Grumman F9F-2 Panther
![Album image #1 Album image #1](/albums/img/6/6/4/735664-52499-93-720.jpg)
Looking forward to paint tho totally different colours, gray-white and navy blue... hope I don't mix them too much until painted
![Album image #2 Album image #2](/albums/img/6/5/3/735653-52499-75-720.jpg)
PE... I said, let's do some cheapo kit from stash to relax from the Aggressor build...
![Album image #3 Album image #3](/albums/img/6/5/4/735654-52499-97-720.jpg)
...boy was I in for a surprise...
![Album image #4 Album image #4](/albums/img/6/5/5/735655-52499-70-720.jpg)
PE cut, filed, glued on a greenish interior. Interior study shows both green and gray interiors...
![Album image #5 Album image #5](/albums/img/6/5/6/735656-52499-54-720.jpg)
rdy to prime with MrSurfacer 1500
![Album image #6 Album image #6](/albums/img/6/5/7/735657-52499-84-720.jpg)
masked with putty, then white Mr Surfacer to make the dials visible... in a small cockpit of a 1/72 😄
![Album image #7 Album image #7](/albums/img/6/5/8/735658-52499-36-720.jpg)
time to blacken the white halo around
![Album image #8 Album image #8](/albums/img/6/5/9/735659-52499-72-720.jpg)
gluing with Micro Kristal Klear
![Album image #9 Album image #9](/albums/img/6/6/0/735660-52499-48-720.jpg)
I was feeling suicidal today, so I painted the buttons instead 😄
![Album image #10 Album image #10](/albums/img/6/6/1/735661-52499-53-720.jpg)
tools of the trade... if you are in 1/72 business and work with PE, get that white pencil! It's a lifesaver
![Album image #11 Album image #11](/albums/img/6/6/2/735662-52499-66-720.jpg)
ta-da
![Album image #12 Album image #12](/albums/img/6/6/3/735663-52499-48-720.jpg)
Not great, not terrible 🙂
![Album image #13 Album image #13](/albums/img/3/8/2/745382-52499-30-720.jpg)
Scribing away plastic main gear door
![Album image #14 Album image #14](/albums/img/3/8/3/745383-52499-49-720.jpg)
Then cutting it away part by part
![Album image #15 Album image #15](/albums/img/3/8/6/745386-52499-45-720.jpg)
PE main gear compartment fitting
![Album image #16 Album image #16](/albums/img/3/8/4/745384-52499-78-720.jpg)
Canopy space to get some lead wires 🙂
![Album image #17 Album image #17](/albums/img/3/8/5/745385-52499-24-720.jpg)
PE main gear compartment installed
![Album image #18 Album image #18](/albums/img/3/8/7/745387-52499-68-720.jpg)
Don't wantt a tail-sitter! Buckshots FTW!
![Album image #19 Album image #19](/albums/img/3/8/8/745388-52499-75-720.jpg)
...
![Album image #20 Album image #20](/albums/img/3/8/9/745389-52499-11-720.jpg)
Demarking aluminium from air intake colour with AK putty... geez, from close up it looks ugly.
![Album image #21 Album image #21](/albums/img/3/9/0/745390-52499-39-720.jpg)
ATU bird is very different, all inside compartments are white while the original blue bird is blue/slime
![Album image #22 Album image #22](/albums/img/3/9/1/745391-52499-16-720.jpg)
married wings with body
![Album image #23 Album image #23](/albums/img/3/9/2/745392-52499-63-720.jpg)
belly up
![Album image #24 Album image #24](/albums/img/3/9/3/745393-52499-10-720.jpg)
now to smaller parts... wheels and airbrakes
![Album image #25 Album image #25](/albums/img/3/9/4/745394-52499-77-720.jpg)
Masks... not kibuki... not great, not terrible...
![Album image #26 Album image #26](/albums/img/3/9/5/745395-52499-49-720.jpg)
overkill in filler
![Album image #27 Album image #27](/albums/img/3/9/6/745396-52499-99-720.jpg)
with acryllic putty
![Album image #28 Album image #28](/albums/img/3/9/7/745397-52499-63-720.jpg)
and breaks and doors painted and coated with Gauzy
![Album image #29 Album image #29](/albums/img/9/1/1/749911-52499-70-720.jpg)
![Album image #30 Album image #30](/albums/img/9/1/2/749912-52499-18-720.jpg)
ATU bird primed with MrSurfacer 1500 white then painted with AK white FS17875
![Album image #31 Album image #31](/albums/img/9/1/3/749913-52499-66-720.jpg)
White protected, time for FS16440
![Album image #32 Album image #32](/albums/img/9/1/4/749914-52499-53-720.jpg)
Curves masked with Tamiya/Nitto flexi tape
![Album image #33 Album image #33](/albums/img/9/1/5/749915-52499-62-720.jpg)
VF-781 bird in the meantime first and only layer of Dark Sea Blue (ANA623) from Hataka lacquer
![Album image #34 Album image #34](/albums/img/9/1/6/749916-52499-69-720.jpg)
bottom
![Album image #35 Album image #35](/albums/img/9/1/7/749917-52499-56-720.jpg)
close-up, nice smooth finish,would be shame to gloss...
![Album image #36 Album image #36](/albums/img/9/1/8/749918-52499-90-720.jpg)
Both birds painted in base
![Album image #37 Album image #37](/albums/img/9/1/9/749919-52499-58-720.jpg)
Glazed!
![Album image #38 Album image #38](/albums/img/9/2/0/749920-52499-34-720.jpg)
Why use decals when you can paint...
![Album image #39 Album image #39](/albums/img/9/2/1/749921-52499-13-720.jpg)
Paint instead of decal, will be nicer I said... will be faster, I said... I forgot about the masking 😄
![Album image #40 Album image #40](/albums/img/9/2/2/749922-52499-60-720.jpg)
When masked, first prime!
![Album image #41 Album image #41](/albums/img/9/2/3/749923-52499-84-720.jpg)
Then make a parrot out of it 😄
![Album image #42 Album image #42](/albums/img/9/2/4/749924-52499-56-720.jpg)
...at this point I was not sorry I used half of my tape stash...
![Album image #43 Album image #43](/albums/img/9/2/5/749925-52499-10-720.jpg)
nice!
![Album image #44 Album image #44](/albums/img/9/2/6/749926-52499-97-720.jpg)
still nice!
![Album image #45 Album image #45](/albums/img/9/2/7/749927-52499-68-720.jpg)
mneeeeehhh
![Album image #46 Album image #46](/albums/img/9/2/8/749928-52499-80-720.jpg)
its a close up!
![Album image #47 Album image #47](/albums/img/9/2/9/749929-52499-40-720.jpg)
this was hard to mask
![Album image #48 Album image #48](/albums/img/9/3/0/749930-52499-97-720.jpg)
but turned out semi OK....
![Album image #49 Album image #49](/albums/img/9/3/1/749931-52499-29-720.jpg)
some under-spray happened
![Album image #50 Album image #50](/albums/img/9/3/2/749932-52499-23-720.jpg)
fixed!
![Album image #51 Album image #51](/albums/img/9/3/3/749933-52499-13-720.jpg)
Primed with black base for polished aluminium, before that, a full day of masking on both birds!! I don't want to see yellow tape for a while...
![Album image #52 Album image #52](/albums/img/9/3/5/749935-52499-51-720.jpg)
ready for decaling weekend!
![Album image #53 Album image #53](/albums/img/0/7/8/765078-52499-73-720.jpg)
So the ATU bird is done except the cannons, they are waiting for a calm day and steady hand 🙂
Commenti
2 9 April 2020, 20:52
![](/profiles/img/52499-702-s.jpg)
Thanks Dave, I hope the watchmaking suffer is through, really looking forward to paint and weather both. I have Hataka lacquers to test, I've been neglecting them over AK and Gunze so far... 🙂
9 April 2020, 22:54
![](/profiles/img/52499-702-s.jpg)
Seriously, I took these two on, to rest a bit, to ruin a 6 Euro kit... then found out both had PE, masks... and it turned out into serious build... Guess I'll rest on my 48th Tamiya Fw190 after these two are on the shelf.
24 April 2020, 21:24
![](/profiles/img/15497-946-s.jpg)
Same here - it always starts small🙂
It was worth the masking effort! Great paintjob !
25 April 2020, 15:44
![](/profiles/img/52499-702-s.jpg)
Thanks Thomas and Bernd. Decaling under way. I am now happy I painted the ATU, decals on blue are bottom of the bottom 🙁 Let's see what Sunday brings, maybe I paint the blue one too...
25 April 2020, 19:21