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Tamiya 1/48 F-16C Splinter Aggressor (Advice Needed: Next Step?)


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Just now, modelman182 said:

Yeah - I think the corruguard is usually applied on or near the leading edges for added protection. The way he was slapping that stuff on it could've been treacle!? If that's how apply your gloss you must go through lots of sanding sticks to get a smooth finish! 😉

 

Kev

I just re-watched the video, and I'd not seen the bit you're referring to the first time.  Thankfully I don't apply my gloss coats quite like that :D

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Small update. I've gained a lot of confidence with the airbrush since switching from Vallejo to Tamiya. Vallejo are good, but Tamiya seems to be just so hassle free for the most part.

 

So, I used a strip of masking tape to protect adjacent colours, and freehanded the post shading.  I didn't bother doing anything with the white but for the black and grey, I added a drop or two of light grey or white (respectively) and set about doodling within panels with a mixture of about 3:7 paint:thinner at about 15psi. Worked well I think :)   I then came back and picked on a couple of random panels and sprayed the whole panel a slightly darker shade by adding Tamiya black to the base colours (again, not touching the white panels).

 

Here's where she sits now, ready for a pre decal gloss coat :)

 

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I look forward to comments and suggestions :)

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That's looking great, planehazza. Subtle but distinct. Great work

 

That canopy looks scarily Alien-like with its masking on... 

 

Kev - checking in from his tablet at work while on my break 🙂

 

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Thanks! And here is where we currently sit.

 

I've glossed the whole model, but it came out poor :( It was very grainy, like orange peel, but I don't know why it happened.  So, I wet sanded the whole upper side with 2500 grit followed by a buffing pad before washing the whole upper surface with water via the airbrush. As you can see, it worked much better on the wings than it did on the fuselage.  Thankfully, it looks worse in the photos than in real life but it's still visible :(   Anyways, rightly or wrongly, I decided to crack on with the decals and that's us at the point in the photos.

 

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Would you recommend that I gloss the whole model again, or just layer it over the decals before sanding the decals to sit flush with the paint? I'm worried that if I gloss the whole model I'll have little surface detail left uinfilled to apply a wash to.

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Decals are down, and I've layered the gloss on top of them. The gloss has been sanded and buffed to the point that the decal edges are almost entirely gone.  Wash applied.

 

The underside is a bit of a disaster in comparison, as it's much harder to sand.  As a result I've gone down to plastic in some places, so a few touch ups are needed.  

 

Anyways, she looks good on the top half anyway :)

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Darker grey wash applied to grey and white areas, with a very light grey wash applied to the black areas.

Edited by planehazza
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I'm liking the look of this so far. I'm pretty much the same as you with your approach and confidence with glossing and washing afterwards. I've been airbrushing for a year now and still haven't got the art of getting a decen't wet look gloss on so I know how you feel.

No matter what advice I've been given as to how to get a decent shine/wet look I still haven't quite mastered it. I feel that it's something you have to keep at until you crack it. I have managed to get it spot on with small parts like wing tanks but larger areas seem to need a few misted on layers of Klear or three. Maybe it also depends on what brand/type of gloss your using.

Looking forward to seeing your end results.

 

Martin

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11 hours ago, Lightningboy2000 said:

I'm liking the look of this so far. I'm pretty much the same as you with your approach and confidence with glossing and washing afterwards. I've been airbrushing for a year now and still haven't got the art of getting a decen't wet look gloss on so I know how you feel.

No matter what advice I've been given as to how to get a decent shine/wet look I still haven't quite mastered it. I feel that it's something you have to keep at until you crack it. I have managed to get it spot on with small parts like wing tanks but larger areas seem to need a few misted on layers of Klear or three. Maybe it also depends on what brand/type of gloss your using.

Looking forward to seeing your end results.

 

Martin

Thanks, Martin. Yeah I find that too but I use tamiya gloss and acrylic thinner. If I ever get around to buying a spray booth I'll give MLT or toys lacquer thinners a go, as I hear they work (unofficially) very well with tamiya acrylics. 

 

Last night was a uneventful. I just masked over the areas that were over sanded, scuffed them up a bit then sprayed some nato black. Will cover them with gloss tonight and see how they work. It'll need some sandoning to blend it in with adjacent areas. 

 

Call me a rivet counter, but I'm starting to feel that progression is one of my favourite things of this hobby. Whilst I can visibly see each model get better, it's clear there is so much more to learn and master :)

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She's looking great, PH! I also struggle with getting the right 'look and feel' with the gloss coat, as evidenced by the two cars and one motorbike kit that have been going back and forth between the workbench and the spray bench for the past couple of months!).

 

Still... practice makes perfect, as they say. PROVIDED... you don't lose it altogether and abandon the kit - which happened to me earlier this year for the first time in over twenty years of building. I must be getting grumpier as I get older - who'd have thought that would happen?? 😉

 

The stage you're at is the hardest part of the build for me. I think it's the 'so close, and yet, so far' syndrome that I have. One day I shall make the 'perfect' result - HAH! like that is EVER gonna happen... 🙂

 

Cheers

 

Kev

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21 hours ago, modelman182 said:

She's looking great, PH! I also struggle with getting the right 'look and feel' with the gloss coat, as evidenced by the two cars and one motorbike kit that have been going back and forth between the workbench and the spray bench for the past couple of months!).

 

Still... practice makes perfect, as they say. PROVIDED... you don't lose it altogether and abandon the kit - which happened to me earlier this year for the first time in over twenty years of building. I must be getting grumpier as I get older - who'd have thought that would happen?? 😉

 

The stage you're at is the hardest part of the build for me. I think it's the 'so close, and yet, so far' syndrome that I have. One day I shall make the 'perfect' result - HAH! like that is EVER gonna happen... 🙂

 

Cheers

 

Kev

Thanks, Kev!  Yeah I get too focused on the look of the gloss layers, as I know that they'll be covered by a couple of coats of matt at the end anyway.  I've built hundreds of kits in my life, but 99% of them were as a kid; this is only model #3 since I was ~16 and so is only the third kit I've done properly with gloss or matt coats etc, so I've still a lot to learn. You can see in the photos I've gone too far with the sanding and have gone through gloss, paint, AND primer in some places; a royal mess up. Oh well 'it's weathering', as God knows how I only spotted it AFTER decals... Or maybe I was the post decal polishing that did it, I can't remember now.

 

I've had to mask up parts of the underside and spray black again.  So tonight I'll gloss them then feather it in; it should be hard to tell that I've had to repair.  The majority of damage on the underside is almost due to too little sanding; you can see where I've missed out grits in my inpatience.  It's very smooth and shiny but you can tell that the finer grits haven't had the power to actually get rid of the course grits or gloss bumps, and so all it appears that I have done is 'seal in' rough scratches. It looks aweful, and it future I'm either going to have to nail my gloss coats, or predict that I'll be sanding and leave as many sticky out bits off so I can get in with the sanding tools.  I'll take photos tonight to show what I mean.

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 10/22/2018 at 8:52 AM, planehazza said:

Thanks, Kev!  Yeah I get too focused on the look of the gloss layers, as I know that they'll be covered by a couple of coats of matt at the end anyway.  I've built hundreds of kits in my life, but 99% of them were as a kid; this is only model #3 since I was ~16 and so is only the third kit I've done properly with gloss or matt coats etc, so I've still a lot to learn. You can see in the photos I've gone too far with the sanding and have gone through gloss, paint, AND primer in some places; a royal mess up. Oh well 'it's weathering', as God knows how I only spotted it AFTER decals... Or maybe I was the post decal polishing that did it, I can't remember now.

 

I've had to mask up parts of the underside and spray black again.  So tonight I'll gloss them then feather it in; it should be hard to tell that I've had to repair.  The majority of damage on the underside is almost due to too little sanding; you can see where I've missed out grits in my inpatience.  It's very smooth and shiny but you can tell that the finer grits haven't had the power to actually get rid of the course grits or gloss bumps, and so all it appears that I have done is 'seal in' rough scratches. It looks aweful, and it future I'm either going to have to nail my gloss coats, or predict that I'll be sanding and leave as many sticky out bits off so I can get in with the sanding tools.  I'll take photos tonight to show what I mean.

Don't forget that this is a hobby and always a learning experience.

 

I've been building non-stop for over 55 years now and still I'm rarely happy with the results 🙂 But I put that down to my imagination setting standards my eyes and hands cannot achieve! Fortunately, those that I build for are rarely displeased with the results.

 

Curbing impatience is definitely a helping hand in producing better results. I still have to remind myself that 'one more pass with that sanding stick' won't take long and WILL produce a better end result.

Looking forward to seeing the next set of results. The scheme is so stunning that it's eye candy whenever I see it!

 

Cheers

 

Kev

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Some updates. Things are progressing nicely! I hope to be finished within the next couple of weeks (oil takes time to dry!).

 

So far it is just the upper half that has been weathered; notice the stark difference between the blacks on the top and bottom

 

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And the flash on this photo exaggerates the effects a lot, but there's the AN/ALQ 188 pod. Also, I thought I could get away with starting to weather the pod without first sealing the decals with a gloss coat. Apparently, I can't. Not to worry, I'll gloss the whole thing again, and touch up around the decals before a final flat coat.

 

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Edited by planehazza
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  • 2 weeks later...
On 06/11/2018 at 19:42, Avgas said:

I had no idea you had a Wip thread. Looking really good!

Thanks. It didn't start as a WIP. I got to the point where I had applied the base colours and wasn't sure what the best method to pursue was.  Once I got going again I decided I might as well do the odd update.  I've slowed down again, because the whole room is a mess so I I've lost the motivation to get going again.  Also, the two bobs CATM-120C decals are laborious at best; there are something like 24 to apply per missile and, even in 1/48, they're tiny.

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  • 2 weeks later...
9 hours ago, modelman182 said:

Looking real nice, ph. Not far off completed now. The more I see of this the more I want to do my Tamiya 32nd one in that scheme. Maybe... one day... 🙂

 

Kev

Thank you. Yeah it's not too far off. The nose cone is still on my bench. Made a mistake on it post weathing and so I think I need to strip it back and redo it. There are a few things I'm not happy about but no model is ever perfect and frankly I'm so near the end now that I'd be daft to go back change things. I'm happy with the overall result. 

 

Go for it, assuming there are decals out there in that scale? I can't imagine not. I hope to have it finished and promoted to RFI soon :)

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2 minutes ago, planehazza said:

Thank you. Yeah it's not too far off. The nose cone is still on my bench. Made a mistake on it post weathing and so I think I need to strip it back and redo it. There are a few things I'm not happy about but no model is ever perfect and frankly I'm so near the end now that I'd be daft to go back change things. I'm happy with the overall result. 

 

Go for it, assuming there are decals out there in that scale? I can't imagine not. I hope to have it finished and promoted to RFI soon :)

We'll always be the first to find fault in almost every model we make - that and AMS combine to create the 'Curse of the Modeller'. You should defo be WELL pleased with the result you've managed with this scheme. It looks striking.

 

TwoBobs do a set of decals in 1/32nd, which are still available from some suppliers. The only thing that gives me caution is the back-grading of my Block 50 kit to a Block 30. Not a major issue, but it's something that would bother me with a kit that is as good as the Tamiya. I may just call it "artistic licence" and make the airframe as a Block 50 with the Block 30 scheme and decals. We shall see. I have MANY other projects that need finishing before I even start that one! 🙂

 

I look forward to drooling helplessly over the RFI 🤤

 

Kev

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On 25/11/2018 at 15:02, modelman182 said:

We'll always be the first to find fault in almost every model we make - that and AMS combine to create the 'Curse of the Modeller'. You should defo be WELL pleased with the result you've managed with this scheme. It looks striking.

 

TwoBobs do a set of decals in 1/32nd, which are still available from some suppliers. The only thing that gives me caution is the back-grading of my Block 50 kit to a Block 30. Not a major issue, but it's something that would bother me with a kit that is as good as the Tamiya. I may just call it "artistic licence" and make the airframe as a Block 50 with the Block 30 scheme and decals. We shall see. I have MANY other projects that need finishing before I even start that one! 🙂

 

I look forward to drooling helplessly over the RFI 🤤

 

Kev

 

Thanks, Kev :)  I'll do some research, see if I can't help you convert the 50 to a 30.  The 50 has no strengthening plates, whereas the 30 has a few but the Tamiya Detail-Up can sort that.  The cockpit is similar enough, but just watch out for CCIP updates such as the JHMCS sensors etc.

 

The block 50 also has the newer, beefier LG, whereas the 30 is more likely to have the older type, but with the MLG lights removed, and the nose light installed.  I made the mistake of not noticing this, so my 30 has the new type whereas it should have the older type, but thankfully in 1/48 standard Tamiya parts, the difference is negligible.  

 

Both are GE powered so no concerns with nozzle or 'mouth' either :)

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  • 4 weeks later...

Some spikey bits and RBF tags added. Very little left to do now, just a case of finishing off the nose cone and deciding what to do with one of the pylons. I had scratch built some detail into one of them as it is not going to hold any stores, however I had planned to put an ECM pod on the other side.  Unfortunately it doesn't fit very well so I'm not sure what to do just yet. I've manufactured and fitted static discharge rods to the wings, elevons, and rudder, but I haven't taken any photos since.

 

Anyways, some pics:

 

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Edited by planehazza
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