Falklands/Malvinas War 30th Anniversary GB

Great work stik. Were those blade antennas not included or were the kit ones not very good.

Bish, the blade antennas were not included in the kit. This particular IIIE boxing was for a different variant and did not have the parts peculiar to the Argentine III EA. Instead it makes a III O (Australia), III EE (Spain), III E (France), or a III S (Switzerland), which all have a different tail configuration and a doppler radar bulge ahead of the nose wheel well. Thank goodness for World Airpower Journal and Wings of Fame.

Lots of good last-month work going on! The Scimitar is next up to move into the "finish" pile on my bench...will put something up as soon as I can.

stikpusher

Bish, the blade antennas were not included in the kit. This particular IIIE boxing was for a different variant and did not have the parts peculiar to the Argentine III EA. Instead it makes a III O (Australia), III EE (Spain), III E (France), or a III S (Switzerland), which all have a different tail configuration and a doppler radar bulge ahead of the nose wheel well. Thank goodness for World Airpower Journal and Wings of Fame.

Right, and shows the benefit of a bit of research.

dupes, looking forward to seeing the progress.

Bish - don't remember exactly what your job is...are you around armor very frequently? Got a bunch of things in the stash that I have questions galore about, wondered if you'd be the man to ask.

I used to be, i was in an Armoured Inf battalion for 12 years and spent 6 driving Warriors. So i will of course help if i can. My current unit work with Helo's, but we do have a couple of CVRT's for training loads.

Warrior driver? Really? AWESOME!

I've got several Accurate Armour kits in both the CVRT series and FV430 series as well as a couple of Stormer chassis' that I'm sure I'll need some help with. Glad to know I've got a source!

I'll do my best. It has been a few years. Out of the 3 AFV types we had, Warrior, 432 and CVRT, the latter is the only one i never trained to drive on. But i was around them a bit do i will rack my brains as best i can.

Bish

stikpusher:

Bish, the blade antennas were not included in the kit. This particular IIIE boxing was for a different variant and did not have the parts peculiar to the Argentine III EA. Instead it makes a III O (Australia), III EE (Spain), III E (France), or a III S (Switzerland), which all have a different tail configuration and a doppler radar bulge ahead of the nose wheel well. Thank goodness for World Airpower Journal and Wings of Fame.

 

Right, and shows the benefit of a bit of research.

dupes, looking forward to seeing the progress.

And my wife thinks I am just passing time with all that reading on the porcelain throne. It is honest to goodness research. But tends to make the simple quick builds extend out as I decide to add just one more detail or correction...

As a side note, I saw "The Iron Lady" two nites ago. Pretty good movie about old Maggie and I think it is the first mainstream moie that I have seen that has the Falklands War included.

And now back to our regularly scheduled build. First up the last fiddly bits added:

the outboard missile rails

vents on the upper and lower fuselage

canopy, windscreen, and instrument pressure probes

overall bottom and top with missiles

In the midday I began airbrushing the first colors. I am using Humbrol Enamels. FS# 36622 Camouflage Gray on the lower surfaces, and as primer for the rudder and bare fiberglass antenna areas on the tail.

Then I mixed a custom Off White for the bare fiberglass areas and painted the rudder in Insignia Yellow

And finally I airbrushed a base coat of Flat Black for the inner surface of the canopy and windscreen frames

Tomorrow after I get the rudder and antenna areas masked off I can begin applying the topside colors

You can't beat a bit of throne research. I haven't seen that movie yet, was going to watch it last weekend on Sky, but the other half is very Anti Maggie, so maybe when i am on my own one evening.

Shes looking good, always nice when the paint start to go on.

And Stik is laying paint down!! Looking good.

Stik layed down lots of paint today...

First up, the drop tanks. In pics I saw some camo'd in green and tan, others in sand and tan, and some in plain NMF. I liked the added colors of sand/tan so I went with that.

The Mirage IIIEAs were painted in a USAF SEAstyle colors and pattern with the lowers in FS 36622 (which I painted yesterday) and the uppers in Dark Olive FS 34064, Medium Green FS 34102, and Tan FS 30219. So, working from lightest to darkest on the aircraft itself, again using Humbrol Enamels, I started with Tan 30219

Next I airbrushed on Medium Green 34102

And finally the Dark Olive- Humbrol does not make 34064 in their line up, but they do have the RAF BSC equivelant BSC-641 in a satin finish. That is why the darkest color has a bit of a sheen here.

And thats enough for today. Lots of humidity issues during the airbrushing session for me so that was enough. Tomorrow I will go back and do touch up for overspray on the Tan and Light Gray.

Well done Stik great attention to details

Looking good stik.

Stik -- one sweet Mirage! Your freehand airbrushing is excellent, I wish I had as much control!

It's with regret, guys, that I must withdraw -- my first withdrawal from a GB ever. There's no way I can get to my Sea Harrier in time, and honestly I can tackle neither the Fujimi nor Airfix kits on their own merits... I'm sorry not to have an entry in this historic build -- an Argentine Skyhawk would have been my alternative and I'm sure I could have done an excellent job with Aztec decals on a Hasegawa or Fujimi kit. But I have way too much on my plate and something has to go...

Best wishes, and I'll be following this GB to the finish!

Mike/TB379

Stik - gorgeous airbrush work, the colours are looking good.
Mike - no problem if you need to pull out, I don't think anyone would mind if you ran past the deadline though.

Thank you Vance. I do like Humbrols paints. Their colors are very nice! As a side note, unless those Aztec Decals are issued in the next few days, I will be running a bit past the deadline myself. Now that I am commited to doing a later batch Mirage, I need the new numbers... and stll need the Grupo insignia even if I went with what I do have on hand.

Well today was touch ups and corrections on yesterdays work

Overspray on the nose and tail areas cleaned up

The lowers all done

And the topside pattern corrected, touched up for overspray, missiles primed, and drop tanks touched up and finished...

I just need to mask off and paint a couple details on the tail and the radome and then she will be ready for a coat of Future and decals.

stikpusher

 unless those Aztec Decals are issued in the next few days, I will be running a bit past the deadline myself.  

They say in the end of this week beginning of the other the decals will be available.

Great camo paint you made.

Thank you Azorean. I really wanted to do this aircraft justice. I have read quite a bit about the Mirage and Dagger sorties, and really am building this as a tribute to those daring aviators.

stikpusher

Thank you Vance. I do like Humbrols paints. Their colors are very nice! As a side note, unless those Aztec Decals are issued in the next few days, I will be running a bit past the deadline myself.   ...

 

Not a problem, you're well underway now. Spotted a nicely bound softcover book at the local book store yesterday, Falklands Anniversary edition of some sort. (Didn't pick it up right away because I've got a giftcard at home!)

Thanks for the probable extension Vance. I know that Osprey either re issued one of their old books on the Flaklands with a new cover in the campaign series, or they just issued a new book on the war. I have not looked into it to see which. I do have their Air Campaign book, as well as a few other books about or that touch on this war.

Not sure of the publisher - wasn't Osprey though, it was US magazine sized. Hoping to stop by tomorrow night & check it out.

Sweet stik, very nice.

Great work Stik!! I like yor pint job.

It´s nice to se a Mirage III EA in A Malvinas scheme. As you can imagine down here models from the war are quite common but I think this is the first EA I see. Most of the model are Daggers, wich played a more active role in the war archiving some hits, but the ERA played an important rule in maybe less glamorous missins but still important ones.

Try this link

http://www.condordecals.com.ar/condordecals/cp_producto_detalles.php?rubroID=11&subrubroID=10&prod=33#

they carries some decals fro the war and there is one for a MIIIEA and some other subjets, Condor quality is not the best, but if you do not get the Aztec (one of the best aftermarket decals I have used) that can be a second option.

Cheers

Jeremias

Thank you for the link el Jere, and the kind words. Those decals look real good for what I want and need. I would love to build a Dagger as well, if I can cobble up the parts I need to convert a Mirage kit that I already have in my stash. Tomorrow I can possibly get some more progress done in the paint. I still have a bit more to go before she is ready for decals.

stikpusher

Thank you for the link el Jere, and the kind words. Those decals look real good for what I want and need. I would love to build a Dagger as well, if I can cobble up the parts I need to convert a Mirage kit that I already have in my stash. Tomorrow I can possibly get some more progress done in the paint. I still have a bit more to go before she is ready for decals.

You are very wellcome.

I don´t know if you model in 1/48 too, but if you do a friend of mine (the guy who owns Aconcagua Resin Models) makes a wonderful Dagger convertion set for Eduard and Hobbyboss MIII.

I don´t know what particular EA plane are you going to represent but have in mind that only the last batch have the capability to use teh Magic missile, I don´t remember the numbers now, but are the last seven that arrived.

Cheers,

Jere

They have also released a 72nd kit.

And a UH 5 with a Harrier

Is it me, or have these companies slightly missed the boat.

The 1:48 is new tooling.

I take it the 72nd kits are older molds.