Operation: Bloody Screw

[strobez]

I opted out of the last GB, but I can't pass up the opportunity to participate in the One-Week-Build.  It was probably the most fun I had in any GB so far even though my little Fiat G.91 didn't garner much attention amidst such distinguished competition.

Anyway, I decided to go a bit different way this time.  I've been having a lot of fun with my Tintin builds lately, but after the window debacle on the Peugeot 403 project I decided I needed to take a little break from that.  So this GB feels like the right place to start something that's been kicking around in my head for a bit... Area 88 based 1/144 "mini diorama" projects.  There are so many great scenes from the Area 88 manga, but I simply don't have the room to start a bunch of 1/72 scale dioramas.  1/144 though seems like the right fit for something like that.

So to kick it off I decided to go with a little scene I'm calling "Operation: Bloody Screw"... no snickers from the peanut gallery please! 

Early in the manga series there's a battle between the Area 88 mercenaries and "The Wolf Pack" mercenaries hired by the Anti-Government Forces (i.e. the "bad guys").  They come blazing in out of nowhere and attack using a complex arial maneuver that causes the victim to succumb to the massive nose bleed caused by the enormous G-Forces they endure (it makes more sense in the manga... no really).

So this build will try to replicate this dramatic 3-plane dive bomb maneuver.



The $2.50 1/144 Academy MiG-23 Flogger kits seemed like a very cost-effective resource.



And the low part count sounded like something that might make sense for a 1-week build... even if I'm building three of them simultaneously.



The main bodies went together quite easily but the OOB build doesn't even HAVE a cockpit, so I figured that at least a sparse one was necessary.  I'm going to try to fit a few tiny little pilots in there and the canopy is 3 feet thick in scale, so there's not a lot of work needed.



A little care in the gluing meant very little clean up or sanding was necessary, but I put a bit of putty on, just in case.



And just like that, they look like planes.  I made (and then filled) a gap around the nose cone in an attempt to turn a MiG-23 into a MiG-27.  A bit of filing and sanding and "good enough".



Since these are "in-flight" models, I boxed in the wheel wells.  Would've been nice if the kit came with any covering panels, but oh well.



Finally a bit of putty around the nose cones.  All in all, not bad for the first day's work.  6 more to go!

[The Rat]

So to kick it off I decided to go with a little scene I'm calling "Operation: Bloody Screw"... no snickers from the peanut gallery please! 

Snicker! 

[zenrat]

What, 1/72 not small enough for you?

[NARSES2]

Flippin' Ada, the man's doing a three aircraft formation !!!! 

[Steel Penguin]

 
well done so far,   and I look forward to seeing the finish, will you be adding the Area 88 unfortunate? ( just checked my few copys of the Viz release , and found out it was Greg).

[strobez]

No plans to include Greg and his A-4E Skyhawk in this build.  Besides, he's one of the few survivors of this terrifying arial combat tactic...

Anyway, I've been rolling along, almost too busy to snap some pics along the way.

I should have known that naming the project "Bloody Screw" was going to cause problems.  It seems a name like that demands a blood sacrifice, so I made mine while drilling open the air intake vents.  They're tiny, I have a very sharp knife and large gorilla sized hands... you know the story.



They look pretty good once they were glued in place and putty/sanded into submission.  The fit on this kit is a bit rough, but for $2 I expected that.  It does come with sufficient armament, though I'm not sure that is the proper way to store munitions.



Since this is an "in-flight" project, I actually need pilot figures (for the first time ever!).  Unfortunately, since this kit doesn't even have a hole for the cockpit, I had to look elsewhere.  1/144 pilots seem to be pretty scarce, but luckily my Lindberg B-1A Bomber comes equipped with two of them.  Of course I'll need them for that project... so...



Enter the magic silicone cloning chamber!  Now I have a whole family. Because this is a 1-week build I took a short cut and instead of making a two-part mold, I just dunked them into a 1-part mold and cut the hell out of it to extract them (and their friends).  It was a battlefield solution, and for 1/144 pilots it worked well enough, but it probably wasn't what I'd do for anything larger.



A bit of paint and we're ready for action. Since this is closed (thick) canopy, I deliberately chose the less well formed volunteers.  We'll save the pretty ones for in front of a crowd.



Now, finally for some paint.  I've had limited success at undercoat painting at 1/72 scale, so maybe it'll work better at 1/144? Probably not, but what the hell, every project is an attempt to get better, right?



I think it turned out alright.  I was trying to make the undercoat subtle.  I've seen way too many that are over done.  It was a challenge because I was only painting the grey underside for the first coat, but the black was still showing through on the sides where it will be covered by the cammo later.  That made the black I was covering a little darker by association.  Hopefully once both coats of surface paint are on, it'll work.  Fingers crossed.

[Steel Penguin]

looking very good so far 
I continue to watch expectantly

[strobez]

Thanks Steel Penguin! The top coat of paint is now on.  I was going for a subtle undercoat shading effect, but I pulled back a bit from my usual overly comprehensive painting technique because I've still got another camouflage coat to go.

Then there's one more quick coat for a few details, a top coat and decals.

I hope I make it.

[strobez]

Tape. Cut. Tape. Cut... bang head on table... Tape... Cut...




Well, I kinda screwed up the camouflage. I like it, but it's not quite right. But there's no going back now. Only forward!

[sandiego89]

...But there's no going back now. Only forward!

I know the feeling!  That should be the unofficial motto for these one week builds!  Looks good! 

[zenrat]

Per ardua ad astra.

[strobez]

Alright.  Done.  The last few laps took a bit longer than expected... mainly because I decided to make a game-time decision and add a couple of rocket fires that weren't in the original plan.  If I'd been planning on it, I would've filled the holes and sanded down the ejector pin marks, but oh well. A little creative photography with the missile's "good side" and good enough for a 1-week build.

The base is just an upside down coaster with a custom decal laid over it... and I threw in the Tamiya paint bottle reference pic for Kit...















This 1-week build comes to a close just in time too as I'm off for the next month on a 'round the world trip from Seoul to Rome to Athens to Toronto to Edmonton to Calgary to Vancouver and back to Seoul in mid/late July.  I'll be around... but mostly just in the "My stash grew" thread as I've already got a plan to hit up a model shop in Rome.

[NARSES2]

That does look good 

Enjoy your circumnavigation, I certainly enjoyed mine 

[Steel Penguin]

very nice Strobez.
and fit the comic well. 

[zenrat]

Good job.  I like the launching missiles.