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North Korean MiG-15 Options
AlcatrazLogan
Posted: Monday, December 05, 2011 12:22:51 AM

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BV 141

Airfix do still make it and Marks Models has it for €10:99, Toymaster probably has it for less. Shhh

I haven't any idea whether this is an old tooling in a new box or a new tooling.
FiSe
Posted: Monday, December 05, 2011 9:36:03 AM

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I think, that HiPM's kit is in 1/48, short run, from new forms. Could be a challenge to build though...

http://www.condormodels.com/aircraft.htm

Filip
AlcatrazLogan
Posted: Monday, December 05, 2011 5:08:05 PM

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Swinging the subject matter back on topic I have updates with pictures.

First, let me preface this update by saying that Airfix and cockpits just don't go together. This I've gathered from person experience. Back on the BAe Hawk they do, which I've buried in the stash for mental health reasons, the cockpit wouldn't go together properly and now on the MiG-15 I've had a similar problem.



Alright, here we have one fuselage half and you'll notice the prominent slot there. To attach the cockpit tub to the fuselage you're supposed to fit the main console into the tub. The main console has two protruding curved arms with which are supposed to slat into the slot and everything is hunky dory... or not. The main console didn't want to fit onto the tub properly, it kept bending off at strange angles. Then the curved arm slats wouldn't fit into the slots properly either.

The entire result would've caused a large gap fore and aft of the cockpit tub when the fuselage halves were joined and it would've required a fair amount of filling.



Instead those curved arm slats were, rather aggressively, clipped off. The main console then fitted in place fine but I still needed a solution to fitting the tub into the fuselage. Well as you can see from the above picture I used a piece of Evergreen clapboard, indelicately cut to size, to form a platform and fitted the tub to it and it to the fuselage. Certainly not the cleanest of fixes but it worked.



The kit called out for Humbrol 65 (Aircraft Blue) for the cockpit and I used Vallejo Intermediate Blue as an alternative. It looks a bit dark to me but it was applied over Halfords Grey. I did check out a pictures online and it looks like the MiG-15 had a darker cockpit to the usual bright blue common with Soviet Aircraft. All of the blacks are Vallejo Black Grey.



There's another view of the cockpit with the Revell Harrier GR. 5 decal standing in after the 'unexplained' disappearance of the Airfix one. It's not entirely accurate of course as the MiG-15 wouldn't have half the avionics of a Harrier but it'll barely been seen anyway.



Here's the jet exhaust which I'm still not entirely with due to the lack of detail... besides that ejector pin mark I'm trying to ignore. I've painted it with Vallejo Gunmetal Grey and given it a wash with Citadel Babab Black. After I decal the MiG I'll attack this area with a Tamiya Weathering Kit.



And here is the large engine intake, now I was worried the intake wouldn't fit into the fuselage halves properly and cause all sorts of problems but I was pleasantly surprised to find it fitted perfectly. It's painted in Vallejo Natural Steel which is lighter than Gunmetal Grey. I wanted the intake to appear lighter and cleaner than the exhaust.



Finally, here's our RAF... er... North Korean pilot, in fact he could be a Soviet pilot speaking pigeon Korean in a disguised MiG. There's a mixture of Citadel, Revell and Vallejo paints on him and, as you can see, he's still wet from a Badab Black wash.

That's all for now.
Jasonb
Posted: Monday, December 05, 2011 6:41:35 PM

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Nice work Sean, some good fixes that do the job and no one will see them! Like the paint work too, it's gonna look good! :)

J.


On the bench -
Revell 1:72 F-16B

Completed builds
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Coming attractions -
Eduard 1:48 Bf 110 G-4
Academy 1:72 F-22a Raptor
Tamiya 1:35 T-55a
Moebius 1:128 Seaview
Philip
Posted: Tuesday, December 06, 2011 12:46:59 AM

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Sean - that's a fine job! (love to see it in the flesh - hope you can bring it to the January Dublin meet - might be unfair to expect it on Dec 17th,
especially as we will be going elsewhere fairly soon after the start, and you don't want to be lumbered with a fragile model among the pints!)

Philip

"To boldly go.....wherever"
AlcatrazLogan
Posted: Tuesday, December 06, 2011 9:01:39 AM

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I won't have the MiG along with me on the 17th but I'm going to try and bring along the Mustang if I get a sturdy enough box.

I've dry fitted the fuselage halves together on the MiG and it has shown up an interesting result, one nasty seam the entire length of the fuselage. You can literally follow it from the tip of the nose on the upper fuselage down the spine and along the tail, down the belly to the tip of the nose on the underside of the fuselage. Hopefully when glue is added these will fill in a little but I can see myself buying some more Emery boards soon.
dermo245
Posted: Tuesday, December 06, 2011 9:18:23 AM

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Nice work there Sean and look forward to following this one. Can't believe Airfix are still using that pilot figure. Surely he's due retirement!

Am debating whether to bring a kit with me on the 17th...might leave it until January instead.

Cheers,
Dermot

On the bench:
1/72 Airfix Gazelle conversion
1/72 Revell F-16A
1/72 Revell Ec-135

Completed Builds

In the pipeline
1/72 Revell F-14D Tomcat diorama
35th-scale
Posted: Tuesday, December 06, 2011 8:58:30 PM

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AlcatrazLogan wrote:
That metal finish is fantastic, I've heard nothing but good about Alclad but I don't have the budget for it I'm afraid. I do have five metallic paints to choose from though:

* Revell Aluminium, which I used for the Mustang.

* Vallejo Natural Steel.

* Vallejo Gunmetal, I usually use this for guns and exhausts.

* Citadel Boltgun Metal.

* Citadel Chainmail.

* Citadel Mithril Silver, if I can thin this down to the right consistency I might use it as it's slighter lighter than the Revell Aluminium.

One method I've read in order to get shading across some panels is to put down a coat of gloss black over the primer before you put down the metal coat. Of course usually when I read about these techniques the person in question is airbrushing but we'll have to see what happens.

By the way, I'll be bringing along the Mustang to the meet on the 17th and maybe, just maybe, I might put it into the competition next year.


The Humbrol enamel "Metalcote" are quite good. They need a little bit of thinning and a very good stir but I really love their Gunmetal (27004) as once dry it can be buffed to a nice shine: leaves nooks and crannies matt which gives a good effect. It is quite dark though. Good for guns & engines etc but too late for that...

Looking good so far!

Cheers
Sean
AlcatrazLogan
Posted: Tuesday, December 06, 2011 10:55:05 PM

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I think the last time I used enamel paints I was a kid. I haven't really gone near them since and I'm not sure the 'scent' from them would be received well in my apartment. I've done a few tests with the Citadel Mithril Silver and it's quite shiny so I'm going to give that a go. Painting is a ways off though.

I should have another picture update on Thursday showing off the joined fuselage, the wrap around seam it produced and some assembled wings. In the meantime I've entered the Mustang into a competition on Aeroscale and if I win I'll get a Dragon kit out of it. Fingers crossed. Santa
AlcatrazLogan
Posted: Thursday, December 08, 2011 3:31:12 PM

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Another update with pictures.



The wing halves went together without many problems, just had to make sure the panel lines matched up on each side. I wrapped them with elastic bands to hold them tightly together while the glue set. There are a few small gaps that will need a touch of filler but nothing much.



I've also joined the fuselage halves and the first thing that struck me was the interesting shape of the fuselage. The second thing that struck me was the seam running from nose to tail and then from tail to nose on the underside.



Here's a better view of the seam along the spine of the MiG, it goes right up the tail. I'm going to have a fun time sanding all that down. I spent ages sanding down the seams on the Mustang and there was still one I couldn't get rid of besides all that work.



Here's a view of the seam on the underside of the MiG. Usually when I join the fuselage halves together I'll take my pot of Revell Medium Grey and with a wet brush paint the grey along the seam lines in order to highlight them better. It really helps especially when you think you've eliminated the seam as in most cases, in my experience, a little paint shows it back up again.



The flight stand is from Airfix and came with their old S-3A Viking kit. The Viking is partially built but back in the stash as it's much larger than my current display capabilities. The flight stand started out clear acrylic with the Airfix name on it and a date, 1986 or some such, but I didn't much like the look of it. So I primed it in Halfords Grey and I'm currently working on painting it gloss black. Those little silver strips are just test swatches for the MiG, they'll be painted over.



So before I begin the laborious effort of sanding those seams I need to make a slot for the flight stand. I intend to fit it midpoint between the wings so I'll first mark out a little rectangle and drill two or three holes in the rectangle with the pin vise in the picture. It has, I think, a 0.5mm drill bit in it.

After the holes are drilled I'll begin to join and widen them with a few files into the flight stand fits in tightly. I think a bright silver MiG will look good over a gloss black flight stand.
Jasonb
Posted: Thursday, December 08, 2011 4:54:17 PM

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Sounds good Sean, you've thought it out well! Good luck with that seam!

J.

On the bench -
Revell 1:72 F-16B

Completed builds
Click here

Coming attractions -
Eduard 1:48 Bf 110 G-4
Academy 1:72 F-22a Raptor
Tamiya 1:35 T-55a
Moebius 1:128 Seaview
dermo245
Posted: Thursday, December 08, 2011 5:27:59 PM

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Coming along nicely Sean and will look great on that stand.

Is the fuselage shape off on this kit?

On the bench:
1/72 Airfix Gazelle conversion
1/72 Revell F-16A
1/72 Revell Ec-135

Completed Builds

In the pipeline
1/72 Revell F-14D Tomcat diorama
AlcatrazLogan
Posted: Thursday, December 08, 2011 5:59:12 PM

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dermo245 wrote:

Is the fuselage shape off on this kit?


I don't know to be honest, I just found the shape interesting because it's much different from more modern aircraft.
FiSe
Posted: Friday, December 09, 2011 9:25:06 AM

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The shape of the fuselage is very close to F-86 Sabre - both of them were designed with massive help of German engineers stolen from their country after the war by Soviets and American respectively. For the MiG-15 design, gooogle TA-183, which is said to be its father... And there is saying about Korean war that the war in the air was pretty much German affair.

Hopefully you'll get that seams sorted and it'sll turn into nice and flashy model.

Filip
AlcatrazLogan
Posted: Friday, December 09, 2011 4:35:58 PM

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Yeah, the Ta 183 and a P.1101 appear to the genesis of the swept wing fighter and the basis for the F-86 Sabre, the MiG-15, the J29 Tunnan and possibly the Mystere as well. Having them all together would make an interesting display.

Anyway, I've cut the slot out for the flight stand. It was a bit touch and go though as I hadn't released how thick the plastic is around the midpoint of the MiG. The fuselage split along the join as I was filing so I've had to fix that back up. Now it's just the seams to work with.
AlcatrazLogan
Posted: Sunday, December 11, 2011 2:44:47 PM

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Is it just me or is seam sanding the low point of a modelling project? It's tedious, mind-numbingly boring and a pain in the Nasty

When I'm working on seams I'm always worried about altering the shape of the fuselage as well.
Opadag
Posted: Sunday, December 11, 2011 5:19:53 PM
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Sean,
If you haven't drilled out the hole for the stand, with the wings fitted try balancing it on your finger(s) until you get the center of gravity and then you are spot on. Depending on how you want it on the stand you could come a little forward or backwards. Interesting kit and nice work.
AlcatrazLogan
Posted: Thursday, December 15, 2011 3:11:28 PM

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I've got another picture update ready but just a small one.



I've been working hard on the seams but I've caused a problem there. The MiG-15 could be described as barrel shaped or maybe cigar shaped and as such I've lost the shape along the spine and belly. That's what I get for using emery boards which don't bend. Those two sanded strips along the spine in the picture are an attempt by myself to sand out the step that's formed and try to return a little curvature to the fuselage.



In other news I've attached the nose plate to the front of the MiG and the result is less than satisfactory. It looks like I've got more filling and sanding ahead of me.



It's a very awkward area to work around because I need to keep the round shape together. It'll be a long road before this MiG gets anywhere near painting, I'll have to attach the wings and fill the wing roots. Then I need to fit the gear doors which will be messy and I also need to shore up the fit of the MiG to the flight stand.



It's not all bad news though. Sometime in January I'll be starting this for a group build on the Kitmaker Network.
AlcatrazLogan
Posted: Friday, February 03, 2012 6:28:47 PM

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Well I haven't forgotten about the MiG-15, I've just working on it, on and off, for a while now. I've changed tact with it as well by filling the notch for the flight stand; I've recently become very interested in the stance of an aircraft wheels down and with so I'll make a display base to go along with it.

What I've been working on since December is the fit of the nose plate to the fuselage, which was pretty bad I have to say.



It looks better in person than in that picture to be honest. I'm still not sure about the line running along the nose, I'd like to eliminate it completely but I'm afraid of losing the fuselage shape completely. MiG's are awkward.



I've also attached the wings, they slot into place without any issues with just a tiny gap running along the root that needs filled. I quite like the sweep of the wings, it adds a certain attractive quality to the plane. Of course it's been said that Airfix bungled the sweep but I'm content.



I'm going to continue taking this slowly as a side project as over the next couple of months I'll participating in group builds and it's always nice to have something to break away too.
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