I've been out of modeling for nearly 30 years. My, how it has changed! I found this board while googling for images of the new Revell Mustang. I spent nearly 5 hours browsing around and really liked what I saw. Anyway, I still have my stash from 100 years ago so I thought I'd cut my teeth on the Laird. I really like the 30's era racers and the 'antiqueness' of the old Williams Brothers kits.

So...armed with a new Iwata airbrush and whole bunch of enthusiasm it is off to the races.

Jim

4 attached images. Click to enlarge.

Now that's a classic, and welcome.

FYI I've created a group for Golden Age air racers! Seems like Williams Bros. has the market cornered in that subject. Can't wait to see it done.

When I got back in to airbrushing I tried Vallejo paint and didn't get along with it. I watched several youtube tutorials and decided to give it another try. I wanted to do the exhaust with acrylic so it would be easier to wipe off if/when I screw up. I ran two cups of paint through my airbrush with all kinds of pressures and dilution levels. I found a good mix and shot it on...I'm pretty happy with it, although I'll need a smaller needle in the near future.

Jim

4 attached images. Click to enlarge.

Thanks Josh! It’s just straight Testors green enamel. It matched the decals right out of the bottle. The Yellow is also Testors yellow but for every two drops of yellow I added brown to tone it down. I found some 1/64th masking tape at a local art store. It’s a college store here at Kent State and they cater to the Architecture students. I’m going to shoot the pin striping color on and mask the stripes. It’ll be the Gee Bee Z first. My hands aren’t as steady anymore to try freehanding 🙂

This is a fantastic build... I really love the planes from this era. Here are a few pictures of a replica of a real 1 to 1 scale one that I took at Kermit Week's "Fantasy of Flight" museum about 7 years ago.

Welcome back to the hobby, and welcome to the site. You'll enjoy it here and we'll enjoy seeing your builds. Earlier this year I bought 5 1:32 Williams Bros kits. I thought about doing a one-man group build, but then I had a moment of sanity... maybe next year. Anyway your Laird is looking great! Keep the photos coming.

At David Leigh, thank you! I appreciate the kind words. When I got back in to the hobby I decided to give acrylics a spin. Armed with a Badger 350, I got the Vallejo surface primer and the the "Model Paint". I have an Accurate Miniatures P-51C (Mantz) that I started about a month ago. I sprayed the surface primer on straight out of the bottle and it went on beautifully. I let it dry 24 hours and went back to sand out some rough spots and apply more filler. the first stroke of 600 grit sand paper (dry) took the primer right off in sheets. That was completely unacceptable so I set it aside for a bit and then stripped the model and re-shot it with Testors flat white enamel. The Testors went on just as I remembered.

For the Laird, I hit the reset button and have actually gone back and worked on the P-51. I'll post photos of that soon. It's not anything special and has issues but they are all self induced.

After watching some tutorials online and not wanting to give up on acrylics I sat down and started practicing with my newly purchased Iwata (worth every penny) . The mix for an opaque finish was about 60% paint and 40% Isopropyl Alcohol at 25psi give or take. The mix I used for the exhaust was about 20% paint and 80% Isopropyl Alcohol at 15psi. The exhaust still not as transparent as I want it but it is close. I need a smaller needle, which is the next investment.

At Louis, Thank you for the Photos of Kermits replica! I've drooled on that more than once but I never really took photos, I think I have 2 from all the times I visited his place. They all help for sure. Kermit sure has a nice toy box :).
At Gary, Thanks! Like you, I have all the kits but one at a time is the only way to maintain sanity. They are great models but they take almost as much effort as an R/C! Then again that is what makes them so fun.

At Josh, where is your Golden Age Group? I'm still learning my way around but I'd love to participate.

All the best to everyone and thanks for tuning in! Sorry I didn't know it would link it so literally, new fangled websites 🙂