Originally posted by frank3
Im beginning with a 1:72 P-47D-30 Thunderbolt from Revell.
I have some questions before I start paint brushing it.:
- I've heard about modellers washing the frames with soap and water, why do they do that and should I do it too?
Its a good idea, but not really necessary. Revell usually does a good job of making clean kits, but an ounce of prevention will save you a pound of frustration later on. Sometimes, if there is oil on the plastic, the paint will bubble around it and leave an island of oil in the finish.
- What colour for the cockpit do you suggest?
Zinc Chromate Green
- The model will go in alluminium colour, for the 'weathering' effect I heard something about mixing 1 part black (or other dark) paint with about 5 parts of water, put this on the plane and whipe it off, it's said that the darkish water will stay in the panel lines etc giving a nice panel effect. Do I put it all over the aircraft? or only at some panels?
For your first kit, I would suggest keeping the weathering fairly simple - maybe some grease around the wheels, some smoke around the guns and exhaust. I use some diluted-down acrylic flat black. The thin mixture will settle in the cracks and crevices so that those parts are darker, and will leave a 'shadow' on the upper parts.
- At some parts the paint is weathered off abit (in real), I've heard many ways to replicate this. But what's the best way to do this? And where is it needed?
If the airplane is in its natural metal finish, there won't be any paint to weather off. But, if you want to try and weather the propeller blades, I would suggest spraying them in silver, then using small pieces of masking tape where you want the chips to be, then spraying the blades in flat black. When the blades are dry, peel off the tape. Obviously, you want to do this before you glue the blade onto the airplane, or you'll end up with a big mess.
- the wing parts (upper and lower) are painted the same colour, do I need to glue them together before I paint in this case?
Its a good idea to glue the wings together, the fuselage together, and the wings to the fuselage before you paint the airplane. The reason for this is two-fold: (1) paint prevents glue from getting a good bond on the plastic, and (2) those are the seams that most often need to be sanded after the glue dries. I usually wait a day or two after glueing the fuselage and wings together before I sand off the seam, just to give the glue time to get good and hard. You'll want to use Fine grade (220) at least, maybe even UltraFine, too.
DON'T ADD ANY CLEAR PARTS UNTIL YOU'RE ALMOST DONE!
After you spray the plane, look for obvious seams, holes, or errors. Be gentle when handling the metal finish, as your fingers will rub off the silver paint and/or leave oil on the surface. You want to handle the airplane along the edges of the wings instead of the top and bottom.
Once you've done any sanding or filling and have sprayed the plane again, let it dry overnight to cure.
Now, this is purely optional, but I like to spray the whole thing with a thin layer of Testor's GlossCote, just to seal the metal finish and protect it while handling the airplane and adding the gear, doors, bombs, drop tanks, etc., painting the squadron markings, adding weathering, and whatnot. One trick for the wheels is to paint the base coat a dark grey or brown, then wash it in black. The black will settle in the treads and leave the upper surface looking like old rubber.
Decal time. Either spray the whole plane with a coat of GlossCote, or use Micro Gloss where the decals will go. This will prevent "ghosting" - a tendency for a film to be obvious around the decals. Let this dry overnight.
Add decals, let them dry for at least a couple of hours (just to be safe) then spray with Testor's DullCote or MicroFlat to seal the decals and keep them from rubbing off.
Lastly, glue the cockpit onto the plane using Testor's Window Cement. This is glue that is especially designed for glueing clear plastic together. You can also use it to make small windows, lenses, etc. and to fill in gaps between the fuselage and the canopy.
Have you got any more tips, ideas on how I can make this model as realistic possible?
Make a diorama base for it. Its easy. I use those 1:18 scale car display cases (about $10 at Wal-Mart), the ones with the black bottom and clear plastic cover. Of course, that's contingent on the plane being able to fit inside the cover.
Generally, you want to find a base that won't flex. Thick plywood is a good choice. Some people even use cheap wooden picture frames (remove the glass). You'll want some Elmer's white glue, a bag of modeler's grass ($4 at most hobby shops) and/or some sand (I use sand from my front yard, filtered through a bug screen to remove leaves and rocks, and stored in a zip-loc bag). I also use twigs from my yard to represent fallen logs and such.
First, figure out how you want the plane to sit in the frame and where you want the dirt to go and the grass to go. Now that you have a basic idea, pour some white glue where you want the dirt to go, add your logs (if any), then sprinkle the sand into the glue. I put enough dirt on the top layer so that the dirt surface looks dry, then I gently push down on the surface so that the dirt gets embedded into the glue. The glue will dry clear, so don't worry about it being obvious. When its dry, lightly tap the loose sand off (I recycle my sand by tapping it off into a plastic take-home tray from Maggiano's Italian restaurant, then pouring it back into the zip-loc bag). Be careful not to tap your log(s) loose!
Now to add the grass. You can either wait for the dirt to dry or you can go ahead and put the grass on top, its up to you, but just make sure you don't man-handle the base around too much or you'll end up with a gooey mess. I prefer to wait for the sand part to dry before I add grass.
Once the dirt is dry, lay out some lines of glue where you want the grass to be. I use a small brush to sort of work the glue into the surface of the dirt (white glue cleans with water, so don't worry about ruining the brush). Then I sprinkle on the grass, tap off the loose grass into the take-home tray, and let it dry overnight.
Next day, I spray the diorama base with a dull clear coat. Testor's DullCote works well, or you can just use a spray can of "Clear" from Home Depot or Lowe's or whatnot. This is to seal the grass and dirt so that it doesn't end up all over your bedroom floor.
Lastly, add the airplane. If you're patient, you can use white glue to hold it in place, or you can be lazy and use marine silicone epoxy (my choice), or you can just let it sit on the diorama base without any glue (another one of my choices - let's me use the same base with different airplanes when taking pictures).
Now that you have all of your supplies and have finished your first kit, its time for you to build the next one!
