SPA Modeler

Looks real good!

Hi BlackSheep - Actually it is a visual illusion. I sprayed too much black and I lost all the marbling! So what I did was to add marbling of dark grey XF-77 IJN Grey onto the grey. This helped soften the color.

BlackSheep214 wrote: I just can’t figure out how did you manage to keep the marbling underneath the black panel. It looks like the real thing. Well done.

Thanks, Stikpusher!

Stikpusher wrote:Looks real good!

Adding the Decals
One thing I can say about the decals is that they are very good. As long as you prep the surface smooth and clean, they work very fine. They are thin, in register and works well with Mr. Mark Setter and Mr. Mark Softer. You get two sheets, One for the cockpit and missiles armaments, and the other is for the exteriors.



For the last 4 builds, I have not used any gloss pre-coat before the decals. That means I have been applying decals directly onto the paint surface without the help of any gloss coat. It has worked very well so far. The key is a very smooth paint finish and good thin decals. The two combination is important as if you only have one factor, then the whole thing wont work.

By using this method, I was able to:

• - Cut short my working man-hours
  - Avoid additional dust on my kits
  - Save a bit of money
  - Get a better matte finish off my models

Like the pre-gloss approach, you still get 1-2 decals that were just stubborn! Extra decal solutions and point of a sharp blade did the work





But many other decals, performed magnificently. They reacted very well with the solution and just melted onto the surface.

Washing Process
Nothing fancy for my washing technique. But I try to keep the panel lines color subdued (far away from using black) and not to contrasting with the color of the aircraft.



Matte Coat
My preferred flat coat as of now. Decanted onto the airbrush and sprayed directly (without any thinner). it gives a really flat finish on the first spray/contact.

Installing the Wheels
One excellent part of the kit is the semi-white metal landing gear. once installed and tested, the look good and help uphold the weight of the main kit. I have heard how the AMK plastic landing gear were not strong enough to hold the weight up.



The rubber vinyl tires are great but I need to work on the shine. Later on I would spray this with XF-85 Rubber Black.



Armaments and Fuel Tanks

Fuel tank looks good. seams were horrible and I spent considerable time filling and sanding it.



Some of the missiles on display. Hobby boss provides FOUR examples of each missiles but only gives you TWO decals to help you complete it. Seriously, I just don't get the logics.

This just keeps on getting better and better...

Final Bit of Work
This actually includes a couple of things, mostly the PE external bits and various blade antennas. though tiny bits they are quite arduous to do. Masking and painting the small items were an issue as well as keeping everything intact while gluing the last one of them. You definitely don't want to ruined the previous paint job, right?



painting the pink window sealant, typical of Russian aircraft



antennas, probes and everything in between





Adding the missiles. and matte coat them so it blends in with the aircraft

Nice Meme, Stikpusher!

Last but not Least
Installing the ejection seats, detail painting the canopies and installing them into the hinges.





The most difficult part when installing the clear canopies was to add 4x glue points (2 oleo struts and 2 hinges) and have them in a straight alignment.