F4U-1A Build

[Greif]

Hi all, I just finished a 1/48 scale Tamiya Corsair built to look like a Corsair that flew during mid-late 1943 in the Solomons.  The build is mostly oob with a bit of scratchbuilding on the engine and in the cockpit.  I wanted to try out the hair spray technique for the chipping, as Corsairs that flew off coral airstrips displayed very heavy chipping on the wings, forward fuselage and the prop due to coral dust.  I am mostly pleased with the way the chipping turned out and with the overall build,  I am currently considering building a diorama scene using PSP matting, a new engine waiting to be installed and - perhaps a palm tree.  I am also considering dropping the coin for the new Tamiya 1/32 F4U-1A Corsair as it is a beautiful bird.  I plan to make several posts, sort of like an abbreviated build log.   Comments and critiques are welcome as always.

First up "the Pit" and a couple of shots of the engine super detailing.

Ernest

[Greif]

Post two shows the undercoat of Alclad 2 aluminum sprayed on areas I plan to chip.  I like Alclad paints as the undercoat for chipping as once they are cured after a few hours they are very very tough.  I sprayed two light coats of hair spray right from the can, blow drying between coats to speed drying.  Once that was complete I sprayed the top coats of paint using Lifecolor paint.  As you can see in later photos, I went with the three color camo scheme.  I should note here that a sprayed both the hairspray and the top coats in an subsection format as one only has about two hours to work at chipping before the hairspray has mostly evaporated.  You can see the sub-assemblies together once a had finished the chipping process, which took roughly 4 hours from start to finish.  The last photo shows the model after decaling shortly before I sprayed the flat coat and began the fading process.

Ernest

[Greif]

Moving right along, the next few shots show the Corsair as it undergoes several different weathering techniques.  After spraying the matt coat, I used True Earth weathering agents with the airbrush to simulate fading of the paint.  I went fairly heavy with this, as my reference photos showed a lot of fading due to the SW Pacific sun.  After completing the fading process I highlighted the panel lines with a pin wash and added some oil, fuel and gunpowder stains.  The following photos show the overall view of the Corsair; close up shots will follow in the final post.

Ernest

[Greif]

This last post shows a few close ups of the model.  Not much to say here, so I'll let the pictures tell the tale.

Ernest

[OldNoob]

awesome work Greif

[SG]

I love it. Weathering's just perfect. Also, excellent choice of squadron, camo and markings. Nothing else to add except: another masterpiece Ernest, congrats!
SG

[Greif]

Thank you for the kind comments Old Noob and SG.  I hope to start a uboat project this coming spring; so I will have a build more in line with this site's interest.
Ernest

[Rokket]

Very nice indeed! I love the Corsair, and you've made her look real. I sold my unbuilt Trumpeter and hope one day to get the Tamiya 1:32. But I have waaaay too much ahead. Sigh. Anyway, she's great!