Von Sisco

Doogs, I'm really geeking out over Magic Carpet, what a beauty! You've sold me on that preshading technique. The Revellogram is coming along great too. What did you use for a clear coat on MC? It has just a little bit of sheen, not too much. Thanks!

Thanks! I've kinda sold myself on the preshade as well! Though I think it worked out better on the Revellogram than on MC. 

I'm using Alclad's Gloss Klear Kote on Magic Carpet...the DSLR shot on the blue background is straight-up paint, but the crappy iPhone shot with the decals going on shows the gloss clear. I'll be toning it back with light sheen and matte clears when all's said and done.

Doogs, I'm really geeking out over Magic Carpet, what a beauty! You've sold me on that preshading technique. The Revellogram is coming along great too. What did you use for a clear coat on MC? It has just a little bit of sheen, not too much. Thanks!

Just so everyone knows, my parents comp fried and Im not sure when they will get it fixed so I wont be posting any pictures till it is fixed. I wont put pictures on my moms laptop either so you'll have to wait.

 Doogs - Very Very Nice looking Jugs.

Randy - I can relate. Although I'm a bit apprehensive shooting my first NMF with Alclad it certainly is easier with the expertise and encouragement from the fellow modelers here.

 I made a bit of progress this weekend despite battling a nasty cold. Got everything painted and set in place for the fuselage to slide together. No doubt, the engineering Tamiya put into this is simply outstanding. I mean what a pleasure to be able to set the cockpit, wing spars , engine bulkhead and supercharger in aligned and snug and just apply a little Tamiya liquid and she slids right together, Nice!

                                                                       Joe

Randy: Alclad is great stuff! I've never had any real problems with it. Getting the surface prepped for it can be a bear though. Every gloss coat I used orange peeled until I tried Model Master acrylic black with a little retarder added. If you can get a smooth shiny surface the Alclad itself seems almost foolproof.

Doogs: Super job there, you're moving right along!

Sprayed the Alclad on the Promodeler P-47N yesterday. Few rough places that I'm going to try to clean up but overall mostly happy with the results. Camera repair shop told me they have a backlog and it will be two to three weeks before they get to me so I won't be posting photos for some time - sorry  

"The Bug" got the Olive Drab treatment tonight. This time I used a bottle of Gunze Mr. Color OD and WOW...I used Gunze last year on my 1/32 Bf 109E-7, but I guess I forgot just how nice it sprays!

Had an idiot moment when I loaded the paint into the airbrush, forgetting I'd left the needle out of it. An hour's thorough cleaning later...

After the way this paint went down, I'm looking forward to ModelFiesta this weekend more than ever, since Hill Country Hobby had a full rack of the stuff last year.

randypandy831

i think i need alclad in my life. im afraid of NMF. 

Yes, you do! Don't be afraid. I was hesitant at first, because it seemed really complicated. It really isn't. One thing I like is that it is premixed and goes on just right. From my experience, it just involves more sanding than other mediums. Wet sanding with micromesh, was my technique. It actually dries pretty quickly as well.

Looking great Doogs!..

Got started on the decals on Friday night. Major markings done. Still have to do all sorts of stencils left to go.

Progress went slow Friday...just too friggin' cold. I can work in the garage down to about 42, 43. Below that, the floor heater just can't keep up. Friday it was 31. Last night wasn't much better, but my sinuses got angry so I took a night off. Pretty much lost any chance of having MC ready for ModelFiesta on Saturday. Sigh...

Since I'm no longer racing the clock I'm tempted to throw olive drab at the Revellogram tonight and paly with decals later...

NervousEnergy

One question, though... for those that have dealt with the trumpy film guages behind a clear IP, how did you mask the guage glass?  The other two trumpeter kits I've done (262 and Mig 3) had the instrument faces punched out of the clear dash, so there wasn't anything to mask.  One online reviewer said he used elmers glue for a liquid mask, and one punched them out manually.  Neither of those sound really appealing, but I suppose I could try the elmers trick...

That sounds like a very dumb way to design an IP. I'd go the Elmers route. I've also heard that the Eduard PE IP for the Trumpybolts is something to behold if you want to go that route...

i think i need alclad in my life. im afraid of NMF. 

Sorry for the late start... just unboxed the kit this weekend.  Ran into a serious problem in early January trying to finish a 1/32 109 E-7 (Eduard Balkans kit) with a bad dihedral that showed up after the wings were fit.  It looked good in test fitting, but a disaster after the weld-on set.  I may have to try the dangerous step of applying heat to get them to bend upward, but I was disgusted enough that I've set it aside to get into the work I signed up for in this GB.  That Eduard kit has been a nightmare from the go, and I was so happy to unbox the big Trumpeter D-30.

No pictures yet... just snipped out all the cockpit pieces and sanded out the sprue joins, plus gluing the few pieces that can go together before component painting. 

One question, though... for those that have dealt with the trumpy film guages behind a clear IP, how did you mask the guage glass?  The other two trumpeter kits I've done (262 and Mig 3) had the instrument faces punched out of the clear dash, so there wasn't anything to mask.  One online reviewer said he used elmers glue for a liquid mask, and one punched them out manually.  Neither of those sound really appealing, but I suppose I could try the elmers trick...

Von Sisco

Tom- Are you having paint flaking problems because of the primer or is it just the nature of alclad? I wonder if you guys are putting clear on it before taping for the other colors, I have only used alclad chrome in the past for some Corvette wheels so my knowledge of it is very little.

I think it's just the nature of it. I had been holding it by the leading and trailing edges. That being said, I had some paint flake off a bit along the leading edge when I pulled off some tamiya tape. I have not been putting any clear over the finish because I don't want that to take away from it.

Basically, I had put a very light coat along the leading edge, so I think that was the root of it. I had no problems in areas, along the fuselage and wings, which had a heavier coat.

Tom- Are you having paint flaking problems because of the primer or is it just the nature of alclad? I wonder if you guys are putting clear on it before taping for the other colors, I have only used alclad chrome in the past for some Corvette wheels so my knowledge of it is very little.

 DoogsATX, The preshading looks pretty good. I like the varied shades rendered, looks very convincing compared with the photo. The grey underside photo's show it better than the darker OD does. Anywho, the masking looks great as well.

 Panzerpilot, The subtle shade differences in the panels turned out great. Very smooth!

  Joe, That QB engine looks nicely detailed, it would be a shame to hide all that under the cowling.

Thanks, Ed.

It's been a very enjoyable build. I am cutting out the position light placement today with a saw. This, to use the clear part, "clear" green and red lights. A few more shaded panels (ammo panels), and i'm gonna get the prop done today. Also, I've learned to wear a cloth glove when holding her. Bare hands tend to pull paint off along the leading edge.

Looking forward to your pics!

Doogs-I love how your shading is turning out! It looks so easy too, thanks for showing us step by step how you are applying this. You have made me want to try one like this as well. If you could put me down for another build (told 'ya I liked Jugs) I would like to do a Revellogram razorback in "Miss Second Front" markings. My Tamiya will change from "Chautauqua" to "Passionate Patsy" (I love the markings and colors on this one) and "Chautauqua" will be a P-47N from Revell. Thanks!

Tom-Simply beautiful work you are turning out my friend! Paint is amazing, can't wait to see some stripes on her.

Joe-Good luck on your build.

Sorry I have not been posting anything recently, I had a massive computer meltdown and my hard drive is toast. My Academy is completed and I have just started preliminary work on the Tamiya. I hope to have the computer problem resolved this weekend so I can put up some pics by Monday. Have a good weekend guys.

Thanks Joe. Yeah, those engine seams can be a bear for sure!

Top notch, Doogs! Looks really sharp.

Here's my latest progress. I still have the stripes, gear, prop, canopy and bombs to go...

Tom and Doogs - Your Jugs are really looking nice. Top notch indeed. I'm liking the effect your getting there Doogs. Also, Thanks for the link to the P-47 book. Quite nice. 

 As I've been following along with your Alclad and primer applications I've concluded that I'd best do a bit of testing and practicing prior to putting the rubber to the road. So, I dug out a "stunt" model from the stash to sacrafice for the good of the order. I guess it's more about which primer to use more than anything as there seems to be a wide array of opinion on this. I have Alclad Black and White primer, your standard Tamiya white and gray as well as Ace Brand enamel gray out of a rattle can. Thus I'll do a bit of experimenting. Also develop a better comfort level with spraying Alclad with my Badger Patriot. 

 I've only managed to make minimal progress lately. Got all the parts ready for the Tamiya Yellow-Green(Yellow Chromate), A set back was encountered when I went to start assembly on the engine. Much to my dismay the kit engine has an ugly seam and flash all the way around it espacially the fron bank of cylinders. Thus, some metticulous and careful scraping and sanding is required. I have the Quickboost engine for this kit at my disposal yet it presents its own set of issues. First, it does not fit into the cowling and and subsequently requires the removal of the resin block from the back of the engine and the removal of the alignment ring from the kit bulhead. Thus when it comes to gluing the resin engine to the bulkhead there is some very careful aligning necessary. So, for the moment I'm working on both. Unfortunately, much of the beautiful QB engine would be hidden inside the cowling and not really into removing a panel from the cowling on this particular build. I've added a few pics to illustrate the issues.

                                                                Joe

Well, big night for "Magic Carpet" last night. 

Let's start with a pre-shade. Mix of Tamiya Flat Black, NATO Black, Dark Green, with some dashes of XF-4 up by the cockpit sills:

Next I loaded up a 2:1 mix of Tamiya Olive Drab and Khaki Drab and went to work. Here are the results:

Hoping to gloss tonight, decal tomorrow. Can I get this sucker done in time for the 18th? Fingers crossed!

panzerpilot

Really fine work, Doogs. I like the "new" shading technique. Setting the bar very high, per usual...

Yeah I really like it, too. Was worried about that fine line of not covering enough vs. covering all the pre-shading as I've done in the past, but having it more or less everywhere gives a lot more leeway. I've decided I'm going to adopt it for the OD on both aircraft, but with slightly different approaches (for some reason I want "The Bug" to be a touch greener than "Magic Carpet")...also think I might toss some XF-4 into the mix on MC, since you can see some chromate peeking through a bit just under the canopy in the photo...

Really fine work, Doogs. I like the "new" shading technique. Setting the bar very high, per usual...

Nice looking stuff going on !

gota get my XP out soon.. like tonight even...

Ps.. Fermis builds in the space/time continuum,,,

Doogs,

Very interesting scheme ad neat looking effect you got there on the undersides. Really looking forward to seeing how she comes out.

panzerpilot

Looking forward to your pics, Doogs. I like that you are doing your Jug with NM wings and colored fuselage!

Yeah I pretty much had to do Magic Carpet ever since seeing it in the "Legend of Y-29" Dogfights episode. Certainly one of the most distinctive Jug liveries I've ever come across...I figured someone else must've seen that episode and had the same idea, and sure enough, Zotz does the markings.

And here's Magic Carpet with Neutral Gray. There's actually very little area to paint w/ the NMF wings, so nothing fancy here...

Now, "The Bug"...

Took the pre-shading another step last night, more streaking, this time with my H&S Infinity. Oh my god such a sweet airbrush! Went back with thinned black and did a random and patchy mist coat.

Then started on the Neutral Gray, going somewhat random in my application. Fine needle, thinned maybe 30% past what I'd use for full coverage. With that much thinner and it being cold outside, the paint behaved beautifully.

Came back around with an overspray of even more highly thinned NG to knock down the contrast...pretty happy with the result. I can see how bringing different colors into play in the shading could really impact the final look, and I'm planning to do that under the Olive Drab, probably with some Dark Green, Olive Green, and JA Green. 

Manstein's revenge

Where's Fermis' build?  I heard he is throwing in with a JUG...

Well he's not on the build roster, but he'd be more than welcome! Bet he could start now and still be the first one done, complete with scratchbuilt wings...

VanceCrozier

If fermis was thinking about it - it's probably already done!

He's probably waiting for that perfect moment to post pics. A secret weapon, if you will !!

Manstein's revenge

Where's Fermis' build?  I heard he is throwing in with a JUG...

Haven't seen anything from him here, as yet. Would be nice to see his work on this!!

If fermis was thinking about it - it's probably already done!

Where's Fermis' build?  I heard he is throwing in with a JUG...

DoogsATX

...Even keeping it simple, the preshading worked out pretty well I think!

Just like in design, simple is often the best option.