dsahling Posted November 7, 2012 Share Posted November 7, 2012 Ever tried salt weathering? There's an article on the technique in the tips section which is really helpful and it's simply the best way to do weathering. Also, a technique I just learned and tried for the first time (worked pretty good too). After the decals have dried for 4-5 days after using microsol/microset (which I assume yours have) you take a 4800 grit or so sanding sponge dip it in water, and gently rub it over the decal (note: this only works if the decals HAVE NOT been sealed yet) what ends up happening is that the water and gentle rubbing with the sanding sponge "leaches" out the ink from the decals and creates a worn and faded decal. Nice looking camo by the way!! Dan Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jimz66 Posted November 8, 2012 Share Posted November 8, 2012 Very nicely painted SLUFY. Great finish. I can't wait to see this one wrapped up. I have always loved this particular paintscheme. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
John Wolstenholme Posted November 8, 2012 Author Share Posted November 8, 2012 Ever tried salt weathering? it's simply the best way to do weathering. you take a 4800 grit or so gently rub it over the decal Hi Dan, thanks for your comments. I used the decal wear technique on the Lightning. If you look at photos of this A-7 the markings are not visibly worn so I don’t think that would be a good idea in this case. Similarly, I don’t think the salt technique would produce the paint staining/’bleeding’ and/or corrosion treatment effects one sees in photos. The effects are more pronounced than appear in my photo, but I am in the camp of less is more! :) Regards John Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Youngtiger1 Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 John, you nailed the camo. I can't wait to see what you will do with weathering. Mike Quote Link to post Share on other sites
John Wolstenholme Posted December 5, 2012 Author Share Posted December 5, 2012 I can't wait to see what you will do with weathering. Mike Ground Hog Day, back to the present. Mike, if nothing else it gives me the opportunity to revise my ‘disappeared’ reply. I was thinking I’ve already done the ‘weathering’ and you may have been thinking yes, but I can’t see much until I see detailed photos. No idea what you said Marcel (and others?), but thanks for dropping in. There I was thinking (been here before haven’t I?) all I have to do is match the camou of the 8 gear doors to the fuselage and I’m freewheeling to the finish line. I know the CED sheet doesn’t have the name AN “TEX MEX†CONTRERAS for the nose gear doors, but it is on the CAM, so no problem! Come to use them and they are too small. So, I think OK lets look at this as a challenge, rather than a problem. Answer, use some alphabet decals and make the name up from 19 bits, for each door. Turns out the sheet has a constant carrier film, so not only do they all have to be individually cut out, but I’ll need to cut them tight to both sides of each letter or the spacing will be uneven/too big. Yeah, you also need to get a fairly constant cut to the underside of each letter or your alignment will be stuffed. Now beginning to look more like a problem. In the meantime I drop the Iwata airbrush from ~ 1â€during cleaning – yes nozzle cap etc are removed, so there is one damaged fluid nozzle at £30+ a go. It makes you wonder just how much they actually cost to make. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, I crack the lettering, but now have a problem doing the parentheses. Not perfect, but cut the bottom bits off the Rs from the CAM decals and turn them upside down. Then there is the question of split collar main gear down locks. Yep, cracked that one. Oh and what about the canvas strap which prevents the canopy from over opening (seems strange but that’s what an ex A-7E pilot told me), and the canvas bag that this is attached to/housed in. Finally finished and patience gauge is in the red. Had a window of opportunity this afternoon – just got to sift thro’ them. It’s great being able to take loads of shots and dump the crap, at no extra cost. Big thanks to Neo for sorting the problem. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lenny Posted December 5, 2012 Share Posted December 5, 2012 Awesome John. It make's me want to pull my A-7 out of my stash. I just ordered the Zactomodels correction set. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
tomthegrom Posted December 5, 2012 Share Posted December 5, 2012 The Canopy is SO shiney! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
John Wolstenholme Posted December 6, 2012 Author Share Posted December 6, 2012 The Canopy is SO shiney! Do you mean unrealistically so? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
John Wolstenholme Posted December 6, 2012 Author Share Posted December 6, 2012 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
John Wolstenholme Posted December 6, 2012 Author Share Posted December 6, 2012 (edited) Special thanks are due to Tom (Superheat) for technical input, Mark (mhoupt) for taking photos of the rear MGBs to aid detail/correction of Aires set, Guy Wilson(Geedub) for consultation on camou pattern and David Brown's photos on Airfighters which helped resolve some painting questions. Edited March 2, 2013 by John Wolstenholme Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dsahling Posted December 6, 2012 Share Posted December 6, 2012 Stellar work! I really like how well you recreated the "touch ups" on the camouflage done by the crew! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jmel Posted December 7, 2012 Share Posted December 7, 2012 Fantastic work!!!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Adam Baker Posted December 7, 2012 Share Posted December 7, 2012 Very nice!! I picked this kit up early this year and have thought about doing this scheme, but I have the decals to do this bird in 1/48, and I'm not sure I want to do the same scheme in 2 different scales, so I'll do my 1/32 bird in some other scheme. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Gambler Posted December 7, 2012 Share Posted December 7, 2012 Man, that looks awesome John! Superb work mate. Cheer's, Jeff. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Marcel111 Posted December 8, 2012 Share Posted December 8, 2012 John, appreciate the close-up pics. Stunning work! Really love your weathering, which is the way it should be i.e. replicating the effects seen on the real subject and not simply using some generic technique. Very nice to see you stay true to that throughout the build, right down the inlet. Marcel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
streetstream Posted December 9, 2012 Share Posted December 9, 2012 Just a question, maybe a stupid one. How do you board the plane? The first (lowest) step is onde for the left foot. Than the second step is for your right foot. But than the third is a right one again. Do you hop to this one or do you take a very big step to the 4th step and than balance on the lower third step. I hope someone understands what i'm trying to say. But besides that, what a great model. It is really impresive. I hope that someday i have the skills and patience to make something like that. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
John Wolstenholme Posted December 10, 2012 Author Share Posted December 10, 2012 Thanks one and all, you guys know what it takes to get there. Regards John Just a question, maybe a stupid one. Not at all. I have never boarded an A-7, but I would think like this Quote Link to post Share on other sites
chuck540z3 Posted December 10, 2012 Share Posted December 10, 2012 Another stunning build by Mr. Wolstenholme. The close ups say it all, which is that all the tiny details have been perfected. Your weathering is great too and I agree that any more would be over the top. Congrat's John on another fantastic modeling effort. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
streetstream Posted December 10, 2012 Share Posted December 10, 2012 Thanks one and all, you guys know what it takes to get there. Regards John Not at all. I have never boarded an A-7, but I would think like this Oh, there it is. I didn't see the third step as shown in your picture. Thanks Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Kagemusha Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Stunning indeed, great choice of background for the photographs, really makes the camouflage more vibrant. Now about that Harrier... ;) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bigasshammm Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 This makes me sad I sold mine. Amazing. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jimz66 Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 SIMPLY STUNNING WORK... awesome just freaking awesome... so cool. I really love this model.. well done. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
EagleAviation Posted December 16, 2012 Share Posted December 16, 2012 Fantastic work. Love your metal finishes and the amazingly shiny canopy! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
John Wolstenholme Posted October 13, 2013 Author Share Posted October 13, 2013 (edited) zaxos345 asked me what I had done regarding airbrake mods. Hello John. It was apparent from the few photos I had seen of the airbrake extended that the kit part was too short/stubby. I found this photo to make a determination for lengthening the airbrake and bay, not having access to the real thing unlike yourself :D www.airpics.com/view.php?photo_id=124983 You can see where the airbrake is relative to the MG doors that it is way short. My mods Regards John Link didn't work! Edited October 13, 2013 by John Wolstenholme Quote Link to post Share on other sites
zaxos345 Posted October 13, 2013 Share Posted October 13, 2013 Thanks John! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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