Sorry Jack, we must have posted at the same time. I hope your idea for oxidation works.

Isn't fun working with those tiny parts?

modelcrazy

The 95 is painted but I still have some to do. You can see gaps in the side view but that's because the hull isn't glued together yet.

 

That looks awesome Steve. Love the colors.

Jack

Sorry to hear about the lifting. What paint did you use? Anyway, it looks very good from here.

 Back to work on lady Kate. She got some Flory dark grime wash over Future and when dry was wiped off leaving traces of the wash in the recessed areas. A coat of MM flat clear acrylic was sprayed and when dry did a dot weathering job starting on the wings.

Using a wide brush with a tiny bit of thinner the oil paint is streaked and blended. Most is removed leaving subtle streaks and fading.

The effect is noticeable to the human eye more than the camera can capture. The rest of the plane will get the dot technique along with minor chipping here and there.

The vac formed canopy was a bit of a challenge to mask having VERY faint frame lines. I had to mask the horizontal sections and paint by hand the frames.

tape removed

and finally all the frames done, some done freehand.

More to come...

PJ, that is really looking good, very eye catching finish.  Very fine work on the canopy too.  I think it was stated somewhere that at smaller scales canopy frames should really just be paint with no raised detail.

Thanks about my Claude progress.  I used Vallejo semi-matte Aluminum as well as acylic Ultimate Primer.  Don't believe it is a drying time issue, as this one is really been going slow.   Guess that primer is still not as durable as a lacquer product. 

regards,

Jack

Jack

Thanks. I think the scheme on Miss Kate is different than the usual. I'm trying to keep wethering/chipping minimal for an early WWII subject. I read somewhere that this particular Kate Torpedoed the Hornet off Santa Cruz a few months later. I forgot to add that I went heavy on the paint coats to make the frames more textured once the tape was removed. 

I was suspecting the lifting due to the use of acrylic paint and you comfirmed it. It has been my experience that unless a solvent type primer is used, acrylic paint will sometimes lift when removing masking tape. MM Acryl is famous for this. On the other hand, Tamiya acrylics seem to bite into the bare plastic and don't lift.

Jack: Ouch, sorry about the paint peeling up but what you've got now looks fantastic. I've never tried for an oxidized look but you've done a great job capturing it. 

Steve: Great job there with the masking on the camo. Looks like it must have been a bear. 

PJ: Love how Kate is coming along. I've only tried dot filtering on armour. I think I'm going to give it a whirl on my Tempest for Bish's RAF GB. 

Not much to show here. I've been doing about 10-20 track links a night. I've gotten about 2/3rds of one side done so far. I'm going to try painting them with the same AK Interactive track primer I've been using and applying MiG's track wash. I've heard you can sand them a little to let the metal bits show though where the real things would wear. That's the plan anyway, we'll see how it works out.  

Looks great PJ. I really like dot filtering.

Thanks Cliff, and yeah this is turning into 'one of those builds' ...

I've started with the decals and they are being difficult.  Very thin so they easily curl/fold into themselves, and too much tinkering with them will result in a shattering experience.  Destroyed so far is part of a wing stencil (just one character) as well as the white '4' at the end of the seriel on the rudder.  At least it is angular and can maybe just cut up some white decal film and create my own replacement number.

Other than decal quality, not impressed with some of the artwork either.  The red disc for the fuel covers look a tad oversize, and the black data stencil at the fuselage rear, the heavy ink work looks way out of scale.

As Bsyamato would say - at the next ...

regards,

Jack

Jack: I know what you mean, thin decals are generally good but sometimes they can get really annoying with folding over and tearing. Sometimes I swear the thick Tamiya ones are almost easier to work with. 

I blew up your photo and the oxidized look is pretty darn cool. I'm really looking forward to how she comes out in the end. 

Looks good Jack. Decals can really get under my skin at times. When you swear you have them straight and they dry somewhat, you go back and look again, and they look off. Trying to straighten them again usually leads to disaster. Or like you said, they curl under themselves 

Here is my wee type 95 LOL. It's so tiny that some of the weathering just looks off. I tried my new Vallejo Splash Mud but clearly need more practice with it, or maybe it just needs a larger scale. The wheels are also so delicate the tracks pull on them and make them askew. It was fun painting and proved to myself that I can tackle a complicated scheme at this scale. It looks strange just sitting there a by itself on white poster board. For size comparison I sat it next to my Merk.

Looks fantastic Steve! 

My 1/35th Type 95 is slightly larger than a large bar of soap, your Mini-Me Type 95 at half the size...  you've got some steady hands and a good eye my friend! 

I like that...mini me. We should put them together LOL.

modelcrazy

I like that...mini me. We should put them together LOL.

 

I finally finished step one.

Great work on those tiny things!

Looks like Kate has her legs on and some light wear on the wing walkways and the blue/black nose area.

Getting ready the torpedo mounting points.

The torpedo got some Alclad dark aluminum and had the fins thinned down using a sanding stick.

Thanks again Cliff, and thank you Steve.

Steve, that thing is tiny, but great job in painting up the camou.  Your ship with the PE is looking good too.  I'm not familiar with modern navies, but do they still have decks different coloured than the sides?

PJ, fine progress on the Kate.   Nice sheen on the torp - I know the choice in metal paint won't mater after weathering and all, but what were they really made of?

regards,

Jack

Good question Jack. The type 91 body must have been made in steel. It is really quite a complex torpedo that even Germany was interested in it's technology. 

Steve: Fine work there on the Kirishima.

PJ: Love how she's coming along. Really love how the detail pops on the underside with the wash. 

PJ, those panel lines look great! what did you use? sorry if you already said.

Jack, yes everything is the same color. Camo doesn't make any diffrence on ships anymore.

Thanks gamera and Steve. This Fujimi mold is fairly old but has fantastic exterior panel line and riveting details. I used Flory Dark Grime Wash over a Future coat to pop the recessed details.

PJ, great job on the Kate, I really want to try that color scheme.

Steve, again the tank appears fantastic, its hard to believe how small it is.

Well, I did it, the Akaig is done.  Overall, I'm happy with it.  I was thinking of adding water but I like the clean, smooth appearance of the base.  

Scott

Scott, beautiful work, I really like that.

regards,

Jack

OMG Scott, that is freaking gorgeous!

A quick Kate update....... Attached the Torpedo racks. I need to make a glass for the bottom window. Nichimo failed to include the glass in the kit.

Found the perfect material for the fish sling, a thin braided cotton/poly line found in my junk drawer. Colored it steel with Alclad paint. Wrapped it around at the top with a drop of thin ca which will go into the tiny hole in the fuselage and bingo!

Next will be thinning and painting the contra rotating props and then arming up Kate.

Scott, from a ship guy, that is a beautiful build my friend . You don't need to make a water base, the base you put it on looks like a harbor setting. That really makes me want one now!!

PJ, you are really putting some work in on that kit and your hard work shows! Your work is fantastic and puts better kits to shame.

Steve

modelcrazy

I finally finished step one.

 

 The photo doesn’t do it justice. Looks much more impressive in person! 

Thank you Chad

Can I get in on the fun? 

I have this guy: