About 2 years ago at Christmas, My parents bought me this Testors U.F.O. kit. Thinking that this was so cool, I blissfully opened the box and began building. First thing I noticed was the plastic was strange, and that tube glue didn’t work well (tube glue, yep!). Finally, about 6 months later, I figured out that it was resin! Duuh! [D)] (Look, I was only 12 at the time…) So, it has remained on my display cabinet forgotter, untill now! Today I have begun to disassemble it and now I am in the process of rebuilding. Comments and especially suggestions are welcome! Right now my question for you how should I repaint the aliens? I don’t like them the way that they are.
the upper shell,
lower,
the base,
the cockpit,
And martians galore! (the guy in the pic is a Revell F4F-4 Wildcat pilot. one more of my many wip’s! His ride is in the background.)
[:D] Well, the first thing we gotta do is get you a camera w/ a macro function; I can’t really see anything in the pictures… [swg]
It’s an interesting looking diorama. Which parts are resin and which are plastic, if any?
That pilot looks familiar. Revell’s 1/32 Wildcat, or Corsair maybe?
If you want to take the paint off the aliens to repaint them, I’d use Castrol Super Clean. You should be able to find it at automotive stores. Use gloves, this stuff is unkind to bare skin. You should also be able to find some other advice for removing paint in the Techniques section of these forums.
Personally, I use brake fluid to remove paint, but the stuff’s not cheap; a gallon of the stuff will set you back about $30.00. Also, I’ve discovered (through much trial & error) that the ease with which paint comes off using brake fluid is inversely proportional to how long it’s been on the model: the longer it’s been on the model, the harder it is to get off. I’ve got some 15-20 year old models I’m in the process of rebuilding, and some of the paint will simply not come off.
As for the glue you should use, I’m sure most people on this forum would tell you to use superglue (cyanoacrylate).
Firstly, sorry about the pics! I just have a small digital, no lens or stuff. And funds are tight so you will have to live with it for now! (sorry!) Everything in the kit was resin but now I will be detailing it with stryene. The pilot is the 1/32 Revell Wildcat pilot. When I’m done with that model, might post pics in the A/C forum. About getting to the paint, Actually, the stuff is really thin. How, I dunno but I have contented myself with sanding of portians of the thick stuff then overpainting. As far as painting the martians, I was thinking of a heavily blue or green tinted flesh paint for heads/hands and silver clothes. Do I have too much silver? Thanks and any and all comments are welcome!
I hear ya. Just bought a digital camera myself from Walmart, cost like $125. I use it a lot though, so it was worth it in the long run.
The silver on the aliens looks ok, from what I can see. If it seems too bright to you, you could try a slightly darker metallic color instead. Testor’s Model Master Steel color looks good and has a neutral grey tone. Jet Exhaust looks good too, but has a slight brown tint.
For their skin I might try a wedgewood green or a light sea grey color.
Don’t bother with Tube glue; it’s solvent with added thickener which, these days only seems to reduce the effectiveness of the solvent which is the added ingredient
Sorry guys that it has taken me awhile but I have just been really busy the past week. I’ll try to post some pics by Wednesday. Right now I’m finishing up the Airforce officer so I’ll post his WIP. Also, the interior is getting revamped as it now has a side console explosion and a seat that has been completly destroyed. I thought that any ailean (or is it weather ballon?) with the ability to travel between worlds wouldn’t crash into the side of a cliff for no reason. So, navigation station blows up… presto! It’ll look better this way.
Yeah, I know about tube glue. I use it on very rare occasions if it’s a small part or something. Usually, superglue is the answer!
I lied! Another of my big teases… Sorry that I can’t post any pics. Photobucket has been acting wierd?It won’t let me copy the code to paste here to get the pic. I’ll be trying! I’ll make it up ta you guys…
