Is there any advantage/disadvantage to painting the canopy alone or with it glued to the fusalage? I know it allows you to not have to mask the cockpit with it glued on.
I think there are some advantages in glueing the canopy and paint it with the whole aircraft:
- you can correct any seam or imperfection (when priming).
- the canopy will look as a part of the aircraft.
- It will have the same color of the fuselage (very important).
hope this helps
later
I agree totally. It’s especially good to use Liquitape or white glue you can easily remove (not cellophane tape) to tack windscreen/canopy down temporarily in closed position when dealing with one of those many projects where camoflage color separation either divides or goes smack down the center of the glass parts of the plane. That’s the way it’s painted in real life and it ensures a perfect match on a model. Then, when you pose it with the canopy slid back or raised up it really adds more to the model than the effort you put in to do it.
The other thing that’s nice about placing the canopy in a closed position on the model is that it also doubles as a mask to cover up the cockpit when you airbrush or spray paint the model. Just make sure to cover the canopy (as others have mentioned) with painter’s tape or liquid mask.
I like to dip my canopies in future, the attach it to the aircraft & us Micromark LiquidMask.
I use future too and then micromask
A couple of added points to concider…things I’ve learned:
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If you plan on displaying an open canopy, you’ll have to attach and blend at least the windscreen portion of the canopy to the model. Mask the remaining opening of the canopy and paint the model it’s appropriate colors. Paint the remainder of the canopy parts off the model. *An exception to this would be if you have a multi-color camo scheme that follows over the canopy area. In this case you may try drawing the camo pattern on the masked canopy, then airbrush along the drawn pattern.
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If you simply want a closed canopy, masking the canopy off the model( you’ll do a better job of controlling the hobby knife while following contours) as aposed to trying to negotiate and handle the model while you trim the canopy lines. Attach the canopy, fill any seems or joints, then paint your model. Happy modelling!
Hmmmm…I cant seem to get my micro mask to come off. Only way it seems to work is if I use the hobby knife but I scratch the part then. ANy ideas out there?
-Jeff
Brush-on masking is like that, yes it is. Try a toothpick, a light touch, and a lot of patience and eventually it will come off.