@airbum
Erik, been more than 1 year since I last visited this WIP. That’s a sweet build my friend. Regarding the free hand mottling I must say the left side looks more realistic than the right side, that’s a personal opinion obviously 😉
What caused the orange peel of the paint? Some light buffing might be enough to get the paint surface smooth again

Nice work, Erik (@airbum). I have never tried mottling, but I will need to break the ice sometime. I also always add the landing gear before I paint. It is something I have always done and have never had a problem breaking the gear off. The paint looks a little grainy in the photo, which could just be from the magnification in the photo. You might try Solvaset from Walthers for decals that won't settle in. Solvaset is a very strong setting fluid. Try it on a spare decal first. Most decals are fine with it, but I have had one or two dissolve. :o) Glad to see you are working on this one again.

Thank you all for comments on this build.
@johnb, the decals did get a few more layers of Micro Sol, and that did them good together with running a cocktailstick along panel lines.
@holzhamer, I agree on the mottling – this was one of my first mottles, and might have benefitted from a re-mottle. The orange peel was caused by too thick paint at wrong pressure and distance I think. My impatience really, so thinner paint and more layers will most likely help a lot.
@fiveten, actually feels good to be back with this one.
@gblair, the Micro Sol repeated did nice work, though a cocktailstick was needed in places. I may see if I can get solvaset in a LHS near me (read within the EU).
@eb801, managed a small update within the same week – new record? I will add a few layers of gloss when decaling is finished, and have bought a few micro pads (1500 and 3000) to polish the surfaces, and will make sure to let the layers dry before sanding/polishing.

Stencils

Having a huge supply of Eduard stencils helps

sadly some of the more “popular” stencils have been used on other builds.

It is now near where I want on stencils, just a few remaining to be added.

I now have to work 12 days, perhaps an evening or two can be found for modeling, but the paintshop will wait till I get a full day off again. Tune in again in a few weeks time!

Great progress on the stencils, Erik @airbum

The decals and stencils look great, Erik (@airbum). It really sucks that you have to fit your modeling into your work schedule. I remember those days...it is nice to be retired, but I still have to work around my wife's "to-do" list. :o)

Erik @airbum
These stencils are like icing on the cake. Your 109's are always wonderful, and it's good to see one in Hungarian markings.

I hate it when work interferes with our hobby. I can remember many years, when I had little to no time at all left after working all day (and sometimes all night too) for for building anything. But working did allow me to build up my stash considerably. Now I'm retired and I'm steadily chipping away at the hoard of plastic model boxes.

It's funny how this works... work and you have no time, but money to spend. Retire and you now have time, but no money left over to spend on "extras". Keep this in mind while you are away from the bench. 😉

I'll be looking forward to your next installment.

Nice wheels, my friend @airbum!
Looking forward to the legs chrome-ing!

Very nice wheels, Erik @airbum
Simple but practicle trick with the tape, good idea.