while working on my Academy F-16 CG/CJ.... I made two HUGE mistakes.

First, i was applying future to my canopy for the first time, and realized that i applied too much and it started to "orange peel" as some call it...now my idea was to have the canopy open anyway, so i'll make a cover for it...and possibly show it in a diorama with the canopy covered with like a tarp or something.

And the bigger mistake... I used a LOT of testor's glue and lead pellets to glue down the nose without thinking that the glue would cure and "burn" through the bottom of the nose. It looks like my f-16 got in a car accident with the area right behind the radome on the very bottom being very disfigured, almost like tin foil that was crinkled and then tried to be straightened. Now i have an idea to put bullet hole in it and show it as battle damage, but i just don't htink it will look right. Any quick fixes u guys can think of??? Or any idea's to make this look like it's suppose to be this way??

Any help is GREATLY appreciated, thanks in advance,
DoWBaseball

For the canopy id wash it with windex or dip it in future and re-coat it.

and for hte nose... how about puttying it up and spending some time sanding?

Btw, iam an armor guy...
Hope this helps.

Frank

How about parking it with the nose against a hangar wall or such, and calling the diorama 'Ooops..'
Or, this will make sense to the Dutchies... 'Even Apeldoorn bellen...'

Cheers
Henk

Hi Jordan

The Future problem isn't a big deal - as Francois says, you can strip it off and re-coat the canopy.

The plastic softened by the cement is more of a problem. Without seeing how bad the distortion is, it's hard to know how practical any fix is, but the one thing you MUST do is make sure the cement has finished curing before doing any repair work.

This can take a while if you've really flooded the area, so put the kit on the shelf for a week or two and work on another model. Once it's definitely dry, a combination of sanding out the lumps and filling the dents should help. I'd use "supafilla" (a combination of cyano-acrylate glue and talcum powder mixed to a paste) because it sets quickly, sands easily and isn't a solvent - so it won't risk harming the surface further.

I hope this helps.

Rowan

Does anyone know what would be an equivelent product to Windex in the UK as I have some Klear I need to remove also

I think you should be able to wash Future (Kleer) off with warm soapy water.

Shaun

I would even recommend to drill a small hole in an already ruined area to allow fumes of the cement to escape more easily. and about waiting: it could take months.

If not completely cured then the solvent of the putty could react with the cement and you have another few weeks of waiting ahead...

I'm afraid that you won't be able to wash off Klear (Future) with soapy water. Amonia is the best but Isopropynol (rubbing alcohol) also works, you can get it at the chemist in the UK, but it is a bit expensive. I use it to clean my models before painting and I can get it at cost from work (£4.00 per litre I think it was last time I got some, double that in the chemist). Nige if you would like some I can bring it to Hinckley?

Jordan, I agree with what Rowan and drabslab say. Any chance of a pic so we can see the real problem?
Mal

Fabulous,,I use "Isoclene" at work for cleaning dichroic filters on moving lights,,and it just so happens that I have a can of it at home that I "liberated" for cleaning releasing fluid from sprues

thanks for all the help so far guys....

The Canopy problem will be fixed the way i explained, not only because of the future, but because Academy left a gigantic seam right down the middle of it, and my attempts at trying to wet sand it off was a total failure.


I left the model for about 3 weeks after i added the weight, and came back to find the problem, but i'll drill a hole in it anyway. I can't believe i did such a thing to this beautiful model.... this was going to be my prize winning baby, and now it's pretty much ruined.

I hope to god it's done curing, this will be hard enough to fix with putty, let alone it will be my first attempt at anything with putty other than simple seams. I'll try to get some pictures up tomorrow of it.

Hi Jordan

Oh dear - you really have been in the wars with this one! I'd just say, before you right-off the canopy, strip the old Future and try polishing it with a cheap nail-buffer from the drug store. You'll be amazed how many horrible scratches you can polish out by working through the graded sanding pads on the buffer. Finally try dipping the canopy in Future again (although you may not need this). It's well worth a try - particularly if you've already given up on it, so to speak.

All the best

Rowan

:-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-)

Yes, that would make a fine diorama Henk