I've got the Tamiya 1/48 kit too. It's the A6M-3 version (the one with the clipped wings). I did a -5 a few years ago, and it was completed in 5 days. The quickest build I've ever done. I'll probably use Tamiya IJN grey mixed with other colours to get the ASh-grey thing going. I'll just need to find decals for it now, the kit ones are pretty s**thouse.

And Tom, mine only cost $10AU. About $7US. Bargain eh?

Cool Tom i'll be waiting for that but i'll probably make a home brew useing the Gunze paint as a base and the pics of that Zero as a colour guide.....
BTW mine is from the Akagi group..........

Tweets & Pingy i can see yor online so i thought i'd say G'Day

Jules, I;ll have to pick out the exact article on that site discussing what they feel is the correct color fo IJN gray, especially in the early war years... although interlaced with both technical and japanese words it was fairly informative... the link I posted of that model is a pretty close match to what they feel is the "right" color.. (a subject of hot debate evidently) .. just getting that combo of color is going to be the hard part...

--edit--

I liked the lighter coloring of panels on that kit too... I think I may try it... BTW: jules... siunce it sounds lik you rhave the same kit... it goes together ok.. and I didnt find a prob at the wing root... I always glue my upper wing halves on at the root before I glue them to the lower... like that it went on like a charm and has less gap than a lot of kits I have built recently... be careful though, the plastic is a bit soft and it would be easy to oversand a pice and get it misshapen.

The main part I want to sand is behind the pilots head... it's a brace of some sort I am sure for upside down landings... the real AC I saw, the brace is concave, on the kit it is more of a rough triangle shape...

ok here it is... it is a canopy brace of some sort..

http://www.j-aircraft.com/relics/peter_gunti/peters21.jpg

on the kit is is not shaped like that...

Ahh Crap i forgot, Daniel congrats on taking 2nd place but i reckon you should have walked away with 1st for that one..............

Tom thanks for posting up that link, i saved those pics for referance
BTW I also have the 1/48 tamiya Zero and yep i agree on the detail thing, As far as the paint goes i'll be useing Gunze acrylic IJN grey but i'll either lighten or darken the paint probably lighten to pick out individual panels like the model shown in the link you provided, i think it's a must to do that or the A/C will look a little monotone.......
One more thing kremps was looking on the Eduard web site earlier on and she found they do express masks for the Zero canopy

Cool Bob... really looking forward to the final product!!! As you see I started my meager build... it's not the type of model I usually deal in but it was something I needed... quick and easy! In one day I am 80% done...

In retrospect the cockpit doesn't look so bad and with a small bit of scratch building or PE would look awesome! I was struck at how the cockpit went together just like the resin cockpit for my F4U... separate sidewalls that glue into the cockpit assembly instead of being molded intot he walls of the fuselage...

On a side note I went out to J-aircraft.com and after browsing the pics of real Zero wrecks and restorations, realized a few problems with the kit, most of which can be solved by sanding the pieces to the correct shape...

Good luck Bob!!! post some pics!!!

Daniel-CONGRATS! That is a good looking SBD.

Little progress on my SBD. Did do some decal work. Discovered that one of the brake lines is missing-a little bit of wire from a bread twist tie should do the trick. Maybe next weekend.....

ok just thought of something... I haven't seen Phil (Traintrak) around lately... did someone p*** him off? Just wierd, I was enjoying having him around too... he was easy to talk to!

ok it's a bit slow round here... got the fuselage closed and wings on the Zero... only thing left to do is the small bits, paint and weather along with decal and I am done! This could easily be a good kit for a Mad Zero day GB, or something... it could be finished by most people with a little perseverance (hmm another GB?) .. the Wildcat could also be done in one day (without PE etc..)if you modeled HARD to do it... a Mad PTO day GB?????

ok this just hit me... who has a WebCam? that would be an interesting idea... a mad (whatever) day build... only we'd have our webcams on to check progress of each other during the day.... sounds a bit interesting... (I'd have to mute the volume to keep yall from hearing me cuss the wife about not letting those dogs out so much because they run away haha)

just point the webcam at the desk and if you are working on it we see it... if you are away it's still there so we still see the progress...

I dunno... it's crazy...

ok long overdue, I started my Zero today... so far I think it will be done tomorrow... this is the old Tamiya kit with little or no detail (it was $14.00 US for a 1/48 Tamiya kit.. that'll show you how detailed it is!) but all the same I think I needed something simple like this... I whould be able to close the fuselage tonight.. I did read of a wing root fit problem so that my be a stumbling block but we'll see.... the trick will be to blend the right color for the body... kind of an "ash grey" one guy did it wil Floquil concrete, a dab of black and a smaller dab of brown... unfortunately I don't have Floquil concrete....

this is the color I am shooting for:

http://hsfeatures.com/a6m2tb_1.htm

cool Daniel! That SBD was a good looking plane and a sure winner!!! Congrats!!!!

For those who want to know (?!!!)..... I got second place for my SBD in the comp today. I'm happy with that because the thing that beat it was very nice.

Tom I'm pretty sure verlinden do make carrier deck bases, and I think eduard do or did make them.

not sure Jules.. I'll have to check into that... but thats too easy.. you know we have to go about things the hard way!!!

Oh.. and careful of using Kremps name in vain...

Boys doesn't Verlinden or some other mob make them

Oh Yeah BTW

....KREMPS....BUMP.....

thats kind of what I was thinking... use wood, but strip styrene for the metal edges of areas on the deck etc... stain the wood and use something like burnt metal from MM with a rust drybrush to give it detail on the metal pieces...

Yeah, I might have a go at that one day. Mybe making a frame work out of styrene, and then making the deck planking out of strip styrene. It would be fun to paint and weather though wouldn't it?

Agreed on the carrier deck... the next one I build (if it turns out good) I want to scratch a carrier deck and place it on it... the ones I have seen ready made look 2D and plastic... I'll check the model railroad store out for parts...

Thanks mate; I'll have to have a go at that diorama building one day. Even just a carrier deck would look good. I'll see what I can come up with.

Daniel looks awesome buddy You should stick it on a carrier deck dio cause it would look very realistic

Thanks fellas;

I entered it in the comp this morning, I'll find out how I went tomorrow. I bought a Tamiya A6M-3 Zero for only $10, so I might be able to build it for this GB as well. I'll do some research and see if I can come up with a scheme.

Looks excellent Daniel!!! I am planning on picking my remaining kit out of the closet at some point this yr and doing another one... will try the salt thing myself... thing is I like the way you did it too... over the flaps and elevators where more fading might occur.. I might try it on the upper cowl as well to simulate sun/salt fading and paint corrosion... thats what those flaps remind me of...

Great looking SBD Daniel...is it any wonder why it's my favorite bird and my favorite kit

Looks great Daniel. Good luck in the comp. Keep us posted.

It took me all day, but I finally got around to posting some pics. Paint is mostly Gunze, the top-side colour is a custom mix (or home brew if you like ). I built the thing pretty much out of the box except the engine wiring and the little PE gun sight on top of the MG. The decals were the ones that came with the kit, I just deleted the red dots and rudder stripes. I figured there had to be a S-12 that fought at midway (either from VS-5, VS-6 or VS-3). Most of the weathering was done with pastels, the salt effect didn't really turn out too visible. The only place it can still be seen is on the upper flaps and elevators. Enough talking, here's the pics:







Hope you like it. I'll have to build another one of these kits one day, they are very nice.
I'm gonna enter it in a comp tomorrow, so it'll be interesting to see how it goes. Might pick up a cheap kit or two as well.

haha cool Bob... I guess I was being a little reckless with my red up there earlier... someone might have become enraged by it!!

BUMP (in safety yellow, no less....)

cool Pingy!!! Looking forward to it!!!

My SBD is finished!!!!! It's too late tonight to start taking photos, so I'll get the camera out in the morning and start snapping away. I'll post them tomorrow.

Thanks for all the info guys-hope to get some practice in this weekend.

Daniel - that windex seems to cut through acrylic paint like nobodies business!!! I heard it from another member here... I forget who, but I am a firm believer in it for using with acryl now!!!! not near tha smell of even Tamiya acrylic thinner!!! I have several metal color cups so I just take the old one off, empty and fill it with windex to soak... get the new one and fill it with windex as well, dip a qtip in it to clean out the paint pickup tube... then that one cup usually cleans it right out!!!

being as you dont work I guess I can't sue you for the next 5 yrs salary since you admitted I saved that on your lifespan... so lets just consider it a freebie! good luck to you too! it might not clean 100% as good as lacquer thinner, but smells a LOT better (relatively) and wont cause you to grow warts on your head in 10 yrs!