GWH MiG-29SMT Fulcrum-E - WIP

Spanjaard
Front row for this one!

Adam Gudynowski
Following

Patrick Hagelstein
I'm in!!!

Michael Phillips
Got some progress to share tonight... Got the cockpit (minus seat and stick, more on that in a moment) done and in the upper fuselage.

So far I have found this build to be a bit fiddly. The cockpit didn't want to go into the fuselage properly and OOB seat (which I was going to use) headrest is a major pain in the butt. It is made of three parts that I just couldn't get put together right, and now looks like crap. So I am using an aftermarket QB seat. The stick got blown out of my hand as I was spraying it and I'm still haven't found it. Lol.

Marko
Also in

Patrick Hagelstein
Man.... In the time I had three parts in my hands and still haven't had the time to attach them together, you built a complete cockpit, painted it and even had time to play around with that control stick! You really build fast Michael!

Spanjaard
cockpit looking fantastic!

Michael Phillips
Thanks Marko, Patrick, and Spanjaard!

Lol Patrick, I am a quick builder indeed. But I must admit, I do get a consistent 1-2 hours every night to model, so that does help a lot. 🙂

Christian Ristits
Very interesting, I will follow! I have an inquiry to build a GWH MiG-29 for a collector - I am curious if the kit meet your expectations...

Michael Phillips
Welcome Christian! So far, I am very impressed. This kit has amazing detail, clever engineering, and fit has been overall very good. My major gripe so far is relatively minor... that damn seat headrest! Why that has to be three small pieces is a mystery to me!

Maciej Bellos
Nice start! Just a question: most russian/soviet cockpits are that elusive blue/emerald colour and I thought the -29 would have it also. Instead you used grey. However my info might be outdated and the contemporary MiG-29s might use something else.

Alexander Grivonev
At this speed you won't have any 1:48 kits left to build in two years! 😛

Michael Phillips
Maciej, once again good eye! I was just about to paint the cockpit AKAN turquoise, when something inside me thought that maybe I should look at some pics first to make sure. And sure enough, SMTs (and Ks as well) used a light gray and NOT turquoise for the cockpit. So I used Light Ghost Gray because it looked close.

Alexander, the better question is whether I will have a place to put them in two years! LOL
I build between 12-15 models per year, and at that rate I have enough kits in my stash to last me about 12 years LOL. If you take a look at my project list, I have them all listed (in order if you click the status tab) up to almost #130 now. LOL

Spanjaard
you are not only prolific, but also really organized. i can not be sure of what i will build next until i truly finish the current one... and you have the next 130 already lined up! wow 🙂

Patrick Hagelstein
Michael, I know exactly what you mean by first looking at some pictures! 😄

Donald Dickson II
I am liking so far! And I have sooooo done that with blowing small pieces into oblivion.

Christian Ristits
Many thanks Michael!

Michael Phillips
Thanks James!

Spanjaard, actually since I have built 25 so far it's actually only my next 105 projects. LOL Only... Anyway, I have been adding one project per day until I have every kit in my stash in a project. So I got about 50 more to go. This order is subject to change, as I do move stuff around from time to time and sometimes inspiration can vault a project to the top of the list, such as my next project, the Kitty Hawk Su-35S. 🙂

Patrick, I am lucky this time. I looked before I made the mistake. Often I am not so lucky. LOL As they say, measure twice, cut once. I think that pretty much sums it up!

Thanks Donald! Man, I hate that. I always have to consciously move small parts out of the path of the airbrush airflow as they tend to fly all over the place. This is actually the first time I have had one fly out of my hand, but I have had many fly away just sitting on my paint cardboard. Collateral damage!

You're welcome Christian!

Spanjaard
i should make projects for all the stash items. actually about half is already "projected". the order will depend on the mood and other factors. I have 3/4 candidates for next build, once the current is finished, for example

Murad ÖZER
i love the "normal" fulcrum alright but with this one i am still trying to figure out if the hump is yay or nay. anyway i am taking my seat and enjoying the show... 🙂

Michael Phillips
Spanjaard, you are pretty normal. The way I do it is not normal, or even natural. Lol I'm weird that way... Haha

Murad, I feel the same way. Some angles it looks awesome, others not so much... Kinda like the F-35 in that way. I chose to build this one now because of the camo scheme. The gray splinter is really cool, and fits perfectly for my IPMS club contest theme in October, which is "Shades of Gray".

Tonight I got some more construction done. The intakes are tricky, you definitely have to remove the locator tabs to get a decent fit. I still need to do some more work there. But all in all fit is pretty good, and it's starting to look like a Fulcrum now!

Alistair Graham
im watching with interest, ive bought one from GW but the C model

David Barclay
Man Michael! That is coming together quick! Looks great!

Michael Phillips
Welcome Alistair! The detail on these GWH Fulcrums are amazing.

Thanks David! Yeah, this thing is really coming together quickly. I hope to have some primer on it by the end of the weekend!

Michael Phillips
Getting close to prime time! This is really going together so fast... I have been working on this for barely a week now. My record for a kit build is 2.5 weeks... Hmmmm, I wonder if I can best that? 🙂

Patrick Hagelstein
I'm just flabbergasted at your building speed... and how ugly that in flight refueling probe is!!! 😄

Spanjaard
I am flabbergasted not only at the speed, also the quality you can deliver!

Michael Phillips
Thanks Patrick, Spanjaard, and James! I really appreciate the kind words.

Haha Patrick, I totally agree. That thing is pretty hideous. LOL

It's hard to believe how fast this kit goes together, and the detail is really awesome. Really am enjoying this build!

Anyway, got her primed today, see a couple areas that need attention, but very minor. Should be able to pre-shade tomorrow. 🙂

Michael Hickey
She's looking good as usual.👍

Donald Dickson II
If you have it primed in black, what are you doing for pre shading?

Michael Phillips
Thanks Michael!

Donald, funny you should ask that now as I just finished... See the new pics! 🙂 Marble coat pre-shading!

Patrick Hagelstein
Donald, I've seen a couple of Michael's builds; wait and see! It's going to look wonderful!

Donald Dickson II
Ah! I kind of had that in the back of my head. Now, does that really make a difference? If you simply vary the coverage of the top coat, doesnt that end up the same?

Asking not to be an ass, but because always interested in how others do stuff and why.

Patrick Hagelstein
This technique is called 'black basing' and is essentially the same as preshading but due to the marbleing effect the white has, the overall appearance is more patchy than the dark panel lines one would get with preshading. Just keep looking at Michael's progress and you will see the subtle but more realistic difference. 🙂

Donald Dickson II
Oh, I do black basing, but I dont do the lighter squiggles. I simply vary the amount of top color I spray.

I will be interested in seeing the difference.

Michael Phillips
Donald, we are basically doing different approaches to achieve the same thing. I just like doing it this way because I feel I have more control over how much I let through. For example, I wanted this one to one to not show through very much, so I added a bit heavier base coat. So this project is not the best one to show this technique.

Anyway, base coat is on! I used Mr Paint Traffic Gray (MiG-25/31 light gray) because it looked pretty close to the light gray I have seen in pictures. Next up is to mask and paint the medium gray, which I think I will use Dark Ghost Gray.

Donald Dickson II
Gotcha Michael! Looks good so far.

arne vd burg
Good work so far Michael , watching

Michael Phillips
Thanks Donald and Arne!

I masked and painted the medium gray tonight. Looks pretty good, maybe just a tad too dark. I will probably go back in and mist over it with some of the lighter gray to tone it down a bit.

Tomorrow it's dark gray time!

Michael Phillips
Dark gray is down! I lightened up the medium gray a little too, so now I think it's about right. Tomorrow will be the very dark gray for the radon and fin caps. Getting closer to decal time!

Michael Hickey
She's looking real nice, and coming along smoothly.

Michael Phillips
Thanks Michael!

One thing I forgot to mention, I managed to break off 6 of the 7 little doodads on this thing, one of the two forward fuselage sensors, all 3 of the tail sensors, and two PE things between the engines. I only lost one of them though, so I will try to figure out how to replace of the tail sensors I lost.

Michael Hickey
oh no, that can't be good.

Donald Dickson II
Nice job sir! Thats why I dont attach doohickies until the very end if at all possible.

Michael Phillips
Thank Donald! Yeah, I usually don't either, but for some reason I did this time. Lesson learned. Lol

Anyway, got the very dark gray areas painted tonight. I also went back in with the light gray and simulated some fading and gave it some tonal variation.

David Barclay
Lookin Great Michael!

Christian Ristits
Looks fantastic!

Michael Phillips
Thanks David and Christian!

Got the main decals on today, not too many of those. Lol. Tonight I will put the stencils on, not a terrible amount of those either, so it shouldn't be too bad.

Donald Dickson II
Absolutely awful...Psych!!!! LOL Just had to say something different than looks good man!😉

Patrick Hagelstein
Yeah, I know Donald, I have the same here... But luckily the refueling probe looks awefull! 😄

Michael Phillips
Thanks Donald and Patrick! Haha, you almost had me there Donald! I was like, hmmm, is something super crooked that I missed? LOL

Patrick, that is why I never make that side of the aircraft the main pic. It looks hideous! I can only hope that once I paint the details on it and throw a wash on it will not look quite so lame. Hahaha

Patrick Hagelstein
😄 Let's hope that works! 😉

Stephan Ryll
Looking very good Michael 👍

Michael Phillips
Thanks Stephan and James!

Got the topside wash on today, tomorrow will be the underside. Coming along nicely!

Donald Dickson II
I may have missed it, but what are you using for the wash?

Markus Kutsch The Plastic Bench
Great camo work 👍

Michael Phillips
Thanks Donald and Markus!

Donald, I used Mig Ammo Deep Gray. That is my go to wash for most colors. For very dark grays colors, I usually use Mig Ammo Medium Gray wash. I am a big fan of the Mig Ammo enamel washes.

Xander Jansen
Amassing model so far!! Looking really nice!!

Christian Ristits
Still looking awesome - beside the ugly refueling-probe 😉

Kerry COX
Michael. ! What demons were messing with you with the black and squiggles. ? As I was ready to see a magnificent cammo and weapons set up then...................................................back to grey. !!! But I can't escape the fantastic final result and say well done sir. 👍 👍 👍

Michael Hickey
She is humming along nicely.👍

Sarunas D
I like this digital camo. Going to try the black basing technique once my current projects reach painting stage. Is this regular black paint or a black primer?

Scott Dutton
this is a great looking paint scheme and you are doing it full justice

Michael Phillips
Thanks Xander, Christian, Kerry, Michael, Sarunas, and Scott! I have been working on tedious little things lately and have no major updates yet. But this weekend my goal is to finish it, so stay tuned!

Kerry, haha, you crack me up! I get that reaction a lot when people see my odd preshading technique. It is kinda different than everyone else's black basing preshading. But it works for me!

Sarunas, I use Gunze Mr Surfacer 1500 black primer. That stuff is AWESOME! If you ever get a chance, try it. It is far and away the best primer I have ever used. No contest.

Kerry COX
Michael. Thanks for that info on your shading techniques. I will get some more from you at a later date, but it is, most fascinating. 🙂

Christian Bruer
Another great WIP, looking forward to the final 👍

Michael Phillips
Thanks Christian!

Progress has really slowed of late. All the little things and tedious work have bogged me down a bit. But got the missiles, exhaust, weathering, and flat coat done. Just gotta paint and install the seat, canopy, and the landing gear doors and I should be done. Oh, and attach the tanks and missile pylons as well. Hopefully that will be done early this week.

Denis Kuleshov
Fantactic!

Spanjaard
wow, it is looking better every day. almost done!

Michael Phillips
Thanks Denis and Spanjaard!

Yep, almost done! But I must admit, I am not terribly pleased with the weathering. I wanted to make it moderately dirty, since I had seen pics of it both clean and dirty. But I think I went a little too heavy on it. Boy, it sure is easy to overdo!

Donald Dickson II
It IS easy to over do, but I would consider that in between. I have seen pics of them much dirtier. Regardless, awesome!