Global Scale Modeller

So Ive been building my first model (I got tons of help from kind members here on the forum) and I figured Id post a brief update on how thats going since I havent reported back here since my help thread!

I finished basically all of the assembly but a few choice antennaes which Im leaving off for paint reasons, and Ive gotten down all the base colors. I just need to weather and put decals on it now! I dont think it looks too bad for a brush painted model. There are a couple of areas where brush strokes are obvious if you look close, but it isnt very bad. The biggest problem Ive had so far with this kit is parts not fitting right. Im going to have to separate the canopy again (which is currently masked off) and build it with the canopy resting open. Why? Because I noticed that the front windshield has a random curve on one of its corners, so it simply doesnt line up with the rest of the canopy. My solution is to open the canopy so the curve will not be evident. How I will separate the center piece of canopy from the rear I do not know but I hope Ill be able to gently pry them apart with a hobby knife. If not Im a bit screwed since you cant exactly fill clear parts.

The other problem I had was landing gear, the left landing gear simply wouldnt fit into the slot the same way the right one would, it was slightly deformed near the base so it couldnt fit in all the way. The result was if I left the model sitting on its landing gear for 5 minutes the left side would snap off and the plane would fall over. The landing gear ended up breaking while I was fiddling with it so after many attempts to glue it back on in its deformed base, I had to break out the super glue and spare pieces of sprue to build up a foundation for the landing gear to be glued onto. The result is very satisfactory and the landing gear are nearly perfectly symetrical (previously they simply couldnt be placed in the same position without breaking, so Ill take it!) And the new jury rigged landing gear actually feels sturdier than the other one!

Anyways, here are the pictures of it so far. Shes not much to look at right now, I havent even added gun smoke, exhaust stains or general weathering, but Im very happy with the way the color scheme turned out. (was mostly creative license, I didnt follow the instructions on appearance.)





I am obviously open to constructive criticism. Im particularlly looking for any ways to add gun smoke, and exhaust stains. A simple black wash doesnt seem like itd work very well, and I cant brush paint it on as well as I could with an airbrush I dont think.


Thanks for taking the time to check out my model so far!


(For the curious: Im painting it with tamiya acrylics. The light blue used for the underbelly of teh aircraft (and sides) is XF-23, the others are flat black, dark gray XF-24, XF-3 flat yellow, flat white, and then a handful of Model Color paints.)

Hi Odo, this is looking good. Most Revell kits need a lot of test fitting and adjusting. Looks like you made a good job of the under carriage. I'm not a brush painter but I'd try DRY BRUSHING for some gun smoke. Some of your straight lines look a bit wobbly, do you have some decent masking tape? Don't bother with anything other than Tamiya tape, even expensive stuff from an art shop won't work as well as the Tamiya. Looking forward to seeing the finished pics.

Hey Odo, I'm also a beginner in scale modelling. I'm currently working on my first model, an Airfix B-24 Liberator in 1:72 scale. I, as you, will also be hand painting the entire thing, as I have not committed to buying an airbrush yet. I was looking into Tamiya acrylics based on some reviews and how good they came out on your bf-109 . I was wondering if you have any advice for someone who has never modeled before, based on your experience with this one.

The model: [color=#0040FF]http://www.airfix.com/us ... ml[/color]

Cheers to newbie scale modelers. This makes me hopeful

If you are wanting to apply some gun and exhaust staining you could always use chalk pastels. Scrape some black/dark grey/dark brown powders onto your pallet and then apply them with a brush and streak them in the direction of airflow.

Congratulations by the way on managing to brush painting with tamyia, I think most people on here would say its one of the worst types of paint to try and brush with.

For tamiya I use their x20a thinner with a drop or two of craft store acrylic paint retarder to give a longer working time.

Brief update, added exhaust, gun smoke, general weathering over the engine bit, added decals. All is to be done is finish the canopy, add another clear coat over the decals, do a black wash, then a matte clear coat.

Drumroll please...

Its finished!










Thank you so much to everybody who helped me on this journey. I had a ton of fun ( and a lot of stress at times.. dropping decals or tiny parts in the carpet comes to mind!) But Im over all very happy with the results. If I had to choose one part that was my favorite, it was definitely weathering the plane. Thats when your plane turns from a plastic toy to a real aircraft! There are a few mess ups on this model that will most likely be painfully obvious to you pros out there. The worst one is paint leaked under the masking tape on the canopy on the side of the plane that says "Rosemary." Its not very bad from a distance but if you look up close its obvious. Another thing is I really need to thin my paint more. Next model I will definitely use more thinner.

Thats about it though, I am otherwise very happy with the model, and Ive already bought a new one to try next: 1:72 F4F-4 Wildcat by Academy.
Ill most likely be making a build thread for that soon, and hopefully with the experience frm this build Ill be able to do an even better job on that one.


Please leave feedback and constructive criticism! If I had one question to ask after this experience, its how the heck do you guys get the spars of the cockpit so perfect?

Happy modeling!