Sprue Cutters Union #36 and #37 - Scales and Imperatives

Damnit, it happened. In the long running history of the Sprue Cutters Union, I've missed a topic. Hand in the badge, hang your head in shame and go stand in the corner!

Since I have rather short answers for both this and last month's topic, I'll just skip over the shame part and sum it up a bit.

- What's your scale? -

A highly subjective topic, but personally, I've yet to find my preferred scale. I guess it depends on the topic.

Airplanes
I've never made anything other than 1/72 - except for a single 1/144 Jaguar (that was really TOO small. ) - and it feels comfortable. 1/32 seems too big and also seams too big. I don't mind filling and sanding, but always that structural seam going front to back is a turnoff (for me).
Also, in this scale, wingspan means you need a lot of room to display the model.

Sci-Fi
Huge fan! Most kits I built (mainly Star trek & Star Wars) used to be just box-scale (meaning they made it as big as what would fit in the box), rendering the scale-topic moot.

Ships
Having build a 1/1200 Bismarck - which was too small - and not finishing (I will, one day) a 1/535 Missouri - which is too big - I think I'm going to leave this range of topics to the fans.

Armour
I haven't reached consensus here yet. I really like 1/35. It's not too big for the display case (unless you like railway guns) and it looks fantastic. I have no problem with 1/48 or 1/76, but my gut says to go bigger, not smaller.

- What are the essential aspects you cannot afford to cut corners on during a build? -

Hmm, I think I might be somewhat of a corner-cutter myself. I'll usually "do my best" up until the point it feels to take too long. It's just a matter of finding the balance between actually enjoying the work versus enjoying a perfect result. Spending too much time on one little facet or problem, is what's made me walk away from the bench for a couple of weeks on more than one occasion. I'd rather enjoy building something imperfect than becoming frustrated at said imperfection.

I do not like ugly seam lines. No one does, unless you're a very lazy modeller, or a true beginner, or you truly don't care. I'll always work hard to correct the biggest flaws, but I'm usually happy with "close enough" instead of 100% perfection.

Airbrushing is important. I love the clean paint finish and absolutely hate brush-painting any kind of surface (for figures, I can understand the need), for the simple reason I always leave brushstrokes.

Weathering is something I'm working on. I recognize my tendency to experiment with a product or technique, like the result and then only perform that technique for a couple of models. I'm learning though.

I guess the one thing I should really start paying attention to is monochromaticity (I love how that word rolls of the tongue). My work could benefit from some more colour-modulation. My about-to-be-finished AC130H is entirely sprayed in the same colour and I just couldn't bring myself to start modulating.

The important thing is enjoying your hobby and being proud of your work, flaws and all.

Suddenly : Inspiration!

Inspired by recent good experience with Mig Abteilung 502 oil paints, I grabbed a kit that's been waiting to be finished waaaay too long already (and may take a long time to complete still).

I used "starship filth" underneath the chimneys and a generous application of "olive green" on the bottom part of the walls. The first, I kinda dry-brushed on, the latter just lightly applied randomly, then wiped off with a cloth.

(walls are still shiny, awaiting a matte coat later)

AC130H - Weathering with oils

I recently started experimenting with oil paints, and I'm starting to really like them, for subtle (or not so subtle) touches. On the (completely white) Viper Mark II, I will try subtle dot-fading later, but on the much darker models of the AC130H and the Viper Mark VII, I'm currently going all out.

The idea is to slather the entire thing with a dirty (not completely black, but really dark) oil paint, then rub it back off (in the direction of airflow) with a cloth (cotton buds for the details and corners). Best done on a glossy finish, or else the oil will stick to the surface no matter what. The effect's subtlety is directly related to how glossy you made the clear coat.

I'm using Mig Abteilung 502 "Starship filth" which is kinda dark-grey/green.
The effect is threefold (and best seen with the naked eye, as it's hard to fully grab on camera) :

• discoloration
• panel line accentuation
• streaking

The result is slightly shiny from the oil, which reduces in sheen over the next couple of days. Give it 5 days before you put on a matte coat. If you only work on your model once a week, this long drying time gives no disadvantage whatsoever. If you do happen to see a smear afterwards, it's easily removed with turpentine/white spirit up to 2-3 days later (maybe more, but don't push your luck).

If you worry about the thinner's smell, there are (as good as) odourless variants out there.

AC130H - Lousy decals

I forgot to post progress about the closed-up, all-painted-up plane, but you'll see all about it in the next/last post, when it's finished (or you've seen sneak previews already on Facebook).

Anyway, we arrived at the decal stage, where everything went reasonably well. I cut the decals in advance and measured if it would all fit. I didn't measure well enough however, because I ended up about 2cm short on each wing.

Not a problem, I hear you? Just paint the missing part, right? Right?!

Well, I taped up a nice stripe to cross the tiny gaps, only the remove the decals with the tape after painting. I've never had issues with decals lifting with Tamiya tape. Either I was lucky until now, or these decals have had their best day. (I have no idea how old they are).

The best way to handle this, was remove the broken parts altogether and paint what's missing. Luckily I now know a handy way to remove decals! /grumble

So, you know the drill : tape, paint, wait, and CAREFULLY remove the tape. All went well except for the last piece of tape (of course!). I lost my patience and just grabbed my trusty Posca black ink pencil.

Resin kit! Tips?

Nope, the punctuation in the title isn't wrong. A Google search might mistakenly have lead you here, thinking it's a post with tips about working with resin kits. It's possible to find some in the comments, but it's about me starting my first resin kit and being a little anxious about it.

It's a limited-run kit (only 75 made) I bought around 20 years ago at a convention, that will finally be promoted to the workbench. It's not your typical model of a tank, airplane, car or boat. Scroll down for a first sneak-peak.

So far, the knowledge/tips/tools I have gathered are :

• a motor tool to do the heavy work cutting away flash and sanding the pieces to fit
• a respirator when doing the above mentioned sanding
• a remote corner of the yard to perform said work (I don't want resin dust in the ventilation system, do I?)

• a 2-component epoxy to glue everything together.
  (CA only works on small parts. This thing is about 1 meter (3 feet) long.)

If you can think of any other important tips before I start ruining the kit :-), feel free to shout a comment (here or Facebook, doesn't matter).

Which kit? Oh right : a 1/1 scale Type III Phaser Rifle, as seen in Star trek - First contact. 

No delicate parts, should be a straightforward build, except for cleaning up what is now a huge ill-fitting mess.

Wish me luck!

Workbench upgrade

I've posted pictures of the workbench before, as well as the comments it received from SWMBO. I use my regular PC-desk for day-to-day assembly and brush-painting, but all the spare parts are slowly invading valuable keyboard- and mouse-space.
I have a second desk in the guestroom, that I don't use anymore, but is still cluttered with various tools and paints.
And of course, in the attic, is my airbrush-desk, which contains the most clutter.

After 6 years, we finally decided to put a floor in the attic and clean it up a bit, i.e. evaluate what to keep and what to toss. The below 3 pictures capture the transformation.

I now have a new desk (free, because they were giving them away at work to whoever wanted to transport them), a new chair (free, same scenario, but at my daughter's school) and finally a decent place to store all my paint, glue, pigments, varnishes, and whatnot.

AC130H - Good vs. bad tape jobs

There are 2 important things to remember when using masking tape. If you forget these, you will end up with paint creeping underneath the tape, possibly ruining an up-to-than immaculate paintjob. Touching up with a paintbrush afterwards does not always yield invisible results and you end up with a blemish that will haunt you for the rest of your life. Well, maybe not THAT long, but we'd like to avoid them anyway.

During my current build, I didn't always pay enough attention. So here it goes again, as a reminder.

1. Burnishing

Basically, you'll want to pay extra attention alongside the edge of the tape and press it down really firm against the surface. When the surface is flat, that's usually easy to accomplish. When going around corners or raised/lowered surface detail, it can be (a lot) harder.
You can use your finger, or specially shaped (metal) tools with rounded tips in various sizes. (or a simple q-tip, but those tend to leave little cotton strands behind, if it's the cheap kind)

For the red stripe in the interior, I completely forget to pay attention and the result is seen in the picture below it. Luckily, because it's inside the model, you will never see where I had to touch up with a brush.

The cockpit canopy however, is a high-visibility detail, so I paid extra attention. As I cut the tape in place on the canopy itself, the knife provided all the needed pressure for making sure the tape was firmly pressed against the plastic. But still I wasn't going to risk anything, leading me to the next tip.

2. Varnishing

It's not like this is a little-known secret, but I've met no small number of (beginning) modellers that considered this easy tip a real eye-opener.

Not only for clear parts - but especially true in this case - it pays to start painting around the masking tape with a layer of (matte) varnish. Make sure you're spraying the clear coat from all directions, at roughly a 45-degree angle against the edge of the tape (low pressure, not too close, we do not want to blow away the tape). This way, a tiny ridge is built up against the tape and even IF paint creeps underneath, at least it's transparent.

A side-benefit on clear parts like this, is that the varnish acts a bit as a primer, easing the application of the next coat of paint. You do not want to use black primer, because when you remove the tape afterwards, you will see a small - but clearly visible - line of the black paint underneath the blue-grey.

Above, a picture taken from the inside of the canopy, proving no paint has crept under the tape.

As an extra illustration, I used the same method when painting the blue stripe on the Mustang. It prevents a lot of swearing and repainting.

AC130H - Closing time

Again a quick progress report, before we attempt to close the hull and start the gruesome process of trying to eliminate those ugly seams that will scar the top of the model. I'm gonna be less fussy about the seam on the belly, as I will not allow people to pick it up and turn it over :-).

The engine's housings didn't fit very neatly, but after some careful sanding, it's starting to look better. Again, the top is better than the bottom. The way they fit against the wing also leaves much to be desired, but - as is quickly become a pattern in this build - I paid attention so the topside sits almost flush with the wing, sacrificing the fit at the bottom. If you can't make it perfect, focus on the parts with the highest visibility. You'd be amazed how many car or armour models have unfinished bellies and interiors.

The interior details have been painted and in the next report, we should have a closed up model.

For some reason, the building instructions have switched the positions of the 50-mm cannon and 105-mm Howitzer, even though they do not fit through the openings like that and no existing plane has that configuration. Not the only place where the instructions are showing shortcomings.

 

Sprue Cutters Union #35 - Eye for detail

Damnit, almost missed this month's topic. I haven't missed an assignment in 2 years (Yes, the Union has been going strong for over TWO years already) and I'll be damned if I miss this one. I'll start paying attention on the beginning of the month.

- Do you bother with details that will not be seen in the finished product or do you pour your heart and soul into each nook and cranny of the build? -

Putting effort and what precious little time I have into making something nobody will ever see? Noooo, nope, nah-ah!!

If I make something, I want to show it off. I'm lucky to be an IPMS member, so all finished models are seen, commented upn, looked at in detail and peered over by 15-20 people before they go into a display cabinet at home. Who else will see these models? The occasional friend that can be persuaded to come and have a look (and fake an interest, if it's a real friend). And of course: the photo's on this blog and Facebook, so that's at least 20 (!!) more people.

I mean, there's nothing wrong if someone ELSE wants to superdetail something that will NEVER be seen, or only a tiny little bit, but to me it's just a waste of time. "Knowing it's there" doesn't cut it for me.

Even if it IS visible, but only barely - like a really big cockpit or the interior of a cargo plane - I will not go all-out, because with the lack of light, all the little details are nigh invisible anyway.

On my current build (well, one of them) I'm experimenting with low-detail, high-contrast interior. Using lighter colours than I should, and using high-contrasting colours for picking out details, I hope it will give the right impression, when it's all closed up and you're looking into the model through the rear hatch.

AC130H progress

I've added all the necessary pieces to the interior - except for the guns - so I could start the painting process with a layer of grey primer. I've learned from previous kits not to fuss too much over the interior. I'm going to leave the loading ramp open, so you can see inside, but it's gonna be hard to see much detail in there.

I chose the grey primer, instead of the darker grey recommended, so it might trick the viewer's eye into seeing as much as possible. I'll be using flashy colour accents to further enhance this effect.

Part E42 (ammo storage rack for the big canon) is a bit of a let-down once in place (left picture below), but a minimal effort with sheet styrene helps a lot.

I can't close it up yet (not looking forward to it either, as the seams seem promising :-)), but trying to see if it's a tailsitter or not, and we can indeed confirm it to be just that.
It requires about the weight of one of my bigger clamps to rectify, so I'll just have to figure out what will be heavy enough, but small enough to fit in the nose. I often see modellers that use (lead) fishing weights, but I have no such thing in possession, so I'll just see if I can find a heavy (short) screw or something from my toolbox.

The instructions state plain light grey for the overall plane, but I've seen pictures of more interesting 2-tone versions. Not sure if the H-variant exists in those colours, or just the more recent U-variant, but I'm gonna go with it anyway.

Some experimenting with available Vallejo colours yielded the combination I'm gonna use : 005 (Intermediate blue) and 046 (Pale blue grey).