AIRCRAFT - Pearl Harbor group build

Thanks, Aurora ! The pic on the first page was part of an assignment in my last Photoshop class. We had to compose a self-portrait using only a pic of yourself, a scan of your hand, and a scanned artifact (I scanned a film negative). My "body" in the image was all part of a scan of my hand.

The 109 was first painted in the underlying camo colors, then oversprayed with white. Its mostly sprayed in the opposite direction of the airflow over the plane, so the areas of most wind erosion will receive the least paint. I painted the nose first, so I'd have a reference of white (I didn't want any of the overspray to be that white). Glad you liked it !

Pix,

Nice collection of photos you have. But that image on the fist page - very disturbing!

I especially like the Hartman 109G. What is the overall fuselage color that you used? I have the Revell 1/32 scale kit and wanted to do it as a Hartman 109.

Yep, obiwan, that's what I think about the hobby and this site. I have ZERO interest in any type of competition. All models and modelers are different. As long as you have done your best and not let yourself down, how can it not be a winner for you? What someone else thinks is an opinion, but your own opinion of your honest assessment of your work is what drives you to refine your skills with the next build.

The people on this site are friendly and helpful. I have seen other sites where some people that post only look for flaws in another person's work. These "self-appointed accuracy police" have probably driven many aspiring modelers away from the hobby by calling their efforts "wrong." I believe that they find a certain smug satisfaction in feeling that they are "smarter." Anyone can be a critic, it requires no work and very little effort. I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one who feels this way.

Pix: Thats how I bend them too but I use copper wire its more available here.
One thing I love about this hobby is how we keep on trying different things.
I remember that you said you hoped you never create a perfect kit....
Yes once that has been achived and repeated what else is there in this
hobby?I do this for fun and the sheer pleasure of pushing my boundaries. I also improve my patience and discover new things everyday.

not to mention all the nice people I meet

Some nice looking PE there, obiwan. Yeah, bending wire or micro solder (what I use) for buckles is a real pain. I just keep bending until I get a shape that looks acceptable, so the one I end up using may have been my tenth attempt. Don't give up until its the way you want it. I usually bend it around one of the points of a pair of needle-nose tweezers. I can usually get it bent to the size I need, then comes the difficult part of refining the corners. That's where I go whacky.

By the way, I'd be proud to have scratchbuilt belts that look as convincing as yours in any of my aircraft !

thanks fightnjoe.

pix I get most of my photo-etch from Lionroar
in shanghai.check out this site.
http://www.lionroar.net/en/products/aircraft/LE48007.htm

and since its in china its pretty cheap.(I got mine for US2 dollars.)

This company suppliedthe photo-etch fret for the
hasegawa 1/32 Fw190D-9 available only in the USA.
so their products might be available from Dragon Models USA.

PS:glad u liked the dials pix as for the belts I have to practice more
to get them up to your standard.

hi guys
back from moscow...phew!!
seen some cool pics here and in other posts (pix!)...looks like everyone's been pretty busy while i was away.
going to try swanny's salting method now, so here goes!![:0]
regards,
nick

QUOTE: Originally posted by AJACKETSFAN Quagmyre, it sounds like that would be a great diorama subject. Especially since you've got such a good reference source.

Well, my source is 2nd hand through my father since Uncle Charlie passed some time ago. And every time I hear this story the drums of fuel get heavier, and weather gets worse. Ya know how it goes. Just waiting for that freak snow storm to hit Midway Island in late July.

Quagmyre, it sounds like that would be a great diorama subject. Especially since you've got such a good reference source.

Pix: Gear is up. Ya just can't see it in that pic cuz the gear is under the wings. Shouldn't be too much of a problem placing it in water. I wonder if it would float in real water? Time to fill up the bath tub! JK

EasyCo: I'll post some more pics once I get done with more of the weathering. I'm sorta doing a weathering and repair overhaul to most of the planes in my fleet now. Working on 8 or 9 planes at once during this overhaul.

As for the PBY specifically, I'm gonna add chips here and there along the de-icing boots and props and some oil slicks here and there. I've heard fuel spills on top of the wings were quite common. My great uncle was a radio man on a PBY, missed the attack by a few hours since he was flying into Pearl that morning after having been on home leave. He once said to my father, at times they would often have to siphon fuel from drums they would hoist up onto the wings in order to refuel in some remote areas. Aparently the wings really got scratched up from such traffic for PBYs that were flying around the outlying islands in the Pacific during the war. Now if I can only remember where on the plane the gas cap was. *scratching head*

pix, obiwan, quagmyre

very nice pics all of you.

joe

Quagmyre Please give me you pics! So I can put in my site.. It looks good! And I like the smoke..

Quagmyre - the amount of smoke is up to you, depending on how you want it to look. It looks like the 5A (with gear down?), so you'd have to remove the gear & use the other parts for the retracted gear (its not easy - I tried it & decided not to) to pose it on the water. If you park it on the ground, it would probably not be "wet." Just some ideas, but its up to you.

Beautiful job, obiwan ! The clear gloss on the instrument faces looks good, as do the belts. I know what you mean about scratching the belts - it was a pain making buckles for mine, too. The seatbelt sets from Eduard are great. I have U.S., Luftwaffe (bombers & fighters), and RAF. If you build a lot of Luftwaffe stuff, I'd recommend the rudder pedals, also. The set I have contains four different types. I wish they made one set with only the pedals from Me 262/ FW 190/ Bf 109F/G/K.

here is a close up of the kate's cockpit, its
all closed up now.

pix: the instrument panel was hand painted and dry brushed.
the belts were a real pain to do.
I have the 1 Grace and 1 Myrt to do and am thinking
of getting the IJN seatbelt set from Eduard.

Quagmyre: I like the idea of the sharks

sentry: tell me what u r looking for maybe I can help.

OK... I've been neglecting this build, but my pinky finger has healed, thanks to the doctors sewing it back together, and I've gotten to the final stages of my Avenger and Kingfisher. So, I figured I can detail and weather my PBY-5 Catalina (and some others in the fleet) and the aforementioned planes at the same time.

So... was I a little too liberal with the smoke?
Not sure I want to seal this with Future. I like the flat finish on it as is. Although I have been thinking of using Future here and there to simulate water dripping over the wings and across the fuselage. Long term goal is to display this in diorama of a rescue at sea with some Verlinden life rafts and shot down pilots (maybe even a couple shark fins circling the raft! ...nahhh).

That looks GREAT, obiwan ! Are the instruments on the panel decals? Did you apply pastels to the cockpit? The belts look really good. Keep up the good work !

Wow great start Obiwan! Can't wait to see more of your bird.

Thanks Obi i bought mostly from minatures (midvalley) too and from low also recently. Actaully im waiting for some resin stuff and models from him. Anyway u know anyone selling eduard thing , lately i order from them but hehe a bit exp'sive .

sentry Hi I'm originally from Johor n been
working in KL for the last 10 years.Yes I go to Low's place
now and then when I'm in the Ampang area.

My favourite haunt for models would be Mid Valley Mega Mall.
As for resin and photoetch Bran Ryan has some warriors
figure heads in 1/35

send me a email maybe I can help u with the resin and photoetch.

Hmmm,great idea pix,
The D Day group build could be done in conjuction with
the armor boys.First a list of aircraft would be needed and tanks.

here is my kate's cockpit,
homemade seatbelts are the only addition to it.

Hmmm... I'm thinking either a C-47, or a B-26 from the 386th BG. I'll have to see what's out there kit and decal wise. I wonder what the wife will say about another kit, for another group build... everyone cross your fingers...

Thanks for the welcome Obiwan.

From Pearl Harbor to Omaha Beach, sounds like fun to me. Except I don't do invasion stripes too well.
Scott

Pix, I might join in into that D-Day thingy..

same rules going to apply. any a/c involved is game? as long as historically accurate.

might have time to put something together by june 6.


this is going to take some research.

joe

Pix, I'd probably be in for that... I'd need to kick it into high gear, but I'd be willing to try for it. I could get something and have it built by then.

Pix I'm in for D-Day build JOHN

I was thinking that another good idea for a group build could be "D-Day Aircraft." There are plenty of kits available for this project, and we could have a "done date" of June 6 (60th anniversary).

Anyone interested?

scottrc: no its not too late to join up..I don't think we have a deadline
on that.Always happy to have another modeller on board.
Its difficult waiting for something in the mail.I'm still
waiting for my decals.

glenoakdrummer2005: I don't think the Thunderbolt was at Pearl.If you go thru the
thread there are a few links that list which aircraft were.
Check it out and there might be something available to
you.

Question...this will be my first...group build and I'm sort of lost.....All I can offer is to ask if a 1/72 scale Thunderbolt would do, and if so....what do I do and where do I sign up???? Please give me some info and let me know!!!!!