Su-27UB Ukrainian Flanker Twin Seater pt.3

So, after painting and varnishing the whole giant aircraft /and it is big, believe me!/ I discovered another wonderful thing out there, in the modeling market: LindenHill decals. Thanks to Guy from Linden, I got those amazing decals:

The decals from LindenHill

If you didn’t scrolled down to the end of the page, you would still want to see the pictures at the end of the article.

decals makes it a whole new aircraft…

These are absolutely the best decals I’ve ever
worked with. Note that I am not making publicity for Linden. Not a chance! But hey, they are so cool looking and easy to work with! Actually, you might skip the decal solutions with those if you are working with the right water temperature. At this stage I discovered that not all of the stencils that I got with Begemot sheet are needed. The Ukrainian birds were repainted and eventually lost some of the markings.

note the different coloring of this picture and the previous one

As it appears on the pictures, there were no issues with the decals. No torn ones, no smashed or damaged ones. So this went very smooth.

Nozzle removed for easier access

After completing all the decal work, I varnished all with gloss Vallejo varnish, and immediately, before it cured, with Satin Vallejo varnish. This gave the aircraft more “metal” look. All gloss is never good for a model. All matt either. If you get close and personal with a real jet you will realize that it is glossy. Its made from metal after all. Anyway, in a model, in order to make it look more realistic, you need to have dull finish. But again, to dull will be too much. So you gotta learn the trick to make it look real when looked from close distance.

almost done here

After all that amazing decal experience, I added some stains, some weathering caused by flying through clouds and moist areas, some stains blown from the moving parts access points and joints.

I gave it a bit for the landing gear and mostly lower parts, which aren’t visible that much, but I wanted to make it look as the real deal. Actually, in order to get a good model, you gotta exaggerate a bit everything. Not in my case. I wanted it pure and simple. Some of the decals needed a bit more dirt, but I loved them so much, that I left them the way you are see them on the pictures.
So after around 60 days of work, spread out within 3 months time, I finished the thing!
I didn’t expect to receive such warm comments for it, but I did. It brought me two medals so far, one gold and one silver. Now the aircraft is for sale, but if no one gets it by the summer, I will give it couple of more shots at the contests around here.
I made special case for it, but its too big to just sit around in a house. It is better to be shown at some exhibition or museum since it is attractive.
The main reason for me to publish it just now, is the whole situation in Ukraine. I feel very sorry for all people there, who suffer from the Russian aggression. I would love to dedicate my work with this particular airplane to all Ukrainians and show my support to that wonderful nation!
I pray for quick resolution of that problem and  hope that Ukraine will see the end of the problems soon!
I think you made the right choice and you will soon see the results of your hard work!
Good luck Ukraine!
For the rest you can check out here:
and

Special thanx to Guy from Linden and Olivier “Red Dog”! Without your help this project would not see the light of the day!