Small Scale Military Headquarters

Recently took some pics of my finished models after all these years. This one was finished back in January of 1998. Thanks for looking and hope you enjoy them.

Steve

This was a whole other project in itself. The tarmac was made using .020" sheet plastic. The joints between the ramp sections were all scribed. I used a 1/48th scale rule to get the ramp sections to scale plus, I measured the sections on our flightline to get an idea of what size they should roughly be. The concrete color was a special mix I came up with. I sprayed the entire ramp first then, masked off for the lines. Once the colors were finished I wet sanded the entire surface, to knock down the paint line ridge between the colors and the ramp. Some black wash was applied to all the joints and cracks and finally, 2 coats of flat applied. The ramp section is glued down to a piece of 3/4" MDF and the edging is cherry wood with 3 coats of semi - gloss clear. I sanded between each coat of clear as well. I think it came out really well.

Steve

A-10LOADER:

Really nice photos and model. Did you repaint your F-117 in black or just use the natural black?
I have a Tamiya 1/48 F-117 that's unassembled. Most, if not all, the reviews I've seen, the reviewers repainted their models and then added dull coat.

I sprayed it with gloss black to save a step for decalling. This way once the decals were finished I only had to spray the flat coat.

Steve

A10LOADER:

So why did you spray it first with gloss black and then add the flat coat instead of just using flat and skip the gloss?

I was looking at a professional review and he did the same thing you did with the gloss plus flat coats....I don't understand why 2 finishes (gloss plus flat) are better than one (flat).

Decals have to be applied to a glossy finish. This helps them conform to the surface better so you don't get any silvering in the decal. The final coat of flat seals everything in.

Steve

A-10LOADER:

Thanks for clearing that up.

Very nice job on the model and base. Excellent work, that kind of detail is a lot of work but looks so nice in the end.
If I can add my 2 cents. If you could get a super duper microscope and look at at flat finish paint job it would look like mountains and valleys. When a decal goes on to a surface like this it does not sit in all the crevices. When light reflects back where the decal isn't touching that's where the "silvering" effect comes in. A glossy finish is nice and smooth so the decal can lay completely down snug. After the decal has dried a coat of whatever finish ( gloss - flat) that is required for that particular model can be put on to seal the decal.

I airbrush on some Future before applying my decals.

Beautiful work Steve. The diorama base and model both look great!

Thank you, appreciate it. I'm glad you liked it. When the sun comes back out here I will take some shots of the underside of the jet.

Steve

Very nice work on the F-117, A-10 loader.

Showing some good modelling skills as well.

Thanks Snake, just wish I had more time to do it.

Steve

Some photos of the underside and the cockpit. This is the best I could do with the point and shoot. I have 5 SLR's but, no macro lenses. May have to look into one I guess.


Steve