Rambler Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Very nice work on the A-10, and I think the photography is great too. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
chuck540z3 Posted January 31, 2014 Author Share Posted January 31, 2014 (edited) Thanks for the feedback guys. I'm finally starting to figure out this new photo-booth I got for Xmas. I added some nice globs of LS to the gaps around the vertical strakes and as I've learned over the past month or two, I should let them dry for at least a week before sanding them. When they are sanded, I'll attach the wings to the fuselage and really get this thing looking like a Hog. In the meantime, it's time to make up the ordnance, and all sorts of other stuff I have no clue about, so if I'm screwing up, let me know! Everything hanging from a pylon will be the best aftermarket resin bomb, missile or pod I could find. Here's the line-up of "mini-models" coming soon. Station 11. Dual Rail Adapter from Sierra Hotel Models. Don't ask me how I got this elusive beauty, other than to concede I did a lot of sucking up to secure one!: On the outside of the DRA, a practice AIM-9M Sidewinder from Zactomodels. This is the best missile out there in 1/32 which was mastered by Alexander(Eastern) and perfectly cast by Cris Wilson. I might have put a CATM-9 here instead, but that would have meant removing a lot of this great detail, so I'll stick with the practice round instead. On the inside of the same DRA, a straight ACMI pod (without the bars on the tip) from Two Mikes, who no longer makes them- or anything else for that matter. Quality is "Good Enough" with lots of bubbles to deal with, but I'll take it over the alternative, which is nothing. Station 10. An AN/AAQ Lightening Pod from Wolfpack. This thing looks pretty good and it even comes with decals. I won't be needing the pylon, which is for an F-16. Stations 9/3. AGM-65 Mavericks from North Star Models, which come two to a set. Whoever recommended this missile to me, take a bow. This resin and PE brass kit from Latvia is fantastic!- and it also comes with decals. I really look forward to putting one of these together. Stations 8/7/5/4. Mk.82 Air Inflatable Retard (AIR) bombs from AMS resin. "Harold", who has posted in this thread above, makes these super detailed bombs and so much more. The quality is first rate and this and his other products are distributed by Sprue Bros. Link to his products is here: AMS Resin Station 6. Empty Station 2. M260 (LAU-68) Rocket pod from CMK. The correct rocket pod should be an LAU-131, but they don't seem to exist in 1/32 and this one looks almost identical. Station 1. And finally on the other end, an AN/ALQ-184 2-Band (short) pod, again from Harold at AMS Resin. Unfortunately this one doesn't come with decals, so it looks like my Tamiya F-16CJ kit is going to get raided again! So that's the lineup. Let the mini-modeling begin!- and thanks again for staying tuned in to this build. (Disclaimer: I paid full retail price for everything above and have no affiliation with any of the vendors!) Edited February 1, 2014 by chuck540z3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
JesniF-16 Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 (edited) That's what I'm talkin about Chuck... Yer on top of the world I'm talkin about the pics... and nice line-up as well, good luck! /Jess Edited January 31, 2014 by JesniF-16 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jimbo59 Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 It just keeps getting better. The new pic look great. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sharkey Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Wow those explosives and missiles look amazing even unpainted! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Finn Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Chuck, there are some A-10 Mk-82AIR pics here: http://www.307bw.afrc.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123219172 Jari Quote Link to post Share on other sites
A-10 LOADER Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Chuck, those new pics look alot better, well done. You've got some nice pieces there to hang on the Hog, they all look really, really good. Looking forward to seeing this stuff get underway. Steve Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Finn Posted February 1, 2014 Share Posted February 1, 2014 Here is another detail pic, the Litening pod this time: http://www.bagram.afcent.af.mil/shared/media/photodb/photos/2012/10/121003-F-AO544-316.jpg note the items on the bottom of the pod. Jari Quote Link to post Share on other sites
chuck540z3 Posted February 1, 2014 Author Share Posted February 1, 2014 Here is another detail pic, the Litening pod this time: http://www.bagram.afcent.af.mil/shared/media/photodb/photos/2012/10/121003-F-AO544-316.jpg note the items on the bottom of the pod. Jari As usual Jari, MUCH appreciated! No updates 'till next week guys. I'm going to take the weekend off from modeling and pretend I have a life after all. ;) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Marcel111 Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 Wow Chuck, spectacular progress... as we have all come to expect! And thanks for all the kudos on the walkway method . Hopefully I will get to do that again pretty soon on my F-4 (tipped over my tripod and broke my camera lens, hence no updates on Chico). Marcel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
chuck540z3 Posted February 6, 2014 Author Share Posted February 6, 2014 (edited) As I’ve indicated way too many times, this build has been a real workout. I bet I've gone through as much sandpaper as I used on my last three builds- combined. While trying to fix all sorts of errors, panel lines and rivet detail, I have also re-scribed EVERY panel line and re-punched EVERY recessed rivet. The pics I’ve shown so far don’t show much of this corrected detail, so it’s likely new paint will hide much of it as well. In order to preserve as much of it as possible AND control what is highlighted more than other areas, I decided to try a new product (to me anyway) BEFORE painting as an experiment. The product is called Tamiya Panel Line Accent Colors. I’ve always wanted to give this stuff a try, but my local hobby stops don’t carry it and all the other on-line suppliers I deal with in the US won’t ship flammables to Canada, likely for legal reasons. On top of that, I couldn’t find any of them that stocked it either!, but maybe I just didn’t look hard enough. Fortunately, our friends in China will ship just about anything through the mail and call it “Model Parts”, so I bought this stuff on ebay from a place called “toys-misa” in Hong Kong for $9.44 a bottle. Not only did they ship it, the shipping was free and delivered to my door in Canada in about 2 weeks with no extra charges. The packaging was also bullet proof, so I highly recommend them if you want to give this product a try. Tamiya Model Magazine has a tutorial on how to use this stuff here: http://tamiyamodelmagazine.com/blog/2012/09/27/tech-guide-aircraft-weathering/ Note that I have the Black, Brown and Dark Brown colors while the tutorial also shows a Grey, so the product line must have expanded a bit recently. Unlike most panel line washes, I am not using this stuff exclusively after painting with acrylics or a good coat of Future, which the instructions recommend. They also warn of the plastic possibly becoming brittle if you use it without a protective coat. Being enamel based, I didn’t really believe it was a big deal, it so I just went ahead and used it on the bare plastic anyway. I am using this product to make all the panel lines and rivets show through the paint, as I would with preshading, which I will still do with my airbrush here and there where I want extra grime or dirty marks. I have experimented with it enough that I am confident that most of it will still show through the Light and Dark Ghost Grey paint I’ll be using. There are other reasons to fill the panel lines and rivets with a dark wash before painting: 1) Flawed panel lines will show up 2) Poor sanding will appear rough 3) Putty and CA glue flaws will show up 4) Seam gaps will show up 5) The dark color will fill the depression before paint fills it up, making a stronger impression after painting Of course most these flaws will show up after the first coat of paint, but it’s a lot easier to fix them now. Thankfully, I found several flaws while adding the Black wash to just about every panel line and rivet. For some panel lines that I want to remain subtle, I didn’t add any of the color at all. Here’s how things look so far as I go over the entire build. Starboard front fuselage. A close up. Note that the gaps in front of the vertical shrake have been filled with LS, which you can barely see as a color change. If the gaps were flawed, dark wash would leak inside and show up. The angled vertical panel line on the right under the cockpit, however, has a thinner portion in the middle, which is inconsistent with the rest of the panel line. An easy fix at this stage. Those 3 big blotches at the front are droplets of wash I have yet to remove..... The port side. That LS really did a nice job filling those shrake gaps and yes, the shrake should sit slightly proud of the fuselage side and not be flush with it. To achieve this, I placed a bit more LS underneath each shrake.... Here’s an example of how I applied the panel line color to the wing. Unlike oil washes, this stuff is super dense in color, so you don’t need much to get total saturation. BEFORE: AFTER: Most of those panel lines and rivets are not on the kit parts and were re-done. That double vertical panel line on the wing front just to the right of the sponson is a particularly characteristic feature that was missing. The horizontal panel line at the top of the sponson was filled with CA glue to hide it- apparently successfully or the wash would show flaws. I wish I hadn’t painted any of the parts beforehand, but I needed to check for wingtip flaws earlier I bet you guys didn’t see those oval access panels before! They are on the kit wings, but they are very rough and shallow, so I re-did them all…. I have complained earlier that my photography looked “washed out”. Well, the kit parts are washed out, so no wonder! BEFORE: Edited February 8, 2014 by chuck540z3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
chuck540z3 Posted February 6, 2014 Author Share Posted February 6, 2014 (edited) AFTER: Here’s where I found a seam flaw between the two formation lights, which has since been fixed. TEST FIT!! For the first time, I dry fitted all the parts together, mostly to find out if this pig was going to be a tail sitter. It appears all the weight I put in the nose is just about right, with a very slight front heavy feel. All future ordnance will be directly over the axis of the main landing gear, so I don’t need to worry about tipping the weight to the back later as I add more parts. I left off the nose refueling panel, just in case I needed to add more weight, so now I can attach it permanently. Sorry for the crappy lighting over my work desk, but I’m months away from taking final shots of this build anyway. Man this thing is BIG! I needed to angle the wings to make it fit. There is a large shroud-like feature at the rear of the wing root, which is on the rear fuselage parts. This part is featureless, so I added panel lines and rivet detail to more or less match pics of the real deal. Looks like I have a small boo-boo on the horizontal panel line I need to fix, which I could not see without the panel wash. Note: Some of those wrong panel lines and gaps are filled with CA glue, like the panel line behind the "Winnebago antenna" and the seam gap under the formation light. I can hardly wait to stick the “Black Snake” decal on that nose and make it look evil, wicked, mean and nasty, like an A-10 should! This angle really shows how smooth all the plastic is now after many hours of sanding everything. Recall, the parts used to look like this! And this.... So, the obvious question concerning the Tamiya Panel Line Accent Color is whether or not it's much better than an ordinary oil paint wash that's used all the time. For me, the answer is that it's definitely easier to use and I can control where the wash goes, because it's more saturated with color than most washes. Is it way better? Not really, but I still like and will add it to my arsenal as a modeling staple. Thanks for checking in. I’m on the back stretch now, but I still have a TON of work to do! Edited February 6, 2014 by chuck540z3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Twig Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Wow Chuck! Isn't it amazing how something as simple as a little wash can completely transform the look of the model? You must be pretty happy in seeing all that hard work finally pay off as the surface detail starts to show. Really great work! Craig Quote Link to post Share on other sites
galfa Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Just keep us posted, Everything you are doing on this model is very interesting, inspirational, and helpful for me. So, the more pics you post, the better it is. Ciao! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
galfa Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Chuck, Give us more pictures, because - everything - you are doing on this model is very interesting, inspirational, and helpful. So, the more pics you post, the better it is. Ciao! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
galfa Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Chuck, Give us more pictures because - everything - you are doing on this model is very interesting, inspirational, and helpful. So, pictures of your builds are never enough. The more you post, the better it is. Ciao! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
chuck540z3 Posted February 6, 2014 Author Share Posted February 6, 2014 (edited) Chuck, Give us more pictures because - everything - you are doing on this model is very interesting, inspirational, and helpful. So, pictures of your builds are never enough. The more you post, the better it is. Ciao! Thanks Galfa- How about this? Remember those gaps at the front of the shrake after I moved it back? I used Liquid Sprue to fill them in, because you can't re-scribe putty very well and CA glue is tough to see what is filled and what isn't. Due to significant shrinkage of LS, you need to build it up much higher than you think... After sanding, rescribing and pre-shading. Those 3 big dots on the right front are due to more Tamiya wash on big rivet marks that I haven't wiped off yet. Edited February 6, 2014 by chuck540z3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Devilleader501 Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Another added benefit of using the wash like this is just before a paint booth session when cleaning the wash off your actually prepping the plastic for fresh paint. Only negative I can see from this stand point is making sure every bit of vapor has evacuated the plastic before paint. Great idea I think I'm going to start doing this as well just so I can see the detail better before it disappears while sanding. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
chuck540z3 Posted February 6, 2014 Author Share Posted February 6, 2014 Another added benefit of using the wash like this is just before a paint booth session when cleaning the wash off your actually prepping the plastic for fresh paint. Only negative I can see from this stand point is making sure every bit of vapor has evacuated the plastic before paint. Great idea I think I'm going to start doing this as well just so I can see the detail better before it disappears while sanding. You must be using acrylics where oils and solvents can repel the paint. I use enamels and lacquers exclusively, so I don't clean the plastic of oils at all- I just clean off the dust- before painting. So far I've never had a problem with paint acting up where an oily fingerprint used to be. The solvents in the paint just level it out. A tip when you sand an area with lots of detail is to deepen the panel lines and rivets before you sand, so that you can still find them and replace the detail at the end. I often do this several times if I'm really digging deep, as I did when I shaved off the fat nose of this kit. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
brewer Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 A tip when you sand an area with lots of detail is to deepen the panel lines and rivets before you sand, so that you can still find them and replace the detail at the end. I often do this several times if I'm really digging deep, as I did when I shaved off the fat nose of this kit. That's what I always do I find that method also gives you more crisp/uniform surface detail after sanding as well Quote Link to post Share on other sites
phasephantomphixer Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Super duper Chuck, almost there! If this will be entering any competition be extra double sure (possibly have a second set of eyes check) that main wings align with engine nacelles, tail and gear, etc. as it is a #1 A-10 killer! You have all other aspects covered so it is the one critical issue. Hope it goes well to the end for you. Thanks for thorough show & tell. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
chuck540z3 Posted February 6, 2014 Author Share Posted February 6, 2014 (edited) Super duper Chuck, almost there! If this will be entering any competition be extra double sure (possibly have a second set of eyes check) that main wings align with engine nacelles, tail and gear, etc. as it is a #1 A-10 killer! You have all other aspects covered so it is the one critical issue. Hope it goes well to the end for you. Thanks for thorough show & tell. Thanks Erik for the tips. Since the kit is shaky at the best of times, I have taken extra care in those areas, which is why I haven't glued on a wing or landing gear leg- yet. My dry fitting in the photo above indicates that the wing fit is pretty good and level, but if I glued in the landing gear as is, they would be very crooked in two directions. Even the nose gear is a bit wonky. So here's the current plan: 1) Add the wing fence and stall strips to the wings. The inner wing slats will go on last near the end of the build. 2) Paint all the main parts separately with a thin primer coat of the Light Ghost Grey. That way they will be easy to handle and fix all the inevitable flaws that show up with a first coat of paint. 3) Glue the wings on to the front fuselage, trying to keep them super straight and 90 degrees to the fuselage sides. Since there is play in the fit right now, I want to keep the access I have from the back of the fuselage to add glue reinforcement from inside, rather than risk a gluey mess from the outside. I will also need a bit of putty for the wing root to close all gaps, but not too much. 4) Glue on rear fuselage. The fit is pretty good right now, but I want to make it as seamless as possible. 5) Finish painting, including the "camo" scheme of Dark Ghost Grey. 5) Finish the landing gear and wheels. Right now I've just got a good coat of white lacquer on them, which will be followed by additional plumbing and other little bits that I didn't want to get white paint on. I haven't even started the Cutting Edge wheels yet, with the hope that some Sierra Hotel ones come soon, but it wouldn't hurt to have an extra set on hand, just in case they don't. 6) Start making the many ordnance and pod "mini-models", followed by picky paint jobs for all of them. I also need to paint the front gun, antennae and many other little parts I set aside to avoid breakage. <<<< Go to Maui again for 3 weeks in March, the first anniversary of this build! Yes, I was already there in October, but I'm old, it's cold and I need it. >>>> 7) When the paint is thoroughly dry, lightly sand every square inch, then apply a good couple of coats of Future to prep the model for decals. 8) Decals. I have a million of them to do, since I also have the Daco stencil set. I can't wait for that snake mouth on the front! 9) Salt weathering. Not the entire model this time, but just the top where boot prints and wear and tear is evident in many pics I have, especially on the walkways. 10) Post shading and weathering washes. Depending on how well the pre-shading I did above is still visible, this might be fairly minor. I want it to look "used and a bit worn", but not filthy. 11) Dull Coat 12) Cement in the landing gear. I need to enlarge all the landing gear holes to allow some play to get the alignment correct. Of all the tedious and stressful jobs I hate in modeling, this is the #1 task I hate the most, mostly because it's a fatal flaw at a model contest and the first thing judges and modeling friends look at. 13) Add and paint all the fiddly bits as required. 14) Finish off the cockpit. It's almost complete, but I left off some bits on purpose to avoid breakage. DONE! Edited February 6, 2014 by chuck540z3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
chuck540z3 Posted February 7, 2014 Author Share Posted February 7, 2014 Something I neglected to show earlier when I displayed all the unmade ordnance and pods, is a new A-10C Instrument Panel from Harold at AMS. It is right up there for quality with the Cutting Edge IP I installed and if I had this earlier, I would have altered the rest of the CE cockpit accordingly to try and replicate the new version. All it needs are a few toggle switches on the flat plate under the left screen, which you could easily make with fine wire. The glareshield (coaming) looks pretty accurate too. The Cutting Edge IP was the killer since I couldn't make all the changes necessary for the A-10C, so I didn't even try. With this new product, you guys can. Again, Harold's website and contact info is here if you want one- or any other of his great resin products. AMS Resin Quote Link to post Share on other sites
JesniF-16 Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 (edited) Incredible work Chuck, I'm stunned by all of the little things that all add up to this masterpiece! Hard to believe looking at the original plastic, that this is the Trumpy kit... You could probably get a magazine article on this pig without even throwing paint at it Now with the Tamiya Accents tip, you've given me more idea's... THANK YOU! And dang, your pics are just gorgeous /Jesse Edited February 7, 2014 by JesniF-16 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Youngtiger1 Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 Great updates as usuall Chuck. I really like the tamya wash. Will have to get some myself. It's going to be another master piece. :thumbsup:/> Mike Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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