Like a lot of people here, I’ve retired and have gotten back into modeling, since doing it as a kid and early teen (before “discovering” girls).
My first endeavor has been the Revell 1/48 B-17G. I’m doing this as a tribute to the plane my dad was on in WWII. Everything was going fine until it was time to place things in the fuselage halves. Dreading the task of trying to mask all the clear parts, I made the (probably) bass-ackwards decision to paint the fuselage, wings and horizontal stabilizers first (this was before I discovered through this forum that companies now make pre-made masks for models). I painted them with rattle-can MM Aluminum Metalizer (buffing), polished it and then sprayed MM Metalizer Sealer (non-buffing) to seal it. Looks good! Then after installing the internals, I glued the fuselage halves together. Now I have the dreaded fuselage seam.
Finally(!), here’s my question: If I fill the seam with Perfect Plastic Putty and sand it to get it smooth, what’s the best way to paint the now filled seam so that it will blend with the already painted fuselage? Should I decant some of the Aluminum Metalizer and sealer and then apply them with a brush, or mask off everything but the seam and use the rattle-can? Or some better way? I know the best solution would have probably been to use an airbrush to paint after assembly and seam-filling, but I don’t have the area or room to equip myself with said airbrush (I’m using kitchen table with a cutting mat for assembly and the garage for painting when the wifes’ car isn’t there).
I love all the info. I get from this site and hope that someone out there can help me complete my project!
I realize that I’ve probably done this backwards, but can anyone offer any advice, short of start over? Otherwise, I guess I’m on my own. Surely, someone has run into this situation before…
You can mask outwards of the seam. When you tape roll up the edges of the tape so when you spray it will create a softer edge. Also spray away from the tape not into it. This is an old automotive paint trick for blending paint
For a metallic finish, try to mask along panel lines. Any difference in finish actually looks fine. In fact, many times with a NMF I do some panels after I do a complete coat. I mask them off with Post-it notes and spray a thin coat over the original coat. The thicker coat on those panels will have just a slightly duller sheen.
Thanks guys! Those are great suggestions!! It’s been over 50 years since my last build. Lesson learned: There are good reasons to do things in a particular order (you’d think, as an engineer, I’d know this!). Next time, I’ll fill and sand, THEN paint. I think I was hesitant to do this, as I’m still in rattle-can mode and couldn’t bear the thought of the complicated masking job required of painting after assembly. That was before the discovery of pre-printed masks. Ah well, live, learn and enjoy the hobby!!
I think you need to follow the above this way. mask all the way out at the next panel line away from the seam. This can still be clear of the window.
I’ve never quite done whats being suggested, but I’ve done a version. On airliners with a colored stripe around the windows, I have painted the color on the individual sides, thn installed the windows and masked over the whole stripe area. That also avoids putting tape on metallic paint, which can really be a problem.
Any type of filler MUST be sealed first with clear gloss like Alclad or Testors clear coat otherwise the metallic finish will look different over the filler. As suggested tape up to panel lines and do your repairs. Taping over the metallic finish should be ok since you used the Metalizer Sealer but tape with caution .
I avoid using fillers when doing NMF. I use either Tenax or Plast I Weld to run along the seams then squeezing them together forcing some of the melted plastic to form a slight ridge along the seam. I set it aside to cure a few hours then use sanding sticks to get rid of the slight ridge leaving a solid invisible join.
