Tag: camouflage
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Douglas Dakota – Part Three – If They’re Not Shooting At You…Paint

There are many reasons for camouflage paint schemes on aircraft: a. A disrupted earthen top pattern prevents the enemy from seeing the plane from above while it is parked on the ground. b. A solid blue or white top pattern can also prevent the enemy from seeing it from above when it flies over water…
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Macchi MC.200 Saetta – Part Two – A or B?

The usual procedure for my painting of camouflaged aircraft up until now has been: a. Smooth and fill seams and make the basic airframe ready. Prime with a Tamiya spray can. b. Paint the solid underside colour. c. Cover this with tape and occasionally with Maskol. d. Paint the lighter of the top colours. e.…
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Ticking Them Off

Ticking them off is ticking me off. I mean the various means for producing camouflage paint schemes on model aircraft. Recently I tried the Silly Putty Snake method for making British A and B aircraft patterns. I had two pots of different brands of silly putty and had researched all the YouTube videos on how…
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The Only One Like It

If you are contemplating a big win in next year’s plastic modelling contest, I should get started now. Pop down to the hobby shop and pick up a totally exclusive, one-of-a-kind kit like a Mustang or Spitfire. And a packet of photoetched scale rivets for the detailing… There’s a fine point for the competitive modeller…
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Handley Page Hampden – Part Six – Ready For the Squadron

I am currently completing the Air Ministry paperwork preparatory to handing over the Handley Page Hampden to the RCAF. It is destined to be in a torpedo-bombing squadron in British Columbia. They have tried Bristol Beaufort torpedo bombers but cannot make them work. The RCAF requested a light sky grey underside as they do not…
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Handley Page Hampden – Part Three – Success Masquerading As Failure
Having overcome Part Two – the warp factor – I set myself the task of assembling the Hampden, and was pleasantly surprised by how well it cobbled together. The wing tabs were tight, but a little sanding loosened them and a little more sanding snugged the wing roots in close enough to the fuselage to…
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Lockheed P-38 – Part Five – The Wild Blue Yonder

What do you do when you discover that you are going the wrong way? If you are Douglas Corrigan you just keep on going and hope to hit Ireland eventually. If you are me, you stop and see if you can turn around. I stopped after I did some more research on the RAAF’s only…
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Impatience Is Better than No Patience At All

Hurry up and read this essay – I want to get on and write more. Come on, come on…move your eyes faster…Sheesh… And get on with that model. You’ve had it for over a week and it’s still not done. The box says it’s quick to build…and who are you to make the manufacturer look…
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Nakajima ‘ Kate ‘ – Part Five – Well, That Escalated Quickly…

It seems like just this morning I went out to the Little Workshop with a cup of coffee and looked at the bare grey plastic of the latest Airfix kit. Then I started to do this and that and suddenly it was 9:00 at night and there it was in camouflage. It shows the value…
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” Hey You! What’s The Small Idea? ” – F2A Three

If I were a spray painter on a full-size airplane I’d have no troubles spraying a fine line between colours. A few sheets of newspaper to screen off the overspray and away I’d go matching up the instructions. But I am working in 1:72 scale and I don’t think that my hand skills are such…
