F8F-1 BearCat

[Gigatron]

Hey gang,

Here is Academy's 1/48 F8F-1 BearCat. I decided to build this bird the old fashioned way. All paint is brush painted, no aftermarket and no scratchbuilding. It's straight out of the box, including the god-awful decals(which ruined an otherwise perfect build).

The canopy is all handpainted without masks. I cheated a bit and used tape to make the anti-glare strip edges straight. The interior is all handpainted (which is why I'm not showing any pictures :lol ). The exterior is SnJ aluminium powder applied over bare plastic and buffed out.

Anyway, onto the pics.

As always, constructive criticisms are welcome.

Enjoy.

-Fred

 

[Smiling Demon]

Very good looking Bearcat!!thumbsup

 

[SingleSeat]

Hmm. I've never used that stuff (SnJ Aluminum Powder). Mind explaining how you apply it? Surface prep? Does it still rub off from the finished product?

 

[Gigatron]

Thanks, Kenny :cool. Doesn't look like there's much love for 'Nam era birds :lol.

SS, it's really easy to apply; just use a q-tip and a cotton rag. Dip the q-tip in the powder, rub it on the plastic, buff it out. No surface prep is necessary. I took this right off the sprue, trimmed the sprue connections and polished it up.

-Fred

 

[SingleSeat]

Very nice. I like the sheen you've achieved on the wing. Although, will fingerprints kill it quickly? How about putting it over putty? Do you clearcoat it or paint/weather on top of it?

 

[Rhett J Martin]

Puuurrrty! Lovin' the metal!!

 

[Gigatron]

Thanks, HotShot :cool

Very nice. I like the sheen you've achieved on the wing. Although, will fingerprints kill it quickly? How about putting it over putty? Do you clearcoat it or paint/weather on top of it?

You can apply the powder over putty or any type of filler. But like any other type of metallic finish, it will show any and every flaw.

Fingerprints are hit and miss. If your hands are clean, you'll only leave light prints which are easily buffed out. If your fingers are particularly oily, you'll leave heavier prints. If you do, use a little bit of rubbing alcohol on a q-tip (very little, as too much will remove the powder). Then add a little more powder and buff it out. But i wear cotton gloves if I'm going to be handling it a lot.

Never clearcoat a metallic finish, as you'll only end up dulling it. It would look like oxidized aluminium instead of the polished look you're going for.

-Fred

 

[RCB]

It looks really sharp. I am having trouble identifying the nose cowl art though. I really do love the Korean prop planes. Big fan of the F7F and F82.

What inspired the desire to do it the old fashioned way?

Not to go off topic, but I was rather sad when my 7 year old nephew saw me working on some models and had no idea what they were. My local wal-mart doesn't even have a model section any more. I don't want to head into the "back in my day" spiel, but I am only 32.

Well anyhow, I am pretty impressed for an "old fashioned" build up.

 

[Gigatron]

Thanks, RCB :thumbsup

This bird was part of VNAF, 1st fighter squadron, delivered may, 1956. The artwork is an eagle's head.

So, why did I do it old school? Well, since I used a q-tip to apply the metal finish, the only thing that needed painting was the cockpit and wheel bays. The wheel bays were so small, it didn't pay to fire up the airbrush and then have to clean it. Same thing with the cockpit; it was just easier and faster to hand paint it. Plus, I really need the practice with brush painting. I didn't order the masks for the canopy and to get them would have been close to $9 for shipping for $3 worth of tape. So I figured, what the heck, I already painted the interior, why not just do the canopy and be done with it.

Next thing I know, I built the whole thing the old fashioned way.

-Fred

 

[SurfingDoc]

Nice job on the reflective metal effect. The nose decal looks a bit off, but overall great job....