A pair of Airfix Hawks in 1/72. Finished.

[James G]

Very impressive!

[CedB]

On 17/04/2022 at 22:36, Fritag said:

It’s coming together quite pleasingly.

Mr Fritag, master of the understatement. And now 3D printing.

Excellent and very impressive!

[Fritag]

2 hours ago, CedB said:

Mr Fritag, master of the understatement

 

Here’s another understatement for you then Ced.  Pleasing to have you back commenting 

[HAMP man]

6 minutes ago, Fritag said:

 Pleasing to have you back commenting 

Very!

Always a worry when a member doesn't post for a while.

 

Box On

 

Strickers

 

[Terry1954]

2 hours ago, Fritag said:

 

Here’s another understatement for you then Ced.  Pleasing to have you back commenting 

 

I second that Ced! You only just missed the great page 150 p**s up!

 

Terry

[HAMP man]

Should we start organising the bash fro the bi- centenial?

 

Box On

 

Strickers

[perdu]

38 minutes ago, HAMP man said:

Should we start organising the bash fro the bi- centenial?

 

Box On

 

Strickers

Good idea

 

All round to Ced's place, he won't miss that one then will he?

[Brandy]

On 4/24/2022 at 2:34 PM, HAMP man said:

Very!

Always a worry when a member doesn't post for a while

Speaking of which, is anyone still in touch with @TonyTiger66?

 

Ian

[Tomoshenko]

That is absolutely bonkers brilliant Steve.

[perdu]

21 hours ago, Brandy said:

Speaking of which, is anyone still in touch with @TonyTiger66?

 

Ian

I vaguely recall TT66 making an appearance on a thread recently.

 

Hope he's ok, also note @CedBkeeping shtumm about the party at his place.

 

No good Ced, we're coming 

[Martian]

On 26/04/2022 at 11:41, perdu said:

I vaguely recall TT66 making an appearance on a thread recently.

 

Hope he's ok, also note @CedBkeeping shtumm about the party at his place.

 

No good Ced, we're coming 

Great! I love a good party. So does @general melchett,I'll let him know and dig out my best party tentacles.

 

Martian 👽

[tomprobert]

Just catching up with this - and more specifically the printed cockpit parts. The mind continues to boggle. You're good... very good.

 

Tom

[Navy Bird]

3 hours ago, tomprobert said:

Just catching up with this - and more specifically the printed cockpit parts. The mind continues to boggle. You're good... very good.

 

We didn't need the 3D printed parts to know that! They're just icing on the cake.    

 

Cheers,

Bill

[general melchett]

Superb Steve, lovely result. Great to see you into 3D printing now, another tool in the arsenal, bravo sir…

[The Spadgent]

That is some impressive work. Bravo that man. 👏👏👏

 

 Johnny

[Fritag]

Anyways, to all them as I bribed to be nice - the cheque is in the post (promise  ) and to them as was just gratuitously nice - aw shucks   And to both camps - thank you very much - means a lot - 'specially from such an august bunch (need a Uriah Heep I'm ever so 'umble emoji here )

 

So.  It's been a busy couple of weeks with that horrible intervening thing called work; plus with spare time taken up with (somewhat belatedly) with changing over 12V halogen ceiling recessed downlighters to 240V LED ones.

 

We live in a barn conversion with lowish ceilings downstairs and there are (were) dozens of bl**dy halogen downlighters.  12 in the kitchen alone.  And for every dratted one, it means pulling out the spring retained recessed unit - which invariably damages the ceiling plaster meaning  filling and re-painting - and taking out the 12V transformer and wiring in the new leads.  All whilst perched precariously on a step ladder.  Still the environment and my energy bill will hopefully benefit.....  Whinge over... 

 

But I have done bits and bobs.

 

Tinkered with the design of the canopy internal framing and MDC.

 

Added a frangible link to buttress the central section of the MDC (to give it a bit of strength during handling after the supports are removed):

 

 

And added a sacrificial base to the two bottom edges of the frame, linked to the frame with a line of 0.2mm rods spaced every 2mm or so thus:

 

 

The idea being that the printing supports then attach to the sacrificial bases and not the canopy frame, and so (in theory):

(i) the sacrificial base suffers all the distortion inherent with closely spaced supports and

(ii) I don't have the hassle of trimming away the supports and cleaning up the resultant stubs from the bottom of the frame, but can just run a craft blade along the gap between the sacrificial base and the canopy cutting through the 0.2mm connectors and leaving a nice clean finish.

 

And in practice?....:

 

Worked fine:

 

 

Such little things please my little mind  (sorry).

 

Anyways.  I couldn't avoid painting the thing for ever....but could do so long enough to print a quick paint mask to help me spray the cream-coloured-canopy-binding-tape-thingy in the middle without getting any paint on the MDC .  So.

 

Printed mask:

 

 

Printed mask in use:

 

 

Results:

 

 

(I used tamiya racing white decanted from a rattle-can; looked a decent match to photos various.)

 

And another printed mask to mask of the tape and the MDC  so I could airbrush the frame Nato Black:

 

 

And then fill-in any bits of frame not reached using a brush and the 50/50 thinned Nato black mixture - almost like a wash.

 

I should perhaps have said that I absolutely hate brush painting - especially fine or delicately detailed bits - I just can't get a neat finish 

 

I should perhaps also have said that the raw grey resin looks to my eyes a pretty good match for the plastic grey sheathing around the MDC so no need to paint the MDC (bonus).

 

After the 2 x mask rigmarole:

 

 

And after detaching the rest of the supports and brush painting:

 

Outside:

 

(nb there's the external framing and cream-coloured-canopy-binding-tape-thingy to go - which I'll  probably mask and paint; so that should finish it off neatly).   

 

 

Inside (canopies to be posed opened remember):

 

 

I need to gently dry brush the frame with some light grey to get the edges and details to 'pop'.

 

It's a good job I printed and painted a few spares; because even trying to be very careful in handling I managed to rip open the MDC on a couple of frames.

 

And whilst I was at it I painted a bunch of coamings and windscreen frames:

 

 

Remembering ( @Terry1954 ) that the Valley Hawk windscreen had a black/white and not a red frame!

 

 

I can stick the vac-formed windscreens in the windscreen frames once painted.  I'll obvs. have to fill and repaint the bits of the frames where they meets the fuselage - but hopefully won't now have to mask/paint the frame where it meets the clear windscreen.

 

And experimented with drybrushing on a spare valley rear coaming:

 

 

Details popped nicely (and no visible print lines/striations - so must have lucked in on the best orientation (although to be fair did print a few at different orientations and chose the best for best as it were).

 

So the next task is the paint shop to finish off the frames and coamings before sticking them to the Hawks.

 

BUT before that.....

 

There's that business of the noses being insufficiently curvaceous wot I mentioned a few pages back.  Needs to be tackled before sticking vulnerable bits and bobs into the cockpit area.  So.

 

As I am a million miles away from having Bill's skill, technique and confidence to slather on 'filler of choice' and file and carve it to the proper profile - it called for some skill-replacing planning.

 

Some may remember that way back on page 148  I designed and printed some profile 'slithers' as guides to help me get the correct curve:

 

 

So step one.  Attach the profile 'slithers':

 

 

Step two.  Mask off the areas that need building up a bit to capture the curves (call that the basic masking):

 

 

Steps 3 and 4.  Further mask off a smaller area just either side of the 'slithers' that will need the greatest depth of filler and give a few liberal coats of Hycote filler-primer from a rattle can:

 

 

Steps 5 and 6.  Move the further masking out a few mm and give a couple more coats of Hycote - and then a final couple of coats of Hycote with just the basic masking.

 

The theory behind the 3-stage masking being that the filler primer is thicker around the slither and tapers away towards the edges - thereby already beginning to capture the 'feathering' required and relieving the muppet that is me of the need to exercise Bill level of craftsmanship achieving the same....

 

And post-masking:

 

 

 

I think the plan is working (although no plan survives first contact with the enemy they say....).  It certainly looks a bit chubbier, and seems to have captured the correct sort of curve.

 

It's now up to the muppet with the sanding stick and micromesh to try and refine it....

 

Gentle filing reveals the slither guide

 

 

But I'm now going to leave the Hycote to harden for a few days before doing my mini-Bill impression and trying to smooth it down.

 

And that's where matters rest at the mo'. 

 

 

 

Edited May 2, 2022 by Fritag

[hendie]

The man of the bar has just raised the bar once again.   Absolutely sublime work Steve. The detail and craftsmanship that has gone into just those canopies alone is simply breathtaking.  

 

And printing masks too!  The boundaries have been pushed yet again.  

I can't wait for these Hawks to be finished - but only because I'm really intrigued by what wonders you'll come up with starting from ground zero on a Jaguar build.

 

In the meantime I'll sit back and savor the immaculate Hawkery as it continues ... 

 

 

[Terry1954]

Absolutely stunning work Steve, every single bit of it.

 

It all impresses me immensely of course, but the bit I'm most intrigued about is how on earth you "snipped away" all those supports from the MDC itself. Very very deft work sir!

 

4 hours ago, Fritag said:

Remembering ( @Terry1954 ) that the Valley Hawk windscreen had a black/white and not a red frame!

 

Glad you reminded me, I might have forgotten 😂

 

2 hours ago, hendie said:

but only because I'm really intrigued by what wonders you'll come up with starting from ground zero on a Jaguar build.

 

 

You and me both Alan!

 

A Fritag Jag (it even sort of rhymes), can't wait for that! Did we discuss what scale, cos I'm thinking bigger than these beauties here?

 

Terry

 

 

[giemme]

Well, picture me impressed - Han-Solo-In-Graphite-like impressed!  You've clearly mastered the fine art of 3D printing, your next step left really being designing a whole kit from scratch (and we already have proof that it can be done, right @hendie ? 😜)

 

So, when are you going to paint these?

 

 

 

 

Ciao 

[Terry1954]

19 minutes ago, giemme said:

So, when are you going to paint these?

 

 

Giorgio, I thought you'd never ask! 😁

 

Terry

[Fritag]

Bit of drybrushing with ocean grey enamel has helped highlight the structure to lend interest.  Ready for a clear coat.  Then a jet black pin wash might help too... 

 

 

Then I can snip away the little frangible links helping support the MDC - and think about the best glue to use.....

Edited May 2, 2022 by Fritag

[corsaircorp]

Now, I'm done...

What a stunning impressive and splendiferous Job...

That's amazing and I'm amazed....

Congrats Steve...

I read again your introduction.... Really like it....

We are around 10 times now !!

sincerely.

CC

[Navy Bird]

Where did you get the gigantic prop hand to go along with the spare Hawk canopy you lifted from RAF stores "back in the day?"

 

Cheers,

Bill

 

PS. Sorry, I have no other words...

[perdu]

2 hours ago, Navy Bird said:

Where did you get the gigantic prop hand to go along with the spare Hawk canopy you lifted from RAF stores "back in the day?"

I think he snaffled mine Bill, vanished when my newspaper reader lost his 'paper.

 

A and very May zing Steve

 

And then he gives us a free expose on replacing lamps to modern standards

 

This man seems to have limitless talents

 

 

Looking awesomer than ever milud

 

 

[CedB]

Bloomin' marvellous

I'm still practicing my posts so superlatives will follow once I get the hang of it.

 

Now I remember why Fritag is on my 'top modellers' list. Perfection personified