Hobby Craft Sopwith Camel

[Nigel Jackson]

Lovely work, Tug, and I can't wait to see the wood grain effect.

Best wishes
Nigel

[uncletony]

I always use Alclad grey primer first -

Then you should have no problem, that stuff bites nicely. It's become my go-to primer too.  (I used to favor Tamiya Rattle can surface primer but it's kind of wasteful..)

[Suffolk Lad]

Hello again 

Bo - I've used Alclad for some time now and prefer it to all others. I've never had it lift and it gives a good smooth coat especially if 'wiped over' with some Micro Mesh 6000 used wet

Things have been gradually progressing in other directions while the oil paint dries.....

I had to have two goes at this and am still not 100% happy with the result but for a first attempt I'll stick with it. I used Tamiya Deck Tan, darkened for the shading with Khaki Drab and lightened slightly with white for the tapes 


The finished result here does not look so defined nor stark in reality - those spar lines are actually quite indistinct


The roundels were masked and sprayed this afternoon. Tamiya Royal Blue, which though from the gloss range, thinned and sprayed lightly didn't gloss too much though the reflection makes the tapes look far too faded 


The fuselage has exercised my patience waiting for the oil to harden but I finally allowed myself a check today. Again for a first attempt I'm pleased with the result. As well as the parts I have been practising on small test pieces too and have thoroughly enjoyed the process. This was done with neat Burnt Sienna. It was only once experimenting that I found it's better to thin it slightly


This will get masked and Tamiya clear orange applied this week then I can begin to work on the inside


The struts were done with a mixture of Tamiya yellow and white followed by a mixture of Indian Yellow and Burnt Sienna oil varying the mixture slightly to give differing tones


Also tackled the prop and finished it off tonight with Tamiya Neutral Grey 'highlighted' with Light Sea Grey/White though once again the image does not convey the somewhat subtle shaded effect.


Well that's the current state of play - with luck I should be able to get a couple of days on it this coming week so back soon with another update

Thanks for looking in

Regards - Tug

[Pgtaylorart]

It's looking great, Tug! I especially like the wood textures. The color looks just right too, I'm not sure you need the clear orange by what I can see in the photos. But of course I haven't seen it in person, so only you can be the judge.

George

[RAGIII]

Outstanding work on the wing shading and struts! Really looking sharp!
RAGIII

[Des]

You have nailed the wood tones beautifully, and the wing shading is excellent.

Des.

[coyotemagic]

Outstanding paint work all 'round, Tug, especially the shading and wood tones.
Cheers,
Bud

[KitRookie37]

Hello gentlemen and ladies,
Ouch !!! Your upgrade and your paint are outstanding !! Bravo !!!!!
Best regards.
Alain.

[pietro]

Tug, your Camel is coming along nicely. I whole heartedly agree with your philosophy: if you can't see it, why bother. Put your efforts and energy where it counts! This is going to be a winner for sure!
Pietro

[lcarroll]

    Your wood work is about as good as it gets, Tug. Simply gorgeous, you've aced it!
Cheers,
Lance

[Suffolk Lad]

Hi 

George, RAG, Des, Bud, Alain, Pietro and Lance - thanks for these kind and encouraging remarks which are much appreciated.  As you might imagine I'm well pleased this first attempt at wood effect has passed muster.

George - I'm inclined to agree with you - I think the effect will be a bit too 'orange' so have decided to just coat it with clear - something I hope to do tomorrow as it appears this evening to be well dry and hardened through. Once that's done I can begin on the internals.

Pietro - I don't want to appear dismissive of those that do super detail the inside - far from it for in a small way I really have trod that path as well. It's just that as I've hit seventy time seems ever more precious so to spend it on making something that will be lost completely seems rather wasteful - so many potential projects but ever diminishing time 

Shopping today with Sue saw the inevitable detour to Hannants to pick up some paint (Tamiya) and some more Alclad primer. I spotted the 'new' (to me) Alclad 'slight sheen' Clear Coat so bought some to try. A member at the club last Monday said he'd found the Flat Coat to be very good. Also bought some Albion Alloys 0.1mm and 0.2 nickel silver rod for use as internal wires etc. Restocked on Khaki and Olive drab along with Deck Tan - didn't get any White as I knew I had a new jar in the drawer. Got that out this afternoon and having deposited two brushfuls into the airbrush cup promptly deposited the rest of the jar all over my lap - 'Oh Happy Days' - oh yes indeedy  Least it weren't over the model   

Spent some time masking up the wings to paint the topsides and the wrap over then pre-shaded with Khaki Drab


Don't want to appear to teach granny etc but does anyone else use kitchen foil for masking? Brilliant for 'filling in' between tapes and of course very malleable for moulding around awkward shapes when required


After the pre-shading a light coat of KD to lightly fill in followed by a quick swipe with Micro Mesh 6000 to smooth things out and highlight the high points a tad


This was followed by a layer of the same mix of KD and OD used for the fuse


Then a final highlight of the tapes and riblets with the mix lightened with some Yellow Green before a coat of Kleer (Future) to seal every thing in. The lighting accentuates the effect somewhat - it's a lot less in reality


That's about it for tonight - hope to get those top roundels on tomorrow and start back on the fuselage.

back soon

Regards - Tug

[Des]

You have done a superb job with the wings Tug, the final effect is brilliant.

Des.

[lcarroll]

Tug,
    Coming along beautifully, and I really like the foil masking idea, as you say it would mold around relief detail perfectly.

It's just that as I've hit seventy time seems ever more precious so to spend it on making something that will be lost completely seems rather wasteful - so many potential projects but ever diminishing time 

   I'm right there with you, Sir, having "hit" 71 and picked up the inevitable health "Thing" as well, however it's all about having fun with what we have, and so far, so good!
Cheers,
Lance

[RAGIII]

Beautiful work on the uppers Tug! The foil masking is a very clever Idea!
RAGIII

[radio]

Wonderful painting, Tug.
Cheers
Martin