Finally, Camo-tint Pink on the Spitfire PR.IG!

I finally got the guts and gumption to take on the tedious work of pre-shading and custom mixing the Camo-tint pink. For those who know me, know that I can't see color gradations too well. Fifteen years ago I failed three FAA color exams and passed on my last one and received a hard fought "defective color vision" waiver.

I originally started mixing the pink by taking a 1/2ish bottle of Model Master Acryl Flat White and began adding drops of MM Guards Red. Before I knew it, I had a hardcore pink. I should have had the wife present for this. Of course I used up all the flat white I had and had to acquire more.

The next time, the wife was present and I poured about a 1/3 -1/2 of a bottle of white into a clean jar, and slowly began to add the "hardcore pink" by the drops. Where we eventually stopped was a color that looks white to me, but I'm also told is a very faint pink, which is what we were after. I can see the pinkish hue when it is on a white object, I'll show an example below. On occasion I see the pink when the light is just right.

I took on the laborious task of spraying flat white inside the panels.

After that was done I used the hardcore pink to shade the panel lines. It went: spray a couple of lines, clean the needle tip. Spray a couple of lines, clean the needle tip, and so on.

I have a ceramic white tile for mixing paint and brush painting. You can see the difference with the camo-tint pink that we settled on against the white tile.

All the little bits get some pinkish hue.

Here it is, the pink Spitfire! I went back and touched up some areas after a few days of looking at it.

Not only was this a difficult color to mix but it was just as difficult to spray for me. I couldn't really see it going down. The best indicator I had was if it looked wet or not. I tried to keep the pre-shading work visible as well, but I really don't think it worked out that way.

Even Thing Two said, "it looks kind of pink". That's what I'm looking for. Thanks for stopping by!

Spitfire PR.IG Priming and Gallimaufry

Whoa, the last Spitfire update was November 2015! I've made some progress since then and the next few posts will be dedicated to the progress on the PR.IG.

The center canopy section was a royal pain for masking. Not only does it have an irregular shape, it has protrusions on each side for the pilot's head. In an effort to deal with gaps in the tape or where it lifted up, I placed some Humbrol Maskol (liquid latex) to fill it in to prevent any paint leakage.

Prepping the oil cooler and radiator for painting before assembly.

It just got a spray of flat black.

Parts for the radiator.

Bottom all ready to go.

I cut off the chunky control surface for the rudder last summer, and here I finally attached the photo-etch part.

Modified elevators attached.

Front and rear canopy attached.

This is what the kit propeller would have sat in had I used it. I needed the shaft for the resin replacement so it would fit on the model.

Attached with some CA glue. Funny note: I was watching Star Trek: The Next Generation and in Season 2, Episode 1 they were trying to figure out what was causing a pretty nasty virus to begin to growing in its containment field. As you can imagine it was a significant crisis and they were trying to figure out what was causing it. Data suggested "...certain cyanoacrylates?" "Hi-larious."

Spitfire PR.IG ready for priming! At least I think so at this stage.

I put a door in place that I won't be using, it's there as a filler during painting. "What about the actual door?" It was too tight of a fit.

Canopy painted Interior RAF Green first.

Primer coat complete....

Welcome to the other side.

Topside.

What's that in the leading edge of the wing????

Click for my thought at the time.

I'll save you the additional laborious pictures. It was a pesky little hole that wouldn't stay filled for some reason, even with applications of gap filling super glue (cyanoacrylate), I eventually got it mostly filled. With the successive attempts of filling, sanding and re-priming the area isn't perfect. The hole persisted in the tiniest of forms. I left it, and with primer and layers of paint it is mostly gone now....but I know it's still there!

Here are the colors I used for the camo-tint pink. That's a full bottle of Model Master Acryl Flat White, a half bottle of flat white and a bottle of Guards Red.

I started adding drops of red to the half bottle of white, and before you knew it, I had bordello pink. My battle continued as I kept adding white from the full bottle until that was gone and I had very pink paint. Paint so pink, a 5 year girl would want to paint her room with it. This is what happens when I mix colors by myself and why the FAA labeled me with "defective color vision".

The resin propeller and spinner are not attached. Which means I need to set the propeller angles the same on each one.

Using the trusty old protractor that Crazy Cat Lady gave me. It will need to be upgraded at some point!

Here is the finished cut out for a three blade propeller. It has a hole in the center for the shaft, which I still need to embiggen, but I used my largest pin vise bit already. I'll need to get a bigger set of bits.

This wedge will be glued vertically on one of the lines in the previous picture to set the angle.

Here's the link where I found how to make this jig: http://www.ipmsstockholm.org/magazine/2003/12/stuff_eng_tech_propeller_jig.htm

The other random parts that will require priming and painting. The long stick, short stick, wobbly stick stuck in this foam is a real pain as everything is disorganized and flops around. What shall I do about it? Maybe you'll find out in a future post.

That's it for this eclectic mix of a blog post. I'll get more into my color woes in the coming entries. That's all for now, Iggy out.

Stug IV Construction Wrap-up?

My projects seem to drag on, don't they? I promise to actually wrap something up this time. Without much further ado, we'll get right to it. There is a grill that needs tending.

I wanted to create damaged fenders so I started by filing down the inside of the front fenders.

I used my fingernails to bend and distort the fenders.

In real life, the schürzen side skirts were individual armor plates. I numbered them here before I cut them apart because they are different widths.

I won't be able to see the notations after priming so it was a futile effort I think.

Same concept as the fenders to create damage.

I used a toothpick and my fingernail to create a blast impact from a shell.

The tools added to the upper hull.

Main turret ring assembly.

The periscope seems high compared to the instructions and the box art, maybe they went that high in real life. I wanted to trim them down, because I need more things to do apparently.

Cut for modification.

Glued into position.

Glued into place.

Turret ring complete.

Right side tools and brackets for the schürzen rails.

Tow cable attached.

Front spare track holder thing.

Assembled.

Attached to the front lower hull.

Rear lower hull plate attached.

Top hull and schürzen rails attached. It looks like an armored vehicle now!

Schürzen temporarily hung. I probably won't display it with all the plates. It wasn't uncommon that they were missing a plate or two or three. Brush, trees and other obstacles commonly knocked them off and damaged the plates and the rails in the process.

I wanted to have the machine gun hatch open, but without the gunner in place it would just be a hole.

I saw a tutorial online about create tarps. I taped some wax paper to the table and put down some cornstarch. I then mixed up some Milliput and rolled it out as thin as I could and cut it rectangular-ish.

I laid it over the machine gun position and let it cure overnight.

It's still a bit thick for a tarp at this scale. I may redo this in the future, or maybe I'll paint up a dude to put in there!

Bonus content!

I had some extra so I put it on the Hanomag for testing.

See, I wrapped something up! I should have the stuff I need to start the priming and painting process, so that will be coming "soon"*. Happy New Year!

* Definitions and timing may vary