slick95 Posted April 10, 2009 Share Posted April 10, 2009 Gonna build this one out of the box...unless I come across some sort of aftermarket item along the way. I'll be dressing her up as George Bush's aircraft. Some shots of opening the box. I plan on starting construction tomorrow. SLICK Quote Link to post Share on other sites
thom Posted April 10, 2009 Share Posted April 10, 2009 Cool - this kit is on my list of possibilities in the future, so I'm interested to see how it comes together. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
slick95 Posted April 11, 2009 Author Share Posted April 11, 2009 A bit of an update from today. I painted all the interior parts, and was able to weather the bomb bay and fuselage floor and sides. SLICK Quote Link to post Share on other sites
WymanV Posted April 11, 2009 Share Posted April 11, 2009 I can see this one's gonna be nice when it's done. And neat way to hold those small bits for paint Ken Quote Link to post Share on other sites
slick95 Posted April 12, 2009 Author Share Posted April 12, 2009 Thanks a lot guys! I worked a little more today on the side panels in the cockpit...nothing worthy of photos yet though. SLICK Quote Link to post Share on other sites
slick95 Posted April 12, 2009 Author Share Posted April 12, 2009 Quick mid-day update. Most of today I have been assembling the insides of the aircraft. I'm about to go airbrush the engine and gear bay areas...hopefully have some updates from that tonight. SLICK Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Touvdal Posted April 13, 2009 Share Posted April 13, 2009 Looking like i very good kit, your making nice progress super. cheers Jes Quote Link to post Share on other sites
slick95 Posted April 14, 2009 Author Share Posted April 14, 2009 Another update from today. I'm really enjoying this kit. The parts detail is nice, the fit is almost perfect (rivals that of some of Tamiya's best IMHO)...I'll have very little filling and sanding that I know of. I completed the engine today, OOB, but if I ever build another one of these I'll probably invest in a resin set of parts. Anyway, here are the pics: Dry fitting the wings. SLICK Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jrallman Posted April 14, 2009 Share Posted April 14, 2009 looking really good! for future reference if you build one of these again, the forward crew area would have been bronze green on the earlier models like this one. great looking engine there too Quote Link to post Share on other sites
slick95 Posted April 14, 2009 Author Share Posted April 14, 2009 Thanks Jay! I wondered about the bronze green color. The instructions (which I understand aren't always very accurate) didn't show a bronze green area for the internal colors, but I looked at a different build and some photos and found either bronze green or the zinc color. I wasn't sure, so I figured it would be easier to go with the single color. If I build one of these again I'll probably look a little more into accuracy. Thanks for the tip! SLICK Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jack-Swiss Posted April 14, 2009 Share Posted April 14, 2009 That looks really promising...very nice work indeed mate Cheers Quote Link to post Share on other sites
slick95 Posted April 16, 2009 Author Share Posted April 16, 2009 Nothing particularly interesting to update on. I did a tiny bit of sanding, putty and rescribing a few rivets around the seam lines. Other than that...nothing. SLICK Quote Link to post Share on other sites
VRFlyer Posted April 16, 2009 Share Posted April 16, 2009 I can see this one's gonna be nice when it's done. And neat way to hold those small bits for paint :lol: Ken I agree with Ken on your part holders - neat trick. I'll be trying that on my current build. I also have the Avenger kit but haven't built up the nerve to tackle it. Every build I see looks so good- yours included, but I've been out of the hobby for a long while and am very out of practice. Nice work! Fred Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jrallman Posted April 16, 2009 Share Posted April 16, 2009 It is an oddity of AM avenger instructions. Their -1C instructions make no mention of Bronze Green, yet their -3 instructions do call out for Bronze Green, even though the -1C was more likely to be found with Bronze Green than the -3, especially any TBM-3s which would almost certainly have an all interior green crew area since they were from GM instead of Grumman. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
slick95 Posted April 19, 2009 Author Share Posted April 19, 2009 A bit of an update. The most noticeable changes are the assembly of the horizontal stabilizers and the wings and horizontals glued in place. However, I have also filled the area around the cowling attach seem, and rescribed a few rivets in that area. Other than that there was almost no filling and sanding, just a few touch ups. I also assembled the turret and masked the clear parts with the kit supplied masks. SLICK Quote Link to post Share on other sites
slick95 Posted May 18, 2009 Author Share Posted May 18, 2009 I am finally able to post another update...and a big one at that. I have finally had time to buy some paint and was able to complete all the base painting both yesterday and today. The next update will be a future coat and decals. I plan on trying the salt weathering on this model. We will see how that goes. Now for some pics: SLICK Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Azgaron Posted May 18, 2009 Share Posted May 18, 2009 Excellent work so far Slick! Cockpit and engine looks great! Cheers, Azgaron Quote Link to post Share on other sites
slick95 Posted May 23, 2009 Author Share Posted May 23, 2009 Small update...decals are on and tomorrow I'll put another coat of future over them then start the weathering process. SLICK Quote Link to post Share on other sites
slick95 Posted May 25, 2009 Author Share Posted May 25, 2009 Another major update. The past two days I have been weathering using the slat crystal technique found here: http://www.aircraftresourcecenter.com/tnt1...altydog/00.shtm I'm fairly happy with the results. To be honest with you though, the weathering took too long for the results I achieved (I used enamels rather than the specified acrylics in the article). I'm not sure if I will use this technique in the future...maybe just to see if I can add my own twist get some better results. Also, this technique is pretty difficult...especially with the three tone color scheme. If the aircraft were just two colors top and bottom, this would be a lot easier. The only problem is that my final future coat afterward nearly erased any trace of the weathering on the dark blue...a few hours wasted IMHO. Another issue I had was that the salt actually started eating away the future coat I applied before weathering. It took a while because the future was fairly thick, but by the time I got to the final layer of weathering I was almost to the base coat color in some areas. Anyway, some pics from today. Thanks for looking! Only a couple horus of work remaining! SLICK Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Grant Lehman Posted May 25, 2009 Share Posted May 25, 2009 WOW an amazing build !!! I have this exact kit, and have been looking forward to working on it. I plan on doing mine in the Atlantic colors scheme. I also have the SBD, and have just finished the Helldiver. I want to have the trio in the Atlantic Theme. Here is a link to my finished Helldiver... Accurate Miniatures 1/48 Helldiver Quote Link to post Share on other sites
slick95 Posted May 25, 2009 Author Share Posted May 25, 2009 Thanks a lot man! I just checked out your Helldiver. Very nice indeed! I also have the SBD and Vindicator I hope to fit into this build. SLICK Quote Link to post Share on other sites
slick95 Posted May 26, 2009 Author Share Posted May 26, 2009 Here are some pics from today's assembly process. I have about a day's worth of work remaining. SLICK Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Grant Lehman Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 Damn Slick .... That looks awesome.... I know I'll be referring to your post when I build mine... GREAT job !! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Azgaron Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 Excellent work Slick! ;) Cheers, Azgaron Quote Link to post Share on other sites
slick95 Posted May 28, 2009 Author Share Posted May 28, 2009 Thanks all for the comments! You'll be happy to know that the Avenger is now complete. I only have these two teaser photos for now (I ran out of light for more pictures), but tomorrow I'll take more detail photos and post them. SLICK Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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