Tamiyas North American P-51D - Kitbash

Looking real good.

I believe the headers differ when the aircraft is used in different ways. Like, if it is on an aircraft carrier and is used for certain types of missions, or, if it is changed over to a non military plane.

I would check to see what each is for, if you want authenticity. It is not that important, just makes for a great story if you ever want to incorporate it into a diorama.

i figured since this plane went through a series of different engine changes in its lifetime, the exhausts would depict which engine it currently had in it but i may be wrong

i officially do not like canopies lol

alright here we go

got the canopy out of the tupperware container i had it stored in since i coated it with the future floor polish


using some "flower foam" i stick the part of the sprue into it so i can paint it easier


gonna use a bit of the blue for the front portion of the canopy


slowly ( and i still suck at it ) i paint the thin outer rim of the canopy


if i hold it over a white background , you can see how horrible it really is lol


my glue of choice for clear plastic parts


upper canopy mounted on the lower frame


while that dries i will do a bit of weathering on the plane
thinking i need a bit of gunfire residue on the wings so i grab some black oil paint


i use mineral spirits to thin it out just a bit, i still want this a bit thick for this application


a dab of paint behind each gun barrel


now grabbing a bit wider flat brush


i drag the paint in a straight back motion


how the effect looks on the topside

Yeah, canopies suck, there never seems to be enough of an edge to stop the brush from going over the line, and I always had problems with coverage in spots. I like the trick for the guns, I need to stash that little tip away for my next A-10!

Wow, looks great!

By the way, I believe the best way to make it so you don't see the mistakes on the canopy is to not put it over something white.

The weathering looks awesome! Are you going to add the exhaust marks from the headers, too?