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Virgin 787-9 dreamliner G-VNEW 1/144 Zvezda


phil1

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been busy....

 

Fancied building a dreamliner kit for a while now, I had previously considered doing a 787-8 to 787-9 conversion job but when Zvezda brought out the 787-9 kit I couldn't resist. Like most Zvezda kits its beautifully detailed.

To my surprise the fuselage halves didn't go together as well as I'd expected and then i had a slight hiccup. All i will say is don't use a superglue with a fast cure!

When working on the wings be sure to be careful with the raked wingtips, they can be easily snapped off if they brush against something, which is what happened to my zvezda 777 wingtips. It might be worth taping the ends up to protect them until painting.

 

For Virgin colours there were 2 main ways I considered for the metallic red effect

 

1. use tamiya TS18 (spray can)

or

2. use Revell clear red on top of a silver metallic finish 

 

i went for the spray can finish, which although looks decent, i regret!! reasons being the amount of waste from the can as it gets everywhere, I probably got more on the wall than the model, clearly spray cans are not ideal for doing 1/144 scale models. To get a good even coverage it needs to be sprayed from a good distance and it has a tendency to spit the paint out unexpectedly.  it also gets under any type of masked area as it leaks - the stuff of nightmares! 

 

If you ever use a tamiya spray can and for this virgin atlantic finish I would advise spray the red first then mask off the tail and use an airbrush for the main body finish (white/grey pearlescent). it might seem strange white/grey going on top of red but the red paint will just splutter underneath the masked area and cause more work if done the logical way like I have.

 

IMG_20180211_190644142.jpg

 

first attempts were lumpy and uneven. plenty of buffing will be required later. also remember to cover up the whole model (unlike me) a sandwich bag over the nose is a quick method protecting the fuselage

 

IMG_20180211_190649633.jpg

 

the curved area below the tail is very difficult to achieve. you can get hold of thinner masking tape 'for curves' which is a good idea

 

IMG_20180301_132006129.jpg

 

above - tidied up the tail with a bit buff. The fuselage looks white but its 85% gloss white, 15% revell 371 light grey. I can't tell if I've added xtra color 'mica' in this photo that is a pearlescent effect. 

the mica on top does cloud the finish a slightly 'off white' so in hindsight if you are doing a modern virgin atlantic finish i'd recommend mica on top of gloss white - it won't look gloss white after you add the mica!  

 

IMG_20180301_132305209_BURST000_COVER.jp

 

quickly moved on with the wings, red paint everywhere! you'll notice the plastic added into the inside of the fuselage piece, this is for the aircraft stand - i dont use the zvezda stands, i custom make the gap for a clear academy display stand.

 

The dreamliner leading edge flaps are not straight forward to paint. the metallic part seems to just run right on the edge of 60% of the wing. You'll need good reference shots for this.

 

the metallic area needs another coat or 2 of alclad. the flash light on camera shows the edge of the wing quite ugly (below)

 

IMG_20180301_132045944.jpg

 

time to throw on a few decals (the fun part)

 

IMG_20180302_100446356.jpg

 

nice decals, courtesy of PAS decals

 

IMG_20180302_103627181.jpg

IMG_20180302_103636807.jpg

 

3-d windows from authentic airliners. 

 

IMG_20180302_233013850.jpg

 

camera flash shows the tail finish off a bit better. the 3-d windows a little bit featureless compared to previous ones i've purchased but still good quaility

 

IMG_20180302_233135660.jpg

IMG_20180302_233033019.jpg

IMG_20180302_233043463.jpg

 

wings added and horizontal stabs. neither are glued on put fit without effort. I've also started engines. progress will be delayed for a bit as i need more tamiya red to finish engines off

 

IMG_20180312_213032143.jpg

 

also note that stabs and wings are pure gloss white.

 

IMG_20180312_213044260.jpg

 

No doubt when i put on the RFI i will get some quality day shots as these night shots arent the best - heres another showing the tail in without camera flash

 

IMG_20180312_213150258.jpg

 

more to follow....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Nice progress Phil, looks like you have removed the overspray nicely.

 

Your painting tips are nice to hear, I have some of the Mica paint, in fact, I might have Virgin Grey as well which I think is the scheme prior to this one.

 

I also wanted to build a -9 and chopped and modded a -8 kit just before the -9s became available. I am still working on the fuselage seams and it sits on the 'shelf' as I battle on with other projects that are progressing at a better and less difficult rate.

 

It will be nice to see the finished shots when done.

 

 

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On 3/13/2018 at 1:35 AM, Romeo Alpha Yankee said:

Nice progress Phil, looks like you have removed the overspray nicely.

 

Your painting tips are nice to hear, I have some of the Mica paint, in fact, I might have Virgin Grey as well which I think is the scheme prior to this one.

 

I also wanted to build a -9 and chopped and modded a -8 kit just before the -9s became available. I am still working on the fuselage seams and it sits on the 'shelf' as I battle on with other projects that are progressing at a better and less difficult rate.

 

It will be nice to see the finished shots when done.

 

 

did you buy the fuselage extension ray? i know braz do one? I fancied doing a -10 from the same zvezda kit and wondered if i could use the same fuselage extension designed for the -9

 

phil

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On 3/13/2018 at 1:45 AM, k5054nz said:

I was sceptical when I saw the first couple of photos, but then it looked fantastic! I'm not familiar with this scheme but it certainly makes for a very pretty, sharp model. Nice work!

cheers mate! me too mate, its the first and last time I will use a spray can, just far too messy and too much correcting needed. hindsight is a wonderful thing!

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in better light today...IMG_20180314_091814740.jpg

 

IMG_20180314_091843295_HDR.jpg

 

busy with the engines at the moment. just need another tin of TS18 (£8 a shot!) and will be able to move this to RFI

 

the only decals to add are a giant 'virgin atlantic' on the bottom and the reg on the wings. some small decals to be added on engines like the 'RR' logo

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2 hours ago, phil1 said:

did you buy the fuselage extension ray? i know braz do one? I fancied doing a -10 from the same zvezda kit and wondered if i could use the same fuselage extension designed for the -9

 

phil

Phil,

 

I got the extension from a local Aussie producer who did a limited run of them, not as tidy as the Brax set but usable. I also have the Braz set which I don't think I will use unless, as you say the -10 extension from a -9 is the same as -8 to -9. 

 

Just did a quick google, the -8 to -9 stretch is 6.1 metres, whereas the -9 to -10 is a tad shorter at 5.5 metres. So the Braz plugs could be used in a modified state, will have to research more to see how much the stretch is for and aft of the wing.

 

EDIT: the stretch is 3.05 metres before and 2.45 metres aft of the wing on the -10. The Braz plugs are equal to a 3.05 metre plug for and aft of the wing to make the -9. So it is a case of removing 4mm from the plug you would use aft of the wing to convert a -9 to -10.

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18 hours ago, Romeo Alpha Yankee said:

Phil,

 

I got the extension from a local Aussie producer who did a limited run of them, not as tidy as the Brax set but usable. I also have the Braz set which I don't think I will use unless, as you say the -10 extension from a -9 is the same as -8 to -9. 

 

Just did a quick google, the -8 to -9 stretch is 6.1 metres, whereas the -9 to -10 is a tad shorter at 5.5 metres. So the Braz plugs could be used in a modified state, will have to research more to see how much the stretch is for and aft of the wing.

 

EDIT: the stretch is 3.05 metres before and 2.45 metres aft of the wing on the -10. The Braz plugs are equal to a 3.05 metre plug for and aft of the wing to make the -9. So it is a case of removing 4mm from the plug you would use aft of the wing to convert a -9 to -10.

great work mate, that's invaluable info for future projects. I'm sure if we get the schematics up we can pin point exactly where to chop the fuselage! 

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  • 1 month later...

engines finally on. The engines themselves have been a nightmare and that is down entirely to the way zvezda have designed the chevrons to fit. they have to be attached onto a thin surface area which means they are very fragile and can be knocked off easy, devastating when you've got to a later stage of painting. if resin RR engines had been available I would have bought them. 

 

IMG_20180420_171611336_HDR.jpg

IMG_20180420_171442123_HDR.jpg

 

fully assembled....

 

IMG_20180420_173210109_HDR.jpg

 

 

 

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