Revell 1/48 Scale F-105D Thunderchief

On previous posts I got recommendations to try MRP and Mr Color acrylics.  These look great and the color selection is fantastic.  But the domestic suppliers like Spray Gunner and Sprue Bors were out of stock on one or more colors  The availability with European suppliers was good, but I wanted to avoid the shipping costs.  I tried Walmart and amazon, but didn't find any good options.  I saw a lot of other hobby online sources, and eventually I would have found the right one.

But then I saw the Ammo by Mig 60's-70's TAC kit with the four SEA colors in one package for $8.50 plus shipping.  It was on the Ammo website, they are located in Spain and the cheapest shipping option was $13.50.  So it was about $22 for the whole thing.  I placed the order last night, and this morning I got an email saying my order has shipped.  It says 7-30 days, but that's what you get with cheap shipping.  I won't be ready to spary for a few weeks anyway.

The reputation of Mig acrylics in the model community seems to be mixed, dedinitely not as well liked as Tamiya, MRP, Mr Color, etc.  Maybe not as bad as Vallejo's rep.  I will give it a try, and see how it goes.  In the articles and videos, it says you can spray it right from the bottle without thinning.  So it just might be the ticket for me.

I was just looking on Sprue Brothers for the SEA colors, and it looks like they have everything in MRP, except for the FS36622.  But, Mr. Color has their GUNC311 lacquer, which is the FS36622 equivalent, and their lacquers spray like a dream too.  So, if you're in a pinch you might consider that route.

Pretty much any paint shipped from overseas is almost always going to be considered Hazmat, even though some of it really isn't, and they literally have to put the stuff on a "slow boat" to get it here.  Can't ship it by air.  I think I waited a little over 2 months for some MRP colors I had ordered from a hobby shop in Poland once.

I think you'll like that F-105.  I've been working on the Revell F-105G on and off as my skills have been sharpened with other projects, and its been a pretty solid build so far.  No major issues with that one.

Well, I'll be watching this one!

I don't know how the stock of them looks like in the USA, but if you can get a hold of them, I would like to recommend Hataka paints, the orange line to you. I'm just trying them out for the first time and they are very nice to work with.

Good luck with your build and have a nice day!

Paweł

Have a look at AK Real Colors. When thinned with Gunze Mr Levelling Thinner, they airbrush as smooth as can be and will surpass Tamiya in quality of finish. Not to mention thier extensive line up of aircraft and armor colors to match those of various nations and eras. If you want to stick with enamels, Humbrol makes the SEA colors in their paint line.

I'm looking forward to your Thud build. That is my favorite aircraft of the Vietnam war.

I put the Trumpeter kit on my wish list and a little bird told me it's under the tree  - Though I can't recall if it was a D or G.

Hi eaglecash867, I was looking to get all MRP or all Mr Color from one shop, I didn't even think to mix and match the two brands.  It seems so obvious now, sometimes I wonder how my dumb ass made it this far in life.

Yeah I am anticipating the slow boat delivery.  I'm going to take my time on this build.  I think I'll like this 105D, although my skills are not much sharper the available products and information should make things a lot better than 35 years ago.  I took a good look at the model for the first time in 10 years and I noticed the box art shows Mk 82 500-lb bombs on the centerline rack.  I had a moment of disappointment because I think the usual load for Pack-6 missions was six Mk-117 750-lb bombs.  But the photo of the completed model on the side of the box shows six Mk-117s, and also the instructions for bomb assembly say 750-lb.  Most importantly, the pieces look like Mk-117s.

Good luck on your F105G, hopefully we can see some photos when done.

Hi Pavel, thanks for your encouragement.  I looked at the Hataka paints and they look like a great option.  They are indeed available here (amazon, Sprue Bros, etc.)  I now have a bunch of different paints to try out.  After this I have The F4 Phantom Mig Ace so I'll be needing some FS36440 gull gray and some FS17875 insignia white.  My main problem is trying to choose from all the great options out there.  Maybe if I live long enough I can try all of them!

Btw I never noticed the vietnam.net link at the bottom of your post until now.  I love all the photos, I will study them and get some inspiration.

Hi John, D or G would be equally great under the tree!  I love the G with the wild weasel mouth markings.  One thing I noticed when I opened my 105D, it is a huge plane.  It makes the P-38 look puny.

Hi stikpusher, thanks for the tip for the AK Real Colors.  Smoother than Tamiya, sounds like a must try!  Amazon has the AK set for Euro-1 camo that would be perfect for my next A-10 build.  $12.95 + $4.95 delivey for 4 colors.

The Thud is also my favorite.  If you haven't already, you might want to check out Thud Ridge and Going Downtown by COL Jacksel Broughton, USAF.  Great descriptions of the Pack-6 missions he and his unit flew out of Takhli during Rolling Thunder.

Hey Burrito King,  I used Tamiya on this Monogram A-1H. If you are going to build more than one SEA schemed a/c. Just mix a whole bottle of each. For tan, I used XF-59 with a few drops or red added to the bottle and Nato Green with a few drops of XF-4 yellow green and XF-26 for the dark green (which probably a tad too dark and could stand a few drops of yellow or yellow green as well). These are non-scientific mixes, but I like them.

burrito king

Hi stikpusher, thanks for the tip for the AK Real Colors.  Smoother than Tamiya, sounds like a must try!  Amazon has the AK set for Euro-1 camo that would be perfect for my next A-10 build.  $12.95 + $4.95 delivey for 4 colors.

The Thud is also my favorite.  If you haven't already, you might want to check out Thud Ridge and Going Downtown by COL Jacksel Broughton, USAF.  Great descriptions of the Pack-6 missions he and his unit flew out of Takhli during Rolling Thunder.

 

I have read Thud Ridge several times over the years, but have to read Going Downtown. If I ever come across it, I will certainly do so. 

I'm looking forward to your Thud project here. 

Hi cbaltrin, that is a beautiful A-1, one of the workhorses of the Vietnam War!  I love the camo, the exhaust stains, and the fluid stains on the fuel tank.  I think you nailed the colors right on, and it looks smooth as silk.  I used non-scientific mixes for my Me-262, and I liked them.

I also love the ordnance on your A-1.  I used to treat ordnance as an afterthought.  The plane is done, just glue the bombs together, ignore the seam gaps, slap on some OD paint, sloppy hand paint the yellow stripe, then glue them on the racks.  But for this build I am doing the ordnance, racks, and fuel tanks first.  Hopefully that will help prevent me from doing those half-assed at the end.

Hi stikpusher, so many models and books, so little time.  However, I'm taking my time with this build since I am not expecting my Ammo-Mig alcrylics to arrive any time soon.  So I'm working on the ordnance rn.  I'm actually applying putty to the glue seams on the bombs!  I never thought I'd do that lol.  But when I think about it, the bombs, racks, and fuel tanks are actually kinda important.

Oh ya - well done ordinance really makes a model shine.  I had one guy tell me treat each subassembly like it's own little model.  

Hi John, yes that is a good philosophy to treat each subassy as it's own model.  It remains to be seen if I can overcome my lazy habits ;)

I'm right there with you my friend... get close to the finish line and I tend to rush.  We can only strive to get a bit better - while keeping it fun.

burrito king

Hi stikpusher, so many models and books, so little time.  However, I'm taking my time with this build since I am not expecting my Ammo-Mig alcrylics to arrive any time soon.  So I'm working on the ordnance rn.  I'm actually applying putty to the glue seams on the bombs!  I never thought I'd do that lol.  But when I think about it, the bombs, racks, and fuel tanks are actually kinda important.

 

Understandable. Poor looking ordnance will detract from your finished build, while well made ordnance will enhance that same build.

Hi John, you're right about that.  When it gets near the end I also tend to rush.  So far doing the ordnance up front is working well.  I'm using this as an opportunity to work on my sanding and putty skills.  And getting the right balance between improving and having fun is the real trick.

Hi stikpusher, I'm working on some ideas to use this ordnance to enhance the build.  In a couple weeks I'll see how it turns out!

I hope everybody had a great Thanksgiving! I've been working on the seam lines of the M117 bombs and almost ready for priming. I found an old discussion on seam lines and tried a technique that seems to work really good for me. It is called scraping and you drag a sharp hobby.knife along the seam to make the edges match. The blade should be perpendicular to the seam, with the top of the blade angled slightly in the direction of scraping. This works especially well when one side of the seam is higher than the other side. I am using this on the Mk 82 bombs and I think it will save me a lot of filing and sanding.

Glad to read your Thud is progressing, Burrito King.  As an alternative to scraping, you might also want to try sanding sticks some time.  They give you a nice, smooth, rounded appearance on your ordnance.  Just curious, what kind of cement are you using to put things together?

Thanks Eaglecash867!  It is going slow, I have many distractions that take away from my model building.  But at least it is progressing.

Thanks for the tip on the sanding sticks.  I checked them out and I think they will be a great addition to my finishing kit.  I bought some for $11.89 incl shipping from Walmart.  They are 800, 1000, and 1500 grit.  I am planning to use these for the 450 gal wing tanks and the fuselage.

I am using Tamiya extra thin liquid cement.  Actually Tamiya Airbrush Cleaner which someone (perhaps you) gave me the tip it is the same thing at a much lower price.  Overall it works great, but some of the M117's and MK 82's didn't stick too good because of the seam gaps.  I read some older discussions, and get better results when I apply it to both halves, and hold them tight with my fingers for 5 minutes or so.  But I think it works better on higher quality parts that have a very tiny seam gap.  I tried CA, but I tend to get fingerprints and other problems, such as difficulty sanding the seams.  CA dries pretty hard and I am sanding-challenged as it is.  I am thinking to go back to good ol' Testors cement for some of these less precise parts.

I have been using Tamiya Extra Thin also, and I saw that tip about the airbrush cleaner...definitely going to try that when I run out.  Might also try MEK, since I always have plenty of that.

One of the issues with Tamiya Extra Thin is that it evaporates REALLY quickly, so with that its best to hold your two pieces together with just a tiny gap between them...and then tap the little Tamiya brush to that little gap.  You'll be able to see the liquid flow out along that little gap between the parts because of capillary action.  If you wait about 20 seconds, and then press the parts together nice and hard, you should then see a little bead of melted plastic ooze out of the seam fairly evenly.  The plastic will stay soft for a little while, which will give you time to correct the alignment of the two parts so you get panel lines lined up and make sure that you don't have one side of the joint higher than the other.  This often works well on even poorly fitting parts if you work them together a little bit at a time.  Sometimes you have to let one small section harden fully before moving onto the next, so it provides structural support and you're not having to work so hard to keep everything lined up.  After you get a subassembly done, if you let it sit overnight, you can then come back and gently sand away those little beads of melted plastic.  You'll end up with two pieces that are now welded together and you'll have far fewer gaps to deal with filling.  Filling gaps is where I started using CA.  I just take a toothpick and apply VERY tiny dabs of it to the places that still need filling.  After letting that cure overnight (or you can use an accelerator), I use a black Sharpie and scribble on and around the little cured dabs of CA.  That acts as a leveling indicator, so you can just gently wet sand until all of the black is gone.  Once all of the black is gone, you should be able to shoot a little primer on there and see that the gap is now completely gone.  Even if you see a tiny spot that got missed, CA can be dabbed right over the top of the primer...can't really do that with the typical modelling putty.  Anyway, try playing around with some of those techniques.  You'll find them to be a huge time saver that makes your model building much more fun and rewarding.

Hi Eaglecash867, I really appreciate these tips you and the other experienced modelers are providing. When I first started getting back into the hobby earlier this year, I relied on the methods I developed from childhood through early adulthood. But as I get further along now, with all the amazing information and products currently available, I am deciding that I don't want to live with bombs and fuel tanks with seam gaps, and other sloppy results. Like keavdog said, we want to improve while still keeping it fun. The key is to develop the right balance of effort to get the desired results without making it too laborious and tedious. I imagine it's a balancing act every modeler has to face.

Having said that, I am learning that doing the correct techniques and extra effort up front will provide better results and also save time and effort later. I am sure the tips you provided will do exactly that, and I will use it on my next subassys, the 450 gal wing tanks and the fuselage.  If I do it right, it will reduce the sanding and other work after gluing.  I am actually learning a lot from doing these bombs and fuel tanks, which I used to regard as mere accessories, barely worth any time or effort.

Burrito King,

Referencing sanding sticks, you might want something smaller than 800 grit for those tough jobs.  Perhaps 240 up to 400 might serve.  Anything higher is mostly for polishing.

Gary

Hi Gary, thanks for the tip. I was thinking the same thing. At first I was looking at a Micromesh set that had 1500 to 12000 but I passed. I found several sets that had 80 to 240 but those seemed too coarse. The 800 to 1500 seemed like a good middle ground. Based on your tip I got a set of four 400's from Amazon for $8.50 incl shipping. So I think I am good, for now.

Last few days have been slow going, just a lot of distractions from regular life.  But I got the ordnance surface prep and painting done.  Still gotta do some weathering, but those boys are almost ready for the one-way trip to Hanoi.  I noticed from photos and reading that the bomb and tailfins were separate pieces, and often different shades.  So I tried to mix them up.  My surface prep and painting are improving, still got a ways to go.  But I think I am getting that nice balance between improving without getting too tedious.  My #400 sanding sticks are due to arrive by Friday, in the meantime I'll try to start gluing the 450-gal fuel tanks using the tips I received.  I am hoping the scraping and the sanding sticks will help me get rid of those seam lines.

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burrito king

Hi John, D or G would be equally great under the tree!  I love the G with the wild weasel mouth markings.  One thing I noticed when I opened my 105D, it is a huge plane.  It makes the P-38 look puny.

 

Hi Strongeagle, I was able to see the 105 up close at the USS Aabama memorial park and at March AFB. I was also in awe of its sheer size. I wouldn't be surprised if it was the largest single engine fighter ever. It's hard for me to imagine one engine powering that plane and bomb load so fast at low altitude. Idk how fast they came in along Thud Ridge, maybe Mach 1 at 5-10 thousand feet?