The real world has been pesky but I did the initial "black base" paint stage of the Beaufighter. The Swatch worked pretty well actually - it was not too tacky and I had little trouble with overspray (under spray?). It would have been a lot easier if I had not felt the need to follow a precise pattern which I more or less did.

Here's the top with the masking removed. I'm pretty happy with the RAF Dark Green that I made. It's a dark combination with the gray - but this was a night fighter. Golden High Flow has a satin finish, but that won't last through the build.

On the bottom you can see the great tonal variation achieved with the gray over black:

Well....now what? This is only the beginning of the weathering. I'll do some kind of pinwash and perhaps accent some panel lines. Some filters are coming - trusty Com.Art or oils? Both? And of course the clear parts. Where to put in the decals? I put myself outside my comfort zone, so I'll have to give this one a good think.

Eric

Looking real good there Eric.

Eric: Love the results you're getting, looking forward to seeing more!

Bish: Oh yeah, I've got a bunch of Aussie stuff, I'll be sure to have something for that.

Gamera - Thanks for your comments.

Eric - Your Beau is looking sensational, well done!

Bish - Don't tease about an RAAF GB...

damouav

Gamera - Thanks for your comments.

Eric - Your Beau is looking sensational, well done!

Bish - Don't tease about an RAAF GB...

 

O, not RAAF, a bit wider coverage than that. Think 52 nations.

The following is sort of related to my next S.E.5a build, but not specific to it. I have wanted to make a modelling stand to make things easier when decaling, painting etc. After looking into my options and cost, I decided that I could easily design my own and find a business to CNC Router or Laser cut it for me. Mt original material of choice was plywood, but it became very clear that the complexity of making something and putting it together with ply was too hard/expensive.

The local business I discovered suggested an alternative, acrylic sheet. As they have a laser cutter the following and with materials and hardware came to roughly 1/3 of the cost of the retail version. And the best part as it can hold a 1/48 aircraft and I would hazard a guess could go to 1/24 if needed for Mono, Bi and Triplane.

Bish, Look forward to it, count me in.

Ilike that stand. I have been planning for ages to knock one up myself, but this might be a better option.

There is a guy at our model club who hashis own buissness doing lazer cut wood products such as paint racks, figure stand and so on. Might have a word with him.

damouav

Bish, Look forward to it, count me in.

 

Will do. I plan on taking a couple of months break from running GB';s, so will be kicking that off next July.

Damouav: Wow, now that's a nice stand! If you hadn't told us I'd have thought it was something you'd bought instead of custom made. 

I should look into something like this rather than sitting here cursing the next time a model propped up by paint bottles falls over. 

Bish: If you're going with a general Commonwealth build I've got so much stuff in the stash my issue will be narrowing it down to one or two kits..... 

Gamera

Damouav: Wow, now that's a nice stand! If you hadn't told us I'd have thought it was something you'd bought instead of custom made. 

I should look into something like this rather than sitting here cursing the next time a model propped up by paint bottles falls over. 

 

Bish: If you're going with a general Commonwealth build I've got so much stuff in the stash my issue will be narrowing it down to one or two kits..... 

 

That my plan, to cover all branches of all current 52 members and the 4 former members.

damouav

The following is sort of related to my next S.E.5a build, but not specific to it. I have wanted to make a modelling stand to make things easier when decaling, painting etc. After looking into my options and cost, I decided that I could easily design my own and find a business to CNC Router or Laser cut it for me. Mt original material of choice was plywood, but it became very clear that the complexity of making something and putting it together with ply was too hard/expensive.

The local business I discovered suggested an alternative, acrylic sheet. As they have a laser cutter the following and with materials and hardware came to roughly 1/3 of the cost of the retail version. And the best part as it can hold a 1/48 aircraft and I would hazard a guess could go to 1/24 if needed for Mono, Bi and Triplane.

 

 

A Commwealth GB? Let's see - I have an AMT (Italeri) P-40E with Oz and NZ markings; Kiwi Markings to match an Accurate Miniatures SBD; the new Airfix P-40B that could be fitted out for Caldwell & company, and an ICM (Italeri) Hudson also with RNAZ markings. And a midwar Tamiya Corsair - another buggy we lent to the Kiwis. Something might work. I'd guess that there were more Commonwealth aircrew in Bomber Command than in their own air forces - dangerous work that. Oh yea: Special Hobby has both 1/48 and 1/72 versions of both the Wirraway and Boomerang. I think the Wirraway was the first plane I did after returning to modeling in 1/72: it was a wretched kit: amazing I stuck with things after that experience. (Actually you can blame two cheap and perfectly neat Tamiya kits: a PzII and a Ki-84 for not selling my first airbrush on eBay and starting a stamp collection. Those 70s Tamiya kits are probably still the best beginner/kid models available. And they still are widely available for about $10.)

Eric

Plenty of options there Eric. I am hoping we will see some of the less covered nations represented. Aswell as a few British ones,m i am planning a MiG 29 in Bangladesh markings.

Eric

Paint looks VERY good!

Damian

Love that jig!

A little update here on my Spit....got the decals on both sides of the fuselage on last night. I found it peculiar to see the ID numbers painted over by the squadron letters as shown in the instructions but a quick search on the web revealed some pictures showing the numbers as listed by ROG.

The kit decals are of EXCELLENT quality and responded very well to Solvaset. I used SOL on a couple and had to go over with Solvaset to snuggle them down into each ressed detail.

They look as if they were sprayed on

She's looking fine PJ.  

Looking really nice there PJ, those decals do look like they have setteled down very well.

Those are some nice decals PJ. 

Sorry haven't been keeping up with the group build, excellent work everybody.

Work has been kinda slow on the Lancaster, filling and sanding the wings and engine pods have slowed me up. Now most of the filling and sanding are complete, clear parts are among the last to go on. Also made a stand out of balsa wood with hot glue.

28 by Daniel Smith, on Flickr

Ingenious device, Damian.  Creative engineering.

The decals look superb, pj.  Nice work!

Really good looking assembly of the Lanc, Dan.  

PJ - Excellent work you have yet again achieved, well done. May I ask what you used, if anything, to gloss the Spit pre decaling. You show such skill in making them have the painted on look, its very impressive work.

Dan - Great work on your Lancaster, can't wait to see this added to the great work already done.

Check - Thanks CM, its really a bit of reverse engineering in its simplest form. But it was cheap and it's sturdy and more importqntly, it works. Pherhaps I should start manufacturing these types of items as a new career...

Doug - Thanks mate, the jig works a treat.

Thanks a bunch guys.

Damian

I mix clear enamel gloss into the flat enamel paint and end up with a semi gloss finish. This step helps in cutting down on the number of  clear coat applications. I then take some extra fine grit pads and lightly sand to further polish the paint. I finally hand brush several coats of Future (usually 3-4 will do the trick) till I see when the surface looks right for decals. I trim as close as possible to get rid of the clear carrier film that sometimes is the culprit at producing the silvering effect.

I like brushing Solvaset over the decals which IMO works better than Set and Sol at snuggling down the decal film to get that "painted on " look. Then the panel line washes go on followed by either Testor's Clear Flat Lacquer or Alclad Clear Flat Kote to dull things out.

Thanks PJ for the information, I use Tamiya and now MRP. I may try X22 with Tamiya and MRP with their own brand varnish on a test mule.

Thank you so much for the information, really appreciate it.

Damian

No worries Dan, it is hard to keep up. Thats looking good, nice to see it coming together. Great little stand as well.

Yes, thanks for the information, pj.  I've only recently begun using Solvaset, and it seems to work better than the Micro products. 

,

You are welcome Check and Damian. Yes the Solvaset does a great job at melting the decal down to look like paint. The trick is to not touch anything after application.

Dan: Looks really good! Those big bombers have so many parts- guess that's why I keep reaching for another single-engine fighter rather than digging into one of them. 

Guys: Still filling and sanding the wing fillet here. Maybe I should pack up the Opti-visor, without it I can't see all the rough areas to sand them and I'd be painting now. Out of sight, out of mind! 

Gamera

 

Guys: Still filling and sanding the wing fillet here. Maybe I should pack up the Opti-visor, without it I can't see all the rough areas to sand them and I'd be painting now. Out of sight, out of mind! 

 

Gamera

I use Perfect Plastic Putty in such an application as yours. I apply it to the gap and let it dry. I then come back with a water damp Q Tip to remove the excess. It takes a few passes but the water re activates the PPP and creates a super smooth fill line with no sanding.

Man PJ those decals look sweet! I'm gonna have to look into getting some solvaset!

Was able to make some good progress on the Hurricane over the weekend. Got all major painting done and was able to pull off the masks to see how the roundels turned out. Overall pretty happy with the results. Again the roundels on the side of the fuselage have some rough edges and I think they will turn out better next time with a proper compass cutter. Next up will be a gloss coat for remaining decals!

And with it all unmasked...

And was able to get her legs on...