If I can figure how to attach the pic, heres a shot of an almost done F4. Its wet in the photo with future, but we’re nearing the end.
I am really, really, having to come to terms with the difference between what my head thinks it should look like and what my hands can accomplish. This is my second model, and the first one that I will likely actually finish. The first one . . . its eternally in standby mode.
I honestly want to know what people see and pick up on. I’m not going to be Swanny on my first try. Things I am least happy with are canopy and decals. I had real fit issues with the canopy, and its still not good. Nor is the paint there. And try as I might, I fought decals and still have silvering, a couple just gone, destroyed, and a couple damaged but salvaged by careful tootpick adjustment.
So, let r rip, and TIA if you decide not to heckle
re posting a pic. You have to use an online photo webhosting site, (such as www.photobucket.com , it’s free) upload your pic to the site, then copy and paste the image link (3rd link) they provide you and voila!
Hi. For your 2nd kit it looks darn good to me![tup] The silvering problem may be because your surface is not prepared properly. Decals need to be applied to a glossy surface. I personally use a glossy clear on the entire model. Decals will go on the surface much better. Use the Microscale system (Micro-set and Micro-sol) to apply your decals. These factors should totally eliminate the silvering. Once the decals are dry, clean off whatever residue is left over with a damp tissue. You now need to apply a final coat of either gloss, semi-gloss or flat clear coat(depending on what you’re building, in this case flat would be preferable) to the entire model. This should solve your problem. Don’t give up, you’re on the right track!
Looks darned good to me, too, especially for a 2nd kit - heck, it looks good for a 10th kit! Your techniquews will improve as you build, but you will never be 100% satisfied with your work, I’ll wager. Keep the photos coming and thanks for sharing!
Well thanks to everyone so far. I gotta work on the decals. The camo is one of the things I was happy with. I putzed around mixing colors, doing mini draw down cards and holding them up next to my uber fancy color corrected monitor for a good hour or so until I had the colors I wanted. Then I just drew the thing out on paper and mapped out what colors I wanted where and freehanded it with an airbrush.
Its not an exact replica of the scheme I was staring at, but close, and that doesnt really bug me. I was more interested in the general sense of the camo pattern and getting the colors since it was kind of an oddball bird I was looking at and it was the colors that I liked together.
Yesterday I grabbed a third. I was extremely tempted to try something more challenging and there was the old school 1/32 Tam Phantom on the shelf but I thought better of it and grabbed a 47 razorback Hasegawa figuring back off on the technical and work on the finesse before I go bugger up a $150 model. The cockpit is the only thing together at the moment and it already looks worlds better. Crossing fingers.
