Hawker Hunter- Century Jets ( First Jet Build)

[tbrum]

Was great to meet you last night Brian!!!

[BJH424]

Well some good news, I decided to order another VT80 For the Hunter as the fit is quite tight and swapping from one plane to another sounds good but is more than a little unpractical. I ordered it from Altecare on Thursday and received it shipped from Barcelona Spain on Wednesday.. What service. . Also, ordered a tailpipe from Tamjets on Monday and received it a week later and was quite impressed with the workmanship. The install was so simple as all it required was a couple of sheet metal screws into tabs installed on the front flange and 4 shims to center the the pipe at the tail.

The painting has begun using the Home Depot latex with my Badger 150 Air Brush. The gun despite it years was flawless and the bottom of the wings and drop fuel tanks are done. Now it's just about putting in the engine, fuel tanks , gear servos and wiring them all up and installing all the air lines, electrical and making it look somewhat organized. I found a nice photo of a 50"s era jet cockpit that fits the scale so may use that to finish off a flat floor cockpit with cut off Pilot and Ejection seat.. To bad but there is just no room to go full depth.

[Jag fan]

I'm English so I have a soft spot and also appreciate airplanes like the Hunter, Lightning and the Jaguar. Can't wait to see this one fly. Maybe if I ever get my butt in gear, I'll finish the 1:6 scale Jaguar.

Rich

[BJH424]

All the equipment is in and working, adjusting and fine tuning is next. Started to paint the fuselage bottom the other day and the old Badger 150 wasn't in the mood. Messed around with it for over an hour with no improvement so by this time I was so frustrated I pitched the lot into the garbage. 30 minutes later I was painting again with my just purchased new Badger 175. Thankfully the local hobby store was open on Sunday afternoon. The new airbrush does a wonderful job.

The cockpit is complete with pilot and seat etc sitting on flat level floor. Looks OK.

Started painting the upper dark green today and can now picture the aircraft finished with all the insignia and equipment decals. Can't wait to see it fly.. Should be ready for running and taxi tests in a couple of weeks. I have received good advice from a couple of local club members ( experienced jet flyers) to fly it at Wingham which I hope to do.

[BJH424]

The painting is complete. I am really pleased with the Home depot paint as well as the Badger 175 Airbrush..

Now the fun part, putting on the insignia and decals.

[Vettster]

Sure looks nice! Great job Brian

[tbrum]

Great job Brian!! Looks awesome!

Questions for you about the paint you used...

Which brand of HD paint is it and what sheen?
Did you find the latex paint clogged your brush up after a while?
What did you thin it with (ie: windshield washer fluid?) and to what ratio?

Thanks!!

[BJH424]

Great job Brian!! Looks awesome!

Questions for you about the paint you used...

Which brand of HD paint is it and what sheen?
Did you find the latex paint clogged your brush up after a while?
What did you thin it with (ie: windshield washer fluid?) and to what ratio?

Thanks!!

Trevor,

The brand is Behr Marquee Interior/exterior Satin Enamel. I thinned it with about 15% with tap water. The Badger 175 nozzle did not clog up and I was painting steady for about 40 minutes.
It is sample container about 8 0z. Cost is $2.79 for each colour. I used about 3.5 oz. of the Grey and the same for the green. First time I've used this paint and learned about it from
RC Groups. When thinned properly it tacks up in about 5 mins with a light fog coat. After about 15 minutes you can lay on the final coat until you get a even glossy look and no runs on the vertical sides.

Another plus was there was very little overspray and I only ran my spray booth fan after I was done spraying. Didn't even get overspray on my glasses!!

Callie graphics for the Insignia ( Peel stick and peel type) and Taylormadedecals for all the airframe info ( water slides)

Aircraft markings are F Mk 4. XE702 ( B) of No. 43 Squadron during Armed Forces day display , 17 may 1958. Note the Squadron mascot and squadron crest added for this display.

[tbrum]

Thanks Brian!! I played with latex and used windshield washer fluid to thin it down. Seemed to work really well. I will try your tricks also!

Thanks

Trev

[Vettster]

Where's the inflight video?? I know you were at Wing-ham and cheese today