After spending what seemed like an eternity applying stencil decals to my P-39, I have some new pics today.
There is an absolute PLETHORA of stencils on this bird ! The majority are from the kit sheet, but Aeromaster saved the day by providing even MORE stencils that Eduard omitted. And i thought the Germans were verbose ! The markings are from the Aeromaster sheet “Aircobras (their spelling) at War, Part III.”
The landing gear, drop tank, and exhausts are just dryfitted for the pics. The gear also helps keep the bird off the bench while the decal solutions work. The exhausts are brush painted with Model Master Metalizer Burnt Iron. I mix the stuff from the bottom of the bottle with the thinner stuff on top to get the effect I want. I’m particularly pleased with the outcome this time. Thanks again for letting me share the progress of this kit with you !
Looking good Pix. Those exhausts look really great, though I’m not sure about how you describe your process. Are you saying you take a blob of pigment and thin it in a seperate container or am I just dense somehow?
Applying lots and lots of stencils is something I really hate, though I can’t argue with the final effect once it’s all finished.
Yuppers, that sure is a Airacobra…!!! Very nice indeed Pix[;)] Gotta love the ol P-39.
They were built basically in my back yard… WELL, ok they were built in the next town over. My grandpa was a Line product Sup(41-45) on these bad boys and let me tell ya the goodies I have in my collection.
One of these days I have to post some ofthe pix that I have… Anywho thanks for sharing your build. Looking forward to your finished build. BOY O’ BOY, Can’t wait to start mine now.
BTW, I have not been on recently, how is the Eduard kit over all??? Fit wise, excess flashing, pin marks ect ect ect. By chance is yours a Pro kit?
Flaps up, Mike
Thank you saltydog, maddafinga, Dan, Butz, gunney, Mike, woodbeck, Janswede, & fightnjoe !
maddafinga - the metallic flakes lie at the bottom of a bottle of Metalizer, and there is a thin red-black pigment above it. I scoop a little metal from the bottom, and place it in the cap. I then dip a brush into the thinner stuff, and lightly mix it with the “flakes.” It’s almost like getting a “marbling” effect from oil paints, where they’re not thououghly mixed into one color. I also drilled the exhausts, but you can’t see it from these angles.
Butz - it is indeed the ProfiPack version of the kit. The PE instrument is a little tricky. It’s made from about 15 PE pieces plus film negatives. With care & patience, it looks convincing. The fit is uneventful, it can be built while you’re half asleep. There can be a potential gap at the wingroots, though. I CA’d the front & rear of the wing to the fuselage first. When that was strong, I ran a piece of tape from wingtip to wingtip, over the fuselage to close the wingroot. I then added Tenax to the seam. Bang. Done. The trailing edges of the main wing are thick. Sanding the interior may affect fit at the wingroot, and sanding the exterior could remove fabric detail from the ailerons. I just did a little of each, not much, but it’s not as apparently thick as it could be. Fairing the windscreen to the fuselage was easy, but the rear portion didn’t seem quite wide enough for the fuselage. Filling & sanding this area can be tricky & dangerous. I left well enough alone. It’s a little gem of a kit, Butz, and it deserves to be built.
Mike - I have no interest in aircraft built after 1945, so an F-15 is unlikely. At 119 decals for this one (most positioned with a #000 brush), I think that only my SB2C Helldiver from ProModeler had as many. That’s enough for me !
woodbeck - that’s the wonders of Future there. Nothing beats that shine !
There certainly is a potential for the stencils to silver. There are numerous ones on top of the wing that fit on round access panels. The carrier film overlaps the outline, and there’s three recessed rivets in each one. Plenty of poking with a sharp blade, along with copious amounts of Micro Sol got them to conform. I inspect every stencil from all angles under magnification to find where the problem areas lie. A little extra work at this point saves a lot of headaches down the road !
As I finished my Airacobra two weeks ago, I know this wonderful kit and of course its comprehensive decalsheet. But I cannot believe that there a more stencils with the Aeromaster sheet, unbelievible! Let me tell you that your Cobra looks great although not ready. I will have an eye on it… [tup]
Here I thought I had a monopoly on what is alleged to be the folly of brushing on Metalizer! Pix is absolutely right, though my method is only slightly different. For small areas like exausts (I wouldn’t try this on an entire engine), I either use a bottle of Metalizer that is used up down to the last pigment, or I’ll turn a full bottle over for a few minutes, let it settle, then turn it back and screw off the cap, and there’s enough pigment to paint small steel or burnt metal or whatever it is you need to paint. As Pix says, to thin it use the medium in the bottle you got the pigment from. It’s just some strong, evil-smelling solvent like Dio-Sol. This method gives exhaust pipes a deeper burnt metal coloring than you get with spraying, making them look more real.
Tom
