Thanks, Spiros (@fiveten). Slow, but sure.

Yeah, is it etched? Does it flex a lot, George @gblair?

I think I spied a bottle of AK’s Clear Gauzy in the background. Am I right? I like that stuff because it dries quickly and evenly If applied in several light passes. I now use it for decal prep instead of Future/Pledge but not on canopies. I learned never to wipe spots off the Gauzy finish with any type of alcohol- eats right through it.
What’s your opinion?

Today I found out the great truth about creating a really weathered and splotchy finish: It takes a lot of paint. Most of the plane is basically a very weathered 2-color Navy camo, with the replacement wing being relatively new 3-color camo. I was basically done with the 2-color portion of the plane yesterday, but today I got wild with the Sea Blue color and managed to slosh a couple of drops on the left elevator. I took a while to repair the damage, but I think we are OK. Here is my logic for the colors: My photo that I am working from is dated in late 1943. This is an SNJ-3, a variant that arrived just prior to the war. I believe the Navy started receiving these planes in 1939 or early 1940. It seems logical that by 1943, this plane would have been repainted in the 2-color camo, which was mandated in Feb 1941. At some point, I think the left wing was damaged and replaced by a new wing, which was already painted in the 3-color camo mandated in Jan 1943. For the left wing, this means insignia white underneath and Sea Blue on top. Sea Blue is a very dark blue. I masked the rest of the plane, and painted the insignia white and Sea Blue. I added a few drops of white to the Sea Blue to give me a little room for shadowing. I then used the AK mask, and also masked the fabric areas, and applied gray/black as a shadow. When everything was dry, I sprayed on a thin layer of Tamiya Clear Gloss. Not only does this prep everything for the decals, but also protects the finish from the additional weathering I want to try. Decals tomorrow, followed by a flat or semi-gloss layer, then on to weathering! Yeah! This is the fun part now.

6 attached images. Click to enlarge.

George R Blair Jr (@gblair)
Boy you have been busy ! It is looking good too. I'm learning from you with how you are painting this one. I have never used a mask with splotches on it. It gives a different look the what would otherwise be a solid color. I especially like how you have painted the fabric covered controls.

Do you think you should give the vertical fin / rudder some more contrast ? In the original picture, it almost looks as if there is some Dark Sea Blue overspray that made it's way onto these areas of the tail section.

It makes one wonder doesn't it ? Anything could happen I guess. This would also explain the darker over spray on the tail section as well. These poor aircraft took a beating. Rode hard and put up wet as we used to say in the Army. I was a Cavalry Trooper when I first heard this expression. I think it was a carry over from the days when they rode horses in the Cavalry, and not tanks or armored personnel carriers.

Keep it going buddy ! You are at the fun stage now, my favorite time, weathering and decals.

Thanks, Louis (@lgardner). This plane has several paint anomalies. I really don't know why the tail is gray. Your story is plausible. For now, I am just trying to match how it looks. It is fun to create a story in my mind that explains all the different colors.

Thanks, John (@johnb). The paint is very dark, so I hope there isn't a problem with the white areas of the decals. We'll see tomorrow.

Thanks, Spiros (@fiveten). Decals today, then some flat clear after they dry. Then I want to try some new weathering techniques. Yeah.