F-84F U.S.A.F.

Dave Brown
Looking great,and kitty seems to be enjoying herself immensely. What decals did you use? I'm wanting to get started on the one in my stash, but would like to use USAF markings.

Dave Brown
Disregard that, had a slight brain fart. You used the kit decals, I see. I bought the German version and I'm just not feeling it.

Jennifer Franklin
Oh! You have a supervisor, too. She is adorable. Must follow 👀.

Clifford Keesler Author
Thank you very much Dave and Jennifer. @ Dave, I think you should be able to find U.S.A.F. aftermarket decals.

Maciej Bellos
She is cute. And the model of course looks good.

Clifford Keesler Author
The nice think about this kit is I got them, I have 2 for 16.99 U.S. from Scalehobbyist. They sure beat the old Monogram kit in surface detail. That was 16.99 each.

James C
Nicely done mate 👍

John
Great 'streak! I love the early jets, very colorful schemes.

John E
Nice work, Clifford. 👍

Jennifer Franklin
Very nice result, nice work.

Clifford Keesler Author
Thank you very much James, John, Jhon E. and Jennifer. Your kind words mean a lot.

John
My Monogram version currently sits on the Shelf of Doom, so this inspires me to finish it.

Nathan Dempsey
Another great finish. That NMF always scares me so it's nice to see it done nicely. Really puts me in the mood for that RF I have in the stash.

Nathan Dempsey
I almost forgot. I like your little helper too 😂

John E
Ha. Well, I hope you get to that one soon. 🙂

Clifford Keesler Author
Thank you very much Nathan. I can't see you being scared of a NMF, not with the work you turn out. @ John, I have several Monogram ones also, I built one in Dutch markings and I will do one or 2 in SEA camo. My problem is now I have to re-scribe them all the time. I can't go the raised panel lines any more. I also have the Encore kit, which is a re-box of the Hobby Boss kit. @ Nathan, this NMF was done with the Vallejo acrylic metal colors. I have the Extreme metals and Alclad ll metals. I have never tried them, so I think my next one I will try them and see how I do with them, as I have F-80's F-86's F-94's and T-33's thatall have to be done in NMF. Yikes. Lol.

John
The rescribe is what put mine on the doom shelf. After that and that nmf, I was outta mojo on the build. Drilled a hole through the wing when reinforcing the gear and that was that, haha. Alclad is my only experience but the standard method they suggest works. Gloss black base coat (X-1 works) and go from there. I toned down the shine with just a tiny misting of flat and liked the effect.

Clifford Keesler Author
Thanks for the info. I will sure give it a try. I actually have the Alclad black base primer, but if X-1 works great it is a lot cheaper.

Nathan Dempsey
Clifford is the king of rescribe. You should start a service!

Clifford Keesler Author
Thank's Nathan. I try real hard. Lol.

John
I used mr. color levelling thinner at about 40% paint and 15psi or less so it doesn't dry so fast you get less than perfect gloss. A bigger nozzle helps, I used a 0.4mm. Just be sure to let it cure for ~24 hours before coming back with Alclad. The high shine colors are not very masking friendly but the others are fairly durable. Decal film is the issue with me, the usual gloss coat after to hide it can rob you of some of the Alclad shine. I was thinking Eduard's new decals where you can remove the film would be a good solution but have not tried it yet.

Clifford Keesler Author
Thank's I will remember that.

John
Apologies for the unasked-for tutorial. I had too much coffee and couldn't stop typing. 😄

Clifford Keesler Author
That is not a problem sir, I am always open to advice, especially when it comes to things I have not done before. My NMF finishes used to always come from a spray can before. I am still trying to decide how I will paint my 1/72 B-36 and 1/48 B-24J, I think they would use up large quanities of AK extreme metals or Alclads.

John
They certainly will. I have the old Monogram B-29 in the stash and this has given me pause too (that and the rescribing!). I think a good "cheat" would be to overall coat with something like LP-11, XF-16 or the spray can, then just mask and tint various panels with the Alclad/AK stuff. The regular shades of Alclad at least do not absolutely need the gloss black undercoat, so you could get the panel metal shade variation without having to go through bottles and bottles of the stuff. Any panels needing the high shine could of course go the gloss black route.

Clifford Keesler Author
That's for sure. I have built the B-29, I used the spray can on it. I also have the buffable Testor's metalizers as well as the AK true metaks, in the tubes which are buffable. I just brush them on and let dry for a few hours or over night, then buff them with a cotton swab and soft cloth.

Clifford Keesler Author
I liked this kit so much, that I ordered 2 more. I will do one in Belgium markings and one in either German or Dutch markings. It is a good deal at $17.00. The Revell kit with raised panel lines is almost 30.00. That's an idea , could do one of them in the Thunder Bird's markings.