MiG-15 UTI 'Midget' - Eduard
Kommentarer
23 28 April 2020, 11:39
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@Sergej, I am sorry to disappoint, but I am a slow builder. Like really, r-e-a-l-l-y slow. It can easily take me several months to finish a kit. It's a zen thing.
6 May 2020, 10:41
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Thomas, I am the same. No disappointment there at all 🙂 I was just making a joke to the "weekend edition" designation on the box.
6 May 2020, 15:45
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Cockpit finished, and fuselage halves assembled. However, I have no idea if I have added enough weight for it not to be a tail-sitter. I added all I could, but it still feels tail-heavy in my hands.
8 May 2020, 18:54
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Already closed the lower lead compartment (under the cockpit)? If not you can still add some more there, this is what I did with my '346' 🙂
8 May 2020, 20:16
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Lukasz, yes, thank you, I think I pretty much added all I could. No worries, I just realized that if needed, I can still cram in a lot of lead weights deep into the jet intake, far far at the back where it won't be visible unless using an endoscope.
9 May 2020, 08:23
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great start, I follow as I would like to learn from you before I build mine. hope you will post pics as you go.
9 May 2020, 19:25
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Pierre & Celliers, thank you! This is really a very nicely engineered kit although there are a few tricky parts. I will try to describe my build in the picture comments.
10 May 2020, 07:12
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Great project Thomas! I say again, it's been MiG-galore on SCM as of late...
10 May 2020, 11:17
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I am now thinking of painting the MiG in a three-tone camo used by the 101st Recon Regiment during the early 70's, instead of leaving it in natural metal... it sure looks cool, but I need to find some more photos.
12 June 2020, 11:45
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Thanks to my Hungarian mate Géza here at SM, I learnt that many of the late MiG-15's had a peculiar semi-circular cutout on the inner left wing fence, so I tried to reproduce this. Legend says that Stalin happened to have his thumb on the papers as he was inspecting the chief designer at Mikoyan making the drawing of the wing, and since the designer didn't dare to ask him to move it, he instead draw a semi-circle around it. In reality the cutout is for the pilot to be able to see the brake flap indicator peg on the top of the left wing before takeoff.
14 June 2020, 11:11
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Had similar dilemma on my LiM-2, but decided to skip it as I'm building quite an early version with sort-of-conformal fuel tanks. Looking forward to seeing your camo proposal 👍
14 June 2020, 19:52
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Green layer of paint done, yay!. These are just the generic areas for the green paint - for the chocolate and the pea-soup color I will be using masks.
15 June 2020, 15:15
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some cracking tips in the build-dialogue Thomas, thank-you ....would you prime at a different pressure to the subsequent painting? (25 PSI,I note)
15 June 2020, 16:18
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Andy, well, yes, the primer I am using (Ultimate Primer) is rather thick and should be airbrushed at like 30-35 PSI or it will not flow steadily. Also I have been told to avoid thinning acrylic primers if possible as it removes some of its adhesive properties - not sure it is true though. For the Tamiya acrylics, I find 20-25 PSI to be just perfect, but I thin it like crazy, 50-50 with Mr Color Leveling Thinner.
15 June 2020, 17:56
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Hmmm, do Tamiya acrylics work with Mr Levelling? Hmm, somehow I missed this option...
15 June 2020, 20:23
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Yeah - because they are also Laquer based like the gunze aqueous colors😉
16 June 2020, 11:57
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Łukasz, yes, the Tamiyas react beautifully to Mr Color Leveling Thinner. In the past I used to thin them with Tamiya X-20A thinner, but it evaporated too quickly out of the airbrush, resulting in a coarse surface and dotted paint edges. The Mr Color Leveling Thinner has a retarder in it, which makes the paint dry just a bit slower, so it is easier to get a nice finish with smooth gradient edges.
16 June 2020, 12:11
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Damn, I should have known this before painting my Glamorous Glennis 😭
16 June 2020, 12:33
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If MLT is not available, then Tamiya Lacquer Thinner retarded type does the job just as good. Tried it, can't tell the difference to MLT.
LP-10R Lacquer Thinner Retar.., Tamiya Color Lacquer Paint , Lacquer, 250ml
16 June 2020, 18:12
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Lukasz, that's actually something I have thought of before... 1/72 is a very ungrateful scale, as even the nicest model easily looks like crap in the photos. I mean, even the plastic and the paint itself has a specific "grain" that starts to become noticeable on macros... very annoying. 1/48 builders don't seem to have this problem, hm, maybe I should move over too... My eyes would surely thank me.
16 June 2020, 19:47
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I'm beginning to think 48 Thomas- I have an extremely short sightedness prescription that allows me to work super close in 72, but I warn you Arma's Hurricane is too 'fussy' with detail...they've squashed a 48'r into a 72nd...making me re-think my scale amibitions.....
16 June 2020, 20:16
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Camouflage finally applied with a healthy amount of guesswork - removing the masking tape was a bit scary, but I think I got the pattern and the colors to what I had in mind. Phew! So now time for some touch-ups and fixes before starting the initial weathering process.
7 July 2020, 16:40
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Andy & Łukasz, thank you! The green is Tamiya XF-26 Deep Green filtered with XF-2 white for a fading effect. The brown is Tamiya XF-72 Brown/JGSDF, also filtered with white. The colors might be a tiny bit too light but I expect them to darken somewhat during the weathering process.
7 July 2020, 21:24
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Auxiliary gloss applied and the decaling process is ongoing. This is quite a relaxing phase, but also time-consuming. I intend to go for a pretty weathered and somewhat grimy look, so the happy-shiny appearance will soon be gone.
19 July 2020, 09:20
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Shiny-happy people to be replaced by grimey-weathered detail?...lovely progress BTW!
19 July 2020, 21:15
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Most of the stencils turned out to be completely invisible, so I don't think I will bother with the smaller ones. Instead I started to proceed to the weathering phase, using oil paints this time - a new technique for me, let's see how it turns out!
21 July 2020, 12:59
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great tip there Thomas, re. the oil painting effects...(I've got a real mental block with weathering at present for the 5 projects I need to complete, so your hints are adding to a range of options I have in my head!), and the Midget looks better for it!!
21 July 2020, 13:00
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Andy, I watched some YT modelers use this technique and so I thought I would try it myself. It's not so easy but it seems quite forgiving; just work section by section and try to keep the effect subtle. As long as the underlying paint is properly sealed by a coat of clear varnish, you can even carefully wipe off the oils with odorless turpentine if it goes horribly wrong.
21 July 2020, 17:02
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The odorless turpentine is in fact not turpentine at all, but something called a 'turpenoid'. It is pretty harmless to the underlying paint. Regular turpentine is a more aggressive a solvent than turpenoid and might damage the paintwork. This AK stuff I am using is perfect, it doesn't touch the paint layers at all, only the oil wash, and even that only when it is still soft.
21 July 2020, 17:30
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The camo & weathering look very nice - good choice and alternative to a NMF 👍 Cool non-mainstream MiG version, well done!
26 July 2020, 21:09
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Yep, that is a wrap folks, that is the best I can do. A very entertaining project and a great little kit.
28 July 2020, 14:05
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My dear model building fellows, thank you all very much for your kind words! 🙂
28 July 2020, 21:15
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May I add a post-script? - an interesting variant, a rarely depicted AF scheme, and a faithfully represented build that we can learn from. I enjoyed the trip!
28 July 2020, 21:40
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Thanks, Andy! This Eduard kit is one of the best engineered kits I have ever built, so I had a great time. 🙂
28 July 2020, 22:23
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Outstanding. I'm sure it's the cleanest canopy of any MiG ever!😉
What's the story behind the backround? Looks like some competition for my hangar😉
29 July 2020, 12:09
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Łukasz, thanks! Yes, the ground maintenance crew were waxing and polishing up the canopy nicely for the photo shoot... but they forgot to clean the aircraft itself...😉 About the background, no story really, just got a bit tired of not having a proper background for the photos except for a white wall.
30 July 2020, 09:32
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The cupboards hanrdstand looks nice, but the winter ground part is exquisite. Where did you get it?
30 July 2020, 12:40
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mojehobby.pl/product..eld-297-x-210mm.html
-or-
coastalkits.co.uk/ne..winter-airfield.html
30 July 2020, 12:56
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Thx. Seems to be bigger than it is. My CoastalKits summer background is way to small for me😉 (see P.11a & Avia CS-199)
31 July 2020, 12:27
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Łukasz, yes I agree, they are really best for small aircraft and closeup photos. Maybe I should learn how to make a realistic diorama base. But I think your summer backdrop is actually quite nice.
31 July 2020, 13:55
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They also have a roll-out base, which I find interesting, yet quite expensive.
31 July 2020, 15:23
Album info
To have more than one ongoing project at once, I decided to start this kit that has been waiting in the cupboard for far too long. I intend to build it as much as possibly out of the box, but with a few improvements in the cockpit area, and with different decal markings than what is provided in the kit.
Originally I intended to paint it as a natural metal finish aircraft, but halfway through the project I changed my mind to instead build number 507 from the 101st Reconnaissance Regiment at Szolnok in Hungary at around 1971 in its more eye-catching green/brown/blue camouflage.