Viewing 40 posts - 1,601 through 1,640 (of 2,323 total)
  • Christmas Airfix!
  • Harry_the_Spider
    Full Member

    Know what you mean there. Got an Italeri A10, Revell Victor and Italeri SU-35 all primed and ready for paint, but I can’t be arsed.

    Concentrating on small builds, like my GR3, before I get back on to them. I’ve got an Airfix Shackleton to tackle too, but I’m not starting that until I’m up to speed with finishing kits again.

    Freester
    Full Member

    Pretty much finished the assembly and put the first coat on this morning. I thinned the paints but the brush strokes are horrendous!!! I think it’s exaggerated by the dark paint job on white plastic. Hoping it will get better when we put a few more coats on this afternoon.

    I’ve noticed a couple of bits where the build didn’t fit correctly, and a little mistake by me on the rear undercarriage where it’s a bit out of line. But it’s a learning curve right?

    Freester
    Full Member

    Was too embarrassed to post a picture after the first coat. Second coat looking a lot better. My 10 yr old did most of it. Following ‘Owen Quick Fix”s instructions we’re going for 4 thinned coats with half hour between…

    In retrospect I think I’d have probably done the majority of painting when I assembled the fuselage / wings, before fitting undercarriage etc. But again learning on the job!!!

    Fresh Goods Friday 696: The Middling Edition

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    Freester
    Full Member

    Decals tomorrow. I haven’t got any gloss varnish but the Quick Kits guy reckons PVA + Water. Any idea what ratio?

    nickc
    Full Member

    You’re kid’s done a great job with the paint! Better than I could do at their age.

    Freester
    Full Member

    Thank you. I may have helped a bit and done the edges / ‘cutting in’ on the last coat (competitive Dad came out finally)…

    Harry_the_Spider
    Full Member

    Any idea what ratio?

    Dunno. Enough to give a gloss surface without leaving any lumps or bumps.

    Freester
    Full Member

    Dunno. Enough to give a gloss surface without leaving any lumps or bumps.

    LOL thank you. Trial and error it is.

    On another note. I was talking to my son today about the models I made as a kid. All gone now I remember chucking them when I found them in my mum’s loft when she moved quite a few years ago.

    I remember making a 1:48 F14 Tomcat. I remember the swing wing worked. Reminiscing a bit I thought mmm what about getting another for my little project.

    HOW MUCH?

    That is all.

    johndrummer
    Free Member

    For a 1/48 modern(ish) jet I’d expect somewhere between £30 and £50

    1/48 F-14 A Tomcat Italeri 2667

    Not a bad price but Italeri are not known as great kits. There’s a Tamiya one for £85 too! Better reputation but that’s about £40 too rich for me

    Freester
    Full Member

    Cheers for that I spotted the Hobby Boss one for around £40 too.

    Canopy fitted using PVA. ‘Gloss’ PVA coat applied where decals are going. Question. On 1:72 do people bother with every tiny little bleeding decal?

    Harry_the_Spider
    Full Member

    A PITA, but you will know that they are there!

    I’ve put digitally reduced copies of the maps from the Dambuster’s Raid on the navigators table in my 1/72 Lancaster.

    Can you see them? – No.
    Do I know that they are there? – Yes.

    nickc
    Full Member

    Not a bad price but Italeri are not known as great kits

    You have to be choosy with Italeri, some of them are really really nice kits (F-18 springs to mind) some are dross

    do people bother with every tiny little bleeding decal?

    Imagine it this way, 72nd scale is supposed to be the same size as a full scale airplane 72 feet away. Would you be able to see every detail from that distance? Your mileage may vary, but I never do.

    Harry_the_Spider
    Full Member

    I have to admit that I have a bit of a soft spot for Italeri because I’m a cheap bastard. Not had a particularly awful one yet.

    So far I’ve built their…

    F4U
    Jaguar
    Tomcat
    SU-34 (x2)
    SU-27
    F15 E
    F4 Phantom
    B25 Mitchell
    Harrier GR3 (current project)
    And I’ve probably got another half dozen in the stash.
    All in 1/72.

    Some have raised panel lines and some lack detail (nothing down the intakes on the Phantom and Jaguar), but all have gone together OK with a bit of filling and sanding. Their decals are usually very good. Never had a set that have “silvered”, been out of register or fallen apart. Painting instruction can be a bit vague, but the internet will point you in the right direction.

    Freester
    Full Member

    Cheers all. In my isolation I’ve paged back through this thread. Some incredible work. I’m about 20 pages in. Some real nostalgia for me got me remembering all the models I made, now in landfill somewhere I guess.

    Happy with the paintjob on my 1/72 Corsair. I can see some gaping gaps in the plastic now. Jr will be happy. I don’t want to get too controlling about the details it’s his model up to him. He’s also keen to finish it. I think I may purchase a little project for myself, be very patient and take my time…

    Freester
    Full Member

    Done most of the transfers. Mixed feelings with this one. It’s my lads and don’t want to take over (probably did to an extent). There’s lots I’m happy with. And plenty I’m not. I think a coat of matt varnish and I’ll be finished…

    nickc
    Full Member

    What a super little model. If that’s their first go at it, it’s brilliant

    Freester
    Full Member

    Well I made my way through all 40 pages of this thread.

    Some IMPRESSIVE work. Puts mine and Jr’s little Corsair to shame. All of you who have posted photos make me realise I have to work to up my game. Spent last night slurping up as many videos as YouTube as I could.

    Freester
    Full Member

    Well last few pics. Final few decals. I fitted a ‘walk line’ on the wings. These silvered a tad even with a PVA ‘gloss’ coat and some decal solution.

    Sealed with a couple of coats of thinned matt varnish. Got the Humbrol then read online this may not be the best stuff. It didn’t give me any trouble. Fitted the drop tanks. PVA to fix the canopy.

    There’s a lot to be happy with this first attempt. A lot we’re not. And we’ve learnt a heck of a lot.

    1) It should be fun
    2) Thin paints and lots of coats
    3) Don’t rush

    This was mostly Jr with some help from me on the fiddly bits

    We made a start on the Hobby Boss 1:48 Corsair. Less detail in the cockpit interestingly. Top tip for the wheels / tyres from the Britmodeller forum – drip a bit of thinner towards the rim / bead then drop the tyre colour in.

    We’d like to have a go at some exhaust and gun smoke on this one when we get a bit nearer to that stage…

    Jr has a country cricket assessment tomorrow for 2 hours. So I’ll have some time to waste. Hobbycraft isn’t far from the cricket centre. What are my ‘must haves’ to up my game?!?!

    johndrummer
    Free Member

    1) Decent paintbrushes
    2) if you can afford it, an airbrush. Doesn’t have to be expensive to start with – Revell do a basic one for about £15 £30, plus you’ll need a source of air. Canned air is available at Hobbycraft if you’re heading that way. A cheap way into airbrushing to see if it grabs you
    3) a cutting mat if you don’t already have one
    4) side cutters & a quality knife
    5) some spare fingers 😉
    6) patience, lots of it
    7) gloss varnish. Revell now do their Aquacolour (acrylics) in a rattle can.
    8) Matt varnish. See above.
    9) plastic filler – Revell & Humbrol are often in stock at HobbyCraft.
    10) a credit card with a hefty limit!
    11) some mixing pots – Tamiya do them for a couple of quid, basically their paint pots but empty

    Freester
    Full Member

    Thank you for your quick reply – much appreciated 🙂

    johndrummer
    Free Member

    12) if you’re anything like me, some magnifying glasses. Especially if you’re going to be fiddling around with anything smaller than 1/48 scale

    nickc
    Full Member

    13) good supply of some wet’n’dry I start at 350, then 800, 1000 for finishing. used with a dab of water you can smooth to a good enough finish.

    14) Tamiya masking tape.

    timbog160
    Full Member

    That Corsair is smashing. And you’re right, every day is a school day with modelling – always something new to learn…

    Harry_the_Spider
    Full Member

    That Corsair is rather good.

    15) Primer. I use grey acrylic from my local motor factor. Costs about £6 for a can. It helps the paint bond and it highlights any areas that need attention before the colours goes on.

    16) Sanding and polishing sticks. I got some from Flory’s.

    17) Tweezers.

    18) Cocktail sticks and bamboo kebab skewers.

    You don’t need all of this stuff on day one though. I’ve been adding tools over the last 4 years.

    kennyp
    Free Member

    Can anyone recommend a good magnifying glass lamp combined sort of thing? I would like to get back into making a few models this winter (after about a 50 year break) but my eyesight’s not what it was.

    Harry_the_Spider
    Full Member

    I too could do with one of them and one of those jig things that allow you to get the wings level.

    Rio
    Full Member

    Can anyone recommend a good magnifying glass lamp combined sort of thing?

    I think they’re pretty much of a muchness; I have quite a good generic mains/battery chinese one with a heavy base and a ring of LEDs that I got from a local craft shop but it’s not seen much use since I got a head magnifier (see johndrummer’s item 12)) – my head magnifier’s similar to the £16 Rolson one that Amazon have and has been a godsend for various things including modelling, particularly since developing a covid-related eye problem that has really not helped with fine detailed work!

    Freester
    Full Member

    Well I popped into Hobbycraft. Kinda felt expensive but I bought a few things. Got an A3 cutting mat. I may have splurged a tenner on a little Revel 1:72 P47 Tomahawk. Got some Tamiya masking tape. Some Revell filler / putty.

    I already had a sprue / side cutter and decent knife.

    Got the instructions open for the Tomahawk. I need to drill some holes out on this model. Is a cheap £10 Amazon hand drill OK for this kind of thing? The ones in Hobbycraft were like a tenner plus another tenner for the bits.

    johndrummer
    Free Member

    I used to use the tip of the knife blade to open up the holes in the wings. Then I bought a pin vice & some small drill bits, it’s a lot safer. I have a nice scar on the tip of my wedding ring finger…

    https://www.modelhobbies.co.uk/tamiya-fine-pin-vice-d-01-32mm–74050-53689-p.asp

    https://www.modelhobbies.co.uk/tamiya-03mm-fine-pivot-drill-bit-shank-dia-10mm–74114-74498-p.asp

    johndrummer
    Free Member

    As for paints…

    You can buy them as you need new colours for your next model. I prefer acrylics to enamels, they clean up and dilute with water rather than white spirits, dry a lot quicker and they don’t stink the house out.

    Hobbycraft do Humbrol, Revell & Tamiya paints, plenty enough colours to start with

    Freester
    Full Member

    Thanks again!

    I was pleasantly surprised that the vast majority of paints for the Corsair are good for my Thunderbolt (yesss I know I said Tomahawk got mixed up). Only need a few extra colours. I have a really good local craft shop I’m going to visit next Saturday. Would prefer to support them if at all possible.

    Rio
    Full Member

    Is a cheap £10 Amazon hand drill OK for this kind of thing?

    Cheap hand drills often have eccentricity problems – I have one that’s completely useless for small bits as the eccentricity is often larger than the hole. For small holes I use pcb drills, available cheaply from Ebay in a large range of sizes and can be used without a pin vice or in a dremel. Very sharp though, so be careful – I once spent a day at the Telford model show wondering why my finger hurt only to discover when I got home that when I’d stabbed myself with a drill the previous day a bit had broken off in my finger.

    Harry_the_Spider
    Full Member

    I have something like this.

    Freester
    Full Member

    Thanks! Ordered the Model Craft one plus some bits!

    Harry_the_Spider
    Full Member

    When buying kits I find that Jadlam are usually reasonably priced and they don’t sting you with postage. Aldi sometimes have them in for a fiver too.

    Freester
    Full Member

    Chipping away at the 1/48 Corsair. Taking a lot more time on this. Cockpit done. Engine nearly done. Freester Jr did the painting. The assembly and decals were fiddly so I helped with that. The exhausts on the engine nearly finished me. Fiddly as… then I realised when I tried a dry run on the fuselage that they were offset by 90 degrees. Luckily the glue hadn’t dried. Disassembled, got it right. By then the paint had worn off. Realised the exhausts weren’t going to be seen apart from the ends so do I touch them up…? According to the rule you’ll know even if I can’t see them they got painted again…

    vintagewino
    Free Member

    Porsche 911 GT2 'Wasteland Special'

    Just finished this. Tamiya kit. A bit different from the box art!

    EDIT: obviously I have no idea how to embed images: https://www.flickr.com/photos/70071315@N02/51659955094/in/dateposted-public/

    nostrils
    Free Member

    PSA – 25% off Revell kits on the Hobbycraft website as part of their Black Friday offering.

    Freester
    Full Member

    PSA – 25% off Revell kits on the Hobbycraft website as part of their Black Friday offering.

    Great PSA thank you. As I’d been to Hobbycraft for the first time a few weeks ago I got an extra 15% off code that worked!

    Bought a Revell Red Arrows Hawk starter kit (comes with paint and glue) as a present for one of my lad’s mates
    A Revell 1/72 Lancaster and BF109. They’ll go in Jr’s Xmas stocking 😉

Viewing 40 posts - 1,601 through 1,640 (of 2,323 total)

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