FW-190 Reich Defender III 5/10-2/11

Frank well done!!   that is a very good looking plane love the different coloring

Damon

Thanks guys, glad you liked this one!  I have to admit, the odd color scheme is what drew me to this one.  I have wanted a late-war bird with the yellow cowl stripe for a while, and this one fit the bill. 

Frank, Yes I did mean the streaks behind the landing gear, how did you do it? I really want to weather a plane.

Sorry I am confusing to others and myself sometimes.

OK, here's how I did some of the weathering on the bottom of the plane.

For the tiny dirty oil streaks, I took tiny amounts of black and burnt umber oil paints and put tiny drops in the panel lines where I wanted the streaks to begin.  Then, I took a Q-tip just barely moistened with mineral spirits and drew the oils backwards with the airflow.  If I didn't like the look, I simply wiped them off and tried again.  For the cordite stains behind the shell ejection ports, I took some Tamiya NATO black (as it has a greenish tint perfect for stains) and thinned it about 10% paint to 90% straight 91% Isopropyl alcohol.  At about 8-10 psi, I lightly airbrushed them on.  With the very thin paint and low pressure, you are able to build up the effect very slowly.  Ideal for weathering IMHO.  I hope that helped, and I didn't explain it very well, please say so as I would really like to help.  Good luck!

Frank Another great build by our fearless leader I too like the weathering and really like the way you toned down the spinner spiral. Its small details like that that really make a build stand out.

Now to the front page so I can be overwhelmed by the great builds going on in this group. Makes me worry about my build measuring up

WOW!!! talk about a page fulla eye candy !!!! Stunning builds one and all

Frank, Wow thats a very nice peice of work you have there, well done

Daywalker, maxfax - stunning work. There's no let up in the standards on here!

Have picked myself up a Hasegawa 1/32 Dora which I am going to try and spec up a bit with some add ons including the Aires cockpit. Can anyone recommend a good reference site/book etc for the Dora, and in particular any rivet diagrams? They really seem to make a difference on some of the builds i have seen.

Keep up the good work everyone.

Nice work Frank!   Flawless paint and perfect weathering... you're the man!

Stumpjumper70

Daywalker, maxfax - stunning work. There's no let up in the standards on here!

Have picked myself up a Hasegawa 1/32 Dora which I am going to try and spec up a bit with some add ons including the Aires cockpit. Can anyone recommend a good reference site/book etc for the Dora, and in particular any rivet diagrams? They really seem to make a difference on some of the builds i have seen.

Keep up the good work everyone.

I build the 1/32 Hasegawa Dora for my entry and it is a sweet kit. Just a bit of a small fit issue at the wing roots but everything else was great. The Squadron/Signal walkaround book on the Dora is pretty nice and has alot of great detail shots in it as well as a couple of color plates.

Soulcrusher

Thanks for the technique sharing Frank. Just a quick question, All weathering was done after the Future and before the flat right?

Thank you again one and all, you are all making me blush!   It is an honor to build with all of you, as the workmanship is among the finest I have seen!

Richie- Actually, only the panel line wash was done between the Future and satin coats.  The exhaust stains, chipping, and streaks were all done after the satin coat.

Thanks mate!!! Want to try an acrylic wash with nothing more than some dilluted non ammonia glass cleaner. Part of the fun of modelling, experimenting and scrounging for detail bits around the house and shops, etc.

Soulcrusher - much obliged!

Okay, now I have readhed teh point where painting can begin for the interior. Wings have had the outbaord cannon holes filled with super glue and sanded smooth. R1 gun pocs had casing ejection slits opened. All detail that I am gonna add to the cockpit has been added and the solid portion of the canopy assembled. I added the plastic strip that will keep the Tamiya engine in its proper postion. Here are a few shots...

And with everything rubber banded together for a quick fit.

If the weather is co operative tomorrow I can begin painting.

Stik, how many you got on the go at the moment, i just commented on your Spit and now another build here....The 190 is looking good so far buddy

Those two are my prime builds at the moment, but I have several others going as well. In painting stage I have a few 1/350 Soviet subs that are almost done, a 1/35 Kfz 251 almost ready for decals, then I have a 1/48 F-84E in the decaling stage. Not to mention lots of figures in painting and a 1/35 Centurion for my GB that is still in mid build.... And several sidelined kits in various stages... I have a bad case of modelers A.D.D.

Very nicely done Frank, this one looks like it may have had the tail section replaced. Very cool and unusual scheme.  

stikpusher

.... And several sidelined kits in various stages... I have a bad case of modelers A.D.D.

FWIW, I'm glad I'm not the only one!  Looking good there buddy!

Mo- Thanks man, glad you liked it!

I have 3 builds going at the same time now and it seems I cant make any progress on any of them geeze. Gotta get something done so I can start my 190

Yeah i feel streched just having 3 on the go myself....

I am calling the Eduard 1:48 Fw190 D13 "Yellow 10" done.  All that's left is an antenna wire.  Minimal weathering was my choice because the surface detail is quite stunning.  With the exception of the right rear wing root issue, the kit went together nicely.   Thanks to Guy  for advice on the wing spar.  Thanks to all who gave advice on the wing root issue.  Thanks to Frank for the very helpful landing gear information.    I will now work on the Do 17 Z for the BoB GB.  It's a crude kit that needs a lot of additions to be presentable. 

Let me know what you think.

Expertly done Hugh, I love it!  That's EXACTLY how I remember seeing Yellow 10.  Your extra work on the camo paid off, and I am also glad to see that the "10" decals are canted just like the real plane.  Well done!

Frank--Thanks for the comments and thanks for hosting.  I won't be participating in the A/F18 GB.  No jets for now.  I will watch for other GBs you host.  I have really enjoyed the experience here and have raised my understanding of modeling significantly because of the advice from the real pros like you, Guy, Coach Crusher, the Mikes, and anyone I forgot. 

In case anyone is interested, the decals are from Eagle Cals in Montana, I think.  I have found their stickers are top notch both for accuracy and performance.

Did you see "Yellow 10" in Seattle?  I hope to see her one day as my daughter recently moved there and I will be visiting soon.

Hugh OMG, thats a thing of beauty for sure

Julez72

Hugh OMG, thats a thing of beauty for sure

  Nicely done Hugh! Love the camo!

The only constructive criticism I have to offer is to darken up the tires a little more.

Very nice!

No problem Hugh, I know that modern jets are not everyone's cup of tea.  But, we shall look for you the next time we do a WWII GB!

I have never seen Yellow 10 in person, but I have the Eagle File with many photos of the aircraft.  The images of your rendition look just like the real McCoy.

Imabx--I think you are right.  I will darken the tires. 

Frank--When I go to Seattle, I will get beau coup photos of "Yellow 10"!!

Julez--You are too kind.  Thanks!!

Hugh, great build on Yellow 10.

The camo looks spot on.

Frank, your F looks stunning, love the grafted on tail look.

Apologies for not being around much on this one, work has taken precedence over the last few months.

Dave, looks like we've gone for the same build in the same scale!

Did you use the Revell 190?

Despite the lack of updates I have made some progress on my little Academy 190 A-8.

Here it is with a pre-shade applied to the upper surfaces...

I decided to 'interpret' the painting instructions provided by Eagle Strike, as I have another profile is this bird which has it as an F-8, which would make sense given the Schlacht Gruppe yellow bands on the engine cowling, and go with a late war 84/76 scheme on the undersides, and fuselage sides.

I used IJN Grey for the 84, as this shade varies from a Sky Type S shade to a concrete colour.

We then fast forward to today when I applied the decals..

I'd already used the Eagle Strike lower crosses on another build, so ended up using a slightly smaller pair from a Revell sheet.

The 81 is a home brew of Gunze 81 and Tamiya XF10 to give a much browner shade than you get with straight Gunze 81 which represents one of the more olive toned interpretations of 81.

The 83 is straight Gunze, free handed over the 81.

I'll let the decals settle overnight, then give it a wipe down, and another coat of Future.

Karl

Wow, y'all are putting out some amazing work. In my travels, I've been trying to keep up with what's been happening. And geez, there is some beautiful work here - and unfortunately, most of it is being concluded! 

So, in the name of 'bringing up the rear' (since someone has to do it), I spent some time airbrushing the wheel wells and related areas of my D-9 this afternoon. Although this might be much ado about nothing, here are a few pics:

The Eduard etch shows pretty well! I'm hoping to be able to use the spar in a structural way - I want to bond there in addition to the wing edges. So, that's why I taped off the area around the wheel bay - and at least I didn't make the area too small:

Also, I've got an old project that I'm trying to bring along with the D-9, and that's Eduard's A-8. That project got put on hold when the D-9 arrived! Ha. Anyway, the next step was to paint the wheel bays - so today saw me get both done. Here's a small cameo by those parts:

So that's it for now. Not a whole lot, even though it took me several hours today - in fact almost the whole Tiger's baseball game, which was on in the background. 

I've got the Labor Day week off to stay at home and pretend that I'm unemployed - and modeling will be my primary goal. Maybe I can catch up with y'all then! Either way, I'll get a chance to spend a lot of time working on these babies then.

Keep up the great work - it sure provides inspiration for guys like me!

Best regards,

Mike