discussion Post War 1/72 FAA - Part 1 - Sword Fairey Gannet AEW.3

[Dave Ward]

I tried masking the propeller bosses, but gave up as too fiddly, and hand painted instead

A little retouching needed. The props are fixed - I've no problem with that...............

The rest of the airframe is masked up for the upper dark grey. It's more complicated, because, the upper colour wraps around the leading edges. ( The yellow tape is the good stuff, the blue is real cheap! )

I've gone round, and sealed any tiny gaps with masking fluid, I'll wait for that to dry before getting the compressor on line.
Dave

 

[Lee Drennen]

Looking the part Dave I’m enjoying this build

 

[Dave Ward]

Sprayed with Mig Medium Gunship Grey - at first, I thought it was too light, but it darkened as it dried, and with a topcoat of varnish it should appear even darker

The masking worked well, with no paint lifted, and bleed only in one place ( above the mid porthole ) . I do need to go round, and blend in all the straight angles to curves - I find it easier to do it by eye, rather than attempting to do this with a mask. There are missing patches on the tail, where the stabilisers fit - I used masking fluid, rather than scrape off paint.
Dave

 

[Dave Ward]

All tidied up and the tailplanes added. Sprayed overall gloss varnish.

Now ready for decals & a few small odds & ends - then, a light wash. Very little weathering, FAA embarked aircraft were kept pretty clean
Dave

 

[yak face]

Looking great dave , looking forward to seeing the decals go on , cheers tony

 

[Dave Ward]

Decals are super thin, but luckily tough......................

All the major decals are on, but the stencil data...................... I'll add the larger ones, but the smaller ones?

I can't really see them, so they will be not be apparent on the model - at least that is my excuse!
Dave

 

[yak face]

Come on dave youve got to put them all on and dont get them upside down !! I did a modern jet a while back ( chengdu j10s) and the hundreds of tiny stencils were a light purple colour , once id applied them all and given it a sealing coat you could hardly see them! If i were you id put a few on where they will be apparent ( ie on the lighter colour ) but im sure no one will notice if there are a few nissing!

 

[stillp]

Go on Dave, you know you want to!
Pete

 

[Jim R]

Hi Dave
Looking good. The paint job really brings out the distinctive shape of the Gannet. As for those decals - miniature madness. I agree with Tony - perhaps the most obvious and forget the rest.
Jim

 

[Guest]

Tell yourself they aren't decals, they are just markers for where decal #29 should have gone if they'd remembered to print it on the sheet.

 

[Guest]

Now I’m wondering why an aircraft needs the word “ELECTRICAL” stencilled on it at least 32 times?

 

[Dave Ward]

All decalled up - at least those that my patience allowed! Then - calamity! I went to paint the canopy frames. - No canopy! I have spent many hours, spread over several days looking for this small but vital part. It's not the carpet monster, but Charybdis, this time.
Moving to plan 'B' - I had the vacform conversion ( see beginning of this thread post #13 ), and their is a canopy ( vacform ) with it - so a little further work to do. This Gannet WILL be finished!!!!
Dave

 

[yak face]

Well you definitely had it at the start dave, theres a pic of it , its not stuck in one corner of the box is it?

 

[Dave Ward]

Tony,
I wish it was - I'd removed it from the sprue, and tidied the edge up - then GONE - I've looked everywhere, including the vacuum cleaner tub. I'm afraid that this will have to remain one of life's little mysteries! - I'm just relieved I have an alternative.............
Dave

 

[yak face]

Tony,
I wish it was - I'd removed it from the sprue, and tidied the edge up - then GONE - I've looked everywhere, including the vacuum cleaner tub. I'm afraid that this will have to remain one of life's little mysteries! - I'm just relieved I have an alternative.............
Dave

It’ll turn up one day dave , long after youve battled with the vac form and completed the model , its just sitting hiding somewhere laughing at you !

 

[Dave Ward]

After a long delay, with no benchtime, I'm on the final straight

Tail hook, exhausts, undercarriage & doors added - despite me putting weight in the nose, I fear that this will be a tail sitter - the contra prop unit may just tip it.
The fuel tanks need two red bands applying in the black strip - I've got some red decal trimfilm for that.
The next pictures of this will appear in the 'completed section' in the next day or so
Dave

 

[Lee Drennen]

That looks sharp Dave. I’m like you when it comes to stencil in this scale

 

[Guest]

Maybe you could put some more weight into the front wheel well? It looks deep enough that it won’t be noticeable, anyway.

 

[Dave Ward]

Now finished & pictures in 'completed aircraft'
Dave