Ian, that finish is outstanding! So I assume that the AK finishes go on well with little fuss. As NMF can be quite finicky to accomplish. Using of course Alclad, Model Master enamels over the years. Recently started using the Vallejo metallics with very good results so far. But always open to try other brands. I'm not locked into any particular brand or whether it is enamel, lacquer or Acrylic. Regardless very inspirational.

That P-47 looks super. One minor point (for future reference) - NMF P-47s had no primer on the inner surfaces of the flaps - it's a good way to identify if an airplane was painted at the factory or at the field. A camouflaged P-47 painted at the factory had the camouflage color on the inner surface of the flap (since the flaps were painted before they were installed on the airplane), while a field-painted airplane generally had the leading inner edge of the flap in NMF (since the airplanes were painted with their flaps up). A bit of little-known info I got from one of the guys in the 78th FG I interviewed for a book - he was the maintenance officer in charge of the repainting of NMF P-47s after D-Day.

Here's a comment from a 57th Fighter Group pilot that lets you know what kind of war they faced:

“The air-to-ground environment is brutal, life threatening, and consistently dangerous. The fighter pilot population in our squadron changed 400 percent from May 1943 until the end of the war in June 1945. We lost airplanes and pilots on a regular basis. We changed tactics, varied approaches and routes to targets, and emphasized surprise at every opportunity. In the end, we learned that you must fly down the enemy’s gun barrel to destroy the target.”

Beautifully done, Ian. Chuck nailed it, “inspirational”.

That wasn't "nitpicking," Mr. Villanueva, it was providing people with information that's not commonly known, so that modelers who care about their results (the overwhelming vast majority here) can put it to use in the future. There was nothing "negative" in my comment, other than in the mind of someone who thinks anything less than "amazing! wonderful! magnificent!" is "negative."

Blended Flory wash over two coats of (brushed) Johnsons Klear... next 'stickers' !

Ian.

3 attached images. Click to enlarge.

Wow, we must have posted simultaneously! I got my wish! You’ve got to be pleased with that yellow under the masks - and the subtle metallic tones on the different panels had worked out brilliantly. Lovely stuff!

Thanks folks appreciate it. BUSY old weekend ahead so no stickers until Tuesday at the earliest.

Ian.

Woow. That looks quite realistic. The paint sure makes it look raw metal, and polished too.
Good job, Ian. Thanks for sharing your build log.