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Beautiful quarter scale Dora, Hoss!  Love it!
 
Ok... I'm gonna be rushing through these next few painting steps.  I'm leaving for a week in Hawaii and I wanted to get the hairspray chipping done before I leave tomorrow.
The main fuselage color is the late war variation of RLM 76.  It's a yellow-green color similar to RAF Sky.  You can see that the Mr Hobby Aqueous version of RAF Sky matches the paint chip pretty well.  Being described as a "fragile" color and prone to color fading, I'm going to tint the Mr Hobby Aqueous color with some tan (Mr Hobby Aqueous Hemp).

 
 
Using a thinner:paint ratio of about 1.5:1, the Sky color is slow added to the fuselage, working small areas at a time.





 
 
Using thin mixes, you can modulate the pre-shading effect exactly the way you want it.  In my case, I want a very subtle, almost invisible to the eye, effect.





 
 
Leaving the tail assembly for later, I move on to the upper fuselage.



 
 
Covering large areas with a thin mix of paint takes time but it's a good practice of airbrush control, especially if you paint within panel lines and around objects.





 
 
After the fuselage is done, I move on to the next color, which is the lighter RLM 75 Grey for the wings.  



 
 
The second wing color is RLM 74 Dark Grey. Both grey shades are Mr Hobby Aqueous colors. No masks have been used, just careful spraying with the Iwata HP-C Plus.





 
 
After I let the grey shades dry for about an hour, I attacked the wing roots with a stiff paint brush and water.  There's a little more paint over the hairspray than is ideal but I was able to eke out some chipping.



 
 
I'll catch you guys later in about a week!

Thanks guys! Trying to squeeze in some modeling work in between family obligations.  Got my two daughters, a niece and a brother-in-law visiting so I'll probably not have a lot of time at the bench this weekend.  
I did manage to get a salt fade layer onto the model.  Sometimes used as a chipping technique, I like to use it to impart some fade wear onto the surface of the model.  It kind of resembles the water marks left by rain on things stored outside.  The dried salt crystals form a random pattern mask over which a very watery light color (Tamiya Deck Tan in this case) is sprayed.

 
 
Since it is hard to gauge the effect as you are spraying, I usually have to make some sort of adjustments afterwards.  In this case, I'll be toning down some of the effects by gentle micromeshing.



 
 
Some of the external bits are being added onto the model at this stage including the exhaust tips and tail wheel.  You can also see some minor chipping that I've added using a silver pencil.



 
 
I glued the landing gear legs into place using JB Kwik Weld, which gives me a bit of cure time to adjust the placement before the glue dries. The wing cannon barrels have also been glued in.







 
I fashioned a tension spring for the aerial wire from copper wiring.  It will be mounted on the tail mast when the time comes.

 

Thanks so much for the comment guys!  I really appreciate the input and encouragement!
 
The last two days have been spent applying decals.  Since the green mottle covered much of the stenciling, there wasn't a great number of decals to put on.  But since I could not get the Portrait cutter to replicate the very fine black outlines on some of the markings, notably the big yellow "10", decals were used.  I spent the majority of these two days patiently trying to get the yellow 10's to conform to the rivets and panel lines.  First Microsol and then Solvaset was used and I still couldn't get them to sit down, so I resorted to a knife.





 
 
The panel lines within the yellow areas are a bit ragged and I'm trying to clean those up as much as possible.  I don't think they'll be an issue after the panel wash but I'm taking the extra time now as decal solvent won't work after a clear coat is applied.



 
 
A view of the bottom, which is patiently waiting for the next stage in the build which will be the panel wash.

 

I've finally completed the last bits and pieces on Yellow 10.  She is officially finished!  A full array of finished photos can be found on the RFI board...
 

 

 

 

Good luck assembling, I'd love to follow the theme.

Some work done on the underside.
 
tried to show the wear and tear by a revised leading edge, and some primed panels.
 
positive chipping still needs to be done!
 

Some progress made the last week!
 

Did some wheatering and chipping yesterday evening!
 

Dear all,
 
First post here!
 
Working on the Revell 1/32nd Focke Wulf A8 for a few weeks.
 
Started with all the rivets first!
 
Hereby a few pics of the progress so far,
 
Kind Regards,
 
Rowdy!
 
 

Thank you!  I've always considered this the "awkward" stage of the build where you're questioning the color choices you've made in your mind because it looks a bit different in person.  I'll have to trust in the overall plan, which won't come to fruition for a few weeks as I'm leaving for a short trip tomorrow.
 
 
 
 
Thanks for the tip Mike!  Another advantage to the thin coat is how thin and nice it sprays.  Goes along nicely with the rivet work that I've done.
 
 
 
 
Thanks Matt!  That is just a heavy-handed attempt at replicating something that I'm seeing in reference photos.  I'll probably have to diffuse it a bit because it stands out too much.
 
 
 
 
Thank you Vincent!  Always an honor to receive your comments!
 
 
 
 
Thanks!  Weather in Hawaii is a little cooler than normal right now.  My sister says you can even get away with wearing jeans.
 
 
 
 
Thanks Jim!  I'll be back soon to resume the build!  As a final step before the pause, I've committed the Henri Daehne prop to glue.


 
 
A view of the mounted HD prop on unfinished and unweathered airframe...



 
 
Goodbye for now... see you guys in about a week!

Thanks Kev!  I'm going to be taking a one-week break in a few days while I visit Hawaii so I'm not going to start the field-application of greens until I get back. Still, there are some things to work on until that point so here are a few things to report.
I've decided to add the white wing crosses and the black and white JG26 bands at this time.  The wings are masks from the Silhouette Portrait and the bands were masked with a mix of Tamiya yellow tape and flexible white tape.



 
 
A bit of mottling was added to the tail fin.

 
 
I'm almost at that stopping point and I'm debating whether to add the fuselage crosses now or later.  I'm planning on protecting all of the masked markings with the leftover mask shapes so that I can be more free when I apply the 82/83 greens over all of this.  I will then, selectively, chooses spots to introduce some overspray.

 
 
Some close-ups of the painted surfaces.  Since there is another coat of painting coming, it is not too late to do some last minute repair/fill work.









 

Thanks guys! No model shows for me so feel free to bring your wonderful D-13 to Vegas, Tim!
 
Ok... time for the top colors.  I've chosen to paint the fuselage colors differently than the wings.  It gonna look kinda odd but this did happen with Doras as major components were often assembled and painted in separate factories.  The lighter color will be RLM 82 and that is applied first.  Mr Hobby Aqueous version of RLM 82 is used.



 
 
The second color is RLM 81 and for this shade I am using AK Real Colors RLM 81 Version 1.





 
 
The "factory" paint scheme is just about done.  I am going to add some of the markings and then the field-applied green colors will be sprayed on.

Posted Sunday at 07:04 PM
"Still waiting the end of the week...."
 
Wow... already? Haven't noted. Time really flies... 
 
Fab, that model went to my shelf of doom, and returned recently.
However, I decided not to post wip's anymore in my modeling page, just finished models. 
Just a teaser
 

 

 

 

 








Will find some time and post more here. Maybe 'next week'...

Rato Marczak
www.ratomodeling.com

I finished off all of the pre-green markings.  The Werk Numbers were sprayed on the tail fin using masks.



 
 
I decided to paint the fuselage crosses now.  Using a scan of the Eagle Cal decal sheet, I traced the fuselage crosses together with the bar markings as was depicted on the decal sheet.  This keeps the orientation between the elements uniform.

 
 
Due to very thin black borders, the yellow 10 and the black interior of the bar markings will be depicted using the Eagle Cal decals.



 
 
This will be a good point to pause the build.  When I resume, I will use place masks over the markings, including the black/white fuselage band as I cover the aircraft with field applied greens (RLM 82 and 83).







 

Small update. I think I got this front end figured out.  The parts are a bit warped but nothing that can't be overcome.
 
The front cowl cover has a lip underneath that fits that into the radiator shroud lip, which in turn that sits in front of the engine.  This will help establish where everything goes in relation to the firewall where the engine mounts.

 

 
Got the front end cleaned up and parts dry fit. 
 

 

 
The gun mount has a curved portion that is supossed to slot into the front area under the windshield. This wold mean I'd have to cut back that curved area on the kit since the resin part is square right there.  Seems like this would add a seam so I might round off the resin part and slot it in place
 

 
Also got the firewall trimmed up and dry fit into place
 

 
Still a lot left to clean but having figured out the front mounting layout, I'm much relieved now.
 
 
 
 

Inching forward on the D-13 build.  I had to eradicate the seam at forward wing root, which is something that I've never addressed before.  It's good to incorporate new information into the build... thanks Brewer!  The clear parts have been sprayed RLM 66.



 
 
One too many knocks against the low-hanging desk lamp resulted in a broken antenna mast on the tail, which was replaced with a piece of styrene and resculpted.  I've added a small hole to accommodate the aerial wire later on.  I'd better protect the new mast with some tape because I'm sure it will knock against something again.



 
 
The horizontal tail surfaces have not been glued in place yet.  Fit is good enough for me to add these later, which will make painting easier.





 
 
I reckon she's almost ready for some paint!



 

I went back and checked your Dortenmann bird before saying anything in case you just hadn't gotten to it yet, but I'm surprised nobody mentioned that this isn't a panel line either:
 

 
It's a pretty awkward panel that wraps up onto the fuselage and down underneath:
 

 
And here on Yellow 10:
 

 

 
Looking great! I absolutely love following your work!

Some seam clean up on the D-13... The main issue with the wing roots is to eradicate the seam line that runs right through the cannon cover.



 
 
Primer on the resin center wing part revealed a rough surface so I need to smooth that out as well as clean up the glue seams and possibly rivet the area.



 

VOSTOK 1 / Vostok-3KA #3 Гагарин Юрий Алексеевич 1:25 VEB PLasticart-Master Modell spaceship

Within a month , april 12th ,  it will be a full 60 years since the first manned space flight, so i decide to commemorate this effort with my quick build.

Old , good ($@&%@)Veb Plasticart, 1990s in Master Modell boxing, started few months ago, was on hold, but finished in less than week.

This is my  third VEB Plasticart VOSTOK build. The first was in the late seventies, the second in 1985, the third in the year of COVID 19.
 
The model is basic, with many problems , during the research for story,  details  and color scheme on obscure Russian sites and forums, I learned that both Revell 1/24 and VEB Plasticart 1/25 were made according to the display model of VOSTOK 1 from the  Paris, 1966. show .
 
That full scale Vostok  model was exhibited with a third stage segment in white, with a spherical capsule polished to a high gloss aluminium  and with all its equipment of military and technological significance removed.
 
In reality, the third stage of the carrier rocket was gray, and the spherical capsule of Vostok 3K # 3 was covered  with hexagonal segments of asbestos plates 3-18 cm thick, covered with a thin aluminum sheet. Many other small details were added, service openings on the third stage were printed decals, hexagonal segments were vinyl foil cut on cutter,  plastic antennas were replaced by steel wire ones , everything is shown in the following pictures.
 
Original VEB Plasticart box,

 
and Master Modell box,
 

 
Kit parts and instructions,
 

 

 

 
And work started...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
And finished model, gallery here:
 

 

the cockpit with the instrument panels swapped. 

 

 

 

 

The cockpit assembled and painted. I eventually decided not to use the MDC instrument panel, as I will show later. 

 

 

 

 
I thought the Eduard IP was more realistic in appearance. These were the colored PE panels where each gauge ring was etched and colored separately - the panel alone took hours to assemble. 

Thanks guys!  I received a new toy (photography-related) today so I spent most of my time playing with it instead of modeling.
 
But I worked on the wing to bottom fuselage joint, which was filled with black CA glue and re-scribed.  The area received the rivet treatment and now I can move on to the wing roots.

Thanks Tom!
 
The wings have glued onto the fuselage.  FYI... I used a variation of the "pastel staining" technique to dirty up the the wheel wells a bit.  Instead of placing the drops of pastel one by one, I used a stipple brush to "spray" little droplets of the brown pastel wash into the wheel well.





 
 
Preliminary fitting of the central wing part.  It looks to be slightly undersized but a decent fit overall.

 
 
Gotta deal with some glue joint clean-up work before I can finally move on to painting.









 

Thanks! That's essentially what I ended up doing... using an alcohol bath and stiff paint brush to clean off the paint.
 
 
 
 
Thanks Kevin!  Props not done but it is getting there!
 
 
 
 
I don't think I would call this a masterpiece but I appreciate the compliment!
 
 
 
 
 
 
It's hard to go wrong with such beautiful resin.  And yes, I do feel a little reluctance when putting paint to the Henri Daehne props... they are really beautiful in their raw state.
 
The prop blades were treated to a few rounds of salt fading.  I am very cautious with this technique because it looks pretty strange when it is overdone.  So I tend to wisp on very thin light grays and tans and sometimes I find that the effect is not even visible.  If the effect is a little too heavy, I can dial it back by gently rubbing some micromesh on it.

 
 
Here are the prop blades after 3 salt fading attempts.  The effect is pretty subtle and these photos represent my attempt to maximize the visibility of it.  In some angles, you can hardly see it.





 
 
Some initial attempts at staining the prop spinner.  This is just playing with pastel staining on a matte paint surface. I'll probably try to layer some more discrete stains, maybe with oils.  And yes, I did a salt fade on the spinner too.



 
 
Playing around with different light configurations to get another perspective on the spinner.



 
 
A peek of the assembled prop mounted onto the fuselage.

 

Did a bit of work today. I will be using the Aires IP.
 

 
Compared to the Eduard one. I don't like the grainy look of the Eduard IP. 
 

 
Installed in the Aires dash.
 

 
I started masking the canopy and windscreen inside and out. While I was at it, I left the Eduard masking set alone and did it all with Tamiya tape. The Eduard set will be used with the remaining AM stuff on another 162. On this photo it looks like the tape is not snug against the frame, but that is optical illusion.
 


 
The (Aires) wheels are done. Some weathering to do. Today I also removed the moulded-on hydraulic lines on the main gear legs, I will replace them with wire ones.I wondered about the Revell wheel and wether or not the thin lines across the tyres would wear off in use. They do as the wear shows in period photos, so I am not going to restore them, and use the Aires wheels.
 

 
Part fit on this kit is exceptional. I wonder if Revell kept the team that designed this and cut the molds... they should have gotten a raise and Revell should have let them do all their kits. This is by far the best quality Revell molding I ever worked with. Period. This is after glue, before any sanding:
 


 
My "opt-in" bottom seam is closed up and it gets the works to make it dissappear.
 

 
I enhance-scribed the seams of the ailerons and elevators. A safe and easy way to practice scribing. Only screwed up twice 
 

 
I tested if there is enough lead to prevent tail-sitting. Revell recommend 45gs in the nose cone in the instructions. In order to get 45gs in that small cone you would need Plutonium so good luck  with that. Luckily there is ample space behind the cockpit.
 

 
Some drawings, might be of use for someone when aligning tail and gear and such.
 




 
She will be finished as this one. Note the remark about the Werksnummer. I will put 122230 on her.
 




 
Below still with the original tail section.
 


 
I didn't want to keep this one from you guys and gals. I have never seen this one colorised before. Mesmerising image to me, it makes me wonder about those hectic times, and what remains to be discovered.
 

 
Thanks for watching!