SPA Modeler

Medicman71 wrote:Very nice!

I too have never heard of that paint before. Where'd ya get it?

http://www.scalefinishes.com/welcome.html

The ordering system is a bit funky, but the selection is astounding. Literally every bit as deep as Model Master enamels.

JimD wrote:Looks great. The paint looks promising too. Never heard of it but it looks like it sprays nicely.

It lays down very, very nicely. As good or better than Tamiya and Gunze. I did run into some difficulties getting it to spray "small", but the HP-C+ can be like that with some paints (Alclad being another), and I also used it straight from the bottle when I probably could have added thinner to it (it's "airbrush ready" but we all know that term isn't always exactly the truth).

Very nice work so far. I really like how you did the seat. Very realistic.

Solid progress tonight. The fuselage is together. Tail and stabs are built up but haven't been attached yet (I want to do some cleanup on the leading edges). Starting work on the lower wing assembly.



This is - hands down - the single finest kit I've ever had on my bench. Better than HK's B-25. Better than Wingnut's Snipe. Better even than Tamiya's Spitfire. It's just superlative. I almost want to buy one and mail it to Trumpeter with a note saying "be more like this".

Things that on other kits would be a recipe for disaster - like the razorback insert or tail alignment or the fit of the center insert panel just aft of the engine bulkhead - just FIT. With literally microscopic precision.





Tomorrow I move on to really focusing on the lower wing stuff and getting some paint down. The instructions call for painting everything, but that to me just seems ridiculous. The gear wells have solid walls and the oil coolers aren't going to have that much visibility behind them...

That really looks good. Can't wait to see more of this guy.

Gear bays!

Again, more shaking my head in wonder at the engineering of the Tamiya Corsair. There are a lot of parts that go into the "center wing" assembly. And they all interlock and fit very well. Then the top inner wings come down on top and literally lock in place. Very impressive.

For the paint, I used Mr. Finishing Surfacer 1500 Black as my primer, then a Tamiya X-17/XF-9 mix for the Vought primer, and finally Gunze C11 Light Gull Gray for the main light gray lower surface color. All my sources say that the USN Light Gray matches up to FS 36440. Gunze C11 is 16440 - so essentially the gloss version of the same color.

I know the gear bays were finished in the underside color, BUT this Corsair was operating in harsh tropical conditions, and so I used salt to chip up the gear bays to reflect the scouring effects of the sand and crushed coral kicked up by the tires. Most of the chipping is due to the salt - with some additional scuffing done with a toothpick.

Forgot to paint some of the oil cooler bits, so had to do that last night. In the meantime I went ahead and did a test-fit of the wings. Still missing a few minor internals that look like they'll provide an even more positive fit, but still...this kind of alignment is no small thing to pull off.

You did a pretty convincing job on the chipping !

Looks like an amazing kit to build.