Jump to content

MarioS

LSP_Members
  • Posts

    67
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Reputation Activity

  1. Like
    MarioS reacted to chuck540z3 in Tamiya Spitfire Mk IX Kicked Up A Notch: Last Post   
    Thanks Martin!
     
     
     
    While that was one of my next steps, I would think that tighter to the front prop area would be better than loose.  Time will tell, but I'm not worried -yet!
     
     
     
     
    Yeah Carl, I've looked at many, many builds of this kit and now with focus on that lower cowling frame join.  From my crude survey, about 90% of the builds out there where I can see some detail of this area, the fit is poor.  This is especially true of the port side where the framing actually hits the big coolant pipe right before it connects to the glycol tank.  My tank is on straight and the coolant pipe is snug to the tank fitting, so I dismiss this as user error.  Having said that, Wolf's build looks like the fit is pretty good, but as we all know, Mr. Buddee isn't human anyway. 
     
    Now a brief update, now that I have changed my mind to go with the larger lower intake.  Thanks Chek for the nudge.
     
     
    In order to dress up the intake/air filter assembly, I have a few bits from the kit parts (b-1) and the Eduard PE kit (2 X #35 and #61).  Part 61 is supposed to be a control line that opens and closes the intake, but it's flat and not to scale, so I tossed it and made my own assembly out of wire and some spare PE. The Eduard instructions shows where Part 35 goes on the port side, but there's no mention that an identical part should be installed on the starboard side as well.  Checking reference pics of this assembly, I note that there are a lot of raised rivets. as did Wolf in his build.  This is where more Archer resin decal rivets come in handy, which I have used extensively on my last 3 builds of an F-15C, P-38L and especially my A-10C, which is FULL of them!  Application of these decals can be tricky, but with lots of practice, I now find it second nature and quite easy to do.  The key is to get Microsol on the decals soon after application to suck them down so that they won't move.  No worries about them wrinkling up too much if you soak them with Microsol, because you actually need to.
     
    Now a quick walk-around of this intake before I spray it with gloss black lacquer.
     
     

     

     

     
    The face plate, Part b-11, has large screws that fasten it to the intake in a 6 X 4 pattern, so I used larger Archer rivets and placed them according to pics.
     

     
     
    That will be my last update for at least a week or more, because it's now time to do my friggin' taxes, taking me away from this model.     
     
    Cheers,
    Chuck
     
  2. Like
    MarioS reacted to chuck540z3 in Tamiya Spitfire Mk IX Kicked Up A Notch: Last Post   
    Thanks Lucio for those kind words.  I try!
     
    Generally speaking, the washes that are available are water or solvent based.  Using enamel and lacquer paints exclusively, I have historically been using Flory ProModeler wash and a few years ago The Detailer, which are both water based and won't attack the paint.  I prefer solvent based washes, because they are thinner and get into tiny detail that the water based ones can't quite find or stay into, but even after a good coat or two of Future/Pledge on my models, I have had some disasters applying solvent based washes, so I avoided them.  ProModeler washes are OK, but they are a bit "gritty" and The Detailer can work well too, but it dries to a much different wash pattern than what was applied as the wash dries and shrinks, so you need to repeatedly re-wet the surface and move the wash around again and again to get the look you're after.  It helps if you add a drop of dish washing detergent to break up the surface tension, but the final version still looks different that what you applied.   Not a big deal, but a bit of a pain.
     
    That was all before I discovered using Tamiya X-22 gloss clear coat instead of Future.  This acrylic paint is easier to spray than Future and dries to a very hard coat in only an hour.  With 2 good coats of this stuff on my model parts, I now have no fears of solvent based paints attacking the paint, which leads to some of the Mig washes, like the one I used above.  Although solvent based, this wash is much thicker than others and allows me to build it up where I want it and remove it where I don't.  What I see is what I get the first time, because there is no water evaporating, changing the composition and distribution of the wash and for an engine compartment, there is no better color or composition than Mig's "Engine Oil".  It dries fairly quickly too- maybe 30 minutes before you can touch it without leaving finger prints.
     
    Cheers,
    Chuck
  3. Like
    MarioS reacted to chuck540z3 in Tamiya Spitfire Mk IX Kicked Up A Notch: Last Post   
    Thanks Guys!
     
    I've been asked many times how I take my pics and although I'm no photographer, here's a cut/paste of a quick tutorial I did years ago, with some editing to bring it up to date. 
     
     
    Model Photography for Dummies (like me)
     
     
    Camera
     
    The first thing you need is a decent camera, but owning a fancy DSLR with all the bells and whistles isn't necessary. Besides having a good lens and decent resolution of at least 8 MP, the camera needs to have an aperture priority setting, so that you can fix the aperture to a high number, giving a small aperture. The camera also needs to be able to focus on objects from a minimum of 2 feet or less. Zoom lenses help if you need to be further away, but maximum aperture settings often deteriorate as you zoom in. Most point and shoot cameras have a macro setting which is often displayed as a flower for close-ups, but just make sure you can adjust the aperture at the same time if you leave it on this setting.
     
    Lens
     
    If you can afford it, buy a Macro ("Micro" in Nikon-speak) lens, because nothing takes close-up pics better than a lens made for doing just that.  If you don't have a Macro lens, try using a zoom from a few feet away and then crop the image on a computer (see below), assuming the resolution of your camera is high enough to begin with.
     
    Aperture Priority
     
    A maximum aperture of “f-22†or higher is recommended for most model photography. With high aperture settings, you can achieve good depth of field, which is critical for close-up or “macro†photography. If you are taking a close-up of your model from, say, 1 foot away at f-3.5, the object you focused on will be in focus, but the other parts of the model just in front or behind the focus point will be blurry. With a higher aperture number of f-22, almost everything a few inches in front and a few inches behind will also be in focus.
     
    Tripod and Self-timer
     
    The next thing your camera needs is a self timer and the ability to fix it to a tripod. With high aperture settings, the shutter speeds will decrease dramatically, so you can't hand hold the camera without getting some blurring from shake. Anything longer than about 1/100 of a second will likely have some blur, but you can sometimes hand hold 1/60 of a second if you're very steady. For maximum apertures of f-22 or more and the lighting I routinely use, my shutter speeds are often 1-3 seconds or more, so a tripod is a must along with a self timer, so that you are not touching the camera when the shutter is released.
     
    Lighting
     
    Generally speaking, you can't have enough light when taking pics, so try to have 2-3 light sources coming from various angles to fill in shadows. Having one light source stronger than the other is OK, which creates a natural looking shadow, but if the light is too strong from one direction, it will overpower what the camera measures for light. If you can find them, there are some excellent coiled gas bulbs or LED's available that give off strong natural and balanced light of 3200 to 5000K, which is a “color temperature†close to natural light. They are not expensive- about $8 each- and I use at least 2-3 of them in goose-neck lamps over my model and one held in my hand, so that I can direct the light at shadows that I want to tone down as the self timer on my camera takes the pic. For example, check out “Alzo Digital†here for the lamps I use:
     
    http://www.alzodigital.com/online_store/replacement_lamps.htm
     
    White Balance
     
    Colors will shift according to your light source. Fluorescent lighting is greenish in color, incandescent lighting is reddish and natural sunlight is neutral, which is why many modelers take their pics outdoors. You can hand hold many outdoor pics due to the strong light and resultant fast shutter speeds, even at high apertures, but strong sunlight can also produce too harsh shadows, so a cloudy day is better than a sunny day to take pics. If you're taking pics under artificial light, you need to compensate for the color shift of your light source and many cameras have a white balance compensation setting, other than “autoâ€. More sophisticated cameras allow you take a measurement of the colors your light source is sending to your model, by taking a picture of a white card (sometimes grey) as a base line for what is supposed to be pure white, which is saved as a setting in the camera. The pics you take are then color shifted accordingly to provide a neutral look, rather than one that is red looking because you used an incandescent light bulb, etc.  You can also change the white balance using computer software, as described below.
     
    ISO
     
    This is the sensitivity of your digital light sensor, with low numbers of 100 to 400 being the most commonly used. ISO settings in this range will give your pics the most resolution, but sometimes you need a higher ISO setting to get the pics you want under poor light if you're not using a tripod. High ISO settings, however, tend to be grainy, with the higher the number the grainier the pic. My camera goes to a smoking high setting of 50,000 (and higher), but the pics will look fairly grainy. If you have good light and a tripod, you don't need to worry about using a high ISO, so you should leave it at a relatively low number.
     
    Flash
     
    If you own flash umbrellas and light tents, you know a heck of a lot more about photography than I ever will, but for most people who use the built-in flash on their camera, my advice is to leave the flash down and never use it. Flashes tend to totally overpower the front light of the photograph, making them look artificial and washed out. With adjustable external flashes you can bounce the light off the ceiling, etc. to create a more natural look, which might work great for some. I like to use my own external lighting so that I can see what the pic should look like before I take it, rather than what it might look like with a flash.  Having said that, some good cameras with "TTL" (Through The Lens) metering/flash can turn out pretty good.
     
    Light metering
     
    Many cameras give you options for how the light is measured on your light sensor, from tiny “spot metering†to versions that measure a wider spectrum in your viewfinder. I generally use the spot metering option, because I can control where the lighting is measured. This isn't all that important due to “bracketingâ€, which I also use.
     
    Bracketing
     
    Most of the time your pics will be properly exposed automatically, but sometimes you might want a little bit darker or lighter pic as a comparison to choose from. I sometimes shoot 1 “stop†under and 1 stop over what the camera measures as correct, so that I have 3 pics for every shot. My camera does this automatically if I set it this way, but you can always do it manually if your camera doesn't have this capability. I sometimes find that the slightly overexposed pic is the best and sometimes it's the under exposed one, so I eventually toss the other two that don't look as good.
     
    HDR (High Dynamic Range) Setting
     
    My "Go-To" method of shooting model pics these days is to use the "HDR" setting on my Nikon cameras.  I'm not sure what other camera manufacturers call this setting, but I'm sure it's not unique to Nikon.  Essentially, the camera takes two pics, one that exposes the lighter areas properly and then another that exposes the darker areas properly, then stitches the two into one pic.  As a result, using a tripod is a must, so that the two pics are exactly the same for what is framed.  This is usually much better than just taking bracketing pics like above, because each shot is an average of both light and dark areas, which doesn't always work very well.   Using the HDR setting is the single best trick that I have learned for taking pics of models, which is why they are often very balanced for exposure.
     
    For more info, a link to Nikon's HDR Photography is here:
     
    https://www.nikonusa.com/en/learn-and-explore/a/tips-and-techniques/high-dynamic-range-photography.html
     
     
    Background
     
    Ideally, you don't want to see anything in the background, because it can distract from the model. Having all sorts of modeling crap in the background for an in-progress shot can add some nice realism to your photography, but for a finished model, I want to see nothing but the model and maybe the diorama the model is placed on. To accomplish this I use a very easy and cheap background, which is a large roll of white poster paper that is placed on the flat surface like a desk or table and draped up and taped to the wall behind, so that you can't see any folds. Since your photograph is focused on the model, the background will be slightly out of focus, achieving a nice nothingness to the background, which is called "Bokeh".  I have also experimented with using a black background, which can be very effective to show contrasting details, but for most of my pics these days, I prefer the white or near white background for a completed model.  For In-Progress shots, I use a very small photo-booth with a dark blue background.
     
    File Format
     
    My photography-geek friends always tell me to shoot my pics in “RAW†format, so that you can play with all the information the camera has recorded on a computer without the compression (and loss of data) by converting the pic to a “jpgâ€. If I am taking vacation shots, I record my pics in RAW for this reason, but when I'm taking 24-36 MP pics that are at least 6,000- 7,000 pixels wide, I don't worry about it because jpg format is easier for me to deal with (and store) and most of my pics are shrunk to no wider than 1,600 pixels when I save them on my ImageShack account for posting here. However, if you are planning to submit your build to a magazine for publication, taking the final pics in RAW is probably a good idea, because the magazines like all the resolution- and information- they can get.
     
    Computer Editing
     
    All pics can be improved and enhanced with photo editing software. Contrast, brightness, shadow compensation, histogram manipulation, color shifting and sharpening are some of the more common things tweaked after you take the pic. This all takes practice and there are many software packages out there, but I quite like the standard and easy to use “Windows Live Photo Gallery†that comes free with Windows 7 and you can download from Microsoft if you have Windows 10. I'm sure there are free Apple versions that are even better, or you can step up and buy the Adobe Photoshop or Lightroom software if you want to get really serious, although I never have found the need- yet.  One day I probably will, when I have more time to play with pics over modeling.
     
    What do I use?
     
    Although I have a Nikon D810 with 36 MP of resolution, I always use my Nikon D610 with 24 MP.  It has a full frame sensor, so I get all the resolution I need and it makes a terrific travel camera because it isn't as heavy as the D810.  For a lens, I have a Nikon Micro 60mm, although if I was buying this lens today I would have gone for the 105mm version instead, so that I didn't have to get as close as I do now, which is often only 6-8" away.  The 60mm lens has a maximum aperture setting (smallest hole in the diaphragm) of F36, so it's has fantastic depth of field.
     
    Summary
     
    Taking good pics of your model is easy if you follow a few of the steps above.  If you have a fantastic model and crappy pics of it that you took with your phone, nobody will care, because the details are lost.  With a little extra effort, you can record your masterpiece properly.
     
    Cheers,
    Chuck
     
     
    Now a few of my favorite pics (and models!) that I took using much of the above:
     
     

     

     

     

     

     

  4. Like
    MarioS got a reaction from Shaka HI in Tamiya Spitfire Mk IX Kicked Up A Notch: Last Post   
    Hey chuck,
     
    Even though I have not responded for a while on your threads and any other ones for that matter, I do look at them all the time every time you put a new post on I quite enjoy the work that you do and how far you go with detail and explanations.
    Personally, I've been too busy on my own stuff (not modelling) and for relaxation sometimes I just catching up on what you and some of the other guys here are doing. So please don't feel that we don't admire the work you put into this threads and appreciate them we do. Please keep it up thanks 
     
    P.S. This Spitfire is turning out amazing, but that's not a surprise and that engine looks great!
     
    Also looking forward to your next Modern Jet 
  5. Like
    MarioS reacted to chuck540z3 in Tamiya Spitfire Mk IX Kicked Up A Notch: Last Post   
    April3/18
     
     
     
    You're right Lucio, so here's a mini-update of the engine cradle and firewall as it sits now.  As with the cockpit, everything was painted gloss black, some parts were masked off and then sprayed with RAF interior green.  Any loose parts- and there were several of them- were painted separately to avoid masking.  Just about all these parts have seam lines and pin marks that should be removed, although some that are facing the interior where the engine will parked can be left as is, because you will never see them.  
     
    As with the engine hydraulic and electrical detail, I generally followed Wolf's lead about 75% of the time and followed pics of the real deal 25% of the time.  After putting all the parts together, this is how it looks.  The hose clamps are made from thin strips of Bare Metal Foil Aluminum, followed by a good coat of Future to seal them in so that they don't unravel later.  The next step will be a good coat of X-22 to seal all of the paint, then I will use an oil wash to get the parts fairly soiled.  When I'm happy with the weathering, I will spray a flat coat on almost everything to knock the shine down like the engine.
     
    One thing the eagle eyes out there might notice is that I am missing the starter connector, Part H41 in step #50.  I have no idea where it went, so I'll have to fashion something from scratch to replace this tiny part later.  Bummer, but it could be worse.  Now some random pics....
     
    The Eduard Exterior set has some nice rivet detail on the cross members.
     

     
     
     

     
    Here's an important tip.  The oil pump, Part #X-17 in Step #49, has a great deal of play when attached to the main frame.  Unless it is perfectly aligned with the coolant lines X7 and X-8, the fit will be off and will leave unsightly gaps.  If you glue the pump to the coolant lines first, then attach everything to the engine frame, you can paint it separately and fill the small gaps easily.
     
     

     
     
    Many of the firewall parts have holes drilled in them in preparation for additional plumbing and electrical connections to the engine.
     
     

     
     
    For my next post, the engine will be parked in the weathered cradle with additional detail added.
     
     
    Cheers,
    Chuck
  6. Like
    MarioS got a reaction from chuck540z3 in Tamiya Spitfire Mk IX Kicked Up A Notch: Last Post   
    Hey chuck,
     
    Even though I have not responded for a while on your threads and any other ones for that matter, I do look at them all the time every time you put a new post on I quite enjoy the work that you do and how far you go with detail and explanations.
    Personally, I've been too busy on my own stuff (not modelling) and for relaxation sometimes I just catching up on what you and some of the other guys here are doing. So please don't feel that we don't admire the work you put into this threads and appreciate them we do. Please keep it up thanks 
     
    P.S. This Spitfire is turning out amazing, but that's not a surprise and that engine looks great!
     
    Also looking forward to your next Modern Jet 
  7. Like
    MarioS reacted to LSP_Kevin in Tamiya Spitfire Mk IX Kicked Up A Notch: Last Post   
    It's certainly visible on iOS, as a small, circular 'tick' icon at the top right of each post. You can see it in the screenshot below:
     

     
    I'd say Android would have something similar, though I'm not familiar with it.
     
    Kev
  8. Like
    MarioS reacted to SapperSix in 1/32 Trumpeter A-10   
    Between work, adulting and getting the bench/man cave re-carpeted its been an exercise in guerilla modeling.  Being able to work a hour at a time days apart has been a challenge.  I am very happy with how far I have come in a single model.  Much of it owed to the knowledge, kindness and patience of the people I have meet along the way.  I still have some minor things to do, like rear view mirrors on the canopy and toning down the sludge in some areas.  She a very dirty girl, who has been very busy with GWOT.  If you look at some of the earlier weathering photos posted by some of the page members you will see she can get very dirty.  I am finding that my Iphone doesn't take pictures very well......or maybe I need to take my photo taking knowledge up a few bars.  Whatever the case I am not able to capture much of the detail in terms of weathering and certain points of focus.  Looks like I will have to get a real camera before too long.
     
    This model is largely an experiment of many techniques that I have learned during the build.  The amount of new techniques, gear and knowledge has really been a great deal of fun.  The payload and each munition is a test table for a technique learned during construction. I have been taken from any of my other scale projects and have been focusing on 1/32 scale planes. 
     

     

     

     

     

     

     
    In the picture below there is some very subtle weathering on the MK82's.  However the camera, or my lack of knowleged of photography, is not allowing me to get a real good shot of it.
     

     

     

     

     

     

     
     
    I do want to thank the many people from this site that have offered this rookie a hand.  I very much appreciate your knowledge and patience. I may be moving in the coming months which until that's solidified will retard my movement on my next 1/32 project.  I am looking forward to that one as I have many choices.....
  9. Like
    MarioS reacted to chuck540z3 in Tamiya Spitfire Mk IX Kicked Up A Notch: Last Post   
    December 5/17
     
     
    It begins, again!  As the title shows, I'm going to build a Spitfire, Mk IXc.  “How boring†some of you might be thinking- and I don't blame you.  Other than the 1/32 Tamiya Corsair or P-51D Mustang, I can't think of another kit that has been beaten to death more.  However, I have my reasons, as follows:
     
    1)  As mentioned earlier, I like to alternate between fighter props and fighter jets (F-15C, P-38L, A-10C, P-51D, F-4E, etc.), so the next build needs to be a prop.
     
    2)  My last 3 builds were not very good kits, with the Trumpeter 10C and Trumpeter P-38L the very worst.  That's why you don't see Warthogs and Lightnings very often.  The kits require a ton of work to make them look average, so I need a break from crappy kits that don't fit together.
     
    3)  The Tamiya Spitfire, like the Corsair and Mustang, is as good as a plastic model kit gets.  It will be fun to put plastic pieces together and they actually fit.
     
    4)  My last 3 builds have been huge, with two of them about 2 feet wide or long.  This makes them unwieldy on my work table and even harder to photograph in my small photo booth, so it will be nice to deal with a model that I can hold in one hand.
     
    5)  My last 3 builds were either super clean or only slightly weathered.  Up until the Warthog, my modeling focus was on heavily weathered aircraft like the Mustang and the Phantom.  It's time to get dirty again!
     
    6)  The MAIN REASON:  In order to spend countless hours on a build that, for me, takes 18 months or more, I need to be emotionally invested in the aircraft.  I have to either love it or have another emotional reason to build it.  I think that's why many modelers have unfinished models on “the shelf of doomâ€.  They maybe liked the model OK at first, but after time and a few struggles, it was easy to abandon the project.  This has never happened to me yet, because I truly loved each aircraft I have built.  I love the Spitfire as much as I do the Mustang and Lightning, but I have another reason.
     
    My father and 4 or his brothers, all served for the RCAF in WWII, with one brother a Pilot on Liberators, one a “Bomb Aimer†on Lancasters and my father an “Airframe Mechanic†on Spitfires, with two brothers remaining home in Canada in aircraft training roles.  Thankfully everyone survived the war, including the pilot and bomb aimer, which is quite a feat after many “Ops†or Operation Sorties.  As you probably already know, Bomber Command crews suffered an extremely high casualty rate: 55,573 killed out of a total of 125,000 aircrew (a 44.4 percent death rate), a further 8,403 were wounded in action and 9,838 became prisoners of war.
     
    Anyway, when I first got into modeling about 12 years ago, I wanted to make my father a Spitfire from his squadron.  The ravages of Alzheimer's had already took over his brain, however, so it seemed kind of pointless, but his “old memory†still recalled his Fighter Squadron vividly, which was “401â€.  Wikipedia has a description of this squadron here if you're interested:
     
     https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._401_Squadron_RCAF
     
    When I was a kid, my father told me about many memories he had of the war, the most notable being that when the Spitfires would return home to their base in France, they would fly over the runway first as a group, before landing.  Many times, fewer Spits landed than had taken off earlier, having crashed or were shot down.  My father's main task was to repair damage to the fuselage so that the aircraft could fly again. Sometimes it was a miracle that the Spitfire had returned safely at all, with all the damage acquired during the last sortie.  He also told me of ME 262's attacking the air base and by the time the Spits were airborne, the jet was long gone.  My father proudly told me that he was the first into the foxhole and the last to come out when the air base was attacked.  I have no idea how much of this was true, but I suspect that most of it was. One thing for sure, was that he lied about his age when he enlisted to join his older brothers, because he was only 17 at the time.  This I have found out since, was a very common phenomenon during that time when the war effort required as many recruits as possible.
     
    I never did make that Spitfire for my father, but I did complete a few other models and I was working on a 1/32 Academy CF-18B about 7 years ago when it struck me:  Why not build a Lancaster for my Uncle Will, the bomb aimer?  He was 89 yrs old at the time and sharp as a tack- and a very, very nice and gentle man.  I loved the guy.  My plan was to build a “quick and dirty†1/48 Tamiya Lancaster for my uncle, then get back to the Hornet build.  Well, a trip to a local air museum at Nanton with my uncle to do some research on the “Lanc†housed there changed all that.  The more I researched the Lanc, the more I fell in love with the aircraft.  Here's a pic of my uncle in March of 2010 at the rear of that Lanc.
     
     

     
     
    Soooo, 15 months later, after researching his bomb aimer diary and doing a lot of research on the web, I completed my uncle's Lanc in May, 2011, including the 101 Squadron code, serial number and even the nose art he always had a picture of in his wallet.  He was thrilled and he kept this model on the mantle over his fireplace for all to see.  That's a picture of him on the right with his aircrew behind the model.
     
     

     
     
    The last 2-3 of the 29 “Ops†were dropping food in Holland immediately after the war, since the Dutch were starving.  My uncle told me that the Dutch laid out “Thank you†signs made of flowers on the ground as they flew over.
     
     

     
     
    Now a little bragging.  My uncle and I entered that model in the local Western Canadian Regional Model Contest in June, 2011, my first model contest ever, and it cleaned up:  Best Bomber, Best Allied Aircraft, Gold in its category and the “People's Choice Awardâ€, voted as the best model in all model categories, by those who viewed the model contest.  Somehow the emotional dedication I had invested in this build for my uncle showed through and was rewarded.  Pretty cool.
     
     

     
     
    My uncle died at the age of 90 a few months after that contest, but I know our collaboration on the build and his joy of owning the model was priceless, which brings me back to the Spitfire.  I need to build this Spit for my father, even though he died years ago, so let's get on with it!  It's going to be modified like crazy and I hope it will turn out as something very special, which is very hard to do with this kit, since there are so many fantastic builds out there already (think Wolf Buddee!)   This should be fun, so here's where I am so far.
     
     

     
     
    I've got the Tamiya 60319 kit, plus
     
    BarracudaCast Resin:
     
    - 32001 Seat
     
    - 32002 Door
     
    - 32003 Cockpit Upgrade
     
    - 32004 Rocker Covers w/ Logos
     
    - 32007 Blister Gun Covers
     
    - 32008 Cockpit Sidewall
     
    - 32011 Cockpit Upgrade Part II
     
    - And 3 sets of Wheels/Tires, because I don't know which ones I need (32005, 32319, 32335)
     
    - HGW Cloth Seatbelts
     
    - Eduard 32246 Landing Flaps
     
    - Eduard 32249 Exterior
     
    - 3 Sets of “YO†401 Sqn. Decals
     
    -  About 6 books, including “Spitfire II, The Canadians†(with a 401 Spit on the front cover), Haynes Rolls Royce Merlin Workshop Manual (1933-1950), Brett Green's “Tamiya Spitfire How To†book, Monforton's Spitfire Mk IX and XVI engineering manual and a few other references.
     
    Give me a week or two and I should have some real progress to show.  In the meantime, I'm all ears for tips!
     
     
    Cheers,
    Chuck
  10. Like
    MarioS reacted to chuck540z3 in Tamiya Spitfire Mk IX Kicked Up A Notch: Last Post   
    March 31/18
     
    A small update after a LOT of work! The engine is mostly done. I added a lot of additional hydraulic and electrical tubes and wires, using several references and Wolf Buddee's epic build. As much as I admired Wolf's work from about 5 years ago, I appreciate what he has accomplished even more now that I have played with the same pieces of plastic. The guy is a complete modeling wizard! While I found just drilling holes to be tricky, Wolf hand built tiny connectors and valve bodies that I can hardly see, much less try to replicate- so I didn't. In random order, here is what I did or used:
     
    1) Spark plug wires were made of 0.3 mm lead wire. This wire is super flexible and as long as you don't kink it, quite strong.
     
    2) Electrical conduit was made of 0.88mm styrene rod, with holes drilled for the above wire with a #80 drill bit.
     
    3) Flexible conduit was made using 0.8m lead wire.
     
    4) Many connectors were made from aluminum bare metal foil.
     
    5) L-shaped coolant tubes from the front of the engine to the glycol tank were made from spare parts, in this case landing gear from an F-18 kit. Coolant hoses were made from black electrical tape and the clamps are from the Model Car Garage (another tip I learned from Wolf many years ago).
     
    6) Other hydraulic lines are made from both coated and non-coated #26 and #28 electrical wire.
     
    7) Fuel primer lines on the left side of engine (painted copper) are from the Eduard #32-249 PE kit. Unfortunately there is only one set for the left side, since the right side has the electrical rail which covers the detail of the primer lines underneath. I would have tried to replicate something similar with tiny copper wire, but I'm just not good enough. Sometimes less is more, if you're going to make a mess.
     
    8) No scratch-built linkages at the rear of the engine from me. See above.
     
    9) I found that the electrical conduit and spark plug wires were often black, but in order to see them and add some contrast, I kept them aluminum in color.
     
    10) I am really glad I sealed the paint with X-22 before handling the engine. To add this much detail, you need to handle the engine constantly, which rubs off the paint.
     
     
    Anyway, here's the pics. From shiny museum looking engine....
     
     

     
     
    To a dirty and weathered engine that is used constantly.
     
     

     
     

     
     

     
     

     
     
    A real shortcoming of this kit is no connection from the front of the engine to the glycol tank. A little scratch-building fixes this problem and the coolant flow is now complete.
     
     

     
     
    Next up is the engine cradle and firewall, with a lot more plumbing and electrical detail. This build is finally starting to be fun, now that the really hard stuff is behind me!
     
    Cheers,
    Chuck
  11. Like
    MarioS reacted to chuck540z3 in Tamiya Spitfire Mk IX Kicked Up A Notch: Last Post   
    Since I'm doing it anyway, here's a pic of the engine with a good coat of Tamiya X-22.  All detail is retained, but the paint is sealed.
     
    One thing I should have mentioned for those who have not made the Tamiya Mustang or Spitfire kits before is what you see below is OOB.  Unbelievable!, even for someone who has made this engine already (like me).
     
     

  12. Like
    MarioS reacted to chuck540z3 in Tamiya Spitfire Mk IX Kicked Up A Notch: Last Post   
    Hi Wolf and thanks for chiming in.  That pic of your engine still makes me cry.  We are not worthy!!  :bow:
     
    I guess I didn't explain myself very well in my post earlier, which is posted again below:
     
    "The top and much of the rear is totally exposed, so the upper electrical conduit and plug leads can be seen fairly easily, but forget about the side plug leads, since you'll be lucky to get a wire into the plug holes as it is, much less a plug cap.  I'm going to be using lead wire, so it is very flexible and can crush a bit if required."
     
    What I was talking about is the metallic spark plug cap assembly at the end of the wires, which sticks out from the engine, not the wire itself.  I was going to make them until it was pointed out above that it would be both hidden and in the way if it was raised at all, which it is.  I should have known in hindsight, since it's the same way with the P-51D kit which I've built already.
     
    Now a tiny update.
     
    As with the cockpit, there's always the dilemma of what to paint and when, if you're going to add wiring and hydraulic details.  For my Mustang Merlin, I painted the engine entirely, then added the detail later so that it stood out from the engine with different colors and finishes.  This required a LOT of handling of the tiny engine, which resulted in me rubbing off the enamel paint in several areas with my greasy fingers.  Repainting these parts was a pain and the final paint finish was nowhere near as good as the original.  Lesson learned.
     
    For this Merlin, I'm still going to paint the engine first again, but this time I'm using Tamiya gloss black lacquer (decanted from the spray can), which is more tolerant of handling than enamels, but also a coat of Tamiya gloss acrylic X-22, to seal the paint from my greasy hands.  This also brings up another point that I've mentioned before in my other builds:  I never use flat black any more, even when I need flat black.  Flat finishes are naturally a bit rough, to reduce reflections off the paint.  The problem with using flat black on a tiny engine like this one is that the finish is also rough, usually too much for scale.  I get a much better flat black finish by using gloss black, followed by a clear flat coat, where I can also control the degree of flatness to the paint.
     
    Below is the assembled and painted engine, with the following build strategy in mind:
     
    1)  Assemble major engine components as units, drilling out holes for subsequent plumbing and electrical detail, then paint them individually before final assembly.  This method allows you to paint the parts in recessed areas cleanly without air turbulence and the resultant "paint dust" that it can create.
     
    2)  Glue the sub-assemblies together, leaving off smaller parts that should be painted a different color, like aluminum, etc.
     
    3)  Spray the entire engine with a good coat or two of acrylic X-22.
     
    4)  After the X-22 has dried for 2 days, add wiring, etc and handle the engine all you want, without fear of ruining the paint finish.
     
    5)  Brush paint small detail in different colors as required.  This part I sort of hate, because I'm not very good at using a brush, although I'm getting better.
     
    6)  Dry brush the entire engine with silver or similar metallic color to make detail "pop" and show wear.  Add extra wear to those areas that require them to show contrast over the rest of the engine.  This is when to add a tiny spot of silver paint to all those fasteners!  If you do this earlier, much of it will rub off with handling.
     
    7)  When you're happy with the above, spray a coat of either semi-gloss or a flat finish- or both as required.  The valve covers are pretty flat while the rear of the engine can be fairly glossy, so a bit of both can look very realistic.
     
    8)  Apply weathering washes as required to dirty up those areas that should be.
     
    So here is where I am today with this engine.  All sub-assemblies have been painted and glued together, with several small parts left off or dry fitted for these pictures.  In order to create a realistic looking Merlin with lots of wear and oil staining, you need to start off with a perfectly painted engine- or at least as good as possible.  It turned out pretty good it I do say so myself.....
     
     

     

     

     

     

     

     
     
    So how do I get such a smooth paint finish?  I cheat, with an Iwata Custom Micron-C Plus, which has a very tiny 0.18mm needle, allowing me to spray a very fine mist at very low pressures.  It's very expensive, but for a painting task like this, it is priceless.
     
     

     
     
    Next up, if I can ever find the time, will be the wiring and hydraulic detail.  Meanwhile, I soldier on with other parts of this build, like the engine cradle and fire wall.
     
     
    Cheers,
    Chuck
  13. Like
    MarioS reacted to Alain Gadbois in Hex Soviet tarmac sections from Fusion Models   
    Hi Alan,
     
    Yes the sections are solid. This morning I made a little test to try cutting sections in half. On the first section, I first scribed the part with an Olfa scriber, then made 3 passes with an X-acto blade. Tight in a vise, I snapped the part cleanly in half.
     

     

     
    I cut a second section with X-acto passes only and snapped in two in my hands. So they are quite easy to cut with no special tools. The sections are 4.5mm thick.
     
    Here is a corner made by cutting the sections along 2 different axis. Note the shape of the parts on the edges.       
     

     
    Finally here are all 14 sections painted. Each piece was done separately so there are variations between each. The tar edges do vary quite a bit in width as you will note in pictures of the real thing. Also notice the concrete colour is brownish so I tried to replicate this to be as accurate as possible. I hope this will give a few ideas when building yours. A few oil stains ad a final touch!
     

     
    Thanks all!
    Alain
  14. Like
    MarioS reacted to Tomcatfreak in Hex Soviet tarmac sections from Fusion Models   
    Hello Alain,
     
    I live very close to former soviet MiG-25 and Su-24 air base in Welzow, east Germany. If you need any detail pictures of Pag-14, just let me know ;-)
  15. Like
    MarioS reacted to Alain Gadbois in Hex Soviet tarmac sections from Fusion Models   
    Hi all!
    The artwork is coming along nicely for the hex tarmac box set. I hope it will be ready as planned next week!
     
    In the meantime, here is a little tutorial showing how I painted my demonstration set.
     
    First, after a good clean-up with dishwasher liquid, a coat of Tamiya TS-16. It is a light warm grey with a nice new concrete look.
     

     
    Next, I scraped a bit of dry pastel on the surface, using brown, black and sand colors. Mostly brown is used here to reproduce the brownish color of the Soviet tarmac sections.
     

     
    With my finger the powder is rubbed in all over the surface. I use nitrile gloves to do this. 
     

     
    The next step is not so obvious in photos, as it is subtle, yet important. I used a slightly humid paper towel to blend the powder in the tarmac section. This fixes the pastel dust in place, and the section will start to look like a real concrete part. You can ad more pastel dust and repeat until you get the desired effect.
     

     
    At this point I add the tar joint on the sides. I used liquid tempera applied with a Q-tip. Check your references, as the joints can be very wide!
     

     
    Oil drips are added here. I suggest some restraint here, and concentrate this effect only where the fuselage is situated.
     

     
    This is the result, compared to the basic painted part.
     

     
    Thank you for watching, hope this helps!
     
    Alain
  16. Like
    MarioS got a reaction from chuck540z3 in 1/32 Tamiya F-15C Aggressor   
    Yes, I also would like to Congratulate!! you Chuck on your finish Model... Awesome Build!! and Awesome Photos!!! 
     
     
    Cheers
    Mario
  17. Like
    MarioS got a reaction from chuck540z3 in Tamiya F-15C Kicked Up A Notch- Dec 1/17: DONE!   
    Congratulations!! Chuck on a well Built Model
     
    It's been an amazing 21 months... Watching your WIP sections have been very educational, and enjoy to watch Thanks.
     
    And can't wait for your Next Project!! looking forward to it, also very happy that LSP Kevin is going to document this on one of his eBooks, definitely a MUST to buy!
     
     
    Cheers
  18. Like
    MarioS got a reaction from chuck540z3 in Tamiya F-15C Kicked Up A Notch- Dec 1/17: DONE!   
    Chuck, your attention to detail is just amazing, the cockpit looks so realistic.. the paintwork & detail gone into those engines, exhausts... The amount of time that you have put into building this!!
     
    Looking forward to seeing your final photos on this F-15C
     
     
     
    Cheers
  19. Like
    MarioS got a reaction from slavkic in Mig 29A Slovak decals?   
    Very nice Slavkic, you're MiG29AS  0921 model and airbase looks great!!
  20. Like
    MarioS got a reaction from F`s are my favs in F-15E --- 1/32 --- in PARKED mode   
    Wow!! Milan absolutely Amazing
     
    I agree some of those pictures you've got there with all the panels open honestly looks great!
  21. Like
    MarioS got a reaction from F`s are my favs in F-15E --- 1/32 --- Tamiya   
    Your inflight version looks impressive!! Milan
     
    looking forward to the new pictures that you're going to be posting
  22. Like
    MarioS reacted to F`s are my favs in F-15E --- 1/32 --- in PARKED mode   
  23. Like
    MarioS reacted to F`s are my favs in F-15E --- 1/32 --- in PARKED mode   
  24. Like
    MarioS reacted to F`s are my favs in F-15E --- 1/32 --- in PARKED mode   
  25. Like
    MarioS reacted to F`s are my favs in F-15E --- 1/32 --- in PARKED mode   
    It`s like a completely different model... Enjoy! 
     
    PS: the "in-flight" reveal pics and the WIP story.
     
    Let`s get started with something like just a clean parked profile:
     

     
    Then with the canopy and airbrake open:
     

     
    And then...
     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     
×
×
  • Create New...