John Masters Posted August 23, 2017 Share Posted August 23, 2017 Here is my latest venture...the Heller kit of the Curtiss Helldiver, SBC-4, in French livery. I had to cobble a few things together to make it work, but I was happy with it in the end. Most importantly, I used this kit as a jumping-off point for my very first airbrushing attempt! I don't think I did too poorly, but I do need a lot more practice before I tackle any of my more intricate and/or expensive kits, like an Eduard Avia B.534 or a Special Hobby Boomerang...I am still fighting with paints (Tamiya is my first choice here) and I am convinced that Vallejo Model Colours do not spray well. In any case...Paints on this were Tamiya Royal Light Grey, Light Blue and RAF Dark Green 2, some Dark Grey Vallejo, and oil paint pin wash following the satin varnish, and a few choice rusty spots with a light rust wash...Decals are from the spares bag and, yes, they are a trifle too large for this. I could not find small French roundels and the kit sheet was so yellow with age...Tailplane is hand-painted. The kit was straightforward--watch that spindly landing gear! I had to fix it twice while rigging. Rigging is Ethicon stainless steel for the interplane double lines, sprue for the cabanes and EZ-Line for the radio antennae. Is that it...? One note...my airbrush came with three needles... .3mm, .5mm and .8mm I assumed that the .3mm was in the gun when I sprayed. No. It was the .5mm. So I have now changed it out and I predict better brushing for this small scale in the future. Thanks! 26 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pinback Posted August 23, 2017 Share Posted August 23, 2017 Nice one John - Like the understated weathering 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevehnz Posted August 23, 2017 Share Posted August 23, 2017 Nice indeed John, I've just spent a happy hour web surfing as a result of this, I think I've found another NEED. Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevej60 Posted August 23, 2017 Share Posted August 23, 2017 Look's beautiful John,one of my favourite kit's from a few year's ago now. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Masters Posted August 23, 2017 Author Share Posted August 23, 2017 Thanks fellows. The real work for me now will be that least become more proficient with the airbrush. It really brings out more realism. Better than rattle cans too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JWM Posted August 23, 2017 Share Posted August 23, 2017 Very interesting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted August 23, 2017 Share Posted August 23, 2017 (edited) Great build good to learn something new today. Did they use these in WW2 ? Hmm curious i've only sprayed Vallejo and have had no problems so far. The key for me is water and Iwata's medea air brush cleaner. The cleaner has a somewhat soapy feel to it so it must also act like a flow enhancer. Im spraying through an Iwata airbrush and so far so good. Im about to try Ammo by mig paints next as i bought there early Luftwaffe set for my 110 build. Eventually i will also use Tamiya as well. First i need to build up my supplies so i havent tried them yet. Edited August 23, 2017 by Corsairfoxfouruncle 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Masters Posted August 23, 2017 Author Share Posted August 23, 2017 I am not giving up on the Vallejo MC. I think the key is to thin them more than, say, the Tamiya. 1:3 ratio with the airbrush cleaner. Also, drop the pressure down to about 14psi. Since I have replaced the needle with a .3mm, I think these three changes will improve the flow considerably. Note that I have not come up with these ideas on my own...it is all from you fellows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JWM Posted August 24, 2017 Share Posted August 24, 2017 (edited) 9 hours ago, Corsairfoxfouruncle said: Did they use these in WW2 ? A good question. French machines were not delivered to the France mainland and they were in storage for some time in Martinique (a French territory in Caribbean) then scrapped . In 1942 one US Marines flight (VFM 151) was equipped with this kind of airplane in Samoa island. Some five ex-French were delivered to UK but never use operational. A full story is in Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curtiss_SBC_Helldiver Cheers J-W Edited August 24, 2017 by JWM 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Masters Posted August 24, 2017 Author Share Posted August 24, 2017 Nice picture of the French SBC-4 in the wiki link too... Thanks for the followup JWM! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jean Posted August 24, 2017 Share Posted August 24, 2017 Good looking bird, really. I prefer these in yellow wings 'camo', but French is a good second one. As JWM says, they were offloaded from the ship on their way to France, and for the most part rotted on the Martinique Island before being scrapped. So the nice looking weathering, especially on the under fuselage is pretty much a 'What if'. But who cares. Very nice! JR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Masters Posted August 24, 2017 Author Share Posted August 24, 2017 I am not sure I understand...a What if regarding what? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jean Posted August 24, 2017 Share Posted August 24, 2017 Hi John, I mean a 'What If' as far as the planes having had time to get weathered in the course of an operational life... Cheers JR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Masters Posted August 25, 2017 Author Share Posted August 25, 2017 Aha! I see...thanks for the explanation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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