Hello. After finishing a SPAD XIII I decided to take a breather and build something less complex. I chose this relatively tiny two seat trainer made by AZUR:



The cockpit is a relatively simple affair, just a floor, two seats, two sticks, and two instrument panels. This is my first time using photoetch and resin, and the enhanced detail is notable compared to my previous efforts, SPAD XIII excluded. (Don't worry, I wore a dust mask when sanding down the resin parts.)

I used the Future technique to create a glass effect on the instrument dials, and used white glue to sandwich the acetate film behind them. I might try looking into other glues though because white glue is messy and hard to work with, and not sticky enough to my tastes.



For a limited run kit, AZUR makes really good quality parts. No major fit issues were discovered, just some seams at the wing roots and a minor step on the underside of the nose where the fuselage meets the resin intake.





Any suggestions or comments are always welcome.

Hi Michael!

Looks very good so far! I like those limited run kits and the originality of their subjects. I have myself a 1/48 scale kit of the same plane and I'm looking forward to see the end result of your efforts.

I noticed you made very nice "in-progress" pictures. Maybe for a forthcoming feature on Aeroscale?

Good luck for the build. Have you decided on a paint scheme yet?

Jean-Luc

Depends on how it turns out. I could still botch this horribly, you should have seen my attempt at the Revell P-61 Black Widow...




I have decided to try my first natural metal finish ever since a P-51 mustang I made when I was about 10 or 11, when all I had was a paintbrush and didn't care about brush-marks yet...

The NMF version of the plane was a French trainer, and had the simplest scheme of the three available to me. I wanted to keep this as simple as possible to provide a rest from manhandling that He-45.

I have managed to glue the canopy on, and it is already masked so now I will just clean up the seams and get it ready for painting.

Ok, I got some more work done. I have attached the canopy and masked it, and purchased some Mr. Surfacer 1200 to work on the seams. (500 and 1000 are never in stock at the LHS)



I am going to the art store tomorrow to pick up some lacquer thinner, so that I can go ahead and use the 1200 as primer as well. (I better pick up some superfine sanding paper too.)

That is all for now.

Job hunting took up my free time for the past week or so, but I have gotten some more progress to report. I used Mr. Surfacer 1200 mixed with lacquer thinner and some retarder to prime the model. It works well, but tends to build up on my airbrush needle and if you aren't careful some pebbling may occur. In the future, I think I will avoid using putty under Mr Surfacer, as trying to scribe it makes a big mess of things.

Anyways, I painted this with Testors Silver paint, as Aluminum seems too dark to me. Once it cures I will go over it and inspect for any needed touch up, and then get the decals done. If all goes well I might even get this done in time to participate in the Model of the Month contest.



The way things stand, I don't think I will need to use a wash to highlight the panel lines, they are pretty well defined already. However, my reference photographs show exhausts that protrude from the underside of the nose, while in this model they are flush. My next goal is to make some new ones out of 1/16th aluminum tube.

That is one great looking little plane, Michael.

Thanks, but I wasn't quite satisfied with the finish after inspection yesterday. Several areas weren't smooth enough yet and I decided to redo it, this time using some Tamiya 800, 1000 and 2000 grit sandpaper to smooth away some of the scratch marks I found. I then went over the whole model and made it even smoother than before (Though at the cost of diminishing some raised details).

There are still some flaws that can't really be captured by my mediocre camera, but I don't want to risk losing any more details so it is staying as is. I put on the decals today, and they really set in nicely. The finish is so smooth and shiny that you can even see a reflection of one of the roundels!



I have a question for those who have experience with natural metal finishes though. What finish is best to use for sealing in the decals? Should it be a gloss, semi gloss or flat coat?

New Update: While looking over the plane for the picture I remembered I forgot to fix the exhausts. I had bought 1/16th aluminum tube specifically for that. In the kit the exhausts are molded flush with the nose, when they should be sticking out and swept back a bit. I came up with the following method: First, tape down some 320 grit sandpaper. Second, file a bevel on the tube, this will be the surface that gets glued to the plane. Third, using a hobby knife, roll the tube back and forth square with the tube. Eventually the knife will cut deeper and deeper as you keep rolling it back and forth until the part snaps off. Fourth, use a toothpick with tape on the end to pick it up by the end that will not be glued to the plane. Fifth, put a small drop of CA glue where the exhaust will go, then stick it on there. When the glue sets, you can remove the toothpick and your exhaust will be attached. It took me all of 20 minutes to get all six of them on. Then all that is left to do is clean up the exhausts with a fine nail buffer, paint and you are done!

The end result:



Any questions or suggestions welcome.

I put aside the He-45 for a day to go ahead and finish my Nardi. The paint isn't quite dry in spots but she is done!

Looking back, I could have done a few things differently, but it is too late for that. I have at least managed to prove to myself that one can do a good NMF without Alcad. I had a hard time getting a steady flow of silver paint, I ended up working around this by pulsing the brush in short bursts, which seemed to overcome the problem. A recurring problem I have not yet overcome is doing a good job with filling seams. I either don't fill them enough or I overfill them and destroy seams. From now on I will avoid any filling putty that shrinks at all costs. Using Apoxy Putty mixed with a small amount of water seemed to work well in the one spot I used it, so that might be something I will try again in the future.

But enough of that, here is the model!

















Any comments or suggestions are welcome.

Tomorrow if I have time I might take some natural light photos that won't have the ugly yellow cast the current batch has, if anyone wants some.

Hi Michael!

Nice little kitty!

I know what you mean about seam filling. An aluminium or Bare Metal finish does not forgive any imperfection. I think you did a good job with this short run kit. The only area which doesn't look so good on your model is the canopy to fuselage joint. Getting a vacuform canopy to fit properly on a short run kit isn't propbably the easiest thing to do... especially with an aluminium finish!

Anyway, I'm looking forward to see some more pictures.

Jean-Luc

Hello Michael!

I like both your choice of subject and the finished result. Keep up the good work! And I would also like to see some more photos with better lighting (or try adjusting the white balance on your camera when using artificial lighting).

On the subject of vacform canopies: Try building the kit to fit the canopy, you can always adjust the kit a bit while the canopy is a more or less hopeless case. For instance, adding a thin spacer between the fuselage halves will save the day if you have a canopy that is a bit wide.

Glueing vacform canopies: I have tried several methods, none of them really satisfactory but the following one is the one I prefer for the moment.

1) Trim the canopy carefully.
2) Attach the canopy using white glue or Humbrol Clearfix. Make sure the glue bond really seals off the cockpit.
3) Fill the cracks from the outside using super glue.

The clearfix will prevent the super glue from fogging the inside of the canopy. The super glue is stronger than the clearfix and is also possible to sand when it has set, ensuring a smooth join line.

To protect the canopy when sanding, use brown packing tape and a steady hand.

I hope to see more of your work (and I wish I was able to finish a model in two weeks).

Regards

Magnus

Thanks for the helpful suggestions. I will make sure to keep those in mind next time I have to tangle with a vacuform canopy. Didn't have time to take some daylight pictures today but tomorrow I don't have to go to work until later in the day, so maybe in the morning I can get some pictures for you.

Ok, got some better photos without the yellowness.