Suresh Nathan

Thanks Brian, I try to imagine what it must be like to behold a bright red plane in the middle of the war and nothing really prepares you for that. Regards.

Did the crush last night. I had to be suitably tired not to care how it turned out. This morning it appears ok. Also initial weathering, the tree and just general busy work.

Thanks! You really get it!

Thanks Thomas. I feel that way about figures too. I was recently in the Tamiya factory in Japan and saw some of Shep Paines work close-up. Virtually all his figures were kit figures so you're in good company. I'm wondering how to crush this wing too, TBH. Lol.

Thanks Kevin! Minor snafu's aside it's progressing reasonably well I think.

Did some work....... One of the few shots of the freely standing model. Note the portside wing is an aluminium foil scratchbuild and will be CRUSHED at the end of this. (GULP!) Panels on but not on. Adds to the effect I'm looking for. Took me a while to figure out how to showcase the stunning red and white under side of the Papagei Staffel. You almost forget the truck is there! I added a tree to effectively pin the model to the base. I've had instances in the past where aircraft models fall off and shatter and I'm constantly paranoid about it.LOL.

Papagei Staffel!!! Fairly complex paint scheme but very satisfying.

The port wing will sustain some serious crumpling at the end of this. I built a new section out of brass and aluminium foil. It's not perfect but it's going to be crushed anyway.

I think it's more than that. Models and figures were sculpted by human hands. Even the high quality ones like those from Zoukei Mura have a hybrid process of sculpt and digital scan with post process digital detailing. They take on a very organic feel. Contrast the stuff from Trumpeter or Hobby boss which feels like it's taken out of a 2D line drawing. It's a bit like Model Maker Starwars vs CGI Starwars, isn't it? It's why I only ever build the old stuff and the occasional ZM. I take pride in those..... The Trumpeters and Hobby bosses I build in a week and take them to a modeling talk and I'm not too concerned if they break in the process. Sorry to derail the discussion. These figures are nevertheless stunning and I'd love to paint one! PS> I sculpted the figure of Joe Foss for largescaleplanes.com in 2003. Took me 6 months. https://www.largescaleplanes.com/articles/article.php?aid=48

Did some work in the wing gun bay and wheel wells. All scratchbuilt.

LOL Kev.....this world has bypassed the old school sculptors! I beat that drum at our local club and people look at me strange.

Been busy with the assembly. At this point I'm pretty glad that I went with the wreck idea...... In many ways it is a wreck. Don't get me wrong I like giving life to these old kits but as it is nothing fits on the base model. With the upgrade parts, the problem is compounded. Nothing lines up. Like I said, I'm glad this is a wreck...... The Dora has flush rivets on the top and pan heads below. So in some sense the Revell rivets were helpful as they were sanded down. Put together, everything is generally OK but it wouldn't pass muster as a standalone. The wheel wells had to be modified by opening up the inner wells to expose the engine and general detailing. Trying to combine the Rutman and Verlinden sets was harder than expected. Verlinden provided the wrong dials and I used the kit decals. The Verlinden hood wouldn't fit the Rutman bulkhead and it had to be split. Sigh..... Yeah.....

Quick update: Was laying in the colours on the Big Jumo and it's quite impressive. This version of the Jumo is from Jerry Rutman and make a RR Merlin look like a lawnmower engine!

Did some detailing on the engine and radio compartment. Hosiery, cables and wires. Should be able to start painting!

The Shep technique is absolutely the best starting point ever. And yes, I thought it was practice too. But now looking back I think the slit/eyeball rule is worth considering. He actually mentions it in his book. As a side note, I was in Shizuoka recently and saw Shep's work up close in the Tamiya factory. He absolutely used the black wash in eyeslit technique in all his 35th scale figures. If you want to add some definition to that you can sometimes scratch in a pupil and allow the wash to define the lines better. Cheap cheat!