Freshen up ?

[ChrisF]

Right while waiting for some stuff to dry i thought id give myself a weekend project... A had an old Airfix 1:72nd Junkers Stuka kit built back when i was about 14 and looking at it now it still looks quite decent despite some unfortunate decal browning and a lil whitening on the canopy... So i thought... Over the next few days could i sharpen it up enough to feel happy putting it in the cabinet next to my newer builds or is it time for the bin ?

First issue was discovering a complete repaint would be a bad idea as new decals are surprisingly absent from listings.. Hmm... Have a an idea ?  Lets see....


At the least it should provide some practice before letting loose on "proper" builds... So... Here we go



Here she is looking straight enough but a lil tired...



Bad whitening on the canopy but can a little paint touch up help ?



More dificult is this bad browing on the underside... Still i have a cunning plan...





Here goes ... First up touch up some paint around the edge of the canopy to see if we can hide that whitening...



Annnnd the first disaster... :) Clumsy fingers and old glue meant while peeling off the masking this happened... Still a minor set back....

Can anyone guess my masterplan ?  :)

[GTX_Admin]

This is interesting to watch.

[taiidantomcat]

I really enjoy restorations! waiting for more

[ChrisF]

More a practice guinea pig than a restoration :) But thanks..



Nasty seam down the centre line.... Easy fix though..



Some Mr Surfacer dribbiled down last night before leaving it overnight... Now to the sanding !!

And yes for those who follow my work that is indeed an ENAMEL tin in the background... I dont use the stuff anymore for many a reason but i have to match up exactly what went down before... So a ten year old tin has re-surfaced... Hope it hasnt gone off... :/





:)

[sequoiaranger]

The "browning" of the underside decals just cries out for REPLACEMENT. If you have difficulty finding a match, I have a HUGE stash of Balkenkruez's and would be more than willing to part with two. If I know the EXACT (millimeters) dimensions, I would probably be able to match it (obviously a millimeter or so larger would be OK!). A direct overlay would probably be better than trying to uproot the old one (suffering maybe an incomplete removal anyway).

re: the "whitening" of the canopy. That is the reflection of the bottom edge of the canopy clear plastic. I often paint that edge with the interior color, and use strong white glue for affixing the canopy (solvent glues will undo the painting). You can pry up the canopy and do that (you would have to re-paint, but not re-mask what you have already done).

Also, on real planes the bottom canopy frame always smoothly integrates into fuselage, so when I mask off canopys for painting the fuselage, I always tape/mask ABOVE that bottom frame so the fuselage-to-canopy joint "flows" both in color and sheen.

I am fully supportive of upgrading or "Phoenix"-ing previous models (and have done so many times) to bring them up to current standards of production (my "production" has spanned some 30+ years!). It can be most satisfying!

[ChrisF]

Thank you very much for the offer but its not worth wasting your decals on :) I have a plan involving heavy weathering and a winter scheme !

As for the canopy i always use Kristal Klear these days... Unfortunately i built this long before that... Although as you can just about see in the broken tail picture simply by properly masking up the bottom of the canopy :)

[Brian da Basher]

Yeah heavy winter camo scheme blah blah blah.

You say that now but it's only to fool us since you really plan to turn your Stuka into a Rocket Plane Dive Bomber.

Can't pull the wool over my eyes, fella.

Seriously, though, I'm going to enjoy watching this as I might pick up tips I can use if I come across an old model in The Box of Doom that I want to smarten up for display.

Go, Chris, go!

Brian da Basher

[GTX_Admin]

I thought he was doing a steam punk Stuka...

[ChrisF]

To be fair what model CANT be improved by the addition of a tesla coil eh ?   

However... Does anyone have a shot of this lump on the side of the engine on the real thing ?

Its clearly a vauge representation of something but what ?






:)

[sequoiaranger]

>However... Does anyone have a shot of this lump on the side of the engine on the real thing ? Its clearly a vauge representation of something but what ? <

It's simply the supercharger air scoop. That particular Airfix model has an oversized one, but not by too much. The real "B" Stuka had something similar, just smaller. The later "D" versions had a slimmer intake mounted further up the nose.

[ChrisF]

So i should drill it out ?   Thought so...

[sequoiaranger]

>So i should drill it out ?   Thought so...<

Maybe not. I see an "inset" built into the piece. You might think of putting fine mesh in there as "screen" and painting it black. It's got to be REALLY fine, though!

[GTX_Admin]

Here is a view of the real thing:

[Logan Hartke]

Ah, my second favorite exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.

Cheers,

Logan

[GTX_Admin]

Yes indeedee...

[ChrisF]

Cheers !

a handy pic indeed !