Life Through Your Camera

[FlyboyGil]

Dang!  all the plastic models I've ever done looked like doo doo compared to you two.   
But now I wan't to try it again.  Can you recommend any books for painting techniques?

I owe most of what I've accomplished with stick and tissue to Don Ross's "Rubber Powered Model Airplanes"   

Phil

I don't know of any books. There's alot on the internet to give you some help. But I go through the basic techniques. First remove all lines in the plastic that come from the moulding of the parts (usually lines that run straight down the longest sides. They shouldn't be there) Glue as tight as possible, use model filler to fill in any gaps in the joints, sand smooth.

If hand painting, thin the paint a bit, and try not to keep painting over the same area, as the paint thickens up it starts to streak. Hand painting can be done very well. I could never really do it too well, but my older brother could. If airbrushing just light passess. It works very well.

Apply the decals over clean paint, and apply a clear coat over them (gloss if shiny paint, flat if non shiny). These protect the decals, and adhere them to the model.

One trick I learned over the interent for making dash boards I used to give the model the chipping paint look. Put your brush in silver paint, wipe the paint off just leaving a small bit over it. And wipe the brush over areas where the paint on an airplane would wear out first. Just lightly. This leaves you with an intersting weathered look.

I hope this helps. If you get frustrated remember I have over 100 models that need to be rebuilt, so theres a good supply available

[tundra_flier]

Thanks.  I did a little surfing last night and found a couple sites with some good tips and technique descriptions.  I'll probably only use an air brush for larger areas, as mine doesn't do fine work very well.  It's a Badger 350.  But at least I have a compressor now instead of just the canned air.  I got the compressor for running air tools to build full scale models, so it should be MORE than adequate for my airbrush.   

I'm planning to use the airbrush to put trim on the Herr Scout.  Thinking of a Comet down the sides, and cheverons on the tail, plus large old time registration numbers on the wings.  I'm going to try some shadowing effect with the airbrush.  Thinking a yellow base with red borders and white highlights.  Similar to the classic flame jobs, just not the flame pattern.

Phil

[Mike]

What I actually used to do is paint most of the pieces while they are still in the mold (after removing any unwanted lines just like Flyboy said) and then after assembling them I just touched up that little dot left over from the mold. I removed the pieces with a sharp utility knife.
Do be exact, I took all but two or so connections to the mold off (preferrably two on the bottom of the fuselage) on the big pieces.

That way I could hold the pieces by the mold and it gave me more of a chance to avoid streaks and fingerprints. Also, with matt finish, it's easier and luckily most army helicopters and military planes I built I didn't have to go gloss...

I don't usually paint over the decals when the paint underneath isn't gloss either.

For the playing cards on the guys helmet I used a toothpick to make the dots on the card since there are no brushes that small.

One trick I learned over the interent for making dash boards I used to give the model the chipping paint look. Put your brush in silver paint, wipe the paint off just leaving a small bit over it. And wipe the brush over areas where the paint on an airplane would wear out first. Just lightly. This leaves you with an intersting weathered look.

That's a very good trick which I also use on steps, or the helicopters skids, or around the filler post to show scratches.

I also used to dilute black paint until there is almost nothing left and applied this thin runny mix to get the appearance of oil stains.

For exhaust streaks (i.e. on the belly of a Cessna I once made, or at the wingroot of the Corsairs which you always see on the real planes) I used airbrush with black paint (or green/brown for the corsair)

The list is long! I had a lot of fun doing this back in the days but looking back at it, it might have been the glue I used because it does seem very tideous !!

[Mike]

Thanks.  I did a little surfing last night and found a couple sites with some good tips and technique descriptions.  I'll probably only use an air brush for larger areas, as mine doesn't do fine work very well.  It's a Badger 350.  But at least I have a compressor now instead of just the canned air.  I got the compressor for running air tools to build full scale models, so it should be MORE than adequate for my airbrush.   

I'm planning to use the airbrush to put trim on the Herr Scout.  Thinking of a Comet down the sides, and cheverons on the tail, plus large old time registration numbers on the wings.  I'm going to try some shadowing effect with the airbrush.  Thinking a yellow base with red borders and white highlights.  Similar to the classic flame jobs, just not the flame pattern.

Phil

You can make your airbrush work on smaller stuff if you put a little "buffer" in the line between the compressor and the gun. Some little container to equalize the uneven pressure coming from the piston strokes from the compressor...
(I hope I am explaining this right)

[tundra_flier]

Thanks.  I did a little surfing last night and found a couple sites with some good tips and technique descriptions.  I'll probably only use an air brush for larger areas, as mine doesn't do fine work very well.  It's a Badger 350.  But at least I have a compressor now instead of just the canned air.  I got the compressor for running air tools to build full scale models, so it should be MORE than adequate for my airbrush.   

I'm planning to use the airbrush to put trim on the Herr Scout.  Thinking of a Comet down the sides, and chevrons on the tail, plus large old time registration numbers on the wings.  I'm going to try some shadowing effect with the airbrush.  Thinking a yellow base with red borders and white highlights.  Similar to the classic flame jobs, just not the flame pattern.

Phil

You can make your airbrush work on smaller stuff if you put a little "buffer" in the line between the compressor and the gun. Some little container to equalize the uneven pressure coming from the piston strokes from the compressor...
(I hope I am explaining this right)

You mean like the 25 gal tank between the compressor and regulator? 
I'm guessing I can charge the tank up to 150psi, set the regulator down under 30 and airbrush for a couple hours before the compressor has to start again.     The reason I can't do fine work is that my brush is an external mixing, suction fed type with a fairly large jet.  If I try to dial it down very fine it gets really inconsistent.  But I'm sure going to try this weekend. 

Phil

[tundra_flier]

I had heard about the dry brushing technique for weathering.  I used to have a roommate that was into 40k.  He uses that for highlighting things a lot.

Phil

[Mike]

You mean like the 25 gal tank between the compressor and regulator? 

Phil

yup, thats what i meant. you got it!

[FlyboyGil]

Here's another one I just finished restoring. A 1/48 scale Avro Lancaster

[FlyboyGil]

Here's me on an introduction to float flying

[TheSoccerMom]

Nice!!!!!!!!

Where was that taken?  Did you get the rating?  That's a beautiful picture...  thanks for sharing!   

[TheSoccerMom]

Boy, that photo is just making me antsy to go fly.  See what you did?!!?!!?!!? 

I haven't had a camera for very long at all, so I don't have many photos to share yet.  But, here is one of the ocean and the sunlight, taken last winter off the north coast of Australia.  And yeah, it was from the beloved White Minivan...  HA!!   

[TheSoccerMom]

Hey FlyboyGil, love your model and also the memorabilia...  that is some nice stuff!

I keep looking at the photo over and over, and see new things each time.  I have no idea why, but WWII and its aircraft and pilots are just fascinating to me.

Thanks, M.**

[FlyboyGil]

Nice!!!!!!!!

Where was that taken?  Did you get the rating?  That's a beautiful picture...  thanks for sharing!   

I'm glad you like it 

It was taken in Parry Sound Ontario, on the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend (mid october) so everthing's in fall colours. http://www.georgianbayairways.com/ Float flying is exciting but seeing northern Ontario from the air in the fall, well it was awsome!! I haven't gotten the rating, that's the only float flight I've been on. Everytime I think of it makes me think I should get my commerical rating and float fly for a living. I love the outdoors, and I love flying. I miss it.

A beautiful picture yourself! I little higher up than a Cessna 180 though!

Thanks for the comment on my Lancaster model. I'll be posting more pictures of models as I finish them. I love WW2 aircraft too. I love the more vintage aircraft. I spent $200 to get an introduction  ride on an AT-6. Well worth it. There is a lot in that Lancaster picture, most of it off of ebay (It's addicitive!). That panel you see standing up cost me over $200. I was the only bidder though, as the seller didn't know what it was off of (thank God!) It's the FLight engineers panel. The panel with all the switches at the the bottom left is bomb-selector. I also have a bomb release button, there are wing lights, a drift recorder, gun sight, astro compass.  Plus an operator's manual for the MK1 and MK 3 Lancaster. (In case you haven't noticed the Lancaster is my all time favourite plane  )

I also have (not in the pic) an actual bomb rack from a Lancaster that crashed in Canada. It was tragic as all the crew were killed. What is also tragic is that the wreckage was located in 1992 and there was great deal there, it was hauled off and scrapped!!!!!!!! (Insert many swear words here!!!!! ) Bits and peices lay about the sight so an ebayer goest there and grabs peices and sells them on Ebay http://cgi.ebay.com/WW2-RCAF-LANCASTER-FM102-AILERON-HINGE-ARM-RELIQUE_W0QQitemZ330085194913QQihZ014QQcategoryZ4074QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
The Bomb rack I have has been twisted, rusted and has some melted metal over it, but it's still in fairly good shape. The AVRO Name tag is sitting on the Hat. It's the little rectangular peice. That is an amazing peice in itself.

Cheers
Adam

[TheSoccerMom]

Wow, thanks for the info.  You have some really neat stuff! 

When I see things like this, I always wish the same thing -- that they could TALK.  Imagine the stories they could tell!!!

Do you have the series of coffee table books, "Ghosts"?  They are filled with stunning photos.  Each year the wall calendar goes over my computer so I can gaze at it....  (www.ghosts.com)

I hope you can get your ASES rating -- that picture makes me want to go fly so badly!!!   

 

[FlyboyGil]

Here's a picture of me in the AT-6. It was having trouble starting, and here we come after the flight. In the picture you can see some of the planes I trained on.

I don't have the ghosts book, but I have seen it. I have some old Ghost Calendars. I want to be an aviation photographer so bad. I've decided that when I get some sheckles built up, I'm going to do so. Particularily with aviaton archeology.