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Mustang Wing Panel Lines...From the Preeminent Mustang Restorer's Point of View


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8 minutes ago, DonH said:

No matter how hard I try with filler, I can never get rid of a seam line. Does this mean I have the requisite skills to render the perfect Mustang wing?

Puttied but with a hint of rivet and panel lines.

 

At last I have found an application for my lack of application.

I think so, others may not.  I don't think a perfectly smooth wing would make for a very appealing model.  Just me though.  I think knowing what is right is an important baseline.  Imitating perfect though I am not sure is desirable.  I think it better to have an imperfect interpretation of perfect and so leave something for the eye to see.

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8 hours ago, vince14 said:

Is this the part where I point out that the ‘Laminar Flow’ wing being the key to the Mustang’s success is a total myth?

 

You must be reading a whole different thread. No one is denying that the wing was puttied, polished and lacquered. The "argument" is that some people believe that the puttied and lacquered Mustang wing was smooth and featureless while the reality (backed by plenty of evidence that is  conveniently/flippantly dismissed/ignored) Is more nuanced. The panel lines insisted on showing through the putty. It does not matter what is the reason for that, they just did.

 

My own advice is to leave the wing alone. Just give it a couple of coats of 50/50 mix of light grey and silver paint, then DO NOT use any panel line "wash" and that should be enough. All manufacturers put wing panel lines on the latest models (although they are all aware of the "smooth wing internet meme") because all of these manufacturers saw the panel lines on the wings when they researched their models. Go to museums, go to air shows, look at the walk-arounds in books or internet, see for yourselves.

 

Radu

Edited by Radub
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35 minutes ago, Radub said:

 

All manufacturers put wing panel lines on the latest models (although they are all aware of the "smooth wing internet meme") because all of these manufacturers saw the panel lines on the wings when they researched their models. Go to museums, go to air shows, look at the walk-arounds in books or internet, see for yourselves.

 

Radu

 

Plus, if they left any panel lines out they would get criticised to death on internet forums

 

I am very much in your second camp, only I'd add make models based on real world photos of an actual aeroplane. It's the only way to be sure you are getting it 'right'*, assuming that's your thing

 

It's a great way of learning about a particular 'plane too

 

Richard

 

*whatever the hell that means

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I reckon them thar puttied joins flaked some with all the creakin and flexin and stuff and the sheet from them thar shooting irons and all the other crud 'n' crap got duly polished in. 

 

As it's de riguer these days to fill painted models with a dark clay wash to highlight panel and fastener detail you could say it's fashionable not to pre-putty but post-putty. 

 

Tony 

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9 hours ago, Radub said:

Go to museums, go to air shows, look at the walk-arounds in books or internet, see for yourselves.

 

Yet the majority of the latest "by the manual" restorations have very smooth wings.  There are many, many "restorations" in museums that have very little in common with a factory-finished wartime P-51.  Wear and tear surely reduced the factory finishes smoothness, but a couple coats of paint Tamiya's wing is not going to approximate the wartime finish.

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1 minute ago, BrentE said:

 

Yet the majority of the latest "by the manual" restorations have very smooth wings.  There are many, many "restorations" in museums that have very little in common with a factory-finished wartime P-51.  Wear and tear surely reduced the factory finishes smoothness, but a couple coats of paint Tamiya's wing is not going to approximate the wartime finish.

 

You can see the lines in many wartime photos. I posted a few wartime photos above. You only need an open mind to see them. 

Radu

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4 minutes ago, Radub said:

 

You can see the lines in many wartime photos. I posted a few wartime photos above. You only need an open mind to see them. 

Radu

 

You can see hints of lines\rivets in many photos, none in others.  Regardless, a wing festooned with panel lines and rivets under a couple coats of paint is not particularly accurate.  Having said that, I do agree that the chord-wise panel lines at the end of the wings and wing end caps were left unfilled, almost certainly because wingtip of removal during transport.

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16 hours ago, cbk57 said:

I think so, others may not.  I don't think a perfectly smooth wing would make for a very appealing model.  Just me though.  I think knowing what is right is an important baseline.  Imitating perfect though I am not sure is desirable.  I think it better to have an imperfect interpretation of perfect and so leave something for the eye to see.

That is definitely not just you! 

 

You seem to get it where many folks around here do not.


As I have said many times, building plastic models is first and foremost an artistic exercise.

 

To do it right, you should be thinking like an artist...not an engineer.

 

 

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