PACIFIC CARRIER AVIATION GROUP BUILD

Thanks Checkmate and Clemens.

Your Hellcat is an absolute beauty, Joe! Looks like the 48th kit to me!

I simply love how eduard manages to get the surface detail on their 1/72 kits to look as good as on the 1/48 ones btw...

Sorry I've been away for so long guys.  There are some really nice things happening here.  I can't wait to start mine.  =]

Good looking Hellcat, Joe!

Duly noted lewbud. I can assure you that I'm of the "glue everything" school. Yet, the wing mounting design of the Eduard Hellcat is quite different. My intentions were to glue them in place but, during test fitting I had to exert a good bit of effort into push the wing all the way into the slot. Once I had them  on I hesitated to pull them back out again for fear of possibly pulling the fuselage apart. Yeah, they are in there that tight. In addition the fit is excellent with no gaps to fill. Thank you though for the advice and the example.

Nice work Bob and Joe!  Joe there's always a need for glue.  Quick story. At a IPMS Nationals a few years back, a beautifully done Tamiya 1/32 Zero had it's wings fall off as a judge picked it up to move it.  When the modeller was found and told what had happened, he was asked if he had glued the wings on.  He replied he didn't think it was necessary because they just snapped into place.  There's always a need for glue.  End of sermon and no, this didn't happen to me.

Thank You Very Much Josiah and Bob. It really is appreciated.

Agreed, I can't believe it's 1/72!

I can only imagine how small that PE is...and those gun barrels! tiny tiny, looking good though!

Hey There Gentlemen. I've actually got some activity to share. Got the wings on complete with Quickboost gun barrels. A cool aspect of this Eduard Hellcat is that had no need to glue the wings on as they slipped into the slots nice and tight.  Also carved off the molded on exhaust pipes with my Dremel and installed Quickboost replacements. In addition I've utilized PE on the tail wheel, oil cooler vent, belly access hatch and the upper fuselage ID lights. I have yet to install the PE lower fuselage light rings. They are going to be a challenge to get lined up properly as there is no molded features to follow. Not to mention they are very tiny. So, here are some pics of my current status. Thanks for having a look. Any obs are welcome.

Thanks guys!

Very impressive job there, Bob.  Thanks for sharing the great pictures!

Hey Bob, I Like It!!!

Thanks Clemens!  It was a blast to build.  I think this one would be good for the front.

Your SBD looks fantastic Indeed, Bob! You actually convinced me to get Academy's re-release of the AM kit! What picture do you want to see on the front page?

Thanks guys!  I think it's more the kit than my skills though 

Bob, the SBD looks outstanding! Excellent job!

Gentleman,

I am going on vacation later this week, I plan to start on my SB2U once I'm back. Kind of have some inspiration now that Bob has completed his SBD!

Thanks,

Bob that looks wonderful!!

Very impressive, bob.  Great job all around, but particularly impressive are all those little holes in the dive brakes.  Nicely done!

Thanks Joe!  I did end up doing a gray wash, but it's hard to see in the pictures.  Probably a combination of bad lighting and my poor photography skills.  I may be back if I can meet all my other commitments.  I do have some other kits in the stash that would work though...

Yay Buddy! That there is a beauty Bob. Simply excellent work there. I especially like how you considered the history and service length and applied it to the weathering. Very well done. It's kind of difficult for me to tell for sure from your pics but, did you go without applying a wash? Either way Bob, you should be quite proud of your finished Dauntless. I greatly appreciate you taking the time and effort to share your build and skills with us. You know, there is plenty of time left as well as plenty of 1944 subjects for you to stick with us for another round. Just sayin'.

Well, here she is!  I didn't weather it too heavy because according to the instructions the SBD-5s were pretty new aboard the USS Lexington for the Battle of Tarawa, and neither of the aircraft represented by the provided decal sheet survived the battle as they were written off due to hard landings.  I'm pretty happy about how she turned out.  I'm going to have to keep an eye out for more Accurate Miniatures kits at shows.

Hey SilentBob,

That's a killer SBD you got there!!  Awesome job; can't wait to see it finished!!

Yeah, I think an overall gray wash should do the trick...

Thanks for the compliments guys!    I agree with you Joe, it's hard for me to visualize how that would look all together with multiple wash shades.  I'm going to try an overall medium gray wash and see how that looks.

Your decals and and preshading turned out rather fantastic Bob. I certainly think a wash would enhance your efforts. Although, to me , the tri color scheme presents a challenge. Even though a dark wash would go on the underside white, the upper dark blue is best washed with a light gray. Just seems an odd contrast to me and I struggle with visualizing that. But, I'm certain that I will take that route nonetheless. Great work Bob.

She's a real beauty, Bob! Keep up the awesome work!

Looks really good, SB! The pre-shading turned out very well!

Finished the decals, I never did get the MM setting solution to work.  Looks like I'll be getting some Micro Sol for my next plane with recessed panel lines.  Generally, I'm pretty happy with how it looks.  The flash kind of washes it out, but the preshading looks pretty good, and I'm not sure if I need to do a panel line wash.  I still have some time to make up my mind though.

Good looking out Joe!  If that stuff works as advertised I will have to pick  some up.