Lightningboy2000

Thanks for that, much appreciated!

Cheers mate, I was pleased with the paint as I'd never used it before! I spent a whole afternoon applying them awful decals & it helps to be certified bonkers already!

Cheers mate! Imagine!!!! Many thanks!! Martin

Just completed a remarkably quick build - for me! This is the old Heller 1/72 Mirage III E/R/5BA kit. Belgian Air force Mirage 5BA BA-33 No.1 Sqn 1987 No.1 Sqn 70th Anniversary scheme. I used the Pavla cockpit set, which fit perfectly but the canopy despite being clearer than the kit canopy wasn't used as I didn't regard it as a perfect fit. Decals are from the Modeldecal sheet 92 which is now 33 years old. The decals were a nightmare as all the adhesive backing to the decals has gone off, so when you soften them in water, I had to clean white scum off each decal as it would have shown on the model. I guess this is what happens to old decals? Anyone else had similar experiences with the old Modeldecal sheets? I've now got quite a colection with some more subjects to use up & hope I don't get the same experience again! I rescibed most of the prominent fuselage & wing panel lines & added a piece of brass rod for the nose pitot tube. Airbrushed Tamiya X1 gloss black which went on really nicely. Many thanks for looking!

I've just received my first masks to paint a digital Ukraine Air Force Fencer. I must be completely bonkers to want to airbrush all those layers of digital grey, but I wanted to paint it as I just want to get the colors right as opposed to using a decal set that I have found looks completely wrong! What is the process most people employ when using these masks? I was initially flummoxed when looking at them. Do I mask for the lightest color, wait until it's dry then apply the adhesive over the paint for the next color? Any help would be much appreciated! Martin

I've just received my first masks to paint a digital Ukraine Air Force Fencer. I must be completely bonkers to want to airbrush all those layers of digital grey, but I wanted to paint it as I just want to get the colors right as opposed to using a decal set that I have found looks completely wrong! What is the process most people employ when using these masks? I was initially flummoxed when looking at them. Do I mask for the lightest color, wait until it's dry then apply the adhesive over the paint for the next color? Any help would be much appreciated! Martin

Thank you very much SAT69. I'll have to have a look through my photo references for those tanks then. I suppose used for trips from the UK to Wheelus for example. These slim - finned tanks that I've got on this F version, weren't there longer ones of them as well? Cheers billn53, very much appreciated!

Fabulous Mud Hen! I do like your heat staining effects using pencils! Really nice! Martin

Cheers mate, what memories eh?!!! I think it's probably the best looking of the Century jets! Martin

Many thanks Reini, most of the decals were good as you say, but the yellow nose decal was the wrong shape to fit the nose so I masked & sprayed that. All of the main yellow markings should have had a thin black border but I had to draw the line there, pardon the pun!

Thanks Mike! Those 450gallon tanks, are they the longer type that are occasionally seen? I've only had a quick look through the Trumpeter box, so I haven't properly looked at the shape inaccuracies. I do know from looking at a thread on here comparing the two, that Esci fuselage is a different length to the Trumpeter kit which leads to the Trumpeter canopy which is too long as well. I think someone tried an aftermarket vacform for the Trumpeter kit, find that it was to short for the kit. It may be a matter of biting the bullet & just building as it is without doing anything to alter it. I have got a Hasegawa boxing which isn't the Esci kit & I could graft the nose on from that. Cheers Martin

Recently completed this Italeri 1/72 kit & got it done just in time for our local club competition. I've always been very fond of the USAFE jet aircraft from the mid 50's to the late 60's with all the colours & especially in relation to all their local bases in the UK. The plan is to slowly add to the collection of aircraft already built that reflects aircraft based at Wethersfield, Shepherds grove, Lakenheath & the Twin Bases, maybe Bruntingthorpe & Sculthorpe as well. Sometimes wish I had been born a few years earlier! This is the Italeri F-100F which overall is a nice kit, but the cockpit details are minimal & if you look close enough don't resemble the real thing. So I added a new centre section & console & added some plasticard to support the reasonable decals present in the kit. I could have ordered a new resin cockpit, but tried to keep most of this build free of aftermarket gubbins. Also in reference to some online images of the ejection seats I added new straps & painted them accordingly. For ejection seat straps I always slice up strips from the Swann & Morton blade packets as it can be twisted & keeps its shape. Painted with Vallejo Metal Color & some Mig acrylics. F-100F 56-3893 79th TFS 20th FW Woodbridge Suffolk 1958 There will be another "F" coming in the shape of the Trumpeter kit which has decals for 56-3730 which was based at Wethersfield. Many thanks for looking! Martin

Excellent work, made on that kit! Always wondered what these kits were like. A bit of a gap in the market for a new mould & I should add this to the collection. Martin

Very impressive work made on that Skyraider. So an epic build can be had with 1/72. Martin

Now that's the way to do it with alclad. Martin