ICM 1/32 AH-1G Cobra (early production)

[Guest]

That would be interesting, I may have to do a little more research in that case

[BarryW]

I have applied the final mist coats of matt varnish. There is still some pigment and metal powder weathering to do plus a couple of places where I need to touch up all before final fittings.

As a result of my clumsiness and using a building frame designed for conventional aircraft the model slipped of and I now have a rattle in the cockpit. I suspect that it’s one of the side armour plates come loose and I cannot really repair it because it was tricky enough to fit the canopy in the first place and to remove, correct the problem then replace the canopy won’t be easy and may cause more damage. I will not know the scale of the problem until I remove the masking later so fingers crossed.

Anyway I am really pleased with the paint finish. The combination of black basing, the use of two green shades with the lighter used in post shading, the black
panel line wash and finally the matt coat (which always changes the appearance beyond just matting it down) really worked particularly well.

[BarryW]

Well I didn’t hang around and removed the masking. Pleasingly there are no issues showing up from the work getting it into place, a satisfactory result as good as I hoped for.
However…. The rattle…..

to my surprise it is the rear seat back cushion that came away with seatbelts attached.



well with a little shaking around I managed to get it roughly into position. Not perfect but not a complete disaster. Consequently it is not worth taking the risk of removing the canopy to correct it. I am not happy about this of course and I will categorise this as a ‘flawed build’ which mean that it will be one of the first that I will cull from display. Buiding large scale models you cannot keep them all on the shelves and you need a criteria for thinning them to accommodate more builds. This is the case even with all the extra display space I now have.

It could have been worse….

next to my pigment work.

[Tim Marlow]

Bit of a bugger about the seat back Barry. Build looks good, especially the paint finish. Quite satin for a matt coat, though personally i prefer a semi matt finish on aircraft, it shows the lines better.

[Jim R]

Hi Barry
That seat back is one of those silly things which you will notice every time you look at the model but no one else will see it.
I agree - great paint job.
Jim

[adt70hk]

That is looking very good Barry, despite the seat issue.

Very well done.

Andrew

[BarryW]

I have done some final fittings and have some final touches to make when the Gator Grip holding the smaller lights has dried. That includes shaking the seat back into position as it fell out when attaching underside ‘bits’.

I will do a completed thread as soon as I can which may be Monday or even Tuesday.

[BarryW]

Just some final thoughts on the build.

it is particularly disappointing about that seat because I think that the camo job is one of the best I have done with a plain single colour scheme, creating depth and interest, rivalled by just two builds a Tamiya OD Mustang and the ICM I-16.

The final touch was dry brushing with Uschi Metal Powders. I just love this product which comes in three types, Chrome,Iron and Steel effect. Dry brushed onto the surface or does a couple of things. It makes the detail pop and creates a real ‘painted metal’ look, dry brushing gives the surfacemore of a worn appearance rather than chipped, but, using a cocktail stick to rub it onto the surface you can also create chips in the paint as well. If you have not tried it, give it a go, it is really easy to use an so versatile.

As for the kit, I highly recommend it. Yes the canopy was a pain but, overall it’s a great build

[adt70hk]

Thanks Barry for your final thoughts. I really do like it.

I had forgotten about the Uschi Metal Powders. I remember you mentioning them before in another thread and so have added them to the ever-growing list of things to think about getting.

Thanks again.

ATB.

Andrew

[stillp]

Looks great Barry, shame about the seat, but it could have been so much worse!
Pete

[outrunner]

Nice build Barry, pity about the seat back coming loose but who would really notice just looking at it. I agree with you about the Uschi powders, I have the steel which is great for the shiny bits like bucket teeth, dozer blades, etc.


Andy.