Rockhound

Ah, thanks Big F. Usually I'm used to acronyms from my old job, but since I left that almost a year ago I'm not subjected to them that much. hehe. Remember, when doing the decals most of them are just large flat decals. Don't let the yellow stripes fool you. The only 2 decals you should really worry about are the two that run the length of the fuselage on the side. Other than that, the wings were really easy (just as long as you don't glue the piece on the bottom of the wing), and make sure you lay the decals properly behind the gunports. Again, thanks for the awesome replies! I decided against building the VF-0S battroid and started the VF-oS with ghost booster instead.

Guards Red, Kandy Scarlet, Flat Black, Gunship gray, and a little flat white.

Thanks for the kind replies fellas! As for the boosters, they're finished and ready to be glued to the aircraft. But I really like how it looked without them, so I left them off. They're sitting underneath the model though to remind me I actually did them. haha Next up, VF-0S Battroid (no armor this time) just because I need to switch kit styles from time to time. But no WIP this time. P.S. Sorry Big F, but what does PITA mean? (I'm still a little uncultured.) And as far as HWR watching out. They're a difference between doing models fast (me) and doing models fast and well (HWR). hehe edit: spelling

For giggles I staged a dogfight... not the best shot but it's fun to do. hehe And my collection thus far. Thanks for playing along! We'll see you next time!!!!!!

More and more.

Even more pics.

More pics

Update: COMPLETION!!!!!!!! Yup, after 11 days, this bird is done. Thanks for following along and for the insight and advise along the way. I hope my WIP was helpful and will motivate you to build one of these kits. It's been a learning experience and I'm sure I'll do a better job on the next project. Until next time, enjoy some pictures.

Update: More decals and a lesson learned. So, okay. I finished the top of the wing and switched everything over to work on the bottom. I get the flaps positioned, and the decal down. However, the center piece that gets glued on is in the way. The decal will not lay properly. So to fix this, lay the decal down as normal. After the water dries, soak it in MicroSet. When that dries, use an x-acto knife and cit a line around the center piece. This will relieve some tension in the decal and allow it to set flat. Also, make sure to trim the edge of the decal that rests on the edge of the wing. Also, the decals that run along the side: gunport to wing. The first decal that surrounds the gun fits properly. Do not touch it when it's in place. The decal that goes behind it, however, does not properly contour to the surface and will wrinkle on you. Most people might not have a rpoblem with this decal, but since I did the decal is obviously faulty! Use MicroSet as normal, much like the rest of the decals on this bird: ALOT! Make sure to trim the decal right at the edges at connect to each other. This will help it settle in one spot. The decal that runs the length of the fuselage can be tricky. Because it's so long and splits into two directions the best course is to lay the decal arrowpoint first, then slowly slide the backing from the decal towards the back. This will at least set it in a postion that will allow it to be set properly. Nothing really needs to be trimmed, but trimming the inside of the decal will help alot so the bottom part can rest next to the fuselage. Also, if you're brave, after all the decals are set you can run a very sharp x-acto blade across the panel lines. There are not that many and most are just long straight lines. This will help once you apply the protective coat to give it some depth and for panel-lining after setting the decal. Here are some more shots of decal placement. Pay no attention to the unsightly fingerprint on the back... That's it for now. Waiting on all this MicroSet to... set.

Update: Decals!!!!! The decals are large, expansive, and to me: the fun part. First, the wings. Since I was silly enough to cut the flaps first I had to figure out the best way to attach the decals. I put the flaps back on and stuck a piece ot tape on the bottom of the wing to hold it in place. This will allow you to position the decal in the correct spot. Unfortunately, I forgot about the raised lip around the wing that occurs when you cut the flaps. Next time I'll remember to sand that down. Once the tape is in place, atach the decal. It's going to take a TON of MicroSet to make sure the decal conforms to every little lip and recess in the wing. Here are the wings still wet. Once I have enough MicroSet down and am happy with the decal set, I'll hit it with some semi-gloss coat and wait for it to dry. Then I'll repeat the whole thing with the other side. Make sure you coat the side of the wingwith the decal before applying tape!!!!!! Here are some other shots. The yellow stripe decals are fairly easy to apply, you just need to know where to trim off the excess film for a good fit, such as along the area that ends at the leading edges of the wings/stabs/canards. The missile pods were assembled with the side fins and pylong AFTER applying the black stripes. And the decals on the legs will need alot of MicroSet also to help with the drilled holes in the back.Luckily, you can apply the MicroSet to the back through the holes to help. Well, that's it for now.

A VF-0S reactive armor, VF-1S Strike valk, VF-0D, YF-19, and working on the SV-51 now. I say each one takes a little less than two weeks. I get plenty of time since I only have to worry about being a college student and live off the GI Bill and student loans. I've still got 4 or 5 stock models and 1 custom to do. I guess it never ends.

Thanks for the heads up. I looked over the model after reading your post. In three different light sources, I couldn't see any of the primer coming through. It could be the gloss coat u not coating enough. Also, I had to play with the levels in some of the photos to help actentuate (sp?) the edges of color. There was one spot on the fuselage, towards the back, that looked like it might not have received the right amount of paint. But all in all, it's a good covering. Thanks for the insight though. Once I apply the decals, i might add a quick dusting of color to help blend the decals more. That might help with the spotting also.

Update: Black priming, Alclad paint, masking snafu Okay, using th ecanopy mask on the toes/feathers was a bad I dea. Although the mask did what itwas supposed to, it wound up pulling the black underneath it up. So I had to go back and repaint by hand with flat black. I should of done that to begin with. The big parts were primed with gloss black, 2 light coats. Then after waiting all night (I really felt the 10 hours or so was good enough for a cure time) I painted the Alclad steel color. Then it was time to see if it was all worth it. Slowly, I pulled the masking tape back. I had only two spots were the color was pulled up, but nothing too serious. I was very, very pleased with how it turned out. And hopefully without an inflated ego, I did an awesome job. The colorscheme can out exactly how I wanted it to. I actually used two colors, the Alclad Steel, and Gunmetal gray. The gunmetal was used on the striping on the intakes and the cover that sits behind the canopy. Everything else was steel. If you can, invest in a bottle of that Alclad stuff. You will not be disappointed. Just make sure you do everything in light coats. The VTOL exhausts on the bottom of the fuselage was unmasked, given a gloss coat, and finally had the little fins that sit on each side of it glued on. Now, I just wait a little while longer so I can start the panel lining, or maybe I sould wait till after the decals are applied since they cover such a large partion of the plane. Anyways, enough the photos.

Update: Masking If you thought sanding was bad, wait till you start masking. It took roughly 2 hours to mask this bird, but the big payoff will make it all worth it. Also, if you can, invest in some Tamiya masking tape. I was using the Testors stuff before, but this tape is SOOOOOOO much easier. Extremely low risk of pulling up any paint or coat. Plus it's plyable enough to work around corners. Here are some masking shots. I also masked the toes/feathers. Since the paint scheme calls for two-tone toes, I first painted the toes a very glossy black (last night). Then I tried to use masking tape on them, but because of the glossy surface it wouldn't stick. So I got out my canopy masking and painted the mask onto the top of the toes. You can see it from the orange color. I'll be applying the gloss black to the unmasked parts tonight, in very light coats so I don't risk seppage under the tape.

Man, that bird is gonna look awesome. I wish I could get my pilots to look half as good as yours. How were you able to get details as fine as that? Definately a thread I'll be looking closely at. Nice work!

Update: Gloss coat. I applied an acryl gloss coat a few hours after the final paint layer. With the glossiness of the plane and how well it turned out, I might just have to regloss it after applying the decals. I also applied the gloss coat to the armaments and boosters.

Update: Final paint layer Here is the final pass of color on the aircraft. I also did the gloss black undercoat on the parts that will be steeled. I figured why not since I had time.

Update: Primary color I decided to paint the main color first, as there are areas on the main body that have to be masked for Alclad. I'm doing three stages of paint application. Phase 1: In these photos, I did a pass of the primary color, which was mixed with Guards Red, Kandy Scarlet, Flat Black, Gunship gray, and a little flat white. All I wanted to do is get a quick layer of paint on the parts to get a good idea of how the color would show. Not bad I think. Phase 2: In this stage, I applied a second layer of paint to get a fuller picture. You can see the primary color coming through nicely, and it's blending the preshade very well. One more pass of paint and it should be good to go.

Update: Priming I know priming should be done BEFORE the preshading, but I'm silly like that. I decided to prime the parts that will be painted the megenta color with gray after the preshading stage to kind of "diffuse" the heavy black, to get rid of the specking, and to have a decent surface for which the paint can adhere to. I did a quick pass with the gray primer so as to not totally get rid of the black, but rather to help blend it. The parts to be painted steel are given the normal primer treatment as I will be airburshing a gloss black on them before applying the Alclad. The pieces that are white were simply airbrushed with flat white with no primer. It took like 4 coats, but I think it turned out better this way, adds a bit of depth. Hey kkx, thanks for the insight. I went looking for some at the local hobby shop, which I absolutely hate, but it's the only game in town unless I want order on-line for stuff. They don't care any sheets like that. I'll see if I can substitute a poker card instead. If I happen to have some around that is. My next step, beside the raised details, is to paint the gloss black, and apply the acryl clear gloss coat to the white parts.

Update: Preshading. I preshaded the white and magenta parts with a heavy black. I figured I did okay with the VF-0D with the blue paint over preshading, so why not with magenta. I wound up getting specking since I have a one speed air compressor. I thought I could compensate with a dual-action airbrush, but no go. The air is forced out so fast that specking is unavoidable. If you can help it, find one with a variable gauge that adjusts the PSI. This thing I got cranks out at least 25-35 PSI, which is almost double from what I want. This wasn't too much of an issue with my other models, as I only did preshading on the VF-0D but covered it with enough paint to hardly make it noticeable, plus I haven't used Alclad paint before, and that's recommended for 12-15 PSI. But, all in all I'm still happy with the pre-shade. I got really close with the airbrush and gently pressed back with the trigger. The specking might help with gradients, but I won't know till I try.

Update: Pre-painting stage. Well, it's getting time to start painting. The best way to start is to form a game-plan and figure out what part needs what color. This model can be broken down to three main colors: White, Magenta, Steel/Black. The white pieces include the fuel tanks, armament, boosters, booster fins, and rocket fins. The magenta (which will in fact not be magenta, but for argument's sake) fuselage, legs, wings, rear stabs, canards, intakes, wheel well doors (which will be glued on after painting is finalized.), side gun ports, and those two little fins that attach to the bottom, behind the front wheel well. I decided to leave those off since masking the two exhausts would be difficult with them in place. The steel parts include the gun, engines, engine toes/feathers, booster vector fin thingys, and the cover that goes behind the canopy. The steel pieces will be given a straight black paint first, since I will be airbrushing the Alclad II Steel color over them. Alot of modellers swear by this paint. I ordered some from Squadron.com, an on-line model company that has a ton of stuff. This stuff should last for a long time.

In retrospect, I should of drilled the holes before assembly so I could sand down the inside of the leg covers. Oh well, live and learn. I got the drilling trick from when I did the VF-0D, which subsequently I got from WM Cheng's VF-0S build-up. The only thing I'm kind of worried about right now are the decals. Since it's the Nora type, the yellow flames cover the holes. I just hope I have enough MicroSet to soften them up and poke holes without damaging the rest of the decal. But, I did the drilled vent holes for two reasons: #1. It adds some much needed depth to the surfaces. The kit itself is very impressive, but with shallow panel lines that are easily sanded off I felt the holes would help compensate. #2. I terrified of the painting stage. I have no clue right now how to paint the funky magenta color or all the masking that will happen after the primary color is applied. Tonight I'll be drawing up my game plan after a few beers, some rounds of Hot Shots Golf, and figuring out how to use this new Alclad II steel color.

Thanks for the gracious replies fellas! I don't think I'm quite the master modeller like some others (You know who I'm talkin' about... ), but I try. Here's a purely cosmetic update: Drilled vent holes in the gunports and legs! Here's what I did. First, I drilled pilot holes into the recessed space. Then, very very carefully using the drillbit as a saw, I started sawing form one pilot hole to the other. You can do this if you're not afraid of breaking a drill bit. You're not scared, are ya?.... Here's what you get when you do all the holes. When you're done drilling, make sure you wetsand the top to flatten out the surface. Also, bend the paper as tight as you can to get inside the cracks. Here are the drilled gunports, before and after.

Again with the size comparison. Here are size shots with the four aircraft I've built thus far. You can see from the pictures that the SV-51 is WAAAAAAAAAY bigger than the VF-1S, and a good size larger than the YF-19.

Update: Drilled details. Here is the box art of some drilled holes in the front of the aircraft. Because the details are so shallow, and I was afraid I would sand them off, I drilled the three holes underneath the canopy. This adds some depth and detail to the heavily sanded front end (I was never any good at sanding, but I'm getting better.) I also drilled the holes behind the canopy for more depth, much like what I did with the VF-0D, except I didn't drill all the way through. Just enough to get some depth into this area.