Tamiya Fw190 D9 Finished!

After a flurry of activity at the bench the model is now finished. A matt varnish yesterday followed by some chipping with a silver pencil & pigments today sorted out the weathering. Next all the parts were added to the model with the only tricky bit being the canopy & front windscreen which did not want to mate up. Solved with a bit of gentle sanding and a bit of persuasion they eventually went together as I wanted.  

I finished off with some rigging elastic for the antenna and a few touch ups here & there before declaring the model finished. I really had a lot of fun building and painting this so I might squeeze in a couple more aircraft builds in the coming year.

Fw 190 Dora Almost Done

Matt varnish went on yesterday afternoon so today I've started adding some metal chipping with a fine silver pencil. Once that's done to my satisfaction I'll finish off with some pigments and then fit all the parts before tackling the tricky antenna wire. 

Dora Weathering Begins

Weathering now and I've added a pin wash to the panel lines and recessed details using a dark grey mixed from oils. This was mixed into a quite thick mixture with very little thinner before carefully applying to all the recessed details. After a few minutes the excess was carefully removed with a clean soft cloth. 

Once happy with the effects I then sprayed some heavily thinned tamiya X19 smoke onto the model to simulate staining from the cannons & exhaust. I was then going to spray a blackish grey tone again over the exhaust areas but I think the effect so far is enough. The next stage will be to add some earth & dust tones to selected areas before mat varnish goes on.

Dora Decals On

A very pleasant day spent working on the model with a bit of detail painting followed by a gloss coat this morning. This afternoon I've been adding the decals to the model. The tamiya decals are slightly on the thick side but they go down very well with the help of some Daco medium setting solution. With them all in place the model is really starting to come to life. 

Dora painting Time

Well I'm making good progress on the model and have now sprayed the camo colours on. I started off with a dark grey pre shade then sprayed the tail bands using tamiya red & yellow. The kit does have this as a decal but I always find it's quicker and easier to just paint these. Next I mixed up some RLM 76 light blue using tamiya colours and sprayed this lightly on the undersides and fuselage sides. Eventually with light coats some of the grey shows through which gives some depth to the final colour. 

Then I added white to the blue and sprayed in a mottled pattern to add some highlights. RLM 75 grey violet was mixed up next and sprayed in a similar manner before finishing off with RLM 83. I used XF 61 dark green for this with a good slug of Xf 15 flat flesh for good measure. Once happy with the pattern I then went back over with the light blue tidying up the edges and any overspray.

I'm a bit rusty when it comes to painting camo on aircraft but I'm happy with the results. The model will now cure for a day or so before gloss varnish goes on. 

   

 

Fw190 Progress

I've been having great fun working on the Dora and have managed to get it primed already. Some work was needed on the seam lines, also quite a bit of flash was evident which needed sorting out. However it's all flooding back to me now this aircraft modelling lark. 

Tamiya Fw190 D9

This build is part of a three way build on Modeller's haven online forum & it's just something different to do over the Christmas period. I haven't built an aircraft since 2013 so it's going to be fun having a go at aircraft modelling again. So far I've sorted out the cockpit and am currently tackling the seams on the wing & fuselage assemblies. 

 

 

Christmas Is Upon Us!

Well as is tradition here on the blog it's time for the festive message and a look back on a very peculiar year. It all started rather well with Stonehenge modellers attending On track down in Folkestone but then went completely tits up with the coming of Covid 19. Model shows were cancelled everywhere and I was confined to barracks!

A golden opportunity to just build models I thought but it didn't pan out like that at all. A serious lack of modelling mojo struck and I was completely bored being at home all the time. So in July I started a new job as a range warden on Salisbury Plain which has given me some much needed focus and social interaction. It's also been a source of immense pleasure as I get to see and go to places only the military have access to and enjoy the amazing countryside and wildlife that are unique to the area.

The mojo came back as did another bloody lockdown and before I knew it December was here! What will the new year hold? Well I hope I can actually go on holiday at some point and attend model shows if we ever get back to a normal existence as I really missed our usual Belgium trip and associated piss up  with friends.  

Fingers crossed and I hope you all enjoyed the blog this year. As usual I have many ideas floating around but again as usual that's subject to the vagaries of new releases and my changing interests. So a happy Christmas to you all and thanks as ever for supporting the blog with your comments and visits.

     

Greek Gecko More Camo Painting & Decals

Work has continued on the gecko with the black & grey sections hand painted using mixes of vallejo colours. Once happy with the look I then painted the two tools on the rear & the exhaust shroud before spraying a gloss coat to seal everything in. I then masked up the windows and sprayed a rubber colour before picking out the frame in the camo colours on the left hand window. 

More detail painting was then finished off with the tow rope, rear lights and windscreen wipers sorted out. The window masking on the hull was then removed before painting the inner edges which will ensure no bare plastic is visible once the windows are installed.

Lastly most of the decals have gone on and here I have used the excellent generic Greek decal set from LM Decals. I still need to add registration codes and small Greek crosses to the hull but I will have to wait until a new set arrives from Greece as I don't have enough numbers on my sheet. 

Gecko Camo Painting

A long session at the bench last night spraying the brown camo onto the model. I used gunze H72 dark earth for this & sprayed it free hand. Once that was done I went back to the green and added a few drops of flat white to it before spraying it in a mottled pattern over the previously applied green. I'm now happier with the tone of the green as it's now less vivid. I then did the same to the brown which has also added some nice fading effects.