Don't get excited!

[geedubelyer]

Hello everyone,

I've been a BAD boy. As one or two of you probably know, I'm in the middle of a Trumpeter Flanker build but.........I could n't keep my mits off my Mudhen. :blink:

Work will still progress on the Flanker but I think I'll dabble with the Eagle at the same time.

My idea is to model a 492nd bird out of Lakenheath. She'll be loaded up with weapons etc., have a crew aboard and be depicted as if taxiing. This will mean dropping the flaps and raising the ailerons, also making the jet nozzles in the closed position. Of course the intakes will be lowered and I may show the airbrake deployed.

I plan to try to scratch build a Sniper pod too although if this does n't float my boat once built, I'll revert to plan "B" and use the kits AN/AAQ-14 Targeting pod again.

I thoroughly enjoyed building my first Mudhen, the Tamiya kit has very few problems, but there are one or two changes I hope to make this time around ;)

Before I proceed I'd like to apologise in advance for constant references to my previous F-15E. It is my benchmark and by comparing the work to it I hope to improve this next offering.

So without further ado, here are the first pics:

I've started some preparation of the fuselage by filling most of the panel lines on the CFTs. I found that they stuck out like a sore thumb on the model but on the full sized aircraft they are much less noticable. Maybe by filling them I can attain a more accurate look to these bits.

I've also begun to re-scribe some of the detail around the pylon attachment points of the CFTs. They are uniform in size and shape on the kit but vary somewhat on the actual plane.

I'm just playing around with some parts at this stage. The build "proper" will begin once the Flanker is complete.....(sometime in 2010 at this rate! :P)

Another idea I had from the previous build was to reduce the amount of air between the front tyre and the arch of the nose gear leg, #3. Once again, the full sized aircraft differs from the model in this respect so to achieve this, I shortened the leg at point #2. While I was at it I also created a little relief detail on the front and rear faces of the gear leg,#1

I'll fit a "shimmy dampener" at a later date and this will further disguise the gap.

Finally for this sitting, here's an idea I'm toying with:

I've tried to model the pilots visor as a separate item. This is an early version and a little more practise is needed to get the shape right but it might look o.k.

I've ground out the pilots face......(it looks a bit macabre at this size, sorry. It does n't look nearly this horrible with the MK1 eyeball)

and since the visor is translucent, some detail can be seen from certain angles.

As I said, I'm just playing at the moment.........

I hope these pics have whetted your appetite. I'll post on this thread from time to time.

Thankyou for looking. As always, any comments/criticism most welcome.

Edited November 15, 2007 by geedubelyer

[afterburner]

I know it's going to be nothing but top notch! Keep us posted!

[mungo1974]

never seen a 492FS Mudhen fitted with Sniper,494FS Panther yes...but never 492FS.

sounds like acool project anyway,i look forward to seeing more progress

[loftycomfort]

woohoo! keep the updates coming please!

[geedubelyer]

Hey fellas,

Good to hear from you all. Thanks for the comments and suggestions. ^_^

I've been chatting to a couple of guys on Strike Eagle.com about the targetting pod.

I had wanted to show it deployed but I have been told that it is very rarely open on the ground and virtually never while the aircraft is moving.

A couple of the guys suggested a Sniper pod so......... :lol:

Now I can't find any aftermarket ones which means I have to fall back on my scratch building. :P

(The kits' AN/AAQ-14 is on standby! )

Here's a coupla pics of the preliminary work:

and

The light grey colour is just so that I can check out details. The finished article will be Gunship grey.

I'm taking a modular approach and building the thing in sections, that way I can replace part/parts of it I'm not happy with but leave the rest.

Here's the aft section:

and from the other side.......

I apologise for the quality of the pics. I'll try harder next time.

There's still plenty of shaping/sculpting to do around the nose section.

I've still got to build all of the internals and make the glazing. When you start looking at these things they are a very complex shape :wacko:

I'll post more next time if anyone is interested.

Edited November 15, 2007 by geedubelyer

[jmel]

Wow, a 1/32 Sniper!! I'll be watching this evolve for sure.

Let me know if you need some closeups of the pod. I shot a bazillion of them last month.

Jake

[geedubelyer]

Wow, a 1/32 Sniper!! I'll be watching this evolve for sure.

Let me know if you need some closeups of the pod. I shot a bazillion of them last month.

Jake

:) Hey Jake.......like the title says.......DON'T GET EXCITED :P

I'll do my best but, ...man..., this thing has some complex forms, especially near the glazing.

I appreciate the offer and I'd very much like some pics. Can I send you my e-mail address?

If they're up to your usual standard they'll be ideal. :huh:

[jmel]

appreciate the offer and I'd very much like some pics. Can I send you my e-mail address?

If they're up to your usual standard they'll be ideal.

Sure thing. I'm away from home until Friday, though, so I won't be able to send them until then. Is that OK?

Jake

[geedubelyer]

Thanks Jake.....PM sent

[mungo1974]

Wow, a 1/32 Sniper!! I'll be watching this evolve for sure.

Let me know if you need some closeups of the pod. I shot a bazillion of them last month.

Jake

Any chance of seeing some of those Jake,or even better send them to Neil @ Paragon!...the more info he has on it the sooner i'll be able to convince him to do them in all 3 scales.

[geedubelyer]

Brrrrrr..........

The hobby room is freezing

It's too cold to spend long in there so modelling is in short bursts.

Here's an idea I'm toying with for the HUD.

I love the bright green of the HUDs on many of the models in the gallery but I've noticed that on the full sized aircraft only the central section is actually coloured.

This is a practice version, a spare I had left over from my previous build. I'd already coloured it green but the effect seems to work.

The central disc is irridescent confetti cut to shape.

I first saw this on a thread here on ARC but I can't find it at the moment. (If anyone has it saved, please post it here for everyone to see, it's very interesting.) The confetti was used to add interest to jet MFDs.

I was n't going to use it on my MFD displays as, although it looked good, it did n't look authentic.

I did, however, think it would be just right for the HUD.

My plan is to warm the confetti to make it conform to the HUD glass shape, then secure it in place with future.

I may have to experiment to see if it looks similar on the colourless HUD glass for this next build.

The confetti changes hue as you move around it. Sometimes it has a pink tinge, other times it is blue/green......just like the full sized article! :lol:

Let me know what you think.

Edited November 15, 2007 by geedubelyer

[The_Animal]

Looks real good, geed. The detail on that targetting pod is really nice. From what I can see from the pics, you're scratch-building it? Looking forward to keeping an eye on this build.

[MaRiO FDZ]

That looks like a face from the maskas the inmates of Alcatraz made in the famous scape attempt :)

Nice work so far, keep it up! :D

Take Care

[geedubelyer]

That looks like a face from the maskas the inmates of Alcatraz made in the famous scape attempt

Nice work so far, keep it up!

Take Care

Yeah, it does.........

Not the most handsome guy around. (It was carved while I looked in the mirror... :lol: )

Here's a tiny update:

If all goes according to plan, one crew member will have his HCV in place while the other guy has his on top of his bone dome and a graduated visor over his face.... :wacko:

We'll have to see if it works out. (The best laid plans...etc,....etc.)

:D

Edited November 15, 2007 by geedubelyer

[geedubelyer]

Sorta like this.......

Whaddya think? :P

Edited November 15, 2007 by geedubelyer

[kelv_w]

wow wow... looks very cool!! No more boring non-see thru black visors. :P

[geedubelyer]

Thanks Kelv W

Much appreciated.

A very Happy New Year to everyone....(just in case you don't follow my other build ^_^ )

I'm kinda dodging around on this build as it's a sideline to my Flanker at the moment. I don't want to get too serious until I've

finished the "Big Russian".

While I was waiting for some stuff to dry on the Flanker I re-modelled some of the CFT pylons and added a little detail to the already terrific Tamiya kit.

In the pic below you may be able to see the re-profiling. The original line is depicted in black, the red cross-shading shows the removed material.

#1 shows added bolt heads. These will have a small hole drilled in the centre once dry and will be painted silver eventually.

I've drilled out a number of holes along the length of the lower pylon and #2 shows where I've replaced holes with raised fasteners.

Edited November 15, 2007 by geedubelyer

[geedubelyer]

Here's an idea I'm toying with for the HUD.

The central disc is irridescent confetti cut to shape.....

.....I did, however, think it would be just right for the HUD.

My plan is to warm the confetti to make it conform to the HUD glass shape, then secure it in place with future.

I may have to experiment to see if it looks similar on the colourless HUD glass for this next build.

The confetti changes hue as you move around it. Sometimes it has a pink tinge, other times it is blue/green......just like the full sized article! :(

Hmmmm ...the best laid plans and all that. :D

I tried numerous times to get the confetti to conform to the HUD glass contours but to no avail. :o

(And I've ruined the plastic in my attempts! )

Here's a pic of MkII. I've used iridescent film this time. It is still going to take some practice but the results so far look promising.

Forgive the horrible appearance of the plastic surface. The thing I'm trying to show here is how the film changes colour from different angles.

Over the white paper you can see that the film gives a pink/purplish hue and on the black it appears a lovely emerald green/blue tinge.

I think this looks great and if I can get it to adhere cleanly to the plastic I'll be a very happy bunny.

:lol:

Edited November 15, 2007 by geedubelyer

[jmel]

The effect looks really, really convincing. I hope you can make it work!

Any progress with the Sniper pod?

Jake

[geedubelyer]

Any progress with the Sniper pod?

Jake

Hi Jake,....hmmm,....not as much as I'd like :D

The pictures you sent are a tremendous help. I'm trying to sharpen up the nose of the beast. There are alot of facets and curves which all blend together. Then I've got to make the glazing look crisp and neat. If I'm not happy with it I'll have to stick with the kit part..... :D

I'll keep you posted.

Oh,....I did get some dry rub off transfer paper though, so I can have a go at the stencilling some time.

[geedubelyer]

Hi all,

I've been dabbling with the Eagle again. I've just got through some plumbing on the Flanker and felt like a bit of a change, so..........

I did a bit more on the pilots. (Thanks to the guys who've helped with pics of aircrew. Much appreciated.)

I've added a life-preserver around the shoulders and a collar to the flying suit. The kit part is molded on and would've disappeared beneath the life-vest.

The head is attached with blu-tack, only to give the torso more perspective...it looked weird headless! ^_^

I have to confess, I'm really struggling to decipher where all of the straps go but since the crew will be seated in a closed cockpit it might not matter too much....(I hope :) )

Here's the pics:

I plan to add the oxygen hose connector to the webbing. Do I need to add anything else? Maybe a torch or something?

I've also started on the WSOs' head. He'll have the high contrast visor on. I opted to remove all straps and detail from the face mask and helmet in the hopes that I can add it later.

The arms will have to wait until the crew are seated as I'd like the pilot to have his HOTAS and the WSO casually resting his elbows on the canopy rails while he has a look around.

Cheers for now.

Edited November 15, 2007 by geedubelyer

[geedubelyer]

Work continues gently on the crew.

Here's the latest shot..........

Both heads are complete. The O2 hoses are in place and just need to be painted. The finishing touch will be to wrap a smaller diameter cable around the O2 hose.

I decided to change the style of face mask since alot of reference pics show the hose protruding from the side if the mask. I'm guessing that this is a more modern version...?? :blink:

It's not easy to see from the pic but I've added the cables to the helmet and the straps on the mask and visors.

Cheers for now.......

Edited November 15, 2007 by geedubelyer

[jmel]

Wow, those look great! I can't wait to see more on this project.

Yes, the masks with the hose protruding from the side are the newest versions.

Jake

[Zactoman]

Don't get excited!

:) Sorry, I think I just got excited :unsure:

[Vandy 1 vx4]

Looking good Guy By the way Tamiya makes a self adhesve Film that is just like you want. It comes in there 1/12th scale Yamaha YZF-R1 kit The call it UV filter sticker Part #1422137 from kit 14074. You can also try Alclad II Prismatic Sapphire (deep blue to UV) or Prismatic Jade ( gold to green). Cheers Danny