When I saw the yellow E-flite Stearman from Horizon Hobby, all I could think of was repainting it in the marking of my son Nick Jr.’s full-size Stearman. This ARF replica was relatively easy to make because the Z-Foam mold was used. First off, the wings have the exact same color and markings as Nick’s Stearman, so this would save a lot of time. I normally would use an airbrush to complete a project of this nature, but I decided to use a paintbrush to avoid masking and preparation time.
Here are some “before” and “after” photos. It is possible to achieve a stunning result with some work.
First, I removed my pilot bust to allow better access for painting the front interior of the cockpit. The pilot was held with glue and two screws. However, after removing these screws, the pilot easily came free. Then, I prepared the windscreens. As with the rest the fuselage needed to be light gray painted. Masking tape was used to cover the exterior glass surfaces. The tape was rubbed into the corners with a chisel shape mixing stick. The excess tape was removed with a hobby knife. I then sanded outside the frames.
PREP WORK
Before painting…
