SPA Modeler

portman wrote:I suspect that'll look very good when it shows through on the chipping - well done that man.

Thank you, Stuart! One big issue I had on my last Corsair was the unwieldy nature of trying to deal with chipping on a localized level. Too much masking. Bad steps. This way makes it much easier for me, plus- I like the look of these colors sprayed over bare metal. I’ll pre-shade in spots as well to add depth in certain places of course, but yep, I’m digging this way of doing things.

I'm really liking the approach you are taking with this! Love the variations of the finish on the fuselage

Bruce,

Thank you! That’s where I’m trying to be. In a place where I’m out of my comfort zone, and I’m refining techniques and approaches, and learning new ones.

Mr. Handiabled,

Thanks so much! I’m having a really good time with this one...

So much so that I just bought one in 1/32!

I’m stoked. I got the leading wing edges painted and chipped early this morning. Here’s a photo set of the progression:

After the Mr. Hobby Super Clear has 24 hours to cure:


Here the aircraft has been masked, and Aqua Net hairspray has been applied via airbrush to the targeted areas, and painting has begun. Here was a light, misting coat of Flat White, followed by another coat or two marbled, just shy of the panel lines:


Next came the orange. I mixed equal parts Red and Yellow, and then added white. That initial attempt was far too red-leaning. So I took two drops of that and mixed it with four drops of Yellow. It immediately became too Yellow, but I sprayed it anyway. After a light coat of that, I mixed one drop of red, three drops of yellow, and one drop of white. BOOM. Here’s the final product with the decal for comparison:


Chipping came next, followed by a buffing with a microfiber pad. Here are the results:








Up next: Insignias!

Very nice on those leading edge ID stripes! Both on the chipping, and on the color mix...

great match on the yaller. Now, if that were me? I'd have about a gallon of yellow mixed up. Who da thought to use drops!

Thanks fellas! And Lyle- yessir, drops. I can’t afford to waste much of anything in my modeling. Especially paint. So I use glass medicine droppers and small tattoo ink cups for dispensing and mixing paint. Drop by precious drop. Any time I give a formula like Flat Yellow:2, White: 1 it’s always by the drop.

Okay, so back to it, lunch break Hinomaru! Two down, four to go. Let’s take it from the top!

I cut the mask out of wide Tamiya tape using the circular cutter John recommended earlier in the thread. It got the job done easily. First I cut out a square of the Tamiya tape. Then cut out the large circle which encompasses both the white and the red, and from that large circle I cut the mask for the white.


Next I thinned some Deck Tan down, 3:1 thinner to paint and marbled it on the inside of the insignia. I kept the pressure at 10PSI and was very light on the trigger.


Next I thinned White down 3:1 thinner to paint, and began applying it in the same careful, easy-going, marbled manner, building it up very slowly.




After that, I applied the mask I’d cut and set aside for the white very carefully, and began laying down the red. I began with Hull Red, thinned 3:1 thinner to paint


And next came Red, thinned 3:1 thinner to paint, same protocol, thin, marbled coats.




And the results!




This is the first time I cut masks and painted insignia. I’m very stoked about how these came out. And I don’t foresee the use of decals for insignias like roundels or crosses anymore if I can help it. I really like how they look painted on.

These will be left to dry and cure over the weekend while I work on the other four. Then they’ll cure for a few days. After that comes the Green and Gray green.

Outstanding!

Beautifully done, I'm getting ready to paint insignia for the first time using maketar masks. Hope they come out looking this good. I also use tattoo ink cups to mix paint drop by drop and when ever I find a formula I like it gets wrote down for the next time.