I'm starting to paint this figure now, after a long time hesitating on a few details. I'm still not 100% sure which color I'll use for his uniform, but I'll find out one that I'll find as realistic as possible, based on that time period pics. Histyorically those Navy uniforms should be Khaki. But compared to the photos I've seen so far, Khaki doesn't seem to even resemble the colors I see on the photos! So I'll have to find something else that matches what I see on these pics.

Among some pics from that time period, as well as reenactors, I'm using the following pics as my main source of inspiration for the colors and some details:

The box:

So far I've primed the whole body and arms with Humbrol Matt Sand #63.

Have worked a bit on the head, helmet and goggles are pretty much done (in oils most of these, with some Humbrol enamel for the goggles and a drop of clear varnish on top of the painting), face has been painted over the Humbrol Matt Sand with a mix of oils, but needs a lot more to be done, not even mentioning the eyes, which are my worst nightmare, so I'll leave them for later...

As for the body, both parts, torso and legs (after a lot of sanding needed), they were glued together with Loctite Super Glue and then painted Matt Sand.

I'm now on the second coat of Yellow Naples + a tiny little bit of Matt Red (and a few others, as I'm using little bits of a kind of mix for flesh, to mix with the Yellow Naples) for the Mae West, it will need a few more.

And that's it for now, will update with new pics as this WiP moves forward.

Pics of the boots and arms tomorrow.

Cheers!

Dolf

Awesome job!

Thank you Jeff (@mikegolf) !

Yes, all pics of US Navy pilots from this time period I've seen so far (notice that there are cases where on the pics it's reenactors, so in those cases the original color is long gone) this particular uniform doesn't look at all like my Humbrol enamel Khaki.
Hence I'm probably using a mix of Khaki and some other color(s), maybe Humbrol Matt Pale Stone, I'll have to do a few tests when I get the paints.

Now with the motorcycle, and the lack of a couple of paints & other stuff for my figure, this guy is on stand-by for the time being.

Cheers!

Dolf

Thank you Shawn ( @shbemo13 ) & Craig ( @craigindaytona ) !

Craig, figure painting, others here who do figures & busts, may have their say, and it may be different. This is just MHO. So, on IMHO one probably has to start by the smallest scales, 1/72 (which at my age now wouldn't be no longer an option to consider, not even working with again, unless I got a ultra good & cool magnifying glass and it was for some reason a must do it... but I did start on 1/72 back in the old days, then moved to 1/48, 1/32, and later a couple of 120mm and 1 full body 200mm; now I'm aiming at larger scale busts, by preference, 1/10, or 1/9, the much larger, such as 1/4 for instance are a big... too big IMO, but I'd only know for a fact after painting one, so it's just my take), they give you the initial kick-up, the lessons, the good & bad, how different techniques work.
But painting a figure, for example one of a Human Being, with flesh colors, then the clothes, uniforms, so there's a large variety of painting choices. For the types of paints for instance, I think nowadays there's a lot of modelers that prefer acrylics, to any other type. Those still using the old enamel paints seem to become rarer. Then you have a kind of renaissance with oils. The old painter's oils, the same, now applied to smaller scales and different kinds of painting materials.
Oils give you a whole new avenue about choice, and tend to enhance your creativity. You can make every possible color with just a few basic colors, then expand, up to your own limits.

I have not yet started painting (with oils, on top of a prime coat of enamel or acrylics) one bust. I do have two on my stash so far, one at the 1/12 scale and one at 1/10 scale. Both people's busts.
I intend to paint both using oils, using probably enamels as a prime coat (but in time I may try some acrylics in the process as well, as I have a few busts more coming soon), then work with oils from there,

Lawrence of Arabia/Peter O'Toole, at 1/12 scale (by FER Miniatures, Spain) :

And Viriato (or in English Viriathus), at 1/10 scale (by RP Models, Portugal; they used computer generated 3D sculpting for at least their more recent figures & busts, Viriathus, both this bust, as well as a full body 75mm scale figure - pics of that version here: https://www.hobbysector.com/en/rpmodels/8414-rpmodels-hrp-75-01-002-viriatus-ancient-world.html , there's some Historical background, regarding Viriato, who he was, what did he do, why is he I believe the older historical hero on Portuguese History, as a matter fact even before the current Portugal even existed - , these and other new releases have been created on a digital sculpting format, that's new technology out there) :

Only under Emperor Augusts (between 63 BC & 19 AD) did the Iberian Peninsula (Portugal & Spain included) became fully "Romanized", including Lusitania.

Now, compare the two busts, size by size, under different lights:

There's a large difference between more traditional 1/12 and more recent 1/10 I guess. I should have one 1/9 on order to compare one of these days.

Cheers!

Dolf

With the paint of all parts for the bike recently painted, drying (tomorrow I should be able to move forward a bit, will see), and the oils on the face of this figure still drying (will try better pics tomorrow, on daylight), I thought the night was for a pause.

Well, no, all of a sudden I decided to try some oil mix, with the few oil paints I've here, for the uniform.

Inspired by the color of the uniform on Pic 1 on this thread, I made a very diluted (hence it should dry faster) mix, involving Titanium White, Naples Yellow (the two main ones), and bits of Raw Umber, Burnt Umber, Olieverf, and Raw Sienna.
Tomorrow, or when it will dry, I should apply a 2nd coat. The mix will be a bit thicker (unless I really need to add some parts of thinner, if it really is too thick) .
And I'll see from there what needs to be corrected as color is concerned, and can add or reduce different colors.
I think "my" Khaki is more realistic than any other availabe on the market, that I know of 🙂

Here are a couple of news pics (again, tomorrow on daylight I should take better pics) :

The missing paint on his left arm has been corrected in the meantime (thanks to the pic!) .

Now it's day over (or rather night over) ! 😉

Cheers!

Dolf

Good progress, Dolf!

About the eyes- it’s generally just the corners of the eyes that need the white. The coloured iris dominates the centre, with a tiny fleck of white to indicate light refracting from the retina. Choose this point carefully so the eyes don’t look ‘crossed’. Don’t bother with a pupil as it inevitably looks like a black spot in the middle of a target. A tiny weak spot of red on the inside corner of the eye adds a little life at the gland.

The oils do indeed take some time to dry. Are you using them neat? Light applications of the oils thinned with Artists Turps or spirit will dry quicker as the thinners will evaporate quickly to leave a very thin coat of oils which should tack pretty quickly.

Now, after a 2nd oil paint on top of the 1st one on the uniform (not completely dry; is that ok, Rob? Or I should always wait between coats, for the previous one to dry?), pics taken today on daylight out on the balcony (sadly no Sun these days 🙁 ) .

I've done crop images with Photoshop from the original pics, so one can better, up close/zoomed in, see what often is not visible on the naked eye.
Both good and bad details (the bad ones can always be corrected with oil paints, right Rob?) are visible.

Comments welcome.

The main body:

The arms:

The head/face:

Cheers!

Dolf