I finished applying the decals to a 1/48 Hasegawa RF-4C that I'm building for a customer. The decals are from Fox One Decals, and they went on great. The carrier film disappeared on the Future glosscoat, and only two applications of MicroSol were needed to get them to conform to the surface detail. I had never used this brand before (I build WW II aircraft), but I must say I was impressed.

The camo was painted freehand using Gunze acrylics and Model Master enamels.





Here's a closeup of the nose art for "Peanut Butter Crackers." (I need a snack now !)

Hi Bill!

Looks very good so far! I'm usually not a jet fan but the Phantom is one of my favorites amongst them. You did a great job on the paintsheme!
Did you used Parafilm for masking the canopy?

Looking forward to see this one finished!

Jean-Luc

P.S. I noticed you use foam to avoid scratches on the model! If you don't mind, I will steal that idea from you! :-)

Hi Bill!
Its really coming together now
I think I will steal your foam idea also if I may
My self and Betheyn have gone 50/50 on a huge roll of Parafilm from Ebay,and Im really looking forward to trying it for the first time.
Looking forward to seeing this F4 take to the skies
Nige

Thanks Jean-Luc and Nigel !

Jean-Luc - I always mask my canopies with Scotch "frosty" tape. It's VERY thin, cuts to a sharp edge without pressure, and leaves no residue behind. And the price is right ! Don't get the generic brands, though - they're problematic. Only get Scotch brand.
The foam came from a length of window stripping. I cut it to squares and stuck it to the bottles (it's adhesive-backed).

Nigel - the foam really helps to prevent scratches, and it also prevents a light colored undersurface from picking up any dirt. One roll gives you more than you could ever use (for this purpose).

Thanks again !

Beautiful work.
Will the canopies be kept closed. it would be a shame to cover the interior.
Will you be applying a wash and what colour will you be using?
Good idea with the foam, I'm borrowing the idea as well :-) :-) .
Andy (++)

Hey Bill the Phantom looks great, love the camo paint job and doing it free hand… it’s impressive. Yeah your decals look wonderful, will there be any stenciling added threw out the rest of the aircraft. What sort of weathering are you planning on. I myself built a few Phantoms over the years, never had the courage to do them in a camo scheme as you. Again great job,

Joe

Thanks Andy and Joe !

Andy - yes, my customer wants the canopies closed. They don't fit that well (they're designed to be open) closed. They're held with white glue, so I can pop them off for final trimming once I've finished the paintwork.
I'll be adding washes. I mix each of the base enamels with black oil paint to match the shades I see in the shadows on the model. A wash dark enough to show on the dark green areas will be WAY too dark for the light gray lower surfaces. This gives the panel lines in each area a relative darkness, rather than the absolute darkness of a single color. Since all the colors except the medium green are acrylic, I have to mix a close shade with enamels, then darken it with the black oil paint.

Joe - here's a pic of the actual aircraft:

As you can see, it doesn't have the plethora of stenciling found on many Phantoms. It's also not weathered beyond having slightly darker panel lines.
I like the colors and smooth lines of the SEA camo scheme. I just wish it was applied to some aircraft I find attractive. Oh well. I at least had the fun of painting it !