SteveL Posted November 9, 2007 Share Posted November 9, 2007 (edited) I'm going to try and keeep this up to date as I build. Hopefully I'll remember to take pics!! The idea is to show a pair of Mustangs (a B and a D) preparing to taxi for a mission. I will have a crewman riding along the port wings to aid the pilots. Props will be simulated using thin plexi and airbrushed to look like they are turning. I have a prototype started, if it turns out well I'll post up how I did it. (If it does NOT turn out well then this conversation never happened! :) ) Kits I'll be using are the Accurate Miniatures P51B and Tamiya's P51D. (Why the AM? Because it was already in the stash!) I've cut the rear control surfaces on the "B" and the tail wheel will be repositioned to show it "pulling up next to" the D. Which will be to the starboard side of the B. So far I have the pilot test fitted in the B. and the B's crewman... Cut from 3 different figures and pinned for now. ....to be continued. Edited October 2, 2008 by SteveL Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HOLMES Posted November 9, 2007 Share Posted November 9, 2007 SteveL, I will be following this thread with interest as Dioramas always gives "movement" to the model and looks AWESOME.....Your model is already looks great..Yes Please don't forget to post pics and keep us posted... Thanx.....HOLMES. :D Quote Link to post Share on other sites
JohnReid Posted November 10, 2007 Share Posted November 10, 2007 Looks like your off to a good start! Cheers! John. :D Quote Link to post Share on other sites
moeggo Posted November 10, 2007 Share Posted November 10, 2007 Looks great so far! Who makes that resin pliot? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SteveL Posted November 12, 2007 Author Share Posted November 12, 2007 Looks great so far! Who makes that resin pliot? PJ Productions (Belgium) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SteveL Posted November 12, 2007 Author Share Posted November 12, 2007 Made a little progress this weekend. Got the cockpit painted for the "D". Nothing fancy, OOB. Seat Also smoothed the wing on the "B". Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TomcatFanatic123 Posted November 12, 2007 Share Posted November 12, 2007 PJ Productions (Belgium) LOL...I thought this dude was giving me the finger <_<! I absolutely love the weathering on the chair, and the cockpit looks great! Can't wait to see progress ! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
oortiz10 Posted November 13, 2007 Share Posted November 13, 2007 Steve, Question about the resin pilot: Are his arms positionable? Looks like you may have chopped up his left arm… Also, I’m thinking of doing a pair of Mustangs in-flight. I’ll be watching to see how your props turn out. Keep up the good work! Cheers! -Omar Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SteveL Posted November 13, 2007 Author Share Posted November 13, 2007 Steve,Question about the resin pilot: Are his arms positionable? Looks like you may have chopped up his left arm… Yeah, I repositioned his left arm to rest on the fuselage. (still have to work on the transition a bit) I also need to get the props a lil further along before I can post it. Right now it just looks like a clear acrylic drink coaster! When it is painted it will look similar to this 1/72 B17 I did many years ago! It was airbrushed on a piece of acetate. I'll try and post up some step-by-step pics to show how it's done. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
oortiz10 Posted November 14, 2007 Share Posted November 14, 2007 The props on your B-17 look great! If you could post a step-by-step on how you did them, that'd be awesome. Like I said, I'm building a pair of Mustangs in-flight, and I'm looking for a convincing way to portray the spinning props. I have couple of ideas involving clear acetate/styrene, and I also picked up a P/E prop blur set. I'm gonna experiment and see which one looks best, but it seems your technique is pretty life-like. Keep it up! -O Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SteveL Posted November 19, 2007 Author Share Posted November 19, 2007 Thought I would post up a simple technique I used today to fill the pesky seamline on the belly of the P51B. It is nearly impossible to sand smooth so I figured, why not just cut it out? I apologize for not getting pics of the “before†but you basically cut out the section shown. (TIP: Drill small holes at each corner. Use these holes to start your cuts. Place the backside of the blade against the corner and cut towards the opposite side) Now cut a strip of styrene the exact same width as the hole. Pull the strip through the intake as shown and glue the 3 sides. Lastly, carefully and slowly cut the excess styrene away. You can use the scoop’s edge as a guide for the blade. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Aggressor Supporter Posted November 22, 2007 Share Posted November 22, 2007 Nice looking build so far. Watching with interest. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SteveL Posted November 27, 2007 Author Share Posted November 27, 2007 Didn't get much done on the Mustangs this weekend. However, here is a tip on adding a ball cap "bill" to a figure. It may be 'elementary' to some but maybe useful to others. The figure is from the Eduard RAF ground crew set. The forehead seemed a bit tall to me so I thought it would help if he had on a cap instead. It is VERY simple to do so check it out. Attach the head to a piece of foam-type 2 sided tape. I LOVE this stuff! (I tape it to a wooden clothes pin - but that's not really necessary for this) What you want is something that will hold the head still. Now take a fine saw blade and make a cut across the forehead. Just deep enough for the bill to stop. Then take a piece of leftover photoetch. I used a piece of the sprue. (never throw any Photoetch away!) Slide it in the slot and test fit for the proper width and mark it. Then, before you cut it! Round the forward edge with a metal file. (It's just easier to do when you have some length to hold it with) Now cut it to the right width. (after you give up looking for THAT piece in the carpet - go ahead repeat the above!) 8>) TIP: I bend mine a little bit with tweezers to give it a more natural look. Once you are happy with it, slide it into place then take a pointed blade, dip it into some "Super Glue" and run the blade along the top and bottom edge of the new bill. That's it! The 2 main 'ingredients' to pulling this off is 1) A thin razor saw. 2) The photoetch. (plastic strip can be used but it is VERY fragile - don't ask me how I know) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
latormentabritanica Posted November 27, 2007 Share Posted November 27, 2007 (edited) Cool! I really dig the pilot giving the thumbs-up! He looks much better than the slouching, stiff, and foward-facing guys that usually come in the kits. Edited November 27, 2007 by latormentabritanica Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SteveL Posted January 18, 2008 Author Share Posted January 18, 2008 Finally have an update to this project. Unfortunately, it's not a good one! :D I was traveling most of the holidays so I wasn't able to get much done. However, I did decide to "punt" on the Accurate Miniatures "B" model in favor of the Tamiya. The main reason was the detail and fit is so much nicer on the Tamiya kits! Plus since they were both going to be so close in the final scene the subtle differences would be more pronounced. Now, on to the update. (or actually lesson learned!) I decided to paint the "D" before I left for xmas. Thought I would use it as a "primer" coat. And boy did it show quite a few areas that needed to be worked some more. So, those areas were addressed and a coat of Tamiya primer was sprayed. Taped off the white stripes (using the white primer). Then I sprayed the black and followed that with the OD. As you can see everything was looking pretty good... ...until I pulled the tape. :D I believe my error was in not scuffing the Testors Chrome Silver before adding the primer!! So, I am currently in the process of removing the paint. (it's simply pulling off with more tape! - then sanding smooth) almost ready for "round two". This time the silver will be the last color sprayed! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
moeggo Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 bad Luck!, I been down that road before! It suck's big time! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bugfan Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 Cool project, keep the pics coming!!! Jack aka BUGFAN Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SteveL Posted January 24, 2008 Author Share Posted January 24, 2008 Second attempt. Masked over the Tamiya white primer for the invasion stripes. more to come..... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mr B Posted January 24, 2008 Share Posted January 24, 2008 looking very nice indeed waiting to see it complete rgds mr b Quote Link to post Share on other sites
check 6 Posted January 24, 2008 Share Posted January 24, 2008 Looking good so far :o I'll keep watching :) Ed Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SteveL Posted February 11, 2008 Author Share Posted February 11, 2008 (edited) This weekend I was able to get 1 pilot just about finished. Still needs a lil dry brushing and maybe a dull coat. Also, after failing to get the stripes to look right again. I've decided to go ahead and paint the "D" with Alclad II. First off was the gloss black and then the aluminum. (first time using the new Alclad) I'm considering using decals for the stripes in this 3rd attempt! (Upper wing surfaces will be OD) I've also decided to scrap the Accurate Mini "B" Mustang in favor of the Tamiya kit. Since they would be parked so close together I'm concerned that the subtle differences might be too noticeable. Here's round two of the "B" Mustang. I'm also considering leaving the wing panels "unputtied" for contrast to the "D". Would this be a mistake? to be continued... Edited February 11, 2008 by SteveL Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ChernayaAkula Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 That's a very cool idea! :) Pilot and plane look great so far! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SteveL Posted February 19, 2008 Author Share Posted February 19, 2008 Here's pics of the o/d upper surfaces painted. Also got some postshading done as well. Still trying to build up the nerve to try and paint the invasion stripes again! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jens Posted February 22, 2008 Share Posted February 22, 2008 really nice build!! try using a sharp knife to cut, or hold where the tape and paint seperates, thats how i do it.. cheers Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Fat Russian Posted February 23, 2008 Share Posted February 23, 2008 Those Mustang's are looking great, I do believe though that when the allies painted on the invasion stripes ththat they were very hastily applied, so acheiving perfection with those stripes really isn't too neccasary, unless that is your personal goal, and I remeber reading somewhere that when they were removed that the ground crews would use rags soaked in gas, HTH looking forward to more pics Eric Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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