raptordriver - Nice job on the Spirit of St. Louis. Charles Linberg would be proud! Wrap-around can be challenging and frustrating. We do the best we can, don't we?

soulcrusher - Please let us know how your panel line wash turns out. I used a simple acrylic wash on my Revell P-51. it didn't seem to add much pop since most of the detail was raised. Only around the flaps and landing gear/wells was the desired effect. The Future and wash did not degrade my NMF, but the finish wasn't that shiny to begin with.

Randy I am going to do a test on a Hurricane wing I have lying around. I am going to experiment with panel line washes and see if a coat of Future will ruin or preserve the finish.

Jeremy thanks buddy!

Andrew the Spirit of St Louis looks great. The cowl panels came out nice.

Frank what did you not like about the Talon paints? The only thing that is a bit of a PIA is trying not to make a mess with the polishing powder. It seems to get on everything if you are not carefull. I love the sheen you can obtain with the polishing powders. It looks very realistic to my eyes.

Soulcrusher

Crusher- Man, that is a sweet build, love that finish!  I tried the Talon paints a couple of years back but just didn't care for them.  I see you have discovered a secret to them!  Very well done.

Andrew- Another impressive build from you!  Don't see that one modeled as often as we should.

Raptor, she's a beauty mate!!!! Very nice finish!!! Hope those decals behave and settle down when they are dry. WELL DONE!!!

Great work SC! You are a NMF natural!

I am calling my build finished,

Decals look horrible but they are still drying from Solvaset. Thanks for the GB Vetteman.

Nice work SC! She is a beauty!

I like the Alclad II but I may have to try the Talon some day, especially after seeing the way yours looks.

Man I love posting finished pictures on the front page

Soulcrusher sorry it took a couple of days to get your picture posted but its proudly posted now.

Yeah I am looking forward to trying the Talon paints and powders, in fact I am thinking a quickie build may be in order to see how they work for me. Dont want to blow the F-15 ya know. Anyway I am thinking of doing a P-51D that I can set next to the foiled one I did for giggles. I have to get going on the Travel Air too as it is just waiting for paint. Oh and thanks for the heads up I wander should I add a coat of future over the talon paint so the dark spots wont happen ? My models get handled alot ya know dog fights and such in the Mancave.

Randy I think you will enjoy the Talon paints as much as I do using them. The one mistake I have made several time and I would warn you about is once you have polished it up all nice you realy can not handle it to much with your bare hands. It does not leave fingerprints but for some reason it will discolor the paint sometimes. Almost like aluminum when it is heated.

Richie thanks. I  am glad you like the P-35 so much.

Soulcrusher

WOW Crushlikins that finish is beautiful!!!! Outstanding work mate!!!! One surely to be proud of!!!!

Soulcrusher I was thinking the first picture for the front page but I like a couple of the others too. I recieved my Talon paints the other day and will play with them a bit. I was planning to use them on the Streak Eagle, hope I can pull it off half as well as you do.

Thanks guys. I think I am getting the hang of these Talon Paints.

NiceFit I see the color shift but that is the lighting causing the shade. The cowl has a lower gloss sheen to it and I did not buff the paint on the canopy to give it a sifferent color.

Thank you B17guy for the kind words.

Thanks Randy. I know you will pick the best on for the front page.Though I am partial to either number 1 or 3.  I have to go do my duty at the Battle of Britian GB but I might come back and build another. This NMF stuff is addicting. I will defintetly be watching. I am interested if the other that bought the Talon paints will be as happy as I have been with them.

Soulcrusher

Soulcrusher you have gone and done it to me again geeze Just like you did with the Hispano in the first NMF group. That finish is just plain stunning my friend and I cant make up my mind which picture to post on the front page..............again.  All kidding aside that is one sweet P-35 and you are the Talon master.

Very good looking P-35!!

Soulcrusher - Well done on the P-35! The finish looks outstanding as does your seam work. I hope my Texan looks as good. Did you paint the black wing stripes and is that a darker aluminum color I see along the leading edge of the wings (in next-to-last photo)?

Finshed up the P-35 last night. Overall a pretty good kit though the detail is a bit sparse and the canopy just does'nt look right for some reason but still not a bad kit to build considering the cost.

Soulcrusher

Gamera thats huge, I owe you big time and, thank you very very much. PM inbound

Thunderbolt379 thanks for the heads up and the advise. Gamera had kindly offered a decal sheet I can use for the Streak Eagle. Now to find the correct burner cans, I read somewhere that CAM offers the correct set if they are still around.

I am stuck on my MiG-3 but will get back to it in a week or so I think. I will be posting a pic or two of the troubled spot maybe someone will have an idea or two to help me out as I keep drawing a blank when I look at it.

Simpilot34 you have been a huge help my friend, but its still your fault well partially anyways Actually I cant wait to get started on this one. I may have to push a couple of other builds to the back burner.

vetteman42

Nicefit I use Bondo Glazing putty it doesn't flake off like the Squadron or Testors putty does and I think is much easier to see too. Anyway you can get it at most autoparts stores and I think Walmart carries it too.

It wet sands really nice too

Vetteman - Thanks! I'll go pick some up.

Randy, glad I could help!!! When I find more stuff will pass it on.

Vetteman: Found the decals. Afraid they're a little rough and there is a small amount of soiling but they look usable. Still looking for the instruction sheet.

If you want them sent me a message with your address. No charge, I'm never going to use them anyway.

Hi Randy,

I have at least one of the Superscale sheets in my collection, the 1:48 I think, I can check the number for you and you can search with better targetting. It'll have been OOP for a long time and eBay is your best bet. There are literally hundreds of sheets going through eBay all the time so the odds are good that it'll come up at some point -- though whether in time for your build is another matter.

I also have the old Revell kit, a sealed/mint example. I knew it sure wouldn't be the best F-15 but I had to have it, because I remember looking at it when I was a teenager and wishing I knew how to achieve a finish like that. When Model Master brought out their Metalizer range in the late 70s - early 80s period, that kit was the demonstration piece, it used to be on the inside back cover of magazines at the time, a whole page (B&W) pic of the beast... It's become rather a collector's item, not for building, just for having! A suite of mods to  the bext available early-type Eagle plus AM decals is the way to go.

Great, the ICM MiG isn't the easiest build but she's certainly a good one. I wish I'd had time to devote to mine but with everything happening lately I've ended up with far more projects in play that I can possibly do, and the MiG hasn't progressed. It's clear weather today, maybe I could spray the cockpit at long last...

Cheers, Mike/TB379

Gamera that would be fantastic if you have them, I will hold off and wait for ya.

Nicefit I use Bondo Glazing putty it doesn't flake off like the Squadron or Testors putty does and I think is much easier to see too. Anyway you can get it at most autoparts stores and I think Walmart carries it too. Heres a picture the tube for  ya. HTH

It wet sands really nice too

Trying to get caught up here... may have to go back a few pages but some nice work here.

Nicefit - I must say, that Mustang came out looking beautiful! Especially being that old Revell monster. A lot of work but it paid off in the end. Well done!

JMart - Thanks a bunch for the links on seam work. I will reference them. Yes, there is a Michael's here with an abundant supply of Revell P-51Ds. You're right, you can't beat that coupon price!

Maxfax - Thank you for the compliment on my Mustang build. I appreciate it. I can't wait to see some WIP photos.

Can anyone tell me the name of the auto body filler product and where to purchase it? I take it is better or easier to use than the hobby putty (like Testors Contour Putty)?

Vetteman: I've got one of the old SS Streak Eagle sheets around somewhere. It came with two schemes and I built the other one so the SE decals should be all there. The bad news is that was years ago and don't know where the sheet is, hold on and I'll see if I can hunt it down.

Simpilot34 thanks buddy, your info helps a bunch. I havent been able to find much on the internet so far other than some in flight pictures. I am including your info in my F-15 referance file I have started along with the pictures I could find. I think I bit off a huge chunk with this build and will take all the help I can get. However I am really looking forward to the build.

Thunderbolt I checked Superscale and Sprue Brothers and found nothing What I did find though was Revell did make, way back when a 1/48 scale model of the Streak Eagle but the kits are a bit on the pricey side on Ebay. However I am thinking about bidding on a couple of them for the decal sheet and supposedly they offer some reference materials in the kit. Those old kits sometimes aren't the greatest so don't know if I would use that or not. BTW I did find and win another ICM MiG-3 finally.

Randy I found this info in my book F-15 Eagle Engaged.

F-15 Streak Eagle (72-0119)

This airframe was used for two weeks from January 16, 1975 to establish the capabilities of the F-15 in a controlled and instrumented environment. Three USAF pilots' flew the jet to very precise parameters during this time, thereby achieving several speed and climb world records. The aircraft was heavily modified to reduce weight as much as possible. Among the list of items removed were: a generator, speed brake and flap actuators, utility hydraulic system, non-crirical cockpit displays and radios, landing and taxi lights, and radar/associated LRU's. The aircraft was a Cat II airframe and was already 800lb lighter than Cat I aircraft prior to any modifications. In all, th ejet was reduced to 1,800lb less than other Block 6 aircraft. the program cost was $2.1 million.

So, a cockpit photo is going to be a must and if possible some detail shots, trust me I'm looking mate! HTH!!

Randy -- the markings should be the least of your problems, superscale released the Streak Eagle markings in all three main scales, I'd be astounded if you couldn't run them to earth somewhere.

Best of luck, the conversions sound fairly minor and the afterburners may be available as resin mods.

Cheers, Mike

Off the top of my head, the main visual differences for an F-15A/C are the main landing gear doors, the turkey feathers on the afterburners, and antennas on top of the vertical stabilizers.

Jmart what Simpilot has said thanks for taking the time to share with us. I use glazing putty for my filler and will give the nail polish remover a try later today and let you know if it works. I don't like the modeling puttys (squadron putty) because they dont stick very well for me.

Stikpusher and Simpilot I have to admit this F-15 will be a huge challenge just getting the NMF to look right, an even bigger challenge will be getting the right markings or making them. But hey we modelers just have to push the envelope ya know  Not knowing much at all about modern jets maybe I need to do some homework to see if the kit i have will even work as an A model.

Jmart, Thanks for the links!!!!!!!! Some very helpful information there!!!! I had forgotten about the melted plastic technique I have read about a few times. The autobody fillerwith a nail polish remover soaked q-tip is another i will have to try. I have used the auto filler before but sanded it back, that technique sounds much easier. Thanks again!!