1/48 Hasegawa A-4F Skyhawk - FINISHED 9/28

[adampolo13-Email Not Valid]

That clear coat looks the bees-neez dude! Wow!

[doogsatx/]

Drilled out the pylons last night and did a test-fit of as much of the ordnance as I could. Using wire and drilled holes makes for nice, secure mounts.

[dupes]

Looks great! I think I need to adopt the ordance w/pins method myself...sure would cut down on the re-gluing bombs and missiles every time I drag a build to a show.

[wbill76]

Sure looks nice with that OD contrast against the gray underside.

[DeafStuG]

Nice works with weapons

[doogsatx/]

Starting to add some weathering to things. Gear bays, gear doors, struts, wheels etc.



Also doing some further work on the Mk.82s. Vallejo Olive Green wash on the fins, and some transparent white oil dotted and blended into the actual bomb body.

[doogsatx/]

Snakes are done! Test-fitting looks good across the board. Tomorrow I'll be moving on to panel lines on the Scooter.

[Leon]

Love the contrast of the OD against the grey Doogs.Looking sharp.

[doogsatx/]

Time for panel lines!

I've generally been happy with my Flory Dark Dirt wash in the past, but after seeing the marvelous results Jeroen Peters got with AMMO's new panel line wash on his Do 335, I decided to give it a try. The fact that they have a set dedicated to U.S. low-viz was just added inducement.



The process for this stuff is deliciously simple. Brush it on, wipe it off. No need to wet a brush or a q-tip with white spirits, water, or anything. Given that it's enamel-based, I didn't believe this until I tried it for myself.

Step 1 - Brush it on and let it dry



Step 2 - Wipe it off. I found that a part of an old t-shirt worked wonderfully. Q-tips help with hard to reach spots.



Step 3 - Wait, there is no step 3!







My ONLY nit is that the washes are very warm-toned grays. The US Ghost Grays, meanwhile, are very cold grays. The result is that the panel line wash takes on a browner tint than I'd have liked. But I'll definitely be picking up a few other sets of this stuff. The wipe on/wipe off convenience is just way too high.

[modelfreak72]

Coming along nicely doog!

[dupes]

Going to have to look up the AMMO washes - sure seems to be easy enough!

[doogsatx/]

Sept 18, 2014 14:36:15 GMT -5 dupes said:

Going to have to look up the AMMO washes - sure seems to be easy enough!

Yeah, I'm still amazed they worked as well as they did. Usually I'm the one who tries something new and finds it ruinous...

[doogsatx/]

Flat coat (Vallejo Matt Varnish) down!

[Leon]

The panel lines look great Doogs.

[406 Silverado]

Outstanding work.
This is one I have wanted to do for a long time. I spent a lot of time up close to the 214 birds.

[doogsatx/]

Last night at the bench before a week in New York for work. Thankfully a productive one!

Let's see...got the brake lines routed and the legs installed. Drop tank installed. A lot of the clear parts installed (still need the underwing light lenses...waiting on MM Chrome Silver to dry). Colored lenses were painted with AMMO's new crystal colors, which ROCK. Think my Tamiya clears may be retiring for lens duty. Leading edge flaps installed (PITA!), windscreen installed. Quickboost guns installed. Nosegear bay doors installed. So yeah...getting really close to the finish line.

[Leon]

looking really good Doogs.

[wbill76]

Almost done Doogs, looking pretty sharp!

[venom1]

Bloody gorgeous as always Doogs!!

Cheers,

Sam

[WigWag Workshop]

Fine looking bird for sure.. I think it's time I step out of the propeller era, and try my hands at one if the jets :-)

-Steven

[doogsatx/]

Sept 22, 2014 18:19:29 GMT -5 WigWag Workshop said:

Fine looking bird for sure.. I think it's time I step out of the propeller era, and try my hands at one if the jets :-)

-Steven

Steven - they're an adjustment! This is only my second, and I don't feel I have anything like the same rhythm I do with props. Nice to change things up, though...

[Rick]

Great work Doogs. Appreciate you sharing techniques and materials. Gonna have to give those panel line washes a go as well. I've struggled with gloss and panels for a long time. Picked up a Viking couple weeks back that may need just the treatment. Always enjoy seeing your projects come together.

Rick

[adampolo13-Email Not Valid]

spectacular! You should have brought it to NYC and placed it on the Intrepid for some nice pictures!

[doogsatx/]

Sept 23, 2014 19:41:55 GMT -5 adampolo13-Email Not Valid said:

spectacular! You should have brought it to NYC and placed it on the Intrepid for some nice pictures!

Glad as hell I didn't!

The bin space on my flight up here filled up before I even got on the plane. No way I was checking either my laptop or my expensive camera, so I had to shove both of them under the seat. Any model would have been smashed to bits...

[Deleted]

Great looking build Doog. Every time I see one of your builds, I end up wanting to build something like it. Now I am on the hunt for an A-4. Great inspiration and again great work.

[doogsatx/]

Got back from New York last night and put the finishing touches on the Scooter.

My favorite "oops" was realizing as I was trying to glue in one of the Mk. 82s that I'd installed one of the pylon sway braces in the wrong position. Had to act fast with super glue involved!

Overall, my opinions on this kit are extremely mixed. On some fronts, it's a great kit. On others, it's very much not. A late-build case in point: there is ZERO provision for gluing the canopy in the raised position. What you see here is basically super glue doing the entire job.

That said, I'm still pretty happy with the way the paint and weathering came out.

[wing_nut]

Well my opinion of the finished kit is definitely NOT mixed. That is just a pleasure to look at.

[doogsatx/]

Thanks Marc!

[Marcel du Long]

D#mn sweet as ever!
Lovely pics as well.

Marcel

[deafpanzer]

Another stunning build... your work never cease to amaze me!