My first 2 builds for 25 years, Century Series

[Thunderchief1966]

These are my first two finished builds, HobbyBoss 1/48 F105 and Meng F102 case xx 1/72. Excuse the photo quality but it's a new camera so still getting used to it. Any/all comments, tips and suggestions would be greatly appreciated, positive or negative, there are some really impressive builds on here so all advice is welcome,

I did the whole camo pattern freehand using a Neo/Iwata and Mr Hobby Aqueous and a mix of Mr H and Revell Aqua to brush, the kit went together well but the landing gear was a pain, very spindly



Note slightly wobbly unercarriage. The wash was a new thing for me, its a Flory dark dirt wash which looked easier to do than an enamel pin wash, but a crazy paving pattern occurred on the underside which i think is the Klear coat cracking, on the F102 I tried a microscale gloss and it was much better.





Here you can see the crazy paving



Here is the Meng F102, finished last week. Again this went together very well, certainly compared to the stuff I used to build 25 years ago, and I had a go at pre shading on this build. I used a Vallejo primer but it didn't give as good a finish as the Halfords rattle can and took ages to dry fully





Unercarriage was easier, and is much sturdier, but the bomb bay was frustrating as the Falcon missiles didn't leave enough room for the doors, superglue to the rescue



Sorry for the blurr


The only major mishap was losing some of the decal on the rear stabiliser, I only noticed it when i did the final satin coat so was a bit gutted, but I will try to get a replacement




I really enjoyed both builds and I have tried a lot of techniques for the first time, the tools and materials available are fantastic compared to a couple of old tins of humbrol and a brush. I am taking a break from the century series and having a go at an Academy Merkava MkIII which will be the fist AFV I have built. Again, all comments welcome and as i've got a week off I think a bit of quality time with the Merkava is in order,

Cheers, Ian

[Willem]

Welcome to the Forum, Ian.

I love your jets and the Thud in particular. Thanks for a head up on the undercarriage as I have a 105G that I'm going to start soon.

Look forward to seeing more of your work.

[Lee]

Excellent!

[schweinhund227]

very impressive work !!!

[ManCupboardModels]

Very nice! Top jobs all round. Welcome back to the hobby!

[Thunderchief1966]

Thanks very much guys for the comments, gives me a bit of confidence to post a bit more. As for the undercarriage on the Thud, the anchor point in the landing gear bay is very shallow so not much surface area to glue, also its a tall plane and the model is pretty heavy to boot. I didn't bother to assemble most of the engine as its not seen, but that's where the weight comes from. The front gear has to be assembled before the fuselage is put together but I just attached the top two sections and taped them up, adding the rest at the end of the build, still a great kit though, hope that helps Will,

Cheers, Ian

[Fredrik64]

Sweet great builds !

[Nige201980]

Nice build mate and welcome to the forum.

[Whizzo]

Nice 102 by the way. I am currently building the Encore kit of the same fighter. Hope mine comes out half this good!

Fred

[MerseyTrainz]

to the ISM forum Ian

What!! Your first 2 builds for 25 years,

Nice exhibits, you've not lost any of you skills in 25 years!!!

Well done Ian

[billlarisa]

to the ISM
Beautiful work.. i love both of them..nice painting job

[Thunderchief1966]

Hey, thanks once again for the comments guys it's really appreciated I feel really welcome

I tried a couple of different paints and practiced on some sheets of photo paper first to get a feel for the airbrush, the Humbrol acrylics were awful and dried like sand, the Revell aqua were ok but didn't like being thinned too much but brush well,but after paul's review of Mr Hooby I tried them out and they are just excellent,not once during the camo session did the AB tip dry out, but don't brush with them.I did watch a lot of youtube tutorials and took my time, about two months per build, which stopped the frustration when things were getting a bit tricky

Thanks again, Ian

[UKguyInUSA]

to ISM!

Those builds are very impressive mate....I wouldn't know what advice to give you!

I love the nose art the Thunderchief!

Cheers

Martin

[Thunderchief1966]

Ha Ha cheers Martin, the lady in question comes in her own separate bag with modesty cover for the easily offended !!

cheers,Ian

[Scaleman]

Well you shure have not lost it, wonderful work.