[Epapazian]

One of the hardest things for a modeler to do is to create a worn look on his or her creations. I've been using some of my twelve year old solid plastic models of Japanese fighter planes to practice on, with particular emphasis on the chipped paint look. Unlike some modelers, who use elaborate and sometimes risky---for the underlying paint scheme ---methods to obtain this effect, I have been using a very sharply pointed brush which I fuzzed over slightly at the tip. The procedure is fairly simple. I pat down a bit of diluted aluminum paint in the appropriate location, then gently press down on it with a broader tipped brush and make adjustments, where needed, using a separate brush dipped lightly in paint thinner. Then there is more patting, a bit more paint thinner is applied and after a while I get a fairly decent chipped paint look. I'm not sure that these pictures do the process justice but have a look and see what you think.

[Epapazian]

[FormerViperDriver]

Even though I tend to prefer my models "factory fresh," I must say this looks really, really good. Something to think about...

What brand models are these, and what scale?

FVD

[Cruver Collecter]

You really do put out some nice looking work.

[Epapazian]

Originally Posted by FormerViperDriver

Even though I tend to prefer my models "factory fresh," I must say this looks really, really good. Something to think about...

What brand models are these, and what scale?

FVD

They are solid plastic castings I had made about a dozen years ago, using engraved "master models" and rubber molds. They were 1:72 scale and depicted the planes as if in flight, hence the absence of props, Otherwise, they included a lot of detail and were far more accurate than the old WW II recognition models as you can see in the pictures. I gave up on this project when diecast products from Corgi, Matchbox, Armour and Dragon appeared on the scene for many reasons. First, diecast models were much cheaper than my custom-made castings. Second, Canopies, turrets, windows, etc, look far more realistic when rendered properly as part of a diecast model. Third, I preferred the weight of metal to plastic. I gave the molds to a small company in Texas, and I doubt that they have stood the rigors of age as they tend to dry out and grow brittle. However I retained a number of castings of each plane and occasionally paint these in an interesting scheme. At present I have representatives of about 140 different planes done in this manner in my collection, including many where I have multiple copies. Pictures of many of these have appeared in various threads I have started on this forum in the past few months.

[hworth18]

These look really good Epapazian, can the planes be cast in resin??? They would be neat to paint in multiple schemes or in full squadron markings.. Is it possible to get raw catings and could you post pics of what they look like??

[Epapazian]

Originally Posted by hworth18

These look really good Epapazian, can the planes be cast in resin??? They would be neat to paint in multiple schemes or in full squadron markings.. Is it possible to get raw catings and could you post pics of what they look like??

That's one reason why I made the molds in the pre-diecast era. As I mentioned, I donated my molds to a small Texas company, whose owner passed on. A successor company, Collector's Airmodel Company, located in Fort Worth still sells castings (or totally detailed models) using the original molds, although I would be concerned about the quality of the castings since the molds have aged considerably. Also, they charge very high prices relative to diecast. The following few pages contain pictures of a few "unpainted" castings. Actually the resin used had a woodish brown color so these were sprayed with gray primer.

A few comments are in order. Typically the main fuselage, wings and tail--providing it was a single tail fin configuration--- were cast as one piece. If the tail involved two tail fins, these were cast in separate molds and the fins glued on. The same procedure applied to upper wings for biplanes, floats for sea planes, fixed main wheels as for the JU-87, etc. Aslo, other parts, such as spinners, antennae, wing guns, tail wheels, etc were dealt with via small part molds or the use of brass rods or wire. The castings, themselves needed prepping to fill in small air holes or nicks, plus careful sanding in key areas where the mold left unwanted lines--like the place where the top half of the fuselage met the bottom half.

If you feel venturesome look these people up on the Internet and check out their "catalog" for the "Experts Class" line. You will see many planes not done yet in diecast on that list. If you wish to try one PM me and I can fill you in on the quality of the original mold, problems to watch out for, etc. Anyway here are a few pictures.

[Epapazian]

[hworth18]

Thanks for the pics and the intel...
You don't have any "extra" castings you'd be willing to part with do you??

[Epapazian]

Originally Posted by hworth18

Thanks for the pics and the intel...
You don't have any "extra" castings you'd be willing to part with do you??

I might. Let me give that some thought. By the way are there any planes that are of particular interest to you in the WW II era?