Ghibli: Pig Fight over the Adriatic (Savoia S.21 x Curtiss R3C-0)
Comments
3 19 July 2019, 15:31
Slavo HazuchaNow what's this? 🙂 Area '44...? You really can carve out some jewels in miniature scale, love all the colors & shiny bits. They just look fabulos.
19 July 2019, 20:00
Greg BakerThanks Slavo... but I can't take any praise yet. These are preprinted/assembled "gashapon" kits of M.33 and a R3C-1. But I'm going to break them down and turn them into the Savoia S.21 x Curtiss R3C-0 from the Porco Rosso manga (which is the short 15 page story the movie is based on). For the M.33 that means rounding off the nose, completely changing the wing and elevators and moving the cockpit back, and for the R3C it's just a bit of reshaping of the wing.
20 July 2019, 00:17
Greg BakerI had this project in the back of my mind for a while, but didn't move forward with it because I wasn't sure if I could get a small enough motor to make the propellor turn. I can't fit them inside these tiny guys, but I think I might have come up with a workable alternative... stay tuned!
20 July 2019, 00:42
Greg BakerThanks Chris. Auto correct at work! I could've just painted these two little gashapon kits and called it a day, but where's the fun in that?
20 July 2019, 00:53
Chris GreathousePorco Rosso is based on only 15 pages? That's insane for how good the movie is 🙂
20 July 2019, 01:41
Greg BakerInterestingly, Hayao Miyazaki wrote and painted "The Age of the Flying Boat" in 1989 for publication in Model Grafix Magazine in Japan. Later it was evolved and expanded into Studio Ghibli's 1992 movie, Porco Rosso. So, Porco Rosso has its roots in modelling. If you're interested in reading the pages, they're all here - ghiblicon.blogspot.c..28The+Ghibli+Blog%29
20 July 2019, 04:23
Slavo HazuchaSorry Greg, I should read the footnotes in the pictures better... 😄 Well they already looked really great as-delivered, I am now curious what you are going to carve out of them for the new presentation... Really lovely models though... 🙂
20 July 2019, 11:35
Greg BakerA few more pics added. I modified the engine a bit to be more like the one in the manga. I also made some significant alterations to the tail. It's really starting to look like the S.21 now... scary.
20 July 2019, 16:38
Chris GreathouseTip with the comic pages... right click and open each image in new tab... Then you can zoom to 100% and actually read it 😄
20 July 2019, 18:07
Daniel KlinkAll that small and neat stuff so incrdebly well brought in shape by you Greg. 👍
What will you be able to create in bigger scales mate?🙂
20 July 2019, 18:33
Greg BakerGood question... I had a dream I built a 1/48 scale F-5E... so it might happen! In the meantime, your Japanese WWII builds have inspired me to set up a brand new Collection... The Leijiverse. Leiji Matsumoto is best known for his "galaxy manga", like Galaxy Express 999 and Captain Harlock. But he also has a great series called "Battlefield". Hasegawa released some kits (mostly in 1/48) but I intend to build a few projects in 1/144. First up is an American Zero vs. a Japanese F4F.😉
22 July 2019, 15:55
Greg BakerOh yeah... I also got the engine in place on this build and started breaking down the R3C on this build... stay tuned!
22 July 2019, 15:56
Chris GreathouseWhat a difference between the first and last image, looking good buddy!
26 July 2019, 11:15
Greg BakerThanks guys. Chris, I'm always a little worried when I break down the pre-assembled/painted kits. They can always do a better job on the seams, and the bulk paint jobs leave it very thick, but at the same time, it feels weird taking a "finished product" and "wrecking" it.😉
I just hope in the end it looks better than when I started.
26 July 2019, 15:29
Dominik WeitzerNow you've cought my interest with the last picture...i'm very exciting, where this built goes.
work on! sounds good.
28 July 2019, 14:56
Greg BakerOk. So both of these babies are too small to fit in even my smallest (4mm diameter!) motors. So I came up with a plan to turn the props. I'm using a small fan from an old MacBook laptop. I'm not sure if this is going to work or not... but I'm going to go down swinging nonetheless...
Given how fiddly this is likely to be, my "plan B" if I can't get them both to spin is just to get the Curtiss R3C propellor moving. In the scene from the manga, the Curtiss comes diving in out of the sun and shoots out the Savoia S.21's engine in the first pass. So I'l probably just focus on keeping the one prop going and add a bit of smoke to the other one and hope the wind makes the prop twitch from time to time.
28 July 2019, 14:59
Slavo HazuchaWow, that's some creative effort! 👍
Actually, I think the Plan B scenario may look more action-packed and caprure the spirit of the encounter better than "both spinning"... Just my humble opinion... 🙂
28 July 2019, 15:15
Greg BakerI'm glad my old laptop had two fans. I managed to pull the wires out during the manhandling. Still, I blocked off most of the vent to increase the pressure, and scratched up a little scoop to change the direction of the wind. Drill a hole, wind comes out and... in just the right spot... the prop spins..
Winning! Well, for now...
14 August 2019, 00:52
Greg BakerThe roar of the engines will be music to my ears!
I made some silicone water, got some aluminium foil and a Cotten ball... now we're on to something.
15 August 2019, 14:38
SpanjaardYour ability and imagination never cease to reach new heights.... amazing
17 August 2019, 19:30
Greg BakerThanks Spanjaard, I enjoy trying to figure ways to work around a problem that stands in the way between my imagination and reality... but my imagination is rarely the problem.
Anyway, now that I've got actual paint on the planes, this one feels like it's in the home stretch.
18 August 2019, 14:16
Greg BakerI can't believe the white mask for the decals actually worked more or less...
19 August 2019, 15:35
Slavo HazuchaThe skulls on the blue wings look really stylish 👍 Very nice scene and colors over all!
19 August 2019, 19:49
Greg BakerI was actually impressed, to be honest. White-backed homemade decals are ALWAYS a challenge, and masking off and painting those little skulls was tricky. But the end result, though not perfect, was worth the trouble I think.
19 August 2019, 23:13
Greg BakerThanks Cesar! We're almost done now. I painted the last few details, propellers, pilots and tiny little guns. Then I mounted them in place and added some clouds using a bit of white cotton and some hairspray. I was even able to disguise the vent hole with some careful cloud cover. All that's left now is some smoke coming off the Savoia, and that'll be that.
20 August 2019, 15:00
Slavo HazuchaGreat, I really like all the colors & action - your approach & builds are really something unique here! 👍
21 August 2019, 15:40
Chris GreathouseI love the cotton fireball 😄 The whole thing is simply awesome! and the props move 😄 👍
21 August 2019, 17:45
Greg BakerThank you gentlemen. I appreciate all the kind feedback. For your viewing pleasure, I've uploaded a video of it "in action":
Youtube Video
21 August 2019, 23:41
Greg BakerThanks Lode. I'm really happy that you think I've got a unique style.. I don't want to be just a dime a dozen~ I'm 50% discounted... only 5 cents!
I've update my blog for those that are interested - strobez.ca/wp/index...the-adriatic-ghibli/
22 August 2019, 06:15
Album info
The classic dogfight between Porco Rosso's red Savoia S.21 and Curtis' blue R3C-0... based on the "Age of the Flying Boat" manga version.
