A6M3-3A Zero Fighter, Maj. Saburo Shindo

[speedgraflex]

Hey now! That’s exquisite! Your use of asymmetrical weathering effects is subtle (top corner of the seat, for example) and effective! There is a lot of color work that is tied into reality with grace.

[KennyX]

Mr. Medic Man,

I believe it is probably the result of some cross-contamination. What probably happened was I accidentally used the same medicine dropper to get some of the chipping fluid that I’d used to dose-out some Mr. Lwveling Thinner or Clear coat, or something.

John,

Thank you sir!

Bruce,

Thanks brother, much appreciated! And thank you for noticing that assymetry- I really had to work on that in the sense of tamping my OCD down enough to let myself weather that way. Do things weather in symmetry? Sometimes it’s possible, but not all the time. And thank you also for noticing how Iniswd the colors. The oil paint filters and washes are, for me, what tie all these different elements together. I’m glad I pulled that off, it’s a relief LOL

[speedgraflex]

Superb. I know what you mean about disabling the impulse to define by symmetry. It’s so cool to see these results in the weathering process. Very realistically done, Ken.

[KennyX]

Here we go folks, the results of hairspray chipping test #2:



1. The zinc chromate chipped-down to bare metal area there in Doug The Paint Mule was covered in five thin coats of Aqua Net hairspray, sprayed out of my airbrush at 15 PSI.

2. Aqua Nat was given ten minutes to dry.

3. Paint was applied in the “Bomb It On” method.

4. The chipping on the wing and wing root was done an hour after the paint was laid-down.

5. The chipping on the forward and upper part of the fuselage was done after the paint had dried and cured for roughly 20 hours.

I did the chipping by wetting the target area with a brush and water, and then very gently tapping ornbrushing the wet area with the tip of a wooden kabob skewer. This allowed me to get small chips and leave them, or turn them into bigger chips and scuffs if I wanted. Then I’d brush the flaked paint away, gently.

Very happy with this! And the chipping seemed easier after the pint he cured some too. That was an interesting discovery.

So there we go! A hairspray method that worked reliably for me! I got exactly what I wanted in this test.

[KennyX]

Also- Cockpit walls are done!

[LyleW]

That is some great progress! Part of me thinks the chipping is a bit much....then you see pictures of IJN aircraft. Seems their paint was a bit non-stick in a lot of areas. I like the effect the more I looked at it. Well done, sir.

[KennyX]

Lyle,

I think you and I are similar in terms of our preferences in terms of this asthetic. Looking back to my Corsair, I chipped way too aggressively in too few areas. It would have been better to chip smaller, much smaller, in a greater number of high-traffic areas. As to the Zero, yes- you can chip quite aggressively and still be “correct” BUT- it’s a balance. I’ll be chipping small *and* aggressively on this project, but I’m not going to overdo it. I’d say this latest experiment is tending to the overdone side.

Also- I’ve changed my mind. Im using the Flat Aluminum as the base instead of Chrome Silver. The silver will scream way too loud under the Dark Green 2. The Flat Aluminum should look nice and not shout too much.

[KennyX]

Oh! Let me state for the record, for anybody who’s gonna try this chipping thing the way I do it- the bottom layers (bare metal and zinc chromate) were sealed with Mr. Hobby super Clear and that is one tough lacquer.

[speedgraflex]

[KennyX]

Here thanks Bruce!!


Small update today! I painted and dry brushed and installed the guns into the IP, and then installed the IP by fastening it to the cockpit floor. Good, solid fit!



It’s almost time to seal-up the fuselage! I’m stoked.