javlin Posted December 7, 2017 Share Posted December 7, 2017 You do some fine work/scratch building there Suibb I take it you will be throwing this into a contest at sometime?My patience for that has eased at this stage of life with a vast stash to build??Will continue to watch for the final product Kevin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bedders Posted December 7, 2017 Share Posted December 7, 2017 Cockpit looks great Squibby, but I'm particularly captivated by those clamshell doors. Love 'em! Justin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squibby Posted December 7, 2017 Author Share Posted December 7, 2017 Cheers all, @Biggles87 I'm using some builds of the Tamiya 1/32 'stang for reference, It seems like 80% of the stuff I'm adding is already present in that kit, and what is there is far more accurate. Miles ahead of the 48th scale offering and a much better starting point. If I had done a bit more research I would have picked up the Meng or Airfix kit instead of the aging Tamiya one. @javlin I'm just building this for myself, I haven't yet even stepped foot in a model show or contest, I'm sure they happen in Wellington, I'm just never aware of them. In any case this isn't a fancy diorama and for all extents and purposes looks like 'just another P51-D' build from outside, I'm not sure what chance I'd have. I normally build in 1/72 scale. When I step up to 1/48 scale it's usually for the most iconic aircraft so I try to do them justice. Any after working in thumbnail scale, 1/48 is actually quite big My last effort in this scale was the new Airfix Spitfire Mk1a which had a similarly detailed cockpit. The Airfix kit was very accurate and detailed out of the box which helped immensely. Unfortunately all the photos in the build and RFI threads are dead thanks to the scummy move Photobucket pulled @Bedders Cheers, I like the doors too I think the shiny skin strip turned out really well on them. Baffled as to what it's purpose is though... As a general question to anyone, does anyone have any info on what colour the seat cushions were painted? I've seen yellow with a USAAF stencil on them, and some in just plain brown leather. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totally Mad Olivier Posted December 7, 2017 Share Posted December 7, 2017 1 hour ago, Squibby said: As a general question to anyone, does anyone have any info on what colour the seat cushions were painted? I've seen yellow with a USAAF stencil on them, and some in just plain brown leather. Without being totally sure, mine will be yellow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bedders Posted December 7, 2017 Share Posted December 7, 2017 2 hours ago, Squibby said: I think the shiny skin strip turned out really well on them. Baffled as to what it's purpose is though... I may be wrong but I have the feeling that it provides an additional protection/rubbing strip for the wheel which, should there be any misalignment or poor sequencing of opening/closing, would strike the door along that line. That's my hunch anyway. Justin 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimea River Posted December 8, 2017 Share Posted December 8, 2017 Looking good. I'm not sure why you wrote off the idea of using sand paper for the floor. Some very fine grit paper might look realistic to my mind. Not sure about the colour of the cushion. I understand that the yellow ones commonly seen in pics also served as life preservers in case of ditching but I've also heard of some types that were canvas. Andy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squibby Posted December 8, 2017 Author Share Posted December 8, 2017 Started painting up the cockpit floor and radios. This is just a preliminary shot after the 3 primary colours were masked off and sprayed, There is a tiny bit of touchup required but it worked quite well. I'm just waiting on the paint to dry to get in and paint the tank and radios. The rougher texture really does show up (surprisingly), though the photo grain masks it a bit. @Crimea River The issue I saw was that the sandpaper would create a bit of a noticeable step (sand paper backing is quite thick) that doesn't exist in the real thing I'd also have to cut it around the fuel gauges in the floor. Oh by the way if anyone is wondering why there is that unsightly gash on the side of the console with a lever awkwardly gummed into it. Once fitted against the sidewall it shows as a slot. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giemme Posted December 8, 2017 Share Posted December 8, 2017 I knew that with paint on this would have not been disappointing - in fact it looks great already, by the time you finish it, it will look marvellous! Ciao 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totally Mad Olivier Posted December 8, 2017 Share Posted December 8, 2017 14 hours ago, Squibby said: If I had done a bit more research I would have picked up the Meng or Airfix kit instead of the aging Tamiya one Squibby, first of all, bravo for your very nice cockpit, I love it and will try to do as well! Do you think more recent kits would have been much more accurate? I think anyway, if we want to get a convincing build, we have to do some scratchbuild using the doc available. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squibby Posted December 8, 2017 Author Share Posted December 8, 2017 @Olivier de St Raph Oh most definiitely, the Airfix and Meng kits get the wheel well right and looking at sprue shots they have all the right cockpit bits represented. The Airfix one is a little blobby but still fairly complete. But of course scratch building is equal parts fun and frustrating but you can't beat the feeling of pulling it off. Really gives the old modelling mojo a boost Speaking of boosts, I've slaved away on the radio bay and finished painting up, and I'm very happy with how it's turned out I still need to gloss it and apply some washes to bring out the shadows (and hide some rough paint lines ). I find I really enjoy the painting part of the build, especially detail painting. I went over the tank with some buff coloured oil paint, spattering it with a slightly wetted brush then dry brushing it around to get that rough rubberized canvas look. 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totally Mad Olivier Posted December 8, 2017 Share Posted December 8, 2017 2 minutes ago, Squibby said: I'm very happy with how it's turned out You can, Squibby, you can, it is an excellent job! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totally Mad Olivier Posted December 8, 2017 Share Posted December 8, 2017 7 minutes ago, Squibby said: the Airfix and Meng kits get the wheel well right and looking at sprue shots they have all the right cockpit bits represented. The Airfix one is a little blobby but still fairly complete. I have to admit I didn't imagine that Airfix would provide a much better version (even on a recent kit) than Tamiya. The last time I bought an Airfix kit, it was probably the 1/12 Bengale lancer, I was about 16 (I am now 54...), and wrongly, I thought it remained a good but not excellent kit's brand... Good to know, even if, for me too, it is a bit too late... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antonio argudo Posted December 8, 2017 Share Posted December 8, 2017 Hi Squibby, really nice cockpit you have here, this is a very nice Mustang build!!! In this picture you can see the radio rack and beam were painted in black as this NNA factory picture shows, hope it helps! you and Olivier are nailing your Mustangs ! cheers 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biggles87 Posted December 8, 2017 Share Posted December 8, 2017 I knew we wouldn't be disappointed. I think you could do the same sort of thing on the non slip area as you did on the tank. I stippled thick tyre black onto my last one before creating some wear. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antonio argudo Posted December 8, 2017 Share Posted December 8, 2017 also interesting how balsa wood blocks were used to secure the fuselage tank 4 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny1000 Posted December 8, 2017 Share Posted December 8, 2017 Hi Squibby I love this so much. Fiddly, tweaky, builds are right up my tree, and I will be following along. Thanks, especially, for walking through the thinking and problem solving aspects. So many build logs are more selective reveals that kind of gloss over most of the actual procedure involved. That's fine for a straightforward assembly log ('puttied and sanded the fuselage join' g 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimea River Posted December 8, 2017 Share Posted December 8, 2017 With Jonny and thanks for the clarification on the use of sandpaper for the non-skid floor. It occurred to me after I posted that it was probably the thickness rather the texture that was the concern. Paint looks great so far! Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totally Mad Olivier Posted December 8, 2017 Share Posted December 8, 2017 Thank you Antonio for these new very interesting docs, that I will add in my library and to my thread (at least for the last one). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squibby Posted December 8, 2017 Author Share Posted December 8, 2017 Cheers all, @antonio argudo thanks for the photos and the info about the cross bar colour, I've seen some photos (Olivier posted one on page 2) which showed it painted green. I might just leave it in IG as it adds a bit of interest and contrast to what would otherwise be a blob of black on black parts. Plus it would be quite fiddly to paint now. It's funny thought that they only painted that crossbar black, all the sidewall behind and above it until the rear shelf bit is still in interior green I have seen on almost all photos the interior surfaces of the sliding canopy painted black including a curved cross bar inside. They also paint the top part of the seat headrest black. I'm intending to do this on my build. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totally Mad Olivier Posted December 9, 2017 Share Posted December 9, 2017 On 07/12/2017 at 23:06, Olivier de St Raph said: Without being totally sure, mine will be yellow. Cheers Squibby, I have changed my mind, see my thread... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squibby Posted December 10, 2017 Author Share Posted December 10, 2017 (edited) More painting progress, Finished off the floor console and dirtied up the non-slip paint. This was done by dabbing and blending / streaking oil paints (various greys and dirty brown colours). The little fasteners were picked out with a sharpened toothpick. Before I painted the floor console I re-did the set of levers. The previous depiction was appropriate for an early plane with no carb heat lever, I added the second lever as I'm modelling a fairly late war aircraft. Though this is probably another anachronistic detail to add to the pile I've got some cockpit placard decals that I'll add here to supplement my rough attempts to pick our stencils with white blobs Oh and apologies for the grainy photo my phone camera struggles when zoomed in. For anyone who is wondering how I'm taking these photos, I've just turned my modelling lamp up to the ceiling so there is only a dim reflected light on the part. The phone camera tends to do reasonably well even with these conditions though at times it can get a bit grainy. Edited December 10, 2017 by Squibby 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giemme Posted December 10, 2017 Share Posted December 10, 2017 The floor weathering looks very appropriate As regards taking pictures with a phone camera, I like your idea of turning your lamp towards the roof; if I may add one thing (and not wanting to teach you how to suck eggs), I find that not zooming in avoids the grainy effect - at least with my phone; which is also pretty good at taking macro pics, so I tend to let it do the job for me Ciao Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny1000 Posted December 10, 2017 Share Posted December 10, 2017 Looking great. Not that I’m taking the best pics, but better to crop later than zoom, especially for web resolutions. If you do need to get in closer with your phone camera, a macro attachment like this is useful: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LYH6FR1 Just note that it reduces your depth of field to almost nothing. -J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squibby Posted December 10, 2017 Author Share Posted December 10, 2017 Cheers guys, I don't actually use the digital zoom on the camera, but with low light conditions my physical zoom (i.e. standing closer) seems to result in a worse quality shot I think it may be the autofocus, when it locks onto something very close it's very susceptible to any movement. I've seen those contraptions before @Johnny1000 . Though I think I can make do without one for now. What I really need is some way to lock white balance. I find sometimes it goes haywire and turns the whole photo a nice tint of orange. When I take my proper RFI shots I use a similar setup, no fancy light boxes for me. Shine the modelling lamp at the ceiling and take a very slow exposure shot (5+ seconds) at very high F stop (F16 or more, for a wide depth of field range) using my DSLR and a tripod of course to keep it nice and steady. I use a 50mm fixed focus lens which gives a nice clear detailed photo even with the quality lost due to diffraction from the high f-stop setting . Oh I also set a 2 sec delay timer when operating the shutter otherwise even the little shake from pressing the button can cause a blurry photo. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giemme Posted December 10, 2017 Share Posted December 10, 2017 I use a similar procedure for RFI pics My phone camera has a "pro" mode that allows me to set the white balance; 'cloudy' usually works good for me when taking in-progress photos at the workbench Regardless, what your pics show is a heck of a great job! Ciao Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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