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

Great looking spinner and cowl Mustang.

Looking good, Joe!

I applied the dull coat this morning and painted the prop. Still have to do some weathering to the prop hubs that show some through the spinner base so this is a "test fit".

Experienced? Me? Nah, not at all... I only know a few things about airbrushing and similar stuff. I don't have a lot building experience. I just practiced a lot with my AB using a plastic sheet as my surface to work with. Trying all the techniques on an actual model is a bit different though...

I just tried to get that nose lined up with the fuselage, but it is always a bit off to the left. Any ideas on how to get that damn thing in line? My Eyeballs Mk.1 are not that great for measuring if something is straight or not...

Nathan T

Greg. I would suggest the opposite. Lots of paint flow, pull the trigger back a lot. Keep psi around 18-25?? Giver her lots of paint, just before it starts to run all over heck. This means keeping the airbrush further away from the suface so you don't get splatters and runs. You want a wide pattern with lots of overlap on each pass. Now remember Aqua gloss is pre-thinned(the paint industry rule is adding more thinner can affect the gloss) so you can't control the end sheen. I don't think its the shiniest gloss out there but it works fine.

And for washes on a black surface, aka a spinner, I go with a grayish/brown wash so its visible agains the black.

Do keep me posted as you spray more petroleum based Kleer coat over acrys, please. I'm bound to try it sooner or later.

Gotcha Nathan, thanks. A lot of paint flow (ie, pull that needle all the way back) is what I was trying to say, and what I've been experiementing with. I tend to say things backwards, but it is comforting to know I am on the right track. Now to get the feel of the "right" amount before flooding it!

Thanks for posting pics of your spinner weathering. Looks fantastic and something for me to shoot for.

Clemens, ta for your nice comments about my spinner so far. :) It really helps my building to see pics of things that go astray, and little boo-boo's as you posted. Always good to know these kits don't always fall together by themselves, even for you experienced folk! The fits do look very good overall.

Ok, now I got it. It's the old Tri-master kit I was thinking about with the resin. The correct story on the Dragon C kit is: Its the old Tri-master molds but instead of the resin pieces Dragon kitted those in plastic. I think you'll be able to handle the issues though, Clemens.

I can't help it but think that the nose is slightly off to the left as well...

Here are some pics for you:

The wing root fit is as perfect as it gets:

The wings are glued together, as is the fuselage (the cockpit can be glued in place from the below, so I could glue the halves together before painting the 'pit.). The fuse is only dryfitted to the wings and as soon as you apply a wee bit of pressure, it is perfectly flush with the wings!

This is where I screwed things up:

I cut the nose off using the thread method someone here suggested (I think it was Doug) and I had no problems on the first fuse half (right), but I somehow managed to cut out a nice chunk of plastic on the 2nd half...

Dryfitting of the nose:

It looks like a nice fit on this pic, but I just held the nose in place with some tape. It is slightly pointing up when it is attached like this. There is a noticeable gap on the top of the fuselage when the nose is level with the fuse... 

You can't see it in this pic, but there is a slight step on the tail section of the fuselage and the rudder halves are not really lining up. Some sanding should do the job though...

Ok,  It's one of the kits I got during a buying frenzy and I haven't looked at it to close yet,   just stacked it up on all the other 190's

Nope, no resin involved. They just added different sprues for the wings and the nose section. You still have to cut off the nose and replace it though...

Ok, I'll have to look at my Dragon Ta152C-0 when I get home tonight,   I don't remember seeing any resin parts in the kit?

John

Ok, yeah. The C-0 Dragon kit has you cut off the kit nose and add the supplied resin one. Dragon was too lazy to mold a whole new fuselage and wings for the C, and just gave you the original H plastic with resin replacements to make a C. That's why if I ever make a Ta152C, it will be the Hobbyboss kit.

Greg: Your spinner looks awesome as well! Great job there, mate! The Clear Kote is really nice. It's not fool-proof either, but It sprays like a dream and if you do what Nathan mentioned already, you should get a nice gloss finish. I had no problems with using an oil-wash over the gloss coat so far, but I only did so on a single tank model so far... We'll see how things turn out when using it on a plane with a lot more oil washes...

Nathan, John, Joe: It's the C-0. It has no fit issues at all regarding the wings (they are a perfect fit), nor the wing roots, but the fuselage halves are a bit tricky to get in line with eachother and that damn nose section is a real pain (the only really bad thing about that kit so far). I had to cut the whole nose off and replace it with another one supplied in the kit. I think I just screwed the cutting work up, so I can't really blame the kit though... The kit is great, but It has some annoying little fit issues that coul've been avoided by just molding the kit with the right nose in the first place...

mustang1989

Texgunner

I have a question that I'm sure some of our FW-190 experten can answer.  Revell released a pre-painted "Pro Finish" kit of an Fw-190 in 1/48.  Does anyone know which variant this model represents?  Thanks for any help!

Gary

Hey Gary. Given the fact that it has bombs included in the kit I would have to guess F-8.

Thanks mustang!  That confirms what I thought based on what little research I've done.  I appreciate that!

Gary

Yep. Like this bad boy:

...Then a darker brown wash right along the white of the spinner for streaking:

 so I usually end up doing two different washes on a spinner with multiple colors.

Now that's something I'm going to have to give a try right there. Never thought of that Nathan. Thanks!

Greg. I would suggest the opposite. Lots of paint flow, pull the trigger back a lot. Keep psi around 18-25?? Giver her lots of paint, just before it starts to run all over heck. This means keeping the airbrush further away from the suface so you don't get splatters and runs. You want a wide pattern with lots of overlap on each pass. Now remember Aqua gloss is pre-thinned(the paint industry rule is adding more thinner can affect the gloss) so you can't control the end sheen. I don't think its the shiniest gloss out there but it works fine.

And for washes on a black surface, aka a spinner, I go with a grayish/brown wash so its visible agains the black.

Greg

Ah, so it's about making the seam stand out. My second "D'oh" in as many days. :) Thanks, Joe! I know that is a always a reason to wash, I just wasn't thinking of that seam in that way for whatever reason. I will give it a go!

Texgunner

I have a question that I'm sure some of our FW-190 experten can answer.  Revell released a pre-painted "Pro Finish" kit of an Fw-190 in 1/48.  Does anyone know which variant this model represents?  Thanks for any help!

Gary

I have a question that I'm sure some of our FW-190 experten can answer.  Revell released a pre-painted "Pro Finish" kit of an Fw-190 in 1/48.  Does anyone know which variant this model represents?  Thanks for any help!

Gary

Ah, so it's about making the seam stand out. My second "D'oh" in as many days. :) Thanks, Joe! I know that is a always a reason to wash, I just wasn't thinking of that seam in that way for whatever reason. I will give it a go!

If you used an oil based clear coat then go with a water based paint/ thinner mix for the wash with a drop of dishwashing detergent mixed in with it to break the surface tension so it won't have a tendency to bead up. The detergent mixed in allows the wash to "flow" like an oil based wash. It'll really bring that seam in the middle of the spinner out!

Nathan, thanks. I will keep experimenting. I had a thought yesterday. I've been trying to spray gloss coat with a lot of air : little paintflow (IOW, the trigger pulled not very far back). Dawned on me that might lead to the 'paint' drying in the air, hence the eggshell satin finish I keep getting. I visited the Alclad site and found a how-to that states Alclad actually recommends a single action brush for their products. No idea if this includes the presumably acrylic-based Aqua Kleer Gloss. Any thoughts on the matter?

I think it's just a matter of experimenting more and finding out what works.

Joe, I didn't realise that re the relative spinner size of 190 variants. So much to learn!

What would you recommend for a wash on the spinner?  I hadn't given a wash a thought.

Greg

Joe (Mustang)

Forgot to mention how good that decaled spinner looks over the almost finished cowl.

Wow, I hadn't yet realized how big the spinner is (relative to the cowl ring). I am really glad I didn't have a fit when I broke several of the spider-like fuel lines or whatever they are and just cut them all off. Now realize they would have been not only hard to see, but impossible to see!

Nice spiral Greg. The Gloss looks nice too. Keep practicing on the Gloss. Don't forget to keep the airbrush farther away from the surface, say 3,4 inches or so, maybe more. Try different psi too to see if it makes a difference.

Thanks Greg! I think I prefer the decal over painting even though the decal can be frustrating. And I said I love decaling! Sheesh!!

Joe (Mustang)

Forgot to mention how good that decaled spinner looks over the almost finished cowl.

Wow, I hadn't yet realized how big the spinner is (relative to the cowl ring). I am really glad I didn't have a fit when I broke several of the spider-like fuel lines or whatever they are and just cut them all off. Now realize they would have been not only hard to see, but impossible to see!

SchattenSpartan

Greg: My gloss clear coat looks like water, but the semi-gloss and the flat one are a bit milky... Joe showed us his spiral, now it's your turn!

I guess between the clear nature of your Alclad Kleer Gloss and finding "mineral spirits" in the label, it's not the aqua (water-based) then. What sort of a finish do you get blowing it on? I'm finding the Aqua to be not quite the no-skill-required glass-like finish even following Nathan's suggestions. But that's just after one day's experimenting. It surely dries fast though, and the finish feels hard and dry to the touch, unlike the Vallejo clear varnish which seems to take forever to cure and has that odd Vallejo almost rubbery feel.So far I'm liking it better than Future or Vallejo Clear Varnish, though.

Any trouble laying the Alclad Kleer over acrylics?

And yes, I did promise, didn't I..... 

Yours ended up great, Joe. Hat's off to your patience and perseverance getting it to lay down.

I'm happy with my first attempt. I noticed a tiny wrinkle I missed, but I have already gloss coated it so probably best leave it alone. Or I might get brave and try to sand it down, dunno. Having no experience, I positioned it like the box art showed. Maybe it's right, maybe not. :)

And so glad you joined the GB, Plasticjunkie!

mustang1989

falconmod:Got yours down. Cool another one out of you!

Clemens:I'm still working on yours. I have the list written down and will post those tonight.

John

Clemens is that the 152 H or C version? My Dragon Ta 152H was a dream to assemble, except for the warped wings.

Welcome aboard plasticjunkie, and welcome back John!