Durangokid

Thanks for the help John, I'll give that a try. Nice work on the canopy! It's nice the kit come with more than one canopy... Bryan

Hey John, thanks for the info. I just started using Inkscape and it has been fairly easy to figure out but I still have a long way to go. I've been having a problem when sending my file over to the silhouette software that maybe you can help me with. I save my drawing as a DXF file and load that into the silhouette software. The silhouette brings up the drawing just fine except it doesn't keep the scale. For example, a number that I drew at a half inch ends up being 2 inches in the silhouette studio. Do you know why that would happen? Sorry if I'm taking you off topic... Bryan

Fantastico! It looks like a real plane sitting on the field! The rigging came out really nice too... Bryan

I'm loving this build! Big thanks for explaining your chipping process. I never thought of using a lighter gray color as part of the chipping. It really sets it apart. Bryan

Great job with the decals! What did you use to draw them? The cutting mat is too sticky! I read to dab a t-shirt on it to make it less sticky. It worked well for me although I may have done it too much as it's not so sticky anymore. Bryan

The pilots are looking great! I'm still hoping to see the helo build too as I have a feeling you are going to raise the bar with this one. It's nice to see your work on the forum again buddy... Bryan

Man those look amazing! I like both but I have a soft spot for the Navy viper and you nailed it. That one is difficult to paint with all the touch ups and weathering but you really did it justice. Great job Marcel! Bryan P.S. Thanks for the tip on the Master static dischargers, they are really nice just like you said. I was hesitant to buy them since the looked oversized in their product photos but they are just like the real thing.

The chipping may have been difficult but it looks fantastic! You really do a nice job making it look totally realistic... Bryan

Wow, this really looks fantastic! You could display the engine all on its own... Bryan Sorry for the double post... Just consider your work doubly good!

Wow, this really looks fantastic! You could display the engine all on its own... Bryan

Thanks Dave...

Such a bummer about the canopy glass, seems to be a problem with the kit. Mine also had a crack but it was so small, it won't be visible much.

Here is a close up of the intake/engine/exhaust area. Most of the photos I've seen don't have this panel line visible so I'm fairly sure is doesn't belong there. Maybe someone that know more about this can comment. I actually didn't even know it was there until I started the decals. One thing to note is I didn't need any filler nor did I have to sand anything for this entire area. Great job Academy! I'm still not sure what to do about the decals. I'm debating stripping the whole thing or just removing the bigger decals. Either way it's a pain and I'm open to suggestions... Bryan

Great advice sir and unfortunately I totally missed the lines on the tail boom. Luckily they are very faint so it should be fairly easy to remove. So far I haven't really needed to replace any rivets since the fit has been fantastic. There is a small area on the bottom of the tail boom where they have been removed from sanding. I didn't replace them since it's on the bottom and not really seen much. This is the area I'm talking about. Thanks Grissom! Well said about Academy's approach to this and I couldn't agree more. They really struck a good balance especially considering the price. I couldn't find them either but someone said to send him an email. I sent one yesterday so I'll let you know when I hear something back. Thanks for all the comments and great advice fellas!!! Bryan

I almost missed your post... Thanks for the info! Yeah it's round, I gave a bad example. I'm looking into the K&S pipe benders that phantomdriver told me about.