Navy Bird Posted October 7, 2012 Share Posted October 7, 2012 Hi mates, This started out as an Out-of-the Box build to take a break and not get too carried away. But then I found myself adding very small diameter solder to represent tubing and lines in the cockpit, etc. So much for the OOB idea! This is, of course, the nice new Airfix kit of the A6M2b in the one true scale. Best $7.50 I ever spent! A prerequisite to building any Japanese aircraft model is to spend several hours studying the wealth of information on the web and trying to figure out what colour it should be painted! What a Pandora's Box that is! Yikes! I found what I needed on Nick Millman's blog. I can highly recommend picking up a copy of his "Painting The Early Zero" guide. This model will use the Airfix decals, but the paint scheme will need to be changed slightly. The aircraft represented by the transfers was actually used in training, so the undersides will be yellow-orange, not gray as Airfix states. That should make for an interesting combination with the IJN Dark Green on the top. But first, here's the obligatory shot of the carton: The cockpit is quite well detailed for 1:72 scale, as I'm sure you've read in the reviews. The rear bulkhead has a couple of ejector pin marks that need to be filled and the Euro buck gives you an idea of how small this thing is: The seat has the lightening holes moulded in, but I think they'll look better if they are drilled out. I used Gunze H303 FS34102 for the cockpit green as applied to Mitsubishi-built Zeroes. I added some small wire and solder to represent some piping in the cockpit, and I think it looks busy enough. The kit decals for the instrument panel are quite convincing. I used some 30-year old True Details "generic" Japanese seat harnesses and rudder pedals. Airfix provides a nice way for you to model the Zero with the wingtips folded, Just cut the outer sections away along a panel line, and replace with separate wingtips that have a hinge moulded in. I think that will add some interest, so off with the wingtips! I decided not to do any detailing on the engine, so I assembled it and gave it a quick paint job and wash. The moulding is nice, and there's quite a bit of detail considering it's only three pieces: Once the fuselage was assembled, I sprayed the undersides white, in preparation for the yellow-orange colour. My first thought was to use Gunze H24 Orange-Yellow, so I quickly applied a coat or two. But you know what? It's too orange. I went back to Nick's blog, and found some samples of the C1 through C4 colour chips and a nice photo of a canvas section from a trainer. You can view these at http://britmodeller....showtopic=66239 So now I needed to mix a colour that batter matched that sample. I used 50% Gunze H24 Orange-Yellow and 50% H34 Gunze Cream Yellow. I like this a lot better! To my eye, this is a good match for C2. Straight Gunze H24 is more like C1. I then used Gunze H59 Dark IJN Green on the top side. The number of "scallops" on the yellow-green demarcation line matches a photo of the actual plane, and not the Airfix box art. The cowling is black-blue, which I mixed from Model Master Black and Model Master Bright Blue. After I took the following picture, I decided to extend the black-blue from the cowling over the guns and to the instrument panel. I can't tell if the real plane was like that, but I've seen quite a few pictures of trainers that were. On the bottom, I then applied a lighter version of the yellow-orange on the panels to create some post-shading. Not so easy to see in the photo, but it's easy to see with your eye. I figure I'll give the panel lines a wash too. Next, I wanted to do the same on the top as well. So I sprayed lighter shades of the dark green and the blue-black. Next I'll have to do some clean-up on the wing folds, and spray that area aotake. Rather than use one of the pre-mixed versions of this "colour" (which tend to look like metallic custom car colours) I'll create the aotake by applying a base of Alclad aluminum and overspray with very light mists of Gunze Clear Blue and Gunze Clear Green. I've never done that before, so I guess I should experiment first! That's it for now. This is really a sweet little kit, and it's a far cry from the original Airfix Zero I built about forty years ago. Cheers, Bill 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliffB Posted October 7, 2012 Share Posted October 7, 2012 Super work Bill Cliff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spikelhund Posted October 7, 2012 Share Posted October 7, 2012 Super smooth paint work Bill, do you use Mr hobby levelling thinner with your Gunze paints and do you prime first? This looks beautiful so far, can't wait for more. Cheers.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Navy Bird Posted October 8, 2012 Author Share Posted October 8, 2012 On 10/7/2012 at 04:24, Spikelhund said: Super smooth paint work Bill, do you use Mr hobby levelling thinner with your Gunze paints and do you prime first? This looks beautiful so far, can't wait for more. Cheers.... Hi Mike, Actually, neither. I don't use a primer with Gunze Aqueous, I just make sure the model is nice and clean first. I will also go over the plastic with 600 or 800 grit sandpaper to give the paint something to bite to. I don't use the levelling thinner with Gunze Aqueous, as I don't have a problem with it drying too fast (the levelling thinner is basically a retarder). I thin with 91% isopropyl alcohol. I use the levelling thinner with Mr. Color paints (because they do dry too fast - ever get the spider webs shooting out of your airbrush? That's because it's drying in mid-flight), and I also use it with Model Master paints (it's the only way I can get a really fine edge on a soft camouflage line with those paints - otherwise they always clog the tip of my airbrush). I didn't mention above, but I did not use any filler on the model so far. The fit is very nice! Kudos to Airfix! Cheers, Bill 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spikelhund Posted October 8, 2012 Share Posted October 8, 2012 Thanks for that Bill, forgot to say the cockpit looks great. Cheers... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevehnz Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 Looking so good. I'll be watching this to get some inspiration for the one in my stash, lots of good ideas so far & the trainer scheme that Nick Millman's blog high lighted is a really attractive colour scheme for these. Thanks for the link to the threasd about the yellows, I've some Aeromaster Japanese Orange Yellow so this will help me decide if that'll be OK or not. Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alex Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 looks very nice! Alex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vulcanicity Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 This is very handsome work Bill! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crobinsonh Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 Great work as usual - looking forward to your next update. Are you still on the road to recovery? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Navy Bird Posted October 11, 2012 Author Share Posted October 11, 2012 Thanks for the nice comments, guys! I appreciate them very much. As far as the road to recovery goes, I'm still having severe pain that's coming from my lower back. I had another myleogram (spinal tap, and no that's not a band) a week ago, and it looks like L1-L2 and L5-S1 both need some work. Surgery number nine looms...but that's OK if it fixes the damn problem! I switched to a new doctor, who is very highly regarded in these parts. Methinks my old doctor was a bit of a quack. The new guy put me on six weeks of physiotherapy, but the problem actually got worse, my pain meds were increased, etc. The same old cycle... Cheers, Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Navy Bird Posted October 12, 2012 Author Share Posted October 12, 2012 OK, so where we we? Ah yes, according to a photo of this actual aircraft that I saw over on the Aviation of Japan website, the hinomarus on the bottom of the wing had a white surround to them. The kit decals are not like this, so I headed for the spares box - but no luck. I then decided to paint white circles on the bottom at the appropriate size, and put the red circle over that. If I did my measurements right, I should end up with a nice little white edge. I used an old drafting template to cut the correct size circle out of some wide Tamiya tape, which I used as a mask. After painting the white, I think she looks pretty good: Next, I mixed 75% Gunze Clear Blue and 25% Gunze Clear Green, and thinned it way down to make my "aotake." I used Alclad aluminum as a base, and then sprayed two very light misting coats of the Gunze mixture, and now we a nice representation of the aotake protective coating used by Japan: The pictures don't show the "clear" aspect of this paint so well, but the effect is there. I like the color, and I plan on doing a light wash as part of the final weathering. That's it for today! Cheers, Bill 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOUSTON Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 Bill EXEMPLARY, NEATwork on the cockpit et al.. Looking good to ME..Most interesting subject and IMPRESSIVE WORK. hope you are feeling a tad better Bill and your back is not too painful with all this modeling... Take care HOUSTON... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Navy Bird Posted October 27, 2012 Author Share Posted October 27, 2012 Hi mates, Time for another update. I've added the transfers, and I must say that the Cartograf decals which Airfix have supplied with this kit are excellent! I used my normal decal solvents (Micro-Set and Micro-Sol) and the markings snuggled down into the panel lines quite nicely. I was expecting some difficulties as the panel lines on the Zero are deeper than others I've seen in this scale - but no problems at all! Here are a few pix: Looks like I guessed right for the diameter of the white circles that I painted on the bottom of the wing. The picture of the real plane that is posted over at Nick Millman's excellent Aviation of Japan blog clearly shows a white outline to the hinomaru. As soon as I finished the transfers, I realized that I forgot to paint the yellow I.D. stripes on the leading edge of the wings! D'oh! The kit includes transfers for these stripes, but I want a different color as I don't think the kit stripes are "orange-yellow" enough, based on the samples of C-1 over at Nick's blog and posted here on Britmodeller (link in post #1). So it looks like I have some creative masking to do! Once I get the I.D. stripes on, I'll add the main tires, do some detail painting on the arresting hook and tail wheel, and add the landing gear doors. I also need to finish the wing tips and mount them in the folded position. I also intend to do a panel line wash with Flory's Dark Dirt. Airfix supplied just a one-piece canopy, but I want to model the canopy open. I have a couple of Falcon vacuform canopies for the Zero, so I also have some careful razor saw work ahead. It's a good weekend for modelling here in Rottenchester, NY. We're getting hit with the storm that's coming in from the west and is supposed to merge with what's left of Hurricane Sandy to make a mega-storm. We're expecting a few inches of rain this weekend - all outdoor activities are off for me. Fire up the compressor and let's shoot some air! Cheers, Bill 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shalako Posted October 27, 2012 Share Posted October 27, 2012 Good evening Bill, Impressive work on the cockpit and as a whole, it looks fantastic!!!! Can't wait to see it finished. Definitely my next purchase at my local model shop. Airfix has really done a very good job with this kit. Cheers Sernak Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted October 27, 2012 Share Posted October 27, 2012 Damn you Bill! Damn you for making a better job of your one than I did on mine! Seriously, very nice work, hope that weather doesn't cause too much disruption. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOUSTON Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 Bill, You work continues to amaze ME.. INCREDIBLE work on the cockpit. Hope to see more. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Navy Bird Posted October 29, 2012 Author Share Posted October 29, 2012 Hi mates, Next stop, that creative masking I spoke of. Need to make sure that I don't mask directly over the top of the transfers. The masking looks a bit odd, but it did the trick. I painted a base coat of white and followed with Gunze H24 Orange-Yellow, which I think is a good match for the Japanese color C1. After carefully removing the masking material, I applied a light burnt umber wash made from artist's acrylics in the panel lines, and a black wash in the wheel wells. I mounted the main tires and landing gear doors. I set the prop on for some photos, and it looks like we're heading into the home stretch: Not too much remaining now, just the wing tips, the final varnish, maybe some pastels for the exhaust stains, etc. Oh, and I've been saving the dreadful canopy surgery until last. Thank goodness I have three canopies (one from the kit and two vacuform). I should be able to come up with at least one set for showing the canopy open, said the ham-fisted razor saw man. Cheers, Bill PS. Awfully dark outside today. They're predicting several inches of rain and winds up to 65 MPH later this afternoon and tonight. Yikes. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spikelhund Posted October 29, 2012 Share Posted October 29, 2012 (edited) Bill your Zero really does look great, I really like the clean sharp finish you achieve, well done with the masking and good luck with the weather. Cheers... Edited October 29, 2012 by Spikelhund Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Navy Bird Posted November 7, 2012 Author Share Posted November 7, 2012 Hi mates, I'm calling this one done. The canopy surgery that I was dreading turned out to be easier than I expected. I removed the front windscreen and rear portion of the canopy from the Airfix part, and added the center sliding section from a Falcon vacuform. After cleaning up the edges, here are the three parts ready for masking: Using the vacuform piece in the middle also allows a better fit over the rear section, because the vacuform piece can be spread wider as necessary. So I dipped all the canopy pieces in Future, let them dry for a couple of days, and masked and painted. While I was waiting for the canopies to dry, I mounted the wingtips, and added some photoetch from the spares box to "busy" up the wing fold. I sprayed everything with Alclad Klear Kote Flat, glued on the canopy, and then added the aerial mast and antenna wire last, which I made from nylon thread. The last touch was some paint chipping done with a PrismaColor silver pencil, and some pastels around the exhaust on the bottom. So there it is, another one for the ages (or at least for my display shelf!). Here is one shot of the finished model, but lots of pictures in the Ready for Inspection folder here. Cheers, Bill 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homerlovesbeer Posted March 19, 2015 Share Posted March 19, 2015 Hi Bill, Fantastic job on this Zero it really is. I've just started mine and am confused as you were with what colours to use! I struggled to work out what Mr Hobby acrylic to use in the cockpit so I went and bought Tamiya XF-71 as I've come across in my reading. I really wanted to use Mr Hobby but in the end I couldn't work it out. I've assembled the cockpit and will be applying paint soon. I hope you don't mind if I ask questions as I progress? It will be my first model built in 20 years so I have no idea how it will turn out Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Navy Bird Posted March 19, 2015 Author Share Posted March 19, 2015 On 3/19/2015 at 06:28, Homerlovesbeer said: Hi Bill, Fantastic job on this Zero it really is. I've just started mine and am confused as you were with what colours to use! I struggled to work out what Mr Hobby acrylic to use in the cockpit so I went and bought Tamiya XF-71 as I've come across in my reading. I really wanted to use Mr Hobby but in the end I couldn't work it out. I've assembled the cockpit and will be applying paint soon. I hope you don't mind if I ask questions as I progress? It will be my first model built in 20 years so I have no idea how it will turn out Cheers You can ask as many questions as you like! I'd be honoured to help you out with your first model in 20 years. Have you started a WIP thread that you can point me to? Cheers, Bill 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homerlovesbeer Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Thanks Bill, I'll post a WIP thread tomorrow for you to cast an expert eye over. I may have already borked the cockpit colour up using Tamiya XF-71 which is supposed to be right (I think) but looks much more pale than yours. Hmmmm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Navy Bird Posted March 22, 2015 Author Share Posted March 22, 2015 On 3/22/2015 at 07:56, Homerlovesbeer said: Thanks Bill, I'll post a WIP thread tomorrow for you to cast an expert eye over. I may have already borked the cockpit colour up using Tamiya XF-71 which is supposed to be right (I think) but looks much more pale than yours. Hmmmm IIRC, the cockpit colour depends on who manufactured the Zero, Mitsubishi or Nakajima. I used a lot of artistic license on this build, combining characteristics of both Mitsubishi and Nakajima built planes - my mind imagined that a well-worn training aircraft near the end of the war might have been rebuilt a few times with parts from who knows where. Pure speculation on my part! Personally, I think my choice of Gunze H303 for the cockpit is too dark...so I don't think you've borked your cockpit. The reason for the orange-yellow underside on my model is due to the fact that the unit markings in the Airfix kit belonged to a training unit, not a combat unit, and wouldn't normally have had a grey underside. There is a photo of this exact aircraft on Nick Millman's excellent Aviation of Japan blog, and you can clearly see a white surround to the hinomaru on the bottom of the wing - which was not done on planes with a grey bottom. Even if it was done for some reason, I don't think the contrast between the white ring and a grey underside would be as strong as it is in that photo. So goes my thinking anyway! I highly recommend Nick's blog - there is a LOT of great research data there, in addition to the other Japanese aircraft blogs that he links to in the sidebar. I spent hours combing through that stuff while I was building this kit. Cheers, Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homerlovesbeer Posted March 23, 2015 Share Posted March 23, 2015 (edited) You can ask as many questions as you like! I'd be honoured to help you out with your first model in 20 years. Have you started a WIP thread that you can point me to? Cheers, Bill G'Day again Bill, My WIP thread is here http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234978903-first-build-in-20-years-airfix-mitsubishi-a6m2b-zero-172/ Cheers my friend! Edited March 23, 2015 by Homerlovesbeer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Antoine Posted March 23, 2015 Share Posted March 23, 2015 Beautiful Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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