Thanks, all.  I decided the makings to be used, by going through my file of decals I found a Cutting Edge set that has markings for Lt. Jacob Kratt.  Unusually, he had three kills, two of which were Mig 15's, the other a Yak 3 according to Air Force records as related by Cutting Edge's instructions.  I was going for a less remarkable example, but since I have the decals...and at least the markings are just squadron generic with none of that George Lavin stuff.

John

That F-80 is indeed 1/48.  Glad to be back!!!  Evidently had an issue with my email linking correctly after I changed it.  Kudos to the support staff.

Gamera

Robert: Great photos there of the M40. I've got the AFV Club kit. It's been in about three GBs so far and over five years and I still haven't finished the darn thing yet...  Good luck with yours! 

 

The thing I liked about the AFV Club version was the inclusion of a metal barrel, Tamiya sells one with some turned aluminum shells as an upgrade kit.  I probably should have just poached it from the partially built AFV Club iteration on my shelf of doom and saved the cash... 

More progress on the Tamiya 1/48 F-84G.  Cockpit, gun mount, and tail pipe put together, and installed.  Fuselage join glue is drying, used the really hot glue for that.

Another great Tamiya kit.

jeaton01

 

 

 

That’s a nice yellow, jeaton; and those seatbelts/straps that you put in the cockpit are a nice detail!

Thanks, John and CB.  The belts are just the Eduard PE.  I used white glue to secure them, one called Formula 560 that I use to put on canopies.  I have been using CA but I think the white glue works better for me.

I put the Alclad on today.  It took about two hours, putting on very fry thin coats and sanding with about 2500 grit sandpaper when I found the need between coats.  Where the dust and fiber particles come from I don't know, they must lay in wait for natural metal finishes.  Alclad 101 was the overall paint, then I did the panels on each side of the cockpit and tip of the fin were done in dark aluminum.  I'm going to try and hit some spots tomorrow with aluminuim powder to get a random worn finish.  Wish me luck!  Never tried that before, just whole panels with masking.

She looks good to me, nice work! 

A few more steps, painting on the USAF in insignia blue.

That is impressive work!  I love metal finishes, but I hate making them.  

Jeaton: The NM looks perfect and I love the painted markings! 

And I've got a bunch of photos that have been building up on my camera that I really need to post: 

Box, actually it is a F-51D - not a P-51D. Tamiya puts an extra sprue in the box with a Korean War era prop, blades, and rockets for ordinance: 

Decal sheet: 

I finished up the cockpit. I first painted it interior green and then found out that most (though not all) F-51s after the Second World War had the cockpit interiors repainted flat black. So I went back and resprayed everything a very dark grey- almost black. Glad I caught it before I'd sealed the thing up... 

Sealed up, still a lot of work left to do before she's ready for paint. There are marker lines on some panel lines where I'd marked them to fill before-hand. I'm just going to leave them as is now though. 

The Air Force didn't do us modelers any favors when they went to all black interiors, did they.  SometiMes it seems like we might as well just paint the inside of the canopy black and be done with it!

Coming along nice, Cliff.

I think I'm done painting now.  Time for decals once the yellow gets hard enough.  I put on an undercoat of insignia yellow which is flat and dries rapidly, then followed that with chrome yellow for a gloss finish.  Ended up with a nice dense shiny yellow without building up too much thickness.  I used gloss black for the buzz numbers, think flat might have been better now.

jeaton01 : Good job!

Gamera: You’ve been off to the races, too! Does anything say what the Korean writing in your marking scheme means? :)

freem: Thx for the scale confirmation! It’s good you can join us!

I would like to join,  with a 1/72 Eduard MiG-15

John

Jeaton: That looks perfect! May I ask what kind and brand of yellow you're using there? I always have issues with it covering anything. That might be just the thing for yellow leading edges. 

And thanks guys. The cockpit should be good enough considering how little you can see of it. John 3:16- I have no idea what the Korean inscription means. I have a Korean to English translator on my phone but it keeps telling me it's unable to translate it. I do have a Korean/American dentist and I know a waitress at a Korean restaurant. I'm going to try to ask them if either of them can translate it for me.  

Thanks, Cliff, the base is of course Alclad 101 in this case, then Model Master enamel insignia yellow, then a light coat of MM chrome yellow to get the gloss as the insignia yellow is flat.  If the base wasn't Alclad then I would use flat white, of course.

Thanks John: I can't get their acrylic yellow to cover a thing. I might have to try the enamel insignia yellow. I've been using acrylic white so far and it sorta works.  

falconmod

I would like to join,  with a 1/72 Eduard MiG-15

John

 

, falcon!

Gamera

 John 3:16- I have no idea what the Korean inscription means. I have a Korean to English translator on my phone but it keeps telling me it's unable to translate it. I do have a Korean/American dentist and I know a waitress at a Korean restaurant. I'm going to try to ask them if either of them can translate it for me.  

 

Sweet! 

Looks like the F-84G is a wrap.  A few years ago (August 2008, does time fly or what!) I built an F-86E in Robbie Risner's markings and it's a natural companion to this F-84G so you'll have to look at a few pictures of them together.

This Tamiya F-84 is a great kit, highly recommended.  I had a Verlinden and a CMK resin set and I used one resin part and two PE parts from them, they just weren't that much of an improvement, and next time I do one of these I won't use anything but the Eduard seat belts.  The PE parts from the CMK set were the instrument panel and the rear view mirror, and the resin part is the detail that fits inside the back of the canopy.

I had a Cutting Edge decal set and used a few decals from it but it was mostly used a reference for the markings which were mostly painted, except for the stars and bars.

John, Great work on the Thunderjet. It looks fantastic!.  Great photography as well!

Thanks, CB, it was an enjoyable build.  Now I have to go back to reality and build an Italeri Horsa.

Nice! It turned out really well, jeaton!  Which photo would you like for the roster; and what would you like to name your entry? 

Hi John, 

Have received the decals I needed. Please add me to the GB for the T6 Texan 1/48. I have two on the go right now one nearly finished.

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Edit: sorry I meant two GBs

John 3:16 KJV

Nice! It turned out really well, jeaton!  Which photo would you like for the roster; and what would you like to name your entry? 

Thanks, John.  You could use the second photo for now but I will likely do a more approriate photo with some support equipment later.

YW, jeaton01; and thanks for participating! Remember, you get to come back and place a vote in the contest when the GB ends.  What would you like to name your entry?

Hello and welcome, Est. 1961!  You’re on the roster! What’s your kit’s manufacturer?

Jeaton: She turned out perfect! Great job there, love the NM finish! 

Est. 1961: Looks cool!