Tamiya F4U-1 Corsair Engine

It's been a while since I posted anything. I hit a bit of a wall since the last post due to an issue on the Corsair. I'll get more into that in another post. This post however, should be quick and it was semi-quick to put together. We'll be taking a look at the Corsair engine.

There is a little more detail molded in than the Zero engine, but I won't put as much effort in, just a little.

I deepened the holes in the pistons for the spark plug wires.

Did it a bit different this time. Glued the wires in place first.

Cut them to size.

Glued into place. I used a looped piece of wire to pick up a smaller amount of glue. Did you know CA glue is flammable? To clean up the loop just place it in a lighter flame briefly to burn of any dried or liquid glue.

I wanted to add a little more detail here. So I stretched some sprue, put it on a piece of tape to control the little bits and cut very thin slices.

Everything is dry fit before priming. I didn't do the wires to the rear because seeing that detail is very limited.

Before priming.

Primed with Badger gray primer.

Sprayed in Tamiya Gun Metal. It's really an awesome color.

I sprayed the propeller in Tamiya Aluminum maybe?

Dry brushed in steel. Picked out the details and painted the wires copper.

Added an oil wash to the piece on the left.

Did a little oil fading with white and blue and blended in with a dry brush. The effect is subtle.

The completed engine.

Test fit to the Corsair.

And almost four months later, the propeller is done.

Before adding the Akan Pale Gold, I did a quick coat of AK Matte, then Ammo's Scratching Effects.

Masked the Pale Gold and sprayed with Model Master's Aircraft Interior Black.

Blades masked off and I sprayed Akan's Sea Blue. A bit hard to see the difference here, but there certainly is in the real lifes. 

Finished painting. Let's see if that scratches effect works.

An accidental scratch on the hub, but it looks good.

All done and I'm pleased with the result.

That's all for now. The Corsair is nearing completion so hopefully I'll get some more progress posted shortly.

Thanks for looking in.

Tamiya F4U-1 Birdcage Corsair Begins

You're probably thinking, "He's finished all his models and he's starting a new one!" You are completely wrong! I got anxious and started this kit last December while I still had the Spitfire PR.IG and the Stug IV quite firmly in progress.

Quite some time ago, I purchased, I believe a Revell Corsair for the nephew in the West. Perhaps this can be somewhat of a guide in your build, if you find the time between all the things you have going on.

If the Revell kit is like this one, sorry. I would have sent the Tamiya Spitfire Mk.I kit had I known the complexity. Not that I think this kit is that complex, just that I missed a few things...a few times.

The box art. I don't think it will turn out this nice, but we'll give it a shot. Although, it is a bit clean for my taste.

I decided to upgrade a few areas. The wheels, exhaust and the seat. I also hate masking canopies so I thought I would try pre-cut masks from Eduard.

Parts look good overall.

Decals, typical thick Tamiya decals.

Several sink marks needed to be filled. I touched them up with Mr. Dissolved Putty.

First the Cockpit.

You can see the difference between the kit seat and the resin upgrade. If not, I'm not sure how you're reading this.

Parts ready for priming.

I primed this with AK Interactive Gray Primer, before I knew of the wonderful Badger primer.

 I think I got all the interior areas....or did I?

For this kit I got Akan's U.S. Navy paint set. I sprayed Interior Green here. It's a fantastic paint, lays down beautifully.

I added a little Pale Gold to the green to lighten it up and provide some variation in the paint.

Can't you see it?

I brush painted flat black on the headrest.

The areas of wear were chipped with silver....I think.

Details painted.

I took some artistic liberty with the colors of the buttons, because it's my kit and I can!

Harness brush painted with Tamiya's Deck Tan, or we can call it "harness color" and silver on the buckles.

The tub is completed.

Glued into place ready for the fuselage to be assembled.

It's as easy as that! At least to read anyway, what it take under 5 minutes? This actually took place between Dec 6th and January 10th, 2016. I'm not that fast at building or apparently at getting posts out either.

The next post you'll see is the engine being painted and slapped together. It won't be as involved as the Zero so it shouldn't take that long, right?