Joel_W Posted March 26, 2018 Share Posted March 26, 2018 Time to start another aircraft build, and thought that a early jet would be a interesting break from the one after another WWII prop aircraft. 1st generation jet aircraft have always been one of my favorite eras, and the F-80/T-33 Shooting Star a favorite within that generation. Great Wall Hobbies had molded a rather nice 1/48 scale T-33A early version, and when I saw the Caracal decals, I thought it time to build this kit. Work naturally started with the cockpit, and the upper fuselage walls are visible when you look into the "Pit". There was one issue that needed to be addressed, and the tops of several injection pin marks were above the line where the tub gets glued into the fuselage. So out came the Bondo, and I filled, then sanded the ones that needed to be removed. the cockpit tub is nicely molded with just the bare min amount of detail for the side panels. The instrument panels are comprised of the front panel with raised bezels, and a backing plate that you apply decals to for the instruments, as well as the rudder pedal assemblies. I primed all the interior cockpit parts with Mig Ammo Black primer to help give some additional shadow detail. Then I airbrushed the IPs with a mix Mig Ammo FS36320 Dark Compass Ghost Gray and a drop of Black to darken it so that it matched the correct dark Gray FS26231 over the black primer. Then I hand brushed the bezels with Tamiya Nato Black as it's not as stark as their regular black. The next day I applied the decals to each backing plate Gave the decals a day to cure, then glued up each of the IPs. I also airbrushed the tub, then hand painted the panels Tamiya Nato Black. I still need to finish dry brushing the knobs and switches. and now you're up to date. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Aigore Posted March 26, 2018 Share Posted March 26, 2018 Oooooooo...nice, kind of inteerested in this kit too. Going to be interesting to see what you make of it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted March 26, 2018 Author Share Posted March 26, 2018 12 minutes ago, Aigore said: Oooooooo...nice, kind of inteerested in this kit too. Going to be interesting to see what you make of it. Janne, Thanks for stopping by. Honestly, I'm not really much of a Jet guy, so it's going to be almost pure OOB. What I'll be focusing on is the NMF with very light weathering as it's a Texas ANG aircraft. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
11bee Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 Looking good Joel. T-33 is one of my favorite jets. Just can't get into the "grey jet" thing for some reason. Was the real cockpit that barren (side consoles) or did GW just skimp on the detail? Nice job on the IP's by the way. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AlienFrogModeller Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 I need to retire....and find me a sugah momma. I need the time to keep up with you! Looking forward to this build; I'm along for the ride. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted March 27, 2018 Author Share Posted March 27, 2018 55 minutes ago, 11bee said: Looking good Joel. T-33 is one of my favorite jets. Just can't get into the "grey jet" thing for some reason. Was the real cockpit that barren (side consoles) or did GW just skimp on the detail? Nice job on the IP's by the way. 11bee, Thanks for stopping by, it's much appreciated. I haven't spent a whole lot of time researching the cockpit as I'm going to be closing the canopy, so the stock seats and home made seatbelts and shoulder harnesses will be the main feature when someone looks in through the canopy. . Being a prop guy at heart, I tend to keep the few jet builds I do more towards the OOB side of the scale. When I originally bought the kit, it was with the intention of doing a NMF, which I tend to shy away from. When I purchased the Caracal decals, I didn't realize that those ANG aircraft with indeed FS16473 ADC. So my next NMF aircraft will have to wait for a while. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted March 27, 2018 Author Share Posted March 27, 2018 56 minutes ago, AlienFrogModeller said: I need to retire....and find me a sugah momma. I need the time to keep up with you! Looking forward to this build; I'm along for the ride. AFM, Given the choice, I rather be 45 and working my butt off, but still young. Retirement at 70 has it's rewards & its limitations. Unfortunately, I'm way closer to the end of my journey, then from the start of it. Good luck finding that "Sugah Momma". Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kike Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 Great star for one of those ugly nice planes!! looking forward for more progress Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted March 27, 2018 Author Share Posted March 27, 2018 11 hours ago, kike said: Great star for one of those ugly nice planes!! looking forward for more progress Kike, Thanks for checking. Gotta love those plain Jane's as they do have their own special beauty. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Slartibartfast Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 21 hours ago, Joel_W said: Janne, Thanks for stopping by. Honestly, I'm not really much of a Jet guy, so it's going to be almost pure OOB. What I'll be focusing on is the NMF with very light weathering as it's a Texas ANG aircraft. Joel The 111th T-birds were ADC gray, not bare metal. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RCAFFAN Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 (edited) 1 hour ago, Slartibartfast said: The 111th T-birds were ADC gray, not bare metal. If you read the thread you would have seen that he realized that about 3 posts before you posted, having read the painting instructions...... Edited March 27, 2018 by RCAFFAN Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tomcat Tweeker Posted March 28, 2018 Share Posted March 28, 2018 Glad to see ya build this one Joel! Looking great so far! Dave Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted March 28, 2018 Author Share Posted March 28, 2018 5 hours ago, Tomcat Tweeker said: Glad to see ya build this one Joel! Looking great so far! Dave Dave, Thanks for stopping by, it's always much appreciated. But honestly I haven't done much of anything as yet. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted March 28, 2018 Author Share Posted March 28, 2018 Guys, any confusion as to the finish is entirely mine. When I 1st started looking at the GWH T-33A they were front line fighter aircraft, and indeed were kept in NMF. I just wanted other paint options from the one USAF marking that came with the kit, so when I saw the Caracal decals, I bought a sheet only for ANG aircraft. Caracal clearly calls out ADC as the color. They also make sheets for NMF aircraft which I could have purchased as well. So now I'm focused on a ADC operational aircraft that is well maintained, so there will be weathering done to add some much needed interest to a monotone paint scheme. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
CaptainObvious Posted March 28, 2018 Share Posted March 28, 2018 Front row seat watching. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Slartibartfast Posted March 28, 2018 Share Posted March 28, 2018 22 hours ago, RCAFFAN said: If you read the thread you would have seen that he realized that about 3 posts before you posted, having read the painting instructions...... Yeah, I missed that. Thing is, I had typed this up several days ago and hit the back button instead of the post button. I came back to the thread and saw it sitting in the quick reply box and automatically hit post. My apologies to all. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted March 29, 2018 Author Share Posted March 29, 2018 19 hours ago, CaptainObvious said: Front row seat watching. Capt. Obvious, The build has been on a temp hold this week as I'm trying to really finish up my 3 entries for the Miosquitocon a week from tomorrow. Even the Hurricane needs a little tweaking. I've to a little to do on the 1/32 scale Scooter, the 1/48 scale F6F-3, and the Mk1 Hurricane. Then it's back to my T-33A Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted March 29, 2018 Author Share Posted March 29, 2018 17 hours ago, Slartibartfast said: Yeah, I missed that. Thing is, I had typed this up several days ago and hit the back button instead of the post button. I came back to the thread and saw it sitting in the quick reply box and automatically hit post. My apologies to all. Slartibartfast, We all have done that. Just glad that you're coming along for the build. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Slartibartfast Posted March 29, 2018 Share Posted March 29, 2018 You bet I'm along! 111th was based at Ellington, which is about four miles away. I saw that jet flying, I'm sure. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted March 29, 2018 Author Share Posted March 29, 2018 46 minutes ago, Slartibartfast said: You bet I'm along! 111th was based at Ellington, which is about four miles away. I saw that jet flying, I'm sure. Slartibartfast, Now the pressure's on for sure. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Nanook Posted March 29, 2018 Share Posted March 29, 2018 Looking good so far! later, Lee Quote Link to post Share on other sites
CaptainObvious Posted March 30, 2018 Share Posted March 30, 2018 On 3/29/2018 at 9:14 PM, Joel_W said: Capt. Obvious, The build has been on a temp hold this week as I'm trying to really finish up my 3 entries for the Miosquitocon a week from tomorrow. Even the Hurricane needs a little tweaking. I've to a little to do on the 1/32 scale Scooter, the 1/48 scale F6F-3, and the Mk1 Hurricane. Then it's back to my T-33A Joel All the best for the event Joel! Take some pics for us if you can. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted March 30, 2018 Author Share Posted March 30, 2018 1 hour ago, CaptainObvious said: All the best for the event Joel! Take some pics for us if you can. Capt. Obvious, will try. Just hoping that my level of work is consistent to what the better builders are doing these days. I haven't been to a contest in 38 years. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted March 30, 2018 Author Share Posted March 30, 2018 22 hours ago, Nanook said: Looking good so far! later, Lee Nanook, Thanks for stopping by and the thumbs up. It's much appreciated. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Joel_W Posted April 1, 2018 Author Share Posted April 1, 2018 Work has progressed at my usual snail's pace, but I've got enough accomplished for a small update. The cockpit tub had both IPs installed along with both sets of rudder pedals. Using Tamiya X-22 Clear Gloss the entire cockpit assembly received a clear coat. When dry a wash of Black enamel oil paint heavily thinned with Turpeniod was applied, let dry, then the excess was removed with more Turpeniod on Q tips. The seats and sticks will be left out till the end of the build. Naturally, I haven't even started the ejection seats as yet. I built the exhaust up the cone, then using some Model Master Jet Exhaust Metalizer I still have, it was airbrushed on both the outside and inside of the cone. Then glued to the same side of the fuselage as the pit was. Not following the directions, I 1st glued the pit in place, let it set up, then I glued the front wheel to both the fuselage and the bottom of the pit as called for in the instructions. GWH has included a Plastic weight to keep the T-33A on its tricycle gear, so that was glued in place as well. I'm not so sure that will be sufficient, so after the wings are installed I give it the balance test, and if it needs a little more weight I'll add some fishing sinkers to the nose cone before it's glued into place. the Fuselage halves were joined and glued together, let dry overnight, and a coat of Bondo was applied over the joint line. Joel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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