The Big Question ?

[Ron Gray]

35 minutes ago, RICHARD WILLS said:

requires some black and white chalk and some low tack masking tape and a finger

Are fingers available on Amazon?

 

15 minutes ago, RICHARD WILLS said:

Maybe I should run a course like Rick Stein ?

BMFA 'In the Air tonight' session (s) springs to mind.

[Ron Gray]

Well I did a search which brought up all of these

 

 

But I'm guessing that these would be the best bet?

 

 

 

 

 

[Ron Gray]

PS, brilliant work Richard 

[RICHARD WILLS]

You will find it quite addictive !  It doesnt need to dead accurate either . just make it look believable . 

In the last shot you can see a little of the white gel pen high lighting and adding depth . 

 

[RICHARD WILLS]

What do you think ? 

Easy Peasy or Dark Magic ?

Id like some comments from our relative newbies as well . I think that if they can follow this simple process they may cause a bit of astir in their relative clubs . 

[mightypeesh]

Excellent work with the sharpies and shading, looking forward to seeing the full reveal!!! 👍👍👍

[Ron Gray]

Lemon Squeezy Richard.

[leccyflyer]

Nice work Richard - I've previously found black fibre tip pens to be a bit too stark, but have toned that down a bit with the addition of white, though I use a white pencil, rather than gel pen. Those look brilliant on the FW190 and a step up in realism from my usual HB pencil panel lines. Will look forward to trying those techniques on the FW190 and Tempest - which should really come supplied with a scale 12" yard brush, to apply the invasion stripes last thing, on the night before the maiden flight.

[Graham Bowers]

1 hour ago, RICHARD WILLS said:

What do you think ? 

Easy Peasy or Dark Magic ?

Id like some comments from our relative newbies as well . I think that if they can follow this simple process they may cause a bit of astir in their relative clubs . 

I've never tried anything remotely close to those techniques, however it all seems straightforward.

 

I'll probably make some practice items from a cardboard box. Somebody from the Amazon leaves loads on our front step 😉

 

Edited to add. Are the black and white chalk marks sealed at all please, or just left as rubbed-in dry powder?

Edited November 3, 2023 by Graham Bowers

[dan h]

Richard,

 

That is looking excellent,

 

Great stuff watching this model to come to life. 

 

I am definitely gonna give this a try, amazing how much difference it makes with just the use of such basic stuff that we all have at home really. 

 

Thankyou for sharing all of this with us.

Look forward to seeing more,

 

I was going for a basic scheme on mine, but now, im gonna have a rethink ! 

 

Dan

 

 

 

[RICHARD WILLS]

2 hours ago, Graham Bowers said:

I've never tried anything remotely close to those techniques, however it all seems straightforward.

 

I'll probably make some practice items from a cardboard box. Somebody from the Amazon leaves loads on our front step 😉

 

Edited to add. Are the black and white chalk marks sealed at all please, or just left as rubbed-in dry powder?

The chalk is not sealed in anyway . 

Artists have used hairspray lightly dusted on to seal pastel pictures , but even a light coat of lacquer does seem to soak up the colour . 

At this stage , for most people , I would simply say , dont get it wet or fly in the rain . My Heinkell 111 is three years old and without really taking any precautions it looks the same as when I made it . Bottom line is , keep it simple , dont overthink it . 

Edited November 3, 2023 by RICHARD WILLS

[RICHARD WILLS]

I think we should remind ourselves , that in addition to the basic kit price , we have only paid for some brown paper £2 , B&Q paint £8 some chalk and two pens , lets say another £6 . total = £16

So to all those people who say ARTFs are better value , we could say , define value ?

As you've seen , there are no special skills or tools required to produce a fully weathered warbird that can hold its head up next to anything that comes from China . 

 

[Graham Bowers]

15 minutes ago, RICHARD WILLS said:

The chalk is not sealed in anyway . 

Artists have used hairspray lightly dusted on to seal pastel pictures , but even a light coat of lacquer does seem to soak up the colour . 

At this stage , for most people , I would simply say , dont get it wet or fly in the rain . My Heinkell 111 is three years old and without really taking any precautions it looks the same as when I made it . Bottom line is , keep it simple , dont overthink it .

Thanks for that @RICHARD WILLS. Totally agree with the philosophy of keeping it simple - I just like to understand limitations in order to avoid surprises. Well, the unwelcome ones 😉

[gillyg1]

You do produce some good stuff Richard,, keep up the good work.

Like your treble 111.😉

[RICHARD WILLS]

The 333 Graham ? 😁

Seriously though , thanks for the compliment 😉

[DaveB1]

Brilliant - love how that simple effect has made the fin and rudder look so 3D.

 

Think I'm going to go for this colour scheme ..........

 

[RICHARD WILLS]

Nice choice Dave . I did do the same rudder markings on my 2003 109G . I did the complicated emblem with part coloured sharpies , part paint . 

Actually looked really good and not quite as daunting as I thought . 

With excellent modern printers , you can probably print one off the internet and lacquer it . 

[Glenn Philbrick]

I have covered a couple of models with the brown paper method, both ic and electric. To replicate panel lines I cut squares out of the covering instead of doing one large sheet. This worked quite well except where I made too good a job of butting up the squares. 

[RICHARD WILLS]

Yes Glenn , some people like to replicate the panel line with the brown paper joints . Unfortunately , you can't really see them from five feet away , so I say to people dont worry where the joins are , you wont see them anyway . I appreciate we are going in a bit heavy on the lines and weathering but we do need to based on the fact that even when in the pits , nobody will look closer than 4 feet away . In the air I would choose a scheme as colourful as possible for obvious reasons . 

 

Anyway , little diversion from the airframe . We have been using an FMS spinner as a mock up so far . The problem with that is , they are hard to get hold of  and demand a screwed together 3 blade prop that will break on the first belly landing . On top of that , they have a cooling fan moulded into the back which invariably loses a blade and then becomes unbalanced . 

For all of those reasons , we will be using an ally spinner of the right shape . Luckily I have a stock of them to be purchased as a separate item for those that dont have one in the spares box . As a matter of course , when I am about to send out your kit , I will ask if you want the spinner included , so don't panic . 

I actually used two cheap aerosols from Aldi , but you can brush paint if you want . I would normally use cheap plastic electrical tape as it stretches rather well and has a nice edge . However I couldn't find mine and as I'm in a hurry , went for green " Frog " masking tape . it does pucker , but not too bad if you pull it tight . 

Basically you cut a 10mm wide strip , start from the prop slot , start winding , try to keep the stripes parallel then as they near the peak , thin the tape into a 30mm long taper.

Light dust with cheap black aerosol or brush over the masking tape if you prefer - and finished . 

[RICHARD WILLS]

Here is a bit more weathering round the front end . You can use just strings of little black or white dots to simulate rivets . Just keep them square to the centre line but dont worry too much about being that accurate with the real panels .  Remember that rivets are normally in pairs as they attach two panels to a former underneath .

You see some more of the silver paint employed here . As I said before , I just create a little pool of silver on a piece of spare paper then dab my finger into it . 

You have to think about the edges of panels and items like the cowlings or gun covers . These would typically get thrown on the ground while maintenance was going on and the ground crew would also be climbing and sliding over the airframe which would also wear through to the metal . 

On top of that , the prop wash would throw grit and sand back onto leading edges etc .

Ive done loads of this stuff and so I'm pretty confident . So maybe have a good go at the underside first . Dont worry too much though , my first attempts were very crude , but you have me to guide you , so we are probably going to be in the ball park . 

Does everyone fancy a least a little dabble ? Are their parts of the procedure that give you the Heebie Jeebies ? 

[Ron Gray]

You've got me at it now Richard

 

 

[RICHARD WILLS]

Very nice Ron , unmistakeably a 190 . (of sorts )

Is that your transmitter or part of the Abbey Road recording studio ?

I say that because I'm still using a Challenger . Nobody on 35Mhz now , so safe as houses .

Filing looks good too Ron . Colour coded ?

lve taken down the pictures of me at school , but I notice you've still got yours up . 😁

I prefer your place . As Ness says , "Tidy  . Very Tidy ."

Edited November 4, 2023 by RICHARD WILLS

[Graham Bowers]

11 hours ago, RICHARD WILLS said:

lve taken down the pictures of me at school , but I notice you've still got yours up . 😁

 

Probably of somebody else @RICHARD WILLS. Not B&W 😉

[RICHARD WILLS]

Bit more weathering on the wings now . 

The black lines are a very simplified version of the real panel lines , but that doesnt matter . 

I lightly run  the white gel pen beside the black which produces a rather intermittent line . That gives the effect of light catching the panel edge . 

Have a good look at the panel corners . Each corner will have either lost paint or reflect light , so we draw the eye to that, by highlighting the corner with the white gel pen . 

The other thing you will notice about full sized aircraft is that each panel sits at a very slightly different angle . That in turn makes some look lighter or darker . 

To break up the bland look of a model , mask some of the panel joints and rub a little light or dark onto the adjacent panel . This will produce a nice patchwork effect .

[RICHARD WILLS]

The ailerons have been shaded like the elevators to produce the look of fabric coloured ribs . Ive also smeared and smudged some of the silver marker along the leading edge and round the tips to simulate missing paint . 

We have to remind ourselves that everything we have done has involved virtually no skill and the most basic of tools . 

You certainly dont look at it now and say "looks brush painted mate " .

No glass cloth , just brown paper and wood glue , B &Q paint brushed and sponged on with a few pen lines and some chalk . 

Now that my friends is cheap and satisfying modelling . Compare that to a £350 foamie !

Plus. it will be unique to you . Nice 😉