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Downen Scaled Replicas

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Posts posted by Downen Scaled Replicas

  1. And heeeeeeeere’s the lineup!

     

    The basecoat is Model Car World (MCW) 2119 Dark Gull Gray FS36231.

    Bottom of the aircraft: MCW 2119 Insignia White FS17875

    Top of the aircraft: MCW 2120 Gull Gray FS36440

    Details: Tamiya TS-12 Orange (decanted for airbrush), MCW 2148 USAF Thunderbirds White (rudder stars), and MCW 2000 Gloss Black (nose anti-glare panel).

     

    49505877216_77eb72a183_b.jpgA1H Build 21 - Paint A by Troy Downen, on Flickr

     

    The entire lineup is lacquer which produces a fast-drying and rock-hard finish capable of taking some rough handling and masking, and also capable of withstanding a moderate sanding between coats using 1200 and 3000 grit sandpaper (1200 to knock down raised paint demarcation lines between colors which are due to the masking tape, and 3000 grit to smooth out any rough spots between coats).

     

    I’m using a black-basing technique with this build to give the final paint finish a worn, but well-kept appearance. The first step is to put down a dark base coat. This would normally be black, but since the bottom topcoat will be insignia white, I start with Dark Gull Gray FS36231 instead of black.

     

    49505367233_f583da1d36_b.jpgA1H Build 21 - Paint B by Troy Downen, on Flickr

     

    The ailerons will also be insignia white so those are base coated too. I’m not showing the horizontal tail in these photos, but it receives the same treatment.

     

    49505877176_411c2166d1_b.jpgA1H Build 21 - Paint C by Troy Downen, on Flickr

     

    Before going further with the topcoats, I decide to take care of that colorful rudder. You can see in the photo above that I’ve put down a coat of MCW 2148 USAF Thunderbirds White. I created artwork for the stars on my computer and used a Silhouette Cameo to cut vinyl masks in OraCal OraMask 810. This is GREAT stuff; it adheres to the model surface, conforms to moderate curves, and pulls up easily without removing underlying paint. But note that I am using lacquer paints here and gave the model a good primer coat too. OraMask will work well over acrylics (I have not tried it with enamels) but remember that proper preparation of the plastic surface with plastic prep and primer is advised!

     

    49505367448_c8e48c33d8_b.jpgA1H Build 21 - Paint D by Troy Downen, on Flickr

     

    I guess that I failed to get a photo of the rudder with the masks applied prior to painting orange. But here you can see the end result after removal of the star masks. AWESOME!

     

    This always feels so good… because it can also feel so bad if things go wrong! You know what I mean!

     

    49505367403_28045fa0da_b.jpgA1H Build 21 - Paint E by Troy Downen, on Flickr

     

    Back to the fuselage. The bottom is base coated with Dark Gull Gray. Time to start putting down light coats of Insignia White, starting with random squiggles and spots of the paint. It really looks scary as the process begins… WHAT HAVE I DONE!?

     

    49505877006_e91c43c0fa_b.jpgA1H Build 21 - Paint F by Troy Downen, on Flickr

     

    At this stage I begin to thin the paint, starting with a 50/50 blend. I put down a light overall coat of the thinned paint (no more creating squiggles; these are just uniform coats of thinned paint at this point). Then more thinner and another overall coat of the paint. And more thinner and more uniform coats of paint until I’m about 1 part paint to 3 parts thinner. Gradually those scary looking patches begin to fade and you get a more uniform, yet nuanced topcoat.

     

    49505876956_28d26a8bea_b.jpgA1H Build 21 - Paint G by Troy Downen, on Flickr

     

    See the slight tonal variations throughout the paint job? It is random and looks a bit worn – certainly not brand new – but yet it’s not IN YOUR FACE weather beaten.

     

    49505876916_7d17167868_b.jpgA1H Build 21 - Paint H by Troy Downen, on Flickr

     

    Pin washes in the panel lines will help to pop those lines out later, and an overall wash will contribute a bit more dirt and wear. But I feel that this black base technique gives me a good basis for starting those other weathering techniques later.

     

    49506094782_e8d66da1c5_b.jpgA1H Build 21 - Paint I by Troy Downen, on Flickr

     

    Hey, but there’s one more thing to do before decals and weathering: those orange thunderbolts on the fuselage need to be masked and painted. Again, I created artwork in Illustrator, cut the vinyl decals, and went at it with the decanted orange paint.

     

    49505367173_6ea72ff8ee_b.jpgA1H Build 21 - Paint J by Troy Downen, on Flickr

     

    A couple of things to confess: you can see the raised paint line around the edges of the thunderbolt created by the vinyl mask. I will use 1200 to 3000 grit sanding sponges to gently work down that paint ridge.

     

    Also, toward the aft end of the thunderbolt (top of the photo) you can see that I let the mask lift up just a bit as I painted, resulting in a bit of orange spray under the mask. Now, we are WAY zoomed in here in this photo and I’ll confess that this is not too apparent on the actual model unless you’ve got your nose right up next to the fuselage. BUT, since this is a client build I do want to address this. Fortunately, I don’t need to do any tricky airbrush touch-ups with gray in this case because the thunderbolt has a black outline. Based on the same artwork I created for cutting the mask, I printed a black outline decal for the thunderbolt on clear decal paper using a laserjet printer. That black outline will effectively hide the slight orange underspray. Whew!

     

    Decals are next.

  2. Thanks SakisG! I've not known much about Skyraiders prior to doing the research for this build. Turns out, they're great airplanes!

     

    While that primer is setting up, a quick look at the helmet. Recall that I 3D printed an APH-6 helmet because the client wanted the helmet displayed in or around the cockpit, but did not want a pilot displayed with the airplane. There is a pilot figure included with the Tamiya kit, but the helmet on the figure did not have much detail. So even though I considered cutting off the little guy’s head and drilling out the face (yuck), instead I went the way of a quick design in CAD and a 3D print using my FormLabs SLA printer.

     

    A coat of white primer prepped the surface for a glossy coat of Tamiya TS-26 Pure White. The actual helmets were orange with what appeared to be white lighting bolts and stars. Just recently I’ve learned that those two details were actually decals made of reflective material and placed on the helmets to aid in search & rescue efforts if the pilot had to bail out over water.

     

    48922953643_3ddf5142df_b.jpgA1H Build 08 - Helmet Thunderbolt by Troy Downen, on Flickr

     

    I determined that the orange was likely FS32246 Navy Torpedo Orange, and also that – lucky for me! – Tamiya TS-12 Orange is a dead-on match to my Federal Standard paint chip. I prefer to airbrush details because it gives me better control over where the paint goes and how much goes onto the surface. So, I decanted TS-12 into an empty Tamiya paint jar.

     

    49431057933_68be2489c7_b.jpgA1H Build 20 - Paint Decant A by Troy Downen, on Flickr

     

    The essential components are the jar with a cover over the opening and two holes cut into the cover (which is tape). One hole will be for the straw spraying the paint, and the second hole will be to allow gasses to escape from the jar during the decanting process. I take the spray head off the can of paint and dig out the little nozzle, replacing it with a coffee stir straw that I superglue into the hole in the spray head. Note that this will destroy the nozzle, and the spray head will be disposed of after the paint is decanted. Should you wish to not decant the entire spray can, you’ll want to keep old spray heads from empty cans to use for this purpose in the future.

     

    49431057853_b9606a85ab_b.jpgA1H Build 20 - Paint Decant B by Troy Downen, on Flickr

     

    Point the straw into the jar and spray away! Then set the jar aside without a lid (just keep the tape in place) and let the decanted paint outgas for a good 24 hours. There will be a LOT of gas compressed into the liquid which needs to vacate the premises before you attempt to airbrush the paint. But once it’s ready to go, you’ll have paint which needs no thinning and is perfectly airbrush-ready.

     

    I designed and cut some custom vinyl thunderbolt decals for the helmet to preserve the white area, and airbrushed the orange. Below you can see two efforts with the thunderbolt masks placed differently. I did the helmet on the right first and realized that I had the thunderbolt tips pointed inward. The left helmet is my second try with the thunderbolts correctly placed.

     

    49431535331_be0f733fcc_b.jpgA1H Build 19 - Helmet A by Troy Downen, on Flickr

     

    I experimented with ways to represent the stars on the side of the helmet, but the detail was just WAY too tiny for paint masks, and the best I could do with white decals were white circles; not very convincing. So, I just ignored the stars… LOL

     

    I did just a bit more work brush painting some details in black, and you can see the final result below. I was experimenting with placing a pair of gloves next to the helmet but decided against it after consulting with the client.

     

    49431535271_0f6ec60d26_b.jpgA1H Build 19 - Helmet B by Troy Downen, on Flickr

     

    Okay, next time we starting painting the airplane itself!

  3. At last I’ve solved (temporarily, at least) my issues with having photo editing software. So onward with the build documentation!!

     

    How about we wrap up those landing gear first, since the gear bays are painted? The gear were entirely straightforward; I used SAC’s metal replacements since I wanted to ensure that the struts would be robust in case they got knocked around a bit by the client. I used some 26 gauge copper wire for hydraulic brake lines and, if you can see it in the photo, a Molotow “liquid metal” marker to paint the shiny metal oleos. (Those markers are awesome! Get one!)

     

    49426767743_eb1883bc41_b.jpg

     

    While I was in the neighborhood of the gear bays, I went ahead and tacked the gear doors in open position using some poster putty (not visible in the photo) and glued the delicate resin door hinges from the Aires set to the doors (you can see the yellow resin hinges in the photo). I removed the doors from the wing, went back with the airbrush to carefully paint the hinges white, and then set the doors aside. The entire time I was wondering how long it would take me to knock those hinges off the doors and lose them to the Carpet Monster!

     

    49427463682_61b437e541_b.jpg

     

    Now it’s time to turn to the cockpit. Although the Tamiya kit overall is beautiful, the cockpit could use a bit of improvement so I picked up the Aires resin set. I’ve never had an aftermarket cockpit set behave as a “drop-in” replacement for the kit parts, and this set is no different. I thinned the interior of the kit’s fuselage in the cockpit area to the point where light could be seen through the plastic (!!!) yet the fuselage halves still only barely close around the resin cockpit tub (which was also trimmed on both sides). Oh well, it looks great once installed.

     

    I was a fool and forgot to take photos before I installed the tub. Here I try to make up for that by taking awkward photos of the installed cockpit tub:

     

    49426767543_4d679a8592_b.jpg

     

    See that putty on the nose? That’s 100% due to the Aires tub not permitting the fuselage halves to join at the nose.

     

    49426767483_cea73b96da_b.jpg

     

    49427463432_a2e48c2311_b.jpg

     

    Well, trust me that it was worth the investment. But be prepared to chisel, file and sand plastic and resin to tissue-paper thinness to get it to fit.

     

    The engine… where would we be without an engine? (On the ground!). I confirmed that the nose flaps were often open on the ground even if the airplane was not prepped for immediate flight. So I got out the 26 gauge copper wire again and started to add ignition wires to the kit’s plastic engine. This is the BEFORE photo…

     

    49427463367_8653099965_b.jpg

     

    And here is the plumbed engine as I set it aside to wait until it would be installed as one of the very last steps of the build.

     

    49427463652_d7bc372495_b.jpg

     

    Closing up the fuselage halves and mating the wing was virtually a non-event. This Tamiya kit fits together like a… Tamiya kit!  LOL

     

    Fitting the Aires cockpit tub in the fuselage caused the only fit problems, but if you work it carefully you can prevent the fit problems from cascading elsewhere, like causing problems with the fit of the cowl to the nose.

     

    I like to use Tamiya Gray Fine Surface Primer in the spray can. No problems revealed…

     

    49427238116_18ff4a688c_b.jpg

     

    Next up: Painting & Weathering.

     

  4. On 10/25/2019 at 7:43 PM, Drifterdon said:

    Troy,

    As Andy mentioned earlier, Aeromaster did a decal sheet for the markings you are wanting to do.  I have a spare set of these markings in the stash.  Let me know if you are interested.  Here's a link to a review of this sheet.

    http://modelingmadness.com/scott/decals/aero/am48530.htm

     

    Drifterdon - thank you so much for the offer. I have pushed on ahead with my own decals and masks at this point, but you're extremely kind for making the offer.

  5.  

    And Downen, very nice work thus far. I applaud your custom decal design and printing.  Keep calm and carry on!

     

    Thank you. I appreciate that.

     

    Last night I installed the latest OS "Catalina" on my Mac and inadvertently rendered all of my Adobe software inoperative. Catalina does not support the last non-subscription based version of Photoshop and Illustrator, so before I can post anymore update photos here I have to figure out if I'm willing to shell out nearly $60 per month for a version of the Adobe products that works with Catalina (I am not) or if after 25 years I switch to something else. Ugh.

     

    Meanwhile, I'm actually working on the Skyraider cockpit... Visualize it in your mind. Lots of levers and switches. Lots of dark gray shades and black switch panels. Dials on the instrument panel. Seat belts...  LOL   This really stinks...

  6. I am indebted to 82Whitey51 for saving me from a significant and very embarrassing error that would have had me sanding and re-painting tail codes very late in the game. Yuck!

     

    I see my error: I’ve been using Ginter’s “Douglas AD/A-1 Skyraider Pt 2” exclusively as reference for the Air Wing Six tail codes. On pp 13-14 it states “A ship and tail code change occurred in late 1962 when VA-65 was assigned to the nuclear powered Enterprise. CVG-6’s new tail code became “AE”. Four A-1H deployments were made aboard CVN-65. They were from: 3 August to 11 October 1962, 19 October to 6 December 1962… [snip] … The second cruise was the emergency deployment due to the Cuban Missile Crisis where they participated in the blockade of Cuba.” This led me to believe that the tail code change occurred at reassignment to Enterprise and was in effect during all four cruises in 1962.

     

    I recommend the short but excellent article in the February 1993 issue of Finescale Modeler where Paul Boyer reviews Air Wing Six’s markings during that second October cruise. He states on p. 40 “In 1962, the code for Air Wing Six was AF, a carry-over from the Wing’s previous carrier, USS Intrepid. Early in 1963, Air Wing Six’s tail code was changed to AE.”

     

    Indeed, several photos in the 1962 Enterprise cruise book confirm the “AF” tail code applied to Air Wing Six during her cruises that year.

     

    My mistake entirely in relying too heavily on the Ginter book and not cross-checking with other sources. Whew…

  7.  

    Very nice. I must use the wrong markers for trim. Every time I apply gloss or flat I get a great amount of bleed. Always end up painting with a fine tip.

     

    Phantom, I didn't think to mention, but I did gloss coat the doors with Alclad Aqua Gloss, which is acrylic. No problem with the red color bleeding or running. The Copic markers use an alcohol-based ink which also permits rough edges to be cleaned up by rubbing with a cotton swab (Q-Tip) wetted with Windex (which also has some alcohol in it). I really do like the effect.

     

     

    I agree with you 100% with the red trim on gear doors. Here's what I used on my A-6E doors, a friend of mine suggested this tip and it worked great, except for my shaky hands.

    Remarkable work your doing here, keep it up.

    Steve

     

    Steve, I see that you're using a marker intended for Gundam kits. The Copic markers are also Japanese and originally developed for Manga artwork. I'm guessing that the Gundam marker uses a similar ink (?)  Interesting how the Japanese come up with such useful tools for this hobby! They take this market seriously, and boy am I glad that they do!!

     

  8.  

    Thank you for all of the feedback. I really appreciate it. I'll return to the helmet when I'm ready to spray the orange colors on the airframe.

     

    Paints for the cockpit have not yet arrived so I’m breaking tradition and keeping myself busy by starting on something other than the cockpit! Ordnance…

     

    48933349037_e7048881c2_b.jpg

     

    Twelve (12) 250 lb bombs under the wings, two drop tanks and a 500 lb bomb on the center pylon. I forgot that the kit does NOT include the 500 lb bomb, but fortunately I had a resin set from True Details in my spares box. I’m sure that a coat of primer will reveal a number of areas that need more attention, so there’s probably still work to be done here.

     

    I used the Aires landing gear bay set which required that the upper wing skin be thinned A LOT to fit in the gear bay. Even still, I had to carefully work the wing leading and trailing edges to get them to close around the gear bays. It’s a tight fit, but the detail offered by the Aires set is fantastic.

     

    48933162436_f0316ce951_b.jpg

     

    48932620543_a845d2a555_b.jpg

     

    I also worked on the gear doors. Painting the red trim around the door edges has always been the bane of my existence. I even skip it occasionally if I know that I’ll only ever display the model on my shelf and no one else will ever see it! But here I need to do it, and I tried a new method using a Copic marker. If you’re not familiar with these markers, they’re high-end art markers that have a brush-like tip and use a fairly opaque ink. Working carefully around the gear bay doors, I managed a passable red line. Just stand back a couple of feet – don’t look too closely!  LOL

     

     

    48933162346_b27bf731ec_b.jpg

     

    And finally, I did some work on the propeller as well. I made a simple jig from a piece of scrape insulation foam and masked off the propeller tips to paint the white and red bands. I prefer to paint the bands since I typically have trouble getting decals to wrap around the edge of the prop to give a convincing appearance.

     

    48933161996_505285a505_b.jpg

     

     

    The end result still needs some work at the edge of the black; tomorrow I’ll sand that edge and touch it up to give a smooth, uniform appearance. Then some metal chips at the leading edges and decals…

     

     

    48933349307_ffe0decbaa_b.jpg

  9. I've had feedback offline that seems to indicate that if the cowl flaps are open, the nose flaps will also be open, exposing the engine. In my last photo posted above, the cowl flaps to appear to be open. So I'll proceed with having the nose flaps open AND the cowl flaps open, and with the plane sitting on the deck being prepped for takeoff.

  10. This is a build of the 1/48 Tamiya A-1H Skyraider for a client specifying the airplane flown by his father while embarked on the USS Enterprise with the VA-65 Tigers during the October 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.

     

    48923690272_74784d29f0_b.jpg

     

    In 1/72 scale Hasegawa has a kit that would have fit the bill perfectly (save for the BuNo and cowl number)…

     

    48922953948_35e3bd3176_b.jpg

     

    … but 1/48 scale was strongly desired, which points squarely to the Tamiya kit.

     

    48922953873_c346e07e61_b.jpg

     

    So, there will be some custom artwork required to replicate BuNo 35322 and other VA-65 specific markings. This is the only photo of that specific aircraft that I have been able to find, although it is from a slightly later date while the Tigers were embarked on the USS Intrepid.

     

    48923719132_4a674fc56b_b.jpg

     

    The artwork has been roughed out in Adobe Illustrator and will be printed on a laser printer a bit later. The fuselage thunderbolts will be airbrushed with the use of custom-cut stencils (more on that later).

     

    48923690172_19c344fcd5_b.jpg

     

    48923490921_7e4e8edb1a_b.jpg

     

    One thing that I needed to address early was the client’s desire to have a helmet sitting in the cockpit, waiting for the pilot to arrive. The kit includes a seated pilot (seemingly rare nowadays) but the helmet details are indistinct and won’t really impress if displayed separate from the pilot. (Besides, the pilot’s head would have to be drilled out of the helmet… yeck!). To get an acceptable helmet I designed a rough APH-6 helmet in CAD and printed it on an SLA printer (FormLabs Form 2).

     

    48922953478_da66503989_b.jpg

     

    Although it’s hard to photograph (it’s so TINY), the details look great and really pop with white primer and a gloss white base coat. 

     

    48923690592_813a130993_b.jpg

     

    There are white thunderbolts on each side of the helmet, so the plan is to cut stencils to mask the white before painting the helmet an overall coat of FS32246 Navy Torpedo Orange. The white stars will be applied via decals. I’ll return to the helmet later…

     

    48922953643_3ddf5142df_b.jpg

     

    One question for the hive mind here: The AD-6 / A-1H had nose flaps that could be closed to isolate the engine in cold weather conditions and permit a faster warmup when the engine was first started. In this photo the nose flaps are closed:

     

    48923690642_ba545f131c_b.jpg

     

    But this next photo is the actual configuration that I am recreating albeit with the client’s custom markings. It appears to me that the nose flaps are open in this photo, and I see that the cowl flaps are also open which – I believe – would require that the nose flaps be open.

     

    48923690717_32ed922263_b.jpg

     

    This question of nose flaps open / closed is important because it significantly alters the appearance of the aircraft (the engine cannot be seen when the nose flaps are closed). 

     

    Would anyone here know if the nose flaps were REQUIRED to be closed while aircraft were parked & chocked as shown in the photo? Or was it possible that the nose flaps and cowl flaps could both be open while parked at rest, as the photo seems to indicate?

  11. The panel line wash worked well to highlight the control surfaces and the panel lines on the top and bottom of the fuselage.

     

    48 Darkstar 12

     

    As I mentioned, I scrounged through my leftovers and found a set of USAF markings that I thought would work well for what a Darkstar might have looked like if it had been placed into service. Overall I’m very happy with the look of the completed model.

     

    48 Darkstar 13

     

    If you look down the inlet and exhaust nozzle you can just see the engine fan and mixer peeking out!

     

    48 Darkstar 24

     

    I’ve built two prototypes as I worked through tweaks to improve the build. The first build was painted with a white top / black bottom to resemble the test articles that I’ve seen in museums.

     

    48 Darkstar 15

     

    When completed, the model is 17.5 inches wingtip to wingtip!

     

    48 Darkstar 14

     

    And displayed next to my 1/48 scale Global Hawk from Skunk Models. I’ve designed new wings for the Global Hawk, which you view on the website (and also purchase Darkstar kits): https://downenscaledreplicas.com

     

    48 Darkstar 16

     

    Thanks for tuning in. This has been a fun and rewarding build. I wish that I would have done this years ago!

  12. I’m going to do a hypothetical operational scheme on this model using Light Ghost Grey, similar to what would be seen on a Predator or Reaper UAV. I’m using Model Car World’s military line of lacquer paints for the first time. I really like the way they airbrush easily and dry quickly. A bit later I’ll use a light gray enamel panel line wash from AMMO MiG.

     

    48590793651_f01d180c22_b.jpg

     

    I’ve used a black-basing technique for the paint scheme. I painted the entire model a dark gray (but oftentimes black will be used) and then gone back over the dark color with the top coat color (Light Ghost Gray) using a random squiggle movement to leave a patchy finish of lighter and darker areas all over the model. A final overall coat of thinned Light Ghost Gray helps to blend the patchy paint job. It helps to break up an otherwise monotone paint scheme with a bit of variety and interest. I also gave the model a really good coat of Alclad Gloss Kote in preparation for decals.

     

    48590793776_1f885d81e6_b.jpg

     

    I dug through my decal bin for spare markings that might work well for an operational scheme. Between a leftover 1/72 scale Predator sheet and a set of stars-and-bars from SuperScale, I think I can put something together.

     

    48590937397_1b1b2e6809_b.jpg

     

  13. 6 hours ago, modelmax said:

    Wow ma'an!

     

    Awesome build.  

    I'd like to know what printer you used... the resolution is outstanding.

     

    Keep up the great work, and thanks for sharing.

     

    Ernie A.

     

    Ernie, the printer is a FormLabs Form 2. It's stereolithography (SLA) which uses a laser to solidify a liquid resin polymer. I did a lot of research before purchasing the printer and so far I'm really happy with the results. --Troy

  14. 3 hours ago, Major Walt said:

    The result was worth the effort. What you have produced is indisputable from an injection molded kit.

     

    I know very well the trial and error of 3D modeling. It is painful but rewarding at the same time. I’ve gone the hard route with Blender and have gotten good results but wish I’d started with Fusion 360 instead 😎

     

    I gave Blender a shot but turned to Fusion360 after reading a number of positive reviews of the software package. It's free - for those who don't know - and I must say that I'm really happy that I decided to go with Fusion. My recommendation to everyone starting out with CAD: start with something easy to model so that you can learn the basics. I started with JATO bottles. Then go for something a bit more challenging: a wing, perhaps.

     

    I appreciate the compliment, Major Walt.

  15. 7 hours ago, Major Walt said:

    Very nice!!  Can you tell us how you did this in Fusion? I have not had a lot of success in doing curved streamlined shapes with it. 

     

    Major, I can say that I did this with a lot of difficulty and trial and error. LOL

     

    Mostly lofts that follow rails. Clearly the wings are easiest: two airfoils (splines) that are lofted following leading edge and trailing edge rails. The fuselage is composed of four lofts (and I only draw the left hand side of the UAV - mirror to the right): upper front, upper aft, lower front and lower aft. All follow rails that define the upper and lower surface centerline contours (it's important to have side views of the UAV to follow) as well as a second rail that follows the plan view (top view) of the fuselage curve. Believe me, I spent HOURS experimenting until I found (stumbled across?) combinations that worked. But it really is just a series of lofts w/ rails...

  16. There are a number of UAVs that are not available as commercial kits that I would really like to build. The Lockheed RQ-3 Darkstar is among them.

     

    48 Darkstar 01a

    The Lockheed RQ-3 Darkstar was developed as part of DARPA’s High-Altitude Endurance Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (HAE UAV) program in the 1990s. This Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration (ACTD) program was intended as a means for the rapid, cost-effective demonstration of new capabilities and systems for the military services.

     

    Two air vehicles were developed for HAE UAV: a conventional configuration (Tier II+) designed by Northrop Grumman (RQ-4 Global Hawk) and a low-observables configuration (Tier III-) designed by Lockheed which was designated as the RQ-3 Darkstar.

     

    The RQ-3 incorporated stealth aircraft technology to make it difficult to detect, which allowed it to operate within heavily defended airspace, unlike the RQ-4 Global Hawk, which is unable to operate except under conditions of air supremacy. The Darkstar was fully autonomous: it could take off, fly to its target, operate its sensors, transmit information, return and land without human intervention.

    Darkstar system development efforts began in 1994 with first prototype flight in 1996. Four units were built prior to program termination in January 1999. The first prototype crashed on its second flight in 1996; the remaining three airframes are displayed in museums in the United States.

     

    Enough background: let’s build!

     

    I designed my own Darkstar using the Fusion360 CAD program and printed it in 1/48 scale on a stereolithography printer. The resin material is firm but easy to work with (cut, sand, etc.) and requires the use of CA (“super”) glue or epoxy glue.

     

    48 Darkstar 02

     

    The vehicle is printed in the following seven parts:

     

    • Fuselage upper and lower halves with complete inlet duct (no nasty seams to clean up) and mounting hole designed into the lower fuselage to accept a 5/32 inch diameter rod.
    • A separate exhaust nozzle duct; the seam will be difficult to see and the separate part makes painting the inside of the duct easier
    • The Williams FJ44 engine is represented with a fan (correct number of blades for those blade-counters among us) and exhaust mixer
    • Right- and left-hand side wings

     

    Straight out of the printer, this is what the parts look like with supports still attached:

     

    48 Darkstar 01

     

    The wing design correctly represents the wing dihedral as well as the 2-degree wing incidence and resulting trailing edge “joggle” at the wing root. The unusual symmetric wing airfoil and wing tip blend are also represented and are accurately designed based on publicly-available technical information.
     

    48 Darkstar 17

     

    Access panels and gear bay doors are represented with finely engraved lines. No landing gear have been designed and I have not designed decals since photos indicate few markings (a few photos show “USAF” on the upper fuselage which most of us will have in our spares box).

     

    I’ll make copies of the unbuilt kit available to anyone who may have an interest (www.DownenScaledReplicas.com).

     

    I don’t expect everyone to clean up all of those supports on the raw parts straight out of the printer, so I’ll do a rough trim first and the parts will look like this when made available:

     

    48 Darkstar 18

     

    There are a number of support stubs remaining on the parts. The resin material is very easy to work with and those stubs can be cleaned up with sprue cutters, a hobby knife and/or sandpaper. I would recommend 400 grit sandpaper or finer since this resin is easily removed and you may find yourself removing more material than intended if you use rougher grits.

     

    Most supports have been placed in areas where they won’t be seen or where they can easily be removed with a sanding stick. Probably one of the trickier spots is inside the exhaust duct, but a smaller sanding stick can get those stubs without too much trouble.
     

    48 Darkstar 03

     

    In about 30 minutes I have a set of parts that are ready for assembly. Note that not all support stubs need to be cleaned up since some are hidden inside the assembly.

     

    48 Darkstar 19

     

    48 Darkstar 02a

     

    Part of the aft nozzle exhaust duct is separate, so I painted the inside black and then installed it in the upper fuselage half with some thin CA (“super”) glue. Note the “DOWN” text on the part which should still be visible when installed.

     

    I do suggest painting the engine fan and mixer (aluminum or such), inlet duct (white or whatever your base color will be) and the exhaust nozzle (black, per photos) before you install them in the upper fuselage half.

     

    48 Darkstar 20

     

    The engine mixer inserts into the exhaust duct snugly.

     

    48 Darkstar 04

     

    The engine fan face is next. Just a few drops of thin CA glue fix those parts in place.

     

    48 Darkstar 05

     

    Here you see the lower fuselage half, which sits inside a recess in the upper fuselage. I’m not holding the parts together in this photo so the fit appears poor, but a gentle press will get the upper and lower halves fitting together well. Again, thin CA glue run around the perimeter will fix those parts together in no time. You can clearly see the 5/32-inch hole in the lower fuselage for mounting the UAV in-flight.

     

    48 Darkstar 06

     

    My next step will be to put some filler along the perimeter joint to help disguise it. Again, I’m using 400 grit wet/dry sandpaper to clean up joints; I might use 320 grit in just a few stubborn spots, but use it gently!

     

    A bit of filler on the lower fuselage joint with the upper, and things are starting to look good…

     

    48 Darkstar 21

     

    The wings are joined, everything is primed, and finally it’s starting to look like a Darkstar!

     

    48 Darkstar 22

     

     

    Adding some color (such as it is) will be the next step…
     

  17. Wings and fuselage are both decaled and ready for flight!

     

     

    48 Global Hawk 38

     

    The decals perform okay overall. They’re thick enough to withstand some rough handling during application, but not so thick that they don’t settle down well around details and in panel lines. My process includes using Micro Sol and Set, plus Solvaset in stubborn areas.

     

     

    48 Global Hawk 39

     

     

    48 Global Hawk 40

     

     

    This kit is such a monster (33 inches from wingtip to wingtip!) that it was best for me to pose it in flight. I did not plan to design and print new wings, but it quickly became obvious that the kit wings with their built-in droop just would not work for me. So, I really like the effect given by the new in-flight wings which are now available for other modelers who might like to pose their Global Hawk in flight as well: www.DownenScaledReplicas.com

     

    A complete video of this build is also available on YouTube: https://youtu.be/_apXWqjZIeg

     

     

    48 Global Hawk 41

     

    The 1/48 Global Hawk posed next to my 1/48 scale Lockheed RQ-3 Darkstar. This is an original design and is currently also available at the website: www.DownenScaledReplicas.com

     

     

    48 Global Hawk 42

     

    The Global Hawk kit is not a bad build. Overall the fit is good (be prepared to work on those seams, though) and the decal performance is average. I probably spent about 30 hours on the build itself, plus the time it took to design and build prototypes of the new wings which I had not originally planned to do.

     

    Happy modeling everyone.

  18. Thanks dnl42 and CaptainObvious! I do really like the look so far.

     

    Some white on the upper surfaces of the wings and gunship gray on the bottoms. I wasn’t sure just where the white and gray intersected on the wings, but several photos I was looking at seemed to indicate that the white might wrap under the leading edge of the wing. It also made things easier to mask while painting!

     

    48 Global Hawk 36

     

    It’s hard to see in the previous photo the different shading that I did on the fuselage parts which are composite. I ended up masking and painting those parts straight dark gray, then coming back with a very thin / highly diluted overspray of the gunship gray to blend things together. Overall I’m happy with the look, but a few clearcoats and decals will really serve to tell if the effect works.

     

    48 Global Hawk 37

     

  19. Back on the Global Hawk after taking a short break. The fit of the V-tails is not as positive as one might prefer; they can be installed at different angles so I held them against the grid on my cutting mat to ensure that I got both tails at the same angle. The base of the tails could use some work to blend them in.

     

    48 Global Hawk 25

     

    Lots of interesting details on the top and side of the engine nacelle. I had to replace one of the antennas with a styrene disk because I sanded off the molded detail.

     

     

    48 Global Hawk 26

     

    I cut a styrene rod to replace the nose gear bay doors; the kit parts were not going to fit well in the closed position.

     

    48 Global Hawk 27

     

    All primed up and ready to go with the new wings.

     

    48 Global Hawk 28

     

    And back to those wings. I made a few design tweaks to the original set and printed a new set which will actually go on the model. They are printed in three parts per side (six parts for a total wing set). When fresh from the printer they look like this (this is the left hand side wing only):

     

    48 Global Hawk 29

     

    I will make these available very shortly via my website (www.DownenScaledReplicas.com), and when ordered the wings will already have the supports “rough trimmed”, so they’ll look like this:

     

     

    48 Global Hawk 30

     

    You can see the support stubs still visible on the trailing edge of the wing parts and a few on the main gear bay fairing. All of these stubs are easily trimmed with a pair of sprue cutters, a hobby knife and/or sandpaper. The resin material is very easy to work with, so I recommend 400 grit sandpaper; anything rougher than that and you might find that you’ve gone through more material than you realize.

     

    After about 10 minutes or so of cleaning up the support stubs, you’ll have a root wing section, mid section and outboard section that fit together with tab/slot joints. I’ve also designed-in a channel for a 1/16 inch diameter brass rod to help stabilize the wing over time and ensure that it does not droop (although I don’t believe there is much risk of that anyway). You can see the brass rod and trimmed parts in this photo:

     

    48 Global Hawk 31

     

    The brass rod is 5-1/2 inches in length and spans from the inboard to the outboard section.

     

     

    48 Global Hawk 31a

     

    48 Global Hawk 32

     

    The wing root has been designed to match the kit’s root airfoil, and will slide right into the fuselage slot without any modifications to the kit (and this means that the wings will be removable for transportation):

     

    48 Global Hawk 33

     

    When assembled, the kit wingspan is approximately 33 inches. WOW! (Camera perspective makes it look longer, but when measured it is 33 inches.)

     

    48 Global Hawk 34

     

    48 Global Hawk 35

     

    Now everything is primed and ready for color. I’m going to do the traditional overall gunship gray with white upper wing surfaces. Hopefully I’ll have that soon.

  20. Some really cool progress to report today. First, I’ve mentioned that I’m not happy with the kit wings due to the droop and because I’m planning to pose the Global Hawk in flight. So, I modeled some new “flight” wings showing the 4-foot flex at the wingtip (full scale) designed into the wings for cruise flight. I printed them overnight and here are the first pictures. Top (planform) view (dark gray is the new 3D printed wing, light gray is kit wing):

     

    48 Global Hawk 20

     

    The white lines show where the parts join; I had to print them in three parts due to the size limit of the 3D printer. BTW, these are SLA-printed, so the print lines are minimal and barely noticeable to the naked eye (the camera always over-emphasizes them). The camera angle in the photo also makes the new wings appear to be longer than the kit wings. This is not the case.

     

    Bottom view showing the main gear bay fairing and gear door outline.

     

    48 Global Hawk 21

     

    With these new wings, Droopy McCool has now become Joe Cool… (LOL):

     

    48 Global Hawk 22

     

    These are designed to be plug-and-play with the kit (no modifications required), and can be removed when transporting the model. I am super-happy with the new wings, but I have a few tweaks to make to the design based on this prototype, then the wing set will be available for purchase at DownenScaledReplicas.com.

     

    One more bit I accomplished this weekend was to paint the engine inlet and nozzle and get those parts installed so that I can close up the fuselage.

     

     

    48 Global Hawk 23

     

    48 Global Hawk 24

     

    I used the MCW paints and I’m really impressed with how well these airbrush. They are easy to apply (no thinning required) and go on with a smooth finish that will be perfect for decals when I get to that point. I can’t wait to put these on the entire model; they are going to look GREAT!

  21. Paints have arrived! This will be my first time using the MCW brand of paints so I’m anxious to get started with them. On the far left are the two colors for the Global Hawk: Gunship Gray and White. The remainder of the paints are for upcoming UAV projects.

     

    48 Global Hawk 17

     

    I’ve been working the wings with a heat gun and there is some improvement, but I’m not overly happy with the result.

     

    48 Global Hawk 18

     

    It was suggested that the wings be made removable for transport. I like that idea AND it will give me the option of replacing them later if opportunity arises (more on that in a minute). Meanwhile, you can see in the picture how the wings are “trapped” between the lower and upper fuselage parts via four pins that fit into the wing roots. I have cut slots into the wing roots so that the wings can slide in and out of the fuselage.

     

    48 Global Hawk 19

     

    Because I’m not happy with the wing droop on the Global Hawk, and because I really want to pose it in flight with the wings flexed up, I’m considering designing and 3D printing replacement wings for the kit. I’m starting to work with a 3D SLA printer which can print fine details in high resolution. I’ve designed a companion for the Global Hawk, a 1/48 scale Lockheed DarkStar, and now I’m starting to think that I might need to print a few things for the Global Hawk as well. Flight wings, perhaps an engine for a maintenance diorama… I’ll see.

     

    Lockheed RQ-3 DarkStar rendering 

    Visit the Downen Scaled Replicas website or Facebook page if you want to see more about the DarkStar. Meanwhile, I need to start sanding on the Global Hawk… Thanks for watching. More soon...

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