Aircraft Modelling and You . . .

[Travis]

Howdy, ya'll!  Haven't been around for awhile, but I thought I would come in and ask a few questions of you modellers out there.

About a week ago I decided to hit a hobby I haven't done in a long time, and I wasn't disappointed.  I've been building a V-22 Osprey model (very nice one, too), but I am a little distraught with a problem I have noticed on almost every model I have ever done.  The glass for the cockpit is oh so crummy looking.  It just doesn't have that nice sheen the real canopies do, which would really be nice to have.  Does anyone know how to make the windows look more "realistic"?

[SilverFox441]

"Future" floor polish.

Seriously, Future (and probably most other acrylic floor polishes) will shine a canopy up. Some people spray it, some brush it and some dip the whole canopy...guess it depends on teh size of the canopy.

As with anything else, test on an unused piece first...such as the sprue. You will also probably have to clean up the attaching surfaces before mounting it on the plane.

You might have to polish out scratches first...but I've never been any good at that.

[raz]

Also, be sure to wear gloves when you work with clear parts.  This will prevent you from leaving your fingerprints on the piece.  

[SilverFox441]

Actually, one step that most people miss is washing the model before starting...the plastic is coated with mold-release that will affect the adhesion of glue or paint. If parts require sanding (and aside from a few Tamiya releases what doesn't) wash it again before painting. Use a lint free chamois for drying and don't let the water sit...it will spot.

As Raz says, use gloves. Make sure you get the type of gloves that don't use talc (if you use latex), and make sure if you or anyone in the house is allergic to latex. There are some more expensive gloves designed for handling expensive collectibles...these also work OK.

[HawkerTempest5]

Vac formed canopies are much clearer than injection moulded ones. A number of companies make third party detail sets including vac formed canopies, so it may well be worth checking to see if there is one available for your V-22.

[Iroquois]

Vac formed canopies are much clearer than injection moulded ones. A number of companies make third party detail sets including vac formed canopies, so it may well be worth checking to see if there is one available for your V-22.

Vac formed parts are used frequently in R/C models but I've never heard of them for static displays.

[jimclarke]

I've used gloss-cote which seems to help alot.

Jim

[Travis]

Well, what I've decided is that I am going to use a method I have come up with myself.  I don't know if it will work, but I'll try it as an experiment.  I'm going to take each canopy part and coat it with an interior layer of plastic cement before I attach it.  I tried this once before on another model, and it didn't turn out too bad.  The only problem was getting the cement to set up completely before I touched it, which was an obvious mistake.

[HawkerTempest5]

Vac formed parts are used frequently in R/C models but I've never heard of them for static displays.

Lots of limited run kits come with vac formed canopies rather than injection moulded and manufaturers like Aeroclub and Eduard produce canopies for a great many types in 1/72 and 1/48 scale.

[denishc]

 An outfit called "The Squadron" (also known as Squadron Mail Order) carries their own brand of vacuformed canopies for various aircraft in 1/32, 1/48 and 1/72 scale aircraft.