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Guy Rump
Following. 👍

bughunter
After a health problem, I stopped modelling for a short time. I didn't want to continue the projects I had started because I wasn't in the mood for scratch modelling. I wanted to make a quick project - almost oob. Of course with a wooden propeller, because building one is just fun.
Working on two Pfalz D.IIIa (one as a triplane conversion) a long time ago was great fun and there was still a special kit waiting in my stash: a Limited Edition Dual Combo Pfalz D.III. No, I haven't forgotten the "a", this really is the forerunner of the D.IIIa. Eduard has re-released the D.IIIa kit often, but this Edition is from 2005 and was never released again. I hear some voices: Limited Editions are for collecting, not building. Never mind, I'm building the kit now!

I'm building the machine from the cover picture - and because there's a heart on it, I'm dedicating the build to my wife, who always supports me!

John
Looks great!

Nathan Dempsey
Following. Welcome back!

Kyle DeHart
Excellent to see you Frank!! I can't wait to follow along with this. Which is sure to be another beautiful build. Any edition…Limited, or otherwise sounds like something to build to me!! But maybe I'm doing things wrong. Ha!!

Erik
Zum Glück bist Du wieder fit! 👍
Sieht mal wieder klasse aus, die kleinen Steuerseile sind geil. 🙂

gorby
Looks like an interesting project Frank. I must admit that I don't know much about WWI aircraft and your builds are often a lesson about the real machines as well as a lesson in modelling.

Robert Podkoński
Taking a seat, of course!

bughunter
Thank you very much mates! Great to know that you are following 👍
Yeah Kyle, all kits can be build. But some collects rare kits as investment and hope to sell it later for higher prices. Once started the value goes near zero. But we have fun building them and that is invaluable!
@gorby You will see later that the Pfalz fighters are elegant planes!

Kyle DeHart
Indeed. I take a great pleasure in opening up and building valuable kits. I would be a really horrible collector. Lol.

Martin Oostrom
I have a few rare ones. But I'll gladly build them when the time comes. That's what kits are for!

KyMustang
Charming little airplane and great job on the build so far.

David Taylor
Watching.

Marcel Klemmer
I am in

Zbynek Honzik
Taking a seat!

Ben M
watching!

bughunter
A warm welcome to the show also for the new visitors!
I hope to have it ready for our next club meeting, so it will be a quick build (for my standards).

Michael Kohl
Good to see you back at the bench. I consider the Pfalz DIII one of the most elegant WWI planes and have two in my stash too. So I won't miss this build.
Keep it coming.

Kyle DeHart
The Pfalz really does have a lovely shape.

Ludvík Kružík
I'm also glad you're back on the bench. I really enjoy watching you build models.

... by the way... I really like to buy Eduard limited edition models. They include lots of extras and often a publication with photos and information about the type whose model is in the box. I still have some of the limited edition models in my closet. Not because I just collect them, but because I haven't managed to build them yet. 🙂

Bruce Huxtable
I'm sorry to hear that you had a health scare, and hope that all is okay again for you. Your projects are always inspiring and a joy to follow. Have fun bringing this special one to life 🙂

bughunter
Thank you very much mates! Your nice comments are highly appreciated!
I hope to show later new pictures showing the elegant lines even more.
@Ludvik Since this is an older kit in this case not a single word about the type! Only a ink jet printed manual, and one colorful, nicely printed sheet showing the six markings including decal placement. Anyway, the kit parts and PE are nice, a mask is also included.
@Bruce Ageing is not for cowards! But at least the fun is back with this project so I made also good progress.

bughunter
Now some colour comes into play! I drew some masks and had them cut by the plotter.

Christoph Kunz
Happy you're back, but what the heck???
This is a speedbuild, never seen one made by you.
And it's going to be an elegant one 👍

bughunter
Yes Christoph, that was exactly the reason why I selected this kit/project from my stash! Due to my two Eduard D.IIIa I was fully aware of the kit and I know what have to be done where. For the paint I used here Alclad and Mr.Paint so I could do all the masking and painting on one afternoon 🙂 MrPaint is the "modelling turbo"!
Even the rigging is not very complicated, no crosses inside the struts, and a single-bay biplane 👍

Christian Bruer
Another masterpiece in the making 👍

Ludvík Kružík
The speed with which you have progressed on this model is admirable. The paintwork turned out great and the different shades of silver depending on the material the paint was applied to look very good.

Kyle DeHart
Beautiful progress!! You're marching your way right through this one!!

John
That is a lovely machine with a lovely scheme as well. I really do need to do a few WWI subjects. Camo was in its infancy and making a reputation seemed more important at the time so what better way than to add a garish (some would say "striking") paint job? Though, I do NOT need to add more to the stash, I will be 100+ before I finish what I have. As you note, getting older is not fun, but it's preferable to the alternative! Good to see you back. 👍

Skyhiker
Gosh, that's beautiful bughunter.

J35J
Amazing work again bughunter! You're builds are great inspiration👍🏻

bughunter
Thanks to all for your wonderful feedback!

@Ludvik That is only one thin common layer of Semi Matt Alu. The underground shines through, like a preshading.

@John There are many very nice schemes available in my Pfalz references, especially in the "Pfalz D.IIIa at war" books (I have another D.IIIa Profipack in my shash). Regarding the second kit of this Dual Combo: The six Eduard markings are nice, but I will try to replicate a beautiful blue/red four-view profile painted by Ronny Bar in the Kagero book.
Regarding camo and colorful markings: The German printed fabric known as Lozenge had to task to avoid the detection of the aircraft type from far away (blur contours). The colorful markings were needed during dog fights with many fighters for quick detection of enemy, friends and leaders, as there were no radios yet (ok, some air-to-gound radios with morse code in two seaters; but no communication between fighters).

@J35J Then I hope the further steps will fulfill your expectations!

Mr D
Nice ... very nice choice 👍👍👍 been considering one soon... Has it been a good kit ??

bughunter
Oh yes, the Eduard Pfalz D.III series are great kits! There are small things which can be fixed and I mention them in my build reports. If you click on my Pfalz Collection you can see also my other builds of this kit.
The kit has also optional parts, e.g. for the D.IIIa two lower wings in different shapes. There was also a PE sheet for the IIIa with many more nice parts than on the little Profipack PE.

Alec K
Taking a late seat. The subtle variation in aluminum color is excellent. I also like the painted-on insignia and markings 👍

Mr D
Thanks 👍👍 the kit does look really precise, will check out build,
I have an RC version from E-file, as always loved the look of the look of them..l put photo in my main Album.
Thanks for Advice 😁

bughunter
That huge RC bird looks nice, but is an Albatros and not a Pfalz 😉

Mr D
Thanks, 😃👍 calm weather flyer....looks great in the air.
Ok....your better informed on the WW1 stuff , l tend to watch vids n research an aircraft on and around the building ....for ref n learning.
It's mainly been ww2 n cold war I've built so far.
Best of luck with rest of build it's brilliant job so far.

bughunter
New pictures are uploaded with the prepared undercarriage. At first I wanted to use the kit parts, but I checked my other Pfalz in the cabinet: the legs are very flexible. In this new case my legs had also a mould offset (that is something I hate on filigree plastic parts!) so for fix this it would made the legs more weak.
As many of my newer models has metal legs now I decided to do it here too. As other advantage they are finer and looks more scale.

Ben M
Those offsets are so frustrating.

Pepe
as usual..... superb!!!!!

Ludvík Kružík
I was waiting to see how long your determination to build a model as an OOB would last. That's exactly how my builds are going. Every time I decide to build a model as an OOB, there is always some thing that needs to be adjusted. 😉

Kyle DeHart
Outstanding work on that undercarriage. It looks wonderful

Michael Kohl
Do you just wrap the stretched sprue around the struts of the suspension or do you soften it before by any means?

bughunter
Another set of nice comments - thank you very much!
Michael, I have different colored sprues for such tasks. Some short run plastic do not work, but typically the Eduard ones and some others works nicely. They are very flexible if thin so I no not soften them. You just have to be careful not to create a snare when wrapping, because then the material can break. I secure it with CA.

bughunter
The decals are applied. Only the wheels are not yet done, because I have to repaint them.

Alec K
Superb work. For the legs (pic 32), do you first bend the brass tube and then squeeze it to shape?

bughunter
Good question Alec! I squeezed at first and bend it after that, slowly and careful. I keep the brass between two plates and one leg in a vice to avoid that it moves outwards. See also pic 30.
Have not tried it, may be other way around works too?

Alec K
👍

bughunter
Small progress on different parts. Most of the rigging is prepared now 🙂

Jakub Fiala
Really great work, which is not surprising at all.😄 👍 Since I'm just starting my very first WWI project (Eduards Pfalz D.IIIa), your builds are a great inspiration for me.

bughunter
Thank you very much! Good decision - it is a great kit! I need some fixes to be correct, e.g. the engine is a different 180hp Mercedes.
My D.III here is now a biplane. May be I can show some pics later.

bughunter
Ok, today this build is running for exactly three weeks! I'm not yet finished, but many things are done already - including the rigging! Only two wires for control of the ailerons needs to be added. Also the airscrew and the spinner needs some attention.

Although this is a speed build by my standards, it remains incomprehensible to me how one is supposed to build such a model from an Eduard Weekend Edition in a weekend?

Kyle DeHart
Yes gorgeous work, as usual. Looks like it is getting closer and a very quick build for you. I'm really liking it.

Nick Dragone
Very nice work. A clean build with very nice details. WWI aircraft are a labor of love. This one is exceptional

bughunter
Thank you mates for your very kind words!
Nick I think others of my biplanes are more "exceptional", as this is here a near oob build without that much scratch work 🙂

Christoph Kunz
Happy, that you don't do real oob 🙂

Dietmar Bogatzki
Awesome build and paintjob so far, Bughunter 👍

bughunter
Dankeschön! 🙂
I slowly work towards the front to finish this project.

Ludvík Kružík
Pfalz with the added details looks very good. Also the tiny red arrows on the engine covers and the small lettering on the fuselage give the model a realistic look. Very nice progress. 👍

bughunter
Thank you very much Ludvík!
Now to the next pics ...

bughunter
With adding the last pictures the project is finished now 🙂 Thanks for watching and commenting!
After s little weathering I will try to take the final shots.

Mr D
Prop finish looks good, thanks for your uploads n sharing project... Much appreciated 👍👍

bughunter
Thank you Mr D! I forgot to take pictures of some details like the mirror and the aileron levers, but you can see those in the album of the finished model - don't miss it:
Pfalz D.III 4056/17 | Album by bughunter (1:48)

Alec K
This thing is a beauty, and you finished it in record time! 👍

Martin Oostrom
A great job Bugsy. I hope your recovery is complete now and we can enjoy loads more of your beautiful builds.

Kyle DeHart
Brilliant!! I shall go now to drool over the finished photos.

KyMustang
Wow. It's flawless.

Igor Zhuravlev
Oh, no, this level of details just can't be true. Admit you have domesticated ants to do this job. I'm speechless, anyway

David Taylor
Another lovely build Bughunter.

bughunter
Thank you very much mates for leaving such nice comments 😎
Don't miss the final pictures!

Spanjaard
superb job, as always. wow! i hope you have now fully recovered

bughunter
Thanks!

gorby
Nice work so far. The colour and the flower motif really suit the vehicle.

Rui S
Looking Great, indeed 👍

Martin Oostrom
Gotta love a T2

bughunter
Again a wonderful build of a famous car 👍

Bill Newcomer
I had some adventures in a microbus with some of my cousins back in the early 70's

Martin Oostrom
Now there's a sentence that can be misinterpreted on purpose 🤪

MS K
Woops. Fixed a typo of #15.

Glenn
T2 Judgement Day

Stéphane Jayet
Once again, a fantastic job !

Christian W
This looks pretty good! Nice with all those flowers 🙂

Michael Kohl
I am in.

István Szücs
Another masterpiece is borning!

Bozzer
Sorry to chip in, MS, but this may help you in the future.
When you remove the chrome, there's a residue underneath. That's sometimes, the reason why there's imperfections in the chrome. The residue is some form of clear coat, that's used before the chrome? That can be removed by soaking in brake fluid, for a while. I've had this issue, mainly with Revell chrome, and it doesn't look great. Sometimes, there's a huge blob, and they just chrome over it. Quality control, needs a kick up the butt, at the factory.
Hope this helps you.

Spanjaard
looking really good

MS K
Oh, Thanks Bozzer. I'll try it next time. 🙂

Villiers de Vos
Very nice progress.

Robert Podkoński
I'm a little late, but from now I will be watching this talent show for sure 🙂

Matteo Pescarin
thanks a lot of sharing, now I'm intrigued... what printer do you have you can use a white toner with it???

Bruce Huxtable
Liking your 'no problem is insurmountable' attitude, and the results 🙂 Inspiring work for sure 🙂

MS K
@Matteo Pescarin - There are printers that can use white custom toner. However, it is not as opaque as the commercial decals, so it honestly falls below my expectations.
What I use is ghost white toner.
At first, I planned to buy an Alps printer, but I had no choice but to give up because it only supported Windows XP.

Spanjaard
I did not know about this ghost white, or is a pitty that just one cartridge seems to be about 300Eur, and if you say that the quality is not good enough......

Martin Oostrom
Exquisite guide MS K. You are a superb modeler.

Sy Bar
Can't wait for the bringing together of all your hard work 🍿👍

Ben M
Great work!

Villiers de Vos
Very nice work.

Robert Podkoński
Beautiful!

Michael Kohl
What a beauty.

Spanjaard
congratulations, it looks fantastic!!

Bruce Huxtable
Here here! Superb results from skillful work🙂

Zbynek Honzik
Fantastic job!

Neuling
Lovely! 👍👍

Robin (WhiteGlint)
Wonderful work! The Spike decal on the top is a nice little detail.

Christian W
It looks so nice 🙂 Sweet ride 🙂

bughunter
My wife and me like it! ❤️️

Tomii H
Servus, ich wäre interessiert, was kostet das Modell mit Versand nach Österreich?
Überweisung oder Paypal Zahlung?
Thomas

Skyhiker
My next big project is turning this FROG into a Prince. Wish me luck I'm going to need it.

Moreno Baruffini
Good luck! 👍

Robert Podkoński
Ambitious! Keep my fingers crossed!

Nicolas
I'm following. In my opinion the Ta-152H is the most beautiful plane of WW II. I got the kit from Kora in my stash and hope to start the build in spring this year. Good luck and, above all, have fun building it.

Skyhiker
Nicolas, I agree. It's a long, lean, fighting machine as they say. Definitely one of the more elegant designs to come out of the war.

DerMattes
Taking a seat 🙂

Skyhiker
I had to widen the fuselage today, in order to make space, before I scratch build the cockpit.

Jennifer Franklin
Following 👀

Skyhiker
Bit more done today.

Lukas Muller
good job 🙂 Following

Łukasz Gliński
Respect for your patience 👍

Martin Nevo
this is going to be awsome.
I am picking kits that are near perfect so I have fun.
but there are also people who pick not-so-perfect-kits like this Ta152 and they still have loads of fun!
GL 🙂

Skyhiker
Well mostly I pick not-so-perfect-kits because I'm a cheap skate. I'd rather pay 6 euros than 40 for a kit. I do have some moderately priced kits and they are a lot faster and fun to make, but often I just have the need to challenge myself and see where my skill level is at.

Rui
This looks like a real challenge; I'm watching 🙂

Moreno Baruffini
@Skyhiker: I totally like your approach and I think you did a great start!

Martin Nevo
same here @Skyhiker, I really like the 6eur price point. so affordable. probably thats why I started to look into the 1/144 scale 🙂

Skyhiker
A bit more progress on the scratch built cockpit today.

Jennifer Franklin
Excellent work on the exhausts, and the cockpit is coming along nicely.

Skyhiker
I did a bit more today but I can't seem to get any images to upload. Anyone else having these problems?

Treehugger
Looking at photo #17 I want to give a tip:
I would be a little careful keeping the roll of masking tape on the table. I like keeping them in a holder, or placed in a bag, to avoid the side of the roll picking up all kind of dirt.

Skyhiker
Yes, I keep my tapes in a bag but it doesn't seem to help as well as it should. I think I need a better bag. When I photograph things at this scale there is more dust than I realize.

Jennifer Franklin
I can finally upload my images again now, I was having problems too.

Skyhiker
Thanks Jennifer

Skyhiker
Treehugger I cleaned my tape and got a new bag. Thanks for pointing that out. No need for fuzzy tape.

Skyhiker
Cowling remade with a lot of sanding, cutting new flaps and a PE grill.

Moreno Baruffini
Really a great progress!

Skyhiker
Thanks Moreno, I am having fun with this one.

Skyhiker
I have to take a break and will be back in a week. I must say I am in love with this plane. It's really a beautiful design with those long wings. I can't wait to get back to it.

Lukas Muller
I'm agree with you, one of the most beautiful plane for me 👍

Dave Flitton
I like it so far!

Guy Rump
I'm going to build this one from my stash this year, definitely following! 👍

Skyhiker
The canopy was totally uneven and so I decided to do the risky thing and file it from the inside. Hopefully I didn't just ruin it.

Vincent
This is already an impressive build. Good luck!!!

Skyhiker
Worked a bit on the cockpit today.

Oliver
Follow. Want to See the result

Trez Mackenzie
I have built 70s Tamiya kit - but that was a least workable. The base was there even though many errors. This 'kit' just seems like a waste of time. Like trying to make a dog poop look edible by putting a cherry on top.
If I saw this kit I would stamp it into the ground. Useless

Skyhiker
This kit has its flaws but nothing that can't be corrected with a little bit of skill. Are there more accurate kits out there that are easier to build - yes. But the modern trend of wanting perfect kits seems counter to the art of modeling. If you have ever built a model from a block of wood you wouldn't call this kit useless. Challenging or time consuming I can agree with but it is not crap.

Trez Mackenzie
I agree with your modern trend thesis - especially if you add in the AM factor. But I think there is a line to be crossed between the kit manufacturers chucking out a quick buck kit with no effort in a fancy box (my pet peeve - rebox) etc, and thereby throwing the burden on the modeller and on the other side 'great expectations' along with spewing out bundles of dollars on AM on an already close to perfect kit.

I suppose if you are saying the kit can be built into an accurate replica then the modifications and work are justified.

I do admit that scratch building is the purest form of scale modelling so it depends on one's 'Weltanschaaung' and philosophy.

Anyway it looks like you gave up on it which influenced my previous comment - in other words all that effort bore no fruit

Skyhiker
I haven't given up yet. Sometimes life forces me to take breaks but I hope to get back into this one soon. I have to put a lot of tiny details in the cockpit next and I need the right head space for that. Kits like these take time and often I will start easier kits mid process to keep things flowing. I absolutely agree that reboxing old kits without a mold date is deceptive. Thankfully with this site we can look up the history and sometimes see the sprues before buying anything. I've only had one kit that I couldn't do anything with. I bought it for 20 bucks opened up and threw it directly in the trash. That was a Top Gun F/A-18 Hornet snap kit, which really was a piece of shit.

Trez Mackenzie
lol - hopefully I wont end up with one of those 'open kit open bin' models. I would reconsider throwing in loads of detail in that cockpit because none will be seen - it may be one of those more of a burden - but it is your show.

As I'm just getting into it again I bought several boxes of the 1/72 AZ joy packs - about 20 bucks - 3 kits in a box - although the Gustav set has no stencils the Emil set does but no decals - much easier to deal with. I am using them to practice some skills. (Will post on here soon)

Just to add they are about to bring out AZ Mustang Joy pack - I'm only into German aircraft and armour but it might be for you. I suspect they may bring out another later mustang set

Remco van Haren
Following. Really looking forward to the end result.
Especially since I built this kit myself last year. Although I didn't put so much effort and detail into it as you are doing.

Johne 69
So gar so good 👍

Skyhiker
I added a bit of detail to the scratch built cockpit today.

Skyhiker
Worked on the canopy and tried to figure out how the scratch built cockpit will fit into the body.

Skyhiker
I corrected the seat position today.

Skyhiker
Added some space for the wheels

Trez Mackenzie
It's coming along!
From about halfway back on the underside there should be no join line - but forward of halfway you are good which makes things a little easier.

Just an idea but you can download the ZM instructions to get an idea?

Skyhiker
Trez your message is pretty cryptic. Are you talking about panel lines or internal wing structures? The last photo is just a dry fit. I haven't started with dealing with any panel lines yet. I've been working on the inside of the wing walls to make something that gives an impression of space for the wheels.

Trez Mackenzie
Apologies - I meant the external join lines. I can see what you done - it looks good. I thought the ZM instructions would help as a guide

Skyhiker
Trez, thanks for your ideas. I'm using a lot of photos and the instructions from a 1:32 model to help figure out what is going on. This little model is a challenge to correct but I'm having fun pushing my skills and learning as I go.

Moreno Baruffini
I'm really enjoying this build! 👍👍👍

Skyhiker
I worked out most of the cockpit issues today. It's not perfect but I got it in there.

Skyhiker
Moreno, I'm glad you're liking it. This is kinda pushing my skills a bit. We'll see what happens in the end together.

Trez Mackenzie
Don't worry too much about updates - things like that can cause one to rush. We ain't going away so take your time! 🫡👍

Skyhiker
Getting this kit to accept a cockpit was like pounding a square peg through a round hole. I had to reshape the whole damn fuselage.

Patrick Hagelstein
Whoah!!! Amazing what you did to that old tooling! Very cool to watch! 👍🏼

Skyhiker
Thank you Patrick. I'm trying. We will see if it works.

Bruce Huxtable
Really liking what you're doing, Skyhiker, and learning lots too. Impressed with your skills 🙂

Łukasz Gliński
What is that superglue thingy?

Skyhiker
Łukasz the shape of the hood is really off in the kit. The superglue is just material for me to try and sculpt into a better hood.

Łukasz Gliński
I was just wondering if you have mixed it with something

Skyhiker
No, It's just cheap super glue from a discount store that I poured right from the tube and hardened with accelerator.

Skyhiker
Started reshaping the fuselage today.

Skyhiker
Hood work today.

Nicolas
That looks very messy. But as long as it works, and it looks promising.

Skyhiker
Yes, very messy but it works. Old school style.

Patrick Hagelstein
The effort put into this is just amazing! 👌🏼

Skyhiker
More work on the exhausts today.

Moreno Baruffini
The true essence of modelling!

Skyhiker
I began rescribing the panel lines today. This will take a bit of time.

Tony Cooke
Dedication!!

Skyhiker
Bruce, thanks for your encouragement. It definitely helps.

Dave Flitton
That's a lot of work!

Skyhiker
Well the fine engraving blade I just bought broke within a day of use. Very frustrating.

Skyhiker
Luckily I bought a .02 mm blade in addition to the .01 mm that broke. It will have to do even though I would prefer the lines to be a little bit thinner.

Skyhiker
I finished the panel lines on the underside of the wings today.

Vincent
Impressive work!! Keep it up!

Patrick Hagelstein
Amazing progress! Once you go the route of updating such an old kit, there's no way back, is there?

Skyhiker
Thanks Patrick, your right there is always more to discover and do. I'm having fun with it. Of course I have no idea what it will look like in the end. I'm spending far too many hours allowing myself to be lost in process. But if that's what it takes, why not?

Skyhiker
It's amazing how every kit I look at of a FW Ta 152 H is different. All the photos of the original aircraft are so blurry that details are impossible to pick out, so I'm left with looking at kits and guessing which ones are correct.

Skyhiker
Anyone out there with a book on the TA 152? I'm trying to figure out if the top of the flaps have a vertical line down the center of them or not. From underneath there is a line there but I am getting conflicting images of the top surface. Can anyone post a decent image?

DerMattes
I looked through some of my books and picture collection. But to find even a picture of the Ta152 is rare. 🙁

Skyhiker
Thanks Mattes. There are a few decent books out there but they go for 80 Euros and I can't afford that. I doubt the library would have anything worth while. Maybe the model shop will let me look through one of their books but usually they are sealed in foil. Hopefully someone here has something. Getting panel lines correct is not so easy. Even worse are the rivets.

Skyhiker
I found this image which clearly shows the flaps divide in two sections. Interestingly the sections are not even like the underside.
[img1]

DerMattes
Maybe this would be helpful? flugzeugclassic.de/f..hlands-bester-jaeger
I do not have the magazine, but kind of stumbled over the link 😉

Skyhiker
That's cool Mattes. Thanks for the tip.

Ben M
I admire you trying to make something of this kit.

Skyhiker
Thanks Ben, this kit gets a bad rap. It's not as bad as people make it out to be. Of course I am putting a lot of work into it to make it better. But if its done straight out of the box it's not that bad. The backwards propeller is a stupid engineering mistake but that's an easy fix.

AndreasK
Nice project, Skyhiker. And really stunning what you achieved so far. 👍🏻

Sy Bar
Can't wait to see fruits of your hard work 🍿

Skyhiker
I'm worked on the top side of the wings today.

Skyhiker
Panel lines... panel lines and more panel lines...

Matthew A
Owch

Skyhiker
Yeah, I was a little heavy handed, but it's not a problem. I just glued it back together. I prefer trenching and filling over trying to get the lines the exact depth overall and then accidentally sanding away lines. The only problem with using this method is the deep panel lines can make the model unstable in places if you are not careful. But in the end it should all work out.

Skyhiker
I am slowly moving forward on the panel lines behind the scenes. This is the part I have to force my way through because I don't really enjoy it. But it is coming along and I could have some photos soon.

Patrick Hagelstein
Looking forward to that! 😊

J35J
Good progress, great craftmanship!👍🏻

Skyhiker
Got most of the panel lines down. I still have to do the bottom.

Moreno Baruffini
I personally ate re-scribing, so my admiration for you is huge!

Skyhiker
Thank you Moreno, re-scribing is definitely the part that's the least fun for me too. Some days I have to force myself just to do one line. If you do that once a day eventually it gets done. But yeah, re-scribing sucks.

Skyhiker
Big step made with attaching the wings. It makes me feel like I am moving forward after all.

Patrick Hagelstein
There ya go! 😄

Skyhiker
Wing plates are made.

Pietro De Angelis
An impressive amount of work, your patience and skills are incredible, congrats!

Skyhiker
Thank you Pietro.

Thomas Kolb
Wow, what an insane amount of work you put into this project! I am humbled by your perseverance and attention to detail!

Skyhiker
Thanks Thomas, I enjoy the process of trying to figure out how to do stuff. The model is just an added bonus in the end.

Skyhiker
Today I continued with the landing gear. A few pictures added.

Moreno Baruffini
As I wrote above, it's the true essence of modelling!

Skyhiker
Thanks Moreno. I'm having fun with it, mostly. The panel lines were a drag but I got through that part. Hopefully after the primer I won't have to any major touch ups. But we will see. One step at a time...

Skyhiker
Primer started!

Johne 69
Nice Details 👍

Skyhiker
Yesterday and today I filled the panel lines to the appropriate depth.

Patrick Hagelstein
This keeps on being cool to watch! 👍🏼

Vincent
Watching you making process is indeed great to watch. The plane is starting to look great!

Moreno Baruffini
Wow! How do you filled the lines? How was you able to calculate the exact quantity?

Skyhiker
Moreno, I used an engraving tool to cut deep lines and then I rubbed white putty into them. By rubbing the excess off it automatically brings the lines to just below the surface of the model. As the lines dry they also shrink a bit. So, it was not too hard to do. The trick is to use enough water and a brush to apply the putty and to use enough water on a paper towel or cotton bud to remove the excess. Hard to get to areas need to be cleaned up with a wooden tooth pick.

Robert Podkoński
I never would believe that the base kit is a Revell's offering.... Awesome job!

Moreno Baruffini
@Skyhiker: Super! Many thanks for the explanation!

Alec K
Great project and some serious dedication to a challenging tooling 👍

Skyhiker
I worked on some details today. Tomorrow I will give it another coat of primer and hopefully start the riveting.

S M
Wow this is borderline masochistic👍

Skyhiker
I am debating with myself when the best time to do riveting is. If you do it before priming you run the risk of filling the holes. If you do it after priming it makes it harder to correct mistakes. If you do it after the final paint job you run the risk of fucking everything up. Anyone have any experience with riveting?

Matthew A
I think you typed f when you should have typed m

Skyhiker
I stand corrected. Thanks.

Alec K
Regarding riveting: I have done it before priming but I don't see why you could not do it after. You'l have to sand after as the riveter leaves 'rings' around each divot (as it pushes the plastic out). In my experience, a thin coat of primer has negligible impact on the rivet holes (if it had, this would be a problem with any factory-riveted kit).

Skyhiker
Alec, I tend to agree with you. My thoughts on doing the riveting after the primer was that the rivets may remain a bit better defined. But I am not convinced. I think I will have to do some tests for the future. By riveting before and after the primer on some styrene, then spraying a color coat over both should give me a better idea of which I prefer. Right now I feel like I prefer not doing it at all, because riveting is a pain. But that's just me feeling sorry for myself for wanting to do a half way decent job on this kit. I do wish I could find some reliable riveting guides for this plane. It seems like everyone is just guessing at it.

Skyhiker
I got some riveting done today.

Patrick Hagelstein
That riveting looks very impressive! 👌🏼

Skyhiker
Thanks Patrick, I haven't mastered riveting or panel lines yet but I'm learning. I am pretty limited in my tools and the scale is not the easiest. But with practice and study I hope to improve.

Skyhiker
I've realized that one of the benefits of doing the riveting after the primer is that you can make sure that most of the sanding is completed. However inevitably there are areas that get messed up and sanding is required after all. I just haven't found the perfect solution.

Sy Bar
Enjoying your progress a lot, the transformat is amazing.
I must say your plans are so clear and great reference where do you get your plans like these from, I search the tinternet but never find any as useful as your plans, any extra guidance would be appreciated

Skyhiker
I drew my plans on the computer by looking at various images on the internet. Unfortunately I haven't found any place to download great paneling or riveting guides. There is a Russian website that has blueprints that I sometimes use but I'm not sure if it is still available. I didn't use it for this project.

Skyhiker
Sy Bar, which plane will you be doing next? I can look around for blueprints and see if I can find anything useful.

Sy Bar
Cheers Skyhiker v kind offer and thanks for the info. Not sure what will be next and if plans will be required but I'll keep you in mind should the need arise.
Keep up the work I'm loving watching the progress 👍

Skyhiker
Widened the wing roots and I am continuing with the riveting today. Also I did a lot of research on the proper colors to use, which was not as easy as one would think. They certainly are not what the instructions say.

Moreno Baruffini
Great work as usual! I'm curious about the colours: aren't they the late RLMs?

Skyhiker
The colors are late RLM colors but not exactly as the instructions say. To start with they call for the hood to be RLM83 which of course is wrong, since in actuality that was a marine color and blue. Many paint manufacturers have some type of green with that number but it was based on a typing mistake in the original RLM records. I believe the hood should be RLM73 as in the original photos it is a bit darker than 81. The fuselage is RLM81 and RLM82, but there were three variants of 81, two that were brownish and one more green. The green is the correct one for this plane. The under carriage is RLM76, but once again we have three variants to choose from; one that is greyer, one bluer and one more tan colored. The greyer one is correct. There is confusion about whether the nose is red or black. I still have to do more research on this. I believe the propeller blade was RLM70

Moreno Baruffini
Many thanks! Super explanation! 😀

Skyhiker
I hope to be finished with the riveting today. Most of my time was spent trying to figure out which of the conflicting diagrams was closest to the original. I don't know if I got it right since there are no surviving planes left.

Oleksii
Great Work on this old Revell Kit and there is still one surviving aircraft.In National Air and Space museum.
airandspace.si.edu/c..11/nasm_A19600317000

Skyhiker
National Air and Space museum has a different version of this plane. It is very similar but there are a lot of differences.

Oleksii
Ouh okay, thank you

Skyhiker
Worked on a bunch of details today.

Skyhiker
I redid the engine today and laid down a second layer of primer. The rivet lines came out well. There are just a few small touch ups on the engine cover and wing tips to do before I start on the wings.

DerMattes
Fantastic work, looks like a different kit!

Skyhiker
Thanks DerMattes. It's more a scratch build than a kit at this point. It's starting to come together. I still have a while to go though. How is a scratch build defined at the official contests?

Hans-Jürgen Haag
From an old crow to an up to date beauty! Owsom project!👍👍👍

J35J
It's like you are building a vac kit with the amount of work and attention to details you are putting into this build. Impressive and inspiring!👍🏻

Skyhiker
I made a gunsight out of 7 scratch built parts that is only one millimeter in size.

Nicolas
The gunsight looks fantastic.

Alec K
Indeed, looks awesome 👍

Skyhiker
Next I have to try and repair or replace the front windshield. Somehow it cracked when I was sanding it down. Is it me or do the clear parts on Revell kits always have problems?

Skyhiker
Well I painted the propeller today but afterwards I had to clean my Iwata airbrush and change the needle. Unfortunately the needle noozle broke off in my airbrush and there is no way to fix it! Now I have to rely on a cheap Chinese knock off to finish painting until I can save an extra 150 bucks to buy a new airbrush.

Nicolas
That sucks. I'd love to lend you my second airbrush, but unfortunately that's also just an old Chinese product at the moment. Probably wouldn't help much.