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A newbie's Trumpeter 1/32 SBD-5 Dauntless


pcben80

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As mentioned in a new post over in the General Discussion section, I've been lurking on the site for far too long so I've decided to give this WIP thing a go.  This is a first for me as is the majority of the work you will see here.  As I also mentioned in my initial post, this is the first model I have attempted for about 20 years, with the last project I completed reaching fruition when I was about ten years old!  Up until about two months ago, I'd never touched an airbrush, had no clue what photoetch was and weathering/drybrushing certainly wasn't high on my list of priorities the last time I did this!  I think you guys get the picture...  Anything you will see on this WIP that you like is something I learned reading the LSP forums.

 

In addition to the kit from Trumpeter, I added the Eduard sets covering the engine and exterior in addition to the dive flaps.  I have been working on this on and off for the past month or so (I'm a slow builder!) so I'm just going to get up to speed with the progress I've made and then proceed in a more logical fashion.  I'm working painting the cockpit components now and will then start weathering it up a little.  I had my first go around with AK interactive chipping fluid the other night and you can see that I was a little heavy-handed!  I think I will likely keep it as is for now as a lot of that will be hidden away once the fuselage is closed up.  In order to maintain my sanity, I have to keep reminding myself that this build is all about learning new techniques.  A difficult task given the quality of the kit!  

 

Anyway, here are some random samples of my work up to this point (including the seemingly obligatory box shot!).  For now, these are all shot on the iPhone.  I'm working on setting up something a little better for subsequent pictures.  I had hoped to model this with the engine compartment open but after a few "issues," I will be doing it closed up.  Pity to hide away those details but I'm sure I'll be back again with another SBD in the future!

 

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A lot of pictures - I hope you like some of what you're seeing and I look forward to hearing people's thoughts.  Thanks for looking!

Edited by pcben80
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Welcome to the forums, a newbie also and a very similar story as yourself.

 

Got to agree with Kev, I can't and probably will not achieve your level modelling in the next 10 years, been at it for

40 years on and off..........:)

 

Looking forward to the next update.......

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A big thanks to everyone who took a peek at my work - I definitely appreciate the encouraging words. This really is the first build for me but, as I mentioned earlier, I spent a LOT of time studying up on some of the techniques described here before I bit the bullet and started my own build.. Really amazing the amount of stuff you can learn just by reading the forums.

 

Part of my issue is the fact that it took me over a month to get to where I am. I'm very pleased with the result but I feel like I'm going to have to improve my efficiency if I'm ever going to get cracking on those Tamiya kits I referenced in my first post.

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Thanks again for the feedback.  Just a quick update after last night's session.  I spent the majority of the evening detailing the cockpit components.  The decals you see are from the Airscale cockpit placards set and were a real pleasure to work with.  As you can see, I went a little crazy with these.  I can't believe I'm saying this but it was actually "fun" working with those tiny decals.  Highly recommended. They really add to the overall look of the individual components even if their placement isn't entirely accurate.  Gives me hope that I will be able to do the Barracuda placards set for the Corsair justice!

 

Anyway, here are the pics.  Still shot on the iPhone.  My initial attempt at a "photo booth" was a complete failure...

 

An overall picture demonstrating the night's labors...

 

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I think I need to pick up something different for the wiring.  The beading wire I'm using is easy to work with but I can't really shape it the way I want to.

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The radio stack (I think?) - this provided me with opportunity to do some decal salvage - that linear center decal suddenly fractured into three pieces as I was applying it.  Funny how the real thing looks better than the pictures since now I can see the corner is a little off.  Again, these are completely inaccurate, I'm sure.  Especially the dial that looks to have a decal better suited for a compass but it was the only one that would fit!

 

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Added a few more decals to the IP...

 

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These were fun... :mental:

 

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And finally these.  This was a good lesson for me on the importance of priming.  On one of those boxes, I tried to mask off the center straps and pulled off most of the green when I removed the tape.  Needless to say, I had decided that primer wasn't necessary before shooting the green color.  Won't make that mistake again.  

 

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The next session will include an attempt to dirty up all of these components and bring them a little more into line with the overall state of the beaten-up cockpit I'm trying to recreate.  Right now they look a little too new.

 

As always, thanks for looking.

 

Cheers.

Edited by pcben80
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Thanks to everyone for the compliments - really appreciated.  I managed to finish up work on the pit last night and closed it up.  Happy with the way the night ended despite an ominous start to the evening when a bottle of Alclad primer exploded all over the workbench - those damn BBs!  They really do seem to help mix the paint up but this is the second bottle that has blown up on me in this kind of fashion.  Miraculously, none of the parts were affected.   

 

Anyway, rant over.  To be honest, looking at all those locating tabs on the various components, I had been dreading this step but it actually came together fairly smoothly.  As anyone who has already built this kit knows, it really is a shame to see all that great detail get tucked away.  Oh well - as I hear on LSP often, at least I know its there!

 

The seatbelts are from HGW.  The gunner's seat belt is way too small but it was all I had on hand and it certainly looked better that the kit-supplied PE!  Looking at these pictures, I can see the paint on the sidewalls of the pilot's seat looks pretty grainy.  Funny I didn't really notice that before.  I noticed a similar pattern on the sidewalls after my primer coat and tried by best to sand it down.  If anyone has any tips on how to avoid that with future builds, please let me know.  I read that lowering the PSI can be helpful when trying to get paint to lay down smooth over a variable surface.  Definitely have a ways to go with my airbrush technique!

 

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Thanks for looking!

 

Cheers,

Ben

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