Icaerodesign Extra 330-SC

[Out2gtcha]

Thanks gents!!   This paint job is going to take a while...........
I seriously hope I havnt bitten off more than I can chew with this scheme. Its going to be very VERY complicated and incorporate many different  masking layers. 
 
 

Just a thought....
Can you maybe lay Tamiya tape over the gap in the masks, and trace the outer boundary with a scalpel?

 

 

Yes,

I did think of that, but with needing both the negative and positive sections of the paint masks, the tolerances would have to be VERY tight, and I would have a lot of spots where leakage would be possible to cover up all the gaps in the paint masks.

 

Besides, at this point, Im really digging the new colors, and scheme, and it will really give me a chance to "show off" a bit if I can pull this scheme off.    Its going to be a lot to put in a very small space/plane. 

 

Pics...............

 
 
 

[Out2gtcha]

 From what I've seen lately in the world of unlimited aerobatics the more colorful the scheme the better!  

 

 

John,

That is in fact exactly what Im going for!    This one will be very flamboyant, and highly visible.   I spent a couple hours on an old crappy program called MicroSoft "Photodraw". Its not AI, by any means, so I only took that time to get the actual scheme organized, and to get the colors in their final spots where I wanted them.   Took a bit of organizing, and planning to get the scheme to come together on all 3 views.............

[Out2gtcha]

Ok, so here it is. They really are only a pictures of pictures of the scheme, but I didnt want to save it in .JPG or .PNG for quite yet, as I needed all the components of the scheme separate so that I could remove each one and insert it into the Silhouette program as needed to, so I can use to trace out each section.
 
 
Keep in mind that all the boarders/trim/edging will all be in chrome, including the forward middle section of the cowl, as well as the spinner. In keeping with most aerobatic aircraft schemes, I have made the underside completely different from the upper side scheme for ground identification purposes (usually for judges in an aerobatic competition mode, so they can keep an eye on the routine). 
 
This may change later, and of course the hues of the white (will be pearl white on the plane itself) and the blue (will be metallic blue on the model) as well as the yellow (may have some candy color laid over the top of it after spraying) will differ greatly from these pics.
 
Its also hard to see, but all of the yellow areas will have what is effectively "ghost checkers" inside of all the yellow strips and graphics. Not sure how Im going to actually replicate this on the model, but its one of the layers I will have to address.
The PhotoDraw program drawings are really just down and dirty drawings, so-to-speak, as they are not detailed, nor in scale, but only a representation of what the colors are, and where they will all go in the end. 
 
 
 
Underside:
 

 
 
 
 
 
Topside:
 

 
 
 
 
 
Fuselage/Side (dark/streaky thing in the middle represents where the wing lies on the model):
 






MORE...................

[Out2gtcha]

Next up, thanks to Hubert all the way from France, I have many new canopies to choose from to start that part of the build!

 

 

 

 

 

 

I ended up choosing the best one out of the bunch I could find, which happened to be one made from .075 PETG. After an hour or more nipping at it with some nippers, then scissors, and finally some needle files to clean up and keep the edges straight, as well as a couple hours sanding some of the blemishes I finally got it to an acceptable state. 

This is not the final stage, I have some more polishing to do, as well as a dunk in Future, and maybe even some smoke tinting.

 

Fit here is actually excellent although it doesnt have to be since the canopy will be posed in the open position. I would know though.............and I need it to fit wll to mask off some of the paint on the canopy itself:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After many, many dry fitting sessions, I got the canopy to an acceptable place, and started work on crafting the canopies interior frame. The frame on the 1:1 Extra 330 SC is flat, but I chose to make it a bit easier on myself, and make this out of a single piece of copper wire, bent to shape, and soldered together:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The end result is not too bad, and definitely needs more work, but I think I can deal with this. It looks pretty rough here, but is actually better in person, and I should be able to mask the paint areas off enough to cover any bad spots from gluing in the frame:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All for now lads!   The canopy needs a LOT more polishing and a dunk in Future to even look remotely clear, but at least its free of blemishes, which is where the thickger .075 PETG material came in handy.

Ill try to pick more of this back up tonight, but its going to be a busy night. Ive already started the PhotoDraw conversion into the Silhouette program, so I will likely try to continue on with that.

 

 

Cheers!  

[Daniel460]

That's going to be sweet when you get her painted up Brian! 

 

Very nice work on the canopy frame.

 

Dan

[Vandy 1 VX 4]

Love the paint Scheme you chose

[LSP_Kevin]

Excellent canopy work, Brian!

 

Kev

[Out2gtcha]

Thanks all!   Im not sure how this is all going to work out in the end. Im just hoping I haven't bitten off more than I can chew!   Still a long way to go on the canopy, and that has to be done before any painting starts, since part of the scheme goes all the way up to, and parts through it.

 

The other issue here is the paint itself. The main paint (pearl white) is actually a paint for polycarbonate type clear R/C race car bodies. It was actually the only pre-mixed pearl white I could find. Looking these paints over, it said NO WHERE what they are based in or made of.

 

Turns out I bought some of their thinner - Looks like 100% Acetone. Acetone evaporates SUPER fast, but the thinner also will take off just about any other type paint. Im hoping that because its thinned in the airbrush, and laid down over some solidly dried lacquer, that it will be ok...............I hope.   Im going to do some experimenting over the Tamiya Fine white and see what I get. Hopefully nothing will attach the resin, but Ive got spare pieces to try that on too.

 

 

If all goes well, I also have some candy yellow, also based in Acetone, so I might use that depending on the results of the pearl white tests. Normally Id put down some/all of the graphics first, then the overall paint, but this scheme is so complex, Im not sure that will be possible yet. 

 

More to come! 

[Guest Smitty44]

Where's the guns??   Ordinance??

[Hubert Boillot]

So happy one of my vacforms could be put to use .

 

Sorry for the blemishes. My master was not acting the way I wanted, and the surface tended to chip the more I used it . Plus this PETG is fairly temperamental : heat it a triffle too much, and bubbles appear inside (and yet I had put it in the oven at 60º C for a few hours to remove the trapped moisture ), but heat it a triffle too little, and it won't conform to the master. Some French guy tried, with some success, forming it by heating it in boiling oil - yes like French fries - but I have not tried this myself .

 

And happy to see the fit is what I wanted it to be

 

I have kept my master for personal use, as the resin canopy of my own kit met the same fate as yours : it cracked when I tried to cut off the pouring block ... I now know it can be done

 

And finally, love the fancy paint scheme !

 

Hubert

Edited December 4, 2017 by MostlyRacers

[Out2gtcha]

lol John. Missiles would be cool to see fired off at the top of an emelmen!

[Out2gtcha]

Hubert,

I couldn't have resumed work on this without you honestly. The canopy fits really really well, and the blemishes were really not that bad. I think it will look good after a bit more polishing, a dunk in Future and then a layer of Tamiya smoke.

 

I think the smoke will be cool as I've seen some Extras with tinted canopies and look pretty cool. Plus the Tamiya smoke will also help camouflage and imperfections or lack of clarity.

 

I was even thinking about dying the canopy, but the ultra hot water needed would potentially distort or melt the plastic, and would definitely dissolve the CA holding the frame in.

 

More progress soon

[Vandy 1 VX 4]

Hubert

I was having the same problems with the petg that you were having. I think it took me four atemps within a year and still could not get it right

I was vacuum forming canopies for a P-51 B for Rick

Edited December 5, 2017 by Vandy 1 VX 4

[Leaning_Dog]

Hi Brian - LOVE the scheme you've come up with!!!  

 

Just a thought on the pearl white - Tamiya has a Pearl Clear in a rattle can available (TS-65) that they call out for Rossi's MotoGP Fiat Yamaha YZR-M1 kit. Might be worth testing to see if it gives the result you're looking for without worrying about compatibility issues.

 

Cheers!

 

John.

[Out2gtcha]

Thanks John! I did see that at my LHS, but I really want to experiment with the bottle that I can thin and shoot directly from the airbrush without decanting.

 

The Tamiya rattle can will definitely be an option if the Pactra paint compatibility becomes an issue.