Joel_W Posted October 22, 2017 Author Share Posted October 22, 2017 8 minutes ago, Peterpools said: JA Terrific update and some mighty nice wortk especially on the scribing and nav lights. Bro Bro, Thanks for the support and guideness, it's much appreciated. I also decreased the size of my signature picture. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Peterpools Posted October 22, 2017 Share Posted October 22, 2017 JA Looks much better for sure. Bro Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted November 4, 2017 Author Share Posted November 4, 2017 I need to back track and finish the belly tank detailing. The tank being metal was wielded down the center seam with a overly large wield joint. For some reason Eduard didn't include this detail, so I needed to fabricate it. Since I had already glued the halves together the only viable way to accomplish it that I could think of was with stretch sprue rather then wire or lead. The reason I went that route was that the Extra Thin Tamiya glue would not only glue it to the tank, but would slightly "melt" it so that it looked more like a wield then something just laying on the top of the tank. A little light sanding and polishing was the only other things I did. Honestly, the hardest part was trying to keep then sprue string as straight as possible. I got close but it's certainly not perfect by any means. Next was just gluing up the various flying surfaces to the wings and stabilizers. They all tabbed to be in the neutral position, and I liked that look on my Cat, so I left it that way. The wings and horizontal Stabs were glued into place, and she's finally starting to look like a real deal. The last sub assembly I needed to build before the painting process could start, is the engine cowl. Eduard's cowl is a 3 piece unit. all the parts fit snug and line up pretty well, but I did feel a small lip between the halves and the cowl mating to the cowl body. So I sanding and polished, then re-scribed. I didn't start the polishing process when I took this grab shot, so the sanding marks still are visible. You can also see the PE screen that comes with the kit. And now I'm finally ready to start the painting process: Since I'm depicting an operational aircraft that was basically well maintained, I needed to use color modulation to help create the uneven paint fading so often seen in the PTo, so I decided on Black Basing rather then just a black primer coat. 1st I laid down a somewhat uneven coat of Mig Ammo Acrylic black primer thinned 2 parts primer to 3 parts Tamiya Yellow cap Lacquer thinner: Then I followed it up with blotches done with Mig Ammo Acrylic gray primer thinned out the same way: I did apply more of the gray primer along the leading edges, the front of the engine cowl, and the spine of the Cat as those areas would take the greatest beating and thus show the most amount of fading and wear & tear. Thanks for taking the time to stop by and checkout my build to date. It's always most appreciated, especially any comments you may post. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Peterpools Posted November 4, 2017 Share Posted November 4, 2017 JA Super progress on the Hellcat. Nice work on catching Eduard's omission on the belly tank as it is very prominent in any photo - I wonder how they missed it? Cowl also looks smooth and ready for primer. Nice work on the black basing and primer -should really bring out the PT faded paint look quite nicely. Keep 'em coming Bro Quote Link to post Share on other sites
JesusNut Posted November 4, 2017 Share Posted November 4, 2017 Looks good Joel. I am interested in seeing the final paint job with the gray undertones to show fading. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted November 6, 2017 Author Share Posted November 6, 2017 On 11/4/2017 at 9:06 AM, Peterpools said: JA Super progress on the Hellcat. Nice work on catching Eduard's omission on the belly tank as it is very prominent in any photo - I wonder how they missed it? Cowl also looks smooth and ready for primer. Nice work on the black basing and primer -should really bring out the PT faded paint look quite nicely. Keep 'em coming Bro Bro, Thanks for stopping by and checking out my Cat build. Yeah, it really surprised me that Eduard would either miss or just not bother to add the wield seam to the centerline tank as it's such a prominent detail. Black primer and black basing seems to have become my norm these days. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted November 6, 2017 Author Share Posted November 6, 2017 On 11/4/2017 at 4:04 PM, JesusNut said: Looks good Joel. I am interested in seeing the final paint job with the gray undertones to show fading. Thanks for taking the time to checkout my build, it's much appreciated. I'm hoping that the color modulation from the black basing takes care of the 1st few weathering steps. The white undersides should show less of a blotchy effect then the multi colored topside. I've started the painting process, and so far I'm pretty happy with the results. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crackerjazz Posted November 6, 2017 Share Posted November 6, 2017 Hi Joel, looking forward to seeing how the black-basing turns out. I've got some props in the stash and plan to tackle them once I've practiced airbrushing enough so I'm taking notes. I used to handbrush everything when I was younger. And all I used was house paint, can you believe that : ) Reminds me of the saying that goes "When you're young you have time and energy but no money. When you get older you have money and energy but no time. And when you finally have time and money, you no longer have the energy." Sounds like a modeler with a growing stash of unbuilt kits : ) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted November 6, 2017 Author Share Posted November 6, 2017 Crackerjazz, Thanks for stopping by and checking out my Grumman Cat build, it's much appreciated. Now that I've made it into my golden years (will be 70 next Tuesday), I can attest to the fact that the saying is so very true, Sure wish it wasn't, but for me it's a pretty close summation of my life. I've done 3 other builds with black Basing, and I was surprised at just how well the color modulation turns out as a start to a realistic weathering presentation. It does show up better up close and personal over pictures where the lighting really effects the visual differences which are only a few shades apart. Hopefully, my pictures will show more then less. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
CaptainObvious Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 Looking good Joel. Happy 70th Birthday! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted November 13, 2017 Author Share Posted November 13, 2017 6 hours ago, CaptainObvious said: Looking good Joel. Happy 70th Birthday! Captain Obvious, thanks for checking out my Cat progress, and for tomorrow's B'day wishes. Never thought I'd ever hit 70, now that's it's almost here, I keep on wondering where all the time actually went. Way to fast if you ask me. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
crackerjazz Posted November 14, 2017 Share Posted November 14, 2017 I don't expect any updates from you today -- the day is too special to be spent in the man-cave : ) Happy Birthday, Joel!!! : ) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted November 14, 2017 Author Share Posted November 14, 2017 48 minutes ago, crackerjazz said: I don't expect any updates from you today -- the day is too special to be spent in the man-cave : ) Happy Birthday, Joel!!! : ) Crackerjazz, Thanks so much for the birthday greetings. Just another workday for me as I work overnights even when I semi retire after the 1st of the year. Actually, I just finished a little touch up free hand air brushing, took some grab pictures, and will hopefully be posting the basic camo paint scheme later today. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted November 14, 2017 Author Share Posted November 14, 2017 Took about a week to finish the base painting of the tri color camo paint scheme . I started off with a 2:3 ratio of Mig Ammo Satin White thinned with Tamiya Yellow Cap, and AB'd at a flow rate of 14-16 psi. After several lite coats I was happy with the mottling effect I had achieved. I let that dry for a day as I had decided on using the worm method of masking for soft demarcation lines. Rather then Blu-Tac, I've been using Silly Putty for the last few years without any issues. Sticks better, and doesn't leave any oily residue as I've read every so often. Next color I AB'd was the Sea Blue ANA 606 with the closed accepted FS match being 25042. I let that dry for a day, then more Silly string worms and I shot the Intermediate Blue/Gray ANA 608/FS 25042. After I cleaned my AB, I removed the Tamiya tape and worms. The demarcation line looked ok, but I had just plain missed it in a few areas. So l've been touching up various spots and areas AB'ing free hand, and little by little it's looking like it should. I still have one area of Intermediate Blue to re-due a 3rd time as the re-due is brighter then the rest of the area, which doesn't make much sense. I'll concentrate on feathering out the paint patch, but leave the final blending for the weathering process. The random marbling is clearly visible in the Sea blue, but really doesn't show up at all in the Intermediate Blue. I'm going to assume that I applied to many coats of paint. As I said, I have a little more touch up work to do over the next day or so, then Gloss coat with Testors Glosscoat and start the decaling process. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HOLMES Posted November 14, 2017 Share Posted November 14, 2017 Hello Joel, EXEMPLARY work ... Really awesome wirk on the cockpit. Looking forward to seeing more. And HAPPY BIRTHDAY to you Joel_W and your brother Peter Have a fantastic day. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted November 14, 2017 Author Share Posted November 14, 2017 10 minutes ago, HOLMES said: Hello Joel, EXEMPLARY work ... Really awesome wirk on the cockpit. Looking forward to seeing more. And HAPPY BIRTHDAY to you Joel_W and your brother Peter Have a fantastic day. Holmes, Thanks so much for stopping by, and your B'day wishes, it's really much appreciated. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
JesusNut Posted November 15, 2017 Share Posted November 15, 2017 (edited) That marbling with the gray really stands out on the sea blue. Fantastic! I see what you mean on the intermediate blue, but could it also be that the intermediate blue is already so close to the gray? Just a thought as I am looking to paint a TBM-3D in the same camo scheme soon. Oh, and happy birthday! Edited November 15, 2017 by JesusNut Quote Link to post Share on other sites
egg2012 Posted November 15, 2017 Share Posted November 15, 2017 Happy birthday !Sir Your passion is really impressive . F6F has been in my list. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
CaptainObvious Posted November 15, 2017 Share Posted November 15, 2017 The camo looks great! I'm sure she'll turn out nicely after a wash and weathering. Can't wait. Keep 'em coming. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Peterpools Posted November 15, 2017 Share Posted November 15, 2017 JA Super progress on the Hellcat; paintwork looks very good - as the paint is smooth and even. Of course, you know my major job is to dwell on all errors and redos‼️ I did see a few areas that need attention but on the whole, very well done. Paint weathering looks good on the wings and fuselage, looking uneven in tone and hue. Colors look spot on. Keep ‘en coming Bro Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted November 15, 2017 Author Share Posted November 15, 2017 19 hours ago, JesusNut said: That marbling with the gray really stands out on the sea blue. Fantastic! I see what you mean on the intermediate blue, but could it also be that the intermediate blue is already so close to the gray? Just a thought as I am looking to paint a TBM-3D in the same camo scheme soon. Oh, and happy birthday! JN, Agreed that the marbling stands out in the Sea Blue, but maybe just a tad to much. My brother does have concerns about it, so I'm going to re-visit it. My concern with the Intermediate blue not showing just about no marbling can't be that it's to close the light gray I used for the black basing, as it shows up perfectly in the white undersides. I'm going to take full blame for it as the paint could have been not thinned out enough, and that I applied to heavy of coats. Looking forward to seeing your TBM. I built the Hobby Boss TBM-3 in the Atlantic scheme years ago with the wings folded. I'm really thinking about another Avenger with just one wing folded this time. Would go with a -1 for Midway as the Avengers just made their presence with the Navy then. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted November 15, 2017 Author Share Posted November 15, 2017 18 hours ago, egg2012 said: Happy birthday !Sir Your passion is really impressive . F6F has been in my list. thanks for the Birthday wishes. And thanks for your passion comment. both mean a lot to me. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted November 15, 2017 Author Share Posted November 15, 2017 15 hours ago, CaptainObvious said: The camo looks great! I'm sure she'll turn out nicely after a wash and weathering. Can't wait. Keep 'em coming. Capt. I'm hoping the same thing. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted November 15, 2017 Author Share Posted November 15, 2017 8 hours ago, Peterpools said: JA Super progress on the Hellcat; paintwork looks very good - as the paint is smooth and even. Of course, you know my major job is to dwell on all errors and redos‼️ I did see a few areas that need attention but on the whole, very well done. Paint weathering looks good on the wings and fuselage, looking uneven in tone and hue. Colors look spot on. Keep ‘en coming Bro Bro, Took all your comments to heart, and even though I sent you several pics of F6F-3 in combat, I did have some concerns, so I compared the pictures I posted to the model on my bench. And there is a visible difference in both the color intensity of the Sea blue and the marbling effect. My conclusion is that for grabs I've been using my flash as the main light source. it's fine for build pics but not for paint, as my Nikon makes the Sea Blue a little to dark and contrasty, as well making the lighter marbling to light. 1st thing I did was re-Airbrush the white demarcation line on the bottom of the Horizontal Stabilizers as you pointed out. look shall we say less then stellar. Step one was to bring it back to a more tradition free hand line. Since I need to mask even though I free hand it, I'll try for that slight loop tomorrow. Next thing I did was to add a filter to the top of the wings and the Sea blue on the fuselage. I used 6 drops of Sea Blue/1 drop of White/12 drops of Tamiya Yellow cap/ & 2 drops of Winsor & Newton flow Enhancer, then applied a light coat over the wings to soften the marbling even further. I got my butt out of my chair, and used my tripod, 2 light setup and reshot a few pictures. Now the pictures of the wings look exactly like what I see up close and personal. But you'll notice that the sides of the fuselage still look a little darkish. Thanks Bro for pushing me to do better. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Peterpools Posted November 16, 2017 Share Posted November 16, 2017 JA Wings look so much better both with the filter being applied and then shooting the images correctly. What's the key words in photography: it’s all about the light📷 The dark blue on the fuselage looks a bit darker then the wings as the marbling seems to be not as much. Once the decals: stars and bars are on, so much of the fuselage paint will be under them, I would leave things as they are. Keep ‘em coming Peter Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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