1/72 Scale Lancaster...Hasegawa

[tecdes]

I've now applied the upper surface camouflage. This is 'raw', as it was when the masking was removed. The basic post shading is done.I will re-mask over the next day or so, once this is thoroughly dry, and apply the 'black' to the under surfaces.

Intrigued Steve. On my Lancaster & Wellington I applied the black under belly first. Is your choice just random or planned for some reason.

Laurie

 

[stona]

I always do the upper colours first as the 'black' of the underside will cover them a lot more easily than vice-versa. It's just the old principle of applying lighter colours first. That should always be supplanted by whatever works for you

Cheers

Steve

 

[stona]

I'll go into a bit more detail for painting the 'black'. This is just my method, there are many others which are no better or worse.

I don't pre-shade, I post-shade, so my technique is almost backwards. I start by spraying an overall colour of a lightened black, really quite grey. It actually looks even more grey than it is in this photo, but that's because I'm a crap photographer!



Once this is at least touch dry I will shade with darker versions of the 'black'. If I then consider the lightest colour to be too light I can tone it down and blend it by a light overspray of a darker mixture. It is much easier to darken than to lighten, and it is not necessary to apply heavy coats of paint, obscuring all the nice detail on the model.

Cheers

Steve

 

[flyjoe180]

This is looking good Steve. I'm also interested in seeing how you tackle the bomb hoists.

 

[stona]

I'm also interested in seeing how you tackle the bomb hoists.

So am I

I've built the bomb load which will be a typical area raid load. People do tend to cram the bomb bay with bombs (MC, GP or American HE) which was quite unusual, in fact the code word for such a load was 'Abnormal' which must be telling us something.

I'm going for the mixed 'Plum Duff/Cookie' load designed for the area bombing of heavily industrialised cities like those of the Ruhr.

From back to front this comprised 3 x SBCs containing incendiaries, a 4000lb cookie, 3 more SBCs and finally 3 x 1000lb HE bombs. They loaded from back to front so the first 3 SBCs will be loaded and the cookie will be in the process of hoisting. The rest of the load will be waiting on bomb trolleys.





That's the plan at the moment.........but I'm getting ahead of myself.

Cheers

Steve

 

[stona]

I've applied some shading to the 'black'.



And removed the masking. Perception of the 'black' is influenced by the colours to which it is adjacent as you can see here.



I'll leave this until tomorrow to cure when I'll have to clean off the flecks of kitchen towel which have attached themselves like you know what to a blanket and I'll be good to get a coat of varnish on.

In the mean time I've got a tractor and bomb trolleys to make, plus there are some figures freezing their arses off in SWMBO's freezer

Cheers

Steve

 

[CDW]

That looks really neat Steve, the underside variation is a good example of the colour adjustments needed as discussed in another thread.

I take it the figures are the horrible soft plastic as they're in the freezer, now might be a good time to try my bird grit method after you've cleaned them up, you can paint directly on the plastic then and it'd be nice to see what finish your brand of enamels give.

 

[Ian M]

Taking notes here Steve. I like the approach you have taken for the underside surfaces.

Ian M

 

[stona]

I take it the figures are the horrible soft plastic as they're in the freezer, now might be a good time to try my bird grit method after you've cleaned them up, you can paint directly on the plastic then and it'd be nice to see what finish your brand of enamels give.

They are the horrible soft plastic, actually they are pretty horrible....full stop They only cost a fiver and I'll only be using a few.

Thanks for the timely reminder, I might just give that method a go as the primer might hide the minimal detail the figures have. Terracotta warriors they certainly are not !

Cheers

Steve

 

[stona]

I've knocked together one of the parts from the airfield set, the tractor to pull the bomb trolleys.

Here's the real deal.



And here's mine. I brightened it up a bit with some yellow wheels because I could



I couldn't find any wings, so I left them off

Cheers

Steve

 

[yak face]

Ive been watching this one come together from the wings , its looking superb steve. The tractor and accessories are going to look great with the lanc. Good luck with the vinyl figures, i used the old airfix ones on my H.J. Marseilles Dio and wished I hadnt , the revell 1/72 aircrew and pilots sets are so much better , and they are proper hard styrene so no worries cleaning up seams , plus the detail is 100 % better . Cheers tony

 

[Stevekir]

Watching this closely, in parallel with my Lanc (although my speed of working is about a tenth of the average.) Two points:

- I read recently that it was not a good idea to prime over the masked canopy because primer is a bit rubbery and makes it difficult to peel off the masking without creating an uneven edge (which happened to me). I notice that you did add primer. What are your (and other peoples) thoughts on that please?

- I would appreciate in due course a closeup pic of the finished de-masked cockpit canopy to see how good your's is.

 

[stona]

- I read recently that it was not a good idea to prime over the masked canopy because primer is a bit rubbery and makes it difficult to peel off the masking without creating an uneven edge (which happened to me). I notice that you did add primer. What are your (and other peoples) thoughts on that please?

Once masked the first coat of paint on the canopy isn't a primer, it's an enamel in the interior colour, grey-green in this case (black for the turrets). There is a coat of primer after this but it's as thin as I can reasonably make it. Finally there is the camouflage colour(s).

I'll be interested to see the result too as I've used Eduard masks rather than my own. Hopefully they have worked okay.

Cheers

Steve

 

[Airfix Modeller Freak]

love lancs mate! cant wait to see this one since it was an australian operated aircraft

 

[stona]

cant wait to see this one since it was an australian operated aircraft

4,050 men gave their lives serving with the RAAF in Bomber Command (the AWM lists 3,486 for some reason). They are not forgotten.

Steve

 

[eddiesolo]

Beautiful work Steve, all coming together nicely, like others I have been watching from the side-lines and thought it time I added to the chorus of delight.

Si

 

[CDW]

- I read recently that it was not a good idea to prime over the masked canopy because primer is a bit rubbery and makes it difficult to peel off the masking without creating an uneven edge (which happened to me). I notice that you did add primer. What are your (and other peoples) thoughts on that please?

If I've ever masked anything, model or auto-art I've always traced the edge of the mask with a new, sharp scalpel when the paints cured so the mask doesn't lift the paint.

 

[Ian M]

Neat job on the tractor. You dont happen to have a photo of it next to a "standard unit of comparison" ( a paint tin to you and me).

Ian M

 

[stona]

Neat job on the tractor. You dont happen to have a photo of it next to a "standard unit of comparison" ( a paint tin to you and me).Ian M

I can do better than that

Whilst waiting for various potions to batter the awful Hasegawa decal on the Lancaster into some kind of shape I've knocked up the other vehicle which I intend to have in the final diorama. It's a Bedford truck, and in the hope of better weather I've left the back off. This means I'll have to put some 'stuff' in there (apart from the ladder). I've got a barrel, some Jerry cans and some other old toot that should suffice.

Anyway, here's both vehicles with a 'standard unit of comparison'.



I think it will be back to larger scales once this is done. I've had a magnifier on my head more or less continuously as I've been building and painting !

Cheers

Steve

 

[Ian M]

As well as being very nice they are rather proportionally challenged aren't they (PC talk for small LOL)

Nice work Steve.

Ian M