crackerjazz Posted August 9, 2016 Author Share Posted August 9, 2016 (edited) I fit in some support structure for the stand. Love that clamshell body shape of the fuselage. Edited August 12, 2016 by crackerjazz Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crackerjazz Posted August 12, 2016 Author Share Posted August 12, 2016 (edited) Horrible job with the screens : ) Should have thinned the paint a bit more. Still need to paint the side panels. Switched to phone on these shots because I couldn't get the camera to focus well to capture everything in macro mode. The other areas just become really blurry. Those squiggly paint lines are not due to camera-shake -- but the hand shaking while painting. The amount of shaking, I find, is directly proportional to your desire not to make a mistake. Edited August 12, 2016 by crackerjazz Quote Link to post Share on other sites
murad Posted August 12, 2016 Share Posted August 12, 2016 how about going in with a very wet coat of clear green over those screens, not painting but allowing the capillary action to do it's thing - those bumps might actually give a rather nice effect with a clear tint on top of them!? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crackerjazz Posted August 12, 2016 Author Share Posted August 12, 2016 Thanks, murad, but I'm getting restless just looking at the photos :wacko: I just might have to clean those screens up and start over. Those buttons too. I just made a fool of myself mentioning the scribe lines --- and then showing my own handiwork :( Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crackerjazz Posted August 13, 2016 Author Share Posted August 13, 2016 Did some rework. Also wiped away the green paint and repainted the screens. I think the more I touch it up the worse it gets so maybe I'll just stop at this point. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jester292 Posted August 14, 2016 Share Posted August 14, 2016 Very nice! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
JohnS Posted August 14, 2016 Share Posted August 14, 2016 Looking good! Another little trick I've used on my IP screens is holding them horizontally & adding a small drop of Future. The Future creeps over the screen & fills in the uneven paint to give a relatively flat & shiny surface. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jbryan911 Posted August 16, 2016 Share Posted August 16, 2016 (edited) Thanks, guys! Collin, Andrew, thanks for the info -- I'll have to find a way to modify and reposition the arms using some 2 part putty. I hope they don't end up looking like Gumby's as my sculpts usually turn out. Those Steel Beach gearbay plugs are amazing, Darren - very useful invention! :)/>/> I'll try my hand at closing the kit gear doors for this Tomcat just for the experience and make sure I pick up a set for the second one! This is my very first Hase F-14 - so incredibly detailed compared to the Revell 1/48 kit I got as a kid. If this had come out at that time I wouldn't have been able to afford one but my eyes would have spun around in spirals as they do now. By the way, I read your F-14 comparisons and is what prompted me to try to build the cockpit OOB. Get some 2 part epoxy putty like JB weld, Milliput or Apoxie sculpt for you wheel bays. Put a blob in before you add the door. It makes it much easier to get the doors level with the fuselage. If I recall when I did mine, the doors are somewhat undersized, especially the mains. So you will need to do some filling. Looking through the thread I see you already added them. Looks good, especially your cockpit painting. Edited August 16, 2016 by jbryan911 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crackerjazz Posted August 17, 2016 Author Share Posted August 17, 2016 Hi John, thanks! I should have tried that technique -- looks good to me so far after repainting. But I'll give that a try next time. You wouldn't believe this but I lost the starboard side panels! So I'm trying to recreate those side fabric covers. It wouldn't be very visible when the canopy is closed up. Some progress on the fuselage. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crackerjazz Posted August 17, 2016 Author Share Posted August 17, 2016 Also started working on the gear covers and intakes of the older box Tomcat. The plastic seems so much harder so it's tougher to bend the intake edges into shape to match the contour of the engine area. I had a relatively easier time and nicer results with the intakes of the newer Tomcat -- but not on this older kit -- which will require some sanding and filling. Hi, Bryan thanks for the gear covers tip. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
A-10 LOADER Posted August 18, 2016 Share Posted August 18, 2016 Keep pluggin' away crackerjazz, you got this !! Nice progress so far. Steve Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crackerjazz Posted August 19, 2016 Author Share Posted August 19, 2016 (edited) Thanks for the encouragement, Steve! I sure hope to finish this project. I cut one of the pins by mistake, thinking it was part of the tree and had to replace it with a metal pin. It actually keeps the end of the flap from drooping. I have a bit of a problem. How did you guys take care of the gap in the wing opening? It looks pretty nasty. Scaled up, it's almost as big a space to fit a hand into. From the pictures there shouldn't be any gap. This is what I have in mind but I really want to be talked out of it as I don't know what the consequences will be. Edited August 19, 2016 by crackerjazz Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Whiskey Posted August 19, 2016 Share Posted August 19, 2016 So I actually just came across a company on evilbay that made AM glove vanes to counter that exact issue. Problem is now I can't seem to find it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
my favs are F`s Posted August 19, 2016 Share Posted August 19, 2016 (edited) crackerjazz, that`s exactly what i could recommend (some cutting) too. However, it should be right at the seamline where the two halves of the fuselage meet, as well as a cut for just about 1cm or less. A very thin gap, just to make the edges closer to each other after a very gentle tension. So, what will keep the tension by itself? I could try to insert a pin from the upper to the lower fuselage just behind the edges, an invisible pin that will stay inside the fuselage. But this means that the pin should go through the wings. So, you have to trace the exact path of the pin through the wing roots when they move back and forth ;) It should be something like a very short curved pat with the thickness of the pin. Of course it would be invisible cause it will stay inside the fuselage, but you will have the pin holding the two fuselages and thus eliminating the gap. This is just my opinion, it includes a lot of testfits mostly for adjusting the perfect dimensions of the pin, as well as its best location. I know ti doesn`t look simple, but you will have the wings moving even smoother due to the tension of the edges that will provide more friction. It comes to a very thick plastic pin from the same plastic that could melt better with the fuselage, actually it may be something like an elongated curved "pin"... yet it will travel through the same path into the wing roots. I don`t know, it all depends on how much tension is needed to make the gap invisible... Edited August 19, 2016 by my favs are F`s Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crackerjazz Posted August 20, 2016 Author Share Posted August 20, 2016 Thanks for the suggestion -- I'll see if I can give it a whirl as soon as I could muster up enough courage to do so. My mistake was that I glued on the fuselage halves permanently without test-fitting the wings first. Hi Whiskey, I hope I can track one down. Some progress with the base. Maybe I should call these the Cheeseblock Tomcats. Right now, though, it's just a pair of headless turkeys. Flying so dangerously close to each other. The daring F-14 pilots :) What a mess. I dared not capture the whole workbench lest you think I'm a slob. I know I am, though. And is the reason I lose so many parts. Making some slip-on rings to make the tailplanes movable. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
A-10 LOADER Posted August 20, 2016 Share Posted August 20, 2016 I really like the concept crackerjazz but, IMO your base needs to be wider. Those Tomcats are way too close for the scale affect. Steve Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crackerjazz Posted August 21, 2016 Author Share Posted August 21, 2016 Hi Steve -- thanks for stopping by :) Thanks for the input -- I debated about it for a long time and thought about the same. In the end I decided I wanted to show everything in a small footprint where the planes kind of pop out from the base for effect. Not too far apart to save space, but, yeah -- too close to each other and realism is sacrificed. I might still bend the wires a bit outward for the plane in the back to keep the display from becoming a pair of Blue Angels F-14s :wacko: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
305swag Posted August 21, 2016 Share Posted August 21, 2016 Keep up the good work! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
falcon20driver Posted August 22, 2016 Share Posted August 22, 2016 I really love your concept. It is going to be captivating. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crackerjazz Posted August 26, 2016 Author Share Posted August 26, 2016 Hey thanks guys! :) The one on top is from the old 80's boxing and the other one's from the recent release. I kinda like the older one with deeper recesses and somewhat open vents but it doesn't have the horizontal slats. Old tooling - The back of the older vent has some holes open while the newer tooling is totally closed and you will have to depend on wash to depict the holes. New tooling. New tooling. New tooling. Rear of bump has to be filled a bit if I were to use this. Old tooling with deeper recesses. Old tooling - Rear of bump will have to be sanded down. Chose to use the old one. Some more fixing to do but I kind of like the deeper grooves. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crackerjazz Posted August 26, 2016 Author Share Posted August 26, 2016 Was wondering if it was worth the trouble to add toggle switches... I'll try to cut them shorter once I get those nice sprue cutters I've been planning to buy for 10 years. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Fighting Eighty-Four Posted August 27, 2016 Share Posted August 27, 2016 That cockpit is really looking awesome! I love the extra detail you are putting in there. That is something I need to try to do one of these days. You really get a great fit on those gun panels, way better than I did. Well done! I know how hard that is to accomplish. Keep going, looking forward to seeing your next update! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
a4s4eva Posted August 27, 2016 Share Posted August 27, 2016 Nice idea, that's going to be a real eye catcher when it's done Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crackerjazz Posted August 28, 2016 Author Share Posted August 28, 2016 Hey, Fighting Eighty Four, thanks! I hope I can paint this model as good as yours turned out! A4s4eva, thanks for stopping by! :) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
my favs are F`s Posted August 28, 2016 Share Posted August 28, 2016 Very nice vistas with the switches! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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