Italeri 1:72 JAS 39 Gripen SAAF Part 4

Welcome back.  We start the painting process by pre-shading all the panel lines with flat black paint by airbrush.

Basically everywhere dirt would accumulate.

I then sprayed Humbrol 127 all over, layering it up slowly, stopping just before the pre-shading disappears.  When the top coat dries back, the pre-shading will show through again.

After I let it dry for a few hours, I sprayed the diamond shape using Humbrol 128.  As you can see the diamond did not come out perfectly, I was somewhat happy to continue.

While I waited for the paint to dry, I started with a wash on the landing gear.  I used Flory Models Dirt Wash.  It is a fantastic product that has no chemicals in it and it is clay based.  You just brush it on (or you can even airbrush it on if it is done on a large area) and once it dries, you wipe it off with a moist cloth.  The wash comes off, but stays in places where dirt would accumulate.

Once the paint dried, i did the same with the entire model.

And this is what it looks like when the wash is wiped off.

What I forgot to mention, is that I applied the decals to the model BEFORE I did the wash.  This is important so that the decals will look worn like the rest of the model and thus blend in and look natural.

Thanks for looking!

Italeri 1:72 JAS 39 Gripen SAAF Part 3

It has been over 6 months since I last posted.  Various reasons.  Not going to bore you.

Let’s continue where we left off.

The canopy had a bad centre seamline that had to be removed.

I started off with a medium grit sanding stick that has been used before and lightly sanded the canopy until the seamline was gone, taking care not to change the shape of the canopy.

I then used a fine grit sanding stick until it looked like this.

I then used a polishing stick and polished the canopy until it was clear.  You will hear a squeaking noise when the canopy is polished to a shine.

The canopies were masked with the old faithful Tamiya tape.  I stuck the Tamiya tape and then traced the outlines of the frame with a fine pencil.  Thereafter I cut the Tamiya tape with a new sharp blade being careful not to cut the canopy itself.

I think I mentioned before that this kit has some fit issues.  This could be clearly seen when the wings were added.  I stuck Tamiya tape on either side of the joints I had to fill.  I then used normal Tamiya filler (the grey one) to fill in the gaps.  Once the filler dried properly, I removed the Tamiya tape.  To remove the excess filler, I used nail polish remover that is ACETONE FREE with an ear bud.  I rubbed the filler gently until it started to give.  From there it is easy.  Be careful not to remove to much of the filler!

And this is the outcome:

In part 4 we start the painting process by pre-shading the model.

Thanks for looking.

Took a break

It has been a little while since I worked on my models. My compressor had to be fixed and I am fetching it this week.

Will soon be posting more updates.

Francois

Italeri 1:72 JAS 39 Gripen SAAF Part 2

In part 2 we look at gluing the fuselage together as well as the wings and then going to work with filler to close any gaps and seems.

As mentioned in previous post, the plastic is very soft and it was difficult to get a great fit even by test fitting before using glue.  I was just glad to get most of the seems together and in line.

On the topic of glues, I prefer Tamiya Extra Thin as it flows nicely in the joints and welds the plastic together.  Other glues I use are super glue for gluing landing gear, photo etch parts and also to fill large gaps.  Krystal Klear by Micro Industries is my favourite for gluing clear parts, especially canopies as it dries exactly like the name suggests… crystal clear.

Just a close up of a bad join.

The wing halves were glued and held in place by clothing pegs that has rubber inserts.  These rubber feet ensures a good grip and it also protects the plastic against scratches.  By test fitting (or dry fitting) before letting the glue loose, will save a lot of time and filling afterwards, although there is only so much one can do in this step.

By sticking Tamiya tape on both sides of a joint before applying the filler will help to limit the filler only to the place where you actually want to apply the filler and it makes sanding a breeze afterwards due to the smaller amount of dried filler that needs to be removed.  You can either leave the tape on when sanding to protect the plastic or you can remove the tape before sanding… all up to your preference.

Here is a preview of Part 3 where we attached the wings and do some more filling…

Italeri 1:72 JAS 39 Gripen SAAF Part 1

After building WWII aircraft to start to practice and build my skills, I decided it was time to try a modern fighter jet, still in 1:72 scale.  All the kits I have built until now (this is my 4th) have been 1:72 scale.  The reason being that they are cheap and normally go together relatively quickly.  The challenge however is to work with such small parts when you don’t have small hands.

With today’s glues it is not so difficult to build the model.  The real skill comes with painting and weathering (making the model look used or old) the model.  Each type of model has its own techniques for painting and weathering.  For instance cars are done differently from aircraft and armoured vehicles are done differently from both cars and aircraft.  I think it is for this reason that most modellers stick to one theme and then master the techniques applicable.

There are however many of techniques that overlap and are used with any type of model.

Enough of that, let’s go through the sprues as they came out the box.

Sprue 1

Sprue 2

Clear Parts

All the parts have been moulded well with minimal flash on some of the parts that needed clean up.  I did find the plastic very soft and in the beginning difficult to work with.

Ejection pin marks are visible in unsightly places as can be seen below.

In part 2  we assemble the fuselage, we glue the wings and apply filler to fill all the gaps where the plastic did not go together properly.

An exciting adventure… every day!

I last built plastic scale models when I was 14 or 15 years old together with my best friend Charlie. I still remember the smell of the plastic, the glue and the humbrol enamel paints at our kitchen table.

Charlie has always had an intense passion for anything that flies and for the army in general. He was the one who introduced me to this world. However, I was extremely hasty by nature when I was still at school and patience was something I did not possess. At all.

Suffice to say, I got more frustrated than anything else. First off I never ever succeeded in not having glue all over my model and on my fingers. Charlie’s models was a stark contrast to mine. No glue marks. Well painted (with a brush I might add). Clear canopies. Hence, I just left the hobby.

As life happens, Charlie and I lost contact for almost 15 years. We were blessed to meet up again in 2011. He has not changed a bit in the 15 years. Apart from being hilariously funny still and with a heart of gold, he was still practicing the hobby just with many more years of experience and skills under his belt.

He has won numerous prizes at National competitions and have ventured into doing armour as well and not just the aircraft we used to do back in the day.

It got me thinking… what am I still practicing or doing that I used to do and love when I was at school. Well, nothing was the answer.

His passion, knowledge and expertise really got to me. I was in awe of what he is able to accomplish with an airbrush. I wanted to learn. I wanted to prove to myself that I can do this hobby and enjoy it at the same time.

So to cut a long story short. Charlie is not only my best friend, but also my mentor and coach for learning to build and paint stunning models. We live 400kms apart, but it feels like we live down the street from each other, just like in the old days.

I want to share my experiences and things I learn with whoever wants to enjoy it with me. I am by no means an expert, but new people also learn a lot from each other. And I hope that Charlie will also pop in to say “Hi” on my blog!

Francois