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453rd Museum build 1/72 B-17F Academy with a possible friend!


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22 hours ago, Hamden said:

 

Nice to see this one back  again, nav: and bombardier compartment looks stunning

 

   Stay safe        Roger 

Cheers Roger, it’s good to be back at it, hopefully broken the back of it! That said still have the get a vac form set, make the resin engines fit and get it all painted and decal…. Actually better not make a list of thing that need doing….

19 hours ago, The Spadgent said:

What an update.🤩 Certainly making up for lost time. Looking great. 😃 

 

Johnny

Cheers Johnny, much appreciated!

16 hours ago, Cookenbacher said:

Glad to see you back at this Rob, and those scratch windows are amazing!

Thanks Cookie, a lot of this is a first for me and I’m happy with how it’s going, definitely building my confidence with scratch building.

9 hours ago, giemme said:

I concur with my learned colleagues, here: scratch built windows look the biz, and so do all the interior bits. Excellent job! :worthy:  :clap: 

 

Ciao

Cheers G, your is looking exemplary as ever! Hopefully I can keep this going in a positive direction!

 

cheers all

 

Rob

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9 hours ago, VT Red Sox Fan said:

What an update—now you have me inspired to take another look at those Academy B-17s in the stash—really like the framing.  Looking forward to the wings—best, Erwin 

Maybe look at them Erwin, then sell them and get a Revell or airfix 😂. I would say I’ve probably picked the worse one for building Belle, the revell kit at least gives you the guns for the nose… not sure how the rest of the kit compares? I really enjoyed the airfix b17G.

 

thanks for the kind comments though! Really appreciate the support!

 

Rob

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  • 1 month later...

So the b17 hasn’t really progressed much, it’s been mainly sanding filling sanding, glueing, glooping sanding…. The seems have needed an unnecessarily large amount of work to get sorted, and it’s still not completely sorted. 
 

I have no pictures of the seem work being done, but I have re done the gun mountings in the nose with slightly thinner plastic, and the correct placement as could not live with the old ones. I recycled the old guns and then drilled small holes in one of the vac form nose cones I have.

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unfortunately this was rushed and the holes were wonky, so I broke out the spare, made holes added the guns and then the frame.

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And that’s about it! However I did start on the B24! I still haven’t been given any decals for a particular build for the museum, I feel Jim may be a bit snowed under.

 

Its going to be a B24 D whatever it turns out to be, and if I don’t get any I will just build one of the many D options I have lined up, probably Strawberry B or another polesti raider.

 

any how, started on the cockpit. I’m using the photo etch that came with this kit, it’s the eduard ‘mission centenarians’ edition which comes with photo etch for CP, waist gunners and wheel wells.

 

the CP.

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I used these 3D decals for the seats and photo etch seat belts. The photo etch controls are a little flat, but I won’t be shelling out for resin again, I’ve already spent a bit too much on these!

 

Bit of a dry fit

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I think I might need to adjust the IP a bit as think it’s spoiling.

 

then I started building up the waist gunners areas.

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and that’s where we are at the moment, still a way off! But hopefully more next week.

 

Rob

 

Edited by rob85
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Wow, those interiors look great, Rob! 3D decals look to be very effective, and with your weathering they give a very realistic touch :clap: :clap: 


Ciao

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7 hours ago, giemme said:

Wow, those interiors look great, Rob! 3D decals look to be very effective, and with your weathering they give a very realistic touch :clap: :clap: 


Ciao

Cheers G, as ever very kind of you! The 3d stuff appears to work ok, had to trim it so it would fit the seats but think that’s because it’s made for the revell kit. I have the seat belt set so will try those on another build.
 

Rob

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5 hours ago, The Spadgent said:

Interiors are looking great. Sometimes my Flickr pics don’t embed so I just paste them in a few times and bingo. Not sure if it might be the same thing here. 
Johnny

Cheers Johnny, I had a few more goes and it appears to be fixed now 👍🏻

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 4/3/2022 at 8:50 PM, TheBaron said:

Very nice interiors indeed Rob.

Hope you've been keeping well mate - I'm sorry I missed the start of this one. :thumbsup2:

No need to be sorry at all. Yes been pretty good just very busy with work etc, so only been dipping in and out of BM and modelling time is few and far between. I’ve booked some days off next week so hope to get these moved forward! I need to to start getting on with other models, I have been on a spending spree on heavies over the last year, I have 4 lancasters including a grand slam, b24 j and two more D’s and a B-29 just landed…. It’s very big… and 2 Hase b25’s, airfix b 26, wellington, Beauforts, beaufighters in many marks…. Actually probably best I don’t make a list…

 

hope things are good with yourself and the family? Need to hop over to see how those amazing sea vixens are doing!

 

Rob

 

 

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An update before more work on these today. 
 

B17. Wings are on and a 1mm wedge has been used to get the dihedral in a better place. This was then trimmed, sanded and filled.

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Filling was done using white millput, pressing and thinning this down then using a wet finger to sand flat a wipe excess. A messy process but still prefer it to sanding.

 

once this had cured and been cleaned up underside paint was added.

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engines were dry fitted, resin above the kit offering. Only issue was these were for the revell kit and the little plug was too big for the academy kit. So I cut this section off the back of the kit engines and glued it to the resin engine. Sadly forgot to take a pic of the process!

NCmI2sY.jpg

 

a bit more work today and sorting out of the upper seem still!!

 

B24

 

i have been working on the waist gunners area and trying to get as much detail as possible. So below is the one side and how it has progressed.

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and painted, just need to sort the gun mount and guns

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my second go at scratch building an interior and think it’s improved. I need to focus on getting it neater and not using so much glue. Any tips are very much welcome.

 

Rob

 

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Todays progress… I found it disappointing 

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I started with the Hataka blue olive green, but it was not going down anywhere near as nicely as all the other colours I have used. It had a semi gloss to it and just wasn’t levelling out, making drip marks that had to be removed. So I went with my faith old tamiya paints, and used their olive green… which has come up more like a Luftwaffe green!! It needs to be lighter, so will probably used revell paints as I know how they act and and the green is a better match… but then that will be a million layers of paint and won’t look smooth! So annoyed. I will attempt to remove some layers with polishing sticks (I use the ones for shaping and shining acrylic nails). But I feel a bit defeated by it at the mo, it’s not the quality I was hoping for if I’m honest, and can’t help feeling I should have binned this and gone with the revell kit early doors, certainly would have saved me time and about +£40. Anyway, I shall persevere.

 

the B24 however is coming along nicely.

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etch for the wheel well


this has now been painted and washed but will take a photo when it’s dried.

 

cheers all and sorry for two updates in a row, photos were not loading.

 

Rob

 

 

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I agree with Ced here, Rob :clap: And that paint job doesn't look too bad to me. I guess with some minor buffing you'll have it sorted.

 

Ciao 

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On 4/24/2022 at 8:57 AM, CedB said:

Nice progress Rob, despite the paint issues.

 

About time I made some progress on mine…

you take all the time you want Ced! Cheers for the kind words, hope everything is going well your end.

On 4/24/2022 at 12:58 PM, giemme said:

I agree with Ced here, Rob :clap: And that paint job doesn't look too bad to me. I guess with some minor buffing you'll have it sorted.

 

Ciao 

And buffed it has been! Cheers G

On 4/24/2022 at 5:28 PM, Cookenbacher said:

The green may be a a little too green, but dang is it smooth, you have certainly become a brush painting maestro Rob!

It’s way too green, looks more like a Brit tank! As ever too kind cookie.

 

so this got a rub down with loads of different polishing sticks, and a tip I got off the b25 build of using an old cotton tee. Very helpful who ever said that.

 

so the new green is Hataka early olive green, behaved much better and tried it on a paint mule first, which I should have done before. Here’s the first two layers.

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and the third, I think it’s looking much better, and will get another polish followed by a 4th layer and another polish.

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however looking at pictures maybe I didn’t need to worry so much about the quality of the finish.

iY450Xm.jpgnext steps will be transfers and then evidently lots of weathering. 
 

the b24 has also moved forward. I’ve started on the other side of the waist gunners area. Trying to make less mess.

 

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so far so alright! Hopefully a bit more tomorrow. 
 

Rob

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On 5/2/2022 at 3:35 PM, Fritag said:

Terrific scratchbuilding on the B24 interior Rob; and how you can get a paint finish  like that with a brush is beyond me.  Way beyond me.  Respect. :D

That’s incredibly kind of you, my scratch building needs some work, but I feel it’s a start and something I can improve on

On 5/2/2022 at 4:11 PM, CedB said:

Looking much better rob, great stuff :) 

Cheers Ced!

On 5/2/2022 at 8:01 PM, giemme said:

Sweeeeet green coat, Rob! :clap:

 

B25 interiors looking ace too!

 

Ciao 

Thanks as always G!

 

so final layer down and it was left to cure then given a polish. Below pictures are of one wing polished and the other not to see the difference.

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and then the whole thing got a good going over.

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All I need to do now is add the medium green and de-iceing boots and engine cowls and should be good for decals and weathering!

 

B24 is still progressing, these little plastic bits are time consuming!

 

T6tpT7p.jpgbut they are done and painting begins. And the gun mounts were added to the floor.

6783Ht2.jpggetting there!


cheers for the support and kind words all.

Rob

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