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I would like to join with a A6M3 Zero.


Greg Law

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Yes this is true, but I'm hoping that the open canopy will allow me to see into it. In the end I'm doing it for myself.  Have already improved it. I should have painted the PE the same colour as the rest. Still it is ok in reality. 

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4 hours ago, Greg Law said:

 In the end I'm doing it for myself. 

:D that's something we all do, I've do some detailing on builds that I know will never be seen or noticed....but I knew it was there.

 

I'm enjoying following this build.

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This is my progress for today. I just added a little extra glue in front of the cockpit that needs a clean. The wing joint will need a tiny bit of fill, but isn't bad. 

For a change I have had no major issues with this kit. The caul is just sitting there. 

 

A6M3 progress3

 

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I won't show any photos at this stage just a progress report. I undercoated the plane today and painted the caul with an aluminum paint ready for bthe chipping process. I have decided to use the traditional method of preshading on this one. I may use the mottled method on the P-40N. Next is the engine which will need some work to bring it up to standard.

Edited by Greg Law
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Hi Greg,

 

This is looking very nice. I'm building a 1:72 hence looking for tips from other builds.

 

I too used to fly RC (planks, then heli's) but I never had a Zero. I've come back to building plastic kits as it's the building element I enjoy the most.

 

Looking forward to watching this come together :smile:

 

Cheers

 

Nigel

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I'm a bit slow at the moment because of work commitments. I have done the engine and will get the front canopy on today. This will mean I'm ready for painting. I will paint this one in a traditional manner using pre-shaded panel lines. I'm trying to make up my mind wether to spray or hand paint the green pattern. 

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3 hours ago, Greg Law said:

I'm trying to make up my mind wether to spray or hand paint the green pattern. 

Greg, 

Why not spray first (like the original I suppose?), then hand paint it if you're not happy with your spraying. Just a thought? 

 

Cheers.. Dave. 

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Well I had ago at simply pre-shading the Zero today. What a mess. I used my expensive HS Infinity thinking this will do a goo job of lines. I used a mix of 4/1 thinner to paint at 15psi. It should have worked fine. Well do you think I could do even a semi straight line. No way. Anyone would think  I was trying to paint a BOB Spitfire pattern. My tremor was that bad. Then to make matters worse the airbrush was totally unpredictable. It would start off ok then stop, then spatter, then shot heavy lines, then stop. In the end I had a wavy mess with spit drops all over it. So tomorrow I will undercoat it again and start again. I will have to practise with that airbrush after cleaning it. 

It looks like my tremor is getting worse 😞.  It might be easier for me to use the mottling effect which seems to work for me. Still I did buy a good face mask and glasses that work without fogging, so I will be happier airbrushing now. My old mask wasn't doing the job.

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the HS airbrush is an awesome weapon!!  That said they can be a bit touchy with the paint mixes. I use a 0.2 needle for everything, as long as it's really thinned back it generally lays down paint near perfect.......but yes she does have a habit of splattering to.

 

Do worry I have steady hands and still can't do a straight panel line to save myself!!! My pre-shading lines are always crap and wobbly!

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This weekends work has been masking the canopy and repriming the plane. This resulted in me having to rescribe the plane. I also broke the canopy and had to cut up the closed one. My fault I forgot to pad the inside.also the masks I bought were for the the expensive kit by the looks of it, so I have ended up using the Tamiya masking tape method. Still I'm getting there slowly by using my usual one step forward and two steps back method.

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Rich

What paint mix (paint to thinner) do you use with your HS Infinity? Also what pressure? Do you know what causes the spitting? I really want to use my Infinity to do the Zero bloches, but I'm worried about the spitting spilling my effort. I have had so much go wrong lately, I need this to go right.

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a minimum of 50:50, though I'd be tempted to go even less, maybe even down to 70:30 (thinner to paint) and keep the pressure nice and low. Do some test dots and adjust the pressure to what seems to work the best (my gauge is unless on my compressor, plus the compressor is a cheap and nasty one, but it has a big tank), you want to work nice and close to the surface so it will need to be low. Plus adjust the action so there's only a small amount of movement, this'll keep the paint flow nice and low.

 

For thinning I've discovered Tamiya's Lacquer Thinners, this stuff is amazing, much better than their own acrylic thinners or Mr Hobby Levelling solution. Works perfectly with Tamiya and Mr Hobby acrylics, for other stuff I'm not too sure.

 

I've had the same issues with spitting before, so to do with poorly thinned/mixed paint, but most of the time it's because I haven't cleaned the airbrush enough. If you're using the 0.2 needle like I use (you'll need it for what you want to do) then you have to be super vigilant with your cleaning, especially with the nozzle. That'll be the place that gives the most trouble.

 

Plus you'll find you'll need to keep wiping the tip as you go, to help keep drops forming (that's my biggest issue) and the tip from drying out. If you can practice a bit you'll be fine. That airbrush is amazing, it may be expensive but I think it's worth every penny, I'd be tempted to get another one.

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I'm struggling a bit to find time and energy for my build at the moment. All should be better in a couple of weeks when I get clear of my work projects. This is why I have slowed down a bit. I just do a little bit here and a little bit there. My main problem is my energy level is really low right now. 

I'm struggling to even get my work done. Thank goodness I have a good boss. He is easy on his staff of one to the point of being really slack................ 😉

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19 minutes ago, Greg Law said:

Thank goodness I have a good boss. He is easy on his staff of one to the point of being really slack................ 😉

I like that!! Perhaps he should also consider giving himself a pay rise? Looking forward to some pics.

 

Cheers.. Dave 

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Well I told the Boss to take a jump because the boys need another dose of Greg's disasters.

So here is a few images of the main colour. It looks grey/blue than it does because of the evening light. It has a nice green shade in it. It's better that the straight  TamiyaJapanesegreen/grey  because I mixed a bit onJapanesegrey into it. 

I have scribed the panel lines twice to keep them showing. 

The disaster almost happened this morning when I was painting it. After I finished I discovered the rudder had gone missing. I search for at least an hour for it without luck. So I decided to look again later after the next coat.

Well when I had done the coat and was putting my Jumper on again I found it. It must have dropped off when I put my mask away. It was a close thing and another kit is already on the way. Anyway it will give me two chances to get the 

the canopy right. (Just call me two kit Greg) I still haven't put the rudder on yet. I think it needs a dose of rejection medicine. That is the third time it has fallen off. 

By the way the cat is Scat the cat. She is one of our farm cats who is a friend of mine. 

 

zero progess 2 A

 

 

PA180151

 

 

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Scat looks like she’s ready to pounce on your Zero. Are you sure she’s really not a ‘Wild cat’??

Looking good Greg, glad you found the rudder a well. 

 

Cheers.. Dave

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She is a farm cat who lives outside. She knows better than to jump up on my work table or models. She is just giving me the "I want a tit-bit" look, it can be very intense at times. She used to be a real scat cat, but now likes to hang around me in case of tit-bits. She won't let you touch her though. It is her sister that is my real mate.

I call her Bindi.  Mainly because she came out of the bushes when she was a kitten covered with grass seeds. She is a nice black and white cat and is very friendly to me. She even likes coming for a walk down to get the post with me. It is a 300m walk there and back.

Edited by Greg Law
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I tried something new for me today. I masked the whole plane except for the control surfaces and some odd panels. The idea was to break up the flat look.  I think I made it too subtle to see in a photo. Still I will see after clear coating.  At the moment you only see it from certain angles.

See if you can spot the panels.This photo also shows the green tint compared to the grey mask case.

sutble patches

 

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Ok, the white part of the markings is done. Tomorrow will be the red. I'm thinking of doing a flat clear coat first to prevent bleeding in the panel lines.

I have been practising my green blotches today. Didn't go well. When I did it with the grey it went very well, but when I used the green the airbrush played up.

Then I changed to my Infinity and that was even worse. I got air blowing back into the pot. Lucky it wasn't the plane. I have to sort this out and see what the

cause is. I'm still wondering if hand brushing is the way to go with this. The image in the instructions looks hand painted

Once I have savely done the markings I will put up another image. 

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