Academy 1/48 F-86FSabre, HAF

Started by George R Blair Jr · 149 · 7 months ago · Academy 1/48 F-86F, F-86E(M), Hellenic Air Force, Icarus Decals, Sabre
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    Spiros Pendedekas said 7 months, 2 weeks ago:

    Looking excellent so far, my friend @gblair! That old bottle is to be praised!

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    John vd Biggelaar said 7 months, 2 weeks ago:

    Looks amazing after the clear coat, George @gblair
    This old bottle did the trick.

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    Alfred van Paaschen said 7 months, 2 weeks ago:

    Coming along nicely, George!
    Is that Super Gloss water based?

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    George R Blair Jr said 7 months, 2 weeks ago:

    Thanks, Spiros (@fiveten), John (@johnb), and Alfred (@alfred): Really pleased with the old Testors. I'm not sure about the Supergloss. I think it may be a hybrid (acrylic in a synthetic lacquer base), but I need to do some research on it.

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    George R Blair Jr said 7 months, 2 weeks ago:

    I ran out of parts and instructions at the same time, so I think I am done. All of the sub-parts were done, so it was just a matter of adding the parts, checking things, and then calling it done. Thanks for following along. Tomorrow I will start on the Airfix F-86, with the paint scheme still to be determined.

    5 attached images. Click to enlarge.

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    Spiros Pendedekas said 7 months, 2 weeks ago:

    Congratulations, my friend @gblair!
    She looks awesome on the headlines!

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    John vd Biggelaar said 7 months, 2 weeks ago:

    Excellent, definitely going to take this as an example, George @gblair

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    George R Blair Jr said 7 months, 2 weeks ago:

    Thanks, John (@johnb) and Spiros (fiveten). It was a pleasure building with you both. Looking forward to yours. I had to get mine done first so that it couldn't be compared with how good yours will be. Now, on to the Airfix. Still haven't finalized what paint scheme I am doing.

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    Alfred van Paaschen said 7 months, 2 weeks ago:

    Looking fabulous, George!
    Nice benchmark you’ve set here. 👍

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    George R Blair Jr said 7 months, 2 weeks ago:

    Thanks, Alfred (@alfred). Don't now about a benchmark, but I am ready to jump into the Airfix kit.

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    Matt Dyer said 7 months, 1 week ago:

    I enjoyed following along with your build, George (@gblair). I particularly admire your reaching for the design software and a 3D printer when you run into a roadblock. Myself, I am reaching for a box of Evergreen sheets and shapes to see what can be done, which is sometimes not much. Great build! I'm looking forward to your the next one.

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    George R Blair Jr said 7 months ago:

    Thanks for stopping by Matt (@matthewfdyer): I still do a bunch of scratchbuilding using Evergreen, but I am getting more comfortable using the design software to create simple things for my models. I still can't do anything really complex, but the resin printer does three things for me that I can't do with plastic. First, it will make repetitive parts exactly the same. If I need two of the same part and plan to use plastic, they may or may not be the same when I am done. The resin printer will make them exactly the same every time. Second, once you have the files to print something, you can scale them up or down with the click of a button. I got some files for a Martin Baker Mk. 10 seat online in 1/72. I have used the same files to print the seat in 1/48 and 1/32. And third, the printer is capable of much finer work than I can do in plastic. It can create very fine detail. The exhaust I made for the F-86 had walls that were only a fraction of a millimeter in thickness. I held off buying a liquid resin printer for a long time because I was worried there would be a steep learning curve or it would be too expensive. There is a learning curve, but if I can handle it, then anyone can. The price for an entry level resin printer is only about $200, which is considerably less than they used to be. I am currently working on a QF-86 and have created several things on the printer for it (It's also in the F-86 Group).

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    Matt Dyer said 7 months ago:

    I am stunned by the fine detail that can be achieved with 3D printed resin parts. George (@gblair). Recently I purchased an engine with cowling for the Special Hobby Piper J-3 kit I have. It is a tiny jewel! I hope my clumsy fingers are able to clean it up without damaging it. (It is an important aircraft in WWII as you know because it provided flight training for new pilots at civilian run flying schools as an entry way into military aviation. 3D printed resin parts will put an end to poured resin before long.

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    George R Blair Jr said 7 months ago:

    Hi Matt (@matthewfdyer): Looking forward to seeing your J-3. I have almost purchased that kit a couple of times, but I figure it would just be too small for me to work on. A kit like the J-3 is perfect for 3D-printed parts, since they are capable of very small detail. I always worry about removing the supports from some of the finer detail. It is easier sometimes to remove the supports from the piece before you cure it, but not an option with parts that are already cured.