Hellcat Markings

[denders]

I thought I'd drop this in here. It's how I separated the markings masks for my Hellcat project. All the markings on the Hellcat are painted.

 

F6F-3 Hellcat [Trumpeter] - Works in Progress - Large Scale Planes

 

The 00 masks were made using the typeface USN Stencil, AmarilloUSAF, or USAF Code. The reference photos seemed to be closer to AmarilloUSAF and sized appropriately.

The stripe on the tail was Tamiya tape. And of course, the national markings were masks created in Silhouette Studio. I also created canopy masks. There aren't any decals on the hellcat model.

 

 

I used AutoCAD to create these masks, exported a dxf file which was imported with Silhouette Studio. I'm familiar with AutoCAD and have an older copy that is installed on my notebook computer from before I retired. I've been slowly trying to work out how to create these types of things in Studio. I figure that at some point the notebook computer will die or at some point AutoCAD will stop working. Or I'll have to find other software to create the masks.

 

So anyway, the first picture is what I cut for the national markings.

 

I then sprayed white and black paint for the markings. There is a set of 00 under the horizontal tail surfaces that is black.

 

I then installed the mask pieces for the base colors using frisket paper to hold the pieces together while I placed them.

 

 

Then of course, came the blue paint.

 

 

I placed the mask to protect the blue and sprayed white paint over the blue in the areas where the red paint would be.

 

 

And painted the red.

 

 

Then the overall mask piece to protect the markings.

 

 

And of course, after all the painting was done and masks removed.

 

 

I preferred to start with the white to limit the paint thickness.

 

Dave

 

 

 

[Mozart]

Excellent Dave, looks really great! And a very clear, well illustrated peocedure.

Max 

[Kevin Futter]

Very nice tutorial, Dave. And an excellent result on the Hellcat, too!

 

Kev

[WoodyV]

Nice!

[Geoff Weatherall]

Thanks for the series of photos, I'd not thought of painting the insignia in the order you have use, your method is better than what I had been trying.