Hey gents - just wanted to share a few of the NMFs from the Austin show yesterday. One of the guys there was a pretty epic foiler, and did these two:

I think he also did this Lightning (the big Trumpy 1/32 kit)

Another interesting one was this Spit IX. The NMF was done with Treasure Gold polish, which I think is pretty much Rub n Buff by a different name:

I looked gorgeous from a short distance, but if you got up close it did have a few imperfections. Looks like some lint got on the kit when the stuff was being applied or something. But still - beautiful.

Doogs - Looks like it was a pretty good show.

My P-47 now looks like a P-47.  Still debating if I should temp attach the cowl while painting or go ahead and attach engine/cowl permanently.  I've got time, have some filling to do.  Also replaced the gun tube with the Master P-47 brass gun tubes (they looked good on Doogs' P-47, they sort of just added themselves to the shopping cart when getting the Ultracast seat and wheels).  On to putting!

Gun tubes:

Doogs: Thanks for the photos- some great inspiration there!

B-17: Dang, I'll have to pick up some of those for my next P-47. I had to admire them when Doogs posted his, now I'm getting a seroius case of barrel envy...

Plastic barrel or metal barrels I'm decaling 'FAT CAT' now, should have be done and have photos soonish.

B-17 - The cowl's a tough call. Is there any kind of colored cowl ring? If so, I'd recommend painting that, then attaching and masking off the whole front. If not I'd temp it, at least until you get the anti-glare strip done.

Gamera - Can't wait to see FAT CAT!

All - I'm baaaaaack! With all my paints packed away, it'll be awhile before this one comes out the other side, but construction is officially underway!

Hey Greg, nice Sherman, I've got one of those. I found it funny it builds into one tank that operated in Burma (Asia) but Dragon threw in a set of US Tank Crew NW Europe .

Still guess it doesn't matter too much if she's going to be the Chrome Crusader!

It's Matt, not Greg, but no worries. Not like I put my name in my sig or anything...

Yeah...I find the disconnect between the tank and the crew humorous, but I can repurpose them elsewhere...lord knows I have enough Shermans to arm a battalion!

My plan as of now is to build the Sherman more or less straight...I think I may fill the holes for the pioneer tools for a slightly cleaner look. Undecided on that yet.

As for the paint scheme...the lower hull sides and sponsons are going to be good old olive drab. The transmission cover, glacis, upper hull and turret will all be NMF, with different shades/sheens for the cast portions. The insignia will be OD and applied using stencils and an airbrush.

I think it'll look pretty slick when all is said and done...

DUH!!!

My apologies- I meant to say Doogs- no idea why I just confused you with Gregbear- who isn't even in this GB!

At least no one confused you with me- if they did you should really be insulted.

Anyway: Sounds really cool- looking forward to seeing how she comes out. Are you going to 'pimp' her out anymore- white walls on the wheels, mud flaps with girls on them, fuzzy dice from the antenna.

DoogsATX

B-17 - The cowl's a tough call. Is there any kind of colored cowl ring?

Yeah there's a blue ring on the front of the cowl, and then the cowl flaps on each side are blue. However the air ducts for the oil coolers are NMF, so it might be I'll have to way pros/cons on each method and choose the one with the least amount of cons.

The work of a night...

Having recently come off the Dragon Panzer IV-G, Cyber-Hobby Panzer III-L, and building up Tasca's marvelous M4A3(76)W, I have to say this kit is a letdown. The transmission housing fit is sad. The sprue gates are located in the most retarded of places (hey...lets have you trim down and sand the TOP of the mantlet instead of the bottom!) and there are gaps in several places that will have to be fixed. 

Not saying it's awful by any means, and some of the detail is really quite stunning, but definitely a step down from some of Dragon's other kits.

Wow lotsa good stuff goin on here

Doogs thanks for sharing those pictures man. I would say there is some talent in those foil builds, What I really like is the way the panels are shaded and soooo smooth too. I see you also have a start going on the s$xy, shiny, Sherman show tank You are faast too woulda taken me a week to get that far.

B17Pilot those AM gun tubes do make a huge difference in a Thunderbolt I think its money well spent. Already promised my self a set for my next P-47 build. You have made some good progress too, well done sir. Lookin forward to seeing more.

Gamera to see your P-47

Doogs: Guess that's why they put her in the discount 'Orange Box' line. Still, sharp looking work you've done on her so far.

Here is 'FAT CAT' as she currently stands:

Funny, I tried some white aluminum on the control surfaces but it hardly shows, I didn't want to push it too far so I just left them as they are.

Went to spray some overcoat on her last night to protect the decals from the panel line wash and found there were about three drops left in the bottle. Hopefully will get some more this weekend and get the wash tossed on.

Gamera wow man the shading really worked out well for ya !! Lookin sweet as h$ll man  Nice work buddy

Gamera - LOVE IT! The shading came out great! 

Here here!! Lovely finish and great shading Gamera! And i do love that noseart

Great work m8!

Richard

Hey thanks guys!

And a SUPER big thanks to you Doogs for giving me the idea. I'd never even thought about pre-shading the NM this way.

Progress on the M4A4. Still disappointed in this kit. Especially the front, where the transmission housing and drive sprocket mounts come together. Super-vague fit led to some really sloppy alignment. Grr.

But...I think the low-bustle turret will be the perfect look for a NMF version. So there's that.

Also, the sprocket design is head-bangingly retarded. Needlessly complicated in a way that hinders rigidity.

Still she's looking good Doogs. Well except for the drive sprockets as you noted- are they crooked or is it the photo?

Gamera

Still she's looking good Doogs. Well except for the drive sprockets as you noted- are they crooked or is it the photo?

They are crooked. Nowhere near as awful looking with track on, though.

Speaking of which...I'm calling this one for now. 

Overall, a maddening build. I don't know if I was rushing, if the instructions were bad, if the kit's bad, or a combo of all three, but this was one of those builds where it seemed nothing went right. Cupola hatches installed inside-out? Check. 

The transmission housing/drive sprocket mount design is retarded. So are the drive sprockets. I'm also pretty sure I installed the idler wheel mounts backwards...but I think that's the instructions' fault. Not sure how I'm going to address that yet...they were heavily Tenaxed down so cutting them free won't be simple. But as it stands...you really have to squeeze the track in there to mount the idlers. 

I think I need to build another Dragon Sherman...but I also think it's fair to say that Tasca takes them to a really nice restaurant and totally eats their lunch.

Here are some pics. I'll also note that the VVSS bogies are NOT attached, so they kind of floated free and made the track look all silly. I also used the same trick I did on the Tasca 76...cutting out the wheel mounting rods so I can snap the wheels in and out. HELLO easier painting!

Here we go!! I got the Mustang at the IPMS nationals this year, and discovered a nice little surprise inside: A resin cockpit set! This will be my first time doing a full replacement with resin parts, so hopefully I do it right!

Box shot:

I dont have a dremel sanding thing, so all the removal of the plastic was done with cutters, sanding sticks and a knife (much to the detriment of both my thumbs, ouch!  ) I was able to sand away the kit supplied detail and fit in the resin sidewalls. The new detail is much improved!

now, on to my most favorite step, painting the cockpit!!

Owl - I haven't done any resin cockpits in the Tamiya P-51s, BUT several reviews I've read stress the importance of sanding down the fuselage sides and the resin cockpit sides as thin as possible, otherwise the lower fuselage will swell out and mess with the wing dihedral.

Owl: Those recent Tamiya kits have a cockpit so nicely detailed I'd be tempted to save the resin parts for another kit!

Stil, the resin set is going to look fantastic in there, just wish the cockpit were bigger so you can see more of it.

WOW Doogs you sure can take a problem child and make a masterpiece out of it I can also see that your poor lil airbrush is gonna be seeing some overtime once your move is finished and your mancave is all set up again.

CallSignOwl I have that same kit in the closet cant wait to see what you do with it.

I am planning to start the B-29 soon, finally, around the first of November. Just 2 more builds to complete and my GB commitments will be all caught up. Man its been a rough year.

Gamera

Owl: Those recent Tamiya kits have a cockpit so nicely detailed I'd be tempted to save the resin parts for another kit!

Stil, the resin set is going to look fantastic in there, just wish the cockpit were bigger so you can see more of it.

Actually, Gamera, the Tamiya kit isnt "recent" (its from 1995!) and the kits sidewalls were woefully lacking details. The new Revell P-51B re-pop (and Monogram -D) have WAY more cockpit detail. The resin was a big improvement here! The strings you see in the following pics are for the antennas, btw.

and here it is all painted up....MMMMMmmm I love painting cockpits!

OWL

Owl: Oops! My mistake, I was thinking this kit was a repop/retooled one. Very nice work on the cockpit- love what you've done with the instrument panel.

V-man: Looking forward to that B-29!  

with all the test fitting of the cockpit and sidewalls, I forgot to test fit the gear bays before gluing the fuselage halves together!! If I had remembered, I would not have had to deal with this issue:

I didnt remove the excess resin from the cockpit floor!

I tried sanding it down some but quickly realized that would get me nowhere...so I tried sawing off a bit from the front, but the only angle I could get my saw blade at would saw the cockpit floor in half! So I trimmed and lowered the wheel well instead of prying apart the fuselage and risking the damage to the resin. But Shhhh, dont tell anyone and they might not notice! 

CallSignOWL

 and here it is all painted up....MMMMMmmm I love painting cockpits!

 

 

OWL

RRB: Yes I have a saw in my dorms. Its a little hobby saw that is all of 5 inches long and only about an inch wide. And that is still a bit big for what I need! The cockpits are done with a steady hand, a small brush for details, and patience.

WOW!!!!!! I see CallSignOwl is up to her old habbit of building stunning cockpits again

I dont know how you do it Miss Owl but they just keep gettin better an better

aw, shucks, you fellas are too kind!

anyway, here's where the Mustang sits as of now. Foiling is next!

Im about to start the mighty Tamiya P-51D in 1/32 at the end of the year. Getting the kit for much less than I can over here, getting it directly from Japan. 

Hey question:  Im building a 1/32 F6F5 Hellcat, can I post that thing in here? Cant find a pacific fighters build.. or is there?  ta