Colors!
I have moved on to final painting and the application of decals. So far, I must say the process has been going well. I have not built many aircraft models, certainly not with the level of care I’ve applied to this particular model. I recall years ago building a model and painting struck me as unpleasant. One has to be patient and take care to understand how different paints work, the best brands, and, above all, let things dry - don’t rush.
I had a little issue applying a gloss coat to the model after painting was done, a necessary step in applying decals as you want the surface to be as smooth as possible. I ended up with a minor “orange peel” effect in certain areas, which is unfortunate. I learned this can be due to a variety of things, but I seem to have overcome the problem by increasing airbrush psi and adjusting the gloss-thinner mix in favor of the latter (ratio of 1:1.5 or so). I'm also hoping that another layer of gloss after the decals, followed by a dull coat, will help mitigate some of the problem. I initially used Tamiya X-22 and Mr. Color Leveling Thinner at a 1:1 ratio. That did not produce a smooth surface (the latter product is excellent with colors, however). When I used X-22 with X-20 Thinner, the results were much better. Interesting...
I’m using a combination of decals, HGW’s wet transfer decals for stencils and the stars-and-bars and Lifelike Decals for the markings specific to the subject (Mrs. Bonnie). I’ve not used wet transfer decals before, and they seemed to work pretty well. I’ve learned that using a softer or setter is best applied prior to placing the decal (this is, under the decal) as the film above seems not as porous as one might think. By the way, this is precisely what the instructions say. The issue is you need to be very careful because in some cases the setter/softner worked very quickly on the decal, not allowing for much fine tuning. Anyway, a bit of practice and all goes well. Note that on two occasions the removal of the top film 12 hours later did pull up some of the decal and a bit of paint (possibly an area that did not get enough gloss coat). The Lifelike Decals product is excellent - no problems there.
Interestingly, the Lifelike Decals, and some other sources, indicate that Mrs. Bonnie featured stars-and-bars with a lighter blue color than typical. I didn’t care for how this lighter blue color looked, so I decided to use the traditional marking with the darker blue. Indeed, there are a handful of color photos of Mrs. Bonnie, and I think the insignia look about the same as those of other aircraft. In any case, I’m taking some artistic license.
I also started on a few items that will be included in a diorama, a set of figures and a jeep. The former is from a company called ICM and the latter from Bronco. The jeep is 1/35, but seems ok up against the 1/32 P-51. Regardless, it’s fun to explore painting figures and ground vehicles, both new to me.
I can see the finish line!
