Hi all ...

Ok recently i finished my 1/48 Rafale and of cause i wanted to post some pics of it on here for all to see .. once i had done this i was looking at the pics and thought wouldnt it be cool if the model was sat in a airbase parking space or on a taxiway .. Thats when the idea popped into my head " ill make one " .. so thats what iv decided to do .. the first task was to get some hardboard i found some at my local hardware store for only a few pounds ... i then had to do some research on how a taxiway and parking space should look for this i used google earth and went searching for all the major airbases around the world to see how they look ...
once i was happy with how things should look i drew out the basic taxiway and parking space on the board and masked off the edges ready for the glue to be spread in all the grass areas... I also wanted there to be some background to the base so i found some pics of an airbase and used a poster printing program to print it to the right size ...
With everything all masked off i started to lay down some glue for this iv use Woodland scenics hobby tack glue this is great stuff as it drys sticky .. once i was happy with the coat of glue i had i sprinkled some Woodland scenics turf over the whole area ... for the taxiway and parking space i printed out some 1/48 tarmac sheets that i found a link to here on Aeroscale .. as you can see its looking quite good and i shall be finishing it this week ... I will post more pics as the work progresses ... let me know what you think so far
Thanks guys

That looks great. Do you have a prototype airport in mind? photos you are working from?
what will be the function of the small areas you have masked off?
I'm very interested in display bases and dioramas for aircraft models. I would like to see how your project progresses.

D

Hi Jonathan ...
Well after i had a good look around i decided to base this on the taxiways from Eglin AFB in florida USA i liked the shape and the angles to the parking spaces they have there ... the small areas i have left out are for the ground crew and there equipment so they can work safely around an aircraft without cluttering the parking space ....

Ok just finished adding all the grass.....

ok so iv added the taxiway and parking space and took a quick pic with my rafale in place just need to paint the yellow center lines and add the back scene now

Looking great Dave, very nice little scene emerging here.

Cheers, D

Thanks Damian .. yup its getting there now but im just wondering if i need to add anything eles as it looks a little sparse ??

that's fine! An airplane model youve labored over deserves a nice scene to repose in.
Mostly, everyone poses their models on the grungy work bench or the cutting mat, or maybe a piece of blue poster board at best, I'd much rather see a bit of 'nature' . Looking forward to seeing your printed backdrops.

I agree you need some brik-a-brak on those ground crew islands - an engine starter, a tool cart, and a boarding ladder, and maybe some figures.

I totally agree with you ! i also think it adds a touch of realism to the model.. iv done the yellow center lines now and cut the back scenes ready to stick to some stiff card ill post some more pics tomorrow ... I think your right about the ground crew islands time to have a look and see whats out there ..

Really good job there Dave.

Cheers,
Nick.

Thanks Nick .. Yeah is looking quite good now .. Iv got the backscene stuck to some card now i stood it up behind the base earlier and found that there is a little bit too much grass at the bottom of the picture just need to trim things up a bit



Cheers guys

ok well iv finished the project and i think its turnd out ok i learnt a few lessons for the next time but im happy with how it looks . thanks for all the comments you guys have put ...
( Edwards AFB for the next one i think )







Happy modeling guys

I see quite a lot of reflection off the taxiway surface. It looks as though it's just stopped raining, which kind of doesn't fit with your background picture

hm, that's right, I can smell the wet concrete from here.
love that smell.

Yeah i know i think next time ill give them a coat of matt varnish before i glue them down