Procrastinating By Doing Another Kit
…and with the holidays having come and gone (and seemingly I now am including Ground Hog Day and Chinese New Year thus extending the traditional period up to the beginning of March) I have not made an entry in this journal. This activity is getting about as much attention from me as my model building. Oh, I have good excuses: there’s work, editing the IPMS chapter newsletter, and life in general. And I really don’t even know if there is anyone out there on the Ethernet reading this…
The P-47D for the Tuskegee Airmen display is still partially built and not painted. Yep, I’ve made no further progress whatsoever. Yikes, this model is due for turn in at the March 13 meeting of IPMS North Central Texas! I guess I need to get on the proverbial ball and get this finished. The P-51D for the IPMS 2005 National Convention is barely started.
I am happy to report that I did finish something. The San Antonio chapter held their model contest (ModelFiesta) on February 19. I completed a Hasegawa 1/72nd scale Daimler Mk.II – that’s a World War 2 British armored car for you readers not into armor fighting vehicles – just prior to leaving for that event. Actually, I had started this kit many, many moons ago. I had it built. I even scratchbuilt the antenna “platform” and a few other little parts on the turret I could make out in pictures but not provided by Hasegawa. I had painted this back a while ago using Gunze Sangyo middle stone but due to some marred paint areas I had selectively stripped off the paint for a re-do.
In building a nice model in a short period of time one must be very technically proficient. Otherwise one should take their time and carefully do each major step. Well, I am just a mediocre modeler so every build is an adventure with me. Obviously since I procrastinated until three nights before leaving for the contest to finish I did not take my time. You guessed it; everything went wrong.
Three nights before leaving: I finished repainting. Just before going to bed I checked on it. To my dismay I discovered I had picked up and used Gunze Sangyo British khaki paint to repaint the stripped areas. So now what to do? Do I strip off the paint and again repaint? Not me. Too much trouble and not enough time. I just went ahead and airbrushed the rest of the Daimler with the khaki. So what if I was now using the wrong color. I could cover that up with the weathering and the tarps and gear I’d hang on it. After all isn’t that the advantage of doing armor over aircraft and cars models – being able to hide one’s mistakes by putting junk on to cover it up?
Two nights prior: I airbrushed Future floor wax over the Daimler and then used a hairdryer on low setting to dry it. No, I didn’t melt the model. Using Humbrol enamel thinner – a very weak thinner that is good for applying washes - - and some brown oil paint I applied a wash. I over did it! But I’ll drybrush and apply some pastel chalk for weathering. That’ll take care of it! Nope. Now the Daimler looks very brown and is various shades randomly all over.
One night to go: I fiddle more with weathering and start to make tarps to hide my inadequacies on the armored car. I’m old and tired and have to get up at oh-dark-thirty to leave for San Antonio so I say to heck with it and put it away,
ModelFiesta XXIV: I entered it! How did I do? Well the last line in my FlakSheet (IPMS NCT newsletter) column is:
The P-47D for the Tuskegee Airmen display is still partially built and not painted. Yep, I’ve made no further progress whatsoever. Yikes, this model is due for turn in at the March 13 meeting of IPMS North Central Texas! I guess I need to get on the proverbial ball and get this finished. The P-51D for the IPMS 2005 National Convention is barely started.
I am happy to report that I did finish something. The San Antonio chapter held their model contest (ModelFiesta) on February 19. I completed a Hasegawa 1/72nd scale Daimler Mk.II – that’s a World War 2 British armored car for you readers not into armor fighting vehicles – just prior to leaving for that event. Actually, I had started this kit many, many moons ago. I had it built. I even scratchbuilt the antenna “platform” and a few other little parts on the turret I could make out in pictures but not provided by Hasegawa. I had painted this back a while ago using Gunze Sangyo middle stone but due to some marred paint areas I had selectively stripped off the paint for a re-do.
In building a nice model in a short period of time one must be very technically proficient. Otherwise one should take their time and carefully do each major step. Well, I am just a mediocre modeler so every build is an adventure with me. Obviously since I procrastinated until three nights before leaving for the contest to finish I did not take my time. You guessed it; everything went wrong.
Three nights before leaving: I finished repainting. Just before going to bed I checked on it. To my dismay I discovered I had picked up and used Gunze Sangyo British khaki paint to repaint the stripped areas. So now what to do? Do I strip off the paint and again repaint? Not me. Too much trouble and not enough time. I just went ahead and airbrushed the rest of the Daimler with the khaki. So what if I was now using the wrong color. I could cover that up with the weathering and the tarps and gear I’d hang on it. After all isn’t that the advantage of doing armor over aircraft and cars models – being able to hide one’s mistakes by putting junk on to cover it up?
Two nights prior: I airbrushed Future floor wax over the Daimler and then used a hairdryer on low setting to dry it. No, I didn’t melt the model. Using Humbrol enamel thinner – a very weak thinner that is good for applying washes - - and some brown oil paint I applied a wash. I over did it! But I’ll drybrush and apply some pastel chalk for weathering. That’ll take care of it! Nope. Now the Daimler looks very brown and is various shades randomly all over.
One night to go: I fiddle more with weathering and start to make tarps to hide my inadequacies on the armored car. I’m old and tired and have to get up at oh-dark-thirty to leave for San Antonio so I say to heck with it and put it away,
ModelFiesta XXIV: I entered it! How did I do? Well the last line in my FlakSheet (IPMS NCT newsletter) column is:
Always remember that it is better to have entered
a model contest and lost then to have collected stamps as a hobby
I certainly didn’t collect any stamps.
posted by the Mediocre Modeler | 7:21 AM
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