Whitey

Very nice Alex. 

another one :
 

 

 

 

 

after a long absence here is the first finished kit of the year :
 

 

 

 

 

1/32 Trumpeter kit,
Black Box cockpit,
Eduard 1000lbs bomb,
Painting mask homemade, 
All colours MRP
 

 





















 

Hi again
Painting started.
First step is lower surfaces.
I have used a combination of Tamiya XF20, XF12 and white.
 

I think it's ready to be painted
 

And the nose:
In the beginning everything looks great, fitting was flawless.
But then I heard a melody:
"Knock, knock knocking on Murpy's door"
Murphy was here....Or was it my incompetence?
Although everything went well, the left nose piece did not fit properly. There is a half-mm gap left at the bottom. And this caused a half mm elevation difference in the left connection side. I continued unscathed and placed a thin plastic sheet on the part with the level difference, leveling it up and sending Murphy back to where he belonged. I think I can go on like this.
 












 

Have a nice week end to all.
Here is Episode 2 : The fuselage
No need to say that the fitting is perfect. But intersection of the fuselage to the wings impressed me. Nice , really nice. 
Still, I must say I tried my best to keep Murphy away. 
 

Episode "The Wings" has terminated.
The piece of J21 on the sprue was broken in three places. So I replaced it with lead wire and installed it.
The next episode is "The Fuselage"
 




 

I wholeheartedly agree.
The photo-etch sheet provided is at best primitive and nowhere near the quality Eduard has accustomed us to.
A quick remedy would be to back up the metal with a thin 10thou. plasticard. That way you’d get a more manageable and rigid part while keeping the detailed face.
I did it for the cowling flaps lever in the cockpit and it worked rather well.
HTH
Quang

Hi,
Some progress in the cockpit.
 









 
 

Very nice Alex. 

This is 1/32 Messerschmitt Me 262A-2a with the markings of “Black X” of 2./KG 51.
 Cockpit modified by Eduard instrument panel and Quickboost seat.
Wheels replaced with Barracudacast resin wheels.
Paints: Gunze Sangyo acrylics and Alclad metalizers.
Decals: Cutting Edge CED32071
 
Happy modelling
 

Hallo gentlemans,
I would like introduce my latest finished model on this excelent forum and at the same time the first one here.
It is limited Eduard (Hasegawa) kit with extra Brassin and PE parts in box. Besides that I use HGW seatbelts a some my scratch 
Painting with MRP for interior and insignia, MR.Color for exterior, .502 oils and metalic pencils.
I hope you will like it 
BR Tomas
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

Some more work.
 
But first, a couple more pics of Homer. Homer led the first airstrike during Operation Falconer 2003. Here he is before departing on that day.
 

 
And here he is upon return from the same mission.
 

 
Its stuff like the above that really make me strive to do the best that I can on each of my subject pilot builds. Early on in the build, I realised that there was a fair bit of stuff that was on Homers Hornet during his 2016 mission that I would have to scratch build, such as the BOL dispensers as shown earlier. Another feature was the ELTA 8222 ECM pod that was standard issue for our Hornets, mounted to a unique adapter on station 6. I was ready to make these in plastic card but this was during the aquisition of my 3D printer, so one thing led to another and I ended up designing each piece. I did investigate the Wolfpack 8222 pod but was not happy with it.
 

 
And here are the parts. They are almost ready to go. I am still playing with various angles of printing to get rid of some of the small visible lines and a panel line or two need to be tweaked to give them a bit more depth. 
 

 
Test fit to the model. Its a shame that they wont be very visible!
 

 
 
 

And so the package arrived yesterday via Belgian post, just one day after I ordered it. 
I ripped open the envelop, checked the AK masking film.
It’s clear without being thoroughly transparent, with a slightly pebbly surface suitable for tracing with pencil. It cuts well, don’t distord easily, holds the lacquer paint well without flooding. So far, so good.
 
Looking back at my first try at the shark mouth, I decided that the madder red I used was too strong compared with the washed out vermilion seen on contemporary photographs. So I decided to remove everything I did and start all over.

 
A thin coat of Mr Surfacer 1200 and it’s ready for…

 
…TAKE TWO.
I tried to use Tolga’s instruction sheet for the shark mouth template but to no avail because the resolution of the internet document was too bad.
So I redid the drawing freehand like I did the first time around.
 
The first mask was cut and applied to the plastic.


The shark mouth is built up by applying successive colour layers, each one overlapping the others:
1- an overall undercoat of yellow
2- red overall
3 - red tongue and gums masked. Black applied.
4- masks for tooths and whit applied
 
Sorry I was too concentrated by the painting that I forgot to take pictures of the successive steps. Just this one showing the lay-outs and some masks.

 
Anyhow here’s the result



 
Eyes added


As you can see, details are not 100% like on the original plane. My main aim is to convey the crudeness of a painting done in the field while keeping a certain symmetry and balance. 

 

What I did realize when the decor is finished and in situ is how powerful the original design is and how evocative it is to represent a real shark.
Kudos to the original painters. They were the artists.







 
Hope you like it.
Next time we’re back to the normal build.
Happy Easter!
Cheers,
Quang

Welcome back ye traveler
At this point in the building sequence, let’s take a pause and talk about the subject of this build: converting the AVG Flying Tigers plane into a British Tomahawk IIB.
 
As you already know, my aim is to convert this Flying Tigers plane into a Tomahawk of the No.112 squadron RAF.
The No.112 sqn was reportedly famous for introducing the shark mouth design on their machines and creating a trend for the many P-40s which followed including the much more publicized Flying Tigers.
The main source for my conversion is a 1941 British Pathe newsreel .
The plane I chose to model is a Tomahawk singled-coded C in early temperate camouflage and sporting a red Indian head insignia below the cockpit.
 
Screenshots from the video








 
The conversion is fairly easy considering that the AVG and the RAF planes were basically the same machine with the same camouflage. The only difference being the national insignia and the codes which can be easily reproduced with paint.
 
More difficult is… the shark mouth  which will have to be painted since no decal exists for the plane I’m modelling.
Note that these early shark mouths were one-offs and differed from one another unlike the Flying Tigers/AVG design which used templates.
Also on the few first mouths (like in this case), the brushworks were often crude and by no way mirror- imaged (left side NOT obligatory identical to right side).
Add to that the fact that these original documents didn’t possess the super clarity we’re accustomed to in our digital age, so a certain degree of interpretation and artistic license is mandatory.
 
With these caveats in mind, LET’S ROLL.
 
First, we’d have to create the masks for airbrushing.
Since I don’t have access to the Silhouette system, I’ll do it the hard (manual) way.
In them old days, we used frisket film for airbrush to make the masks. Since it’s not generally available anymore, I tried using Tamiya masking film. Not the best material for it since it’s not transparent.
 
The film is applied to the nose and the contours of the mouth roughly defined.

 
The shape of the mouth is cut off and the inside removed.

 
Red paint applied



 
Next the red parts are masked and black mouth contour applied. Sorry I forgot to take picture!
Masks for teeth cut out.

 
To make a long story short, this is what we should have in the end.


I reckon this first try is far from perfect.
Yet we can learn much from it. What I’ll be looking for next time: avoid overspray, more precise cut, keeping lines parallel , …
Let’s also say that the Tamiya tape is not ideal for this job. Maybe it’s best that I find a more suitable material before going on.
 
In the mean time, let’s call it a day.
See ya all next time on this long and winding road.
Cheers,
Quang
 

Thin and well-printed decals are provided for the instruments. A drop of epoxy glue on each bezel finishes off the IP.

 
I added a recharging lever handle on the side of each machine gun. But I reckon much of them won’t be visible in the finished cockpit.

 
The export seat provided is a faithful reproduction of the original.

picture for info only
 
I just added the leather patch typical of the RAF issue.

 
The cockpit sides and instrument panel in situ. OOB except for a few wires and odd bits.

 

 

 
Next time we’ll finish the cockpit floor and the wing.
Until then, have a nice week-end!
Cheers,
Quang
 
 
 
 
 

Hi all,
Some say that a modeller‘s life is like city buses. One can wait for a bus for hours, and when one finally comes along, they come in 3 or 4 
I’ve been anticipating for the GWH P-40 B/C since it was announced last year. I thought that given the enthusiastic reception, there would sooner or later be a WIP thread dedicated to the subject on this here forum.
I waited and waited …until three weeks ago, I took the plunge and ordered my kit from a Czech shop. Five days later, it arrived. I ripped open the box and started right away… only to find that @Tolga ULGUR beat me to it.
To tell you the truth, I’m not entirely unfamilar with the early Hawk. I scoured the internet for my build of the 1/48 Airfix kit, and learned a lot from the various Curtiss experts. Furthermore I’m currently building a 1/32 French H75, the forefather of the H81. So I felt I was somewhat ready for the GWH.
 
My intention is to build a 112 sqn RAF Tomahawk in early temperate camouflage and sporting one of the original sharkmouths. I’ve studied this scheme for my 1/48 model and will take the opportunity to implement it to the larger scale. Since no decals exist, the markings will be hand-painted à la old-school (no Silhouette).
 
Some views of my 1/48 Airfix. I’ll use the same color scheme for the GWH. Hopefully, with cleaner teeth 





 
This thread is not meant to be a step-by-step WIP per se but rather a log where I’d be gathering notes and impressions (and rants) during the building of this promising kit! I hope some of you will find it at least entertaining and I also welcome your comments and input. The more the merrier.
 
 A VERY brief preview of the kit as all of you know already about it. 



THE PROS: very clean mouldings, realistic surface textures with intricate, accurate details, very precise fit with super-tight tolerance. Very comprehensive decals, thin and well-printed.
THE CONS: the photo-etchings are useless and primitive at best. Paper-thin, easily deformed, devoid of noticeable details. Some etched parts would better be in moulded plastic. The etched radiator grills are commendably thin and subtle if only they can be seen once the kit is completed.
Furthermore the special edition ‘bonus’ -apart from the 3d-printed .303 barrels- are completely useless: a bogus patch (if only had they use a genuine Flying Tigers breast patch), a ‘collector’s card (tell me how many collect 150euro kits), and 2 posters profiles(meh).
I would prefer GWH replace these ‘bonus’ with some etched seat belts and optional US seats and windscreens.

 
Rants aside. Let’s cut plastic.
 
Starting with the cockpit. I prefer to do it the ‘normal’ way. Instead of building a pilot’s cage as GWH proposed, I’d be gluing the right and left sides to their respective fuselage halves. This method would give me a complete view of what’s in store, especially giving the adequate contrast when detailing and painting the cockpit.

 
I added an armour plate ( plasticard) to the bulkhead behind the seat

 
The original cockpit was painted in an equivalent of RAF Grey-green. I used AK grey-green slightly modified with a touch of blue.
The aft fuselage is painted in a yellow Zinc Chromate. This part is not visible on the completed airframe. I only painted it to give some contrast to the cockpit color.

 
Cockpit floor (in fact, the top of the wing) painted. Note ‘halo’ effect. Supposed to give some depth to the cockpit. Hopefully 

 
 
Seat is painted in a slightly darker green than the rest. As this is a RAF bird, I added a Sutton harness (Eduard p.e.)

 
Instrument panel waiting for bezel decals.

 
That’s it, folks.
Questions and comments are heartily welcome!
Cheers,
Quang
 
 
 

Seamless intakes, tsk tsk tsk mate.    Looks the goods and looking forward to some great tales from Homer.

A 1/32 NF-104A, or a solid conversion kit!

A F111 1/32 will do. And for know i'am waithing for my P3 in the 1/32. 

Project 1/22 
1/32 Hasegawa model,
Yahu instrument panel,
Brengun PE parts,
Master gun barrels,
Painting mask home made,
All colours MRP
 

 

 























 

1/32 Trumpeter A4 skyhawk 
this is the 1/32 Trumpeter A-4 skyhawk its not a bad kit, but you do need some patients wit it, some of the instructions are a bit head scratching, and a slurp of coffee, before releasing what the y mean.
any way I used AK air as the main pint on this build, and Cam decals
enjoy
Mike