MikrMir NIAI-1 Fanera-2...one more time

One more time....with the knowledge panel lines need to be rescribed, the decals will disintegrate and need coating, the photoetch hinges go on at the very end and, finally, the lines on the windows don't match the masks, so it is time to sand those off and polish the window clear....a first for me...
 

....here is the first result after a few hours of work...next time i will be more aggressive early knowing the NOVUS is good at removing scratches...never used this polish before  

This was fun...adding seatbelts to the five seats....the color scheme should show up well under the windows... 

The seats will be visible for sure under the extensive windows... 

.....a windows tinting we will go....three tries with various combinations of paint and Mission Models Clear Primer or Future...brushing and airbushing...it all works but i have to be patient to avoid runs....decision about which method to use to come...all these test tintings will clean up easy and come off, so no worries....

In the end, Future with light blue paint tint was chosen and seemed to go well.....Future was then used to seal the
fuselage top/window assembly after construction.... 

....using the original cancelled version of this kit helps to see several things...the windows were factory tinted dark (no wonder i didn't remember doing that) and now that you can see, there needs to be some "activity" like a bulkhead and "luggage" behind the seats...
...the decals have at least 6 coats of Microscale Decal Liquid Film to try and get some use of them...only time will tell...i hope to paint most of those stripes...
...can you tell i cheated with a slim piece of styrene across the top of the original? not this time....i hope 

.....fuselage attached after some dry fitting....filler and sanding will be necessary in a number of areas but the wing fit is good... 

...first use of the recently arrived 1/72 photoetch stretchers and control horns from Eduard...this plane had external lines for the rudder but not the stabilizer...
....this etch is tiny....but, it is fun....a horn and a surround for a control wire are used here.... 

....the tail needs some styrene filler pieces for sure.....progress on the front and wings as well.... 

....the top needed a good amount of filler...the wing roots went well...all using Perfect Plastic Putty....
....masks are on the sides....i discovered halfway through the kitmaker switched from white masks used on the previous model to clear ones at some point....the white masks are easier to line up but all those side masks were already on when the discovery about the mask change was made....also the clear masks have no lower front pieces (those are not hard to make)...hopefully, the clear masks will work out...(some kits have tinted windows and white masks so the kit is a bit of a moving target...and now discontinued...good luck in the used market!) 

...the wing braces are an easy switch to wire and the little shock absorber on the landing gear calls for a longer post than the kit provides, so it will be cut off and styrene rod used for that post.... 

....time for decals...knowing the kit decals will break apart, they are coated with 6 coats of Microscale Liquid Decal Film....option 1

Option 2 is cutting decals from previous decals of about the right color....it works on the big decals...no way for the little ones... 

....Decal Option 3 is making a photoshop version from the kit decals with much better definition...

.....printing is done on decal paper... which is then coated here with an old can of Testors Decal Bonder spray, that went well (3 kinds of decal paper here made no difference in final result).....

.....the clear winner here is the Photoshop version printed with a PHOTO setting on your printer, not plain paper, as suggested by one decal paper...

....the original decals, once coated, did lay down well enough and will be used for the writing only....but, it worked! 

time to break out the Pentax 35mm macro..........yup, the clear winner here is the Photoshop version printed with a PHOTO setting on your printer, not plain paper, as suggested by one decal paper...

...does this decal thing work?...yes, both the printing new decals and overcoating of a fragile decal....with patience.... 

.....all decaled up....the little red extensions on the flaps were a concern but they laid down well.... 

Decals were sealed with two coats of Mission Models Gloss and then panel lines were taken on....the lines had to be rescribed because they were uneven, but that process may have left more trench like lines than should be done....it is a tradeoff...the black line fill used here might be too harsh and a gray fill may be put over them... 

off to bottom work......this gray panel line wash seems to work better over white...but every wash I ever used on white left a slight patina...that looks decent often....a sort of weathering...

...the big screwup so far is the slats needing to be removed for some reason and too much glue residue left behind and not cleaned up...this junction will get a darker wash on both sides after some cleanup....photoetch went on well.... 

....finishing up on the bottom...it will be a while before i tackle another white airplane...no matter what i did...it just seemed to get dirtier and dirtier....finish line soon... 

....a disappointment for sure...i tried everything i could to get clean masks coming up but, for some reason, the edges are ragged....oh well...its time to move on...these windows will get cleaned up some and this model will go on the display shelf... 

...after several deep breaths, the masks were removed and i did my best to clean up the windows....this ragged edge business may have to do with overcoating the masks with a gloss or flat or whatever....i tried to use as little as possible but it coated the paint too much anyway.......some of this may also have to do with the thicker white masks used instead of the translucent versions...that could have been overcoated slightly to see better...a note for the "next" time...

..white paint and I also need some work in the airbrush workroom...not a very smooth finish this time...this is Badger Stynylrez white primer neat, straight from the bottle with the suggested 30 PSI and 0.5 airbrush tip....but, its just too pebbly a finish and i need to work on technique for both paint and overcoats with masks....

...meanwhile, are you distracted enough by the cool hand rails and stabilizer brace stolen from the photoetch spares to forgive this little model? Maybe the engine will help....

This Fanera type had a lot of variations...this fancy version with the slats and Townsend ring may have been a one or two type...some of them barely resemble this and have floats..... 

....engine assembled and attached...touchup to follow...the Townsend Ring piece needed to be replaced so that process will start.... 

....all done! no macro shots please, but this one is ready for photos.....warts and all...