My 'personal' CMC Leopard - FINISHED

[PR19_Kit]

You can polish out the scratching Chris, but it's not easy on a small model without wrecking any surrounding paintwork you may have done. I use finer and finer wet-and-dry, down as far as 1600 grit, and then rub with a soft cloth and toothpaste, Finally finish of with the usual coat of Klear.

There are special polishing kits available to, with sanding cloths down to 12000 grit, but they feel just like a piece of chamois leather to me. They certainly work though.

[kitnut617]

All too late for me now Jim I'm afraid.

See below for the result, but at least it's white now.

If you get one of those wooden kebab sticks and cut an end to look like a flat screwdriver end (nice a sharp), you can carefully scrape the paint off. Using the wood minimizes the scratching of the clear part.

[PR19_Kit]

If you get one of those wooden kebab sticks and cut an end to look like a flat screwdriver end (nice a sharp), you can carefully scrape the paint off. Using the wood minimizes the scratching of the clear part.

That's exactly the plan too  once I've painted the rest if it. Oh yes, and decalled the other side too.

[chrisonord]

You can polish out the scratching Chris, but it's not easy on a small model without wrecking any surrounding paintwork you may have done. I use finer and finer wet-and-dry, down as far as 1600 grit, and then rub with a soft cloth and toothpaste, Finally finish of with the usual coat of Klear.

There are special polishing kits available to, with sanding cloths down to 12000 grit, but they feel just like a piece of chamois leather to me. They certainly work though.

Cheers Kit, I will look into doing that, as the canopy looks like it is now frosted glass 
Chris.

[NARSES2]

Yup, toothpaste, the origional paste style not the gel, is brilliant for polishing canopies. It really can work wonders as long as you just drift off whilst your doing it, take your time and let it work.

[Scotaidh]

Yup, toothpaste, the origional paste style not the gel, is brilliant for polishing canopies. It really can work wonders as long as you just drift off whilst your doing it, take your time and let it work.

Side note, not related to the topic in-hand - I've used toothpaste to polish the plastic covers on my car headlights.  Needs some elbow grease and patience, but it gets it done - clear as new, and a lot less $$ than the polishing kits available at your local car parts extortionists.   

Back to the model: my quibble is that the wings don't "look right" to me  - they're far too small, IMHO.  The term that leaps to my mind is "Flying Prostitute - no visible means of support."  If it were me, I think I'd invest in some extra wing area by installing a new leading edge about a 1/4" forward of the kit one.  That, or go for a blended body type of delta wing ...

I know, I know - you're building it as actually is, not as ... preferred, dare I say.

Evidently I'm a party of one thinking this, but there it is ... I'm a big believer in "If it looks right it is right."

[kitnut617]

You can polish out the scratching Chris, but it's not easy on a small model without wrecking any surrounding paintwork you may have done. I use finer and finer wet-and-dry, down as far as 1600 grit, and then rub with a soft cloth and toothpaste, Finally finish of with the usual coat of Klear.

There are special polishing kits available to, with sanding cloths down to 12000 grit, but they feel just like a piece of chamois leather to me. They certainly work though.

Cheers Kit, I will look into doing that, as the canopy looks like it is now frosted glass 
Chris.

You know what else works, ladies fingernail polishers. You can buy a block which has four different grits which all feel like they're as smooth as a baby's butt but are different, but they really can polish up canopies. And because the sanding surface is mounted on foam, it forms to the shape you're sanding. Plus you can slice off any amount you want to make smaller sanding blocks.

[PR19_Kit]

I know, I know - you're building it as actually is, not as ... preferred, dare I say.

Actually I'm not, not quite anyway, as I've added the winglets and the small dorsal fin.

[Martin H]

Back to the model: my quibble is that the wings don't "look right" to me  - they're far too small, IMHO.

I have regular access to the real thing, the wings realy are that small 

[PR19_Kit]

Back to the model: my quibble is that the wings don't "look right" to me  - they're far too small, IMHO.

I have regular access to the real thing, the wings realy are that small 

Yes indeed, I see it every time we're at the Midland Aviation Museum, and being that close to the lovely little thing was the main reason I chose it for my 'virtual air taxi' when I was 'flying' for Albion.

[Weaver]

Yes indeed, I see it every time we're at the Midland Aviation Museum, and being that close to the lovely little thing was the main reason I chose it for my 'virtual air taxi' when I was 'flying' for Albion.

By the way Kit, did you know that there's an Illuminati-style conspiracy theory based around a supposed group called 'A-Albionic'? Might make interesting back-story fodder....

[PR19_Kit]

Yes indeed, I see it every time we're at the Midland Aviation Museum, and being that close to the lovely little thing was the main reason I chose it for my 'virtual air taxi' when I was 'flying' for Albion.

By the way Kit, did you know that there's an Illuminati-style conspiracy theory based around a supposed group
called 'A-Albionic'? Might make interesting back-story fodder....

I didn't, but it sounds suitably 'under cover'. I'll have to tell my ex-Albion Airways buddies. 

I've got the decals on the port side and painted up the blue area on the tail. It'll need a bit of tidying yet, along with the cockpit windows of course.




And just to remind you how tiny the leopard is, here it is plonked on top of the Atlas. 

[Steel Penguin]

looking good Kit, and the pick with the Atlas, makes me think of all the "piggyback" schemes that ive seen for extending the ranges of smaller aircraft, 

[Weaver]

Sorry, got it slightly wrong. A-Albionic is the research group promoting a particular conspiracy theory, not the alleged conspirators themselves. Their theory is that the the 'real' history of the world is a conflict between the British Empire and The Vatican (in which all other players on the stage are puppets of one or the other), going back to Elizabethan times. That would still actually fit in kinda neatly with a covert Albion Airlines operation....

The Leopard looks like it could land on the Atlas, never mind take off from it....

[JayBee]

Piggy Back, nonsense.
Remember the James Bond film where he (Roger Moore) flew a Bede BD-jJ that had folding wings?
So you have a Leopard with folding wings, and it is inside the fuselage of the Atlas. It gets rolled to the very back of the rear ramp, the wings unfold and it is given a shove (a couple of Rock Apes would be enough) and away you go. Simples!