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USAAF 4th Fighter Group Spitfire (Tamiya 1/48 Mk Vb) * FINISHED 30 NOV (+ few extra photo’s)*


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  • 2 weeks later...

My last words a couple of weeks ago were:

 

On 9/30/2021 at 12:46 PM, Fritag said:

More faffing when I'm back from Scotland in a little over a week's time.

 

Well they were prescient in that I have indeed spent a week faffing about trying to get the joins between the transparencies and the fuselage adequately neat.  A certain amount of scribing had gone on, only to be c*ck*d up and filled and redone; and a certain amount of PPP and Mr Surfacer has been applied and smoothed and polished and  reapplied and as I say general faffing about has taken place.

 

I shan’t bore you any progress pics because progressive is a misleading term for such a recursive process.  But eventually spittie got spat out of the loop in a primed state…

 

So:

 

Deja vu view (see what I did there? :D) of the windscreen base coat of interior green:

 

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And an overall prime with Alclad grey primer and microfiller.

 

I know Alan and others have had major issues with Alclad primer recently; but this was an old half full bottle that I topped up with Mr Colour levelling thinner, all shook up, test fired on a paint mule and which then (seemingly) polished up nicely with micromesh - and so hopefully it will play nicely.

 

Anyways - it’s dried overnight and is ready for polishing:

 

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F2BEF6B0-46D9-48B1-BEDB-77B54F8AB312

 

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Surgery, seams, scribing, home-brew resin additions, brass cannons, plunge moulded scoop on top of the cowling et al, all seem to have blended together well.

 

Whisper it quietly - but it doesn’t look like there are any seams etc that need further attention.

 

Knock me down with a feather…..

 

 

 

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21 minutes ago, Fritag said:

I shan’t bore you any progress pics because progressive is a misleading term for such a recursive process.  But eventually spittie got spat out of the loop in a primed state…

 

We will take on trust of course (without pictures) that progress was as you described .......... been there done that!

 

What a splendid result before our very eyes now however. The thinned Alclad looks the biz. My experiences with it have been wholly variable, ranging from very good, to quite naff. I reckon it's down to batches.

 

Cue Giorgio soon perhaps for some paint ............... 😁

 

Terry

 

 

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it's all looking rather elegant, even before you've brought the crayons out.

I do so like your little bulges (!) though perhaps I should have written that a different way.  They are very unnoticeably noticeable with just the right amount of if they weren't there, I'd probably see that they weren't there.

I should probably stop now

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7 hours ago, Terry1954 said:

The thinned Alclad looks the biz. My experiences with it have been wholly variable, ranging from very good, to quite naff. I reckon it's down to batches.

 

My feelings exactly, with my experience trending more towards the "quite naff" end of the spectrum. I think I eventually gave up and just shoot any old grey paint as a primer.   :drunk:

 

*****

 

I can't wait to see this Spitfire adorned with @Fritag's glorious paintwork. Bring it on!    👍

 

Cheers,

Bill

 

PS, You know, Mr. Friday, you really should leave some mistakes on the model. Only God is perfect.

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Super-smooth primer coat, Steve - everything did blend in properly! :worthy: :clap:

 

8 hours ago, Terry1954 said:

Cue Giorgio soon perhaps for some paint .............

'Xactly... :rofl:

 

Ciao 

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Having filled the (not brilliant) joins between the wing tips and the rest if the wings I’d forgotten to reinstate the panel line - so time to rectify that, to- and bottom both sides.

 

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Neat enough:

 

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Thought I’d spare you another 3 almost identical photo’s.  I’m thoughtful like that :D

 

Every man and his dog is using chipping fluid over a silver coat these days and I’m easily led - so….

 

Micromeshed the primer then gave it an overall coat of Alclad aluminium - and then micromeshed it smooth.

 

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Chipping fluid next - then painting proper.


 

 

 

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4 hours ago, hendie said:

I do so like your little bulges (!) though perhaps I should have written that a different way.  They are very unnoticeably noticeable with just the right amount of if they weren't there, I'd probably see that they weren't there.

 

On reflection, I like one of my bulges rather better than t’other.  I don’t know if that’s a common feeling….  And there’s a certain lack of symmetry.

 

Anyway; it’s probably better to fix it now rather than prevaricate and then decide to do it after the camo coats….

 

There will therefore be a slight hesitation whilst the bulge is symmetricallified (isn’t verbification generally an American propensity?  Sorry….)

 

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1 hour ago, Terry1954 said:

. is that sellotape you are using as a scribe line?

 

1 hour ago, perdu said:

Steve do tell all please.

 

Not sellotape - it’s some clear tape marketed IIRC ‘specially for scribing.  I’ve got some that is 3mm wide and some 6mm wide:

 

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It’s thicker and lower tack than sellotape.  A bit like Dymo tape without the backing tape.

 

It works ok and the fact that it’s transparent is sometimes quite useful.  It was useful here, as I was able to see through the tape to line it up parallel to an existing panel line.

 

I’ve lost the packaging but I think I picked it up at a show several years back.

 

3 hours ago, Navy Bird said:

PS, You know, Mr. Friday, you really should leave some mistakes on the model.

 

Thanks Bill; I’m gonna take that as either permission to do so - or p’raps even an order to do so.  Either way it’s bloomin useful top-cover - seeing the multitude of sins and c*ck ups so far I’ve  carefully avoided photographing - and all the others that are an inevitability…..:D

 

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I have at least now improved my errant starboard wing bulge and better symmetricallified (sic) the two of ‘em.

 

Have to say that I hate the look if it in it’s tatty silver undercoat.  Catches the light in all sorts of ‘orrid ways.  Motivation to get on with the proper painting and cover it up!….

 

 

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21 hours ago, hendie said:

I do so like your little bulges (!) though perhaps I should have written that a different way.  They are very unnoticeably noticeable with just the right amount of if they weren't there, I'd probably see that they weren't there.

Next time you're in Scotland Steve I suggest investing in a larger sporran!

 

Ian

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2 hours ago, 81-er said:

Out of curiosity Steve, what level of micromesh do you use between coats?

 

It depends James.  If the existing coat has gone on smoothly I usually just polish it a little - generally with something like the 6,000 or 8,000 cloths wrapped around a small foam block.  But if I think the surface is a bit too rough or textured I'll start with something between 2,400 and 3,600 and then polish it.

 

It’s generally only a few minutes work and it helps stop cumulative-coat roughness building up.  Of course it might only be my poor airbrushing technique that gives rise to the need! I wouldn’t know :D

 

 

Edited by Fritag
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I confess to having had reservations about this chipping malarky….

 

It seemed to work quite nicely earlier on, on the spinner (see somewhere above) - but even then I didn’t find the the Mig Ammo chipping fluid comfortable to airbrush.

 

So I practised on a paint mule today - in between dilatory efforts at real work.

 

The pain mule spittie is primed but it didn’t seem to matter how lightly or heavily I sprayed the fluid, or if I thinned it or not, it just landed and beaded 😱

 

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Tried different air pressures and even different airbrushes…..

 

Leaving it dry in all of its beaded nastiness suggested a good degree of self-levelling and gave a little room for optimism.

 

 

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And rather surprisingly a quick coat of black went over the dried fluid with a smooth finish showing that it had nicely self-levelled.

 

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And then it proceeded to chip-off in accordance with expectations on a crude test after wetting the paint surface and wielding a cocktail stick with minimal finesse.

 

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So now I don’t really know whether:

 

a. the beading is just a property of the fluid that self-levels and I can safely ignore it, or

b. the beading is just a property of my poor technique that I can ignore anyway - because the fluid will save me by self-levelling , or

c. It’s better to bin the idea on this build in case it beads on best-spittie and doesn’t then self-level. 

 

In true lawyerly fashion I think I’ll compromise and have a bash on best-spittie but apply the fluid to fewer and smaller areas than i might otherwise have done….just in case like….

 

 

Edited by Fritag
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I must admit, I so want to try this chipping idea, but am terrified to try it out myself!

 

It doesn't look too bad on the paint mule so maybe the cautious little bit on this one approach is a good plan?

 

Good luck!!

 

Terry

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9 hours ago, giemme said:

Too crude for a gentleman? I know I can be quite rough... :shrug:

 

Rough?  You’re not fooling anyone G …..Smooth Italian style all the way…..

 

So when I airbrushed the chipping fluid onto best-spittie I was forewarned and just ignored any beading - and it did indeed self-level to a smooth finish:

 

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And I’ve just begun to apply some preparatory tonal variations to the base coat ready for the camo.

 

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Note to self - I need to tone down the black a somewhat before applying the camo colours as it’s a bit disproportionately intense (Edit: done that now post these photos - with a light dusting of white).

 

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On 10/17/2021 at 8:51 PM, TheBaron said:

Is that glove and glasses your new visual signature Steve, like that chap's calling card in the old Milk Tray chocolate ads? :hmmm:

 

Bloomin ‘eck; I’ve just noticed them in the last couple of photographs too.

 

The answer Tony is: No, Nope, No way, Never, Not a chance; them is never getting photo space again.  Something vaguely sinister about having nitrile gloves as your signature look….

 

 

 

Edited by Fritag
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