SPA Modeler

Very nice work on the tank and prop. For two little and "unimportant" pieces, just stunning in the realism. I guess I was lucky on my kids. For the most part, they stayed local...except for the time my son was deployed with the KYNG. Congrats all around.

LyleW wrote: I guess I was lucky on my kids. For the most part, they stayed local...except for the time my son was deployed with the KYNG .

Yeah, for the Guard after 9/11 "one weekend a month my a$$!"...

Thanks for the encouragement guys! I know that this is a natural part of parenting that all of us parents must go through. Still... that didn't stop my eyes from leaking when we got into the car without my daughter and headed out of Berkeley back down to San Diego. I'll probably pop into the workshop this weekend and try to get going on this build.

When you are ready, I will be here, and I do not think I will be alone, either. A lot of folks here are following along with you. Take the time to process the change, John. That much I know. I just downloaded your engine cowling photos. You really nailed the crank opening on the gun cowling perfectly, just the right amount of lifting to the sides--a very accurate representation of the actual piece.

The support is appreciated! A little bit of work on the Dora to report. After a flat coat to seal the wash, some weathering on the drop tank has been performed. Weathering to this point has consisted of very light post-shading of edges with a brown/black mix and chipping with several different colored pencils.

Outstanding work JKim, excellent attention to detail!

BorgR3mc0 wrote:Outstanding work JKim, excellent attention to detail!

You really do not skimp on all the small details that add up to a serious "wow" factor when you put it all together.

Great work John,

It is certainly the little details that set great works apart from good works.

Regards,

Stikpusher wrote:

BorgR3mc0 wrote:Outstanding work JKim, excellent attention to detail!

You really do not skimp on all the small details that add up to a serious "wow" factor when you put it all together.

Thanks for the comments! I guess I'm a big believer in small details. I'll hold up the entire build to get certain details finished correctly. I like to isolate these small areas and work on them as if they are standalone pieces. And also, to build up the layers of detail slowly. The drop tank may or may not be done. I'm thinking about adding another layer of weathering to simulate fluid stains. From the archive pictures that I have, the Dora drop tanks don't seem to have the heavy fluid staining that the Bf109 tanks were apt to show.

While I'm pondering that decision, I am creeping along on the Dora main assembly. There is a portion of the fuselage bottom that needs to be riveted so I'll take care of that now. First with the pencil guide lines.


The rivet lines are rolled on using the Rivet-R Mini. Along with the lines that run parallel to the fuselage, there are also some lateral lines of rivets that are also applied.


The pencil lines are wiped off using iso alcohol. At this point, I found a little bit of seam work at the shimmed joint that needed to be done.


After that bit of cleanup, I rescribed the panel lines and shot the area with primer.



Flipping the plane over, the wing root cleanup has gone through about 3-4 iterations and is ready to be checked with a primer coat.



Most of the cleanup work has been done on the Dora and I'm all almost to the point of starting the camo painting. Before I start painting, I have a few things to address including: (a) installing the windscreen and masking off the cockpit, (b) masking off the wheel wells, and (c) masking off the wing flaps. I'll also have to consider the order of the painting. I'm thinking of doing some hairspray chipping so I may deviate from my normal order to make sure that the chipping is done relatively soon after the camo paint is applied.

Well, with your thorough build log here, and your sub assembly approach to this project, you've given me some new approaches and methods to ponder for future projects. Not to mention detail points such as the dings in the drop tank that make perfect sense, but had never thought of or at least noticed before. Thanks for sharing all this on here John. I enjoy your updates to see what will be next.