Subject: Re: Article from Jerry Hawhee (Old Blind Dog)
From: "Submissions for ARC" <[email-masked]>
To: "Jerald Thomas Hawhee" <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 15 Mar 2007 14:16:22 -0700

Hi,
I just wanted to let you know your article went on ARC today.  Thanks again for sending it in.

Steve Bamford
Aircraft Resource Center
http://www.aircraftresourcecenter.com

Live like there is no tomorrow;
Love like you've never been hurt.
Work like you don't need the money.
Dance like nobody's watching.
Sing like nobody's listening.
Live like it's Heaven on Earth.

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Jerald Thomas Hawhee 
  To: [email-masked] 
  Sent: Sunday, March 11, 2007 12:52 PM
  Subject: Article from Jerry Hawhee (Old Blind Dog)

  Gallery Template #03

  Academy 1/72 T-6 Texan

  converted to a US Navy SNJ-5 C 

  by Jerry Hawhee (Old Blind Dog)
  --------------------

        Steve Bamford will insert full sized version of photo 01.jpg here  

  This is the excellent Academy 1/72 T-6 G Texan kit built as a US Navy SNJ-5 C operating from the USS Wasp circa 1950. I'd originally set out to build a USAF T-6, but several serious "decal malfunctions" ultimately convinced me to go with the much simpler Navy markings. The actual "conversion" was fairly simple; all I did was sand off the molded-in base for the radio "hump" behind the cockpit and omit the port-side radiator scoop. Some additional sanding and re-scribing (especially of the panel with the molded-in outline for the radiator scoop) would have given me a more accurate model, but by the time I realized this I'd managed to apply one of the best paint jobs I've ever done, and sometimes you just don't mess with success! 

  Other than the cosmetic modifications for the SNJ and a pair of Eduard photo-etch seatbelts (sourced from a couple unused Zoom sets), the kit was built entirely out of the box; it is superbly engineered and goes together with no major fit issues. I had to fill one small gap at the starboard wing root using Tamiya basic putty and a Q-Tip soaked in Isopropyl. After sanding off the radio hump I found it necessary to fill the fuselage seams with CA and accelerator smoothed out with Flex-i-files, but otherwise the building went without any major glitches.    

  My references for this particular plane show no external radio masts or antennae. While many contemporary SNJ-5s had the tall mast ahead of the windscreen and a smaller whip antenna on the fuselage spine directly behind the cockpit, I opted to leave these off for the sake of a clean build.  

   

  Painting

  I used a number of different paints and techniques to complete this model; hand-brushing Polly Scale US Interior Green, US Olive Drab and Engine Black (from the PS Railroad Colors line) for the cockpit and interior with Tamiya Flat Aluminum and Gunze Steel dry-brushed highlights. I applied Model Master Acryl Gunmetal and Tamiya Metallic Gray to the engine and dry-brushed with Citadel Chainmail. Bare Metal Foil was used for the (rather poorly defined) main wheels. 

  The natural metal finish for the exterior was achieved by airbrushing Citadel Mithril Silver. This is the absolute best acrylic metallic paint I have ever used (and I've tried just about every technique there is for doing NMFs!); it sprays beautifully, cures hard as nails, can be buffed and masked with no "pull-up" issues, requires no additional gloss coat for decaling, and looks realistic! (Thanks must go here to Kevin "Smithery" Smith for suggesting this wonderful paint in the ARC Tools n Tips forum). 

  I masked the cockpit and wheel wells with bits of wet paper towel and a little Tamiya masking tape, then applied a couple thin coats of Tamiya Gray Primer from a rattle can (priming is absolutely essential when using Citadel acrylic metallics  as I learned from bitter experience!)  I then sanded out any surface imperfections with 1800 and 2400 grit Micromesh abrasive cloths. I thinned the Mithril Silver with Tamiya X-20 A thinner at a ratio of 70 per cent thinner to 30 per cent paint and sprayed three thin coats at approximately 12 PSI. After the paint had dried I buffed it out with SnJ Aluminum Powder for a more realistic sheen.  

  Once the Mithril Silver was buffed out and thoroughly cured, Tamiya masking tape was used to define the area for the anti-glare panel ahead of the windscreen. I sprayed several thin coats of Tamiya Olive Drab, trying my best to avoid over-spray. Hindsight being 20/20, I would highly recommend spraying at least three (and possibly four or five) coats, as it has a tendency to chip off rather easily, revealing the Mithril Silver below. 

  Masking the Greenhouse

  I treated the three-part greenhouse canopy as a model in its own right; taking a day to mask and paint it with as much care and precision as possible. I used the excellent Eduard Kabuki-tape die-cut mask for this project and was quite pleased with the results. To hold the clear parts still while I worked and make it easier to see contrast between the "glass" and the molded-in canopy framing, I first filled each part with a "loaf" of poster putty (a Blue Tac knock-off in this case), using an X-Acto blade to trim it at the edges so no putty overlapped the actual areas to be painted (this also provides a built-in "mask" for the canopy interior). I then mounted the parts on my "third hand" device, simply impaling the claw into the putty. This allowed me to use both hands with a tweezers and X-Acto blade to get the pieces of mask into place more accurately. 

  Once the canopy and windscreen were masked, I mounted the pieces on Q-Tip stems (with the "buds" cut-off at both ends) bent to convenient angles and inserted into holes in my Tamiya spray stand. I airbrushed two coats of Polly Scale US Interior Green, following this with three light coats of Mithril Silver (left unbuffed for contrast). Once thoroughly dry, and still filled with poster putty, I carefully removed the masking. I removed the poster-putty loaves and cleaned the greenhouse interior with some Novus #2 as the putty left a slight residue. I waited until all else was complete to add the canopy to the model.  

  Decals

  I'd specifically purchased a set of Carpena decals (from Portugal) for this build; the sheet included markings for two USAF T-6s, as well as two US Navy SNJ-5s and one USMC bird, I practiced with these decals (using the brand-name and sheet title) on some scrap kits which I'd first painted with Citadel Mithril Silver. Unfortunately, I didn't experiment quite enough, and found out too late that there are several things you should NEVER do with Carpena decals! 

  Some of the larger decals tended to break apart on application. I tried remedying this with a coat of Microscale Liquid Decal Film, but this made the decals too rigid, and no amount of Micro Sol would force them to settle down. Dipping the separated decals into a bath of Future didn't help either; the decals remained just as rigid as before and the Future seemed not to agree very well with the Citadel paint. Let's just say I ended up stripping three sets of decals off this plane and had to start over from scratch twice. 

  Finally I got smart and opted for the simple, spare US Navy markings, borrowing the Stars and Bars from a Superscale F-86 sheet, using only the "Navy" and specific ID markings from the Carpena set. I thinned down the aft step on the port side as one of the Stars and Bars went directly over it and I felt it would settle down more easily (and not really be noticeable anyway). This time all the decals went on without any fuss; I even ended up using some of Academy's awful kit-supplied decals for the black step-ways on the wing-roots and, amazingly, they turned out fairly well. 

  Conclusion 

  Every build is a learning experience. Often times you're forced to measure failure against knowledge gained, chalk up the FUBARed finish or ruined decals to another step on the learning curve, hoping you can apply its lessons to future successes. It's nice, every once in a while, in spite of difficulties to get it right while still having fun! I had a lot of fun building this model, and I hope you enjoy seeing it here!

  This is my first article on ARC and I'd like to mark the occasion by acknowledging the fantastic resource it truly is; I am always impressed by the great depth of knowledge here and the patient willingness of so many to offer their wisdom and advice; I know I've personally benefited from it many times, and have become a much better modeler (often in spite of myself!) because of it. Kudos and thanks to you, Steve Bamford, for this wonderful site; and thanks to all the great guys on the ARC forums! 

  Jerry (Old Blind Dog) [email-masked] 

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         Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 02.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 02.jpg   Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 03.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 03.jpg  

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