Hi Everyone!
Thank you very much! Pressure? I told my wife that the foiling would begin today and she said the swearing would increase 90%

Brian, surely there has to have been someone as nutty as me to do it in foil before this. Before I started this kit, I was contemplating doing a Bear Bomber next. You remember those? The ones that were shadowing our fleets and playing chicken with Tomcats in the 70's and 80's?

Anyway...now I'm not so sure.

Although my stand helps hold the bomber, it makes foiling some parts a bit more difficult.


Cool time of year. Better for foiling, ceiling fan stays still.

When I look at the pics on my little phone screen, I'm sure they're not this blurry.






Such a small area covered for 2 hours or better of hard modelling. Yep...definitely worth it!

Thanks for looking!

Gaz

All that hard work prepping is bearing fruit Gaz! Foiling is underway! Grabbing my popcorn and settling in for the show

Ditto, those reflections... those specular highlights *swoon*

Hi Gary,

The long awaited foiling process begins - and I'm booking my front-row seat for the show.

Looking forward to the next update.

Regards,
Kobus

Guys,
I'm glad you're here! Be careful, the foil bug is highly contagious. I already feel the hours of prep slipping into forgetfulness as I appreciate the glare and contmplate future planes I can make shiny.

Cheers,

Gaz

Great to see the foiling has commenced Gaz, I will be checking in regularly as this process fascinates me. I don't think I have the patience to foil and entire build, especially one on this scale, but you have me following closely.

Cheers, D

Hi Everyone,
Because I'm on my annual detox from work (vacation) I hope to get the thing foiled before I go back. So hopefully barring a zombie apocalypse or call-up to go to A-stan, the updates should be regular.

Damian, if you have the patience to checkerboard an itty-bitty 1/48 scale jeep, or build a Dragon 1/350 scale warship, I think you have patience enough. Besides, I'm sure you have a jug in your stash and a set of decals just begging for it. This build is really only long because of all of the raised detail I had to re-create and repair.

Anyway...on to the update:

This is more of a things-that-can-go-wrong update than most.





















There might be 5 hours into foiling the belly of this behemoth. When I started on my first foil covered airplane, I think this much area took two weeks.

Of course, every plane and every shape and every desired finish presents it's own set of challenges.

Thanks for looking!

Gaz

WOW, Gary! Just Awesome!

Yep, what he said !

Guys,
Thank you!

Gaz

Man, I wouldn't have the patience! Wow.

Hi Gary

Addictive?? Watching - yes, for sure. Doing - no way. This scares the living daylights out of me.

Maybe - just maybe - I'll venture to painting a NMF one of these days - but I don't think that's going to be soon. I still have a lot to learn after a 20+ year absence from modelling.

But you keep on foiling - I'm enjoying every update.

Regards,
Kobus

My sentiments exactly!

Hi Everyone,
Had a busy couple of days, so not much modelling accomplished. Yesterday I built a retaining wall for my house, and today we drove hither, thither, and yon searching for items needed by my 3-week-old granddaughter. Consequently this is a mini-update.

Kobus and Brian, I could tell you many things about foiling that might make you think I was trying to sell it to you. But here are three simple truths:

1. You will foil 15-20 1/48 scale aircraft for less than the cost of two 23ml glass pots of Tamiya acrylic paint.

2. You cannot ruin a model by the foiling process. Worst you could do is scratch the plastic with heavy-handed knife-work.

3. Once you complete one with foil, a bright, shiny, new world (or dull, if you prefer) of late WWII and Cold War aircraft will open up before you.

There is nothing to fear.

Anyway, here we go:

I had a little time between things this morning to test foil and a new product on a spot that I knew was going to be super-difficult.

This one didn't turn out too bad. I knew the aft-most part would be the hardest of the whole bird.

Aft-most part of the barbette defeated me. I felt from the beginning that there were too many curves and the foil would be pulled into too many directions for my skills to manipulate. So, I thought ahead:
(oh, and I apologize for the orientation) (It's that Apple vs. Microsoft thing again!)

After three failures on the same spot of three different pieces of foil, I knew struggling further would be pointless. So, I broke out the BMF.

On the first attempt, the BMF stretched in ways the foil wouldn't.

It also highlighted that a bit more sanding was required on that part of the barbette.


So, that's all I accomplished today model-wise.

I reckon that BMF is a fine product. But at 10 Dollars AU for a little sheet, I imagine it'll stay in reserve for spots that I can't beat the same old way.

Thanks for looking!

Gaz

That's interesting Gaz, do you know what's different about the BMF product that makes it "stretchier"?

Hi Friends,
A good day of foiling, though I didn't get as much done as I'd hoped. Here we go:





















Thank you for looking!

Gaz

Looking great Gary.

Any chance we could get a mini S.B.S. on foiling? (Step by step that is, not the tv channel )

That's looking fantastic Gaz, and you're cruising along a good pace it seems. I bet it was very satisfying to get that 8" belly section done after doing fiddly little areas !

Really coming along, Gaz!

Gary,
I took a few weeks off from modeling as it's summer time up here, and we've been taking mini trips just to get out of the house when I'm not working.

Anyway, I can't believe the progress you've made on the foiling. It's simply amazing.

The little foiling I've done over the years, I've used BMF, and for me it was worth the price as I never needed much.

Joel

Guys,
Thank you for your replies and praise!

Russell, my other foiled builds all have some tutorial stuff happening. But I could do an SBS in the future. Of course, a good SBS will require photos.

Paul,
Getting a big piece done is always rewarding. It took more than half an hour to lay that piece. And it could have been ruined at any point from the first burnishing stroke to the point where the last piece of excess is removed from the model. In practice, you're actually better off with small pieces. I don't know how many pieces have been ruined on the edge of completion. It's just the nature of the beast.

Joel buddy! It's great to see you back! I was beginning to wonder. BMF is a great product. It's just so expensive that it's best used in small amounts....by me anyway.
I probably never would have considered any NMF aircraft if the only way was costly BMF.

Cheers,

Gaz

Gary,
I've been building one model after another for the last 6 or 7 years in a row. I just hardly ever went out of the house on days off, but just modeled.

Honestly, I just needed a break from the routine.

I've just settled back into working on the F-4J a little here and there. After I complete it, I'm going to start to build some 1/24-1/20 race cars mixed into my aircraft building, as that's my true non-modeling interest.
Joel

Hey everyone!
Another little update. Got a nasty cold, but have foiled nonetheless.

Joel,
I hear ya. Sometime ya hafta get away.











Thanks for looking!

Gaz

Wow, that is one heavy duty stand. I would be terrified of breaking the seam on the fuse, but I'm a clumsy oaf.

Matt,
For big parts and big seams I use dissolved sprue since I got sick of joints popping while sanding. Since I made the change, I haven't had one seam fail.

Still, with any model we're always one fumble-fingered incident from throwing our project in the bin. The stand save me a lot of time and effort.

Gaz