IL 2

Donald Dickson II
OK, so I received this beautiful kit in the Christmas exchange last night. I am not a WWII guy. They are cool planes and all, but they just dont sparkle with me enough to build them. But there ARE a couple I find interesting. And this is one of them. Not to mention this kit is GORGEOUS. It BEGS to be built.

So here is my thing. I want to do the white washed version. Those things got filthy and nasty. So much I can do with it. But I do not know how the planes were painted. In other words, did they do it in a facotry? Were the crews slapping the paint on in the field with whatever they had at hand (like the Germans did to their planes)? Did the final product cover the camo to the point of the art on the box cover? Or were they more like the German planes that were all streaky? Or all different depending on when and where?

I have a good idea of the HOW I will do it. Though I am open to suggestions of course. I just dont want to make it look totally wrong.

Donald Dickson II
Just had to do a quick dry fit. NICE!

Arne Greve
Hi Donald, the russians painted some in the field and I guess some where painted in factories. So, you have the choise.

Martin Oostrom
I have no idea about accuracy, but I did find this for you massimotessitori.alt..s/winter/winter.html

Perhaps we can convert you to non-shiny planes 😉

Donald Dickson II
Martin, that helps a lot! It points to the fact that you can do it however you want and no one can say its wrong. LOL

And that is not happening my friend. The occasional dalliance is the most it will amount to.😉

Donald Dickson II
OK, so I had to move this right into the rotation. Really, its the fault of Hobby Boss. Had they not done such an awesome job, I might have been able to resist.

Cock pit done. 🙂

Donald Dickson II
So I actually have been working on my stuff and not just making smart ass comments on other people's projects. As far as the IL-2 goes.

It is mostly together and primer in light Gray on the bottom and black on top. It went together pretty well. I have only one complaint. They give you really nice machine guns for in the wings. Along with the ammo boxes and ammo belts. I started to put these altogether and paint them and all that and then I realized something. They offer no means whatsoever to show them. If I were to do all that work on them the only thing you see is the barrels poking out. Which is ridiculous. And no way am.i trying to cut panels and all that. I would jack that up like nobody's business. So that was really disappointing.

Enrico Chiambalero
Take a look here Hawker Hurricane MkIIc VVS | Album by Enrico (1:32)

Enrico Chiambalero
Basically you should follow these steps: primer, aluminium, standard camo, whitewash. The VVS white was applied "on field" and often was heavy weathered. The best stuff I tried for this camo is Ammo of Mig washable white. Once dry, just get it wet with plain water and remove the white coat with a brush and you'll get the result.

Donald Dickson II
Very nice! Thank you for the advice Enrico. Much appreciated!

Donald Dickson II
So, I drew the camo pattern on in pencil. I like doing it this way. It definitely helps me keep my place. I free handed the green. I was not concerned with sharp lines or over spray. Its not going to be clear once the white goes on. I will do a sharp line between top and bottom though. Which is the next step, spraying the light blue on the belly. Then to the white washing.

Rui S
Nice 👍.
I,m in.

Donald Dickson II
Primary painting done. Coated with pledge. Tried spraying and brushing both. Will be going with brushing unless I really need to spray. That stuff really does level out nicely. I weathered the stars (no pics of that yet) prior to the whitewashing. have to put a few small parts on, then I will be doing that.

Donald Dickson II
OK, so I have never done this to any model before. This goes far beyond my norm. I read everything folks posted here and what i saw on other builds. But I had an idea on what to do stuck in my head. So, I took a deep breath and dove in. I simply poured Tamiya flat white onto detailing painting sponges you use for trim on your walls and the like. I simply wiped it on then took another that was wetted down with Tamiya thinner. ZThis is the result. Obviously I need to do a lot of dirt adding and the like, but this is the base look.

I value you guys' opinions, so please do let me know what you think. Just dont be too brutal.

Nathan Dempsey
Looks good to me. I would think that's how a field applied finish would look after the harsh environment it operated in.

Donald Dickson II
Thanks Nathan. I couldnt find anything that I felt I needed to correct with it when I sat back down to it, so I am happy with it. LOL

Enrico Chiambalero
Very well done!!!

Donald Dickson II
Thank you sir. 🙂

Mirko Römer
Great work!

Donald Dickson II
OK, wrapped it up tonight. Overall, great kit. Main drawbacks are the instructions. No color call outs for things like bombs. Kind of would be nice. They are also laid out very wonky. They are two 4 page long sheets, and the page numbers dont run in a logical order from one sheet to the other. Also, they arent clear on a couple things. That aside, fit was pretty decent across the board. I always appreciate wheels and tires being separate parts. Makes for easier painting.

this was my first WWII plane since my late teens. Even then I had only done like 3. I have a Stuka in the stash I may break out later this year. Its definitely a change of pace from my precious jets. 😄

And thank you Mirko. 🙂

Katya Hodgson
Oohhh this is lovely! I'm glad to hear it's a great kit, i'll probably pick up the ski version at some point.

Rui S
I hope you don't mind my two cents opinion. Overall I see a nice model, 👍 but I think the most exposed surface s are the ones that have less weathering mainly when we see a field white wash. Like the propellers the under part ( landing in a winter airfield would be rough and dirty) and the front of the wings. Just IMHO, I hope you don't mind

Donald Dickson II
Rui, I always appreciate constructive criticism I think that the mud and weathering I did on the underside doesn't show well because of my lack of photography skills. I am unsure what you mean with the prop and leading edge

Donald Dickson II
Katya, I am quite sure you will enjoy it and do a fantastic job with it.

Katya Hodgson
Thanks! Might have to wait a bit though, unless I find one at the IPMS show in Halifax next week.😉

Rui S
That was my only intention. I'm happy that you see the right reason that I risk a constructive opinion.
what I meant is that the front edges of the wings and the propeller blade s normally suffer immense wear and tear, so again my two cents, imho the intense white wash color in this surface s is not very consistent with this fact.
But hey, that is a great work 👍 that I intend to try reaching in one of my satch 1/32 planes.

Martin Oostrom
Let me try and translate Rui. The leading edges suffer the most resistance from the airstream. As such the whitewash would have pealed off the most there. On your photos it looks like these edges are the most white on your plane.

I never have tried a whitewash myself, and I can only say that this build still looks very good to me 👍

Donald Dickson II
OK, I thought that might be what you were saying. Again part of that is my inability to do proper photography and light it correctly. Though I probably could have weathered it a little bit more. I did not actively think of that when I was doing it. So I will keep that in mind. Thank you for pointing that out. As Martin will tell you I have no problems at all taking pointers from people.

Rui S
👍

Donald Dickson II
Added a pic with the light not glaring on it.

Clifford Keesler
I think it looks awesome Donald, well done.

Donald Dickson II
Thank you sir!

Martin Oostrom
👍👍

Rui S
They look completly diferent now 👍 Very Nice🙂