Bockscar

Ahhhhhhh Sensei Ken San....yes.....sometimes, the sword must move slowly........

Good to hear you are making money, gosh knows you can't make a dime selling Twinkies anymore.....

How did the IPMS meeting go, see anything cool?

Ken,

Is this a Kadena Voodoo?

Dom

Yes Dom!! That is a "Cotton Picker" 15th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron RF-101C!

Ken

Bockscar

Ahhhhhhh Sensei Ken San....yes.....sometimes, the sword must move slowly........

Good to hear you are making money, gosh knows you can't make a dime selling Twinkies anymore.....

How did the IPMS meeting go, see anything cool?

Dom

  You totally crack me up Dom!   

On the topic of our IPMS meeting, one member did bring in a DVD with still pictures of Iwo Jima during WWII.  It mostly was of P-51s.  They were all black and white.  There were some of B-29s.  Some crashes.  All in all, pretty interesting.

Another member brought in a 1/72 Special Hobby B-18 Bolo.  A very nice kit!  All engraved panel lines, lots of detail parts, and lots of detail!

Ken

Ahhhhhhh Sensei Ken San....yes.....sometimes, the sword must move slowly........

Good to hear you are making money, gosh knows you can't make a dime selling Twinkies anymore.....

How did the IPMS meeting go, see anything cool?

Ken,

Is this a Kadena Voodoo?

Dom

Hi Everyone,

On the topic of using the Dremel, I use a cutting bit, at the slowest speed.  And when I cut, I go at a very slow pace and only cut out large areas.  Going at a slow pace is the key.  That way you can keep control of the tool.

I agree that using a grinding wheel with the Dremel on plastic would be a bad idea.  The speed at the edge of the wheel would be much faster than the speed in close to the center (like the small diameter of the cutting bit).  So even at the slowest speed setting you would still have too much speed at the edge of a grinding wheel which would produce too much heat.

I did not get anything done last night because I had to work on a computer.  But the good news about that is I made some extra cash to spend!    And tonight was our local chapter's monthly IPMS meeting.  Another good time!

Ken

At this rate, I'll be happy to be fully flight ready by Xmas.  As it is I had to sit out Marissa's Bday party, such as it was.  Lucky we don't have to drive to go to Deb's Mom's place for Turkey Day.  We live there now... lol

Son Of Medicine Man

Hi Rich,

Good to hear from you again.  I am glad that you are getting better.  I also hope you make it back in time for Thanksgiving!

Ken

Scorpiomikey

After a small amount of cursing and a little bit of blood. Heres the floor done.

Dad came and helped me. and as he was sliding a piece in it caught and ripped his knuckle open.

But its down. Gonna wait for it to settle a bit, got 7 more sheets to play with if i ever want to. Hopefully later tonight ill have at least part of my setup done.

Oh and thats not sunshine, its pretty gloomy here today, but the front room/office gets so much sunlight it doesnt matter.

That floor looks great Scorpio Mike!  I really like that color.

Ken

Hi Rich,

Good to hear from you again.  I am glad that you are getting better.  I also hope you make it back in time for Thanksgiving!

Ken

Okay gents,

I must say, this is Spooky, fantastic box art:

Dang she's beautiful.......

Dom

Scorpiomikey

After a small amount of cursing and a little bit of blood. Heres the floor done.

Dad came and helped me. and as he was sliding a piece in it caught and ripped his knuckle open.

But its down. Gonna wait for it to settle a bit, got 7 more sheets to play with if i ever want to. Hopefully later tonight ill have at least part of my setup done.

Oh and thats not sunshine, its pretty gloomy here today, but the front room/office gets so much sunlight it doesnt matter.

Good thing you put down that plastic under sheet!

I hope your dad is okay, and won't curse you for the damage. I gotta tell you man, sure wish my dad was around to help out now and again......looking forward to the rest of the room.

Dom

Striker8241

Bockscar

Striker8241

Thanks, Dom! Some more great tips there, my friend. I'll be heading to the hardware store today.

As for getting excited about painting, I may have to pass the 6000 grit point before that happens... .

Russ

Russ:

That is canopy/glass polishing grit., i have some on little mylar squares, I think to about 4000 grit. That is going to be one glass smooth finish Russ!

Dom

Ah well, I meant that as a joke, Dom. I don't expect to get that detailed!

Russ

Gosh, i was really looking forward to all those shiny wrinkles!

Dom

After a small amount of cursing and a little bit of blood. Heres the floor done.

Dad came and helped me. and as he was sliding a piece in it caught and ripped his knuckle open.

But its down. Gonna wait for it to settle a bit, got 7 more sheets to play with if i ever want to. Hopefully later tonight ill have at least part of my setup done.

Oh and thats not sunshine, its pretty gloomy here today, but the front room/office gets so much sunlight it doesnt matter.

Bockscar

Striker8241

Thanks, Dom! Some more great tips there, my friend. I'll be heading to the hardware store today.

As for getting excited about painting, I may have to pass the 6000 grit point before that happens... .

Russ

Russ:

That is canopy/glass polishing grit., i have some on little mylar squares, I think to about 4000 grit. That is going to be one glass smooth finish Russ!

Dom

Ah well, I meant that as a joke, Dom. I don't expect to get that detailed!

Russ

Scorpiomikey

Good to hear you're on the mend. Im in the same boat as Gam. Too much on, and i dont even have my model space set up yet. Hopefully by tommorow night that will change.

Heres where im at at the moment.

Once i get the flooring down, ill put 2 desks in there and have twice as much room as i had at the old place.  My only problem is if i want to spray i need to do it over the grass out in the yard. The landlord would bust a gasket if i got paint on the lovely white walls lol.

i guess it could be New Jersey, so I should stop whining.

Dom

Sparrowhyperion

Hi Folks.  I finally felt alive enough to trot down to the basement to use my system today.  I am still hacking up a lung, but it's not as bad today.  I just got through reviewing the last few days posts and I see a lot of great work from everyone.  I can't do a lot yet.  Jeez, just the small of glue makes me want to....  Well, you get the idea.  Just a reminder.  If anyone still wants to get in the Secret Santa build, you should check out the thread soon.  I only have a couple of people so far and I would really like to get some more to make it worthwhile.  

Dom, I agree with you about the sanding with Dremel tools.  I have one of the older models, abouty 12 years old, with the variable speeds.  But even at it's lowest, and with the finest grit I have for it, it melts styrene pretty quickly.  I'm on a budget so I have the Wifey pick me up those cheap generic emery boards.  They work great if you use the fine grit side.  I use them to kno0ck down flash and sprue burs.  Then I keep some testors sanding sheets around for use on large parts.  I also have some rat tail files, and sanding rods.  Different stuff for different jobs.  

Well, I am off to the upper floor before my headache gets worse.  I'll check in periodically as much as I can.

Rich

Nice to hear from you, I hope you won't be wiped out for the holiday season.

I mentioned I have a beginner-appropriate kit to donate to the Secret-Santa Group Build, but I'll be a lot more Santa than Builder......lol....

Yeah, I think Mikey was the one that has mentioned experience melting styrene with a Dremel. I had used high power rotary tools and bits in the past, but only for bronze or aluminum, for buffing they are okay on acrylic or polyester resin/fibreglass applications.

I suppose if you have a real steady hand, Dremel could save time cutting styrene, but I'm handy with X-Acto in my old age. Besides, if you really mess up a very expensive and extremely rare OOP kit with a Dremel, you can't slit your wrists like with a good ole' XActo either.....

Dom

ECS is the Environmental Control System, in layman's parlance it is the air-conditioning unit. There's a compressor mounted about the middle, in the resin it is standing straight up, in the photo above it is on its side.

Striker8241

Bockscar

Russ, Get some pieces of 1" dense blue insulating styrofoam, and you can shape them to help sand curved surfaces. I also use soft urethane foam for large contoured areas, the foam keeps the pressure very even on the surface - very usefull for cutting through rough putty patches back down to the surface. i have made dull points, inside curves for sanding curved surfaces, or strips for sanding a fixed piece, kind of like buffing a shoe with a shoe-shine cloth.

Also indispensible are those rubber sanding sticks that look like big black nail files, come in all different grits.

Of course i wrap the sandpaper around pencils, straws, or just make a tube out of it.

If you fold fine a small square of emery paper twice, the sharp corner (where the middle of the square was) is great for 'digging' into tight corners.

I guess when you get down to the 1000 grit or so you get pretty excited about painting! --errr, well, I used to in a former life anyways.....lol

Dom

Thanks, Dom! Some more great tips there, my friend. I'll be heading to the hardware store today.

As for getting excited about painting, I may have to pass the 6000 grit point before that happens... .

Russ

That is canopy/glass polishing grit., i have some on little mylar squares, I think to about 4000 grit. That is going to be one glass smooth finish Russ!

Dom

Good to hear you're on the mend. Im in the same boat as Gam. Too much on, and i dont even have my model space set up yet. Hopefully by tommorow night that will change.

Heres where im at at the moment.

Once i get the flooring down, ill put 2 desks in there and have twice as much room as i had at the old place.  My only problem is if i want to spray i need to do it over the grass out in the yard. The landlord would bust a gasket if i got paint on the lovely white walls lol.

Rich: Good to hear you're feeling a little better, hopefully recovery isn't too far away.

Btw: Would join the Secret Santa but I'm wrapped up in stuff here. Last thing I need to do is jump into anything else. Good luck and I hope you guys have fun with it!

Hi Folks.  I finally felt alive enough to trot down to the basement to use my system today.  I am still hacking up a lung, but it's not as bad today.  I just got through reviewing the last few days posts and I see a lot of great work from everyone.  I can't do a lot yet.  Jeez, just the small of glue makes me want to....  Well, you get the idea.  Just a reminder.  If anyone still wants to get in the Secret Santa build, you should check out the thread soon.  I only have a couple of people so far and I would really like to get some more to make it worthwhile.  

Dom, I agree with you about the sanding with Dremel tools.  I have one of the older models, abouty 12 years old, with the variable speeds.  But even at it's lowest, and with the finest grit I have for it, it melts styrene pretty quickly.  I'm on a budget so I have the Wifey pick me up those cheap generic emery boards.  They work great if you use the fine grit side.  I use them to kno0ck down flash and sprue burs.  Then I keep some testors sanding sheets around for use on large parts.  I also have some rat tail files, and sanding rods.  Different stuff for different jobs.  

Well, I am off to the upper floor before my headache gets worse.  I'll check in periodically as much as I can.

Rich

Bockscar

Russ, Get some pieces of 1" dense blue insulating styrofoam, and you can shape them to help sand curved surfaces. I also use soft urethane foam for large contoured areas, the foam keeps the pressure very even on the surface - very usefull for cutting through rough putty patches back down to the surface. i have made dull points, inside curves for sanding curved surfaces, or strips for sanding a fixed piece, kind of like buffing a shoe with a shoe-shine cloth.

Also indispensible are those rubber sanding sticks that look like big black nail files, come in all different grits.

Of course i wrap the sandpaper around pencils, straws, or just make a tube out of it.

If you fold fine a small square of emery paper twice, the sharp corner (where the middle of the square was) is great for 'digging' into tight corners.

I guess when you get down to the 1000 grit or so you get pretty excited about painting! --errr, well, I used to in a former life anyways.....lol

Dom

Thanks, Dom! Some more great tips there, my friend. I'll be heading to the hardware store today.

As for getting excited about painting, I may have to pass the 6000 grit point before that happens... .

Russ

Bockscar

Okay:

Here's Ken's resin bay:

I think that third photo is the ECS bay, and you can see all the panel screws it needs to keep it snug:

I'm not sure it's even the same bay, but I sure want to get a copy of that book by now for sure!

Dom

Yes, if you are doing an USAF F-4 Phantom, you need this book.  It has a picture, (in color) of every angle and part of every version of the F-4 that the Air Force flew.  And it also gives a lot of detailed information about each area.

Ken

Striker8241

Hi, All,

Haven't made a lot of progress lately - been pretty busy. I did manage to finish scribing the horizontal sabilizers (see below). I cut the elevators loose and positioned them in a slightly down aspect - something you would often see. I also cut out the trim tabs and gave them a slight up angle just for intrest sake. I also thinned out the vortex generators.

Cheers,

Russ

Nice work once again Russ!!  Top notch!!  Love the detail!     

Ken

Striker8241

Hi, All,

Haven't made a lot of progress lately - been pretty busy. I did manage to finish scribing the horizontal sabilizers (see below). I cut the elevators loose and positioned them in a slightly down aspect - something you would often see. I also cut out the trim tabs and gave them a slight up angle just for intrest sake. I also thinned out the vortex generators.

Cheers,

Russ

dom

Russ, Get some pieces of 1" dense blue insulating styrofoam, and you can shape them to help sand curved surfaces. I also use soft urethane foam for large contoured areas, the foam keeps the pressure very even on the surface - very usefull for cutting through rough putty patches back down to the surface. i have made dull points, inside curves for sanding curved surfaces, or strips for sanding a fixed piece, kind of like buffing a shoe with a shoe-shine cloth.

Also indispensible are those rubber sanding sticks that look like big black nail files, come in all different grits.

Of course i wrap the sandpaper around pencils, straws, or just make a tube out of it.

If you fold fine a small square of emery paper twice, the sharp corner (where the middle of the square was) is great for 'digging' into tight corners.

I guess when you get down to the 1000 grit or so you get pretty excited about painting! --errr, well, I used to in a former life anyways.....lol

Dom

Hi, All,

Haven't made a lot of progress lately - been pretty busy. I did manage to finish scribing the horizontal sabilizers (see below). I cut the elevators loose and positioned them in a slightly down aspect - something you would often see. I also cut out the trim tabs and gave them a slight up angle just for intrest sake. I also thinned out the vortex generators.

Cheers,

Russ

Bockscar

Russ:

Not sure about the Dremel bits for wet sanding. i use waterproof sandpaper and emery paper, and I have pieces of blue foam to act as sanding blocks. The water keeps the grit surface from filling with dust and most importantly, keeps the dust out of the air, I just rinse my portable sanding surface off and the sandpaper too and it's ready for another day.

Dom

Good information, Dom. I'm going to look into it. Thanks!

Russ

Okay:

Here's Ken's resin bay:

I think that third photo is the ECS bay, and you can see all the panel screws it needs to keep it snug:

I'm not sure it's even the same bay, but I sure want to get a copy of that book by now for sure!

Dom

Scorpiomikey

Wet sandings fantastic, but ive found using a sanding wheel on a dremel causes too much heat and melts the plastic, thats my experience with them anyway,

Russ:

Not sure about the Dremel bits for wet sanding. i use waterproof sandpaper and emery paper, and I have pieces of blue foam to act as sanding blocks. The water keeps the grit surface from filling with dust and most importantly, keeps the dust out of the air, I just rinse my portable sanding surface off and the sandpaper too and it's ready for another day.

Dom

Son Of Medicine Man

Striker8241

Son Of Medicine Man

Bockscar

Ken,

Will the fuselage panel fit over top of that rail flush with the fuselage when you are done, or is it going to be open permanently?

Dom

Hi Dom,

There are three panels that came with the kit that fit over the top.  But as far as I am concerned, why bother with them after all this work?  Unless I wanted to put together a diorama and have them laying on the ground next to the plane.

Ken

Ken,

For some reason, I couldn't find a picture, but I'm pretty sure the avionics bay cover was hinged at the top and had a rod that supported it when open.

Russ

Hi Russ,

Sorry friend, but that is incorrect.  I do have pictures, courtesy of "The Modern Phantom Guide:  The F-4 Phantom Exposed" and the panels are held on entirely by screws and come completey off.  Apparently there was not a need to get into this area on a regular basis to warrant a hinged panel or panels.

Ken

No problem, bud. My memory isn't too good any more - too long ago. Thanks for the correction.

Russ