SPA Modeler

John Eaton, That is exquisite work from a challenging kit! Have you shown the good folk at Eduard that model? Seriously, wow, that is simply stunning. I would like to see the cockpit, but I think I will go online and see if I can find the instructions. I cannot quite wrap my head around a photo-etch cockpit, but anything and everything is truly possible. Wow. That made my night. I also really like seeing good prep work, that is an area I am really working hard to catch up to the same level as fellas are doing here (seam lines on supports in particular). I don't really want to use this as an excuse but I am correcting a lot of "sloppy traits" when it comes to plastic kit modeling, so it is really inspiring to me to see what you are doing here. Super!

Eduard Floorboards



Tamiya Deck Tan
Vallejo Wood Grain
TS-30 Shine Silver foot rests
Derwent, Micron pigments [graphite + black]

I stippled the markers (0.1 and 0.3 respectively) very gently on the pilot foot rests. I did not want heavily used weathering effect; just “used.” I think there is a black art to creating this type of effect. But I still want muddy wheels because I am going to use a static grass base. Note I did not mask the foot rests, so I ended up with some wood grain splash over. In the future I will mask detail areas before brushing. At this scale I was not quite in control of where the brush began and ended. Not an apologia. Just reporting what happened.

I will airbrush UV Gloss Clear over the wood paneling for a varnish effect after I finish the side panels. Eduard added proper instrumentation details so I will paint those afterwards. Also the control stick I will inverse paint order to begin with tan for the wooden grips, then mask the grips before spraying Tamiya Gloss Black.

That looks really nice, Bruce!!!

Bruce, thanks for the compliments but the model is a bit rough when you look close. Eduard has since reworked this kit, but in the second version though the build is easier, the fabric detail on this one is better, they overdid the ribs on the new one.

The woodgrain is getting there on your flloorboards, I always have to mask because my hands have never been steady, fingers just like to move on their own!

Thanks so much, Tom! Your support means so much! All the best (I’ll be checking out your “noses” GB soon.) Also thanks, John Eaton! I thought I could pull off brushing around those foot rests, and learned my lesson. Here’s where things stand after adding a modest amount of wear, and adding a clear gloss UV coat on the wood paneling.



(Homage to Carlos with the angle of the shot.) Again:



And again:

Perfect looking wood grain finish Bruce!

Nice progress on the Eduard kit! What happened to the Aurora build?

Brent and John! Thank you both. I am building both kits. Different subjects, though, I will build the Eduard in different markings. Here is a side by side comparison. (Just in case: Eduard on Left, Aurora on right.)





Right away you notice the size difference!



I repainted the bottom of the Aurora fuselage and scribed a representation of the stitched areas. The canvas wrapper. This is to facilitate proper painting of the underside.



I had to redo one side of camo due to paint lifting. Proud to add, thanks to lessons learned here (John Kim and his post-it masks) I was able to do so seamlessly. Fresh paint within the red circle!

Gunze Dark Green
Holbein Duo Olive Green

Looks great Bruce! Are you using oil paints for the exterior? No adhesion or permanence issues? I would think it would simply wipe off even when dry.

I have more adhesion issues with my surface prep - I didn’t etch the surface or rough up the fuselage surface skin quite enough, somewhat but not enough; I trusted the ZK Primer (used on my P-51D) to etch the surface. This did not work. At all.

The Holbein oils are water evaporative, and formulated to dry quickly. I have read the white papers on how these work and this is the reason I chose to use this paint in a mixed media environment. As the paint dries it does shift to a flatter and slightly darker hue, not much of a shift but I usually lighten each color before using.

Cure time is about 12 hours. After that I airbrush matte or gloss clear as a fixative. At this point the paint is completely stable. Thickness effects cure time so I work in glazes similar to your airbrush style. The paint does not wipe off. It bonds and adds a tonal effective deep coloration to the base colors that would be a bit of a challenge in acrylics. I have thought about using watercolors, and gouache as well.

The Eduard kit is certainly more petite. I wonder what Aurora used as their reference subject?