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P-51D Mustang


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Ok, cracking straight into this. Out of the three kits that I've made for this group build, this is my most serious one yet!

I'm impressed by the quality of the mould and the interior detail - which gives me plenty to play around with.

To start with, I gave the pieces a wash in a detergent bath, and let them dry properly...

And then I started painting the various pieces - starting with the pilot:

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Then the instrument panel:

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And then the cockpit sides:

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Basically, what I've done is mixed up a zinc chromate colour from the black and yellow (probably about a 25/75 mix I'd guess), and used that as the base colour. Other colours were then added on top for extra detail.

For the pilot, I have no idea how I made his skin that colour. All I know is that it was brown and I added a touch of blue to the mix (unshaken) and it came out like that. A random, if not totally unexpected outcome. I will probably never do that again, ever... Especially as it looks like it should have had red involved somehow??? Can anyone explain this one to me please???

Anyway, that's where we are up until now.

Edited by Chris Jephcott
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Ok...

And this is where today has brought me.

Following on from Mike's tip of adding small amounts of other colours to the silver to make it more effective, I have been experimenting with adding various shades. Yellow and black were the two which I used a lot of, and sometimes both, but I have to say that the silver paint coat was done in one attempt and covered without a streaky problem at all.

Having covered the aircraft in silver, I then added varying amounts of black to the silver in order to highlight various wing panels. Then it was time to add more detail, such as the cowling markings, the rudder etc...

So this is where we are - tomorrow, I will be working on the gear and other remaining bits and tidying up the work that I have done here!

Cheers for now!

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Edited by Chris Jephcott
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Just a quickie for today - painting and assembly complete. Next stop... decals!

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I'm also thinking that when I have completed this for the group build, and submitted the photos to the gallery, I might put a couple of coats of klear on her. She's been an absolute joy to make!

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Nice "stress" effects on the aluminum skin, must have pulled some high G dives/turns... :analintruder:

Cheers,

ggc

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And she's finished!

My third and final build for this. I loved this kit - with the right paints, I could imagine making a much better attempt at her.

The starter kits are really let down by the quality of the paints supplied. Otherwise, they are a fantastic way to introduce people to the hobby. If only Hornby could reformulate those acrylic paints, then they would be onto an absolute winner with them. With a bit of elbow grease and hard work though, you can turn what might be a crap kit into something that looks pretty nice.

Thanks to Mike for coming up with the best way to get the paints to stick. Also, a huge thanks to the creators of this group build. It's been really good fun and a fantastic idea. It's really given me a KUTA to carry on again!

Now I've finished my three builds... where's the beer? Oh I forgot, I'd better crack on with the Victor again!

Cheers,

Chris

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Edited by Chris Jephcott
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Many thanks guys! Appreciate the comments a lot :)

I normally only airbrush with acrylics - when it comes to detailing, I tend to use Hummel enamels. So this entire thing was a bit of a lesson and a learning curve for me - I tried to brush on some Tamiya acrylics earlier on today and found them to be equally challenging unless they are significantly thinned as they dry so quickly.

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