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Pre-Flight Check
Constructive critique of your finished or in-progress photos.
Dragon Mustang done.
hkshooter
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Indiana, United States
Joined: May 04, 2006
KitMaker: 78 posts
AeroScale: 72 posts
Posted: Monday, January 29, 2007 - 06:28 AM UTC
Finally done. Not a bad kit, as I've said before. The biggest fault I find with the kit is missing parts. Not by accident but by design. Markings are fictional. Codes were done with frisket and insignia are kit decals.



Actuators for the main wheel bay doors are missing as is the pitot tube.



The cockpit could use some side wall structure. Thankfully there is room for it to be added, though I did not do this.



I really like how the blast tubes turned out. Worth the work to me.



Something I rarely do is add stores to my models. The opportunity to detail the fuel lines was just to great in this kit. Bigger is definately easier to work with.



Paint is MM enamels and Tamiya acryls. Weather is MIG oils and pigments coupled with an accident.[B)][:-^]

The landing gear are very weak once installed. The soft plastic coupled with an attempt of the designers to make the gear the same as the prototype makes the attaching point very weak.



I have another one of these kits in the stash so the next time I'll modify the gear to add strength.



I've been contemplating what to do with the next kit. Everything from a modern civvie owned unit to waiting on the aftermarket to see what they come up with for the kit and loading it up.



The cowl panels fit pretty well for one wanting to attach them permenantly but to keep them removable as to see the engine is kind of a PITA. They want to fall off with the least of motivation added. The nose art was donated by the recent Hasegawa MKIX Spitfire.



I added very small pins made of wire to the formers then drilled coresponding holes in the thinned cowl panels to help keep the panels in place. The guns are very nicely molded. Maybe next time I will remove one in a maintainance scene.



I never understood why some say that the cockpit in the kit is weak for detail and then call Hasegawas kit better than the Dragon offering.



I've now built both kits and the Dragon offering is far superior, IMHO.



When I built the Hase kit I wanted to add all the separate control surfaces that the Dragon comes with. So, I had to cut the kit to pieces to make it happen. The gun bay detail was terrible so I added more there. I reworked the gunsight. I've forgotten what all I did to that kit.



But what I know now is that this kit provided much of that work already done for me. An exception was the wheel bay. I corrected the wheel bay structure on this kit, something I did not do to the Hase offering. I was not aware of that problem fifteen years ago.





Adding engine detail was relatively easy with the amount of reference on the net but I drew the line pretty quickly. So much of the equipment under the cowl is very mysterious to me and I just didn't know where to start.



Finally, I have a large scale Mustang that I can be relatively proud of. In the case it goes, right next to the Hasegawa kit that is in need of a nose repaint. Maybe I'll do that someday soon and post some pics of it also. The Hasegawa kit was my very first attempt at scratch building anything. Though crude I'm kinda attached to it. The dragon kit really makes it looks it's age.



Percheron
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Washington, United States
Joined: September 23, 2006
KitMaker: 432 posts
AeroScale: 360 posts
Posted: Monday, January 29, 2007 - 06:46 AM UTC
Absolutely incredible. Enough said.
slodder
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North Carolina, United States
Joined: February 22, 2002
KitMaker: 11,718 posts
AeroScale: 305 posts
Posted: Monday, January 29, 2007 - 04:48 PM UTC
Very straight forward write up- you should do a permanent review of this.

Solid solid build. I love all the attention you paid all the small details.
The one thing I saw was the drop tank wrap straps, the edge isn't painted.
Merlin
Staff MemberSenior Editor
AEROSCALE
#017
_VISITCOMMUNITY
United Kingdom
Joined: June 11, 2003
KitMaker: 17,582 posts
AeroScale: 12,795 posts
Posted: Monday, January 29, 2007 - 06:56 PM UTC

Quoted Text

Very straight forward write up- you should do a permanent review of this.



Hi hkshooter

Ditto that! This is a great build that deserves to be on the front page - either as a Review or a Feature.

How did you smooth out the rivets and panel lines on the wings?

All the best

Rowan
Lucky13
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Scotland, United Kingdom
Joined: June 01, 2006
KitMaker: 1,707 posts
AeroScale: 1,119 posts
Posted: Monday, January 29, 2007 - 07:56 PM UTC
Absolutely stunning model mate!
hkshooter
_VISITCOMMUNITY
Indiana, United States
Joined: May 04, 2006
KitMaker: 78 posts
AeroScale: 72 posts
Posted: Monday, January 29, 2007 - 09:21 PM UTC

Quoted Text


Quoted Text

Very straight forward write up- you should do a permanent review of this.




How did you smooth out the rivets and panel lines on the wings?


Rowan



The panel lines were conquered with a liberal, multi application of Mr. Surfacer 1200. The rivets were banished from sight with eight coats of auto primer from a spray can with wet sanding between coats after the third coat. The fuselage only recieved three coats of the same auto primer with wet sanding between the first and second coats. The third I did not sand. I wanted some rivet detail left of the fuselage. I did nothing to the panel lines on the fuse.
Thanks for all the kind words, guys!
trahe
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Virginia, United States
Joined: April 03, 2006
KitMaker: 1,158 posts
AeroScale: 73 posts
Posted: Monday, January 29, 2007 - 11:34 PM UTC
Well done! I think the paint job looks great!
TedMamere
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Moselle, France
Joined: May 15, 2005
KitMaker: 5,653 posts
AeroScale: 4,347 posts
Posted: Monday, January 29, 2007 - 11:46 PM UTC

Quoted Text

The panel lines were conquered with a liberal, multi application of Mr. Surfacer 1200. The rivets were banished from sight with eight coats of auto primer from a spray can with wet sanding between coats after the third coat. The fuselage only recieved three coats of the same auto primer with wet sanding between the first and second coats. The third I did not sand. I wanted some rivet detail left of the fuselage. I did nothing to the panel lines on the fuse.



Hi hkshooter!

Great One! I like the pin up as well!

It seems Dragon have finally made the perfect Mustang kit! If you want an accurate P-51 D, you have to fill the panel lines and rivets of the wing. So not only will the kit look like a real Mustang but you will also have used the same construction method used to build the real aircraft! Can this be topped?

Jean-Luc
hkshooter
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Indiana, United States
Joined: May 04, 2006
KitMaker: 78 posts
AeroScale: 72 posts
Posted: Tuesday, January 30, 2007 - 02:26 AM UTC
Jean-Luc,
Funny how that worked isn't it.
When I saw the lines and rivets my first thought was "bummer." I've been waiting someone to produce a Mustang kit with smooth wings because I have to do this to every Mustang I build. That's ultimately why the lines and rivet detail was no big deal for me. None of the kits are accurate in this respect and it's just old hap for me to fill them no matter what kit I build.
Somehow I think that even if I try to build a Mustang OOB the one thing I'd still have to do would be to fill those lines on the wings.

Thanks for the kind words! And your own build looks very sharp too! I need to go through Jean-Luc's "How to do natural metal finishes" school!
csch
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Buenos Aires, Argentina
Joined: December 27, 2002
KitMaker: 1,941 posts
AeroScale: 1,040 posts
Posted: Friday, February 02, 2007 - 12:47 AM UTC
Very nice model, I like it a lot so far !
Is it 1/48 ? How do you compare it with Tamiya P 51 D
hkshooter
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Indiana, United States
Joined: May 04, 2006
KitMaker: 78 posts
AeroScale: 72 posts
Posted: Friday, February 02, 2007 - 06:50 AM UTC

Quoted Text

Very nice model, I like it a lot so far !
Is it 1/48 ? How do you compare it with Tamiya P 51 D



The kit is the Dragon 1/32 offering. Compared to the Tamiya kit? Not really a fair comparison, I don't think. Both kits have their good points but I believe the Tamiya kit would be the winner in that contest.

As far as 1/32 Mustangs go I give the Dragon kit the nod. Best I've seen yet.
JPTRR
Staff MemberManaging Editor
RAILROAD MODELING
#051
_VISITCOMMUNITY
Tennessee, United States
Joined: December 21, 2002
KitMaker: 7,772 posts
AeroScale: 3,175 posts
Posted: Friday, February 02, 2007 - 11:43 AM UTC

Quoted Text

Very straight forward write up- you should do a permanent review of this.



Here, here! I concur!
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