat done.

Next: Minor paintwork corrections, painting certain details, more filters, washes, chipping, exhaust stains... and all that jazz.

Again, apologies for the image quality. 

Thanks for looking!

Best,

Nikola