ClumsyDude Posted September 5, 2016 Share Posted September 5, 2016 Amazing work Ben. Coming together beautifully. Jim Starfighter 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony in NZ Posted September 6, 2016 Share Posted September 6, 2016 My goodness, that is some crazy-good work you are doing there! Starfighter 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starfighter Posted September 6, 2016 Author Share Posted September 6, 2016 Thanks a lot Jim and Anthony! There is still a lot of work ahead of me. I have spent most of the evening puttying and sanding the engine bay hatches. I love wotking with Tamiya Putty, but the last tube I've opened is much more liquid and shrinks much more than I am used to. Maybe they have changed the formula? Anyway, this means much more work for me. No pics of this though, they'll follow once the sanding and scribing are finished. I have also relocated and replaced the inner wing fences. They sit further inward on The EA-6B. I had already decided that I wanted to replace the very thick fences from the kit with thinner parts.To make sure the new fences fit and stick properly, I made a cut at the appropriate location to insert a fixing tab located under the new wing fences. I firs made a new fence with 0,5mm PS but the part literally broke when I looked at it... so I decided to use 0,25mm stainless steel for the fences. Some putty to eliminate any gaps... Everything will be sanded smooth today after work. I am pretty sure the new fences will cut my finger before I manage to break them off. Cheers! johncrow, Lars Befring, Rdrunner and 7 others 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rainer Hoffmann Posted September 6, 2016 Share Posted September 6, 2016 Good idea to use steel, Ben. These fences are thin and strong, quite unlike styrene. And yes, you will cut your fingers... Cheers Rainer Starfighter 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpk Posted September 6, 2016 Share Posted September 6, 2016 That doesn't look like an SE5A to me??? Great work! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsahling1 Posted September 6, 2016 Share Posted September 6, 2016 This is truly marvelous work you're doing on this kit, I wish I'd be able to attempt a scratch building project like this at some point, maybe make that 1/32 Su-34 a reality.....Anyhow, I was curious what you're thinking of for a camouflage scheme for this one...have you thought about the desert scheme in the various shades of brown, or the one with all the different grey? I'm curious which one you're going with. Also, I live close to a museum here in Denver that has an EA-6B Prowler on display and I'd be more than happy to provide you with any photos should you need them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starfighter Posted September 6, 2016 Author Share Posted September 6, 2016 Thank you all for your kind comments, they are more than encouraging - I hope I can keep the momentum. I am going for the 2000 VAQ-136 CAG bird - decals have already been drawn (by me) and silk printed (in Czech Republic). I also have a full custom mask set based on the same artwork which I'll use in combination with the decals in some areas. Here's the decals: http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=57040&p=786015 And the real thing (first pic): http://blog.goo.ne.jp/phantom3825/e/95c02dbc5743f67ac55d414e71d46700 A-10LOADER 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allthumbs Posted September 6, 2016 Share Posted September 6, 2016 (edited) Hi Ben, The big Prowler is really starting to take shape now, what with most of the internals finished and the wings attached. I love it! Good catch on the inner fence relocation. And choosing metal over plastic looks like a smart move...taking notes here for when I reach that point in my build. Are there any tricks to cutting and shaping stainless steel? Rich Edited September 6, 2016 by allthumbs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starfighter Posted September 7, 2016 Author Share Posted September 7, 2016 Thank you very much Rich, it's starting to shape up indeed! I am already looking forward to seeing more progress on your conversion - I will definitely get a set once it's available, but I am even more curious to see how yours will look at the end. I am sure it'll be a stunner! I have used some scissors intended to cut PE parts to cut the stainless steel (is 'metal shear' the right English term?) - it's rather easy, though. The edges can easily be sanded down and smoothed at the end. As I was getting a bit bored of sanding the belly, I decided to spend the evening adding the walkways. My method is very easy - mask the desired shape, then apply Mr Surfacer by dabbing it on with a hard, soft brush. Another method is to apply Microballs onto wet paint, but as the anti slip surfaces are often simply painted on, they have a very irregular structure which in my opinion is easier to obtain with the Mr Surfacer method. allthumbs, andromeda673, LSP_Paul and 7 others 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClumsyDude Posted September 7, 2016 Share Posted September 7, 2016 (edited) Looks good Ben. I have to ask (sorry) - what's a "hard soft brush"? I have a few that are so messed up they could probably fit that description Jim Ps walkways look great! Edited September 7, 2016 by ClumsyDude Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starfighter Posted September 7, 2016 Author Share Posted September 7, 2016 Whoops! I meant a hard, stiff-bristeled brush of course, Jim. I need to pay more attention when I type... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andromeda673 Posted September 11, 2016 Share Posted September 11, 2016 such a great build, and the way you are building this makes me to not even think about building one. Cracking work! how are things coming on that 1/32 S3 Viking? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starfighter Posted September 12, 2016 Author Share Posted September 12, 2016 (edited) Thanks Andromeda! It's actually not the most difficult conversion, it just needs a significant amount of work. Regarding the Viking, I am still messing around with the center wing section. It hasn't been forgotten but I am currently focusing on the Prowler as I'd love to finish it for a model show in December. It's taking shape - I just had to put it on its feet again. Next was the IP coaming. All you need is a bottle of wine (to get the thick aluminum foil around the bottle neck), some Magic Sculp, self-adhesive copper foil and some PE mesh. Microballs have been applied onto wet paint to give it some texture. The scratchbuilt seat support structures are also visible here. Here are the support structures again without paint (crappy pic, sorry!). The 'beer can' has been installed as well. Last but not least, here is a look at some of the fellas which are going to populate my diorama. There will be more of them for sure. Quality is really impressive, you have to see it with your own eyes to really appreciate the quality! I will remove the tie down hook from the fella on the right, though - he will be fiddling around in the engine bay instead. Edited September 12, 2016 by Starfighter F`s are my favs, Rdrunner, HerculesPA_2 and 10 others 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClumsyDude Posted September 12, 2016 Share Posted September 12, 2016 Awesome stuff Ben!! Can't wait to see you tackle those figures. The guy on the left looks familiar! Jim Starfighter 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F`s are my favs Posted September 12, 2016 Share Posted September 12, 2016 yep yep, these figures are like unreal, the cockpit looks super real too. Awesome! Starfighter 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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