Greg: What I do is lighten the panel centers, gloss coat it, then add the decals. When the decals are set I give it another coat of gloss, then I do a pin wash for panel lines. Another coat of either gloss or satin. Then I lighten up and thin the mix I used to lighten the center of the panels I give the entire model a couple of misting coats to blend the decals. After that as many coats of dull as it needs to flatten the whole thing. Sounds like a lot of steps but it works for me.

Greg  looking great ! I like the silver base technique

Doogs glad you were able to save it, really would've been a shame to bin it at this point.

jbrady it does'nt take but a tiny little bit of crud to make your a/b act up. I use a fine sewing needle to clean the tiny air/fluid  passages and totally break it down and soak it in thinner after each use. I've also had trouble with black and found that using reds ,blues or greens in the mix helps to get contrast without the greying issues. Great looking job so far!

TREYZX10R

Doogs glad you were able to save it, really would've been a shame to bin it at this point.

Yes, VERY glad I decided to set it aside after the three decals!

Jbrady: The Beau looks good to me. Nice job on the pre-shading.

Doogs: Ouch, sorry to hear about your problems. Good to see you have things under control now though.

Still working on seam lines with my P-61. Hopefully I'll have them knocked out before much longer....

I finished up the rato packs and got the drop tanks almost ready today

Wow just realized I seperated the seams on the pods, pushing in the toothpicks too hard my guess,off to fix it!

TREY: Thanks for the tip about different colors. Kind of scary spraying those combos but I'm kinda happy with the results.

Doogs...sorry about all the drama with future, it really sucks you have to repaint as it looked great. You think you might have had a bad batch of future or something, I have not had that problem but I do like the results from testors gloss coat. I guess it depends on the mood I am in.

Jbrady. The Beau is coming along nice can't wait to see her all dressed up and ready for the ball.

As for my build I completed painting all the cockpit parts this weekend, and will post a picture as soon as I can.

Doogs, I see you're not the only one with future problems. I dont' airbrush it anymore, i brush it on with a wide, soft brush using windex to thin it, it works great. but the others are right, Micro sol/set can attack future even when its cured. I've noticed that too from time to time. let us know how the vallejo model air paints work for you. i've wanted to try their gloss coat but read mixed reviews. Jbrady looks like you got that beaufighter lookin sweet. the black camo looks tough to get just right. Trey I've got the hasegawa version of the 234 on the way and can't wait to build it. cant' wait to see yours done! Greg looks like you're makin great progress, this is turnin out to be a sweet group build thats for sure! nightfighter nut you have some serious building skills! the black widow looks sweet! great job for sure! The Ju 88 is almost done so i can add another nachtjager to the roster. i'll have pics up soon.

Nathan

Doogs,

I gave up on future a while ago! I was having similar probs and a wise old sage on here told me that "Future is for floors and canopies only!" Since that time I use a rattle can gloss prior to decals and pin wash. This actually works in my favor as I use acrylics (except for metalizers) and allows me to use Water color pin wash!

This plane still looks great. "Keep on....keepin on!"

Travis

Bunch of cool happenings in here...

Jbrady  looks great !

Nathan thanks ca'nt wait to see the pics

I fixed the rato seams and got to work on the mottle and decals.

Looks pretty sweet Trey!

Nice work on that German plane there dude.  I used the "Pledge" future inbetween decals on my widow.  I've heard that a batch of this stuff can go bad if it's too old.  I also use a wide soft brush.  When I put a decal on wrong and had already put Future over it, I put water soaked cotton balls on the decal and let sit over night on the area I wanted to change or remove.  Then I took a soft brush and dipped it in water and very lightly moved the water soaked brush over the decal.  The decal floated up and off intact after awhile.  Then I use some Elmers and water, 50/50, and restick the decal.  Future is ok for me as a clear varnish. 

I found the best way to remove it without hurting my model was to soak it in water for several hours and scrub off with a water heavy soft paint brush.  A wet rag should work for soaking it as it will keep the area wet.  The reason water should work is because future is an acrylic polymer.  If the coat is not too old, it should work.  If you have time and nothing to lose, try it.  The water shouldn't hurt the plastic or the lacquor paint.    Just my humble oppinion.  :)

The kit decals worked better than I expected. Only had one tear and slight silvering on the stencils. I should be able to take care of the silvering when I start washing and blending.

Lots of awesome progress! I'll revisit more thoroughly at work tomorrow.

As for the Mossie...I wet-sanded tonight, then went back and repainted with my Vallejo Model Air paints that finally arrived. MASSIVE clogging issues with the airbrush, but wow, does this stuff spray nice when it's spraying.

A few days delayed, but I'm back and ready for gloss and then decals. Oh, and I got the props done, too!

That is looking nice doogs. Glad to see you were able to recover from the future mishap.

Trey: how do you do the mottling? Is it with  very fine airbrush work?

jbrady:  the decals are looking good. I cant wait to see it all finished up!

Trey - man, that mottling is something else! Fantastic job! Was that freehand?

jbrady - those are the kit Tamiya decals? They look great! I've had such mixed luck with Tamiya decals, but I've really got my fingers crossed that they come through for me this time!

Trey, thats some real fine subtle mottling, looks real authentic. did you overspray it with thinned 76 again?

Jbrady thats a sweet looking beaufighter. Doogs are you gonna try the model air gloss coat? if so let me know how it works. I'd like to try another glosscoat other than future sometime.

Nathan

Nathan T

Doogs are you gonna try the model air gloss coat? if so let me know how it works. I'd like to try another glosscoat other than future sometime.

Nathan

Nathan - I'm going with Tamiya TS-13 - their rattlecan clear gloss. I've been extremely impressed with their clear flat rattlecan, so I figure I may as well give it a go. I've had decentish luck with their bottled clear gloss, but I've found it tends to work much better when added to paint, versus sprayed on its own. Added to X-1 black, and cut with Gunze Mr Leveling Thinner, it lays down a fantastic base for Alclad.

Thanks for the info. do you have to be careful with the lacquer rattle can going over the decals to seal them?

Nathan

Nathan, I have used Tamiya clear gloss laquer a lot.  The only time I had decal issues was with Tamiya decals.  Go figure? Since that mishap, I put down a couple of mist coats first with 10-15 min between before I start with good coverage coats.  This was on automotive builds though.  It cracked up some decals on a beautiful MB Clk-Gtr, but only the Tamiya ones.  I also had Scale Motorsports Carbon Fiber, and it didn't bother them at all.  Using the mist coats, I have had no trouble at all with decals.  I would recommend testing it though on scrap decals from the sheet you plan to use.

Awesome stuff going on here, as always.  Doogs, you are the man for perservering on your Mossie.  Great recovery.

Cheers,

Greg

Thanks for the tip Greg, i'll have to try it out.

Nathan

Here it is- she's finally done. The build got snagged up waiting for decals and some new paint. Lots of small parts to be glued on after all was weathered and washed. I messed up the rear most antenna but i might leave it for now. I'm a big fan of the Ju 88, and i'd like to have more in 1 48, but dragons the only game in town and the kit is tough and i can't see myself building one again soon. I need an easy relaxing build now! so heres another nachtjager to add to the roster. Greg thanks for a great group build, i loved the subject and am definately gonna build another night fighter real soon.

Nathan

Looks great Nathan!   That is a great addition.  I updated the honor roll too.  The Luftwaffe is ruling the night sky.

Cheers,

Greg

I had a look at the first page and noticed I am not listed as one of the participants. I could have sworn I made my intention to join known...or am I just going crazy?! 

My entry was with an Airfix Boulton Paul Defiant and Revell-Germany Me-262, both in 1/72nd

OWL

Nathan WOW! That came out great ,very clean build. You dealt with those trouble fit areas very nicely Hats off to you sir ! Know what you mean about needing a break after that kit lol and thanks I did'nt overspray the mottle on mine this time just straight up rlm75 grauviolet.

Doogs great save, the mossie looks back on track!

Owl thanks the mottle is freehand

I got the gear on and used some painted masking tape to hide the gaps in the nosewheel tub,they were real bad .

Nathan: Great job, but the Brits are coming soon.

Doogs: Nice save

Trey: What did you use for the underside panel lines... looking good

I started to beat up on the Beau Fighter tonight... did some fading and chipping. I wanted to paint the cowlings and exhaust but I can't find my copper paint. Could have sworn I had one of the Testors square bottles... I have another bottle coming tomorrow but that means it'll be at least another couple of days before I can put this one on the shelf.

CallSignOWL

I had a look at the first page and noticed I am not listed as one of the participants. I could have sworn I made my intention to join known...or am I just going crazy?! 

My entry was with an Airfix Boulton Paul Defiant and Revell-Germany Me-262, both in 1/72nd

 

OWL

Sorry Owl, I don't know how I missed that?????  I fixed the page.

Trey, you are the master of mottle.

The beaufighter is looking good, too.

Cheers,

Greg