Nightrain

Got a need for references if you have them to spare myself.

Man I hope this one is still a go. Your interpretation of the aircraft at the base sounded nice and reminded me of why I liked this hobby. Open to interpretation and imagination. There are many sides to this hobby and two main sides are “blueprint copy for accuracy†which can lead to amazing works. The other and often overlooked side is “imagine if..†or “what if...†and can open up an alternate perspective creatively. Good luck with this one. I have my own waiting in the wings and look forward to see how far you can take it because it seems you are one of few ready to take the plunge. I fear a lot are being held for small investment purposes seeing how the G went to hypervalue after discontinuing. Take care. David

Same for me. Currently browsing the options in the market and these fit my ideal use best.

I actually started speaking as a kid to the Wyler documentary about the Belle and several years later had a 1:48 Memphis Belle model much like yours complete with testors tube cement strings and totally fogged glass to compliment it. That is what amazes me about this hobby. It still brings out the amazement and awe just like back then and allows one to step outside of the real world and enjoy the moment and possibly learn new things about the skills and yourself in the process. I have a Zotz set for the G and I will say the quality and register are top notch. Something that requires the type of investment these kits do, one would be well advised to mark it as well as possible, be that with kit decals or aftermarket. I haven't heard much about HK decals so I am nervous myself of giving them a shot. Probably unfounded anxiety though. Good luck. David

For clarification on the wheel covers, I have seen myself wartime footage of the aircraft from the starboard side with a blue cap same as port. That being said I believe they had both colors for both wheels and just put whatever was closest reach when finishing up wheel work. There wasn't a standard for that and if I'm wrong saying that, it wasn't followed and appeared to be open to variation. There were yin-yangs, hearts, diamonds, triangles, five pointed stars, Star of David, etc. and I would venture that people put random odd things on them as well since the aircraft became their canvas to vent (sometimes the equivalent of a bathroom stall as well).

The decals supplied with the HK kit provide for a close representation of the actual aircraft in wartime as well as options for the more modern and more stylized movie version. The movie version has a different figure shape for the lady and arms are different as well as a few other things like a phone cord. The original photo was from a pinup magazine (I believe esquire) done by George Petty and copied to the aircraft according to that work by Tony Starcer. The original aircraft had a blue dress on the port side and red on starboard. I believe the star caps on wheels followed this but may very well both be blue. Not sure there. Zotz has more heavily researched markings that are verifiable historically as through the years the odd markings around the plane put there by crews seems to vary from one model maker to another. The stylized S variation on the waiste section varies from company to company as an example. Look for color photos of wartime for reference. Remember also that the real aircraft had specific camo patterns applied to it which in a sense becomes a birthmark and those vary from reference sources as well. Photo evidence of period correct timeframe solves most issues. Main takeaways would be: original had blue on port, red on starboard, original had block type font (not cursive), the figure was originally skinnier, and if Zotz uses the decals, you can be reasonably sure they are correct according to large consensus of subject matter and lastly it was not a simple OD/NG paint scheme. I will be doing this aircraft too or knockout dropper. Even though early on they had less hours on the airframe, they both had distinct wear. Recently I found the belle to have the light sand brown exhaust streaks in areas rather than just the traditional smoke/oil color. Amazing characters, these aircraft were in their own right and I look forward to seeing your work. David

When it comes to making the surface acceptable for a metallic finish, which surface type is best for the bare plastic? I know shiny gloss black (possibly polished up and smoothed out) goes below the metallic. I know surface imperfections are magnified in a sense with this finish so I know a scratch and lump free surface is recommended but would it be even better to go beyond that to a buffed bare plastic? Possibly to the point of seeing reflections (not perfect mirror but close)? I wound up going over the model with a tweezerman nail buffing kit (works better than any fine sanding/buffing pad I've found and easy to find at non-specialized stores btw) and this is now the finish of the bare plastic. My worry is the smooth as gloss surface texture will not play nicely with a gloss black or stynylrez base. Would this be more likely to lift or flake off if I use any other base besides lacquer based tamiya gloss black? Do I need to tone down the shine a notch to what I would call semi-satin (not quite gloss, not quite satin)? Anybody with NMF experience please chime in to cheer me on or shoot me down. Your experience is invaluable. The metallics will be AK Extreme. Thanks. David

From what I have experimented with, you can but for me seemed to vary depending on brand uses over it. If buffed with finger lightly it does make for a convincing appearance but takes practice. Like with many other things, Tamiya acts differently than Vallejo. After a year of practicing trial and error for getting started on my first big build, I wound up settling on Extreme Metal because of masking. If you must use wax, you will most likely need to paint first and then do wax, or at least be prepared to mask after painting and touch up wax again because it (the wax) will lift if mask is required. General handling removes it as well. It will cure some but still more vulnerable than other methods. Sealing dulls it down so durability comes at a cost. Something I noticed is AK (Vallejo as well) acrylics seem most friendly to the wax based metallic as it appears to be designed for use with like branded products. Long story short, expect to paint first, mask, then apply wax sparingly with finger rubbing method. As with all things, allow proper curing time for each stage and protect them from each other by applying barrier coats if feasible. Interesting product and does have a nice sheen to it but usually seems more effective for smaller pieces. An exception being the big HK B-17G build "Little Miss Mischeif" by David Parker floating around the web was finished with the AK wax I believe, though I'm not certain what paint was used for the rear fuse and tail sections.

The preshading before paint I am familiar with. There was in particular one of the very heavily watched F-15 builds that seemed to put a wash on bare plastic ahead of all else. So many pages of those builds I had trouble finding it. It appeared to already have a wash in the fitting and gluing stage as well as sanding/finishing. Never saw this before but seemed like a good idea since I have a hard time distinguishing the panel lines and rivets while plastic is still bare and needing body work. As for the model being a doozy, I concur. It's my first model since I was a teen and I didn't even paint those back then so it's definitely pushed my comfort zone off a cliff. I knew the cost of the build would force me to try harder and diversify the box of tips/tricks. So far it's paying off. I simply see the level of build quality on this board which is stunning in many cases and I know it's a gradual thing but skilled peers make me want to raise my bar. Avoiding a disasterous crash and burn is my main concern now.

In several threads I have seen what appears to be models in the sanding/filling stages of builds in which the panel lines have already had wash applied. I believe I understand the concept to be that you are able to check your work before painting and having to correct issues further down the line. I am working on the HK B-17G (later will be an F as well), I haven't built many models at all so this was a definite trial by fire but I think it is pushing me and it's turning out better than I anticipated so here I am. Sanding/filling stage. I want to repair bad mold lines as well as self inflicted ones from joining parts. I suppose my question being is should I put a thin oil wash on the bare plastic or should I put down a clear coat to bare plastic first much like it would after paint? My only goal is to see the lines to check the work, and most likely more sanding/scribing/rivets to come. I will be painting this one aluminum and going back again with possible post shading and weathering. Would oil wash on bare plastic cause adhesion issues to enamel based metallics later down the line? Is this even a necessary step or are there other ways of catching things before paint? I know primer shows issues but I need as thin of finish as possible. Any and all ideas, criticisms and general chit-chat welcomed. I am going crazy worrying from step to step and probably over analyzing these steps. Thanks for reading. David

I was particularly interested in a 100th BG subject but that link showed a Monokio set I hadn't seen before which I will now be considering. The kitsworld options are all nice and possibly might work for me if I settle on Texas Raiders (I like the OD scheme). I don't believe Little Patches ever got the Cheyenne tail or I'd be all for it. Just seems like the only option they provided with those options required serious surgery or kitbashing on a $600+ scale to get the right tail and fuse combos. Wish I was around when the Zotz stuff was out. Thanks for all the welcoming as well everyone. As for the drill method I hadn't thought about that but seems way more controllable for individual rivet repair. Looks like I got some practicing to do. David

Hello, long-time lurker, first time poster. Forgive me if my questions have been discussed somewhere and I missed it (although I attempted to look) and likewise if this topic is located incorrectly. Last fall I found the HK B-17G kit on eBay before they doubled price and proceeded to purchase all the Eduard kits for it as well. Needless to say it is a leap for me skill-wise being as I just became familiar with an airbrush and acrylics, washes, even Tamiya Extra thin is new to me for this kit. What I'm getting at is this is my first kit being built seriously outside of rattle cans and testors tube cement. Even though it has forced me out of comfort zones and pushed the learning up a notch, I have issues with the kit and it has me at a standstill until I know the best way to go. They are as follows: 1: panel lines and recessed rivets fade around the curvature of the fuselage towards the split point for each half and quite a few recessed rivets seem to have become "outies" during the mold process. Is it better to deal with them while the parts are seperate or once flies so as to be sure the lines follow each other and meet up correctly? I saw the threads where Paul Budzik waits till after primer but that is out of my league for now. 2: Has there been one build completed with the kit supplied decals? Has anybody heard if they perform well enough to risk theming the rest of your build around them? The lack of subject matter for this model has been discussed before I know but is atrocious nonetheless. I really liked Kitsworld options for 1/48 B-17G's particularly "Miss Conduct" and find it odd they don't have the ability (or will to do so) to enlarge those options to 1:32 when they exist for the other scales and rather offer B-17F options (for several years before the model was available) or tour birds that have less character. It's one of the most perplexing things I've seen in the model world. So much kit upgrade options for the most obscure releases and next to scraps for supposed "blockbuster releases". What gives? At least HK caught it and provided better for the D/E/F kit but still. The zotz format of limited edition didn't seem great either. At least keep the option for a premium price. Forgive me for the rant, but I have been hung up and unable to proceed for the panel line issue and how to dress it up theme-wise other than milk wagon and would puke if I build only to find another way later to have done something more interesting to me. Thanks for any ideas or comments and happy modeling. David