Fw 190 Butcher Bird 2013 (extended to June 2014) Group Build

FlyItLikeYouStoleIt

Joe and Joe, stellar work, men.  

mustangJoe: That's gonna be one mean looking Butcher!

JOE RIX: I can't wait to see how that camo looks when you add your finishing touches. It'll be striking.

I absolutely must get building again. I took a lil break from it after my 190 and I'm starting to get into trouble. i pulled a TIE Fighter off the shelf and gave it some needed weathering. Took the edge off the craving but nothing like the real fix one gets from building.

Greg: It is really easy to disassemble and clean the Evolution, but I got some hints at my LHS how to make things even easier!

Joe (Rix): Your 190 is looking really good! I found some decals for that camo-scheme in 1/48, so I think I have to get me an F-8 as well (Eduard 1/48 Weekend)

Joe and Joe, stellar work, men.  

mustangJoe: That's gonna be one mean looking Butcher!

JOE RIX: I can't wait to see how that camo looks when you add your finishing touches. It'll be striking.

I absolutely must get building again. I took a lil break from it after my 190 and I'm starting to get into trouble. i pulled a TIE Fighter off the shelf and gave it some needed weathering. Took the edge off the craving but nothing like the real fix one gets from building.

You got it Joe. I have repaired the chips that pulled off with the tape and have applied the gloss coat. thusly the decaling can commence.

This here is what I used for the gloss coat. It's acrylic and seems to work quite well given that I tested it on my stunt model and slathered it with Mig wash and then with turpenoid with no ill effects. Unfortunately, I had to go to the True Value Hardware store aka "The Evil Empire" to get this. It's just that I work at Ace Hardware. 

In the meantime I had a nice thing arrive in the mail. Got this from the Squadron sale:

Rigidrider: Thanks Doug. It's coming together one little bit at a time. I don't have just a whole lot left. Canopy and aerial, cowl guns and access cover, prop and spinner and then the little stuff. Antennas and the like. Another month or so and we'll be home. I plan on finishing a Dauntless dive bomber with my son and then its off to the D-9 that I'll be opening up more than this one.

Joe Rix:Thank you as well. You probably know more about my struggle with this thing than anyone. Can't wait to see some more pictures out of you pal.

A simply marvelous job Joe. It really is a reflection of the monumental effort you have put into it.  And as far as the little issue with the lower nose, well I don't notice a thing.

Doug, thanks for chiming in. I am very glad I asked now. Ultra-thinning, relatively high pressure and very low paint flow isn't something i would have considered. Now I need to work on the practice and patience part of it.

Clemens, thanks for the tute offer my friend.  I looked at the exploded view, looks like a nice, straight-forward airbrush. That said, should I get one I would be most interested to learn how you clean yours, indeed.

Oh, Joe... That is going to be one Bad Azz 190! Just beautiful!!!

Hey Greg... Like Joe had said to get a fine mottle I set the pressure I usually use (12-20psi) to about 30-35 psi, and at times set the travel stop(needle) to where you can just barely see paint when trigger is depressed,on the towel I keep in hand, Now most of the time(depending on the paint being used) I will either thin my acrylics with straight rubbing alcohol, or lacquer thinner. Usually I leave the travel stop so I can determine the ammount of spray, and when mottleing work slowly (I mean with purpouse) and excersise pantience. Some patterns require you to be up close (appx 1/4 in) and you must keep moving! Too slow and you will have a splotchy mess. Some mottle needs to be faint and some bolder.

My first AB was a Badger 350 I think, little black handle and adjustable cone on needle...3 Diff sizes, and I still have it, and use it on occasion, but now have fallen in love with the gravity fed double actions, so easy to maintain and use! I bought one of the Master Pros from TCP Global, and wouldnt trade it for anything. Any way... Practice Practice Practice!!! Take care!

Doug.

If you decide on buying one, let me know by sending me a PM. I'll make a tutorial on how to clean/disassemble it for you!

Clemens and Joe, thanks very much for the helpful feedback. The more I think I'm getting airbrushing figuring out, the more I think I'm not.

Clemens, ironically I have had the Harder and Steenbeck Evolution Silverline bookmarked as "I want one" for a couple of months. I think for me, the adjustable stop would be good for me, and I like the concept of the interchangable needles/tips. Most interesting to learn that you own one and like it. Might be about time to bite the bullet.

Greg

Curious, I've read that spraying up close + high pressure = disaster. Yet can visualize how very low paint flow and keeping the brush moving would counter that.

Here's another link to a video regarding the Evolution Silverline.

I have the 2 in 1 set, which means I have 2 different needle sets (needle, nozzle and nozzle-cap). The great thing about all Evolution ABs is that they are really versatile: You can swap the needles (and their nozzles) within  seconds without using anything but your fingers.

Greg

Curious, I've read that spraying up close + high pressure = disaster. Yet can visualize how very low paint flow and keeping the brush moving would counter that.

It depends on the consistency of the paint. Very thin paint causes a mess, but if you spray thick paint, it should work fine.

Greg

Which Vallejo? Model Air I presume? What do you thin it with?

I suppose Joe uses the Air series of paints. They are great for both brush-painting and spraying. You can either thin them with Valeejo's thinner or with water (thinner works a tad better)

Greg

Clemens, you mentioned your airbrush has a preset handle. Usage comments?

I use a double-action AB by Harder&Steenbeck. It has no preset handle, but something which is even better. There is a screw in the rear end of it. When you tighten it, the way the needle can move back is limited to the point where it hits the screw. That means that I can use it like any other AB, but limit the amount of paint that can flow through the AB. Here's a link to the AB I use, called "Evolution Silverline". Keep in mind cthat only the silverline has that screw.

Joe, another thanks for sharing your mottling technique. That looks sweet. Sorry about the warped part.

Curious, I've read that spraying up close + high pressure = disaster. Yet can visualize how very low paint flow and keeping the brush moving would counter that.

Which Vallejo? Model Air I presume? What do you thin it with? (I have some Model Air on the way, never tried it, clueless re thinning it),

And finally, does your airbrush have a preset handle? Reason I ask, my relatively new Iwata does not. My retired plastic Model Master airbrush did, and I miss it. On the flip side, have read comments stating that with acrylics, the preset handles don't work because of the drying acrylic constantly fouling the tip. I've been on the fence about getting a second airbrush for a couple months now, so appreciate any comments on subject. (from anyone, of course). Clemens, you mentioned your airbrush has a preset handle. Usage comments?

Actually its got a piece of the plane that I'm building. It was shot down in the Battle over the Ore mountains and became a lawn dart. The pilot bailed out and survived but the plane buried itself. It was dug up ( or at least parts of it were) and the pieces were divied up and some of them wound up in the Royal Class kits. That'll go on display right there with the plane.

And some special decal options and parts from an actual 190...

I think it has an Iron Cross and 2 kits + 2 big-ed sets in the box.

mustang1989

falconmod

That looks great! puts mine to shame.  I agree with Clemens how did you do your mottling? love the engine open panels, that's something I can't do.

John

Thanks John. Don't kid yourself about the open panels. You can do that stuff. Like I was saying about the engine. Just build each piece as its own model. This includes each cowling and so on. Just takes a little patience. It all comes together in the end.

John

Thanks for sharing your technique, Joe!

We measure air pressure in "Bar" here in Austria, but luckily my compressor has it's pressure indicator in Bar and psi! I use a 0.4mm needle and I think that is "medium size". Adjusting the needle should be easy for me, as my AB has a screw at the rear which can be used to limit how far the needle can be pulled back.

falconmod

That looks great! puts mine to shame.  I agree with Clemens how did you do your mottling? love the engine open panels, that's something I can't do.

John

I crank up my air pressure to about 30 psi and adjust the needle (I have a medium needle) to where paint just barely comes out. Thin the paint to milk consistency and start spraying and keep the brush MOVING. Don't stand still or you'll end up with a bunch of dots. Move close to get it started and back off to fade the mottle. I use Vallejo acrylics so they go on really easy.

That looks great! puts mine to shame.  I agree with Clemens how did you do your mottling? love the engine open panels, that's something I can't do.

John

Looking nice Joe!

May I ask you guys on how to do that mottle-pattern? (This is my 1st attempt at a German aircraft...)

Good morning folks! Managed to get up this morning and shoot some mottle pattern on those unfinished "blister panels" as well as the nose of the bird and  install the nose piece. The one thing I DIDN'T account for was the warped piece at the L/H lower part of the nose. Simply put , I'm going to have to live with that one because I'll do more damage to the plane than repairable if I try to fix that now. This build is going to go down in my model building history as one of the more difficult ones. Moving forward now. Here is the latest with the nose piece installed.

SchattenSpartan

No worries, mate. You can ask me any question you want about German names and stuff. I am also gladly offering my service regarding translations of German stuff.

John

Hey, even the Spitfire has quite a bit of heft compared to the 190. Those damn 190s were just an engine with guns, man. The Spits had a much greater wing surface area. Probably explains how a Spit would kick the 190's butt in a turning fight.

Here's a side by side pic of my 1/32 scale Fw190A-5 and Spitfire Mk IIb.

Eric: I have a 1/48th 109 in my stash (E-3 by Eduard) and it is indeed tiny... I don't think I would fit into one of those little machines... (I'm 1.83m)

Doug: That would make a nice picture! I'm so going to do that!

Greg: Yup, that would be a nice project. Building every single-seat fighter of WW2 and lining them up sorted by size would be really interesting. I'm pretty sure that the Spit and the 109 would be on the "tiny" end of the row and the Thunderbolt and 335 on the "frickin huge" side... I'm still impressed by the size of the Jug (its engine is as tall as an average human...) and the 335 is even slightly larger...

Clemens,,, Park the 190, or the 109 next to our next build the Do335! All single seat fighters but wow what a diff! Many years ago I saw a JU88 in a muesum... What a monster that is!

Thanks for the further info Clemens and Eric.

Interesting to know that the 190 were one of the smaller fighters, and now Eric I'll have to build a 109 just to see! I can see the fun of having a 1/48th fleet from the standpoint of seeing the relative sizes.