Starfighter Jock Posted December 22, 2016 Share Posted December 22, 2016 Thanks for the tips Chuck, I am going to give the vinyl tape a go on my next project. Kirk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 22, 2016 Share Posted December 22, 2016 Astounding work. have a Riveting Merry Christmas .... Oh brother.....Harv Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ironwing Posted December 23, 2016 Share Posted December 23, 2016 Chuck, As always, your narrative and imagination are second only to your skill. I understand your efforts...Sierra Hotel!! Geoff chuck540z3 and A-10LOADER 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuck540z3 Posted December 23, 2016 Author Share Posted December 23, 2016 (edited) Thanks a lot guys! My shoulder surgery is over and now my left arm is in a sling for 6 weeks. Bummer, because I can't drive OR model during this time- and I'm not sure sure which I'll miss the most! The surgery didn't go all that well either, so we'll see if it was all worth it in a few months. One thing I CAN do is research (and 2 finger typing), which I often rush because I'm too impatient and just want to get on with the build, often with negative consequences, so I'd like to get future phases of the build figured out now while I have almost nothing to do. In my very first post in this thread, I pointed out something I have never seen noted on an F-15C model before, which is this little painted panel within the lower titanium panels. Normally this panel is painted light grey, so it isn't very noticeable, but when its painted in Aggressor Desert Brown.... or Flanker Blue.... It sticks out like a sore thumb. Neat, so I'll be sure to paint this bird the same way when I get to this part. Looking at the top of the titanium panels around the engines is much harder for obvious reasons. Unless you're up on a ladder behind the aircraft, you can't see much. In The Modern Eagle Guide, however, Jake has some great pics of the top of the fuselage and one thing that really sticks out to me is the presence of painted panels beside the engine nozzles on either side. What is also strange to me is that the painted panel position can be variable. Here's a pic of what I'm talking about, stolen from the 'net (and on Page 71 of Jake's First Edition book), where this painted panel is next to the painted area of the antennae, aft of the nozzles. On Page 91 of the Second Edition book, however, this painted panel is forward of the one above as indicated, which is now titanium. Now a bunch of questions, for those who might know: 1) Why is there a painted panel in this area at all? I would think that if you need titanium panels in this area for heat, they would all be titanium. 2) Why is this painted panel in two different positions, depending on aircraft? 3) Is there always a painted panel in this area? Checking other reference pics that I can find on the 'net, if the pic is clear, I always see a painted panel, including Strike Eagles, but it is usually the forward panel instead of the aft one in the pic above. Although I can't find a clear shot from above of my subject, there is one clear enough of the Desert camo Eagle that would indicate that I should paint the rear panel blue here: http://www.cloud9photography.us/Military-Aviation-Photography/USAF-Aggressor-F-5-pictures/USAF-F-15-Aggressors-pictures/i-QDQjpCb/A Your feedback- and maybe some other examples- would be appreciated, since I don't recall seeing these panels painted on an Eagle model before. Cheers, Chuck Edit: I found a pic and even though its low resolution, it is clear that the rear panel should be painted blue... Edited December 23, 2016 by chuck540z3 A-10LOADER and F`s are my favs 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vandy 1 VX 4 Posted December 23, 2016 Share Posted December 23, 2016 Chuck I hope the outcome of your shoulder surgery is better than you anticipated. when I went to Neills. Well I should of brought a selfie stick to get thoes high angles. Enjoy your holidays Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FunkyZeit Posted December 24, 2016 Share Posted December 24, 2016 Cool bud! chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghatherly Posted December 24, 2016 Share Posted December 24, 2016 Hey Chuck, Glad you are on the mend. Just take it easy, and I know that it is easier to say than to do. Been thinking of you in the Cold North when it was 70 here in Charleston! chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuck540z3 Posted January 4, 2017 Author Share Posted January 4, 2017 Good evening Gents! My shoulder surgery is now 2 weeks old and the wounded left wing is just starting to move around a little bit without too much pain, so I can finally do a little modeling. Nothing big mind you since my left arm remains in a sling for another month, but I can hold small pieces down with my left hand while using my right. Thanks to the surgery I also managed to get blood clots in my lungs, so it was quite a Xmas. Here's to a much better 2017! Before I show you my work over the past 2 days, I thought I would re-visit panel line scribers, because I've tried just about every one made. Here's a selection of a few of them. A couple of Trumpeter scribers- currently my favorite- a similar one from Hasegawa, as well as one from RB Productions you put in a knife handle, a needle in a pin vice and the UMM scriber. Lately I've been trying these "Mr. Hobby G-Tool Chisels", which come in a variety of widths so that you can control the width of the panel line. It sounds like a good idea, but these "chisels" are so sharp they have a mind of their own and even using Dymo tape or other straight edges do not always control where they decide to go. That can be a real bummer too, because they scribe DEEP and repairs are often tough to do. So why do I bring up all this scriber stuff? I finally figured out how to use them without any drama, which is how I created such nice and sharp lines to emphasize the metallic "feathers" surrounding each engine below. The solution is to take a light swipe with my trusty Trumpeter scriber first, followed by another light cut with the chisel, then you can swipe away as deep as you want. After re-scribing and adding a lot of rivet detail to the front of the top fuselage, it was now time to tweak the rear. Here's what it looks like unaltered. Pretty boring to say the least and note the fuzzy definition to the “feathers†at the rear. Some modelers, like Guy Wilson, have totally removed them and replaced them with foil to define them better and make them straighter, but I'm just not that good (nor will ever be!) or motivated to do the same- hence the fine scriber work instead. Much of the detail is also wrong…. Those big circular fasteners at the top should be raised, so I filled them in with CA glue, then sanded them smooth. That ugly panel line was filled in too. As I seem to be using on all my builds lately, the sunken fastener detail was replaced with raised Archer decal rivets, which provide relief and a tighter spacing to match the real deal a little better. Those two panels I referred to earlier in Post # 419 were added as well, along with a lot of new rivet detail. It's not perfect, but it's 300% better than the kit parts left as is. The central panels were filled and changed, outer ones were added and new access openings were added to the hatches on either side, roughly the same size as the access panels in the middle. Rivet detail is a combination of reference pics from Jake's books and what the kit parts started off with. I fix what I can, but sometimes I'm guilty of just punting if I don't think the effort will equal the rewards of accuracy. I also didn't worry too much about rivet detail where the vertical stabilizers join the fuselage, because that will be filled in later since there really isn't a true panel line at the base of the stab's. Note how crisp and sharp the rescribed feathers look now. Note the location and shape of the old panel line. Pretty bad…. So that's it for now boys. Progress continues to be glacial in pace, but there is movement from time to time and I'm still having fun, so I appreciate your patience with this build. Cheers, Chuck Uncarina, Starfighter Jock, easixpedro and 15 others 18 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaka HI Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 Sharp, Chuck! Curious...how long did that take? You should try the Mini UMM scriber as well. chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vandy 1 VX 4 Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 I'm glad your arm is doing better. But sorry for the Lungs. Nice work on the Panels Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuck540z3 Posted January 4, 2017 Author Share Posted January 4, 2017 Sharp, Chuck! Curious...how long did that take? You should try the Mini UMM scriber as well. Thanks. I don't really know, but maybe 6 hours or so? With a more dexterous left arm, I might have been able to do it in 4 hours. I'm glad your arm is doing better. But sorry for the Lungs. Nice work on the Panels Yeah thanks, the lung deal can be dangerous. Good thing I recognized the signs and went straight to the hospital and I'm now on blood thinners. All appears to be on the mend now. You are a treasure Chuck, a solid gold treasure. Thanks so much for doing your WIP's. So much to look at and techniques to creatively acquire Glad to hear you are on the mend. Dan Now THAT is a compliment you don't get every day. Thank you! Cheers, Chuck F`s are my favs, Rdrunner, Shaka HI and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scvrobeson Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 Wonderful update. Best of luck with the shoulder recovery, I had a similar surgery about 4 years ago, took almost a year for full motion and recovery without pain Matt chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony in NZ Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 Thanks for the update Chuck, and pleased to hear you are on the mend! Just want you to know that your builds have been an inspiration to push my Trump Skyhawk further! Loving it. Cheers Anthony chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F`s are my favs Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 Oh wow, i remember a couple of pages ago, you mentioned that the tail section is quite wrong and there will be a need of improvement, and i wondered why; what`s wrong with it... This is definitely an improvement! 2 suggestions: one - sand every feather juuuust a little on top so to look more flat, cause they are serries of flat sheets. And two - as far as i remember - there is really no seamlines along the vert. stabilizers, except for the areas on the inner sides, where are the boundary lines of the heat protectors, the metal sheets. chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenshb Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 When/if I ever get around to build my big Eagle, I will use this thread as a reference to fixing the Tamiya kit. To be fair to Tamiya though; it is not possible to correctly represent that panel line between the engines given the limitations of tooling... Jens chuck540z3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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