**** DONE: 1/48 MiG-3 "Black 12" - Allied Manufactured Aircraft

Real nice John!

That is very nicely done

I had a little package waiting for me when I came home from work yesterday!


Blacklist generously sent me some custom cut "12" masks and used a brand new Trumpeter MiG-3 kit as a shipping container! Thank you Blacklist for your generosity... the community spirit of this modeling site is second to none! With these masks, I can proceed with my build.


It took me a brief moment to figure out the masks... I was expecting outlines but these masks are the numbers themselves, but from a dark vinyl material and affixed to a clear slightly adhesive backing.


So instead of using an outline mask over the camo, I would have lay down the black color of the number first... no problemo!


Since the backing is clear and adhesive, it was was easy to place the mask in the correct location.


Pressing down on the mask to make sure that it has good contact, you can then peel off the clear backing.


I was worried that spraying white over the mask would result in an overly bright white tail so I decided to pre-treat the area with some neutral gray and apply some pre-shading to match the rest of the model.



Heavily thinned white is used to build up the white color slowly.



The masks can then be removed. Care is needed here since the masks are very small and the surrounding color is white... very easy to inadvertently scratch the finish. I used the tip of an X-Acto blade to lift the edge of the masks and then pulled them off using tweezers.



Decaling is minimal on this bird... just red stars on the fuselage and tail. The fuselage star is from the Trumpeter kit and the tail star is a leftover decal from the Eduard I-16 that I built last year. The Microset/Microsol system was used to conform the decals to the surface, with special attention to the joint between the rudder and tail. It looks like the starboard "12" is slightly off-kilter ("1" is lower than the "2")... that should be an easy fix.



Rewinding to a day before I received the masks from Blacklist... I sprayed some small exhaust stains.



Back to the present... the painted exhaust pipes are inserted into place.


A satin clear coat (50% Alclad Gloss Clear + 50% Alclad Flat Clear) is applied to blend the decals. Once that dries, we can start weathering the MiG.

It's getting there. Great photos!

Lovely work so far!

Great work, neat masks, and most excellent packaging! Good stuff Blacklist!

John,

A question about the paint you're using?

It sticks extreamly well even when layered, that is, a coat over a coat.

The mask was of agressive material, reason was because the numbers were really small and you needed the detailed sharp edge.

The removal of the 12 mask did not pull any paint off. Were you concerned about this? Did you use a bit of heat on the 12 before removing?

Also, can this paint be sanded, say with 600? I.e., apply a layer of white then apply a layer of black. Can you sand the black and have the white show?

Thanks in advance.

Blacklist

Thanks people... this one is almost complete!

Blacklist said:

John,

A question about the paint you're using?

It sticks extreamly well even when layered, that is, a coat over a coat.

The mask was of agressive material, reason was because the numbers were really small and you needed the detailed sharp edge.

The removal of the 12 mask did not pull any paint off. Were you concerned about this? Did you use a bit of heat on the 12 before removing?

Also, can this paint be sanded, say with 600? I.e., apply a layer of white then apply a layer of black. Can you sand the black and have the white show?

Thanks in advance.

Blacklist

Click to expand...

Hey Blacklist... I used Tamiya acrylics for the exterior colors. Heavily thinned with isopropyl alcohol and misted on lightly at about 12-15 psi. Based on the adhesive on the mask, I was not overly concerned with it lifting the paint. It was not as tacky as normal 3M masking tape or even Tamiya yellow tape. The material reminded me of the Montex pre-cut canopy masks. No heat was applied prior to mask removal. My main concern was inadvertently scratching the paint when removing the masks with the tip of a sharp knife.

Because I am spraying such thin layers of paint, I don't think I could, with any level of control, sand off one coat of paint while leaving an underlying coat intact. Most likely, I'm going to be grinding down to the plastic in spots, even with the finest grade of sandpaper. I have not attempted this but perhaps it is possible if the base color is applied especially thick and the top color thin.

Rolling along to the finish line here. Here's what she looks like after I've given her a wash of dark brown pastel...



Had a little accident attaching the pitot tube so I had to fashion a new one from brass tubing.



Canopy masks are removed. Here you can see the little windows on the rear edge of the canopy that I managed to salvage.


The aerials are the final detail. I've added a little bit of detail at the attachment points. Strands of fine electrical wire wrapped around the smallest micro drill bit. Oh, and the number "12" has been fixed.


Black 12 is finished! I'll prepare a separate thread for the finished pictures next. On to the JETS!!!

John,

That "wash" you applied. Is it translucent color, not opaque? And how do you keep it from drying immediately?

And it doesn't attack the under layer of paint?

Also, , you rely on the built in detail on the model, i.e., panel lines and rivet holes, etc., to be brought out a bit with color from the wash?

Looking really good!

The brass pitot looks far better than the original John. Nice work.

Thanks Andy! I thought the kit pitot was acceptable... fairly thin as far as the kit styrene goes. I kept this build as simple as possible and was going to use the kit pitot until it broke. The brass tubing does look a bit more refined though!

Blacklist said:

John,

That "wash" you applied. Is it translucent color, not opaque? And how do you keep it from drying immediately?

And it doesn't attack the under layer of paint?

Also, , you rely on the built in detail on the model, i.e., panel lines and rivet holes, etc., to be brought out a bit with color from the wash?

Looking really good!

Click to expand...

There are ready-made dirty washes available for the hobby but I use a home-mixed concoction. It's basically fine scrapings from a piece of pastel chalk into a small amount of water. A drop of dishwashing soap to help mix the two together. This dark liquid is applied over the the built in detail on the model using a small brush. No need to be neat since the water-based solution can be wiped off without affecting the paint. I allow it to dry for a few minutes and then carefully wipe it off using a dampened piece of paper towel. Obviously the mixture that gets in the panel lines, rivets and other recessed details is harder to remove and this forms the effect of highlighting those features. There is also a bit of wear effect if the removal is done carefully and allowing subtle streaks of dirty wash to remain on the model so I am careful to always wipe back to front or front to back to simulate airflow effects.

Hi John!

Your MiG is looking really neat! Good work.

4bogreen said:

Hi John!

Your MiG is looking really neat! Good work.

Click to expand...

Thanks! Yours looks good too! Make sure you check out my finished pictures above!

http://www.ww2aircraft.net/forum/-2...ck-12-allied-manufactured-aircraft-43228.html

Well John,

You did a fine job with that model and what a journey. Outstanding!

I was glad just to be in tow.

I'll keep an eye on your next project.

Blacklist