Notdoneyet Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 (edited) This is my first entry in this GB - the 1/48 Aeroclub Gnat T1 that I started in a rush of enthusiasm about a year ago before being sidetracked by other things ........ Obligatory box shot :- And here's the result of a years worth of toil, late nights and blood sweat and tears .......(don't laugh!!!) So this GB will hopefully see some progress and the Gnat completed in the Dayglo Orange and Aluminium scheme worn by a CFS example based at Little Rissington in 1963. Cheers, Ian Edited November 24, 2008 by Notdoneyet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnonymousA667 Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 .......(don't laugh!!!) Sorry Ian, but that is funny! peebeep Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnonymousER99 Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 NICE WORK!!! I can see why it took a year!! Those are what a whole 2.5 inches long?? LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Kunac-Tabinor Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 Ian - I'm not laughing, 'cus I have the F1 fighter version - with parts cut out. Been like that for about 10 months. Hmmm maybe entry no 2 for the KUTA GB from me? The problem I found with the Gnat - its so damn small - even in 1/48 its like working on a 1/72 model!! Still those are most excellent drop tanks Jonners Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 Heh! I got further with mine Mine's almost ready for paint ...and those tanks are a bugger to get the joins to disappear. I spent ages sanding & filling mine... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notdoneyet Posted November 13, 2008 Author Share Posted November 13, 2008 (edited) Time for a small update. After joining 4 parts in a year things have moved at breakneck speed over the last week ............. I got the cockpit tub together and gave it a lick of paint :- Added some Mike Grant dials to the instrument panels and added the extra dial housing to the back of the bulkhead :- I also added some 10 thou card to the inside of the intakes to give the appearance of intake trunking and prevent the wheel wells being visible through the intakes. I then sprayed the "trunking" with some Alclad Aluminium :- In addition I added a rear bulkhead to support the jet pipe (which I've assembled and painted) which I'll add at the end of the build. Doing it this way enables the rear fuselage joins to be sanded without damaging the exhaust and also simplifies masking :- Once that was done it was time to button up the fuselage - tiny but beautifully formed :- One peculiar thing that I've noticed is the plastic in this kit has a tendency to "de-laminate" (for want of a better word) with the top surface detaching itself from the plastic below if put under pressure during sanding or scribing - very odd I've got around this by sanding back the areas where it has occurred but it will make my next step, rescribing the fuselage, a little "interesting". Thanks for looking and any comments or criticism you may have. Ian Edited November 13, 2008 by Notdoneyet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnonymousDFB1 Posted November 13, 2008 Share Posted November 13, 2008 Good start ian. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smiffy Posted November 16, 2008 Share Posted November 16, 2008 Coming along nicely there. One peculiar thing that I've noticed is the plastic in this kit has a tendency to "de-laminate" (for want of a better word) with the top surface detaching itself from the plastic below if put under pressure during sanding or scribing - very odd I had exactly the same thing, with an Italeri 48th Recce Phantom (ears and ears ago). The top layer of plastic was coming off in large thin flakes. The more I tried to fix it, the worse it got. I gave up in the end, re-boxed it up, never to see the light of day again. Heres hoping you have better luck with yours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notdoneyet Posted November 18, 2008 Author Share Posted November 18, 2008 Thanks Mish and Smiffy, I appreciate you taking the time to comment Coming along nicely there. I had exactly the same thing, with an Italeri 48th Recce Phantom (ears and ears ago). The top layer of plastic was coming off in large thin flakes. The more I tried to fix it, the worse it got. I gave up in the end, re-boxed it up, never to see the light of day again. Heres hoping you have better luck with yours. Smiffy, yup exactly the same thing with the plastic on the Gnat - scribing/rescribing was a nightmare, no matter how gentle I was the top surface layer "lifted" at some point. Here's a pic to show the problem :- Notice the lighter plastic around the horizontal panel line - that's where the plastic lifted. Unfortunately this happened on just about every panel line and required a lot of scribe/sand/scribe redo cycles Anyhoo, I eventually got things into a reasonable state and attached the wings which was an art more than a science as the wing location on the fuselage is somewhat imprecise. So after my usual trial & error, in their usual 1:1 ratio I got the wings fixed with the appropriate anhedral :- Then it was off to the paint shop for a little white primer :- I used Krylon flat white for this (cdn$3:00 for a large spray can) it dries ultra smooth and polishes out well where necessary. So after a quick once over with some 1200 grit wet 'n dry it was time for some proper paint. So to paraphrase the lyrics to the Banana Boat Song ................DAAAAAAYYYYYYYGLO, OHHHH DAAAAAYYYYGLO ........ I used Tamiya Flourescent Orange decanted from the rattle can and sprayed (after further thinning with lacquer thinners) via my airbrush. I'd read that flourescent colours needed a white basecoat, and now I realise why - they have the opacity of water and require multiple coats to build up any colour density. I hope it doesn't lift with the masking for the alumnium which I hope to get done tomorrow. Thanks for looking and any comments and/or criticisms you may have. Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Kunac-Tabinor Posted November 18, 2008 Share Posted November 18, 2008 Whoa Ian - fast working there my lad - and a definite need for with the orange!! Looking very nice so far though - I think this is going to look great. Is the flaking plastic caused by uneven cooling in the moulds do you think? - so that it forms layers rather than 1 homogeneous piece of plastic? Jonners Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notdoneyet Posted November 18, 2008 Author Share Posted November 18, 2008 Whoa Ian - fast working there my lad - and a definite need for with the orange!!Looking very nice so far though - I think this is going to look great. Is the flaking plastic caused by uneven cooling in the moulds do you think? - so that it forms layers rather than 1 homogeneous piece of plastic? Jonners Thanks Jon. Yes the dayglo is a bit dazzling - spraying it last night I thought I was "snow blind" You could be right on the uneven cooling, the plastic has lots of "swirls" and striations - you can just make these out below the white metal fairing in the pic above. Cheers, Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnonymousDFB1 Posted November 19, 2008 Share Posted November 19, 2008 Getting there Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigReg Posted November 19, 2008 Share Posted November 19, 2008 You think the gnat is small in 1/48 and 1/72 how about these in 1/44? They don't take up much space in the display case! I do like that Aeroclub build by the way. Regards David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dswoofie Posted November 19, 2008 Share Posted November 19, 2008 Very nice work so far Ian, and quick too. You're pretty brave taking on a vacform for a KUTA build Sounds a little taxing with that plastic issue to deal with, but you seem to have got it sorted! It's going to look rather nice in that scheme, and I'm looking forward to seeing more... Karl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notdoneyet Posted November 19, 2008 Author Share Posted November 19, 2008 Thanks for the comments everyone!! You think the gnat is small in 1/48 and 1/72 how about these in 1/44? They don't take up much space in the display case! I do like that Aeroclub build by the way. Regards David David, that would be waaaayyyyy too small for my eyesight and nervous system to cope with Very nice work so far Ian, and quick too. You're pretty brave taking on a vacform for a KUTA build Sounds a little taxing with that plastic issue to deal with, but you seem to have got it sorted! It's going to look rather nice in that scheme, and I'm looking forward to seeing more... Karl. Karl, the T1 isn't a vacform (although the Gnat F1 is I believe) it's a mixed media injection/white metal kit with a vacform canopy. Once the cockpit is done it's a very simple kit to build, the wing/fuselage join is the only problem (assuming the plastic on mine is an anomaly) which requires lots of TLC to get looking acceptable. So here's the latest. On the face of it the masking of the dayglo so that the aluminium could be sprayed looked like a simple job ........... In reality it took me about 4 hours ro mask everything. Here's a pic of the masked up Gnat after spraying with Alclad Aluminium and Tamiya NATO Black for the anti dazzle panel:- I then undid my 4 hour masking in about 20 minutes to reveal the paint job prior to a coat of Future (Warning you may need to turn your monitor brightness down ):- With hindsight I should have masked the white undercoat for the roundels before spraying the dayglo , now I'll be using the white decal provided in the kit to prevent "bleed through" of the stong colour. Next up, some Future coats and then the on with the decals. Thanks for looking and any comments you may have. Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avro683 Posted November 19, 2008 Share Posted November 19, 2008 A real good job, Ian. I built one a few years ago and had terrible trouble getting the cockpit built - the plastic just wouldn't stick. I'm glad I persevered though, and I wuld definitely build another one if I could find one. Tony Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted November 19, 2008 Share Posted November 19, 2008 (edited) Nice one. Thats how a Gnat should look, so many people only ever remember the Reds version, and if your luck the yellow jacks! it's nice to see it as a true trainer. Dave Edited November 19, 2008 by zero Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dswoofie Posted November 19, 2008 Share Posted November 19, 2008 Oh, for some reason I thought the kit was vacform Well, still good work anyway! That looks fantastic now you've de-masked it Looking forward to more progress now! Karl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest snipersmudge Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 now thats looking very nice ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnonymousDFB1 Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 Nice work Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdxtnt Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 She's looking great Ian. This is gonna be good, I can tell! Gary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bexwh773 Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 Coulda told us Sunglasses were essential wear Ian Looking rather smart that my friend, me likes THanks for sharing & good luck Bex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notdoneyet Posted November 22, 2008 Author Share Posted November 22, 2008 (edited) Thanks for the feedback everyone it's most appreciated. Decalling is now complete. I have to say that the Fantasy Printshop printed decals were absolutely superb, every one in perfect register and so sharp that even the smallest stencil is easily read Without further ado, on to the photos (Bex, time to don your shades again ):- Next up will be a coat of Future and then a panel line wash. While the Future cures I'll beaver away finishing off the "droppy off bits" in preparation for their fitting. Thanks for looking and any comments/criticisms you may have. Ian Edited November 22, 2008 by Notdoneyet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest snipersmudge Posted November 23, 2008 Share Posted November 23, 2008 looks great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avro683 Posted November 23, 2008 Share Posted November 23, 2008 Great work Ian Tony Von Gottagetanotherone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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