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Hairbrush A380 (Emirates)


Milo Black

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Well, the Handley Page Flying Foodmixer is done, the Wide Russian is progressing nicely, 2 months of this GB left to run, and I haven't built a biggie since the 1/72 Concorde - so tonight I opened the box on a Revell A-380. Box and sprue pics are taken, but waiting for the camera to recharge before I can upload them.

Livery TBC - the box decals are Lufthansa, but I'm going to have a lookie-see for some aftermarkets (I'll build Russian aircraft, but I draw the line at German ones ;) ). Suggestions welcome!

Edited by Milo Black
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Livery TBC - the box decals are Lufthansa, but I'm going to have a lookie-see for some aftermarkets (I'll build Russian aircraft, but I draw the line at German ones ;) ). Suggestions welcome!

Well, my choice would be the Aussies;

http://www.twosixdecals.co.uk/epages/62035...roducts/STS4475

But Singapore;

http://www.twosixdecals.co.uk/epages/62035...roducts/144-380

and Emirates come a pretty close joint second....!!!

http://www.twosixdecals.co.uk/epages/62035...oducts/STS44104

Keef

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Well, my choice would be the Aussies;

But Singapore;

and Emirates come a pretty close joint second....!!!

Keef

There's already an A380 from Upside-Down Airways in this GB, Keef - be a shame to do another one the same.... but I'm thinking Emirates at the mo :)

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There's already an A380 from Upside-Down Airways in this GB, Keef - be a shame to do another one the same.... but I'm thinking Emirates at the mo :)

I should have checked that, shouldn't I....??!! :doh: Emirates does look very nice....!! (difficult for me to build one though - being a lifelong Spurs fan!!! :D )

K

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Again, I've been thinking about windows. There are no transparent parts for windows with this kit (other than the main screen), so that simplifies things.

Fill and decal? There are (opaque) window decals for all the options I'm thinking about, so this would be a possibility.....

... but there are also transparent window decals... and I do like the look of transparent windows.

Clearfix is not an option - getting the outer surface flush so that the decals will settle won't happen.... and besides... all those windows... at 1/144... I would be chewing at the carpet by the time I got them all done.... I have a feeling that this kind of activity is banned under the Geneva Convention.

... but how about backing the window apertures with clear strip, and then filling the resulting recesses with white glue? I'd need to overfill slightly and then sand flush when dry.

I'm almost-certainly going to do a test-run of this on a couple of windows to see how it turns out - but has anyone tried anything like this before? And with what results?

Edited by Milo Black
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... but how about backing the window apertures with clear strip, and then filling the resulting recesses with white glue? I'd need to overfill slightly and then sand flush when dry.

Would you be able to sand white glue flush? And even if you can without tearing up the surface would it actually stay clear? And if it didn't could you restore the clarity?

I have read of someone doing this with clear casting resin - in his case backing the outside of the windows with sellotape & pouring in the resin from inside the fuselage. In that case you could sand down the resin if needed & polish it back to clarity. But then you're left with the problem of masking all them 'ickle windows! So I guess you could then resort to the old trick used with Airfix (& others now of course, it's just that when I started using this method only Airfix made airliners!) airliners that have the clear windows & that is to paint the fuselage around the windows before doing the clear bits & then after building & filling the fuselage ,paint the rest of it....

Never tried the clear resin myself, but its in the back of my mind to do so - one day!!

Keef

Edit;

I knew I'd seen someone using a very similar method but with epoxy recently. Check out O&P's Viscount build in this very group build!! (he does have the advantage though of working in a bigger scale - & the Viscount had fairly big - and not so many - windows!!

Edited by keefr22
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Hi Milo

Try clear decal film - cut a strip 3-4 times wider than the height of your cabin windows (or match a convenient panel height as this helps mask the decal edge) and 3-4 window widths longer than each strip of windows. For an A380 that's 8 decal strips per side. If the kit sheet has the option of silver window frames with clear windows, these can be used either on their own or doubled over a strip of clear film as above for extra strength. A coat of Klear and you've got easy, good looking flush clear cabin windows.

Dave

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Would you be able to sand white glue flush? And even if you can without tearing up the surface would it actually stay clear? And if it didn't could you restore the clarity?

Three questions that I had myself - hence the need for a test run :)

I have read of someone doing this with clear casting resin

Yup - I saw this too - maybe Plan B.

paint the fuselage around the windows before doing the clear bits & then after building & filling the fuselage ,paint the rest of it....

That's how I'm doing the IL-86 - although that has the bonus of having a cheat-stripe decal along the windows, so the paintwork doesn't need to be of highest quality as it will be hidden under a decal anyway. Not the case on the A380, so not sure if I could get the finish consistent enough.

Thanks for your thoughts, Keef.

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Hi Milo

Try clear decal film - cut a strip 3-4 times wider than the height of your cabin windows (or match a convenient panel height as this helps mask the decal edge) and 3-4 window widths longer than each strip of windows. For an A380 that's 8 decal strips per side. If the kit sheet has the option of silver window frames with clear windows, these can be used either on their own or doubled over a strip of clear film as above for extra strength. A coat of Klear and you've got easy, good looking flush clear cabin windows.

Dave

Hadn't thought of that - good suggestion, Dave. It's the "poke-through resistance" of unsupported decals that I'm concerned about - but adding an extra strip of clear film underneath should boost that.

Hmmm..... some test-pieces coming on, methinks.

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I've been using decal strip for over 8 years now, and transported models to various model shows round the country - the decal windows are surprisingly resilient, i've not lost any through normal handling - aerials pitots, and the odd undercarriage maybe, but not the windows. If you do lose one carefully remove the broken decal from the window apature with a no 11 blade and patch with a new small bit of clear decal.

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What a beast

just a bit larger than Plasticart's IL-62 in 1/100 ;)

I bought the same kit for my GB Interflug Airbus.

Maybe I'll buy the other A380 package in the livery version 'cos I could need the red door decals. The Lufthansa kit has grey door decals included.

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Actually its only a tad bigger than the 1/144 scale 747, or a 1/72 victor/vulcan etc.

how much are they anyway?

Strange as it is, I dont own a single one....

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Actually its only a tad bigger than the 1/144 scale 747, or a 1/72 victor/vulcan etc.

Yes, it's not *stupid* big - but still a fair-sized kit - about 50cm each way. 1/72 Concorde is longer (85cm) but not as wide (36cm wingspan). 1/72 Vulcan is about 42x42cm-ish.

how much are they anyway?

Mine was £17.99 from modelsforsale.com.

Emirates decals now on the way from Two-Six for this :)

Edited by Milo Black
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Have started chipping away at The Hairbrush.....

Dry-fit of main airframe: tailfins and one wing are glued, one wing left to do (I ran out of clamps :) ). She is defintely a big girl....

Progress0731_1.jpg

Cockpit - I haven't gone to a lot of trouble with this, as it will be behind a very small screen and not really visible, so just slapped a bit of paint around.

Progress0731_2.jpg

An Hengine - I'm doing one to start with to check on paint choices, etc, before doing all four.

Progress0731_3.jpg

Need to add the spinner decal on the front fan.

Progress0731_4.jpg

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Good start, do you have an airport to park her on when she's finished....??!!

Heh... no, but I've been to Homebase today to buy another model shelf ;)

Bit more work on this today - glued the other wing, painted some small bits (wheels, insides of engines and the like), and built the two (very detailed six-part) inner-main gears. Cockpit is glued into one fuselage half, as is the nose gear (although I've left the nose wheels off for now - it'll be enough of a miracle if this doesn't get broken during handling, so I don't want to push it).

Because of the Emirates scheme, and because the wings are a recessed (very good snug) fit into the fuselage, I'm figuring that I can probably paint wings and fuselage separately, and only being them together quite late in the build - the Emirates scheme has an all-white fuselage (including the underbelly, except for the red Emirates badge), but the underside of the wings is grey, with the usual mix on the top surface - so this will make it a lot easier to get the paintwork neat if I don't have to mask along the wing roots.

I've decided to go with clear decals over the windows (thanks Dave S for that suggestion - I've got hold of some Microscale clear decal for a first-pass before adding the window-frame decals). The plan is to mask the window recesses (from the outside) with blutac, paint the fuselage interior in dark neutral grey, then remove the blutac (nice clean recesses - tick) and mask with tape from the *inside* - then I'll paint along the window lines from the outside, doing the recesses as I go. The masking tape can come off before I zip up the fuselage, and I can then blend the paintwork along the window line with the main paintjob (he said, with fingers firmly crossed).

Sorry - wittering on again.......

Edited by Milo Black
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All this build stuff is all very interesting Milo, but what I really want to know is what's in the egg cup? :blink:

oh yes ... that's interesting ... 'cos I got the very same :D

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All this build stuff is all very interesting Milo, but what I really want to know is what's in the egg cup? :blink:

White spirit for brush-cleaning (hence it's pink because I'd been painting red flashes on the Wide Russian - which you can dimly see, butt-upwards in the background) - sorry not to have a more exotic answer :) There is also a HIDDEN egg-cup, behind The Great White Bird, with Klear in it (also recently used on the IL-86).... but that, of course is secret, so you can't tell anyone about that.....

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