Louise

Just a note.... the Hataki blue line are optimized for brush, the red line for airbrush. That may well explain the issues you had spraying them without their proprietary thinner; even for brushing they want you to thin the blue line 10 ~ 20% with thinner and do not make any note to trying to airbrush them. The red line also requires thinner to spray...... now that was new to me and explains why I've had problems. https://www.hataka-hobby.com/en_US/n/list

The UTI.... anyone else here actually built one? Mine arrived earlier this year, I was so happy yet this kit is a real big disappointment regarding the canopy. I think it was made for a different kit, and no amount of faffing around provided anything close to an acceptable fit. In frustration I just dumped the thing in the trash. I may pick another one up again once I've read/seen a built up one, but for now, nah.

FW190-C V13 from the Planet Models resin kit. WIP thread

Completed......

This past weeks work brings the photos up to date. Primed with a rattle can, polished then panel lines pre-shaded with dark rust color. RLM02 from Mr Color thinned 50:50. The starboard wing surface needed some work so it eventually received a couple more layers than the rest of the aircraft hence it's pre-shading has all but been wiped out. Not to worry as I can post shade the hue later. I then hand brushed some acrylic floor polish, left that over night then applied decals yesterday followed by another coat of hand brushed polish. Hopefully, today I can start and finish the panel line wash and some RLM02 highlighting to break up the monotonous color. I think once the high gloss has gone it will look much less toy like. Here's some 'orrible iPhone pictures, had to use the flash since I'm in a hurry.

This was started couple at the beginning of the group build but it occurred to me today that I hadn't posted anything. Must have had a draft and then not saved or something. Who knows? I don't. This is a resin kit, few parts, rather nice details with a quirky look about it. One good thing is the one part wing.

I'm at the stage of laying a gloss coat to enable decaling, so thankfully I can ignore the setting solution variable at the moment. You have of course highlighted an important step which is to allow plenty of time for the acrylic surface to cure properly; I've certainly found that out the hard way.

Thanks for your insight guys. So I have 2 Fw190's on the bench for the other STGB this month..... when it's time to varnish, I'm going to follow Pat's outline (except I don't have Future anymore) but whatever the medium is I'll use a brush.

Troy, I have tried just brushing most of the products as well. Sometimes it works for me. But I once, long ago swore at The Gods and They have never forgiven me. Even looking at the photo above makes me sigh. I wonder if, after having sprayed paint I'm leaving skin grease or something because I get areas where the gloss just will not stay. Your plane is glossed all over. Honestly, I don't manage to get that coverage I will see distinct areas where its matte, no matter how many times I brush or spray the gloss.

Misting to get a bite on the surface then applying a more concentrated coat after but before the first coats dry. I try to keep the surface wet as I go with the concentrated pass. If this was happening with a pigment paint then I'd know that the paint is drying to much before it hits the surface so I would thin it more and adjust the psi and spraying distance a tadge. But with the likes of Future and Alcad, your supposed to spray these neat. If I use Hataki lacquer, I thin it but still get a problem. With Mr Color GSX100 I read it should be well thinned, ..... I still haven't had repeatability with that! It's perplexing and infuriating.

KOVOZÁVODY PROSTĚJOV Supermarine Seafire Mk. Ib, MB340, RN Air Section, Port Reltz, Mombasa late 1944, flown by L/Cdr Duncan Hamilton

Finished the blue salty dog but trashed the camo one due to a recurring build issue I have had since I was born, been unable to spray gloss varnish for doo-doo. I'd reckon 70% of my builds go into the bin at that stage. I can't cope with that utterly rough pebbly surface that will not self level and coat 100% of the surface with a glossy surface. Mine feels like a dead dogs butt. It doesn't matter what medium I use (and I've tried them all) when it comes to spraying gloss varnish I can't obtain anything like a smooth surface Even the blue here if seen in the flesh would show that the varnish state was terrible. Why is it that I can spray pigmented paint but not gloss varnish? I can lay down lacquer paint as smooth as silk and next day totally ruin it with that pre-decal gloss coat. Sigh........ OK, this photo was taken after I flipped out, so the surface was hand painted in varnish after a failed attempt to lay down a couple of coats ALCLAD II Gloss Klear Kote. It states 20~25psi and 1 or 2 medium coats. Well I used a 0.5 needle, 20psi from 3" and all I got was a liquid that would not even lay across the area it was sprayed on. Some areas remained matte, most went all pebbly and all of it useless for decaling. No way to strip it without taking off all the paint so I trashed it as I've way too many projects to go over this again. WTF is it with gloss coats? I trashed 14 kits last year because of the gloss coat. I just can't get over the hurdle. Anyone live in the Lower Hudson Valley and want to come round and show me what the hell I'm doing wrong? The L/Cdr Hamilton plane was finished off with ALCAD II Lacquer Klear Kote Semi Matte..... so this went down without a problem, go figure! The gloss was acrylic floor polish which went down good enough but still, compared to what it should be, far from smooth with a consistent shine.

Checking the underwing panels and I have the H1 kit, so option #2 it is.

James, not yet, I need to check the wing undersurface panels which should tell me if it's an H or O wing.

This morning, I sprayed a coat of Quick Shine Multi Finish Floor Finish since I no longer have any Future Pledge floor stuff..... and there is no way I am going on eBay and paying anywhere from $40 to $100 to some rip off artists to buy a now out of production bottle...... This stuff, first time I used it was today, I first tested it on an old kit, then found that a few light mists followed by a heavier coat using 0.5 airbrush at 15psi and 3" distance, works absolutely superb. It also dries to the touch in about 2 mins. So that meant I even got to decal the blue spit this afternoon...... blimey..... I like this stuff. Now I missed the memo last year that said Future Pledge was being discontinued. I had decided to go the way with AK Gauzy products......... ... screw that. This QSMFFF 64oz bottle sells for $13. It smells like, looks like, feels like and performs just the same as the Gauzy stuff if not better. The big difference is that AK charge you $10 for 100ml (about 3.6oz).... so that means AK costs $189 for 64oz. Get real folks AK are ripping you off big time. The main decals are fine but the stencils were different, very fragile. I need to do some finishing on the starboard wing walk by the tip.... amazing what you see on a photo compared to the naked eye. The Yankee plane has its Sky undersurface, also now coated with QSMFFF and the top surface Slate gray (not yet glossed). I'm glossing it just now just to test out this new product and how well it deals with me masking the lower surface in prep for the upper.

Many years ago, many more than that actually, when models were first invented, I bought up 6 of the Kora re-boxings of Aoshima's Ta152 kits. This is the last of them. A box full of spares along with the basic kit so one gets plastic and resin. To be honest, the Kora resin bits aren't worth bothering with except for the cowling and maybe the props; and that depends on the quality of the castings which varies considerably. So I don't know exactly which version of the Ta152 H this is. Regardless, I'm going to use one of the Karaya decal options for a bird in British hands. If it's not the correct one, so be it. This will just clear one more from the stash. So far the wings and fuselage assemblies have been put together. Now to paint the tub. One aspect of the kit here is the use of the Kora vac-form canopy. I didn't willingly choose to use this but don't have the Aoshima canopy. I dislike vac-form canopies. Aside from that these kits almost fall together like a glove with minimal effort. The real job comes in the painting. The two main assemblies sorted, the guns cut off (to be replaced with metal tube. So I don't know if this is an H0 or H1

Had this in the stash for donkeys, at last an excuse to just get it done. An easy kit (for resin), nice refined details, few parts, started this yesterday. Next stage is to paint the interior before attaching the tub and the one piece wing. The tub rear platform is longer and wider than the slot in the fuselage is the only fit issue. Test fitting the wing shows just a bit of fettling and filling to be done. The canopy is vac-formed and this will inevitably screw me up as it always does. I'm no fan of vac-formed. There are two copies so fingers crossed. I missed the email last January about Pledge Floor Polish (aka Future) going out of production. Not that I liked the stuff for anything but dipping canopies, my alternative was the Gunz Gauzy products (both the orange and green labels). I have not had good results with this stuff. Air bubbles or just poor self leveling in corners occurred too often than not. So I went to order some PFP..... holy crap, a $10 bottle is now expected to cost anywhere between $50 and $100. Pity the daft sods who decide paying that is a sensible option and I hope all those daft sods who bought up stocks and are trying to sell it at that price get stuck with it. I decided to try a $10 bottle of Quick Shine Multi Surface Floor Finish or QSMSFF for short. It's a bit like the Gunz stuff but takes 50mins to properly dry. That bottle will last 14 Generations if it doesn't go bad. Test fitting the wing And the jug that costs $10 The canopy dipped .... looks nice and shiny and coated to prevent damage.

Moving on, the airframes are assembled, canopies masked, the tropical clad has its insignia blue laid while the camo version some blotching done prior to going for the sky undersurface (maybe today). Both spinners have been painted white, props black (awaiting yellow tips). Both aircraft have cannons/cannon stubs from Master Brass. I had issues obtaining a good fit with the canopies.... one is spoiled by the Eduard IX kits fit.

If you look carefully, there's a huge difference between the two, almost like a tin of tuna and a tin off anchovies!

Excellent reply, just what I wanted to hear! It would have been time consuming to build these in tandem and then upload pics and info twice. So I shall confirm that they are the same kits and are being built together so you'll see photos of the same progress on each. Ta

This is a batch of two new tooled KP Seafire Mk. IIb kits. New tooled you ask? Yeah, there is a marked quality improvement compared to KP's earlier Spitfires and a better way than following the Freightdog/KP Vc conversion. I built a couple of them last year along with some Sword Seafires...... my goodness how I don't the Sword kit. Photos show the inside and stage right now where I've got the main parts together. Need to search the stock pile for another set of seat harnesses. Apart from those and maybe some resin wheels and exhausts if I find any lying around, the kits are OOB. I like all three of the box options. Choices. What it did provide me was one aircraft with a tropical filter and one without. The gun sight is too low and will be adjusted. If you are wondering why the rear frame is broken it's because I ripped this out of an earlier build that ended up being trashed last year. Here, for the first time ever, in more than 6 previous KP/Sword builds, I actually got the wing roots pretty much spot on. The two kits. The second didn't go as smoothly.

I'll join up with this group build with a Ta152, it's been sitting around for 2+ years now looking lonely.

Azur Frrom T7, Israel Sqd 117, January 1957. Build thread here

After a bit of a battle and Lord Murphy sticking his finger in my eye just when I needed to see, this is finished, not brilliant partly due to me having a sore eye and partly due to the nature of this kit. The decals went on OK but the fuselage band is (as seen in photos) way way too short. Nav lights were made from UV clear epoxy, the pitot is Albion tubes, the whip aerials etc are some other metal sourced from Murphy knows where. I still come back to the same conclusion as I had years ago; I don't really like this family of kits. I have to ask the question about how this aircraft sits. Why so low? Compared to the Airfix kit which has the nose up high (a little Mussolini chin like), the SH looks like it will drag itself through the mud. That fuselage decal ain't ever gonna fit. I pondered whether they want you to place it incorrectly and that it should be behind the 15. Even then it doesn't fit. Two Airfix and one Special Hobby in 5 weeks

Holy smoke, it takes some effort to match up the wing/fuselage and then some work is going to be required to tidy the rear canopy which sat 1mm above the fuselage..... yikes, I wish for 2023 that Airfix see the light and common sense to release a two seater Meatbox so one can dump these SH kits.