Duncan B Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 Hi Folks, although normally adversed to posting WIPs due to my general lack of haste or inability to finish anything in any sort of reasonable timescale, I've decided to post one for my next build. I've been dabbling with 1:48 scale on the odd occasion this year, mainly to get the pesky things out of my stash to make more room for Gentleman's scale kits, but also so that I could try out some new techniques and consumables on larger bits of plastic. The kit I'm going to make is the Airfix 1:48 Bf109E which has (shamefully) been sitting in my stash since this time last year (many thanks to Col for the Birthday present, I promise to make this year's one soon!). I'm going to break from my normal painting habits and will be trying Sovereign Hobbies' Colourcoat range of enamels and will be interested to see how they perform compared to my trusty Gunze acrylics. So on with the photos, firstly the subject The obligatory boxtop photo The main colours And they're under Starter's Orders. Some nasty injection marks in obvious places around the cockpit sidewalls that need dealing with... ...a quick scrape with the scalpel.... ... and a few passes with a fibreglass pencil and they are gone. Some clean up to do and assemble the cockpit then it'll be time to break out the RLM02. Duncan B 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 3, 2015 Author Share Posted December 3, 2015 Just a little progress, did I mention my lack of haste already? I'm not very good at detailing cockpits as it's not my favourite part of the whole process which is quite unfortunate as that is usually the first thing we have to do. I can usually get away with it in 1/72 scale however a little more effort is required in 1/48. The control panel has been painted using acrylic paints and black ink then the dials were filled with clear acrylic. I've seen some absolutely amazing detailing of cockpits and always marvel at them, unfortunately this is the best I can manage so it'll have to do. The cockpit plastic is basically stuck together and ready for paint. The seatbelts are moulded onto the seat and are a very basic representation but I am undecided whether I'll remove them and replace them with something else. I usually just use Tamiya tape to represent them in 1/72 but something a little more detailed would be required here. I might have a go at making them out of lead foil or use a set of Eduard fabric ones that I have in the stash. More later... Duncan B 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 Even with open canopies you can rarely see the bulk of whatever you put in on instrument panels anyway. It looks good in close-up thread photos but once it's all closed in and cast in shadow the extra work becomes superfluous! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
infofrog Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 That detail looks great Duncan . I wish mine looked as good Rick 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Heath Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 Nothing wrong with your detail painting, that IP looks great. I'm looking forward to seeing this one progress. Nigel 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 Nice choice of scheme for this one Duncan Given the lovely job you've made on the instrument panel I think a set of Eduard fabric belts will suit this cockpit. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stew Dapple Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 Yep, that instrument panel looks great Duncan, definitely good enough to add a set of Eduard seatbelts to the cockpit rather than let those moulded things remain... Imagine how you will feel looking at it later and thinking "That instrument panel is actually very good... but why didn't I replace those seatbelts when I had the chance?" You owe it to your future self! Cheers, Stew 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 3, 2015 Author Share Posted December 3, 2015 My future self agrees so I'll be scraping the plastic ones off. Duncan B 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeW Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 Gosh, two posts in as many days. What is this "lack of haste" of which you spoke? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Heath Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Another vote for the fabric belts from me, I personally detest moulded-in belts. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fingers Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Hi, the IP looks great to me it's real modelling not sticky back Eduard etch which really makes the job to easy (still use it though). When you refer to a 'fibreglass pencil' what tool do you mean? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 4, 2015 Author Share Posted December 4, 2015 Seatbelts have been removed using the aforementioned fibreglass 'pencil' which is actually a pen shaped abrasive fibre tool for cleaning circuit boards. See link here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/FIBREGLASS-PENCIL-Best-Price-Square/dp/B011861MO2/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1449243377&sr=8-7&keywords=fibreglass+pencil Xmas shopping got in the way of painting the RLM02 parts today although I might get a chance this evening. I'm wondering how I'm going to do my washes, I usually use acrylic paints and enamel washes so might have to reverse that process for this one. Does anyone know if washes made from thinned down acrylic paints will work or will I have to use oil based washes? Duncan B 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doghound Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 (edited) Hi Duncan B, I've tried acrylic washes and was supset with the results. Problem is that very thin acrylic paintm will not run properly into the Corners, special when applied over enamal colors. Edited December 4, 2015 by Doghound 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fingers Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Thanks for the info Duncan it looks like a useful tool, I may even invest. As far as washes are concerned I always like the finish that an oil wash gets as against any other, but that might be just my preference. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 4, 2015 Author Share Posted December 4, 2015 I decided to go ahead and apply the RLM02 to the cockpit and all the other parts that are painted the same colour even thought there is currently a Gale howling through my window. As I said before I'm using Colourcoats enamels for the first time so was keen to see how the paints behave and how the colour matches are. I can say that the RLM02 seems to be a very good match for the charts I have. I used Rustins Cellulose Thinners to thin the paint and carried out a very quick test on a scrap bit of plastic and found that it sprayed perfectly without me having to change any settings on my compressor or airbrush so moved straight onto the kit parts. I found that the paint had very good coverage even though I'd thinned it quite a lot and that it dried very matt. I hadn't primed the plastic either so was very impressed with the way it covered. Because the paint covered so well I found that I had actually mixed way too much so ended up spraying the RLM02 parts on an Eduard Bf109E and still had plenty left over so had a play with it attempting some mottles and lines even though I was using my general purpose airbrush with the larger needle and not the CM-C+ I usually use for mottling. With a bit of practice and using my CM-C+ I think the Colourcoats paint will be very easy to use for mottling. By the time I'd finished cleaning my airbrush the paint was dry to the touch, roughly an hour from starting. Really good for enamels in my experience anyway. So next thing will be to gloss the RLM02 then apply a wash to bring out the details, I think I'll be using an oil wash on this one. Duncan B 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Interesting to read your findings with the Colourcoats paint Duncan. I've only brushed a small amount of the black onto anything and also found it dried relatively quickly. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 4, 2015 Author Share Posted December 4, 2015 The last time I used enamels they took over a week to dry to the point where I could handle them. I used to have to put the kit away and start on something else while waiting for the paint to dry. Something else I've found but will have to test further is that Mr Color Thinners seems to thin the Colourcoats paint, or at least can be used to clean it out of the airbrush. I'll have a try at thinning and spraying the paint with Mr Color Thinners as I have lots of that and if it works will mean that I don't have to have thinners for each Brand. Anyhow Col I hope you are enjoying seeing your present from last year finally getting built. Thanks again for this year's pressie too. Duncan B 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Glad it's working out ok for you so far Duncan. I normally just use white spirit from B&Q if not cellulose so it seems fairly adaptable. We've actually just received a shipment of proprietry thinners which I need to go test. Smells like the paint. Can't imagine it'll be a stellar seller in the UK but a Japanese wholesaler has asked for it so... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giemme Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Nothing wrong with your detail painting, that IP looks great. I'm looking forward to seeing this one progress. Nigel +1! Ciao 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
infofrog Posted December 5, 2015 Share Posted December 5, 2015 Looking good Duncan . Rick 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stew Dapple Posted December 5, 2015 Share Posted December 5, 2015 Thanks for the tip, I've ordered one of those fibreglass pencil thingies, ejector pin-marks are one of the banes of my (modelling) life. I use Citadel washes over enamels regularly,and they seem to work okay, I'm sure they are acrylics... not sure how well they'd go on a really glossy surface, I think they would tend to 'pool', but probably the same goes for an oil wash? Cheers, Stew 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 5, 2015 Author Share Posted December 5, 2015 It was too stormy and wet to do anything outside today so I spent the afternoon working on the cockpit. Firstly I brush painted a few coats of Kleer over the RLM02 to act as a base for some chipping with acrylic silver and a wash using Citadel washes as suggested by Stew and supplied by my Son. Once I was happy with the wash I moved onto the seatbelts, those of you who requested the seatbelt were getting cursed! It turned out I only had etched seatbelts and they are a real pain to get to sit anything like in a natural way but I finally got there. Then it was time to get the cockpit into the fuselage. Minutes later the fuselage halves were together and the wings were on, real progress. The wing to fuselage joints are all good except for the rear joint on the underside. If my last Airfix 109 build is anything to go by I'll need some time to get the gun panels on the leading edge of the wings to fit then it'll be on with the flying surfaces and the tail-plane, it all seems to be going rather well! Duncan B 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted December 5, 2015 Share Posted December 5, 2015 Nice work in the 'pit Duncan. Those seatbelts will be worth the effort, agree with you about etched belts being a faff though, they look good in the photos and add a fine finishing touch to your work in there. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stew Dapple Posted December 5, 2015 Share Posted December 5, 2015 Nice work Duncan, and you might have been cursing but admit it, those seatbelts were definitely worth it Cheers, Stew 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 5, 2015 Author Share Posted December 5, 2015 I have to agree that the moulded on seatbelts just would have looked naff. I thought I had the fabric belts but they are for Gustavs. It has to be said that the level of detail in the Airfix cockpit straight out of the box is really very good, not quite Eduard good but none the less it is very nice. Duncan B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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