Painting grids by jet intakes

Tools 'n' Tips Article by Valery Korelov in 2001

 

 

Many jets including the F-4 Phantom and the Su-24 have tiny holes drilled into the area just infront of the jet engine intakes.  Trying to paint these with any level of skill has proven hopeless in most cases.  Here's a simple solution.

Click on images below to see larger images

First you find some suitable screen material.  A suitable screen could be found in car fuel filter, in medical blood filters and so on.  The type of screen you choose will depend on scale of the model and what screen you can find.  You need to get a screen with suitable cells and place the mask on it (I'm using the Tamiya mask tape).  Another option is to make the whole grid pattern on the screen with tiny strips of masking tape that you can cut yourself with an A-Xcto knife and a metal ruler.

 

Now you have a stencil for airbrushing. Now you need to take some clear decal film and airbrush through the screen to the clear decal film underneath the screen. You need to airbrush it quickly and in one pass - to avoid the paint leaking through the stencil.  I'm use enamel paint for airbrushing these screens.

 

In this particular photo the grid pattern was sprayed on to the excess clear carrier film of an existing decal sheet.  

Now you have a decal that you can trim and apply to the model.  Be sure to sand the plastic of the intake area first to remove the detailing of the screen from the bare plastic.  This will give you a smooth surface to apply your decal.  

Finally you'd paint the model as usual and apply your screen decal to the model as per reference photos.  The finished result is very convincing in the Su-24 below.

Valery Korelov

Photos and text © by Valery Korelov