1944 Group Build

Got a bit of time to do some work tonight. Got those pesky ropes scraped off and added some details.  Would anyone know what, if any, kind of instrument panels there are on an LCVP? I've tried looking, but I'm not having any luck.

Looking good there sb. Maybe this pic may be of some help:

1.bp.blogspot.com/.../Higgens1.jpg

Thanks Joe, that's the first picture I've seen from that angle.  Hopefully I can find something in my spares bin that looks similar

Silentbob, Joe nailed it, thats the only control panel and note the throttle on the right side. I liked the idea of removing the molded rope, I think that may be something you can do with some rigging line that would look great. It's looking good.

Hey Silentbob, Glad I could help out. I simply Googled "LCVP images" and that particular photo was amongst the plethora of pics that came up. I'm sure you may find many other helpful pics there.

I finally got the front page up to date. I wanted to do it yesterday, but PB was screwing up again (no big news, eh?) and the pics wouldn't show up...

Schmidty: I changed your entry to the 163. I love those little rockets with wings, so I'm really interested in watching your build

Thanks SS.  I'm excited to do it!  I really like those "out of the ordinary" German aircraft.  I have an Uhu in the stash that I keep looking longingly at too...someday. 

Quick update with pictures.

The pictures show the model after oil washes, chipping and flat coat.  The flat coat over virtually eliminated any but the most subtle effects of the oil wash over the olive surfaces, but the results can be seen clearly over the grey and the white letters and stripes. 

I tried my hand at chipping using a fine brush and Citadel silver paint (er... Runefang Steel actually.)  I plan on going over the heavier areas at the wing root with some dirt colored pigments to hopefully give it a more realistic appearance.  The exhaust stains and soot from the ejection ports are airbrushed (clumsily).

I am far enough along that I have started to remove masks and add on the delicate undercarriage bits.  For example, the tail wheel doors and their actuators are photo etch, as are the hinges for the main doors.  I have also added the mounting hardware for the bombs and belly tank.

Thanks to everyone for the kind words along the way.  I have really enjoyed building this and participating in the group build.  I don't think she'd win any awards, but I am reasonably happy with how it has progressed so far.  I have tried a number of new things, and the results generally look like I had intended (with some notable exceptions along the way.)  Still lots of room for improvement.

That's all for now.   I hope to have more soon (and maybe a completed build before the week ends!)

Great work, Blue! I'm totally digging the weathering! I'm about as far as you are with my Jug (still fine-tuning all the weathering). I think the exhaust stains look really nice, but you might want to add some more staining behind the supercharger exhaust. Most of the exhaust fumes were used to power the supercharger, so i think that area would be a bit dirtier. Unlike most other aircraft, Thunderbolts don't seem to show a lot of staining around the exhausts (supercharger and normal ones) BTW. Don't get me wrong, I love how the staining on your model looks, but I think the back end is a bit too clean compared to the nose

Beautiful work Blue!

Doug

Big Blue

I don't think she'd win any awards, but...

Holy Moly that's looking good.  You would get my vote.

Blue, That looks fantastic! Do not downplay your work there friend. That there would be an attention getter at any contest. I really like your chipping. It turned out great.

That's looking sweet there Blue.

Thanks guys!  You are WAY too kind, but much appreciated.  

Clemens, good point about the turbo exhaust, and I plan on giving it another shot or two.  I notice that the exhaust stains up front look much much darker in that picture than they do in person, so I don't think the difference is as dramatic as it looks.  Something about the viewing angle and shadows has magnified it.

I've been using pigments to give the wing surfaces some foot traffic dirt, and working on putting it all together.  I'll put pics up when there is real progress to show.

Thanks again for all the encouragement.  Like I've said before, I've been lucky enough to see all your work, so the compliments mean something to me.  

Update: Not much painting going on yet. Lots of sanding and sealing was required (really, more than I thought for Airfix`s new tooling). Anyway, no probs. Some initial pre-shading was (on top, didn`t take a pic though)  done to test the polishing I did on the softer Airfix plastic. I love the wheelbay-wing support structure of the Airfix version. The Revell Lanc had a large plastic contraption that worked well, but, wasn`,t as effective as the Airfix.

Some light detailing on the wheel bays prior to sealing them in with the massive wing halves:

I think I used all my clamps for the wing halves!

Some intense sanding and polishing of the Hercules nacelles, just one example below of a `ready`nacelle and one waiting for polishing (have to say, Airfix plastic polishes up well ):

Here she is with all four nacelles mounted, sanded, polished and all intake plastic thinned out. You can see Tamiya filler on the left wing: this is the thing I find about Airfix`s soft plastic, thin cement softens it up and with a slight shrinkage, caused me to have to fill in the gap. Looks rough, but, she`s smooth and shiny in better light. Will be going to Montreal Saturday to pick up supplies and try to find some interior green (Model Master?) and will get back at her.

Rob it's looking good, thats a big airframe..looks fun may have to add this to the shelf.

Blue>  The detail work on your P-47 is wonderful!  She's going to be a beauty.

Silentbob>  You know, the question about controls for the LCVP got me to searching, and I ran across this:

http://www.history.navy.mil/library/online/surfskill.htm#contents

This is a good reference if you want to build a landing craft.

Rob>  Big Lanc!  Looks like a man's work is being done. 

Rob, It appears to me that all that sanding and polishing is paying off in spades. Really nice work so far. I often ask myself if I would have the patience to tackle a 4 engine job. The repetition might cause me to go a bit goofier than I already am.

Rob, the Lanc is looking great.

JOE RIX

Rob, It appears to me that all that sanding and polishing is paying off in spades. Really nice work so far. I often ask myself if I would have the patience to tackle a 4 engine job. The repetition might cause me to go a bit goofier than I already am.

Bish: can you add me to this GB with a Tamiya M4 (Mid-production) Sherman(1/35)?

Clemans with have to add you to the roster, but of course Greg, more than welcome.

That Lancaster looks great so far, Rob.  Looking forward to seeing your build progress.

Found some unexpected time to work on my Jug today.  I am definitely in the home stretch now.  Here are a few shots of where I left off:

The cowl assembly and the canopy and windscreen are still unattached; I just put them in place for a few pictures. 

I have added all the p/e to the bombs and drop tank, and have begun to assemble the struts and gear doors.  I hope to get more work in this evening.

GAF: Thanks!  That's an amazing resource.  It will definitely help out with my build, and I think I can scratchbuild the different things I need.  

Big Blue What color is that is?

Ken,

The olive?  It's mainly Tamiya XF-62 Olive Drab, mixed with XF-4 Yellow Green in the panel centers.  Base layer of the olive, another layer adding blotchy faded areas, and a final layer of highly thinned olive to tie it together.  There are pictures a bit further back in this thread if it isn't clear.

The actual color does not look as green as it does in the last picture, nor as brown as it does in the others (at least on my monitor).  IPhone pictures under a mixed variety of lights is not ideal for color reproduction.

Blue

Thanks Blue, I too am waiting for your big finish..almost there. My photography isn't that great I'm afraid: Samsung Gal3 under my fluorescent desk lamp, so, apologies to all for my dark pics.

That's looking really good Blue!

I know what you mean about color reproduction.  My cellphone (Nokia) is the same.  No matter which white balance I selected, it just wouldn't accurately reproduce colors.  Switching to my cheap point-and-shoot camera helped a lot.

Fantastic work, Blue! I hear ya about OD being hard to photograph. It either looks too brown or too green in the pics...

Greg: Welcome, nice to have you on board as well! I'll put you on the list.

Rob: Your Lanc is coming along nicely!

Finbally finished... After seeiung some of the amazing work going on here I'm a bit hesitant to post my megar attempt! I'll be starting another shortly and promis to try to do better!

Take care all...

Doug