Gift GB

I have only just started useing paint.net and still getting to grips with it. I am not the most comnputer savvy person in the world. But seeing some of the resluts that can be done with it, it deffinatly has a lot of potential. I have another badge made up for a GB next year, and i am pretty pleased with that one. Just need some more practice.

What is your GB for next year Bish?

Well i have a couple in mind, ones pure armour the other should be wider rangeing. But keeping it under wraps for now.

Z Square 8

Pyrman- thank you for the tip on the Westley's de-chrome. I have used that on actual car tires before but never occurred to me in this arena...got me thinking about other household products like Goo-Gone. Ever used that stuff? I have some glue on that little window on the right side of the 29 build that I had to re-install from the outside. I did use the testors "glass" glue, but did not get it done to meet my satisfaction. Any clean up tips on this would be appreciated.

I'm in Etna which is 3 miles from Pataskala. Thank you for the invite to join you on Fridays at Hobbyland Graceland...I may do just that sometime. I'll drop a bug early in the week here when it looks like I may get by so we could look for each other. Be my pleasure to meet you and the group that attend.

ZS8: Your welcome...part of modelling is sharing ideas and helping others. Yes, I've used Goo-Gone...great for removing paint, including lacquers!  To remove Testors clear parts cement, I recommend using a small Q-tip or micro-brush dipping in water.

Look forward to meeting you at Hobbyland!

Having trouble with photobucket--still!

But here is the kit cockpit.  The only modifications here were to add the lever to the left of the seat, the seatback cushion, and harness made from masking tape.  No photoetch buckles--I'm too cheap.  I made the lever from 0.20 plastic rod, drilled a hole in the floor and located it.

Airfix included a nifty little IP decal.

That huge sink hole isn't visible once the 'pit is installed in the fuselage.

My patience with photobucket being exhausted, I'll leave it at that.  Thanks for looking.

pyrman64

 To remove Testors clear parts cement, I recommend using a small Q-tip or micro-brush dipping in water.

Pyrman- I did not know Testor's clear part cement was water soluable...or did I misunderstand you? Thank you for the tip! 

If correct, I'll try to remember to not leave the 29 out in the rain for two reasons...I don't want all the glass pieces to fall off or into---

AND,

I don't have a bucket big enough to accidentally drop the 29 into.

Here is a tidbit for the group on the 29:

It is a dry fit test after engine painting was completed earlier this evening.

(it has occurred to this thick head of mine that I should turn the flash off, and remove all other subject matter when taking detail shots after I took this. The camera selects the largest matter and focus is done to that item-- or in this case my hand holding the engine in place in the back of the cowling). I'll have to test this out tomorrow and see if detail shows better.

** mentally balking at the crankcase color right now as it is a bit light of "aircraft grey". May be ok once the cowling goes from injection mold grey/prime to Alclad II Airframe. Time will tell.

CMK- love the clarity of your detail shots. Great idea on the tape belts and lever. They look good!

Love the group build and tips...I am so glad I decided to jump in and was so warmly welcomed. Thanks gentlemen!

Z, i have only just started learning how to take decent piccies. I am glad my modelling is better than my photography. And this is one of the reasons i love doing GB's. That and i find them highly addictive.

ZS8: Yup, you got it right...water should clean it up.  Testors "clear cement" reminds me of a slightly thinned Elmer's glue.

want to get opinions...i used the below photograph as a general reference for engine painting. I have limited knowledge on aviation engines, so I am beginning to think the red are actually colored port covers of some kind for display to protect from debri intake. (this would mean a few minutes of color correction before assembly into the cowling once they have been painted). Any thoughts?

(The image came from the net and is a R-3350 on display at National Museum WPAFB in Dayton, Ohio. 

Don't know anything about engines; not mechanical in the least, but something about red polka dots on a B-29 engine just doesn't look right to me.

Z, i think you might be right about those cover. These photo's might help.

On these one, there looks like pipe's coming off those ports. This is from the CAF's airworthy B-29 rather than a static enigine.

Any chance those are exhaust ports?

CMK- still chuckling with your response...stated very well! (polka dots...lol). Just the chuckle I needed this morning!

Bish- thanks for the pics...they do tend to confirm covers and Pryman may have the answer. I'll have to push the question on to a couple of resources I have to see if I can get the mystery solved. Either way, I don't think red polka dots are historically accurate. <snicker snicker>

I took another look this morning at the molding and it is not a flat surface, rather a ridged surface area. Even as a 1/48th scale, it is very small and somewhat hidden by the cowling and prop. I'll retouch as aluminum and continue with masking...

Did I mention that masking is the bain of my existence?...already can tell the blister masking will be a big challenge. ( I have one of the 4 done with blue scotch). Will have to peruse the tips section to pick up some pointers...

Appreciate the input gents

**Post Edit**

- looks like regular scotch tape works ok or the Tamiya yellow is the way to go. I'll test regular scotch since it is on hand in the junk drawer...if not, a quick drop in at HobbyLand will be in order.

Z Square 8

CMK- still chuckling with your response...stated very well! (polka dots...lol). Just the chuckle I needed this

"Mayhem is everywhere," they say.  Glad I could neutralize some of it .

 

What kind of bombs are they? GP 500's?

The reason I ask is a recall seeing some photos of GP bombs having one stripe encircling the casing near the rear, close to the tail...and another type having two stripes...now where did I see that??

Anywho,...stripes is one thing you could do and some ordnance crews used to write messages to the recipient like "you'll get a bang out of this one!" or "say hello to satan for us!" or "Special delivery-Hitler's Popcorn"

...a quick trip on Fold 3- see below:

Thanks, Z.  They are British bombs, I suppose.  Should probably look for info on the web, and see about stripes.

Stripes were a nice suggestion, Z.  I googled the web and came up with this.

The one on front-right looks pretty close to what Airfix put in the Battle kit.

Now, painting that stripe will be another issue.  Maybe I can use a painted decal?

Stripes and polka dots; what is modeling coming to?

Thanks.

good find CMK, there are actually two stripes...red at the nose and sea foam green in the middle.

(polka dots...snicker)

Z Square 8

good find CMK, there are actually two stripes...red at the nose and sea foam green in the middle.

(polka dots...snicker)

Yup, and that means twice as much trouble to apply.

But, modeling is a challenge, isn't it?

Well, while I cogitate on that, here are a couple of progress photos.

The first one shows the results of doodling around with the instruments I made from plastic bits.  I found an old decal of an instrument panel (B-17, I think), chopped it apart and applied the instruments randomly.  To my Fairey-Battle-uneducated eye, they look OK.

The next shot shows all the interior pieces and assemblies in place, and ready to be shut up into the fuselage.

One of the challenges here is to trap the propeller between the fuselage halves, and then glue them without immobilizing the prop; then sand the seam without damaging the painted prop; then paint the fuselage without getting overspray on the prop. 

It would have been nice to have a design that allows you to close up the fuselage, then insert the prop assembly from the outside after the fuselage is done.  According to the Airfix Tribute Forum the kit dates back to 1968, and this probably "just wasn't done" in those days.

Keep cool and carry on; and thanks for looking.

More updates to the Gundam. Did some construction and painting of arm and leg parts, and put a couple more pieces on the upper torso.

Some preshading:

On the legs, too:

After some grey paint:

And some more:

I just couldn't seem to take even a decent pic of the legs painted! Here's the upper torso with a couple more parts on. I'm holding it to give a feeling of scale for the model. It will end up being about 5" tall when it's done.

Hopefully I'll have more updates soon, we'll see what life allows me to do!

You got a nice effect with the shading and painting, BL.  Looks really good.

BL- agree with CMK on how nice the effect is with the shading. The 5" tall when finished gives credence to the size of the pieces you are working with...nice job.

CMK- i really like what you did with the instrument panels. The last image certainly shows how clean and crisp the results will be of the battle. Looking great. (so are you going with a polka dot camo final paint scheme? lol)

I'll keep watching and learning....

Thanks for the feedback, Checkmate and Z. I'm hoping the paint gives me a good foundation for weathering. My inspiration is this guy's work:

www.gundampro.com/.../pg_rx78_c.a

You have to click on each jpg, which is annoying, but his weathering is nice! I've been studying his weathering and he seems to put it together with the effect I'm looking for in this model.

Z Square 8

BL- agree with CMK on how nice the effect is with the shading. The 5" tall when finished gives credence to the size of the pieces you are working with...nice job.

CMK- i really like what you did with the instrument panels. The last image certainly shows how clean and crisp the results will be of the battle. Looking great. (so are you going with a polka dot camo final paint scheme? lol)

I'll keep watching and learning....

i ma supposed to be in this GB but am still waiting five weeks later for a PE set from WEM, god knows if ill even START this let alone finish it.

Wow talentless!...that's quite a wait.

Here's WIP on the 29 build...she and I are just hangin' around...

 2nd time for priming sanded areas...first coat of primer showed me all my sanding shortcomings.

and her underside...she still has some flaws in putty/sanding, but getting concerned about over working her. trying to get her ready for the gloss black base. Completed the engine re-touch to rid myself of the polka dot engine port covers.

Bay and wheel well doors, cowlings have the base applied below:

Question: Since the bird has had some sanding work, what would you guys recommend...cover her with future before gloss black base heading toward Alclad II? Not use future at all? Future afterward? Use micro fill or spend time with some really fine grit sanding efforts?

...keep in mind that my neighbor is going to let me borrow his airbrush for the Alclad and I have NO experience with one whatsoever. I'm anxious but aprehensive at the same time since the build is rapidly approaching a full on standstill until I get her cladded. Next biggest, remaining challenge will be to create the nose art on the computer and make the decal.

Up till now, its all been hand painted or sprayed from the can...

Appreciate any comments or advice as I have looked at so many painting tips in the forum, my head is spinning a bit 

BL- does your kit have all the white lettering for all those pieces as decals?...wow, that build is awesome. I can see why you are referencing it.

That's BIG, Z!  I haven't used Alclad, but most metallics show up scratches very well, so be sure to sand and polish as much as needed, to get the plastic smooth and shiny--although maybe the gloss black will take care of some of it.

It will be interesting to see the results.  Good luck!

As I awaited on recommendations/advice last night...I decided to tinker with that nose paint image/work on the computer with Paint.net. Here is my hour of invested time results so far...

The original image...

and the initial rework to make a custom decal...need to rework a lot more, (like the "A" in Albuquerque  and include the "l" after the "A"),. I used a black outline of the lettering as a scissor guide to trim to the white lettering base like the original image shows. It's a start...

I will be trying Don's method of inkjet to white decal sheet ultimately and scaling her down to size. I still have yet to add color to it, but this is the first rendition in B/W...still needs quite a bit of work though. From other B/W images of hair color on the pin up gals, I am of the impression that this gal is blonde and maybe a tan color of shorts/skirt. We did make contact with the son of the crew chief of the Mission to Albuquerque a few weeks back (Sgt. George Lucas), and have added a new page to the website for him.

My hope is that his son may have a few images of this bird that I can add to the site and reference for detail for this build. (keeping my fingers crossed! )

Additionally, none of our sources have yet to reply on the significance of "Hazel" as the name of the pin up gal...maybe Pilot's girlfriend? Or to the reason of the ship name of Mission to Albuquerque...again, fingers are crossed.

CMK- Thanks for the advice on fine tuning the surface area. Yep, she is huge. Finished size is about 3' wingspan and length around 2'. Does get a bit crowded on the work table!

That's a great result you got from the photo, Z.  Very nice work--impressive.  I'll look forward to seeing how you do the rest.  The research you're doing is highly interesting.

A minor report on the Fairey Battle progress, and a minor failure.

These little gems were supposed to go into the wing light bays.  I suppose they're bulbs or lenses, so I painted them a nice silver.

The numbers are the parts numbers, just in case these nuggets were wing-specific.

Then, the clear covers were supposed to go over the top and settle into slots in the wing.

When it came time to fix the clear covers, I found that the bulbs were too big and the covers too thick and nothing suited.  So I filed and sanded the bulbs, until they didn't look like they used to--and would not have enhanced the appearance of the wing.

So I just painted the covers silver on the back side and stuck them into the wing.  Problem solved, but it's sad!

And as usual, Stumpy the Cat doesn't care.

Thanks for looking.

LOL on the Stumpy...or maybe Stumpy is really saying, "I get the whole modeling adlib thing, but don't think for a minute I'm giving up this part of the directions until I see some bloomin' catnip bub!!"

The prop capture looks very good!

CMK, you inspired me to take a good hard look at my sanding work last night...thank you! So I broke out a second 500W halogen work light and was disgusted. So, out came the Xacto for some light scraping and sand paper. Things are now looking much better...not perfect yet, but better.

I'll pass along a challenge on the 29 build...

 to the mid-left of the image, you'll see the 20mm cannon circled and it's version application point. Well, Z-8 did not use this pkg so I needed to cut off that big extension section on the tail piece labeled as "A". Labeled point "B", is this installed piece that was customized for historical accuracy...to get there was the challenge. As you can see by labeled point "C", the piece was a hollow, half round circle so to say. As I studied the depth of the mold from the inside, it looked like there was enough material to make that center area flat as shown by the directions. So off I went to cutting off the section in a concave fashion to keep that roundness. Then broke out the xacto to do the final carving and shaving.

Guess what...not enough material and a hole started to open up.

 This fix was my very first attempt with putty and sanding. Eventually, it turned out ok, but I may tweak this more. (you can see that I have yet to add the two barrels. With as much handling as the 29 will get before decals, I opted to install very last to prevent snapping them off and getting paint on them when I touch that flat area with paint)