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lesthegringo

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Everything posted by lesthegringo

  1. I've been making more detailed replacement parts on my resin 3D printer for my Tamiya 1/12th Ferrari 312T4, things like the vented brake discs, pedal assemblies, radiators. Not difficult and they look so much better than the kit parts as they have no seams and you can use photos to make them more accurate. I imagine this kit will generate more of these, and if I can do them, I can imagine the aftermarket will be quick to get them out there. Reading the blurb on the facebook page, the fact that they will include Carbon Fibre decals will be a good saving though, and while not to everyone's tastes (certainly not mine) so will the PE radiator faces
  2. Back then I think that the sponsorship for most races had it - while I understand that there were some exceptions, we all know what the cars really had most of the time. Trust me, I have no desire to smoke and having a correctly decalled car for the period won't make me want to start. Look at german aircraft from the WW2 era, while some avoid completely, check out Duxford for the aircraft there - the implications are far worse. Most kits have the ability to correctly show what the aircraft looked like. It will be what it will be I suppose - but if they are not supplied OEM, someone will sell them on the aftermarket. I don't want to kick up a storm, but I hope they treat us like adults who have a choice Cheers Les
  3. Will it have just politically correct decals or the actual ones to replicate the real cars? Oh, and while we are at it, ***cough cough Lotus 79..? please...? cough cough....**** Les
  4. I was going to stop buying new kits as moving with them is fraught, but this one is really testing my resolve..... if it was a Granby boxing I think I would have already capitulated Les
  5. I think I have the settings at 80% - I'll check. Maybe 30 seconds is a bit long for the base layers too, I might try a test halving that Cheers Les
  6. Hi all, I am using the water washable Eelegoo grey resin on my Mono X, and despite playing around with the settings quite a bit, I am geting reasonable prints, but with quite a large over print for the first mm or so, then after that the outer edges are left with half cured resin as a sort of gellid residue. As a result I am having to mechanically scrape off the gelly stuff, which can be pretty tenacious during the clean up phase, followed by tedious manual removal of the over printed layers. It is set to 0.075 layer height, with only 3 bottom layers, with base layer height is 30 secs with 1.7 for the subsequent layers. Can anyone advise on this? I produce mainly mechanical parts printing direct to the buildplate so that I guarantee a flatt(ish) back face so reducing the over print would be very helpful, even if I have to scrape off the goo. while I do get overprint (do they call it 'elephant foot'?) on other resins it is not as pronounced and I certainly don't get the half cured goo. The thing is, a) it is vastly less stinky, b) cleanup with water is so much less unpleasant and c) you can't buy 3D printer resins here so I am stuck with what I have Cheers Les
  7. Thanks Ray; a bit of experimentation is in order then. One thing about the oils is that as I almost exclusively use Mr Color Lacquers now, I can always remove it back to the paint if I screw up, although I will never say that I like to do it. One thing I jhave been meaning to do is to get some of the artists odourless thinners, I've been told it is less aggressive that the turpentine I get locally Cheers Les
  8. All, after following the advice given on this forum for producing a faded look (which I am happy is working but maybe I have not done quite enough yet) I am still letf with a model that is a bit too clean. Faded a little, but clean. Now exhausts and oil / hydraulic fluid stains I can do with oil paints, however there is a a sort of slightly drimy look to panels that I see on many photos that I want to reproduce. We are not talking about the mottling, blotchy effect that can be reproduced by preshading using stencils or freehand airbrush with a darker or lighter paint, I'm talking about the panel to panel grubby look. If anyone can suggest ways to do this I would love to see them, weathering techniques pop up plenty online but not this Cheers Les
  9. Thanks - will give it a go! Cheers Les
  10. Hi all, I have just 'finished' a four colour camo on a MiG-25, but want to knock it back a bit as it is too bright. While I don't want to go for a boneyard bleached out look, it could do with some fading if nothing else to make it appear less toy like. It will be weathered with stains ets further down the line, but I would like your advice of how to give it a subtle faded look without overdoing it. Also, I believe that the fading would also apply to the markings etc, but would like some confirmation on this as I know some forces to refresh them Cheers Les
  11. Thanks Dennis - I have found that as long as you are not being stupid about it and try and ship huge quantities of stuff, a couple of little jars of paint and a small bottle of thinners is tolerated, but of course it has to be sealed and in the check in baggage not the cabin. Generally I buy a kit, and put a couple of items in the box with it. Having said that, large quantities of paint or thinners would definitely be frowned upon When I lived in the UAE I used to buy from Lucky Model on line and that worked well, but unfortunately here in Qatar it doesn't seem to work so well. It takes a long time (up to three months) and is also expensive; you can double the cost of your purchase. Added to that Lucky Model seem to have more stuff on back order than they have in stock (at least for what I want) so even if I tried them I would be disappointed. As I don't need much I imagine it will not be an isseu for the small amount I need, assuming I find it of course Les
  12. Ah yes, Airfix EE Lightning for the 'just put it in there somewhere' approach to the undercariage parts. And you reminded me - the headrests on the MiG-25 are flat on the rear, non-visible side and concave on the visible side that the pitots head goes into. So guess where they put the sprue gate...? And of course the curvature is such that the sprue nippers cannot get in. As for thick sprue gates, the Kinetic F-16 has sprue gates thicker than the parts that they attach, and of course where they do most damage to the part when removing Or aftermarket resin / PE / whatever items designed specifically for a certain kit that do not actually fit that particular kit
  13. All, there are no model shops here in Qatar, but I have a forthcoming business trip to Berlin. Looking on line there are some shops there but I will only have chance to visit one due to time contraints. I want some supplies, preferably lacquer paints and thinners, if possible Gunze but Tamiya is fine too. I have enough models to keep me occupied for a good while, however you know what we are all like when it comes to impulse purchases, so if it is well stocked all the better. Nonetheless it is supplies that I most need so would appreciate any guidance as to which shop would have what I need Cheers Les
  14. Some years ago I posted a chat topic about how some kit manufacturers can come up with some startlingly stupid or ill conceived kit features - often on a model where the rest of the kit is a paragon of good fit and design. If I recall correctly the offenders I called out last time were the 1/48th Eduard F6-F drop tank, Academy F4 undercarriage and nose gear bay, and the Kittyhawk Su-22 nose cone. Well I have another couple of additions to that list. I am currently building the ICM / Revell MiG-25, which in many ways is a stellar kit. However how is it that they have managed to come up with what has got to be the most absurd undercarriage leg to wheel attachment imaginable. Instead of a straight, round peg it is a little conical spike. That wouldn't be so bad if the mating surface in the wheel was a conical hole, but no, it is a circular opening that is not conical. As a result there is no positivity to the join, plus it is weak. Considering the sheer size of the beast, it's worse than useless. But just to make sure that the maximum pain is givn by this technique, they also used it on the tailplane fixings....grrrrrr And I also have to point out the instrument panel, which is beautifully depicted by a clear styrene rear with proruding instrument bezel glass that goes through a perforated IP front panel. You then put the IP decal over the front of all this, effectively obscuring the IP 'glass', rendering that whole assembly method useless. Really? Les
  15. All, I have been experimenting with using 3D printing resin as a filler on my models recently. For those who don't know, resin 3D printing uses an LCD screen and Ultra Violet (UV) cure resin to make successive layers on a print. The resin I have been using is Elegoo's ABS like resin, the grey one. when fully cured it is a hard, tough material, but it takes about a day to get t that hardness. However it can be spot cured using a UV LED torch, much the same as the commercially available UV cure clear adhesives. What makes it good for flling is that the spot cure will in seconds cure it to a hard gel like consistency, without discernable shrinkage, and the majority of the excess can be easily removed with a scalpel blade or scraper while still reasonably soft. while I would not recommend it for large areas, for deepish gaps it is great because it flows in, then you can wipe the surface with tissue to remove excess, cure and repeat as necessary. Once fully cured it can be sanded relatively easily, especially compared to Cyano. It seems to be able to take scribing, and paints just fine. The biggest advantage with it seems to be that you can get it where you want, remove the excess (it is soluble in alcohol) and only cure it once you are happy where it is, so you save on sanding and clean up. If you get it wrong just use alcohol to completely remove it. It doesn't seem to fog canopies, and sticks well to all the plastic I used in my trials. Also, at 16 quid for a half litre, you will never run out It is not without disadvantages of course, and high on that list is that it is an irritant, so you have to take care using it and wear surgical gloves. It also can only be used where you can get the light to it, so really deep gaps are not recommened for this technique. I don't think it will replace all my other filling techniques, but as a complementary product it is hard not to recommend. Anyway, I thought I would share my experience with you all Les
  16. Guys, I have Gunze Mr Color range, which one of their range is similar to the one the Iraqi MiG25's used? Cheers Les
  17. Certainy no offence taken, as I stated I respect anyone who wishes to get as much accuracy as possible. Ultimately it comes down to why we do any hobby, you do it for self gratification, or maybe as something to take your mind off something else, or as a challenge to yourself...... the list of reasons are endless. That doesn't mean they are wrong, just that they are different reasons. I realised that explaining why you like something is pointless, if you like it you like it. One comment that did stick out from another post was that as in my case, relaxing means you are less likely to shelve a kit. My change in approach means that I actually finish models. Cheers Les
  18. It is also soluble in alcohol from my experience Les
  19. I must say that until this 'posting' (I'm not military but that's what they are referred to internally) I have been lucky to either have a good lot of well stocked model shops, or easy access via online stores, and in some cases both. Certainly Lucky Model is one I used a lot last time I was in this area so could get anything as long as it was in stock, ditto BNA Model World in Aus, but unfortunately state laws are more stringent here. I can probably get the models no hassle but not the paints etc I have also used Hannants a lot and there are quite a few other online stores in the UK (Sovereign Hobbies for example) who carry good stock and got them sent to my family's home so I could pick them up and bring them with me when visiting. Sadly, I can't even do that now. I suppose I also have to be grateful that my move here was post the majority of the Covid thing, that did impact things too. The internet certainly has helped most times to smooth it. Nonetheless, I really miss the ability to browse the shelves, to have something catch my attention, and then get a big bag of all the extras plus another box to add to the pile of shame Les
  20. I have actually changed my methodology for attaching transparent parts since I started this model. I got it back in 2017 if I recall correctly, and started it shortly after and so it inevitably got overtaken by the fad builds that came after. However by the time I had cooled on it temporarily I had got to the point of attaching the windscreen, using the Tamiya Extra Thin wicking method. As I recall the shape was not exactly right, requiring some sustained pressure to spread the part slightly during drying of the extra thin, but as a result the bond was quite a bit better than most builds, and was virtually invisible. However these days I am using UV cure clear resin ( I believe it is intended for nails?) which means I can place the part after applying the resin, and after checking that there is no excess and how well it is seated a short blast with a UV LED pointer cures it within seconds. Since then I am able to leave the transparencies until later in the build as there is little to no clean up. Great for landing lights and so forth too Didn't help me with the A6, however Cheers Les
  21. The top pic is similar to the Qatar A350's Cheers Les
  22. That Qatar DesertCart site scores 13 out of 100 for reliability! Suspect I will give that wide berth! Cheers Les
  23. Thanks! I'm currently on holiday out of Qatar, and can see that fine, funny thing is when I was in Qatar last week all searches for Tamiya in country turned up nothing! Curious........ As for OneStop Hobby Shop, again despite searches this did not show up; from my time in Hong Kong I remember all the fabulous range of stuff for Gundam, a lot of which was from Gunze so was looking for that as well. I suspect I may try searching via a VPN Thanks for all the input guys, I have some leads to follow Les
  24. Yeah, I know what you mean, DollarPlus and Daiso have little bits and bobs that can be repurposed to modelling ends, and Ace Hardware has a range of (admittedly pricey) stuff that also helps out. However the sticking point is the specialised stuff, particularly liquids, where your options are far more limited; take Gunze / Tamiya lacquer thinners as an example. I have not found anything that matches those in terms of the function and non-aggressive effect on models (there are probably some other brands too but none are available here). One other item I cannot get here is the resin for my 3D printer, so when that runs out that will be it until I move. With the paints I put them in the model boxes in the container for shipping here so I have a few, but as I say I know how quickly they can go and have no (current) alternative. I'll certainly check out that Warhammer group though. As your luggage is 100% x-rayed on entry I can't even bring any in from visits overseas. Ace have a bunch of primary colours in rattle cans, so I should be able to find a way of getting white, black and certain shades of grey. As a primarily aircraft military modeler I will have to find a way of getting the camo colours. I toyed with the idea of making little test patches of my current stock, then scanning them and then using the photoshop colour picker function to see what the RGB components are, then use the Ace primaries to try and mix similar colours. Not sure if that will work though and suitability on styrene is still a question, or more to the point the thinners. Cheers Les
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