Duncan B Posted December 6, 2018 Author Share Posted December 6, 2018 Mrs B has dragged me screaming and kicking into Dundee to do the dreaded Christmas shopping so not much time at the bench however the engine is nearing completion. I’ve hollowed our the ends of the exhausts and am trying a new to me painting technique on the exhaust. It’ll mostly be hidden so if I muck if up it won’t matter anyway. I have gone over the centre of each section with diluted clear orange and will add diluted black to each end then pick out the ‘welds’ with a dark wash. It might end up a mess but nothing ventured etc. I need a clear run to get some paint blowing around but suspect that won’t happen until after the weekend (ie when Mrs B goes back to work and leaves me in peace to get on with some serious stuff). Duncan B 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 7, 2018 Author Share Posted December 7, 2018 I thought I would get a little painting done in between bouts of Shopping. “There’s only a small area of True Blue to paint so I’ll get that out of the way first”, thinks I. Spot my mistake (the fin is painted under that masking tape). Doh! How did I manage to forget about the rudder? I guess I’ll be mixing another batch of True Blue later. Duncan B 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 7, 2018 Author Share Posted December 7, 2018 Primer, remedial work and primer process completed (or more accurately as good as it’s going to get). Next is the AK Interactive White Aluminium then paint the yellow wing and the section leader’s fuselage band. That’s the easy bit, what happens after that I am still debating. I know the cabane struts are not a tight fit into the underside of the top wing so will need a bit of filler and paint after fitting but so will the lower wing to fuselage joint so which to do first? The top wing will be easier to do first but should I fit the lower wings to set the dihedral on them first? Who’s idea was it to build a biplane? The primer has made the surface detail more obvious. Accurate Miniatures did a great job when they tooled this kit. Duncan B 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 9, 2018 Author Share Posted December 9, 2018 The AK Interactive Xtreme Metal White Aluminium has been applied. I will paint the top surface of the top wing, Section markings and then the walkway on the lower wing and wing root fairings next. Duncan B 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 9, 2018 Author Share Posted December 9, 2018 Hmm! I guess I masked up the fin before the paint had fully cured. No matter, I forgot to paint the rudder anyway so I’ll fix this at the same time as the rudder Duncan B 2 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted December 9, 2018 Share Posted December 9, 2018 Duncan, try spraying some neat Mr Levelling thinner over the blue, light coats, it's worked for me getting the tape marks out, just leave it to harden up again before touching 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 9, 2018 Author Share Posted December 9, 2018 3 hours ago, colin said: Duncan, try spraying some neat Mr Levelling thinner over the blue, light coats, it's worked for me getting the tape marks out, just leave it to harden up again before touching I never thought of that but will keep it in mind for next time. I’ve gone back over the fin with a light coat of paint while I had it mixed for the rudder. I’ve also given the top wing its first coat of yellow. It’s a bit patchy so will need another coat tomorrow. The prop has also been painted AK Interactive Polished Aluminium. I will seal the paintwork in with a clear gloss coat tomorrow before masking up again for the Section Leader’s markings on the cowl and fuselage. Duncan B 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 9, 2018 Author Share Posted December 9, 2018 I have to hand it to Accurate Miniatures they really knew how to produce a well engineered and detailed kit. Not only do you get the choice of weighted or non weighted tyres but they are moulded separately from the hubs to make painting easy. To cap it all they even moulded the logos on the tyres. A little dry brushing will make that really stand out. Duncan B 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
almac Posted December 10, 2018 Share Posted December 10, 2018 Excellent work Duncan. That AK metallic paint looks really nice. I have some but not tried it yet. Cheers Allan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Masters Posted December 10, 2018 Share Posted December 10, 2018 This is a lovely looking kit Duncan. I seem to recall my father building one for me when I was a child, or perhaps it was the Monogram kit...Yours is looking very much part of the Late Golden Age of aviation. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 10, 2018 Author Share Posted December 10, 2018 3 hours ago, almac said: Excellent work Duncan. That AK metallic paint looks really nice. I have some but not tried it yet. Cheers Allan I swear by the stuff now. NMF holds no fears for me now as this sprays and covers like normal paint. Surface preparation is the key to a good finish as with any other metallic paint. Duncan B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 12, 2018 Author Share Posted December 12, 2018 All masked off and ready to start painting the section markings. I’ll spray a thin primer coat on first to even things out for the topcoat. Normally I would seal everything in before moving to this stage but in Colourcoats we trust! Duncan B 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 12, 2018 Author Share Posted December 12, 2018 Primer on, now we wait again! Duncan B 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 12, 2018 Author Share Posted December 12, 2018 Ah well why didn’t anybody tell me I’d got the wing chevrons masked at an odd angle? Pooh! I never noticed until I took the masking off that I had a wonky leg as it were. Looking at the previous picture it’s obvious that the right side is nearer the centreline by 5mm but I missed it. Luckily I still had the green in the airbrush so quickly masked off the outside and sprayed again. I’ll have to go back inside with the yellow later. That’s not my only woes, the normally bulletproof Xtreme Metal has lifted in a couple of places on one side. Bad prep I guess. From a distance it doesn’t look too bad!! Guess what I’ll be doing tomorrow? Duncan B 2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 13, 2018 Author Share Posted December 13, 2018 A quick cutting back of the damaged edges with a polishing stick and I’m ready to touch up the Xtreme Metal White Aluminium. A wee squirt later and it’s fixed. This is what I really like about the AK Interactive Xtreme Metal paints, they can be treated just like any normal paint. I’m not sure Alclad is so easy to repair but it is certainly not so easy to spray in my experience. Now to fix fix my mistake on the upper wing. I’m not sure if the yellow will cover the green but I know how to find out Duncan B 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 13, 2018 Author Share Posted December 13, 2018 Top wing sorted, it’s not perfect but will do. Once the outlines are on and the whole wing is clear coated it’ll be good enough! Duncan B 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nimrod54 Posted December 15, 2018 Share Posted December 15, 2018 Good recovery Duncan, I hadn't noticed the mismatch until you pointed it out. The Navy yellow wing aircraft certainly make a colourful looking model, especially when the decals are on. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted December 16, 2018 Author Share Posted December 16, 2018 Decaling commenced with a disc of white to prevent the yellow from showing through. The decals are a bit fragile , probably due to age, but has mostly held together so far. Duncan B 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted January 5, 2019 Author Share Posted January 5, 2019 After a break for the holidays and a brief 48 hour detour into an Eduard Weekender I am back onboard the Grumman GB. The decaling was finished and sealed in with another gloss coat before the festivities so today has seen me apply a panel line wash on the silver areas. The wash is currently drying off a bit before I (hopefully) remove about 90% of it again. Duncan B 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted January 5, 2019 Author Share Posted January 5, 2019 Wash mostly wiped off, just enough to break up the silver and add a subtle (hopefully) oily tint around the front panels. I’ll leave it to dry off some more before sealing it in with another clear coat. I’ll add a panel line wash with a different colour to the top of the wing too. Duncan B 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted January 6, 2019 Author Share Posted January 6, 2019 Working on the wing washes today. I don’t want a heavily worn or scruffy look as these would have been kept very clean in real life but the kit’s surface detail deserves something to make it pop. Hopefully it will look fine once it’s clear coated with some Matte clear. Duncan B 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted January 6, 2019 Author Share Posted January 6, 2019 The kit supplied engine is a thing of beauty and includes a PE ignition harness. Mostly this will be hidden once the cowling goes on. Duncan B 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted January 7, 2019 Author Share Posted January 7, 2019 OMG the tiniest of photo etch gunsights! Duncan B 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 Whatever you do ... Dont sneeze ! Those things would disappear pretty quick. Dennis 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stew Dapple Posted January 7, 2019 Share Posted January 7, 2019 Sneeze? I think you could probably inhale them without noticing That engine does look lovely Duncan Cheers, Stew 1 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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