2014 BRAILLE SCALE (UPDATE)

Picked up air fix's 1/72 Alpha jet last night at the raffle along with some other kits. Decided to give it a go...it certainly won't go as quickly as the Eurofighter as it needs a lot more attention and with some other neat gb's about to start....but here goes.

I'm 90% sure this is going to be a wheels up build....I dry fitted the fuselage together to make sure I could at least get the landing gear doors to fit decently enough that I could putty...they do, surprisingly well, but there's a different problem...

I'm sure you can all see the warpage in the left half...never had to deal with it but I thought this would be nice as a F-102 I got last night as well has serious warpage so it'll give me practice before I move on to that one.

The cockpit is pitiful, even for 1/72 so I'm going to practice on my scratch building skills. I've never done any of that in 1/72....as you'll see soon, I need to go out and by me some thinner styrene sheets (been using the same sheet for the past 5ish years so that should tell you something).

You'll notice those big chunks that need cleaning up on the seats...well I got carried away with the music and there are actually supposed to be head rests there....oops  BUT its ok!! turns out after I filed them  down some and glued it back on the pilots head fit right into the...er....where it's supposed to!  I also added some styrene (extra thick) to the seat sides because of pictures I was looking at...I'm going to add some putty so I can sort of reshape that part of the seat

I've seen pictures of different ejection seat types that could go in an alpha jet...I'm guessing it depends on which nationality so I'm just going to pick one and if it's wrong, oh well 

The IP's are well....non existent.

and here is the front one.

Yeah I sort of got a little carried away with the first hole and had to remember that this is NOT a 1/48 plane...Well that's all for now!

CML - well one of those commonwealth countries. obviously it was another chris who did the 2013 canadian GB.

yes toy stores or big box stores with a big toy section. maybe a craft store.

I never go in to toy stores anymore...but I find mine at craft stores in the kids crafting sections

Thanks for the encouragement Rob - hoping to try and knuckle down on them over the weekend.

Waynec - no, sorry, not from Canada. I'm from Australia.

I had hoped to re-use the blue tack, due to me being "thrifty" however, it was pretty much done by the time the Maskol had mixed with it. It wasn't possible to separate the two.

I would prefer to use silly putty, but alas, I've not been able to find it here in Australia.

On that note though, i've been looking for it in toy shops.  that's where it would be, right? It's not that i'm simply looking in the wrong places is it?

waynec

Rob Sherman

waynec

Rob Sherman

Cml, pre-shading is excellent!! Sponge technique? Let us know how that goes for sure as I'm really not sure what that's all about.

hey rob. i think cml was using the sponges to "mask off" intakes by stuffing them inside. getting some work done on SS-25 and i think i can officially declare i have lost my mind as i just put a hold at LHS on bundeswehr bridgelayer BIBER mit DINGO. so much for saying i don't build 1/72 armor.

So, thanks to you guys, I used the cosmetic sponges for the intakes of my Sci-Fi build...thanks!! They work great!!

geez someone who didn't know us might think we are closet cross-dressers.  i have nail files, doiiar store make up kits, brushes, sponges, and pads in my build box.

Rob Sherman

TOO LAZY.... I laughed out loud for sure!! Man, had I a dollar for everytime I had those lazy moments!!! Keep up the aggressive charge on these builds, Chris!!

is cml canadian chris? if so are you going to host another maple leaf GB?

do you reuse the blue tack? i have some but usually use silly putty which is reusable.

Rob Sherman

waynec

Rob Sherman

Cml, pre-shading is excellent!! Sponge technique? Let us know how that goes for sure as I'm really not sure what that's all about.

hey rob. i think cml was using the sponges to "mask off" intakes by stuffing them inside. getting some work done on SS-25 and i think i can officially declare i have lost my mind as i just put a hold at LHS on bundeswehr bridgelayer BIBER mit DINGO. so much for saying i don't build 1/72 armor.

So, thanks to you guys, I used the cosmetic sponges for the intakes of my Sci-Fi build...thanks!! They work great!!

geez someone who didn't know us might think we are closet cross-dressers.  i have nail files, doiiar store make up kits, brushes, sponges, and pads in my build box.

TOO LAZY.... I laughed out loud for sure!! Man, had I a dollar for everytime I had those lazy moments!!! Keep up the aggressive charge on these builds, Chris!!

Ok, a bit of an update on the A-7.

I masked it with a mixture of U-Tack for the outline, then filled in the centres with tape as best i could, then used Maskol for the gaps between the tape and the U-Tack. 

Here's how it looked all masked up.

I then sprayed on Gunze Sangyo brown (H310).

After about 30 minutes, I removed all the masking.

Some of the base sand yellow was pulled up by the Maskol and it turns out i didn't quite mask every area 100% - so there is some brown where the shouldn't be.

I'll go back and fix that up later before laying down a gloss coat.

I still have to mask and paint the wheel hatches to match.

The sponge mask worked quite well along the bottom rim of the air intake but the top rim was a bit jagged. I am too lazy to fix that on this build, but will have to come up with a more consistent approach next time i use that method.

@Ernest - excellent, thanks for the tips on the Shermans. I'm going to start looking for one to add to the stash.

@Waynec - great to see everything has lined up. 1/35 of that thing sure would be something!

@Rob - glad i could help :)

waynec

Rob Sherman

Cml, pre-shading is excellent!! Sponge technique? Let us know how that goes for sure as I'm really not sure what that's all about.

hey rob. i think cml was using the sponges to "mask off" intakes by stuffing them inside. getting some work done on SS-25 and i think i can officially declare i have lost my mind as i just put a hold at LHS on bundeswehr bridgelayer BIBER mit DINGO. so much for saying i don't build 1/72 armor.

That missile can would be almost 2 feet long!!

Wayne, building one of those in 1:35 would need it`s own room to store the monster!!

here are some detail suspension shots. having compared the 1/72 steam locomotive to the 1/35 locomotive, building one of these in 1/35 would be a blast. have to pull out 1/35 SCUD on 8x8 TEL and look at it. everything is straight and aligned even if it looks curved in the photos.

Ernest, way to thin out them fenders. I would have done the same for sure. Yup, only you'll know, but, there's that 'scale' satisfaction that goes alone with it. Great progress thus far!

Chris - Nice work on the Corsairs!  Despite the problems with the decals, the F4U is looking pretty good!  I really like the look of that blue shade you used!   As for 1/35 Shermans......wow, there are so many available.  I've built two Italeris and one Tamiya and I would definitely choose Tamiya as the better kits.  Italeris stiff plastic (vinyl?) tracks are just terrible.  However, I do have 3-4 Dragon Shermans in the stash and I must say they look quite nice.  Tasca, although quite pricey, is said to be tops in quality, detail and engineering.  Can't vouch for that because I don't have any Tasca kits.

Wayne - Holy Smokes is that thing really 1/72??  It must be HUGE in real life!!  Working on kit is almost like building a 1/35 scale model!! 

Well, I busted open the Stug IV box and I must say this kit is really nice!  Unlike their M4A3E8, this Dragon kit really hits the mark for 1/72 scale armor.  The details are very sharp, molding is top notch with almost no mold slippage (minimal seam cleanup), and it smartly engineered!  I wish all 1/72 armor kits are like this one!   Here's where I am so far:

The suspension was a breeze!  Dragon smartly put the sprue attachments for the bogies on the bottom where its mostly flat and included some nice keying to line up the bogies to the hull.   The sprockets and idlers, and return rollers were a snap due to really sharp molding.  The lower hull has got nice, sharp detail.

Even the underside is loaded with detail! 

I'll add the wheels later once I've decided how to do the tracks.

The upper hull is also quite nice, but as usual Dragon didn't indicate on the instructions that several holes needed to be drilled out on the fenders for tools to be installed.  Fortunately there are hole locators on the underside of the fenders!  

So far the only downside is that the fenders lack a scale appearance and are quite thick.  Probably I'm the only one who will notice this, but I had to thin out the front and rear fenders to look more in scale.  Here is a pic of the front fenders.  The right front fender has been thinned, but the left hasn't yet.  I used a miniature file and an X-Acto blade to thin out the plastic.

Same thing with the rear fenders except these fenders have a lip around the edge making the thinning process that much more difficult.  Again, at this point I've only done one of the fenders.  Pics below.

That's it for now.  Hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to complete most of the upper hull.

Chris and Wayne....great to see such progress!! Thanks, Wayne, for posing that beast on the pad with the ruler to show the sheer size of the that vehicle!

waynec

HAPPY DOMINION DAY to all the Canadians here. we need another Canadian GB in the fall i have a truvk and a couple of 6x6 animals in the NATO stash.

Man these builds are shaping up quite nice! All of them are quite phenomenal

the SS-25 is ready for prime time. all 4 outriggers sit flat and i didn't break anything though i tried. lots of delicate pieces as is befitting 1/72 and trying to figure out how to hold and sand. most of the fit was nice and tight the front end had some small gaps filled with white glue. syill have 1 little seam are on the missile that i'm on take 5 of trying to clean up. the missile is just lying there. when done it will be pointed straight up, all 12 inches of it.

HAPPY DOMINION DAY to all the Canadians here. we need another Canadian GB in the fall i have a truvk and a couple of 6x6 animals in the NATO stash.

Now for the A-7.

I didn't get anywhere near as much done over the weekend as I had wanted to.

I only managed to lay down the base colour. Due to the light colour of it, the black pre-shading really showed through. I thin acrylics 50/50, which meant for this colour needed many many layers to build up, hence the reason i didn't get much else done.

I'm going to use U-Tack (ie, poster putty i think it's called in the US) to create a hard line and then mask behind the line with a mix of Maskol and Tape (because i'm too tight to use all my Maskol on one model )

Ok, bit of an update, first, the F4U.

Managed to get a gloss coat down over the weekend.

Last night I decaled. Unfortunately, the decals left much to be desired - which really surprised me for a Tamiya kit. The stars come in two sections - one is the white background with red outline. Then, you put the star with white side bars over the top of that.

Hence, the red outline is the primary reason for the first decal, and i assume, to make the white more opaque.

Unfortunately, all of the backgrounds cracked when i put them in water. None so bad that i couldn't still use them, but, unfortunately, some are off centre - particularly noticeable on the port side.

Some other decals also cracked and tore despite my best efforts. 

I've never had this happen to me before, however, i've read about it. I'm just a bit surprised it would happen. 

Anyhow, here it is, as best i can.

Next will be to hit it with some setting solution over the next few days and then panel wash by the weekend (fingers crossed).

@Ernest - thanks for pointing that out about the Shermans not having sag. I've never built one, but it's on my list (any suggestions as to brand for a 1/35 to add to the stash).

I'll be sure to remember that when i get around to building one.

Good work on adding an adversary too.

@Waynec - great tip on the painting around the windows before assembly. I would never have thought of that. I'll do that next time i do a helo.

@Theuns - good pick. I do like the Lightning. Such a unique engine config.

@Deatillo - i second what Ernest said - very creative solution and one I'd never have thought of.

Rob Sherman

Deatilo...were you using Modelmaster? I always had problems with Modelmaster Acryl paints and lifting while masking.

i am starting to feel really odd. i don't add a barrier before doing washes and will sometimes wash with acrylics over acrylics with no problem. i paint with MMA a lot and haven't had problems with paint lifting using low tack tape or silly putty. i do prime ace hardware NOW gray primer instead of model primer. oh and be careful there are some bottles that ARE PRIMER and some bottles, usually mixed in with the rest of the paint rack that are THE PRIMER COLOR BUT AREN'T REAL PRIMER.

and now to look at the foot long missile canister and see how well i did the seams after building all 14 tires.

Deatilo...were you using Modelmaster? I always had problems with Modelmaster Acryl paints and lifting while masking.

Rubber bands Very creative deatilio!  I would have never thought of that!  Goes to prove that old saying, 'Necessity is the Mother of Invention"!!  Kudos for sticking with the build and finding a solution to your unsticky problem!!

Every area I have applied tape for masking has lifted the paint upon removal.  Nearly the entire underside lifted away with tape, and after the same occurring to my prop after painting the yellow tips I had to find a new way to mask before ruining the OD topside.  This has proven a most aggravating little build, although the paint has to be something on my part it didn’t help my mood toward this build.  The only savior from this thing being placed on the deck and axe stomped with size-11 boots is its enrollment in this GB.

After tinkering with aluminum foil, clear wrap and other failed items I tried rubber bands.  I stapled the rubber bands together to hold them tight against the surface.  Figuring out the proper length before stapling took several attempts but I think they worked well.  Once done painting I simply slipped the scissors between the bands and cut one length, no point in trying to salvage or reuse the rubber bands.  Of course once I completed that I set the model aside to avoid further potential aggravation at this kit.

waynec

cml

Cheers, thanks Rob.

I always tend to have 2-3 builds on the go at any one time. I've also got a 1/35 Panther on the go too. I find there is too much down time when i just do one at a time.

only 2-3 at a time. right now i have about 10 in various stages. of coourse as soon as i get through my painting block i will have a bunch done.

a lot are at the paint or camo stage. looked at my BIBER BdW AVLB. seriously length and link tracks in 1/72. swell.

looks like another partially prime and paint decision on the SS-25. will prime and base coat around the windows in the cab before assy to make it easier to mask. helo builder taught me that one. sand and dark green MMA . 

Hi Guys, here is my 1/72 Airfix Lightning.

I will not go mad with the cockpit detail, although nice I plan to have the canopy closed and then visibility inside the office is very limited.

Theuns