I have just finished the second build video for the 1/48 Tamiya Tomcat. This one was about finishing the build of the fuselage and painting the engine exhausts. Generally speaking, these are not the most exciting aspects of a model build, except when it comes to sealing up the fuselage. Most of us have developed fuselage closing techniques due to years of experiencing fuselage sides not lining up properly. To avoid this, most of us start with gluing, taping and clamping one side of the fuselage and gradually working our way around the whole thing…. gluing inch by inch.
What makes the Tamiya Tomcat such a pleasant build is that such draconian build rituals are not needed. Just glue it and slap it together. Done.
As I have said previously, I am building this F-14 out-of-box. I followed the colour call-outs for the engine exhausts and I used pin washes to bring out the detail. I really enjoy how all the different shades work together to give the impression of real jet engines. Painting the insides of these exhausts would have been much more of a challenge without a tip from David Aungst on Hyperscale. Credit where it is due, a simple cut will make your life much easier if you are going to build the Tamiya Tomcat.
The size of this airplane is getting very apparent for someone who is used to making single engine WW2 props. It will be an impressive kit once it is done and I can swing the wings all I want!
To see the video you can click here or below:
Model Airplane Maker 
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