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1/48 Hasegawa F-4E TuAF SEA


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Finally moving onto washing. I've always had issues with getting the wash color right. Fearing the same, I created test samples and applied it to the horizontal stabs to test them. I had to adjust the color multiple times. I used the oils in the pic below. To thin it, I used a mix of turpenoid and mineral spirits (about 1:1). After sludge washing and letting it dry for an hour so, I removed most of the wash with a wide brush (pic below). Then, I cleaned the rest with a piece of cloth (no pics of it yet):

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For the brown wash, I used a mix of Mig and oil colors:

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Next, I will have to do the same for the light and dark green.

Edited by Janissary
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This may have been what Honza was pointing out...

Compare this...

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With this...

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On the port side, the metallic area ahead of the vent does not stop at the first panel line, it is painted to the second panel line. Not so on the starboard side, which, to me, looks to be the more appropriate panel line at which to conclude the metallic area.

The rest is...sensational!

Edited by Air-to-Air
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Just incredible detail and workmanship Janissary! Very inspirational and you set a level of work that I want to aspire to!

-Mark

Jan... That's looking tight my friend. Awesome work.

Thank you guys!

Regarding the paint, I see, you mean on the port side the triangular sliver ahead of the vent, correct? I can probably mask that out and paint it in green. I may even use a slightly different tone to make it interesting. Thanks for pointing that out, I had no idea I didn't do it symmetrically.

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Regarding the paint, I see, you mean on the port side the triangular sliver ahead of the vent, correct? I can probably mask that out and paint it in green. I may even use a slightly different tone to make it interesting. Thanks for pointing that out, I had no idea I didn't do it symmetrically.

Yes.

I have a question regarding the riveting. I assume you used the RB productions mini riveter as you had for parts of your QF-4 build in 2011. Do you recall what tooth spacing you used on this build? Was it 0.75mm or one of the larger tooth spacings?

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I have a question regarding the riveting. I assume you used the RB productions mini riveter as you had for parts of your QF-4 build in 2011. Do you recall what tooth spacing you used on this build? Was it 0.75mm or one of the larger tooth spacings?

I thought it was 0.75mm too but just checked it, it is 1.00mm. I think I exclusively used the small diameter wheel, because the larger one is not good around concave joints.

I applied the green wash also and cleaned up everything. Here are a few shots concluding the washing step. I took probably too many pictures this way, but I feel from here on things will get flat and a little filthy, so I wanted to capture the most colorful state before it is gone. There were a few silvered decals I saw after taking these pictures, I removed them with Tamiya tape and added new ones instead.

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Those Hase decals sure stick out like a sore thumb...

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Both fuel tanks are over-weathered. I think I will just keep it this way, even though it is not that realistic.

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I cleaned up the excess wash at the bottom also. For the wheel and brake wells, I laid down a little bit of white spirits and dotted the area with the gray and brown wash. Almost like a non-uniform filter.

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I will have to weather some of the decals I think. A few people suggested rubbing the decals with an eraser to wear them down a little bit. I may give that a try. At any rate, the fuselage is way too clean compared to the fuel tanks.

Edited by Janissary
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Janissary,

With the decals you may want to try rubbing them down with some high grit sand paper. I use 4000 grit and it weathers the decal real well and also knocks off a bit from those thick Hase decals. Give it a try on a test model first. As always, the trick is to stop when you start saying "Just one more pass".

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  • 3 weeks later...

Thank you Captain. I tried the eraser idea on the underside but it did not work to my expectations. I didn't want to risk the model, so I will try a few other ideas. Here is the current status with some pictures.

For the first time, I used Vallejo satin (thinned with Vallejo's thinner) for the flat coat. I have to say I like it. It remains tacky for a few days, so you need to be careful handling the model, but all in all the results were ok.

A few bits and pieces. Light painting and nozzles.

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Aires nozzles are a little small compared to the kit's holes. I wrapped the cans in black electrical tape to give it a little bit of thickness and grip. Even then, getting the cans in the proper place is not that easy.

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Trying to make the springy things that seem to be around the canopy struts.

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Starboard load:

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Port side load. Not sure if it's visible but I tried to lightly chip the TER using a lead pencil:

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I am trying to show the rear view mirrors for the WSO in this pic. It was not easy attaching them:

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View down the nozzles:

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Finished the seats and the handles. Aires has PE handles but they are 2D looking, so grafted the kit's handles instead. Repainted and weathered the cockpit sills. Added a few scuff marks on the top of the intakes and splitter plate. The windshield turned out alright. There was a little bit of paint bleed. I turned a toothpick into a chisel and gently scraped off the paint. This created a little bit of hazing. Then, I took some toothpaste on a q-tip to polish out the haze, followed by Novus 1. It really worked! I have been always concerned about working on futured clear parts, but the toothpaste/Novus 1 combo seems to do the trick.

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For the lights on the bottom, I painted the holes in gold, then inserted the lenses. It looks kinda interesting from different angles.

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Tiseo hole was painted in navy blue, followed by the lens. The real Tiseo head has a downward angle, which neither Hasegawa nor I bothered to replicate :)

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Great job Janissary. What I really look for in these WIP threads are:

1) Interesting subject (at least to me)

2) Skilled modeling- construction, attention to detail, problem solving

3) A very good to excellent paint job. No bumps, no orange peel, just the great application of paint as flaw free as possible

4) Realistic "weathering" to make the subject look like an aircraft rather than a toy

5) An interesting "package", where the first 4 items all come together and you want to spend time looking at the photographs

6) Good clear close-up photography, which will reveal any and all flaws

You've nailed all of them so far. Bravo!

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Great job Janissary. What I really look for in these WIP threads are:

[snip]

Thank you Chuck, the macro shots bring all the issues in the build which I mostly discover after seeing the pics. It is usually disappointing (and a reality check) but knowing that there are so many flaws helps me move along knowing that perfection is out of the window anyway. I also need to improve my photography (better camera, better lighting for soft shadows?), so your WIP posts are very useful in that regard to see what is possible.

Awesome work! Gotta love Hellenic Phantoms.

Thank you! I like Hellenic Phantoms too but I need to finish this Turkish one first :)

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Thank you Chuck, the macro shots bring all the issues in the build which I mostly discover after seeing the pics. It is usually disappointing (and a reality check) but knowing that there are so many flaws helps me move along knowing that perfection is out of the window anyway.

Now that I've re-read my comment, I can see that it didn't come off as intended. My point is, your close-up pics show that any flaws are very few and far between. I too find flaws in just about all of the pics I take of my builds, which usually gives me a chance to fix them, hopefully before it's not too late!

There are many builds shown in these forums, some from "experts", that look pretty good, but they are often taken from 1-2 feet away. That doesn't mean much to me. They might be very good, but they might also be only average if you were able to review close-ups. Your build is excellent- and the close-ups prove it! :thumbsup:

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Now that I've re-read my comment, I can see that it didn't come off as intended. My point is, your close-up pics show that any flaws are very few and far between. I too find flaws in just about all of the pics I take of my builds, which usually gives me a chance to fix them, hopefully before it's not too late!

There are many builds shown in these forums, some from "experts", that look pretty good, but they are often taken from 1-2 feet away. That doesn't mean much to me. They might be very good, but they might also be only average if you were able to review close-ups. Your build is excellent- and the close-ups prove it! :thumbsup:/>/>/>

Oh, I was not taken aback or anything by your earlier post. When you mentioned the macro photography being most useful, it reminded me how my own photos bring out all the warts that I otherwise don't seem to notice on the model. I too enjoy reading WIPs with lots of closeups (and good lighting) and find full body shots especially useless when discussing certain details.

Incidentally, what does everybody think about the current sheen on the model? I started chipping a few corners and lines and found that the prismacolor pencils don't really stick to the model (feels glossy). Shall I apply flatter clear coat? Do the most recent pics look too glossy? I don't want a dead flat finish, but perhaps the sheen can still be toned down a little.

Edited by Janissary
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Incidentally, what does everybody think about the current sheen on the model? I started chipping a few corners and lines and found that the prismacolor pencils don't really stick to the model (feels glossy). Shall I apply flatter clear coat? Do the most recent pics look too glossy? I don't want a dead flat finish, but perhaps the sheen can still be toned down a little.

I know that strong lighting makes a model look much shinier than it is, but I'm pretty sure I would still tone it down a bit- maybe 25% more. Just my $0.02

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I know that strong lighting makes a model look much shinier than it is, but I'm pretty sure I would still tone it down a bit- maybe 25% more. Just my $0.02

To me it actually looks about right as it is. A weathered airplane had a bit of a sheen to it, the flatness wore off over time.

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To me it actually looks about right as it is. A weathered airplane had a bit of a sheen to it, the flatness wore off over time.

Hi Scott. While I agree with your comment above, this pic seems to show a bit too much shine to my eye. Another pic shows the intakes to have a similar shine. Maybe not?

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Hi Scott. While I agree with your comment above, this pic seems to show a bit too much shine to my eye. Another pic shows the intakes to have a similar shine. Maybe not?

Scott, Chuck, thanks for the input. It's useful. Just to make sure, the pics with Vallejo satin start at my post #137. Chuck's example was from before the satin coat (it still looks somewhat dull due to the oil wash taking away future's sheen). However, even with the pics from post #137 onward, there might be a little too much sheen. Though I see Scott's point too (a lot of in-use USAF phantoms look pretty shiny). I think I will take the middle road and apply a highly thinned Testors Dull coat / Satin coat mix I have. If nothing else, it might give the surface a little more bite for the pencil weathering/chipping.

Has anyone had experience with Prismacolor pencils? Am I correct that they are not completely 'dry'? They seem to have traces of some pastel like oily substance in them, which makes them difficult to stick to the model. Perhaps I am missing something. I asked the art store over here if they have drier pencils and they said no.

You have elevated hobby to craft! Amazing job here! Thanks again for showing how you tackled the wash. That is very helpful!

Thank you Twhite! Admittedly, I sometimes feel like my posts are repeating much of the well-known techniques with little to no creativity on my side. I am glad to see you find some of the stuff useful.

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Janissary -

Lol - that's what I get for having three F-4 WIPs tabbed at the same time. Still a great build!

John

No worries :) I know what you mean, I am now following all the A-6 WIPs and finished models nowadays on this forum and others (falling in love HB A-6E), it is so difficult to keep tabs on all of them.

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