SPA Modeler

I think you chipped that just enough. Any more would look like too much in my uninformed opinion. Way to go John, this is sensational.

Thanks for the comments guys!

speedgraflex wrote:Re camera—are you outputting jpgs or RAW to LR? I was wondering if there was an exposure compensation issue. Are you able to rollback to factory defaults? Re your daughter’s return—all the best to her and the rest of your family!

I'm outputting RAWs to Lightroom. Overnight, the camera developed two distinct problems. One is the inability to focus at close distances and if there is a lack of clear contrast. So things that I was able to take pictures of on my modeling desk suddenly weren't getting a focus confirmation. Secondly, the exposure went wacky. Depending on the lighting, the camera either over-exposes or under-exposes by around 2-3 full stops. I have to manually adjust exposure compensation to around +2 or -2 to get a balanced exposure. I restored to factory settings a couple of times and updated the camera's firmware but both had no effect on the two issues. I can still get pictures out of it but it is a hassle backing way out to get focus and adjusting the exposure comp every time.

Duke Maddog wrote:I think you chipped that just enough. Any more would look like too much in my uninformed opinion. Way to go John, this is sensational.

Subtle is better than overdone so yes, I agree with your assessment. Thanks Duke!

I've finally gotten to the point where I could install the wires to the landing gear door actuators from the central hydraulic junction. To make this manageable, I cut the actuating struts from the doors and installed them first. I didn't think I could've managed the wiring with the doors in the way. I think this was a good decision as wiring was fiddly enough with the landing gear wells still separate from the wing bottom.



The wheels wells have been given a flat coat and I've added some sponge chipping and enamel washes to add some color.




The main wheel wells were the last of the four major interior components that needed to be completed (cockpit, engine and tail wheel well being the others). I think the build will move a little faster now but first I have to go to Texas this weekend for a wedding.

More beautiful work, John. Speechless at the quality of this work.

Very nice work on the wiring! As for the chipping I think it's sufficient. A slight sanding on the protruding surfaces to fade out the edges of the chipped areas might be a step to think about. Not on those wheel wells anymore of course, they look great as they are. But I recently saw some weathering jobs, where chipping and sanding were combined with interesting results.

Wow, the detail!!

That’s tasty! I went waaaay off the reservation when I chipped my Corsair gear bays the last time. I wanted a look more like this. It’s great! Same wear pattern I’ve seen in my references, and it’s very well-done. It all looks like it belongs.

The weathering in the wheel wells looks perfect. Adding the wires makes it even better.

Thanks for the comment!

Before I left for my trip, I had glued the top and the bottom of the center wings together.


There were some tiny gaps around the cooler intakes that I filled with White Milliput.



The canvas side panels in the wheel wells were painted in a couple different shades of tan/buff.

Adding the different color for the canvas covers was a great move. Those gear bays look lovely.