Marine F-4J Phantom - Decal time!

[Durangokid 994]

Thanks fellas, I really appreciate all the nice comments.  I wanted to mention what airbrush I use to primer or gloss coat a big model.  I use the GSI Mr. Hobby PS-290 and I absolutely love it.  I use a Harder & Steenbeck Infinity for most of my detail work which I really like but it's not good for laying down a lot of paint.  It was difficult to lay down a good gloss coat without getting edge dryness because it's such a small line to work with.  Not to mention it took forever to paint the large subjects we all enjoy.  

 

I wanted to get the Iwata HP-TH but didn't want to spend the $300 US dollars to buy it.  I ran across some reviews raving about the PS-290  and that it was virtually the same as the HP-TH without the MAC valve.  They sure look the same anyway.  I was able to buy mine a few years ago for $130 US dollars.  I couldn't be happier with my purchase!  I don't have the largest modeling budget anymore so finding something that works well on a reasonable price is important to me.  It comes with two tips, one a standard round and the other a fan tip.   I use the fan tip and as you can see from the phantom photo, it lays down the paint like butter.  No more streaks or dry edges and I can paint an entire 32nd scale phantom in minutes.  The only issue one might have is that it takes significantly more air pressure to spray then a detail brush.  I have a Super Silent 20A which isn't recommended but I've had zero problems getting enough air for modeling purposes.  However, I'm not sure a tankless compressor would keep up so keep that in mind if you consider this airbrush. 

 

I hope this is helpful to others that are looking for a solution to better coverage when it comes to this type of airbrushing.  

 

 

 

 

P.S. It really came in handy when semi-glossing this beast!

 

[Finn 1,030]

Nice work on the missiles, one thing to note they were man handled, loaded up, taken down so they did get a bit dirty as can be seen here:

 

 

Jari

[Durangokid 994]

Thanks Jari!  I've seen some pics where they are pretty bad so I plan to get them nice and dirty. 

[Marcel111 1,829]

Thx for the airbrush tips, I need to get myself a high volume brush one of these days. And your Intruder looks awesome!

[Fvdm 650]

The mr Hobby airbrush looks nice. I needed a bigger airbrush when painting a uss nimitz 1:350 and i decided to buy a 0.6mm needle for my H&S. But a special airbrush for large surfaces is real handy.

[Finn 1,030]

Before you start loading the F-4 check this manual:

 

http://aviationarchives.blogspot.com/2017/07/f-4bj-ordnancemans-handbook.html

 

especially the forward mounting of the MER with bombs on the belly, pg 10-11 and pg 84-85 (better view) of the manual.

 

Jari

[Finn 1,030]

Here is a look at a wing fold on a F-4J:

 

https://www.navysite.de/cruisebooks/cv63-71/124.htm

 

Jari

[MGySgt0372 181]

I want to see more, Durangokid! You do some awesome work & i'm about to start my Tamiya F-4J. Thanks!

 

Semper Fi,

Masterguns

 

[Durangokid 994]

16 hours ago, MGySgt0372 said:

I want to see more, Durangokid! You do some awesome work & i'm about to start my Tamiya F-4J. Thanks!

 

Semper Fi,

Masterguns

 

 

Thanks brother!  I was waiting for the new decals from AOA and they should be here any time.  Then I'll be starting back up...

 

Semper Fi!

[Durangokid 994]

So I'm finally back to work on my Phantom.  The kit decals were trashed as were the Yellow Hammer decals I had.  The kit decals completely yellowed but I was able to bleach them out for the most part by setting them in direct sunlight for a few days.  I tested a decal only to have it break apart in water so I sprayed some testers decal bonder which helped but wasn't perfect.  They Yellow Hammer decals were even worse and they weren't all that accurate to boot.  My only other option was to use my trusty Silhouette to cut some masks.  Thankfully AOA has a new set of stencils so I'm all set.  I drew all the markings, including the walkways, with Inkscape.  It took some time but was worth it in the end.

 

First I painted the white areas:

 

 

Then masks for the green strips and clovers:  Note: I must have broke that damn probe five time now!

 

 

Painted custom green color:

 

 

Masked the stripes:

 

 

Painted the main color:  I used Mr. Color but for this but it seems too light.

 

 

Removed masks...OOPS!

 

 

 

 

Added tail markings

 

 

 

The walkways were next.  The black outline was a PIA!

 

 

I painted and masked the grey areas:

 

 

I also drew the stars and bars from scratch.  These took some work but I figured it would be easier to do these before painting the main color.  I first painted the blue areas.

 

 

Then applied the masks for the white and red areas:

 

 

 

Here she is after painting and removing masks:

 

 

Still a few more to go. 

 

 

You can see just how detailed the Silhouette can cut once you have all the settings dialed in:

 

 

Here she is with all the markings, not on decal used...

 

 

 

 

Time for some blending and a bit more weathering... Thanks for looking!

 

Bryan

 

 

 

[Robthepom 1,098]

that is a superb step by step tutorial, thanks, i love your mottle pre shade effect for the light grey top coat

 

rob

[LSP_Kevin 26,775]

Superb masking and paint work, Bryan!

 

Kev

[CZPetrP 170]

Great work with masks. Fine painting

[dodgem37 6,979]

Love that!

 

Sincerely,

Mark

[AceofClubs 219]

Absolutely top work! Best compliments.

Ciao

Filippo