**** DONE: 1/48 P-51D - Pacific Theatre of Operations II

[fubar57]

Thanks for popping in and the comments gentlemen. Concerning the pup tents on the decals. The tail marking are almost nestled in, one more Sol and hot clothe session should do it. The star on the wing still standing in all its glory. When all the decals are on I'll try Mr. Wints suggestion and if things go a little South I'll try and touch up with paint. The closest I have is Tamiya X-4, close match but I have to darken it. If that fails, I'll go with Vic and cut out some blue from a spare U.S. star. I was going to wimp out and say that I've seen plenty of photos with the flaps up but in the end I'll drop the flaps as per Terry's comment. I don't think I can manage to stagger the main wheel covers. I managed to cut the wing stripe to fit the dropped flap without any drama. I must have moved it before I took the picture and had to run down stairs to re-adjust it before it set(arrow). The other photo shows the pup tent on the star after many baths.

Geo

 

[Wurger]

 

[fubar57]

Got the last of the stripes on and I have to admit that I am more stunned than anyone that I got them to line up almost perfect. This has got to be a foreboding of some impending disaster. Still have the stenciling to put on, weathering, and then the lil bits.

Geo

 

[Wurger]

 

[mikewint]

If it is trapped air no amount of -SOL/SET will do any good. Use -SOL to get the decal soft then a tiny hole pin/X-Acto point. On bigger decals I use a moist Q-tip to smooth the decal and work out any bubbles. Work from the center outward. I use the same water + -SOL that the decals soaked in. I've also found that warm soak water works better than cold. Also seems to make the decals softer and more pliant.
The rest of the decals are looking good as is the entire model. Going to be decaling the Widow soon...

 

[Airframes]

Nicely done Geo. For those gear well doors, I just cement one almost closed, and the other hanging slightly open, as shown on the port side of this model.

 

[Catch22]

Great stuff Geo!

 

[dneid]

Looking very nice, George. I have to say, I use the idea Mike has tossed out for those pain in arse bubbles. I poke a very small hole in the bubble (sometimes more than one for a larger bubble),. reapply some Sol, let it sit for about 10-20 seconds, dribble on some warm water and get either a q-tip or a fine brush and patiently (not my strong suit) work the air out to the edge as carefully as I can. Good luck with that. I am dealing with a similar issue on the rgt side insignia of the Jug I am doing.

 

[Wayne Little]

Stripes look great George, good work.

 

[N4521U]

That is hot!
Really nice

 

[N4521U]

That is hot!
Really nice

 

[Vic Balshaw]

She is looking great Geo.

 

[fubar57]

Thanks for the comments and tips. I went with Mr. Wints tip on handling the pup tent decal but in hind sight, perhaps I should have wetted the decal before poking it as it ripped a wee bit, just enough to show the paint underneath. No biggie as I mixed a bit of Tamiya X-4 with black and came up with what I think was a near match for Insignia Blue. Nothing to show, got the last of the stencils on and added the hubs to the wheels. Had a major ping moment over night. One of my prop blades that was in a plastic clamp went AWOL while I was in bed and as there wasn't a sound I could follow had I been there, it could have gone anywhere. After 45 minutes of searching my table and various boxes and containers, I reached down to get a spare blade out of my other Tamiya kit and found the original 2 feet away. Weekend is over and time to pack. Have a good week gentlemen.

Geo

 

[Totalize]

Geo.

Truly some nice work here. Decals can be such pain in the A$$. Yesterday I put one of the roundels on my Hawker Typhoon and I must say having not done decals in 2 years I was a bit apprehensive. The roundel was actually 3 decals in one with each one going over the top of the other. Talk about an extra thick decal.
Anyway good show and please do show us how you worked out the pup tent on the national insignia.
Cheers,
Dave.

 

[fubar57]

OK, I lied, I added the stripes to the flaps so that when I got home next week, I could future everything in preparation for weathering, some trimming is needed.

One odd thing about the decal sheets. The model is designed for the flaps to be posed down and neither sheet has provision for the "Flap Position Indicator" marking so I'll have to figure out how to replicate it. I'm leaning towards painting the white and adding the black stripes from the black divider lines that separate different versions on some decal sheets.

Dave, I'll pop a photo in when I get home next week. I didn't notice until I was setting up this photo that I got a wee blue smudge on the star which hopefully will get dealt with next week as well.

Geo

 

[Wurger]

 

[destrozas]

nice job george

 

[Airframes]

Good stuff George.
You might find that the curve, and 'tight' space of the flap hinge line is a bit too much for strips of decal to handle, as one decal strip might disrupt the next, when trying to settle. I normally just paint the white rectangle, then, when dry, draw in the lines with a fine pencil, sometimes with a fine lining brush and thinned black paint. Any lack of density or 'solid' appearance in the lines looks just like normal wear and tear and natural weathering, and is more than passable in this scale.

 

[Vic Balshaw]

Nice little tip there Terry.

 

[fubar57]

Agreed, Vic. That's what I like about Terry, always thinking outside the box while I'm wondering how the heck I got in one(and why is it padded). We'll give it a shot when I get home

Geo