Okay so, first attempt as chipping, so far, so good:

Sure Tony, you're always welcome! I'll put you down now. 

Hi Cliff,

I love the look of your 109. I'd like to make a late entry if that's OK. I've been wanting to build the Aoshima low wing variant of the Shiden ever since I did the Tamiya mid wing one some years ago. This is it.

Cheers

Tony

AA & John: Those are looking great guys!!! Please keep up the good work!!! 

Working on the seams - paint soon.  Sadaaki is getting impatient

Oh yes, late war Japanese planes have to be chipped. They just don't look right without it.

I'll be watching AA.  I'm doing the same for the first time on my Raiden.

Since this is going to be my first attempt at chipping, I've given the plane an overall spray coat of aluminum...

Looks great AA, gonna be ready to join the Kurogane soon! 

Initial progress on the Ki-84 Nakajima "Frank":

Just got you posted, again nice work! 

Looking forward to the Ki-84. 

Great job there AA!

Will get you posted tomorrow or Tue!

Okay, so I didn't keep up with the WIP pictures, but the Kurogane is finally finished.  Here's the final pics (use the last one for the front page gallery, thanks):

So, next up is the Nakajima Hayate ("Frank") that was part 2 of this 2-kit package!

That looks good John! Glad she's got that big friggin' canopy so we can see all the work you put in there. Good to see you've got her closed up and ready for paint. 

More progress.  A few seams to deal with but not bad for an old kit

About to button up the Raiden - some basic cockpit work as a closed canopy is the only option.  Sadaaki is in the office.

John: That's some sharp work!

Well - I didn't have any success with the Mission paints so I ordered all the Japanese colors from Mr Color which I'm very familiar with.  

Made some cockpit progress which will be behind a closed canopy per the kit, but I did paint the pilot, in this case Sadaaki Akamatsu the drunken Japanese Raiden ace.  He just needs a clear flat coat.

I didn't know about the polyurethane, I'll have to try some. 

John: The Raiden is a fun little kit, hope you enjoy it! 

Never used Mission Models paint. I'm interested in how the poly works out. Most of the acrylic paint I use I thin them with regular windshield washer fluid- it's water with a little alchol added. 

As to the hairspray technique- just spray with two-three coats of the hairspray, let dry, and then paint. I heard don't put the paint down too thick but I've never had a problem with it not coming up. 

When stripping the paint use a moist brush- moist not wet. If the brush is too wet the paint will come up in big blotches. If the moist brush doesn't take it off you can go with more water. 

If you take off too much just add some more hairspray, repaint, and do it again. 

Good to know about the water clean up.  I bought their thinner and the poly urethane additive

From their FAQ page:

Example  30-40 drops paint , 10% thinner or (3-4 drops)  , 10 % poly or (3-4 drops poly mix) and spray at 10-15 psi. Remember never more poly to paint. 

From their product page:

Add just a couple drops of the Polyurethane to your thinned paint.  Just one or two drops is all you need. The Poly greatly increases flow from your airbrush on top of the already amazing flow and leveling of the paint. The results are further leveling , durability , increased sanding capabilities and will also add a very light eggshell finish. When spraying straight from the bottle with out thinning your paint add one or 2 drops and adjust your PSI accordingly. You can pull ultra fine lines.   Figure painters add a drop for slower blending. Adding too much polyurethane  will cause the paint to dry much slower. Do not add Poly to the Mission Models Primer. Remember less is more. 

I use Mission' thinner and it does well with Vallejo thinner. I've never tried water but water does well to clean it so I would imagine it would work for thinning as well.

What do you mean by poly?

Sprayed the interior green with mixed results- of course I read the tips on their website after.  What is you're advice re: thinner and the poly?

I use Mission Models a lot but not sure about the hairspray technique. I tried it once with Mission but it just dissolved with the water. It is a pure acrylic. Try it on a test piece first. 

I love Mission other than that. 

All right - cleared a couple off the bench so it's time to start this.  OOB for sure, first time trying Mission Models paints - I got the full set of Japanese WWII paints.  First time trying the hairspray chipping as well so expect a disaster lol.  I can't tell you how excited I am about the parts count :)

Piers: Ack! Sorry being an idiot posting you completly slipped my mind until now. Anyway you're up now! 

Oh wow Piers- splendid job!!! That's beautiful!!!

At work now, will get you posted when I get home!!!

And again thanks for joining us!

Nausicaa and Kai are done.

From the anime film 'Nausicaa and the Valley of the Wind' from Studio Ghibli.

The model will go to my brother, a keen fan of the Ghibli movies. I have another four Ghibli models which will keep me going for a while.

Mostly painted with Vallejo paints, and oil washes. Tried to get a leather look on the scabbard.

Mowe is on Nausicaa's shoulder.

And simulated woodgrain on the rifle.

Cliff, once again, thanks for running a great GB, and thanks to everyone else for sharing your efforts and friendship.

Piers

Yeah, almost done there Piers, really like how you painted them.

Getting closer, we are loaded up now