Global Scale Modeller

Hello everyone !

So thanks to @digger303 I'M able to participate in this GB. My entry will be Tamiya's Douglas A-1 Skyraider.

Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

A little history about the plane...
It saw development during WWII but entered service only after it, in 1946. It initial development was for dive bombing and carrier base. It saw service mainly in the Korean and Vietnam War. And was use until the early the 80's. Being a long life for a single piston plane when the jet age started as it entered service.
As development continued, the plane serve mainly for close support combat for ground troops, being able to withstand lots of damage. It could carry a huge amount of ordnance making it quite impressive to see. It saw service in other countries such as Great Britain, France and Vietnam.

I decided to go for that scheme
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
The only problem I realize afterwards is that the underside is black. Never done one before and don't know at all how to approach it. Funny Tamiya calls for semi-gloss black... I still have time to change my mind or learn how to do it. because the top scheme is the same both ones included in the kit.

The details are crisp and quite minimal. I realize the kit is from 2000. So pretty old.
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
And lots of bombs...
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

But looking at pictures of the real plane, I saw it's a pretty straight forward plane without much details.

And the build is straight forward also and fast not being quite detailed.
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

I'll may be try adding some scratch details being an OOB build. And you can see it goes pretty fast to painting. I'll also give a go at painting my first pilot.

Hope to post a first real update this Sunday or Monday.

Have a great weekend

Good to see you entering again

A black primer coat all over would make easy work of the underside. When doing a scheme like this I'm never quite sure where to have the edge of the masking tape along the front wing edge.

great to have you onboard Francis!

Paul

digger303 wrote: Sat Jan 17, 2026 2:20 pm Good to see you entering again

A black primer coat all over would make easy work of the underside. When doing a scheme like this I'm never quite sure where to have the edge of the masking tape along the front wing edge.

Looking at reference pics for the scheme with black underside, the camo line looks to be straight down the center of the leading edge so you should be ok.

Stokesy44 wrote: Sat Jan 17, 2026 10:49 pm

digger303 wrote: Sat Jan 17, 2026 2:20 pm Good to see you entering again

A black primer coat all over would make easy work of the underside. When doing a scheme like this I'm never quite sure where to have the edge of the masking tape along the front wing edge.

Looking at reference pics for the scheme with black underside, the camo line looks to be straight down the center of the leading edge so you should be ok.

For me the problem isn't the edge. But more how to tackle painting something that huge black and being able to show variation in color and weathering properly.
Can you send me the link where you found one with black underside ?.. Haven't found one yet

Ah ok got ya now.
I think part of the trick is not to paint it black, but use a slightly off colour shade to start with.

Good to see you back in action!
Don't know if this helps but the few times I tried going for a weathered underside I started with Hataka B100 Jet Black, let it dry 24 hours and then overlaid/streaked it with Tamiya Matt Black which a bit greyer and Rubber Black which is even greyer.

Garion77 wrote: Sun Jan 18, 2026 1:42 pm

Stokesy44 wrote: Sat Jan 17, 2026 10:49 pm

digger303 wrote: Sat Jan 17, 2026 2:20 pm Good to see you entering again

A black primer coat all over would make easy work of the underside. When doing a scheme like this I'm never quite sure where to have the edge of the masking tape along the front wing edge.

Looking at reference pics for the scheme with black underside, the camo line looks to be straight down the center of the leading edge so you should be ok.

For me the problem isn't the edge. But more how to tackle painting something that huge black and being able to show variation in color and weathering properly.
Can you send me the link where you found one with black underside ?.. Haven't found one yet

I would go for black basing. Black primer overlaid with very light and tight shades of white or other colors you wish to use. You then paint your base color over that. I would use a VERY dark grey as opposed to black or the kit will really look like a black hole.

Attached is one of my kits where I used the technique. I used white paint over a grey primer but the principle is the same. I call it the drunk spider technique. Airbrush on low pressure, get in real close, 0.2 needle and never stop moving your hand.



And here's the effect with the base coat. I added a pre-shade before painting but ignore the panel lines. The effect you are are after is the patina on the aircraft skin in general. No reason why it wouldn't work with a darker color.



I hope this helps

As for reference pictures:

https://www.airforceheritageflight.org/ ... skyraider/



There's not much out there and you cant really rely on modern examples because they are kept so clean!

Fantastic kit, had a blast building this one a few years ago. Looking forward to see what you can do with it!

Stokesy44 wrote: Sun Jan 18, 2026 4:40 pm

Garion77 wrote: Sun Jan 18, 2026 1:42 pm

Stokesy44 wrote: Sat Jan 17, 2026 10:49 pm

Looking at reference pics for the scheme with black underside, the camo line looks to be straight down the center of the leading edge so you should be ok.

For me the problem isn't the edge. But more how to tackle painting something that huge black and being able to show variation in color and weathering properly.
Can you send me the link where you found one with black underside ?.. Haven't found one yet

I would go for black basing. Black primer overlaid with very light and tight shades of white or other colors you wish to use. You then paint your base color over that. I would use a VERY dark grey as opposed to black or the kit will really look like a black hole.

Attached is one of my kits where I used the technique. I used white paint over a grey primer but the principle is the same. I call it the drunk spider technique. Airbrush on low pressure, get in real close, 0.2 needle and never stop moving your hand.



And here's the effect with the base coat. I added a pre-shade before painting but ignore the panel lines. The effect you are are after is the patina on the aircraft skin in general. No reason why it wouldn't work with a darker color.



I hope this helps

As for reference pictures:

https://www.airforceheritageflight.org/ ... skyraider/



There's not much out there and you cant really rely on modern examples because they are kept so clean!

Interesting subject.

Great to see you posting again Francis

I'm always amazed at how much ordnance they managed to get these things to carry - looking forward to seeing how you progress with the build

Stokesy44 wrote: Sun Jan 18, 2026 4:40 pm

Garion77 wrote: Sun Jan 18, 2026 1:42 pm

Stokesy44 wrote: Sat Jan 17, 2026 10:49 pm

Looking at reference pics for the scheme with black underside, the camo line looks to be straight down the center of the leading edge so you should be ok.

For me the problem isn't the edge. But more how to tackle painting something that huge black and being able to show variation in color and weathering properly.
Can you send me the link where you found one with black underside ?.. Haven't found one yet

I would go for black basing. Black primer overlaid with very light and tight shades of white or other colors you wish to use. You then paint your base color over that. I would use a VERY dark grey as opposed to black or the kit will really look like a black hole.

Attached is one of my kits where I used the technique. I used white paint over a grey primer but the principle is the same. I call it the drunk spider technique. Airbrush on low pressure, get in real close, 0.2 needle and never stop moving your hand.



And here's the effect with the base coat. I added a pre-shade before painting but ignore the panel lines. The effect you are are after is the patina on the aircraft skin in general. No reason why it wouldn't work with a darker color.



I hope this helps

As for reference pictures:

https://www.airforceheritageflight.org/ ... skyraider/



There's not much out there and you cant really rely on modern examples because they are kept so clean!

A big thank you for the video reference !! that's about the way I thought I would attack the black. Thank you

Hello everyone,
time for my first update. Took longer than I anticipated because of a mistake I made.

Speaking of mistake, I think it's the first time I see one on a Tamiya kit. I have to attached the sides of the seat to the seat. THere's a sort of rectangle shape with a triangle tip that insert itself on the sides. And the sides had the triangle in the wrong direction.

Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

I did more then double-checked the instructions and 2 more on the sprues and none them worked. So, I cut the triangle tip. Won't see it anyways with a close cockpit.

Other than that, I prepared a few parts with the primer, thanks to my brand new compressor

Now for my mistake ! I had planned to detail a bit the interior of the wheels wells. But in my eagerness to advance my build, I forgot and glued the wings together. I was able to put all of the details in except on one side panel. But spent may be double the time for it. With a mix result but still happy with it.

Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

Had really good reference pictures for it.

Next update should be the cockpit and the detailing of the landing gears.

Have a great weekend !

You did well to busy it up a bit instead of a blank hole.

Hello everyone,

quick update of most of the work I've done yesterday. Had quite a lot of time yesterday being cold as hell for the week. Yesterday it was got up to the warm temperature of -26 C...quite warm considering the gusting wind also ! The same for today and on top of that a snow storm coming later today with at least 2 feet of snow...

But first, when posting my previous update, I realized that I had missed injection marks on the landing gears doors before putting them in place..

Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

Won't be easy to clean that up but at least, the way they are build, they are quite strong in place.

So now, for the work done ! I worked mostly on the cockpit. Painted it and painted the pilot.

Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
Being my first pilot, I'm pretty happy with the result. Just missing a bit of warmth to it's face I think...and too glossy but that's an easy fix.

And for the rest of the cockpit
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

So that's the nice part about it. Now for the bad part ! I had done a beautiful job of painting and doing an initial weathering on the instrument panel. After that it was time for the decal to go on. At first, I thought may be I should cut individually each instrument. But being lazy, and seeing how small and how they were, I decided to go with the entirety of the decal.. MISTAKE !!!

Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
And went on so wrong !! the instrument aren't align at all with the bezels, and it did not confirm good at all with the panel itself. Not sure yet what to do about it. Not closing the fuselage until I figure it out. I'm open to any suggestion.

Other than that I glued all the pylons in place
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
Except 2 for the drops tanks because they make masking for the landing gears wells harder. Also glued the drops tanks together. They did fit pretty well but boy it was quite a job to do so !

There's always problems.
I can't help ..sorry.

It looks like there's a lot of air underneath the decal so you may be able to lift it off. I would recommending wetting it again the trying to lift it off. You could then try cutting it up into smaller pieces then reapplying using a decal softening solution such as Microset and Microsol. Use the solution in the blue bottle to lay down the decal then the red bottle to soften and conform it.

Good looking pilot figure and the cockpit weathering looks nice!

Micro Set is also a decal removal solution.

Already another update !! That's what happens when it's cold as hell and followed by a snow storm, that as not finish yet.

First off, a non-modeling entry to start my post. An entry as proud father for my son, who yesterday after a long day of trials, accomplished getting is first dan on his black belt.











Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

We unfortunately don't see it on his belt on the picture. Really proud of him because he putted lots of work in it since Christmas to have the chance to attend and try.

Now, back to modeling. Engine is done and in place.
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
Just a small bit of weathering. No wires added as we won't see nothing when all in place.

As for the control panel, I left it as is, and glued to fuselage together.
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
The fit was stunning !! I don't think it will need any filling at first look.

But when I turned it around after a few minutes, I thought my pilot looked kind of odd.
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

After close examination, I said it ain't right for sure. I continue looking and found this :
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
You can see that the floor had not sat down properly at the right place. Thank god I was able to force it back in place, and glued again a bit of the 2 halves.
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

Then the wings were attached also. A real good fit again. But some filling will be necessary.
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

That's it for now. On the side I worked on the propelle and the exhaust. Also decided that the side brakes would be open.

Cheers guys !

Congrats on your son reaching a new level. It takes a lot of work to do it well.

Nice work on the engine cylinders and the rest of the aircraft is close to coming together.

Congratulations to your son. Awesome skills and dedication.

Kit looks good too. Its always great when the fuselage and wings go on. It stopes being pieces of plastic and starts looking like something

Thats a huge achievement for you son. Well done.

Awesome news about your son - really pleased for you both.

And nice work on the build too - even with the challenges it's throwing up at you, that's a nice save on straightening out the pilot & the engine looks great.

Hello everyone,

time for a ...boring update may be. But I need everyone opinion for the end result. It took a while for an update because I had problems with AK's 3rd gen primer. Finally, I was never able to get a good result whatever I tried. So went to grey primer instead from VMS. It's going to me a bit of more work for the paint job but it's better Then having a awful surface with AK'S

So this update is going to be about a ...drop tank ! Why just a drop tank ? Well because it's a black one. Wasn't able to find much pictures of black drops tanks on the internet. Most of them were almost like new. Or the were from WWII. So I went with what my guts told for weathering. SO here's the process.

First off, primer on. This was the end of my black Ultimate bottle. Tried a new technique which consisted of dabbing a rough paintbrush into white oil paint a dabbing it roughly on the tanks and a few weapons also.
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

Then it was painted in grey, because I thought it would be the original color as the other one on the plane. Then a coat of chipping fluid and finally NATO Black
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
And after activating the chipping fluid
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

Then my airbrushing skills were put to the test trying to spray 2 browns to recreate earth tones.
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
You can see a bit of overspray in some places. I tried to hide it with next phases.

The cap was painted red. A dark brown was applied and a bit elsewhere then the panel lines. Followed by a Matt coat.
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

The goal of the Matt coat was to use watercolor colors pencils for scratches, scuff marks and bit more dirt.
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
Love using pencils. But those from the art stores are much better than AK's in my opinion. AK's are too greasy. So using them for chipping and scratches not the best result.

Finally using, enamel products to recreate oil and kerosene.

Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr


Please give me your opinions on the result. As this is also a test for the black belly of the plane.

THank you

The weathering techniques look great, maybe better than great

Salvage and Practical Use:
During the Vietnam War, metal drop tanks (often Aero 1B/1D types) were frequently salvaged rather than discarded. Due to their durable construction, they were commonly repurposed by locals or personnel into DIY boats, fuel storage containers, water towers, or for scrap.

They were made from steel or aluminium so whatever weathering colours you use your going to be good.

Beautiful work and great to show the process too

Hello everyone,

small update as I didn't have much time at the bench.

Before getting into it, I realize I forgot one picture of the drop tank last time.
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

Now for the real update, time to paint the underside. Working of a grey primer instead of a black, here a the colors I used through the process.
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

First off, the panel lines with the black. Taking advantage of the grey primer, I used only the medium grey for mottling and light grey only on specific areas.
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

Sprayed everything with the NATO Black, being my final color. But in the end I thought the panel lines didn't come out enough. So I sprayed black again
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

And then again the NATO Black,
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr
And with lots of natural light
Sans titre by Francis Pare, sur Flickr

On the side the other drop tank was done. Pictures in the next update. And getting ready for the main colors on top.

Take care everyone

Drop tank looks amazing. Underside looks to have come out nicely too!

Got some very nice blending going on with weathering the drop tank....really nice.
The underside looks perfect to me, I eye isn't drawn to anything being out of place and the paint is smooth. What more could you ask for.