Monogram Mafia III

Hey Eric,

Glad to see somebody breakin' out the Tweet!!  I've got one of those from way back.  Unfortunately, it got soaked while in storage and I lost the decals.  The only ones I can find nowadays are post-Vietnam War.  Like Josiah, I'll be watching your progress closely.  Good luck with it; don't fear the camo scheme!

TAD

Looking forward to see the combat tweet !

I helped one of my roommates build the A-37 back when we were in college.  He built it but I helped with the painting since I had an Iwata.  That's about as close as I've come to building one up until now.  Ever since then (mid 1990s), I've always wanted a Dragonfly in my collection.  

TAD, sorry to hear about your decals!  On some level, I think I can commiserate.  I got this kit for cheap at a local Ma-n-Pa hobby shop.  They somehow got it from a guy who was getting rid of kits to thin out his stash.  It was a bagged kit and I'm not sure how well it was stored away.  The kit itself was in great shape but the decals appeared to have gotten damp and discolored.  I just ordered a new set of aftermarket decals from Squadron a couple of days ago.  I think I only had two different sets from which to choose.  It's a neat little plane and I wish there were a few more sheet options available out there but I'll take what I can get.

I've always been a big fan of straight-winged jets.  I think there's a beauty about them that is reminiscent of the straight-winged WW2 planes.  You may note that the other plane I built for this group build was the F-89.  See a pattern here?  LOL!

Eric

I know what you mean, Eric.  I saw a Tweet at an air show when they hosted the Blue Angels and Thunderbirds over 30 years ago.  You could get right up to the cockpit and look into it while standing on the ground.  I thought it was a neat little plane.

I think I will finish my Dragonfly up as a South Vietnamese AF plane when I get around to building it.  There is a very active group of Vietnamese modelers, (forgot their name) that model the history of their air force.  They have a website that included squadron historys and even PDFs of South Vietnamese AF decals.  They had some really colorful Dragonflies with bright polka dots and stars....should be interesting.

TAD

Looking good echo. That is one unique looking bird.

Sprayed the funky green fuselage and yellow nose. I also applied the lozenge on the lower wings.

The decal did not cover a small length along the bottom trailing edge so I have to match the colors to complete that thin gap.  

To make installation of the bottom lozenge a bit easier, I Tenaxed the wig struts on first, once dry I can apply the lozenge decal.

   The Revell kit does not offer a 'gear up' option. I didn't think it would be so difficult to have the bay doors closed. Boy was I wrong. The doors are nowhere near the correct shape and took HOURS of trimming and sanding to properly fit. Some areas too wide and some too small. I finally managed to get them to fit the best I could. After a little putty they don't look half bad!

After a little putty...

PJ,

Really love that wild and crazy green/yellow/lozenge paint scheme!  Very cool!!

Good salvage job there, Matt!  I'm sure that was quite a chore....guess that's why most of mine have the gear down!! LOL

Well, I'm back on track. I've corrected the seam issue and started painting.

Steve

Oh Man!  I love the biplane!  I've tried my hand at a few but I just can't do them justice.  Until then, all I can do is admire them from afar.  Plastic, I'm definitely interested to see how yours turns out.

Matt, I wish I had seen your post sooner because I have the perfect solution for all the gaps.  Back when I was a kid of 15 back in '85, I built the Monogram F-105 (the two-seater).  I wanted to build it with its gear up.  I noticed all the gaps as well so I did what any kid would do:  I used Scotch tape in lieu of the landing gear doors!  LOL!  But that was okay.  Several thick, heavy coats of Testors silver applied with a fat brush covered up pretty much everything.  I'm ashamed to admit to this but they say confession is good for the soul, right?

Steve, I'm loving your F-104.  Can't wait to see how it turns out.  Are you modeling it with the speed brakes open or closed?  If closed, how well did they fit?  I thought I had read somewhere that they didn't fit the best in the closed position.  I normally build them closed up but I took the lazy way out and had them in the open position.

Keep up the great work!

Eric

Matt...It's an old mold but builds up really nice. I had the same issue with an Eduard Dora that I wanted to close one of the gun bays. I ended up shaving the access door and using stretched sprue and Tenax for the gaps. Sometimes kits turn out like that, old or new.

TAD... Most of these old birds had some pretty groovy colors.

Modelcrazy...The 104 is shaping up. I just picked up a Monogram 104 at the last show for $7 but it's a 1/72 scale and has recessed panel lines.

Echo..Thanks. I didn't like the recommended method of attaching the struts so I used my own version making the attachment of the lower wing Lozenge easier. I'm almost done and will post pictures soon.  

Echo,

I closed them, and the fit was horrible. I had to do some trimming and filling. I'm not sure why Monogram designed the kit with the speed breaks open. Like my first choice was to depict the plane in a landing or maintenance configuration??? Oh well, more lost detail, it was a used $6 model anyway and will give me some practice with Alclad.

Steve

Thanks to all! I placed sticky tack underneath to hold the doors in proper position while the glue dried. The tape method sounds cool but i wanted to keep the panel lines of the doors themselves.

O, and  looking GREAT as always modelcrazy!

Thanks Matt,

Really excited to start that He 111 for the second in the Ground Attack build.

Great progress, guys!

Love the lozenge camo, PJ!  And well played on the landing gear doors, Matt!

I'll have to get started on the Helldiver, while I'm waiting for paints and decals for the Typhoon to arrive.

I will be looking forward to it modelcrazy!

The Sandstick is painted flat sand on top and flat gull gray on bottom.

Some finishing touches on the office details before the figure goes in. I hope it's not too busy or spotty looking...

Wow... I see I missed quite a bit of work here over the past week or two. I have not been minding the store as I should have been doing. Well Apologioes to all here about all I have missed. I have added most to the front page roster.

MJ, can I ask you to please get some photos of your F4U with a plain background? A piece of paper or cloth works wonders for eliminating background clutter and drawing all attention to your build. I would ask that of everybody here to do the same.

Eagel, is there any chance I can get you to get a photo of the jeep & gun in the same shot?\

Anyways, keep up the great work guys! I am loving the results here!

Mark go grab your stinking badge off the roster- you are made my freind!

Thanks Carlos! I'll try and grab it soon; I'll just need a bit of help getting it added to my sig line. That and all the other Group Build badges I have saved on my PC!

So at 3:16 PM I recieved an email from Revell customer support informing me that my gear strut had shipped today. At about 3:58 PM, I discovered a box from Revell with a landing gear strut inside my mail box. Apparently Clark Kent is moonlighting...

Matt-Joachim

Thanks to all! I placed sticky tack underneath to hold the doors in proper position while the glue dried. The tape method sounds cool but i wanted to keep the panel lines of the doors themselves.

stikpusher

Wow... I see I missed quite a bit of work here over the past week or two. I have not been minding the store as I should have been doing. Well Apologioes to all here about all I have missed. I have added most to the front page roster.

MJ, can I ask you to please get some photos of your F4U with a plain background? A piece of paper or cloth works wonders for eliminating background clutter and drawing all attention to your build. I would ask that of everybody here to do the same.

Eagel, is there any chance I can get you to get a photo of the jeep & gun in the same shot?\

Anyways, keep up the great work guys! I am loving the results here!

Mark go grab your stinking badge off the roster- you are made my freind!

No problem boss.  Hows this?

Eagle90

AJD, that looks quite nice! I will select a photo tomorrow at home for the roster page. Very nicely done!

Excellent work so far guys.

I was hoping to be done sooner but the struts if mounted as per the instructions would have been easier to mount the top wing but not to apply the lozenge on the bottom of it. It would have left a messy gap so I glued the struts to the top wing and set it aside to dry then carefully sliced them off and attached them to the fuselage first. The messy gap under the top wing was filled with bondo glazing putty and sanded smooth. The lozenge decal went on fine. I still have to add a couple of small lozenge  pieces on the bottom tips.

I then turned the plane upside down and dry fitted the wing at the correct angle using a small box to keep the tail up. I then carefully Tenaxed the struts to the wing and set it aside to cure. The MM bottles keep things in place while curing.

The wheels are dark grey with the pale gray tires

The completed prop with the Axial  logos and a coat of Future for the varnished look.

I also brushed on several Future coats on the fuselage for the decal application.

That is looking super sharp PJ!!! I am loving it!!!

thanks stik!