Moving some projects through the paint booth

I had a bit of uninterrupted free time this evening so I decided to make a second stab at some airbrushing. The brush still seems to be behaving itself, though I did notice some moments of sputtering and difficulty in moving paint through the brush. Enough to get color coats on the two Eurofighters, the XB-47, and a Ju-87 prop to help move that project along.

I continue to find the Eurofighters frustrating. More issues with fit and tons of flash, which I don't remember encountering on my earlier Revell 4317 pressings. Even the cockpit canopy had to get some careful scraping to rid itself of flash and uneven mating surfaces. That Hasegawa kit, even at $38.50, is looking better all the time. If I do any more Typhoons in the near future, it will likely be the two twin-seater kits I have left over from when they first came out (and these, I believe, are the Italeri kits reboxed, so at least I know what I'm in for). I have decals for a German special scheme that came with an early book on the type, and have a what-if scheme planned for the other trainer. More as that develops.

Even today, I only was able to get about half the items in the paint queue sprayed before the upper back started telling me it was time to head back upstairs and wish I still owned a jacuzzi. The Hurricanes and Spitfires will have to wait for a day or two. By then I will certainly have other items to work on as well.

Prior to this paint session, most of my construction efforts were pointed toward the Eurofighters and XB-47. The Platz kit is an excellent bit of work; everything fit perfectly. Even the bomb bay doors, which I decided to close, fit like a dream once I trimmed off the hinge tabs. Not every kit is like that.

I did get a start  on the elderly MPM kit of the Northrop XP-56 Black Bullet, one that has been on the back burner for a while now. Just the cockpit so far. I've also got a pre-Hornby Airfix Tucano assembled and waiting for black paint. It will be carrying a special scheme from the same sheet that the Battle of Britain Eurofighter markings are coming from.

My personal favorite part of the process is the decal stage. Not because I do it particularly well, but because that is where the model really starts to come together. I spent a while last night putting the markings on a desert snake Stuka from a Tally Ho sheet. The Czechs love to make decals that are super thin, but they do have a tendency to curl if you're not careful. No need to ask how I know that. I still feel a little rusty on basic techniques after my long break, so none of the current crop are going to be award winners, but that is not my goal in any case. But I should be able to push a couple of items into the completed column before much longer. One is part of my ordnance project, and barely counts as a completion, but it has been long enough that I will take whatever I can get.

Below are shots of tonight's airbrush victims.