I built this
entirely out of the box, with no after-market items (even used the kit decals).
I wanted to try Tamiya acrylic paints, because they dry very quickly.
More about that later. The kit itself was nicely detailed, but I can
see why many people use after-market ejection seats or entire cockpits.
See how the decal for the instrument panel looks a little hokey up close.
The remainder of the kit decals, though, are very nice and detailed, and went on
very well.
Click on
images below to see larger images
I used some permanent felt
markers for some detail work, such as canopy rails in black, and the pilot's
visor (green) and red cloth around the visor inside the helmet. I find it
goes on quickly, and avoids spill-over and rework. Even the red light
inside the canopy was done with permanent marker over a clear plastic part - no
need for clear paint.
For weathering, I kept it light,
using a pencil here and there to enhance some panel lines. I am not brave
enough to use a wash, but will try it soon. The nose of this model needs a
lot of weight; I used fishing lead embedded in a little Play-Doh. Lots of
Future for a glossy finish - the real aircraft were quite shiny.
The Tamiya paints clean up
easily, but I found that my airbrush kept clogging and needed occasional
scraping to remove congealed paint from the small orifice at the nozzle.
These paints are also quite rough, and easily stained with finger grease.
Colours used: XF-23 for bottom (too light, it turns out), and XF-66 Grey,
XF13 Green. I experimented with masking techniques for the camouflage.
Most was done with masking tape (sharp lines), but some was done with paper
cut-outs and folded-over tape, which yielded soft demarcations. For this
scale, I think the hard lines are more appropriate; in future I will use sticky
paper stuck directly on the surfaces. I've tried using Maskol, and found
it sometimes gives uneven leaky edges.
I picked this kit because it
represents an aircraft from 439 Tiger Squadron in Europe. My father flew
CF-104s with 439 (but never the Sabre), and I have a strong feeling of
affiliation with the unit. I am currently working on a 1:32 CF-104 that he
flew - watch for a more complete posting of that one, with some in-progress
shots.
Dan
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