Here’s my completed 1/72 Academy P-40 in an Aleutian Tiger scheme.
A great kit with very nice surface, interior, and wheel well detail. The only thing I added was a slit masking tape seat harness. The canopy parts are nice and clear - my only beef with it is that the sliding part of the canopy doesn’t fit right if it is posed open. I closed it and you can see the inside fairly well.
A little bit of weathering was added: pastel chalk exhaust stains, some washes of a darkened OD base to make the large surfaces less boring, my first attempt at a tempera paint panel line wash, and some silver pencil paint chipping.
The only decal that gave me problems was the big tiger faces that had to conform to all those funky bulging surfaces. Microsol alone couldn’t do it. I had to slit each decal in several places and then I used some very fine touches of ambroid (liquid glue) to soften the decals where they were being really stubborn.
Chris - Outstanding [^] [tup] You really did a Fantastic job on one of my most Favorite Aircraft. That Tiger Head gives a lot of builders fits getting it to “conform” , you whipped it right into shape. Nice weathering also
A very impressive build, especially an Aleutian machine! Like was said earlier, even more impressive being 1/72 and Academy kit decals. [bow] Excellent work all around. Thanks for the tip on the liquid glue as a decal softener, gotta remember that one. [^]
Sean - I think Academy has changed their source for decals. These didn’t seem as bad as some of the decals in older Academy kits.
Frank - Keep in mind - liquid glue as a decal softner has to be used VERY lightly… And thanks for spelling Aleutian correctly. I knew something didn’t look right.
Chris, thats a stunner. Knowing its 1/72 as well, justy makes it all the better. Like Frank said, great tip on the Liquid glue as a decal softner. Acadamy decals can be beasts so it obviously works.
Well Chris, well done… I like the over all look. I totally agree with you on the main canopy… I have found that certain mfg’s will make two. One for the closed position and one for the open… Case in point is the Eduard line…
Have you thought about a vacu-formed canopy? I know, such a dirty word…
Thank you f or sharing myu friend… Maybe we’ll see it at BuffCon??
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Chris,
For the decals issue… Have you tried Solvaset? This stuff is amazing
Mike - I don’t have any prob with vac formed canopies - in fact - I just bought one for an airfix Mossie that’s in the to-build pile.
I’ve heard of solvaset - but never seen it for sale in any of the local hobby shops. I’ll have to expand my search. I’ll probably be taking the P-40 to Syrcon later this month if I can shake loose to get there - but I have plans to give her away after that. It was made for a friend who’s a big P-40 fan. I’m sure I’ll have some other stuff ready for Buffcon - I’m about 3/4 of the way through that Green/Grey F16-N Marine Aggressor. That’ll be done before 2010 - so you’ll probably see it there. (You can check out the progress in the Aggressor GB).
Any of you Buffalo Guys get out as far as Syracuse ?
Awesome work Chris. Isn’t that a great little kit? That is the only 72nd scale kit that I’ve built in the past 15 years, and I loved it. Your’s look fantastic. I agree with Mike, bring that bad boy to Buffalo in April.
Chris I love your builds. I wish I could tackle some 1/72. I’d save some money and shelf space. You got me thinking about trying a kit. The only thing is trying not to make it look like a 1/72. If I didn’t know you I can look at your build and think that it could be a much bigger scale. Yes Chris “You’ve got talent!”[tup]
Thanks for the encouraging words guys - makes me feel like I’ve been improving since I first started building again.
Zip - if there was ever a kit to get started on in 1/72 scale - I think this is it. No fit issues, great surface detail, and most importantly - a very simple paint scheme. I think I had the interior painted, the fuselage assembled, wings attached, overall main body painted, and all but the fiddly bits on in a matter of about three or four hours of actual bench time. And for the tightwad in me… I paid full retail price and it was still less than 10 bucks. I probably could’ve hunted down a 40% off coupon if I was a less impulsive tightwad.
bsyamato - yep - you’re right - I only paint those teeny lines once. I think I can hit them with some pastel chalks to dirty’em up a bit. Thanks.
