Kingfisher build

Живко Джаков
A brave undertaking. This matrix is older than me. Follow you.

Finn
Will too

J35J
Impressive work so far with that old kit.👏🏼 Great to follow your progress!👍🏻

NLAWScametovisit
Thank you!

Nicolas
Joining the fun.

NLAWScametovisit
Cabin interior: I think the best plan is going to be the cut out between 9 and 10 on Pic 45, the radio box looks a lot more interesting to me, but because of the width of the piece, it will have to sit slightly farther forward in the space, so the radio box needs to be razor sawed roughly in half width-wise to sit flush against the front bulkhead of the space. I'm going to use one of the concave punched out circles (you can see one top center of pic 45) to create the gunner's seat, which I'm picturing suspended below the hole using 4 pieces of psb tubes in like a prism shape? Does that make sense? Like an inverted pyramid with the tip cut off? Anyway, im probably not going to do the other cutouts, because there's not a lot of room in the space for it. Also, thanks for following along on this adventure everyone!

Живко Джаков
You can look here if you haven't already: navsource.org/archives/01/57k1.htm

NLAWScametovisit
oh nice!

NLAWScametovisit
A few thoughts and updates (and please feel free to give any feedback or insights, as I am definitely still learning!)
1) what I thought what was a hideous giant ejector mark on the pilot seat was actually literally the only detail on the thing that they bothered putting in, so retroactively my terrible filling putty job was actually a brilliant weathering and detailing move.
2) the rear cabin just isn't quite long enough with the way the hull is molded (flat bulkhead separates the front from the back in the mold) and I'm going to have to drill it out so it's more realistic and can fit all the radio components, so it's a good thing I detailed so much of the cockpit behind the seat!
3) one wing does not sit flush with the wing root (some people are saying this is because I tried to jam the left wing in the right wing root at first but shut up you're not my dad) and I'm going to have to drill some sort of support struts or pins into the joining area. I'm also going to have to confirm the actual angle the wing sits at.

Villiers de Vos
Off to a good start. Especially on Mr. Pilot in his tiny office.

NLAWScametovisit
It feels extremely weird and wrong to put the wings on before the main fuselage is joined, but I've spent a long time and I can't figure out how else I would be able to reenforce the internals of the wing root, so wings go on first, let the putty dry, sand it down, remove the pink gum and replace with a heavy dose of sprue goo and then let that set to keep the wing stable before any hull joining can begin.

NLAWScametovisit
actually, instead of sanding down all that putty on the outside, I was advised to use mr. leveling thinner and a q tip to remove the excess putty without damaging any more detail from sanding.

Bas Tonn
Must read

NLAWScametovisit
Thank you for the follows and recommendations everyone! I hope my blend of childlike enthusiasm and jaded sarcasm isn't too offputting!

NLAWScametovisit
Interiors are fully framed, with only little bits of detailing left!

Живко Джаков
Picture 58? Aren't the wings... [img1]

NLAWScametovisit
Oh noooo!!!! Hmm... I could technically cut the wings off and reposition them, but that might be slightly beyond my technical ability at this point. Any recommendations?

David Taylor
Once you start to scratch the itch gets worse.

NLAWScametovisit
true. im actually not too bothered by the angle... might just leave it.

Живко Джаков
First, I had made the same mistake. But I used acrylic filler putty and easily separated them to adjust. Second, the purpose of models is to please us. If that's the way you like it, I don't see why you need to correct it.

NLAWScametovisit
I like how you think! I'll take a look at it when I get home this evening and see if the wings call to me.

NLAWScametovisit
Why is yellow such a difficult color to paint with?

NLAWScametovisit
How do we all feel about the wiring on the front of the engine?

Живко Джаков
They look good.

NLAWScametovisit
First layers of interior green going onto the fuselage!!!

David Taylor
poor pilot(pic 61).Must have comitted treason.

NLAWScametovisit
LMAO

NLAWScametovisit
Interior assembly begin and an actual plane is starting to come together!

NLAWScametovisit
Main float has been mounted!!

NLAWScametovisit
Wingtip floats are mounted! As much as I struggle with mounting little finicky rigging, I also love mounting little finicky rigging!

Lochsa River
the struts from the fuselage to the big float are not thick as the other struts but are basically just wires....

here is a link: airandspace.si.edu/c..er/nasm_A19610106000

NLAWScametovisit
Good catch! I'll replace it with rigging wire

NLAWScametovisit
Any advice for fixing poorly molded canopy parts? They barely fit together

Tony May
I figured that might be a problem with this oldie so I picked up the Falcon canopy set. After putting all that work into the "office" I'm sure you'll wanna be able to see it all still? Rigging wire is always a good call when it comes to the delicate looking cables on so many of these older aircraft. It's just part of their charm~ I wish someone actually made incredibly fine spun steel or brass cable for the One True Scale, wouldn't that be neat?! Sure I'd probably have to use a magnifying glass to REALLY see it but I'd know it was there & I'm sure from certain angles it'd show up ... probably?

I took the easy way out on detailing the interior by picking up the White Ensign Models PE set & BARELY got my hands on an Engines & Things R-985 Wasp Jr before they folded up their tent for the last time. You're a lucky dog for finding those True Details Radio Faces! I'd have wanted to stock up on a small pile of those as they could flesh out any number of builds... The only other thing they have in this scale, for radio stuff, is German WW2 & one British radio station... Now, it's not to say I've never done a scratch built interior on a Kingfisher, I did one years ago on the Revell/Lindberg kit. She didn't turn out too bad either! Unfortunately I wasn't into vac canopies at the time & with a lack of an airbrush I wound up brush painting the tricolor Naval color scheme; It looked great right up until I painted her. 😉

I still want the Nautilus Models Trolley for the Airfix project ahead (& another for my Hasegawa SOC-3 Floatplane project); But it's on hold at least for another month or two. Seriously, way too many irons in the fire right now.

By the way how are you interpreting the colors of Lt. Burns aircraft? I'm not sure how accurate the colors are on this Print Scale decal sheet are but it shows his Kingfisher as anything but standard; Vought OS2U Kingfisher (Print Scale 72-122, 1:72)

Personally I think that it's Blue Gray over Light Gray, only that the Blue Gray has faded badly when compared to the float it had been fitted with when the source photo was taken. Penny for your thoughts?

NLAWScametovisit
Tony thanks for the support! I got really lucky with those radio faces, just happened to see some on ebay for a really good price. I was really shocked to see how limited the options for detailing at this scale are. In terms of the paint interpretation, that is an extremely good question. Honestly, i hadn't even been considering the paint that closely since I didn't have an airbrush until now. I think I'm going to reach out to a friend at navy history command (or whatever it's called now) and really pick their brain about it. But honestly, it's also a short day at work (gotta love mandatory training days) so I might just do an unnatural deep dive into it today.

NLAWScametovisit
Just ordered a pair of ANCIENT falcon canopies off ebay, cuz they were the only navy sets I could find. Praying that they're the right ones. Either way, about to have one set spare.

Tony May
No worries & yes, you're right, you got lucky with those radio faces. I'd like to see True Details (Squadron) reproduce this set as 3D printed decals! I haven't tried any 3D printed decals yet but I hear good things & definitely have some on the old wish list. 😉

There used to be a lot more general details for 1/72 models. Aeroclub, Model Technologies, Airwaves (they're still around but often between production runs,) Extratech, Engines & Things were all modelers' best friends. Eduard occasionally makes some nice general detail sets for this scale too, their Wire Stretchers & Control Horns is a good thing to have on hand if you plan to build any aircraft heavy with external bracing/control cables. PART does one as well & it's about half the price; Plus you never have to worry about them suddenly discontinuing one set or the other, unlike Eduard. (My one & only gripe about the company.)

I'm in a similar position to you regarding the airbrush. I have not yet obtained my airbrush/air compressor/moisture trap set. I had one for a few years but I'd only ever gotten the chance to experiment with it. It never worked out so I focused on other kits while trying to troubleshoot what the problem might've been. In early 2013 my home was burglarized & among the items that disappeared was my compressor rig. It wasn't until fairly recently that I learned that ALL of my problems with the airbrush were likely the result of a faulty, cheap, airbrush. (I'd never tried to pass paint through it, just ordinary tap water & all I managed to do is send a jet of water up to the ceiling above my kitchen sink from the paint cup. I need to set all of my plans for procurement in June or July aside to pick up a new rig. It's prime balcony airbrushing season!

The canopy set you added to this project is the same one that I picked up on eBay & the canopy for the Kingfisher is designed specifically for the Airfix kit. If you look at the instructions it also gives you a good profile view of how to position the canopies to open it up should you desire to do so. I'd like to open up the back seat on mine but then I worry about the dreaded "interior dust." I don't have one of those micro vacuums & I'm sure that thing would be able to tear up some of the photo-etch, wires & styrene over time! Anyway buying two is probably a good idea anyway, if they're both this same set, that way if you aren't used to vac canopies, you'll have a spare.

Falcon is actually still around & a lot of the sets floating around eBay are actually quite new even though a lot of the kits the canopies are designed for are pretty outdated. I'll be able to get some pretty good distance out of this one set. Besides just the Airfix OS2U Kingfisher, I also need it for the Heller SBC Helldiver, the Hasegawa SOC Seagull & Airfix TBD Devastator. I'll still have to spring for another of these sets or luck into a partial to replace the canopy on my wheeled SOC Seagull.

NLAWScametovisit
Went with this lighter bluegray for the main color after looking at some paintings of Burns' Kingfisher found on the USS North Carolina website.

NLAWScametovisit
Detailing with tamiya sea blue. I really started out trying to match Burns' aircraft at Truk, but honestly, the dark/light/dark/white almost dolphin or whale camo scheme just kept calling to me. I think I succeeded in visualizing something similar.

NLAWScametovisit
As this project begins to wind down, i'm reflecting on a few lessons learned. One takeaway is the importance of puttying and sanding, and that its ok to be a little more heavy handed with it. Theres definitely some open seams and harsh angles visible (especially on the top of the fuselage) that I regret not taking more time to fill and sand down. Of course, maybe I'll just do it now and then repaint those areas...

NLAWScametovisit
As the finishing touches go on, I want to thank everyone who followed along, supported, encouraged and gave suggestions for this model. You guys are amazing!

gorby
Nice result.

Tony May
You're the modeler behind this Kingfisher build, not us. We can all armchair quarterback just the same as anyone else. All the work you did, the lessons you've learned & this pretty little blue bird for the shelf are all thanks to your efforts! In fact, I should be thanking you! Watching your build gave me some important pointers to watch out for when I do start my MPC Kingfisher.

First is that I'll need to watch the wing dihedral. Second is that I think I'll want to drop the flaps, turn the rudder a bit & hang the elevators to make it a little more dynamic. Looking around at photos I see many of them on their beaching gear with such an appearance. Those on the catapults sometimes have the flaps lowered but it seems like all the other controls are set to neutral. (Maybe locked?) Seeing your remarkable work on the interior also reminded me to have my own sheet styrene ready to go, even though I have PE for it, I'm sure there were areas neglected by it. I still have my notes from when I built that Revell boxed Lindberg kit so that will help to cover my bases. (I forgot I hadn't even documented that one here on Scalemates; All that was documented was my quick-build early teen efforts with an actual Lindberg kit!)

Another reminder is that I still haven't purchased a Gaspatch M1919 .30 Cal set for this kit which I will definitely have to rectify before I start the project. (I don't think there are any better resin 1/72 MGs of this type from any other brand on the market.)

David Taylor
Nice one.

Villiers de Vos
Very nice work.

Nicolas
Nice result.