JAS-39 'Gripen' - Revell - Double Build
Comments
2 19 September 2019, 18:08
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The biplace kit is in my stash and probably is my next build. Have you decide on the loadout?
19 September 2019, 18:19
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Following. The single seater is my next project. Nice work so far.
19 September 2019, 18:22
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Augusto, I will build two Hungarian versions, and they mostly fly with a centerline fuel tank and sometimes a Litening pod, so that will be my loadout. I will also scratch build an ACMI pod (air combat pod) on the wing tip.
19 September 2019, 18:33
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Ferenc Sarka, thanks! BTW, I recognize the orange Cápeti MiG-21 in your avatar, we actually visited the Szolnok air museum this summer, it was amazing!
19 September 2019, 18:36
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Daniel, thanks! There are a lot of hidden pitfalls with these kits - Revell made some very strange design decisions.
19 September 2019, 18:45
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Ok, I somehow hoped it was a nice quick intermission type build from my 48 scale stuff😉 well I may be in for a bit more...but its good to see it getting fixed&done here beforehand
19 September 2019, 18:57
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I'm watching too! Nice progress on that bad fitting kit! I did the C last year...
20 September 2019, 10:32
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Following, I'm going to have a closer look at the originals tomorrow in Mošnov, let me know if you need some closeup pics😉
20 September 2019, 20:00
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Łukasz, thanks, I really like the Gripens, I sometimes see them thunder by above my house.
20 September 2019, 20:54
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There you go 🙂
Magyar Gripen D #43 | Album by Woody
There was only this two-seater on static display.
22 September 2019, 18:58
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I love seing people put PE on 1/72, this means it is actually possible 😄 Great job, Thomas, painting and weathering will now be just the cherry on top!
29 September 2019, 08:32
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Sergei I, thank you! Yes, I almost always use some PE on 1/72 kits, it's fun, but you need high quality tweezers and a steady hand!
29 September 2019, 09:45
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This evening I primed both models with Stynylrez gray - happy to see that I hardly need to do any filling fixes before the final paint coat. Next I will fix the gear bay doors and the ordnance and then start with some preshading.
20 October 2019, 17:39
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Łukasz, yes, it is called "Ultimate Primer" by UMP (previously called Badger Stynylrez). It is by far the best primer product I have ever used. No thinning is required, you can use it straight from the bottle into the airbrush. It levels out exceptionally on the model and forms a nearly perfect finish that is also very resilient. The only thing is that it dries up quite quickly in the airbrush, so you need to be prepared with a cotton swab soaked with thinner to keep cleaning the needle tip.
20 October 2019, 20:13
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Top surfaces painted with my own mix of Gripen Gray (actually called "pansargrå" in Swedish). I had been testing a lot of mixes on scrapped models until this combo (with the light gray underside) looked like the real thing. Also, as you can see, I am no fan of panel preshading, I think the effect is a bit too hit-and-miss for me. I like doing post-shading instead, I feel that I have better control over that.
25 October 2019, 15:41
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Nose and undersides finally painted with my own light gull gray mix. Some errors here and there that needs to be fixed later, but still a great progress! BTW I was originally intending to get a soft line between the two gray tones for authenticity, but I was unable to get a consistent result on the two models, so in the end I used bendable masking tape. The end result actually looks neater in 1:72. Anyway, I might go over the line later with freehand spraying to get a slightly fuzzy line, but then again, I might not...
29 October 2019, 18:43
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Yesterday evening I resumed this project and began applying post-shading to break up the uniform gray color scheme. I used the main colors, highly diluted and slightly brightened in the center of the panels. I think this creates a more realistic result than just flowing wash into the lines (which sometimes makes models look like an Excel spreadsheet). I will continue weathering the models with pigments and watercolor pencils, but first I will need to add a gloss coat for the decals.
21 November 2019, 09:00
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Very nice result! 👍 You could also use small rolls of UHU Tac or Blue Tac to do the line between the two grays. So the edge would be a bit softer.
21 November 2019, 12:03
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Harry, thanks! Yes, I tried the putty masking method but I just couldn't get a consistent result, it looked like a mess... 🙁 I tried to go through the demarcation line with a diluted mid gray color with freehand spraying, and I think it *kind of* fixed it. But I am terrible at airbrushing.
Jiry, sorry, one Swedish and one Hungarian.
21 November 2019, 14:27
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Can you post some more photos of your post-shading? Maybe I`ll try it on my next project. About the edges of color schemes, I thought about it a while ago, and maybe in 72nd scale it doesn`t make that much of a difference.
21 November 2019, 15:10
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Some more decals remain and then it is time for the assembly of canards, wheels, air brakes, antennas, weapons, lights and stuff. Then a lot of detail painting and weathering. Still a lot of work left, but I can see the finishing line! Yaaay!
24 November 2019, 08:00
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Super. Both of them. I am working on the singles seater gripen right now. Your comments helped me a lot during my work.
24 November 2019, 08:10
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Some great work here! I can see that you have the same problems with this kit as I do (and I didn't finish... but plan to😉 ) - it is a mystery how can you make a new moulds and they are in places worse than the old Italeri kit... But your Gripens looks very nice!
24 November 2019, 11:10
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Feri and Wojtek, thank you guys! Yes, this is actually a much more difficult kit than what I ever thought it would be. A lot of fit issues and strange design solutions and it will not build nicely straight out from the box.
24 November 2019, 11:25
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Hans and Daniel, thank you, but wait with the congrats until they are finished - I might still ruin them with some silly mistake! :-D
24 November 2019, 15:00
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They look great and the Hungarian chevrons always keep me impressed. One of the most creative roundel idea ever!
24 November 2019, 16:58
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I am waiting for the ordered Hungarian decal sheet so I can replace the Italeri ones I tried to use. Those are really thick and with the wrong colors on the national insignias (the outer chevron is almost white when it should be mid gray). By the way Italeri has also dded the wrong numbers for their intended single-seater version (aircraft number 43 is in fact a twin-seater D-version, the one I am depicting).
28 November 2019, 04:53
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Have glanced into this once and a while but haven't commented yet: Wow!!! 😮 Looking great! Especially after your battle with these kits. 👍
28 November 2019, 06:08
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I added most of the missing parts and decals and did my best to do some really heavy weathering based on photos. It is not easy to make it look realistic! I now have only one or two more hours of faffing left with ordnance, antennas and some smaller stuff, and then this project is finally finished!
18 December 2019, 21:50
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Nice pair of Gripens! Were the Czech Tiger decals part of the so-so Italeri sheet? In any, case, very good looking duo! 👍
18 December 2019, 22:05
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Slavo, thank you! The Tiger decals you see in the pictures are Revell's own decals (for the JAS-39C kit). It is absolutely beautiful.
18 December 2019, 22:48
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That '43' looks like the one I've seen in Ostrava last September 👍 Looking forward to seeing this couple crossing the finish line.
19 December 2019, 09:38
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Lukasz, He he, I was actually thinking that I had gone too far with the weathering and then I looked at your pictures... 🙂 I don't know why these aircraft tend to get so incredibly faded and dirty, what kind of paint are the guys at Saab using anyway...?
19 December 2019, 11:50
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So many nice details on such a small bird! I love the subtle weathering.
19 December 2019, 22:52
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How did you do that? I found a Liquitex iridescent transparent coat but it's a thick paste. Do you just rub that into the canopy?
20 December 2019, 12:58
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There are actually several different iridescent inks that can be mixed with clear varnishes (such as AK Gauzy Agent) to give a kind of mother-of-pearl sheen. TBH it is more visible in the pictures than in real life; it is an extremely subtle effect and I am not sure it is worth faffing with it, risking to ruin the canopy.
20 December 2019, 13:59
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True but I like it as it is that subtle. Thanks for explaining! 👍
20 December 2019, 15:04
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I tried to find something similar for the HUD and FLIR optics of my 72nd Rafale, but gave up. Don`t know if here in Brazil I can find this Liquitex. Good looking, btw!
20 December 2019, 16:09
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Oh, and about the missile`s decals, they come out of the box with the training markings? I found this intriguing because the Hobbyboss Rafale that I recently build only came with blue training markins for all the ordnances and I had to paint all of those. Weird...
20 December 2019, 16:12
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Augusto, in the Swedish Air Force, ordnance is marked with green color for dummies (practise weapons) and yellow for live ordnance. Red is not used since it is difficult to differentiate from green for people with color vision deficiency. I am not sure why Revell printed red bands, but I might replace them with my own green decals later.
20 December 2019, 16:56
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I like the canopy effect very much - great result, one day I need to check this method out! 👍
20 December 2019, 17:34
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Even if its barely visible, I def. need to try that!! Great job all around 👍
20 December 2019, 18:06
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This thread/debate raises an interesting thought: we have had such advances, courtesy of PE and resin, bringing extra detail to all scales. To my knowledge, no one manufacturer has done a similar 'dive' into the world of canopies/HUDs/formation lights, whereupon they could emulate the subtle tints (ref. that on an F-22), and the 'to scale' thickness of transparencies.....
20 December 2019, 19:06
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afv club once made some iridescent canopies like this one:
Anti-reflection coating for ..- (AFV Club AFAC32004, 1:32)
Got one for a D-Hornet which looks awesome. But I agree the whole thing is really underrepresented
20 December 2019, 19:10
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Does it work when you remove & re-polish the seam? I thought it's a matter of the uppermost film/coat on the surface... In any case, very cool topic I'd like to dedicate some time to in the future, I'll keep the inputs here in mind, thx!
20 December 2019, 20:12
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@slavo: the glitter is on the inside of those canopies, so you can manipulate the outside as much as you like
20 December 2019, 21:14
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@Thomas Kolb Maybe I wasn`t clear, but what I meant as weird about the ordnance decals is that some kits come with dummie markings (the Hobyboos Rafale, for instance) instead of more "interesting" live ordnance markings. Wonder if that is on purpose or not.
14 January 2020, 14:33
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Augusto, because model makers are using reference photos? The Gripen (and the Rafale) can simulate all A-G weapons using computer software onboard, so live ordnance is almost never carried during peacetime (except for planned photo sessions). Blind dummy missiles are used for the ground crew to practice arming and disarming procedures.
14 January 2020, 18:15
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That was my first thought, but then it`s just laziness. One would expect just a little more research from a manufacturer of products made for military aviation enthusiasts...
14 January 2020, 19:02
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Finally finished! 🙂 It was much more work than I initially thought, but I definitely learnt a lot of new modeling tricks. Thanks to all who contributed with positive comments!
16 January 2020, 19:20
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@Thomas: Lovely couple, looking forward to seeing your next builds.
@Chris: that sounds bit Bostonish, doesn't it?😉
16 January 2020, 20:46
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They both came out great, a nice pair you got there 🙂 really like the lighting mood on your pics 👍
21 January 2020, 15:19