time to attack the last major shape issue i'm going to do on this kit bash, the blisters on the nose cowl.
Pic #1: firstly is start out like i have always done and i wish the kit manufactures would have done, and that is with full sized three views of the blisters, they do stick out a fair way so what the main goal will be is to size them correctly in terms of the side view and position them in their correct location. at this stage,i also covered the cowl with clear packing tape. this allows me to work on the cowl and not damage it. I taped directly above the blister as the cowl is symetrical and this would give me the correct curve without the blister being in the way. a blank canvas if you will.
pic#2: i transfered the correct shape and location of the blister to the tape on the cowl with a permanent marker. for this i jut cut out the blister from the printed side view after placing some clear tape on it firstly, so that the cutout edges would let the marker "ride" along them
pic#3: This techinque i use is an extension of the platt idea, the pink stuff is 2 part automotive body filler, or bog. this is generously placed in the correct location.
Pic#4: after 3-5mins the bog begins to firm up and you can carve it with your hobby knife. this whole process is very time sensitive and you cannot leave it once you start! in another 3-5mins it will become too hard to carve, but hopefully you have roughly the right shape, and you can begin to sand it. the longer you leave it the hard the product becomes. it's still very sandable once fully cured, but why work harder than what you have to
Pic#5: the bog will pop off the tape, but a good property is that it sucks up some of the permanent marker you placed on the tape. perfect way to trasfer the correct shape to the bog!!! I then carve to almost the right outline and then sand the item till i'm happy. in this pic i have finished sanding the blister and have placed it back onto the cowl. this time i CA'd it to the tape.
Pic#6: another great feature of bog, it that you can always ad some more it it's not the right shape, over carved, etc... in this case, i add more to blend the blister back into the cowl.
Pic#7: this is where it's at right now. i coated the finished blister with a release agent then i also polish it with canubra wax as well, and then used about 10 or so layers of glass over the top.
The plan is to use this as a female mold, and i will lay up 2-3 layers of 3-6oz glass for the cowl, and end up with a nice, smooth external surface. it will be setup in such a way so that i can just cut the kit blisters off the cowl using the panel lines as guides and glue my new blisters into place!!! this also makes it really easy if i have to replace them in the future, or if i kitbash another one!!!!
thanks
Dave