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The T’riffic Tale has Ended.


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5 hours ago, Corsairfoxfouruncle said:

If you find out please add the name, I can use something like this. Mostly I use two elastic bands, one on the bottle the other on the cap. It works well but not always perfect.  

Honestly, I use my molars 😬. Doesn't work for the big Tamiya jars though.

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19 hours ago, Corsairfoxfouruncle said:

If you find out please add the name, I can use something like this. Mostly I use two elastic bands, one on the bottle the other on the cap. It works well but not always perfect.  


Here you are uncle.

 

https://www.emodels.co.uk//mr-hobby-mr-cap-opener-56.html?gclid=Cj0KCQjwsZKJBhC0ARIsAJ96n3WSbFV2HT8-Pm8JoHwJgZUlgXBowr8f4g2-w5Z_s7ZggNrZugzjEjoaAsCSEALw_wcB

 

 

 

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Day #4

 

It's been a slam-it-together-before-interest-is-lost-completely sort of day. Nevertheless, I learned some things.

 

 

 

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I learned that it's possible to apply Stynylrez primer with a brush to small components.

Not as good as spraying it but good enough to avoid the hassle of airbrush set up and clean for 10 seconds of 🌬️

 

 

 

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I learned that the Hasegawa 1/72 Phantom actually goes together quite well. Minimal filler required and all the little steps and gaps were on the bottom (which was the plan). The black lines around the intakes are paint+glue which has leached out of the joins. I used my favourite cement for difficult situations, neat Xylene. I bought a litre for airbrush cleaning after using lacquers and since I don't do that anymore, I've got enough for gluing for a decade with plenty left over for getting high. That's the main problem with this stuff - ventilate! Ventilate! It melts the surface of the plastic just like the other thin cements but it goes deeper and the gummy edge stays adjustable for a good few minutes. Then it sets like stuff on a blanket! Not suitable for small parts which it will eat completely. It also eats through paint like Xenomorph blood through a spaceship, as you see.

 

 

 

y4mNnDmGEDNRy6l4GhmCjRvdXrh2HU1_RskOrjwv

 

I learned that I can paint some tiny details but not the tiny, tiny ones. So I got the seats painted up approximately.

I used Vallejo paints and a hairdryer to speed things along.

 

 

 

y4mHrJnf2Ea085WrR5R1lXBPpRUQdDXV3muN1ilU

 

I learned that the cockpit looks a little better with seats in blocking the view of the decals of yesterday....

 

 

 

y4mPd-2wIDZiQ-1RGxr7Kg4P2axphobBTtgzqbOK

 

...and even better with the lid on!

 

You'll notice the nose u/c and the doors are in place. Why not, It's all going to be white, so I may as well paint it all in one go.

 

 

 

y4mRA7dyaPyvsQd43uGJgOAnIWUnI1XZexPiKISs   y4mhEu5jLsBpH3Z1mdQCrdoceFZ9IdxJhFIgcz_E

 

I learned that my fake intake experiment sorta worked out ok. I proved the concept to my satisfaction and if I'd been more careful/dextrous it could be a 'Good Thing'. The fake shadow does make the intake appear deeper and the 'round shiny object' appears in the gloom to be engine-ish enough. Those photographs of the intake face which show every detail are taken with photographic lighting, you know.

 

 

 

y4mSq3x2v2Xt7xUFl8ZcNcwXGrBAjyJAhBT7yd8S    y4mcuBr1sgInmjmgSLCQ2TXWEpBsDcxXnbrS9KoO   y4mhyXOK9A0JROpgtpx8v-6cxlPR5-pWNMW2Yhtb

 

While the canopy was drying, I stopped learning and painted the tyres in the usual way. Some folks might not know this quick and easy method so:

 

First, spray the whole thing in hub colour and when dry tickle with the enamel/oil wash of your choice.

 

B. Run tyre colour acrylic paint, really well thinned, into the tyre/hub dividing crack and let it dry.

 

3. Paint the tyre, easily since you don't actually have to get right up to the hub.

 

Obviously this works best with a well defined moulded division between the rubber and the metal.

 

 

 

Th... th... th... 

 

y4m2xQ1cfBDR9DkBC5Z8PEwMcxaWqfgbymuRYDOb

 

 

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Day V

 

 

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Canopy masking has never been something that I've enjoyed, endured being the better word. There might be 2.25 less area to cover in 1/72 than in 1/48 but that's no compensation for the exacting work involved. Honestly, I'm getting a really useful insight into working in the smaller scale. I don't like it much but I have gained a much greater appreciation of our nimble-fingered brothers and sisters who do it all the time. 

 

Blown up on my screen to approx. 1/32 scale, I can see what a mess I've made here. Well, it will have to do.

 

 

 

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Primed and ready for paint, and of course in Ghostly Grey, it's almost possible to mistake it for something that looks slightly, in a good light, and with a following wind, like a Phantom shaped object.

 

I used Stynylrez primer which is wonderfully forgiving and dries ready for painting over, in zip minutes flat. It's been decades since I started using acrylics and their drying time still seems unreal. I always give them extra time if I can.

 

And that's your lot for today.

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It's been a jolly interesting day at Blandings. First, the postie brought me this!

 

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This cost me several limbs to get in from the Continent on the recommendation of someone on here last week. I'm awfully sorry but I can't remember whom. Anyway, this is a Good Book in the same way that the Tamiya Phantom is a Good Kit. It's not huge at 176 pages plus fold out drawings and is more or less 9" square. This makes it really convenient for use on the workbench. Inside, well, just take a look at this randomly selected page.

 

 

 

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It's packed full of gen. They have almost dispensed with margins to get it all in. It's as chock full of interest as the real F-4 is chock full of techie stuff. I highly recommend it, even at 45 quid (including airmail postage from Belgium). I have no affiliation with the publishers, I'm just a happy customer who used to be a bookseller, loves books and recommending them, and can't stop looking at this one and going "Blimey, look at this!" to the dog. (She thinks it's rubbish because it's not even edible!)

 

The thing is, good people, the book has totally scuppered my plans for the GB. With the 'best model of all time' and the best reference book I've ever seen on my desk, how can I not go for a 100% effort build? You know the sort of thing - when one spends all week adding buttons to the joystick and the weekend painting it. Clearly that's not going to mesh well with a ten week deadline so I'm scratching my Tamiya F-4G from the race. 

 

And putting in my second string.....

 

y4ma1VnYdW9WZ5EmYVwqnuBcJ_C6BGqsX-JzyXDq

 

Which was originally moulded in 1980 by Esci. That sounds like a lot of light hearted fun and games, wouldn't you say? It's coming my way from the shops quite soon and I'm fairly sure I will be able to bash it into some sort of objet d'air by closing time. Still Two 'Tooms. Maybe more interesting as we have no shortage of Tamiya on the track already. I'll keep @Ghostbase company in the Old Kit Section.

 

And now, back to the business of the day.

 

 

 

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There's paint on it! I have found that I can paint the topsides of a 1/72 Phantom with one airbrushful or paint and still have some to put back into the bottle. The green was soft edged so I was able to freehand it - I love it when I can dodge masking. I sprayed some highlights in a slightly lighter green along the spins and the curve of the 'shoulders'. It looks good to me but is beyond my capabilities as a photographer at the moment, sorry. I had resprayed the underneath too when I realised that I'd used stark bright white the other day while messing around with the wings and tanks. I never use pure white or black on a model so I've added a drop or two only of a blue/grey to my bottle of X-2 White. I think it looks much better but you will still perceive it as white. The same way we perceive clouds as white, but you just try painting pure white clouds on a picture and you'll see what I'm getting at.

 

 

 

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I also achieved a smoother and more opaque finish over primer. As you all were thinking but not saying earlier in the week. lol.

 

Tomorrow will be devoted to masking the tail and radome for some NMF and some not quite black paints. I think the back end of the F-4 is one of its best bits and I'm looking forward to fiddling with  it immensely.

 

 

 

 

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  • Bertie McBoatface changed the title to The T’riffic Tale of the Two ‘Tooms – Hasegawa Goes Green and Tamiya Goes Away. Bring on the Sub - Italeri to the Rescue!
2 hours ago, Bertie Psmith said:

It's packed full of gen. They have almost dispensed with margins to get it all in. It's as chock full of interest as the real F-4 is chock full of techie stuff. I highly recommend it, even at 45 quid (including airmail postage from Belgium). I have no affiliation with the publishers, I'm just a happy customer who used to be a bookseller, loves books and recommending them, and can't stop looking at this one and going "Blimey, look at this!" to the dog. (She thinks it's rubbish because it's not even edible!)

You can se now why  had to lie down in a darkened room after buying the Phantom, the Starfighter and the F-16 books,  hang on!  I thought you said you had sold the dog to pay for your book?

 

 

2 hours ago, Bertie Psmith said:

Which was originally moulded in 1980 by Esci. That sounds like a lot of light hearted fun and games, wouldn't you say? It's coming my way from the shops quite soon and I'm fairly sure I will be able to bash it into some sort of objet d'air by closing time. Still Two 'Tooms. Maybe more interesting as we have no shortage of Tamiya on the track already. I'll keep @Ghostbase company in the Old Kit Section.

 

I built one in the 80's when it came in the Esci box, I wonder how it has fared after all this time?

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3 hours ago, Bertie Psmith said:

And putting in my second string.....

 

y4ma1VnYdW9WZ5EmYVwqnuBcJ_C6BGqsX-JzyXDq

 

 

I've just read a review of this which said that parts are included in the box to enable an F-4B to be built, and therefore an F-4G. I'll still need to make the fin cap a plain one though, but that's not a major problem. So I'll probably be able to use the three tone jungle cam and decals as previously intended for the Tamiya kit. You'll hardly be able to tell the difference between this and the Tamiya - what's 40 years in model manufacturing development? Small potatoes!! 🥸

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15 hours ago, Bertie Psmith said:

 

y4ma1VnYdW9WZ5EmYVwqnuBcJ_C6BGqsX-JzyXDq

 

Which was originally moulded in 1980 by Esci. That sounds like a lot of light hearted fun and games, wouldn't you say? It's coming my way from the shops quite soon and I'm fairly sure I will be able to bash it into some sort of objet d'air by closing time. Still Two 'Tooms. Maybe more interesting as we have no shortage of Tamiya on the track already. I'll keep @Ghostbase company in the Old Kit Section.

 

 

 

 

 

Yep, I believe that's derived from the original 1980 ESCI kit, will be interesting to see what is inside the box when it arrives. The decal sheet looks huge! I have built three of the ESCI kits over the years and personally I really like them. The last one I put together I added a spare Hasegawa cockpit and seats and that made a huge difference. I am sure that an "objet d'air" connoisseur like yourself will be looking at the rather sparse jet air intakes, 'burner cans, and main wheel well detail. The only real down of the ESCI moulding is the canopy which can be very difficult to fit. Oh, it should have recessed panel lines which back in 1980 was very advanced indeed. Good to have some company in the Old Kit Section 👍

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1 hour ago, Ghostbase said:

 

Yep, I believe that's derived from the original 1980 ESCI kit, will be interesting to see what is inside the box when it arrives. The decal sheet looks huge! I have built three of the ESCI kits over the years and personally I really like them. The last one I put together I added a spare Hasegawa cockpit and seats and that made a huge difference. I am sure that an "objet d'air" connoisseur like yourself will be looking at the rather sparse jet air intakes, 'burner cans, and main wheel well detail. The only real down of the ESCI moulding is the canopy which can be very difficult to fit. Oh, it should have recessed panel lines which back in 1980 was very advanced indeed. Good to have some company in the Old Kit Section 👍

 

Hello there Comrade! 

 

I was going to ask you if it had recessed panel lines. It wasn't mentioned in the reviews I read and I couldn't tell from the pictures. I was expecting to be rescribing so it will be a great help if they are recessed. I haven't made an ESCI kit for years, the last being their Storch, which I remember enjoying. I'm planning to use the Quinta cockpit 3D decal set that I bought for the Tamiya and the resin seats ditto. I became completely carried away with the excitement of the GB buying aftermarket accessories, because everyone else seemed to be doing so. Silly me. 

 

Other that that, I'll improve the kit where I can with the traditional methods: wire, plastic card, bits from the spares box etc.

 

Thanks for letting me know what to expect.

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13 hours ago, Bertie Psmith said:

I've just read a review of this which said that parts are included in the box to enable an F-4B to be built, and therefore an F-4G.

Esci always claimed it could be built as a B or J but it did not have the original thin wings, just the later bulged ones and all the u/c doors and airbrakes that were changed by adding the wing bulges to accommodate the wider wheels.  Just sayin. :whistle:

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41 minutes ago, Retired Bob said:

Esci always claimed it could be built as a B or J but it did not have the original thin wings, just the later bulged ones and all the u/c doors and airbrakes that were changed by adding the wing bulges to accommodate the wider wheels.  Just sayin. :whistle:

 

Well, it's only a hobby ain't it. I'll just pretend.

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2 hours ago, Retired Bob said:

Esci always claimed it could be built as a B or J but it did not have the original thin wings, just the later bulged ones and all the u/c doors and airbrakes that were changed by adding the wing bulges to accommodate the wider wheels.  Just sayin. :whistle:

I have that exact kit in the stash and it still makes me smile when I look at it 😎

 

The odd thing was that the same kit had most of the main parts needed for an F-4C, maybe a D; being the rounded USAF wing pylons, shorter burner cans, and the IR sensor/probe under the nose cone. The stabilators were slotted but they could be sanded smooth quite easily. I will be interested to see whether Bertie's kit contains these or not. The Italeri 2005 rebox did.

 

Michael

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33 minutes ago, Ghostbase said:

I will be interested to see whether Bertie's kit contains these or not.

 

So will I. It's been dispatched by Scale Model Shop on a 48 hour postage deal but with the holiday on monday I'm not expecting it until tuesday, which is perfect for me as the Hasegawa is going to take a little while yet.

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She's really starting to look like a phantom now!

 

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I don't enjoy masking as much as UNmasking. Revealing the result is always a big thrill for me, together with the tension of wondering how it will turn out.

 

 

 

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I'm pleased with this so far. Much more to do with washes etc, but this base coat is ok. (Better than the rushed photo anyway.)

 

 

 

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I used Vallejo Metal Colour. I like that you can mask over the top of it within a few minutes of application. I remember how fragile Alclad was before I went over to acrylics and do not miss it!

 

However, caution is the watchword at this stage so I'll be glossing the whole thing next, putting the decals on, and then satin coating prior to oils.

 

Tomorrow.

 

I'm exhausted now.

 

(Geddit?)

 

 

 

 

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1 hour ago, Dansk said:

Looking good sir. Oooooh 🤗 that Daco book i bet is gorgeous.

 

What, this one?

 

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It's a long way past gorgeous. 

 

I always wondered what that intake and the two vents were for. Every page is like this.

 

The latest one in the series is the EE Lightning, and there's a reprint of the Tomcat, and there's a Starfighter one too.

 

https://www.dacoproducts.com/

 

@Retired Bob, it was you who put me onto these, wasn't it?      Everyone blame Bob!

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y4makDdkZT0CbB4iY4x30DRWaZcZxCX36e2bq8_-

 

The Tamiya Gloss went on like glass. I've been using a 0.4mm nozzle which I originally bought for primer only. I've been using and fighting against 0.2mm and 0.15mm nozzles on my H&S Infinity for years. The slightest thing would blocks them and then I'd pull back too far and get a splash! In fact, the smaller one has only ever really worked reliably with inks. Now I'm finding that I have better flow with the largest nozzle and virtually no loss of control. I found this out when doing tanks last year and this is the first time I've used it on an aircraft - a small aircraft too. (I'd think again if I was doing Luftwaffe mottle though.)

 

Also, I've finally cottoned on to the idea of putting a layer down fast so that it's wet all over, shiny you know. Then the varnish or paint has a chance to level out and dry flat and smooooth. I had so much trouble with sandpaper finishes, for years and years, because I went too slowly (and didn't thin enough). Silly me.

 

Also Mr Color Levelling Thinner is brilliant as it stays wet for just a little while longer, enhancing the effect. I think Tamiya Lacquer with Retarder also does this but I haven't tried it out yet. As you see, I like to try new stuff, even when the old was working. It's all pert of the splendid adventure which is Scale Moddelling.

 

Another meal and then onto the decals. (Question. If this is Britmodeller, why don't we claim back the word TRANSFERS, which was what Airfix called them when I was a bairn? Decalcomania (decal) is a French word which replaced transfer while I wasn't looking towards the end of the last century. (No offence intended, France, I'm just nostalgique!)

 

 

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28 minutes ago, Bertie Psmith said:

Also, ...Silly me.

 

Also ... splendid adventure which is Scale Moddelling.

 

Another meal and then onto the decals.

 

Looks like I'm rather hyper tonight.     (Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!)

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The transfers...

 

y4mQBbqpQwfhbKgk2ldBB1bBWEhYnUdiKT5KyPA2

 

...are...

 

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...ON! (Actually just the aftermarket markings as the stencils, for the underneath only, come from the Hasegawa kit and will be done in the morning)

 

And I love the scheme. I think it's very elegant. Even my supervisor approves.

 

y4mtSUpHBe7xfHdT0aEjEu2v2GckdX8Cs4KyTO0M

 

"Tasty!"

 

 

 

 

Evenin' All!

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y4ml-Vw9V5ZsoIe3uRyhPWHtT8s_er6SXkPkKAwj    y4mcmOilET-Bml0y5mwPZeeo_1wThldFyaqSsw2U    y4mjO1I1mpHsnhRXP4TBK1lYXCx4K8iBN1Zx8nNg  y4mNUi8aeYMWykDSx9hHEHdopK-8jdCvCm39Ikct

 

Today I started to put those stencil markings on the underneath but I'm not hyper today so that never happened. They were just too tiny for me to handle. So I did a little detail painting while browsing my book. #1 are the canopy open/close buttons. That seem to have been stiff to press because they bear the dents and scratches of a thousand metal tools. In a larger scale I'd have hit the spots more precisely. #2 is a static vent and here I managed to dab the two circles fairly concentrically, yay me! #3 was Vallejo Metalcolour Chrome for the fescalised portions of the oleos and jacks, that's the shiny bits which are actually manufactured with a slightly porous surface to hold oil in order to lubricate the seals. Finally, #4 that steel point on the radome, which was intended to take the shock of Mach two flight and protect the fibre glass radome material. It turned out that the radomes used to break up immediately behind it instead.. There were more little bits and pieces but I don't want to bore you.

 

 

 

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Except this was interesting. The camouflage colour was left off this little triangle and the Gull Grey shows through. Possibly for temperature related reasons, I suppose. You can see it clearly on my reference photos. 

 

 

 

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You can also see how fragile the 'rubber based' temporary paint was and that's what I'll be doing next.

 

 

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  • Bertie McBoatface changed the title to The T’riffic Tale of the Two ‘Tooms – Hasegawa Goes Green, Brown and Generally Mucky, while Italeri is now due Tuesday.

 

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When you last saw this little birdie, she was looking all christine.

 

 

 

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Not a mark on her. Which is a look that I find rather toy like, being a fan of storytelling by weathering.

 

 

 

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A little oil paint later, I've modulated the green and shadow washed some of the panel lines. Not too heavy, and not all of them. And not black. 

 

 

 

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Ah, that's better. She looks, to me, a bit more like a bigger thing.

 

 

 

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More fun underneath. browns from the engines, reds from the hydraulics. Nothing too subtle.

 

 

 

y4mXAr5TsE4zspnFAYoF2ZIEfsGxJha7eDi0NEoN

 

And very dark grey at the back. Here I'm hoping to draw your eyes away from the glue marks and generally rubbish construction.

 

I've got to let those oils go firm before I can do anything else. I'd like to try a little bluing/browning around the titanium shingles though I think it might be too small an area for me to work well in. And then there's all those touched up areas of paint to do which will be a paintbrush job. And then there's a fading chalky effect on the upper fuselage, mostly visible at the back, which I'd like to try to capture. I think it might be salt staining?

 

How do you like the photos? I've changed my background from cutting mat to canvas boards from the Works at £5 a pair and the camera can now automatically set a white balance - at least on my monitor. For me the green of the aircraft is now spot on on my screen.

 

 

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