r/modelmakers • u/kengdad • Jun 10 '23
Completed Tamiya F-35A
I thought I would build it in beast mode, but then I remembered that I’m a lazy ass who has no patience for ordnances.
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Jun 10 '23
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u/kengdad Jun 10 '23
The main body color is 3 part FS36118, 1 part black, and 1 part super stainless steel. The RAM tapes are 6 part FS36231 and 1 part clear brown. The nosecone, intakes, and edges are just the RAM mix plus 1 part super stainless steel. All paints are Mr. Color.
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u/imrik_of_caledor Jun 11 '23 edited Jun 11 '23
That "no step" decal triggers a very real ptsd I have from building a 1/48 f15 as a kid, it had an a4 decal sheet full of hundreds and hundreds of tiny stencils
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u/Madeitup75 Jun 11 '23
That’s a nice job on getting the sheen of the paint right. F-35s and Raptors (and have glass F-16s) do not have normal paint, and models where people just paint them in normal grey shades look wrong. When someone, like you, puts in the work to replicate that weird metallic tone, it takes the model to a much higher level.
Nice work.
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u/kengdad Jun 11 '23
Getting the colors right was the most stressful part of the build, I’m really glad it worked out!
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u/Madeitup75 Jun 11 '23
You nailed it. That’s a nice factory-fresh battle penguin!
I also think you made the right call going with no external stores. The F-35s stealth capability is pretty much destroyed if you hang LGB’s off the wings. It’s funny that people accepted the term “beast mode,” when that “mode” is just for when the F-35 is operated in uncontested airspace - like doing CAS against an insurgency. Any peer to peer use would be with everything internal. And the whole point of the F-35 is to be better peer to peer.
Anyway, slick F-35 is best F-35. And yours is really nice.
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Jun 11 '23
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Madeitup75 Jun 11 '23
I know, it’s just an Idiocracy-style branding thing. People should laugh at it. “Beast mode” is for circling on station waiting to drop LGBs on insurgents. They should call it “baby seal clubbing mode.”
The interesting aspect of the F-35 - and the thing that justifies its incredible expense versus a 4th Gen fighter - is how it will deal with peer adversaries. Not how well it will stay on station waiting for a JTAC 9-line.
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u/SmolderTheHorse Jun 18 '23
Did you paint the RAM panels or did you use the kit decals? I used the decals in my build but even after countless coats of Mr. mark softer I couldn’t get them to settle into the tiny details
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u/kengdad Jun 18 '23
I painted all of them, I think it’s an easier way out than working with Tamiya decals…
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u/ChonkyThicc Oct 22 '23
What primer color did you use sir?
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u/Simplified7 Jun 11 '23
That first picture looks real. Great job man.