Tinting a single section of canopy?

[falcon20driver]

I need to tint my F-14 canopy center section that greenish hue. How in the heck do you tint just 1 section?

[ChippyWho]

Hmm -shouldn't be impossible, in 1/48 at least. To get a precise masking of the oval panel from the inside, I'd recommend using very narrow (and therefore bendable) masking tape. Jammydog.com supply down to 0.5mm wide, or you can just cut thin strips of your own preferred one. They will be even more curve-friendly if you cut notches in the convex side. No, I haven't tried it with an F-14, but it worked OK on an F-4 so I could airbrush Tamiya clear on the back of the screen -a bit fiddly, but worth the effort.

Another possible solution is to use the Eduard mask set -cut out the surround for the screen section; it should fit inside OK.

Patch everything else up with tape and/or liquid mask, and paint away!

HTH.

[Janissary]

I too suggest masking from the backside and airbrushing a highly thinned mixture of Tamiya clear green and clear blue. I do this on bare plastic (no future). Once cured (I wait about a day), I give it a future bath:

http://www.arcforums.com/forums/air/index.php?showtopic=268923&view=findpost&p=2592674

The future bath helps eliminate any pebbly finish to give it a more realistic view.

[falcon20driver]

Thanks guys, looks simple enough.

[11bee]

FWIW, there has been a great deal of discussion on this. The actual piece is just a thick section of armored glass that under many circumstances is completely clear. In a few cases, depending on the angle and lighting, it has a very slight greenish hue. That is from the thickness of the glass, not from any intentional tinting.

I would go very light or just leave it clear. Either way, you will be accurate.

[Netz]

I usually just paint it in with a brush, or more like spreading a drop of color.

I mix Tamiya clear green with X-20 and just pick up a wet drop on the tip of my brush, lay it on and push it to the edges, there is usually enough of a ledge to hold the paint.

But if you feel the need to mask, I'd use Para-Film M, just lay it in and cut out the center section.

Curt