1/48 Hasegawa F-104 J done

[reserve]

OK so I'm on an airplane jag

The A-7 is stalled for want of decals and washes as the PO has not coughed them up yet so I figured I'd start this. I have everything I need to finish it which will help. I have no particular love for this aircraft, indeed it was a dangerous machine that killed many of its pilots. I always thought they did not have enough wing to keep them in the air unless they were moving very fast. I digress. I chose this 'cause it was cheap in the LHS and they happened to have a Monogram kit to scavenge US decals from that was even cheaper, and 'cause I've wanted to do a natural metal finish on an aircraft since I discovered Alcad paint in my last truck phase.







So far it's been very well behaved with fit, for an aircraft kit, that's superb. I'm having quite a bit of fun with it probably because I was smart enough to not get a PE detail set for it, a mistake I made with the A-7 that I'll likely not repeat...PE on armor is bad enough

Regards,
Mark

[RLFoster]

Off to a great start!

[Dukemaddog]

Looks excellent so far! I agree about the photo etch; I just don't use it on aircraft. Ten again, I don't use it on armor unless they include it in the kit.

[JED]

Great start, the cockpit detailing is superb

[JCON]

Fun build!!!

[reserve]

Thanks gents

Almost ready for primer





I thought I could do an old school canopy mask with tape, I thought wrong so a set's coming from Sprue Brothers. Soon's that gets here the primer will commence.

I'm also experimenting with acrylic clear gloss over Alcad paint so I can seal decals and such...trying Tammy X22. So far so good but the final word ain't in yet


Regards,
Mark

[RLFoster]

That was fast! Easy to assemble?

[reserve]

Yes it was, fit overall was excellent with only one portion of the lower fuselage seam I was unable to close completely. If I keep doing aircraft I'll get more efficent with builds but this one was pretty nice and zoomy

Regards,
Mark

[bravo1jon]

Great job. A friend just gave me a bunch of the 1/48 Hasegawa kits. I just finished the F-8 and F-4. Working on the F-86 Sabre now. Looking forward to watching your build. Thank you for sharing it.

[reserve]

Even tho they are full of old style manufacturing techniques the Hasegawa kits seem to build up very well with a minimum of fuss and pain. You're quite welcome sir altho I'll warn you that at this point my aircraft modeling techniques are perhaps not to be trusted fully.

Masks in on Friday, gotta love Sprue Brothers and their attention to delivery speed

Primer, Tammy fine grey rattlecan, went on yesterday afternoon



being that the stuff is lacquer based I figured this morning was a good enough wait for curing. One of the prerequisites of a good finish with Alcad paint is a base layer of gloss black, so this morning



I used Tammy X1 gloss black thinned 50% with Tammy thinner and included roughly 25% retarder to the mix in hopes the stuff would have time to level out in my bone dry basement which boasted a humidity level of 26% this morning. I may have used too much pressure for the airbrush; we'll see in a couple of hours after the stuff has had time to dry...what you see is about 10 minutes post painting. 

This'll sit for a couple days to cure fully, then on to Alcad application

Regards,
Mark

[Steve Ski]

Beautiful Rocket bird, always loved this sled.

[reserve]

Thanks Ski they are eye catchers, no?

One of the problems with Alcad high shine paint is that it's susceptible to damage by decal setting solution. I've been experimenting with clear coats and here is Tammy X-22 over Alcad polished aluminum



Gives a good protective layer for Micro Sol but it makes the finish look as tho it's covered with plastic. Don't like.

Found this



One coat applied



I like this much better but it's durability has yet to be tetsted; the goo requires six hours to cure. I'll be testing it tonight

And, the first coat of Polished Aluminum on the model



I'll do at least one more, possibly two. 

Regards,
Mark

[RLFoster]

OOOooooo! Gonna be Shiny!

[JCON]

Nice, I like it!!!

[Steve Ski]

Oh my gosh, this is lookin GREAT! Reminds me of a few of them old dart birds at happy Holloman AFB, NM. They could be seen for miles and miles in the sky, shiny glitter at 10k'.

That really is a fine shiny coat, Mark!

[reserve]

Thanks gents

Another one done

















Here I tried to give the model another metal tone as is often seen on F-104's in the afterburner area but it doesn't show up too well



I tried some dark wash on some small spots on the underside but the contrast was too stark, I thought, and made it look funny so it got washed off. So, there it is in all its shiny Alcad glory I think I like that paint

Regards,
Mark

[Steve Ski]

Now that's another beauty. Dang, you've gone over to the "other" darks side, HA! Actually, now you got me thinking about my B-58 Hustler on my shelf and that shiny metal. Nice change of pace, ain't it?

[reserve]

Thanks brother I've always been pretty adaptable and yes, it was beginning to get boring doing tanks all the time. I've actually looked around for a B-58 kit, I think Monogram molded one years ago in some bizzare scale but they've probably been out of production for years. Bet the want a fortune for them on E-bay

[RLFoster]

Sweet build! She's a beauty, Mark!

[dogfish7 (R.I.P.)]

The best F-104 I've seen in a long time!