Special Hobby Mirage F.1AZ Armée de l'air Gabonaise 1/72 - 26oct21 decalled (almost) and resting for a while :)

[Courageous]

Nice work Martin. Getting used to your liberal use of PPP...

 

Stuart

[Terry1954]

I thought i had this one marked to follow but it seems to have dropped off. Great progress there Martin. Always thought the Mirage F1 was one very sleek looking jet.

 

Terry

[RidgeRunner]

3 hours ago, Terry1954 said:

I thought i had this one marked to follow but it seems to have dropped off. Great progress there Martin. Always thought the Mirage F1 was one very sleek looking jet.

 

Terry

Unusually, Terry, I have made good progress on this one - until today :(. Having got her ready for priming I applied the canopy paint masks. Foolishly, I now realise, I opted for the SH product. However, they are not the right shape and also have subtle differences. The shape issue means that they are not deep enough and the ultimate painting would creep too high up the horizontal edge. I tried a few times but eventually gave up. So, I've ordered some Eduard masks! 

 

I also wrestled with PE this morning. The parts in question were (note the past tense  ) the plates that sit behind the spherical sensors on each side of the nose. In the end they got the better of me and my patience ran out. I then fashioned similar copies in very thin plasticsheet and applied them. They better as the adher better and take the curve of the surface easier. 

 

So, now I wait for the postman!

 

Martin

 

PS: I agree about the Mirage F.1 - a beautifully proportioned, sleek machine

 

 

[Hook]

Soooo... the SH masks don't fit the SH kit..?

 

Weird.

 

Cheers,

 

Andre

[RidgeRunner]

1 hour ago, Hook said:

Soooo... the SH masks don't fit the SH kit..?

 

Weird.

 

Cheers,

 

Andre

I thought it was odd too. I tried many times but then gave up  In fairness it is a subtle discrepancy but I know its there!

 

Martin

 

[RidgeRunner]

3 hours ago, RidgeRunner said:

I thought it was odd too. I tried many times but then gave up  In fairness it is a subtle discrepancy but I know its there!

 

Martin

 

It might have been me and my dodgey fingers!!!! I have removed the windcreen now, cleaned the seating and repainted the area. I will re-fit once the paint is dry. Then, once the Eduard arrives, I will mask it

 

Martin 

[RidgeRunner]

22 hours ago, Courageous said:

Nice work Martin. Getting used to your liberal use of PPP...

 

Stuart

 Thanks, Stuart. It does rather messy! 

[Bertie McBoatface]

I admire your persistence. I'm looking forward to seeing how it turns out after your uphill battles with the kit.

[RidgeRunner]

No photos but I have had the windscreen off and cleaned, and re-fixed it on the cockpit. With fingers crossed 🤞 I think it is looking better. My Eduard masks arrived today so I will get them on very soon and will back at the coal face chipping away

 

Martin

[Hook]

I use AK Interactive putty for these jobs:

 

https://ak-interactive.com/product/modeling-grey-putty/

 

The stuff cleans up with water, and can be sanded when fully cured.

 

Cheers,

 

Andre

[RidgeRunner]

1 hour ago, Hook said:

I use AK Interactive putty for these jobs:

 

https://ak-interactive.com/product/modeling-grey-putty/

 

The stuff cleans up with water, and can be sanded when fully cured.

 

Cheers,

 

Andre

Thanks Andre. I still have half a tube of PPP but might try this one too :).

 

Martin

[RidgeRunner]

A bit more done today. I've been getting the nose sensor window done as well as other small bits and pieces. One of these has been the two small windows behind the canopy. They cover the escape lever/mechanism. SH would have you install two miniscule transparencies. Naturally, these got a whiff of fresh air and very soon after they were on their holidays around the carpet of my study! I then decided to fill the gaps with CA glue and sand that back to form the windows. It worked (for me at least). I also, as I mentioned  previously, got new plates cut for the nose side sensors (IR?), as below:

 

 

There are a number of little bits to add and I will get them attached after priming. I have also decided to fit the nosewheel leg at this stage and then to add the closed main nose wheel door. Having consulted my references they show my machine in this configuration. I'm guessing that having all doors open means the aircraft is without any form of power?  Having applied the Eduard canopy masks, masked the nose sensor and other small bits I got her primed. Before that I got all the remaining parts together:

 

 

and then set about applying Humbrol 1 Primer:

 

  

 

After drying I'll check around for blemishes and unseen gaps etc, fill/sand them and then the fun begins - painting!

 

Martin 

[RidgeRunner]

The first paint is on! Before that, though, I got a few of the antennae attached, initially thinking she was in SAAF configuration but I was wrong. So I added and then removed! ;). There are blade aerials below the nose and rear fuselage that these machines do not have. I addition there is a white/metallic small bulge along the spinal, which I have added with plastic card. This is addition to the dorsal nav light. Along with this I check for blemishes in my building and repaired as needed. It was then a matter of starting with the paint. The first two applications were 1) black - the nose cone and tyres and 2) 27002 Polish Aluminium for the central band around the jet pipe and the brake chute housing. The later will have a white band around it later, possibly with decal. 

 

 

Next will be the darker metallic parts on the jet pipe, which I will do over the weekend and allow to dry before the first major application - the grey! For this I am still debating the best colours. The grey is the one that is puzzling me the most. It is like a dark Ocean Grey. I've searched around and can't find anything thatfits perfectly. Therefore I will use Colourcoats Ocean Grey with a lightening addition of white or lighter grey. See below for the exact machine and the colours in question. 

 

One question I do have for the collective - What colour should the intake lips be? It looks like a darker grey than the undersides. Any ideas? Thanks in advance. 

 

 

also, because I've now realised that the kit seat is poorly detailed:

 

 

So far I am on schedule - that is most unlike me!!!

 

Martin

 

[modelling minion]

Coming along nicely Martin.

I have been looking at images of SAAF F.1AZ's to see if they have a noticeable different colour on the intake lip but haven't been able to find anything yet that shows it clearly, I shall keep looking. It could perhaps just be a gloss coat for protection?

 

Just checked and I think I might be right about the gloss protection on the leading edge of the intakes. Have a look at this video,pause it at exactly 6 minutes and you will see that the camo colours reach the intake lip but you can also see a gloss effect and different points of the video;

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-CBziVSufM

 

Edited October 8, 2021 by modelling minion

[Hook]

This is a CZ, but the colours should be the same: 

 

https://www.sa-transport.co.za/aircraft/dassault-brequet/mirage_f1-cz_saaf201.html

 

Cheers,

 

Andre 

[exdraken]

Mk 4 seat  

Colors, maybe this thread helps:

https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235006351-south-african-mirage-f1az-colours/

[eclipse]

6 hours ago, RidgeRunner said:

One question I do have for the collective - What colour should the intake lips be? It looks like a darker grey than the undersides. Any ideas? Thanks in advance. 

I hope it helps...

[RidgeRunner]

4 hours ago, exdraken said:

Mk 4 seat  

Colors, maybe this thread helps:

https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235006351-south-african-mirage-f1az-colours/

Thanks Werner.

1 hour ago, eclipse said:

I hope it helps...

Thanks mate

1 hour ago, eclipse said:

I hope it helps...

Thanks mate

[RidgeRunner]

So, having deliberated long and hard over this grey I have decided to go with a mix of Dark Sea Grey and Medium Sea Grey, borne out by finding the Hataka SAAF paint set which quotes BS381C-638. However, Dark Sea Grey seems a little too dark so I'll lighten it with the Medium Sea Grey. Fortunately I have both on the shelf :). They also quote BS381C-298 BS Olive Drab for the green, which looks bang on! Jamie @Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbiesat Sovereign Models kindly helped out and I should have some in post this week.

 

 

 

Today I got the final metal applications done. I''ll mask them tomorrow and get the grey on! 

 

Martin

 

[RidgeRunner]

The first proper coat went on today. As I said earlier, I decided to go with a mix of Dark Sea Grey and Medium Sea Grey for the undersides. The former is too dark and the latter is too light. So, a mix was in order - something I am never comfortable with in case I need to touch up and get the mix wrong! Anyway, I went with it, mixing around 6:1 Dark to Medium, using my favoured Colourcoats. Scalewise it is probably as good as I can get, although the rivet counters etc may not agree :(.
 

Here she is with her undergarments on and all the various other bits in the same colour

 

 

 

 

 

I know, I know, you cant see much difference from the Primer!!!! Trust me, in real life it looks pretty good and matches (almost) the lower image of the two posted by Andre @Hook 

 

Martin

 

 

[Hook]

Looking pretty good from 'ere!

 

This is a CZ, but the colours should be the same: 

 

https://www.sa-transport.co.za/aircraft/dassault-brequet/mirage_f1-cz_saaf201.html

 

Cheers,

 

Andre 

[RidgeRunner]

21 minutes ago, Hook said:

Looking pretty good from 'ere!

 

This is a CZ, but the colours should be the same: 

 

https://www.sa-transport.co.za/aircraft/dassault-brequet/mirage_f1-cz_saaf201.html

 

Cheers,

 

Andre 

Here is a better shot, Andre, with the colours most realistic

 

 

 

Martin

[RidgeRunner]

Today was a day of partial success. I got her masked ready for 1) painting the wheel wells and 2) the "tan" areas. It took a while, as these things do.

 

 

For the former I used Humbrol 27001 Aluminium. That went on fine and once dry enough I gave it a quick buffing before masking those areas in readiness for the "tan".
 

As I've said before, I planned to use Vietnam Tan for this. I got a new tin of Colourcoats ready and set above applying this to the required areas. As time went on I thought it looked too pink, although it compares okay against some of the photos of these machines.

 

 

I kept going until I got to the point of realisation that it really was too pink!  So, I chucked out the anchor and came to an abrupt halt, not before giving her an ample number of thin coats, thus:

 

 

You can see in this picture what I mean. I had ignored the instructions at my peril and despite them quoting Dark Earth (definitely too dark) I realised that I needed something more akin to it. Having searched my paint stock I found Colourcoats ACRN26 Light Earth. You can see below that it appears to match the instructions quite well.

 

 

In fact it is a great match and, actually it is much closer to other photos of my target aircraft. I've had a brain lapse! :(. Fortunately the Colourcoats go on very thinly and so I just need to now leave it all to dry and then attack her again in a day or two with my Badger 200 armed with a dollop of ACRN26 and thinner . I'll sleep on it before then, just to be sure. Back again soon!

 

Martin

 

[RidgeRunner]

I awoke today, checked the paint, and it has lost its pinkish hint overnight :). It now looks fine  

[Hook]

On 10/12/2021 at 4:45 PM, RidgeRunner said:

Here is a better shot, Andre

She's one sexy beast!