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Playing with paints

 

After Dave's suggestions, I repainted some parts using a mix of Vallejo's Sea Blue and AMMO's medium blue with a ratio of 3:1; the result is in the flap at right; I liked that much better than my previous mix, which now seems too blue as you can compare on the upper portion of the flap at left. What do you think?

 

Xx95mFw.jpg

 

The fabric portion on the left flap was pre-shaded with Intermediate blue over my original mix of blue then the color was unified using the new darkest combination.

 

On previous attempts at pre-shading many times I ended up killing the effect when applying the topcoat; this time I'm using Thinner Medium from Vallejo; this gives more control than simply adding thinner because I can regulate the transparency by varying the ratio of Medium and paint while maintaining the paint consistency for airbrushing; I'm still learning how to get the best of it, here are the elevons treated with this technique.

 

QdrHiwZ.jpg

 

In the meantime, I started painting the propeller in white aluminum and then covered it with a mix of black and dark gray, after which I did a light post-shading with dark gray to emulate worn paint; the hub cap is painted red.

 

fYwExts.jpg

 

To further improve the effect of worn paint, I did my first try at the salt technique; airbrushed water over the blades and applied the salt; repeated two more times to increase the surface covered; waited an hour for the water to dry and airbrushed black paint diluted with Thinner Medium. If the result is too subtle, I can make another pass later.

 

The tires got some oils to emulate dust and dirt, I kept building the effect because seemed too subtle, after letting it dry now I think is overdone and plane, what do you think? 

 

AyWTmld.jpg

 

On another theme, the masks for the insignias arrived during the week (accompanied by the new ICM B-26K) so, I no longer have an excuse for not progressing with this build.
 

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One step forward, two steps back!

 

The result of the salt chipping was what I've expected; if you look closely, you can see isolated square marks resulting from the cubic salt crystals.

 

b61miCj.jpg

 

What didn't went as expected was the propeller chipping; initially, I sprayed the leading edge and the face of the blades (the side that the pilots see) with Chipping Medium over the aluminum, but, after scrubbing using stiff brushes and even toothpicks, I only managed to remove small portions of the black paint and, in some cases, leaving the bare plastic.

 

Fortunately, when I airbrushed the black, I left the end portion of the blades uncovered, so I didn't need to remove paint in this area; I retouched the chipping on the leading edges and the bits in bare plastic by brush. It wasn't what I envisioned but is close enough.

 

rFbMbcT.jpg

 

Another setback was the chipping on the central flaps; I intended to make a triple layer chipping in the area of the walkways; aluminum, yellow zinc, blue, black with Chipping Medium between them; to represent the wear of this area. Unfortunately, after wetting the paint, I couldn't remove individual layers of color, but only big chunks down to the aluminum.

 

9MNPMxy.jpg

 

The result wasn't even close to what I want, so I will make another try, maybe changing the technique to represent this effect.

 

After the initial frustration, what I think went wrong was the amount of Chipping Medium applied between colors; both in the propeller and the flaps, I airbrushed in thin layers for fear of leaving the paint too weak to withstand the masking.

 

That's all for now; any comments, critiques, and advice are more than welcome.

 

Carlos
 

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I have tried alot of chipping effects and sometimes an oldie is a goodie. Trial this process on a scrap piece.

- Lay down undercoat color

-Spray on hairspray let dry

- Spray top finish color let dry 12 hrs

-With a damp Qtip slowly rub away top coat to reveal under coat 

 

I find you have way more control depending on how hard you rub is how much chipping will appear.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Hello all, a long time since the last update; I'd been dragging my feet with this build, but in the meantime, at least I managed to tidy up my stash and register it in Scalemates (a revealing exercise, by the way).

 

On 10/14/2021 at 12:15 AM, Night Owl Models said:

I have tried alot of chipping effects and sometimes an oldie is a goodie. Trial this process on a scrap piece.

- Lay down undercoat color

-Spray on hairspray let dry

- Spray top finish color let dry 12 hrs

-With a damp Qtip slowly rub away top coat to reveal under coat 

 

I find you have way more control depending on how hard you rub is how much chipping will appear.

Thank you for the advice, Dave; I'll be trying it later, I believe my mistake was to put a too-thin layer of fluid, and I think I'll have done the same with hairspray.

 

Now that I see it, I was looking for a worn-out finish instead of a chipped effect; I noticed this nice worn effect while sanding the flaps before repainting them. 

 

pdWIEMw.jpg

 

Too bad that I sand through the aluminum and leave bare plastic, but it is worth it to explore this technique.

 

On 10/14/2021 at 9:28 AM, skurcz said:

Have you tried using popcorn salt? Its finer than regular salt.

I wasn't aware that popcorn salt existed, but I'll try to get some; thanks, skurcz.

 

Another inconvenience came from the HGW stencils; the logos for the propeller are out of register (center), so I'll be using the kit decals instead (right) along with the HGW stencils (left); this is sad because I like how they look.  The paper disks are guides for the placement of the decals.

 

BSEvcKZ.jpg

 

I'll try to make some progress during this and the following weekend.
 

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Ah!, good old uncle night shift, thanks for the advice, Dave; I've been watching his channel but not that exact video; I might try some of these techniques on the flaps instead of painting them over.

 

Since I'm here already, this is the result of the decals over the propeller; kit's ones conformed well using Tamiya's Mark Fit Strong, no signs of silvering, but the film is evident.

 

iabIZU0.jpg

 

The stencils from HGW were applied using Mr. Mark Softer as per the instructions, they really look painted over, and only a slight glue mark is noticed.

 

The next steps are a clear coat to hide the decal film and base for final weathering using oils.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hello all,

 

This is how things are now; instead of repainting the flaps, I tried to improve the look of the damaged sections to represent the wear better.

First, a light coat of yellow zinc to emulate the uncovered primer under worn paint; was applied using low pressure on the airbrush, so it spat the paint, creating tiny speckles.

 

BNN4b7G.jpg

 

2NDvAZl.jpg

 

Used a similar method with blue and black paint to refine the shape of the worn areas over the walkways and the rest of the flap.

 

The final touches of bare metal were applied with two tones of aluminum using a fine tip brush. Then, finally, I added slightly bigger chips of yellow with a sponge.

 

s9pPT7Z.jpg

 

WzRRZGy.jpg

 

Previous attempts of wear and tear on my models ended up being unnoticed once finished; so, this time, I'm going outside my comfort zone; let's see if I succeed.

 

Another first for me is using a clear coat over the decal to make the film disappear; here is the propeller with a heavy coat of Tamiya's X-22; the finish is uneven because I used my cheap airbrush in a hurry, but I hope it doesn't matter since I'll be sanding it before a final layer of matt varnish.

 

UWA2RCO.jpg

 

My plan for this weekend was to apply primer to the model, but I found a new problem. Some of the engraved detail (panels and rivets) is filled with a mix of sanding dust and my fingers' grease. I've tried different methods; alcohol and soapy water with various brushes, but nothing seems to work.

 

I'm looking for a way to solve this because, even if I can clean most of the panel lines using a toothpick, I cannot do the same with the rest of the finer detail, like the riveting. I'm afraid these details will be lost, or the filth could react adversely with the paint; any ideas?

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What kind of alcohol are you using it should be 99% isopropyl alcohol not rubbing alcohol. You will need to leave the parts submerged for 20-30 min then with a hard bristle tooth brush, scrub, scrub and scrub. If you loose your rivets UMM-USA has great micro rivet decal sheets HGW482011 Rivets - Single line 0.60x0.20 (Raised) 1/48. 

20210520_192315-338x450.jpg 20210520_193145-338x450.jpg

 

Best of luck.

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I may sound like the heretic here, but i have never found sanding dust in panel lines to be a problem. I think this may be an old wives tale.

 

I routinely wet sand my models with 1000 and 1500 grit right before painting, so i feel entitled to opine on this.

 

The wet sanding is done to provide adequate "tooth" for acrylic and lacquer paints to mechanically bond to the surface. It's also a last chance to find any surface defects like deep sanding scratches or unfilled/ imperfectly filled joints.

 

If cleanliness is a serious issue, you can swab the model down with Isopropyl Alcohol, but if you have no fears about water dissolving any glues, i prefer to "Ditch" my models in warm soapy water, followed by a scrubdown with a toothbrush and finishing with a rinse with cool fresh water, and then set the model aside to dry for a couple days. You can speed the drying process by blasting it with compressed air, though you may not be able to get *all* the water out.

 

Just my first hand experience, feel free to use or discard at your discretion.

 

david

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  • 3 weeks later...

Thank you, Dave and David.

 

On 11/18/2021 at 1:33 AM, Night Owl Models said:

What kind of alcohol are you using it should be 99% isopropyl alcohol not rubbing alcohol. You will need to leave the parts submerged for 20-30 min then with a hard bristle tooth brush, scrub, scrub and scrub. If you loose your rivets UMM-USA has great micro rivet decal sheets HGW482011 Rivets - Single line 0.60x0.20 (Raised) 1/48. 

 

I'm using what I believe is 99% IPA for cleaning circuit boards; I cannot submerge the model either in IPA or soapy water for the risk of damaging the painted areas.

 

On 11/18/2021 at 9:18 AM, Falcon50EX said:

I may sound like the heretic here, but i have never found sanding dust in panel lines to be a problem. I think this may be an old wives tale.

 

I routinely wet sand my models with 1000 and 1500 grit right before painting, so i feel entitled to opine on this.

 

The wet sanding is done to provide adequate "tooth" for acrylic and lacquer paints to mechanically bond to the surface. It's also a last chance to find any surface defects like deep sanding scratches or unfilled/ imperfectly filled joints.

 

If cleanliness is a serious issue, you can swab the model down with Isopropyl Alcohol, but if you have no fears about water dissolving any glues, i prefer to "Ditch" my models in warm soapy water, followed by a scrubdown with a toothbrush and finishing with a rinse with cool fresh water, and then set the model aside to dry for a couple days. You can speed the drying process by blasting it with compressed air, though you may not be able to get *all* the water out.

 

Just my first hand experience, feel free to use or discard at your discretion.

 

david

 

When I started using acrylics became a little paranoid about cleaning to minimize the risk of paint not adhering; let aside that a dust-filled line could disappear under paint or not retain the wash.

 

I scrubbed the model with IPA and soapy water and cleaned some lines with a needle. Let the model dry for a couple of days, and then apply a One-Shot gray primer coat.

 

The primer helps find imperfections that need attention; here are pictures of these areas.

 

0MNBg39.jpg

 

vbHtrtr.jpg

 

jrj6fRw.jpg

 

lbYt2lv.jpg

 

jGDyaWf.jpg

 

Working on the propeller, I polished the clear coat over the decals, and now they look painted.

 

gRYSHFB.jpg

 

Applied Tamiya's gray panel liner to highlight the detail on the hub; made an additional worn effect on the red cover and some grime on the blades using Oilbrushers.

 

P7w5aJ4.jpg

 

As a final step, I started airbrushing a coat of AMMO's matt lucky varnish, but somehow it didn't cover the surface evenly and started to form tiny droplets instead.

 

I removed the varnish using a mix of water and IPA and tried again in light coats, but the results were the same.

 

While removing the last coat, I went too heavy with the IPA and one of the blades clouded; I'll try to fix it with light sanding and a new coat of Tamiya's X-22.

 

Q4zunm6.jpg

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Wow...

I was thinking about possibly purchasing one of these kits, but after watching your build I thought again; with all of these impressive corrections you did to yours, Carlos, then there's no point building it just out of the box.

Your skills are just way out of my scope to follow.

Sunk in silent contemplation of such a great job.

Felicitaciones!

Cheers,

 

Gwen

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Thanks for your encouraging words, Gwen.

 

The kit builds into a nice-looking model straight from the box; in hindsight, the only areas that truly need attention are the flaps and the bomb rack, which can be addressed using Ultracast's replacement and opting for the kit's fuel tank, respectively.

 

I hope you take a shoot at this kit and share your work here.

 

Carlos

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  • 1 month later...

Hello all

 

It has been more than a month since the last update, little time to work during the holidays but here is some progress.

 

The flaws that showed under the priming were fixed, primarily rivets, panel lines, and some unfilled gaps.

 

XgUjmk3.jpg

 

gEAHT97.jpg

 

On previous tests, the metallics applied over the satin primer resulted in a dull, rough cover; this time, I sanded lightly over the areas that will be painted aluminum; this resulted in a random mix of gloss and satin patches.

 

I applied a coat of Vallejo's Metal Color Aluminium; in the following pics, you can see a lighter, brighter finish where the primer was polished and darker dull patches where the natural finish of the primer is; this shouldn't be a problem since this is only a base for chipping.

 

Dp8RRPq.jpg

 

ILYgxFV.jpg

 

Because of the recent mishaps with chipping fluid, I decided to play safe this time. So first applied a coat of Vallejo's Metal Varnish to protect the aluminum finish, then I applied Vallejo's Liquid Mask with both a sponge and a toothpick.

 

OGk9A1U.jpg

 

Based on reference pictures, the mask was applied only where the deepest scratches will be. One advantage of this method is that the liquid dries fast, and you can remove it easily if you don't like the size or shape.

 

Once I was happy with the liquid mask, I airbrushed yellow zinc from Vallejo.

 

OCTZPxx.jpg

 

The model won't fit in the mini lightbox I used for taking pictures, so I'm testing a larger one; Sorry for the wrinkles; I need to steam iron the included backdrop or use a different one.

 

FacKQfk.jpg

 

And to finish this update, the clouding on the propeller blade was removed almost entirely with light sanding; a further application of Tamiya's X-22 made all disappear.

 

RCMClUq.jpg

 

The propeller was varnished using Lucky Flat from AMMO; I emulated dust on the inner portion of the blades using  AMMO's Dust Oilbrusher while the tips got a darker shade using Winton's Ivory Black oil paint.

 

h7pPYcp.jpg

 

Still, more weathering needs to be done on the propeller.

 

Thanks for watching; comments and critiques are welcome.

 

Carlos

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On 1/19/2022 at 7:22 AM, kurnass77 said:

Pure joy follow your build!

 

Gianni

 

Thank you for the kind words, Gianni.

 

Before continuing the paint job, I added more masking liquid in preparation for the layered chipping.

 

owp3ACM.jpg

 

To add variation to the final color, I airbrushed a marble effect using Insignia White as a base; the last coat was a 50/50 mix of Insignia White and White and applied in a random pattern.

 

MVcdlYh.jpg

 

sJsN1GO.jpg

 

I took this picture with lower exposure to better appreciate the final effect.

 

With the remaining paint mix, a marbled base was airbrushed where the emblems will be; these will be painted with Insignia White to contrast the color of the underside.

 

A53huUl.jpg

 

That's all for now, thanks for watching.

 

Carlos
 

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  • 3 weeks later...

Thank you, Alternative4, Chuck, for your kind words.

 

The paint job progressed a little; the white for the insignias are complete and ready for the masking.

 

SgAtFiY.jpg

 

Here the layer of blue is applied with the masks already in place. The color is a 2:1 mix of Intermediate blue and Faded P.R.U blue from Vallejo.

 

GxZmzTI.jpg

 

3a5syrY.jpg

 

Instead of masking the white and blue boundary on the belly, I tried doing it freehand; I started on the cowling, and I'm somewhat happy with the result.

 

WHU4oDW.jpg

 

On the other hand, I got a lot of oversprays on the fuselage's area, which I'll have to retouch later.

 

JT0tPew.jpg

 

Also, the Metal Varnish I applied earlier to protect the aluminum base started to peel from the fuselage's sides and affected the blue paint; I began to panic at first, but then I could remove the paint on the area with a Q-tip moistened with water.

 

Luckily, I could repaint, leaving only a few ridges on the finish, which I hope will blend under the final flat coat and weathering. However, there's still a lot to learn with acrylic paints.

 

One part of the model that still needs work is the canopy; I was hoping to get the courage to make the lateral supports on the interior using plastic strips, but I gave up.

 

I'll emulate the supports by painting them; I removed the masking on the inside of the canopy and made a new one with the supports in place.

 

DbqSnDp.jpg

 

That's all for now; thank you for your support and patience.

 

Carlos

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Hi again, Carlos!

Wow... you're full of modelling tricks, sir. :hmmm:Such an impressive work on this build. How long have you been modelling for?

I take it that the canopy you're using is a vac-form one? If so, did you pre-shape the supports prior to their installment inside of it?

Slow but steady progress. Keep up with the good job. Inspiring, sincerely.

Cheers,

 

Gwen

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Thank you, Chuck

 

Thank you, Gwen; I've been modeling "seriously" for about 20 years but at a slow pace, with very few kits to this day, so I'm still a novice eager to learn with each build.

 

The canopy is a vac-form one from Rob-Taurus; the internal support consists of two or three layers of thin plastic strips, bent close to shape, so they don't spring out during gluing.

 

In case someone is interested, this is how I made it.

 

  • The first strip is glued in place using CA but only on a small segment to ensure it is aligned; once dry, I glue the rest of the length.
  • With the first strip in place, I glue the next over it using Tamiya cement; as with the first, I glue a section at a time to maintain the alignment.
  • I add more layers of strips until I have the desired thickness, then cut the excedent length.

This is similar to the method used by woodworkers to make curved pieces; one advantage is the rigidity of the final piece.

 

I recommend doing this before removing the entire canopy piece from the vac-form sheet, so it maintains the correct shape during the process.

 

Carlos

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Hey, i haven't tried it yet but a trick Jen Wright demonstrated on her YouTube channel was to remove the overspray and tighten up the colour separation simply by carefully wet sanding it. You might want to at least try that.

 

-d-

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 2/23/2022 at 8:04 PM, Falcon50EX said:

Hey, i haven't tried it yet but a trick Jen Wright demonstrated on her YouTube channel was to remove the overspray and tighten up the colour separation simply by carefully wet sanding it. You might want to at least try that.

 

-d-

Hello Falcon, do you know in which of Jen's videos is this? I don't remember; maybe I'll give it a try, but previous attempts went right through the paint into the primer.

 

Here is a minor update, mainly regarding painting.

 

The dark blue is complete; the demarcation line painted freehand on the cowling and fuselage; again, some overspray here and there but feeling more confident each time.

 

lW6WG7s.jpg

 

ipLoPn2.jpg

 

The most challenging part is holding the model in one hand while painting with the other and keeping a steady line; maybe it is time to get one of those fancy jigs.

Fabric portions on the wings are painted in a different hue to be consistent with the control surfaces; the ribs were pre-shaded in a lighter color to highlight them.

 

La9d3RN.jpg

 

TrP4uMt.jpg

 

The leading edge is painted dark blue, the demarcation line in the underside was made freehand, but this time the model is resting while I hold the airbrush with both hands making the process easier.

 

kumNv0u.jpg

 

You can see minor scratches on the wings; those are the points where the masking tape removed the masking fluid I applied previously.

 

The next step is to paint the emblems and the walkways over the wings; the laters will be particularly difficult because there isn't a panel line near that can be referenced to place the masking (the nearest panel lines aren't parallel to the centerline); the closest that are useful are the gun covers.

 

Thanks for watching.

 

Carlos
 

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