Airbus A380 All Nippon Airways "LANI" 1/144 The flying "Honu"

[Alex1978]

Hi folks,

 

It has been a while since I last posted a build of mine.

My computer and my camera said byebye,so I had to organize new tools and also I had been kept busy at work.

Nonetheless,I was also busy building models,even more so during this darn pandemic...the only positive thing about the pandemic is that I have plenty of time,but thats really the only positive thing I see in that matter.

 

But back to topic;

 

I am actually not an A380 fan,but when I saw the first images of ANA`s upcoming A380 with its turtle scheme,I knew I had to have this in my collection.

The search for the decals was on,the Revell A380 Demonstrator kit was bought and the project was started...

Then the problems began;

The decal set was found on Ebay,but when I received it,I knew instantly that this wont work.

Bad printing quality and also the subjects were printed as two large decals.

Apart from the poor quality it seemed impossible to apply them in a way that would look good.So the whole project was on hold for a while.Despite that,I decided to continue the build of the model anyway,so it would at least be built in components.

The build itself was also not easy as the parts were warped and the overall fit was not the best.

I dont know if this is a problem in particular or just due to the worn out moulds,a problem many of the newer kits from Revell seem to get very quick.Same I found on their 747-8I / 8F.

 

I kept looking for a decal set on the various sites from decal manufacturers but no one seemd to offer them.

I then had the idea of painting the whole scheme with the airbrush,creating masks out of the decal set that I had,but one day when I thought I will give it another go,I came across images of a built A380 in exactly that livery.

That guy used decals produced by Dream Decals,I never heard of them before,and the result looked awesome.

Great I thought,went to their homepage,tried to order a set...failure.

After numerous e-mail requests I still got no reply,hence I could not get me one of these decal sets and the project was further delayed.

Being me,I had no intention to give up and I kept searching and then during the first lockdown in march,I suddenly came across TBdecals from Italy.They also offered that schem as well as the 2 other turtle schemes.

Well,I had nothing to lose,so I gave it a try and placed an order...10 days later I received a wonderfully printed decal set.

Project saved...

The Airbus was already built,so I just had to paint it and then the endless decaling session was on.

The decals were of great quality and went on rather nicely.I devided the more complex decals in smaller sections,so they were easier to handle.

It took well over 15 hours just for decalling the whole fuselage but I managed it in the end.

Due to the complex design,it was clear that it wont come out perfect,but the result is more than satisfying.

After more than a year the ANA A380 "Lani" is finally done.

The display stand was obtained from the AN-225 kit as the A380 sadly lacks one.

 

Paints are from Revell (white from a spray can) Tamyia (sky blue and white mixed for the front) Testors (dark grey for the coroguard panels) and Gunze for the metallic parts.

 

 

All Nippon now operates 3 A380s,all in this particular turtle design but in 3 different colours, blue,turqoise and orange.

They are used on the Tokyo-Honolulu route

 

Enough text,enjoy the pics.

More airliners will follow in the next days,as I still have to get used to my new equipment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitchem]

Nice to see you back Alex. Thanks for persevering because that’s a cracking build and a corker of a finish.

 

mike

[SAT69]

Beautifully done! That's really impressive!

[picard]

Ditto and ditto, a fabulous job and majestic big bird sir. Cheers.   

[Skodadriver]

Hi Alex, good to see you back and in such spectacular fashion! That really is a fantastic model which fully justifies your hard work and persistence. 

 

I associate TB Decals with racing cars and I didn't know they made airliner decals. I've just had a look at their website and I'm very impressed - an Ethiad A350-1000 might happen at some point! 

 

Hope the cats are well

 

Dave G

[Turbofan]

Hi Alex,

Well that's quite superb! You mentioned because of the complex design it wouldn't come out perfect but to be honest it looks pretty perfect to me!

I've heard of TBdecals but never seen or used them so it's reassuring to know they're good quality.

Glad you're back, I'm looking forward to your next models.

Cheers,

Ian

[Alex1978]

49 minutes ago, Skodadriver said:

Hi Alex, good to see you back and in such spectacular fashion! That really is a fantastic model which fully justifies your hard work and persistence. 

 

I associate TB Decals with racing cars and I didn't know they made airliner decals. I've just had a look at their website and I'm very impressed - an Ethiad A350-1000 might happen at some point! 

 

Hope the cats are well

 

Dave G

Thank you very much Dave.

Yes,thats right,TB decals produce mostly  racing car designs but they also offer some rather nice airlinerdecals.

Their quality is really good,the decals are thin but very durable and can handle a lot of movent while placing them correctly.

I hope they will extend their airliner range,I would certainly buy from TB again.

Yes,the cats are well,I also have one more since October 2019,a girl cat and an absolute sweetheart.

Hopefully I can convince her to appear in one of my next photosessions....😉

Edited December 8, 2020 by Alex1978

[Abandoned Project]

Wow! Awesome, and then some!

That is a beauty. 

Thanks for the Tbdecal review, much appreciated.

Your hard work has really paid off.

[Alex1978]

45 minutes ago, Turbofan said:

Hi Alex,

Well that's quite superb! You mentioned because of the complex design it wouldn't come out perfect but to be honest it looks pretty perfect to me!

I've heard of TBdecals but never seen or used them so it's reassuring to know they're good quality.

Glad you're back, I'm looking forward to your next models.

Cheers,

Ian

Thank you very much Ian.

 

Yes,there are wrinkles in the decals in some places,which were unavoidable,but from a normal viewingdistance,they are hardly noticeable.

I can really recommend their decals.

 

I have a load of airliners waiting to be posted,ranging from the A318 to the 747.

Stay tuned for their appearance,just need some time to photograph them all,also the weather is an issue sometimes now as I usually photograph them on my balcony due to better lighting.

Edited December 8, 2020 by Alex1978

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

Unusual and attractive scheme! Congratulations. All the tribulations paid off at the end.

Sea turtles are indeed magnificent creatures, it's wonderful to see them celebrated.

I photographed them frequently while snorkeling in Hawaii:

[Alex1978]

34 minutes ago, Moa said:

Unusual and attractive scheme! Congratulations. All the tribulations paid off at the end.

Sea turtles are indeed magnificent creatures, it's wonderful to see them celebrated.

I photographed them frequently while snorkeling in Hawaii:

Thank you very much.

Thats right,I also find turtles very interesting and wonderful creatures.

Very nice picture you made here.

[Abandoned Project]

8 hours ago, Alex1978 said:

I have a load of airliners waiting to be posted,ranging from the A318 to the 747

 

[Team Aer Lingus]

That's another stunner Alex  well done on finally finishing the beast 

 

thanks for sharing

 

regards

 

Eamonn

[Viking]

Fabulous job on that Alex, it has come out beautifully. One to be proud of for sure!

 

Cheers

 

John

[busnproplinerfan]

It looks good on the stand. Well done.

[swralph]

Lovely modelling.😀

[Homer]

Very colourful piece of work, well done 👏 

[RMCS]

Outstanding 

[Back in the Saddle]

That was worth persevering with - excellent result Alex! 👍

 

When are you building the other two...? 😂

[Alex1978]

17 minutes ago, Back in the Saddle said:

That was worth persevering with - excellent result Alex! 👍

 

When are you building the other two...? 😂

Thank you very much.

 

No way that I am going to do the other two.

They are very nice too but live is too short...😉😂

[BerndM]

Your big boy looks great.

[Zulu Hotel Alpha]

Fantastic job!

A380 may not be the most attractive airliner to look at but have enjoyed flying on it's upper and lower decks on various airlines.

[phil1]

Looks amazing alex! an absolute stunner and..... great to see you back. I love the ANA a380 themes and thought about doing one of these myself one day. That table is probably quite large but the model has dwarfed it! Any chance you can get any larger pictures of it? (the model not the table)

 

thanks again

 

Phil

[Alex1978]

58 minutes ago, phil1 said:

Looks amazing alex! an absolute stunner and..... great to see you back. I love the ANA a380 themes and thought about doing one of these myself one day. That table is probably quite large but the model has dwarfed it! Any chance you can get any larger pictures of it? (the model not the table)

 

thanks again

 

Phil

Thank you very much Phil.

I can do some detail shots,if this is ok for you.The model is very big,so larger pictures of the whole A380 are not really possible

Alex

[Alex1978]

On 28/05/2021 at 11:34, phil1 said:

Looks amazing alex! an absolute stunner and..... great to see you back. I love the ANA a380 themes and thought about doing one of these myself one day. That table is probably quite large but the model has dwarfed it! Any chance you can get any larger pictures of it? (the model not the table)

 

thanks again

 

Phil

Hi Phil,

Here to your request some close up pictures .I hope these are ok.Due to the size of the model,its not that easy.