"A Stearman Earns Its Stripes" A PT-17 Stearman in Recall Markings. ++++FINISHED++++

[AliGauld]

Magnificent masking and high quality paintwork.

This is building to be something epic.

 

 

Cheers,

Alistair

[mark.au]

Thanks gents.

 

 

Not a lot to show for this week.  I managed to get the other wing painted and mask the fuselage.  There’s going to be significant repairs required to the white on the fuselage as quite a lot lifted on the bottom as I was adjusting tape.

 

 

It is unusual for me to get that much paint lift but I think I know why - much of the lifted paint is where I polished the seam and I think the surface is simply too smooth for the paint to grip.  It’s not a difficult repair and most is in places that can’t be seen when it’s finished and on its wheels.

 

What else?  Oh, I also had catheter heart surgery to try and fix the persistent AFib I acquired a few months ago, so there was that.  
 

There’s a reason I mention this.  When it started I had virtually no symptoms - I only knew something was off because my smart watch told me my resting HR was way up and so were my stress levels.  Still, it was only after three days of that (thinking it would go away) did I call a nurse.  When she asked me what my pulse felt like after I described my symptoms she told to go to emergency immediately.  
 

There’s a significant risk of stroke associated with AFib if left unmanaged, as well as heart attack and eventual heart failure.  The last thing I ever thought I’d need to worry about was heart trouble because for decades I’ve been an obsessive endurance athlete; cycling, running and swimming.  Turns out that’s what likely caused it, but that’s a different story….
 

So, whether or not you’re endurance obsessive like me or prefer more gentle exercise, or even none at all, check your pulse every so often to make sure it’s regular and steady - especially if you feel “off” or experience any unusual sensation in your chest (it’s not pain, and you might not even notice it unless you focus).  Doing so might save your life.  

 

Cheers.

[jackroadkill]

Good progress on the model, but better progress on your health, Mark!

[2996 Victor]

Holy moly, Mark, that's a shocker! Thank goodness it was found - hope the surgery sorts it out permanently? I always said exercise was bad for you  

 

In other news, the Stearman is looking grand, even though that paint lift is a bit of a pain in the wotsit. Looking forward to seeing your next update, but I should think a bit of R&R is in order first!

 

All the very best,

Mark

[bigbadbadge]

Crikey Mark, test must have been a shock, glad you were able to get it sorted and hope you're okay and recover well. Thanks for the heads up too.

 

Stearman is progressing well and looking good masked ready for the stripes, looking forward to seeingvthose on, the lower wing looks great.

Cracking work

Chris

 

[marvinneko]

Hi Mark

 

Glad to hear you caught that health issue! I tend to be classically toxic masculine in that regard and avoid healthcare practitioners like the plague, in favour of diet, exercise, and ignorance. The wife is the opposite and should have frequent flier points from the healthcare industry.

 

The plane looks amazing. Sorry to hear about the paint lifts but you've got the skills to ghost them away.

[AliGauld]

A little paint lift to fix is nothing compared to your health Mark.

I'm really glad you caught it in time.

 

Look after yourself.

 

 

Cheers,

Alistair

[Dave Slowbuild]

Mark, thanks for the warning - but sorry to hear that it came as a result of your own misfortune.  Hope you are well on the way to a full recovery 

 

Best wishes,

Dave

[81-er]

I'm glad to hear the surgery's sorted things, Mark. My dad suffers from it as well, kicking off about 8 or 9 years ago. After several stressful nights in the A&E department due to the attacks, he had a pacemaker fitted and has been fine ever since. Definitely not a pleasent experience for anyone though.

 

James

[Dunny]

12 hours ago, mark.au said:

Thanks gents.

 

 

Not a lot to show for this week.  I managed to get the other wing painted and mask the fuselage.  There’s going to be significant repairs required to the white on the fuselage as quite a lot lifted on the bottom as I was adjusting tape.

 

 

It is unusual for me to get that much paint lift but I think I know why - much of the lifted paint is where I polished the seam and I think the surface is simply too smooth for the paint to grip.  It’s not a difficult repair and most is in places that can’t be seen when it’s finished and on its wheels.

 

What else?  Oh, I also had catheter heart surgery to try and fix the persistent AFib I acquired a few months ago, so there was that.  
 

There’s a reason I mention this.  When it started I had virtually no symptoms - I only knew something was off because my smart watch told me my resting HR was way up and so were my stress levels.  Still, it was only after three days of that (thinking it would go away) did I call a nurse.  When she asked me what my pulse felt like after I described my symptoms she told to go to emergency immediately.  
 

There’s a significant risk of stroke associated with AFib if left unmanaged, as well as heart attack and eventual heart failure.  The last thing I ever thought I’d need to worry about was heart trouble because for decades I’ve been an obsessive endurance athlete; cycling, running and swimming.  Turns out that’s what likely caused it, but that’s a different story….
 

So, whether or not you’re endurance obsessive like me or prefer more gentle exercise, or even none at all, check your pulse every so often to make sure it’s regular and steady - especially if you feel “off” or experience any unusual sensation in your chest (it’s not pain, and you might not even notice it unless you focus).  Doing so might save your life.  

 

Cheers.

Mark,

 

Crikey - I do hope you recover well. Having been diagnosed with an atrial flutter a few years ago I can empathise. Mine is easily medicated but I did have an overnight stay in the heart hotel about 15 months ago,

 

All the best,

 

Roger

[corsaircorp]

Sorry to hear about the health issues Mark !!

Take care of yourself....

Excellent job on the Stearman !!

Look what you've done, Now, I'm looking for a 1/48 Stearman too....

Congratulations and my best wishes for a quick recovery.

Sincerely.

CC

 

[mark.au]

Thank you all; JRK, Mark, Chris, David, Alistair, Dave James, Roger and CC for the kind words and best wishes.  

 

21 hours ago, 2996 Victor said:

hope the surgery sorts it out permanently?

 

I hope so too!  It'll be a few weeks until we find out once I wean off the meds and start pushing the HR again.

 

17 hours ago, marvinneko said:

I tend to be classically toxic masculine in that regard and avoid healthcare practitioners like the plague, in favour of diet, exercise, and ignorance.

 

That's why I waited three days before seeking advice when it all started, and that three days is why I couldn't be shocked back into rhythm for six weeks after that.  After 24hrs in AFib there's too high a risk of clots having formed to get averted (shocked) back, you have to take thinners for six weeks.

 

9 hours ago, Dunny said:

Having been diagnosed with an atrial flutter a few years ago I can empathise. Mine is easily medicated but I did have an overnight stay in the heart hotel about 15 months ago

 

I have Flutter too, but that's the lessor of the issues for me.  Glad you can manage it with the meds; I'm hoping to avoid a life on beta-blockers if I can because I'm not tolerating them very well.

 

9 hours ago, corsaircorp said:

Now, I'm looking for a 1/48 Stearman too....

 

That's the ticket!  The 1/48 Revell kit a real beauty, you'll really enjoy it.

 

I was able to get a little bench time this morning.  When we last saw the fuselage it was masked.  Now it's painted...

 

 

...and then unmasked.

 

 

Aside from the already mentioned paint lift there is surprisingly little touch up and adjustment to do.  I'll take some in-progress pics of the repairs to show exactly what happened (some of the lift is visible below the "1" on the port side) but otherwise all that remains to be painted is the blue on the rudder and the black for the numbers.  I'm going to use decals for the serial and model numbers on the tail.

 

Cheers.

[2996 Victor]

59 minutes ago, mark.au said:

10 hours ago, corsaircorp said:

Now, I'm looking for a 1/48 Stearman too....

 

That's the ticket!  The 1/48 Revell kit a real beauty, you'll really enjoy it.

Anyone for an informal STGB?

 

1 hour ago, mark.au said:

...and then unmasked.

Wow! Just Wow! That is one amazing-looking scheme! Your painting techniques deliver so much - the variations are so subtle yet it's undeniably there and contribute so much to the realism of the finish. A masterclass!

 

Cheers,

Mark

[2996 Victor]

Please forgive a little thread hijack, but I couldn't help but think of this:

 

I'll have your stripes

 

Only the first half is really appropriate.....

 

Cheers,

Mark

[AliGauld]

Looking spectacular.

Really sharp masking.

 

 

Cheers,

Alistair

[bigbadbadge]

Looks phenomenal Mark, great work

Chris

[marvinneko]

Your paint looks "real" which I suppose means "in scale"... if low PSI helps with that, I gotta move to low PSI. Amazing work not just for the crispness of the masking but the tone.

[mark.au]

On 22/01/2024 at 20:44, 2996 Victor said:

Anyone for an informal STGB?

I’m in!

 

On 22/01/2024 at 20:49, 2996 Victor said:

I'll have your stripes

Comic genius, I must get around to watching Peter Sellers again.

 

21 hours ago, AliGauld said:

Looking spectacular.

Really sharp masking.

 

20 hours ago, bigbadbadge said:

Looks phenomenal Mark, great work

Chris

Thanks, both.

 

18 hours ago, marvinneko said:

Your paint looks "real" which I suppose means "in scale"... if low PSI helps with that, I gotta move to low PSI. 

It’s more the control and opportunity to finesse the application that the lower pressure allows.  I try to remember that I’m not just applying paint but am actually creating a 3D representation of a real object, not just its surface.  Does that make sense?

 

Today was about fixing the paint lift and finishing the major paint job.  First, the fix.

 

 

I didn’t sand the paint down, I simply rubbed it down with my thumb (it was applied very lightly anyway) and then sealed it with a clear coat.  I allowed the clear gloss to pool slightly where the paint had lifted and then applied one more covering/blending coat.  After that, it was a simple matter to mask and paint the white.  I was very careful to keep within the lifted areas as I didn’t want to alter the patchy and worn appearance of managed to achieve first time around.  It’s not perfect but you have to look really really closely to see when I made the repair.

 

Next, the rudder.  It was a bit of a mission to line everything up because the stripes have to blend across three planes at the tail.  I made my best effort and threw some paint at it.  I should note that I didn’t quite throw as much paint at the rudder as for the other surfaces as I wanted a slightly fade effect to its finish.

 

 

While that was setting up, I painted the numbers.  The view from above shows where I’d fixed the stripes on the tail and got them

to line up with the fuselage stripes.

 

 

When the rudder had set up and was able to be handled, I offered it up to the fuselage and took a couple of snaps to mark the end of major paint work.  
 

 

I won’t do any major texturing on this finish as I got my desired effects during the initial application.  It will however get some weathering a bit later.

 

Next I’ll prepare and paint up the remaining bits and pieces for the struts and undercarriage.

 

As always, thanks for following and particularly the feedback.  Cheers.

[Bertie McBoatface]

I had never heard of these recall aircraft before. What a fascinating story.
 

You seem to be making a very nice job of it. 

[AliGauld]

Ye Gods,Man that is just beautiful.

A fantastic save on the paint lift and a tutorial on how to do it.

Thanks for that.

 

Cheers,

Alistair

[marvinneko]

3 hours ago, mark.au said:

I didn’t sand the paint down, I simply rubbed it down with my thumb (it was applied very lightly anyway) and then sealed it with a clear coat.  I allowed the clear gloss to pool slightly where the paint had lifted and then applied one more covering/blending coat.

 

Seems a very clever and effective solution. And those stripes are amazing how well they all line up. I just bought a target tug Fairey Battle and the stripes will be a challenge for the future.

[81-er]

That looks absolutely fantastic, Mark! I can't see any evidence of repair in the final shots, you made a very fine job of that

 

James

[bigbadbadge]

The stripes look absolutely fantastic Mark great job and great job on the paint lift repair too, you could have got away with not saying anything there😉

Looks superb with the rudderand tailplane in place.

Chris

[Dunny]

Mark,

 

Looking good - repair job handled with typical aplomb!

 

Cheers,

 

Roger

[mark.au]

Well, despite a lot of downtime recovering from the heart thing the other week I’ve been mired in the the minutiae and a consequent mojo failure.  I just want it to be over.  Or, I’m subconsciously avoiding the rigging.  Anyway, suffice to say, progress is slow…

 

But then this happened.
 

 

However, it’s not all lollipops and sherbet.  In my effort to ensure a good lower wing seam I put too much dihedral into it which has the left the wing much too high.  So, for now, the main struts are glued and setting up and I used the blutack to hold the cabane(sp?) struts at the correct angle until I can attach them to the fuselage.  I’ve tested the amount of force required to bring the upper wing down to the correct height and connect the remaining struts and it’s minimal.  It could all go pear shaped though.  We’ll see soon enough.

 

 

Other notables in these woefully inadequate photos are the stainless steel tubes I used for the tubes at the top of the undercarriage arms, drilling out the pitot tube, some minor weather about the place and the decals applied for the various airframe stencils.  There’s some other stuff worth mentioning but apparently not worth photographing, I'll come back to those other details later.

 

I’m running out of things to do to avoid rigging.  But, having said that, there’s quite a few build threads here I need to catch up on, so there is that.

 

Cheers.