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Revell (Germany) 1/32 Spitfire Mk II


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I'm building RoG's 1/32 Spitfire as a commission build for a friend. Alright, it's the Iron Maiden "Aces High" edition, my friend is quite a military history buff, aviation buff, AND a die-hard metalhead and HUGE Iron Maiden fan.

 

All was going along OK until I get to the wing assembly to fuselage. Ugh. Any tips or pointers would be most appreciated. In the meantime, here are some progress shots since early January.

 

I'm using Gunze Mr. Color on the aircraft, and the Eddie figures are done with Craft Smart water-based acrylics ($0.80 at Michael's), using a DIY wet palette. I convinced my friend that a Spitfire flown by a zombie would look convincing if it were to be heavily weathered, and she agreed. We'll see where this ends up.

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Sweet !

 

MA Cooke,

 

I’m a Maiden fan and wanted this boxing of the Spitfire. Alas it was not to be.

 

Your Eddie is quite convincing.

 

Looking forward to the updates on your build.

 

Stay safe, stay warm, and stay at the work bench.

 

Mr.Happy  

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If it's not too late, most Spitfire seats are a red/brown colour, being made of a plastic composite. That said, you can paint it British interior grey/green if you want. These being metal ones that were interchangeable with the plastic type.

 

See the source image

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4 hours ago, barkin mad said:

If it's not too late, most Spitfire seats are a red/brown colour, being made of a plastic composite. That said, you can paint it British interior grey/green if you want. These being metal ones that were interchangeable with the plastic type.

 

 

Thanks for the tip. I'm not sure any of the seat will be seen with Eddie seated.

 

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4 hours ago, barkin mad said:

If it's not too late, most Spitfire seats are a red/brown colour, being made of a plastic composite. That said, you can paint it British interior grey/green if you want. These being metal ones that were interchangeable with the plastic type.

 

 

Actually, I can't remove Eddie now - the fuselage is assembled.

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Sorry to hear of that fit issue.  Is the gap the same on both sides?  I haven't built the 'Aces High' version but I did build the regular Spitfire IIa offering from RoG and didn't have that wing / fuselage join problem.  What about clamps and tape along with Tamiya Extra Thin cement and a long setting time?

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 2/16/2021 at 3:40 PM, AX 365 said:

Sorry to hear of that fit issue.  Is the gap the same on both sides?  I haven't built the 'Aces High' version but I did build the regular Spitfire IIa offering from RoG and didn't have that wing / fuselage join problem.  What about clamps and tape along with Tamiya Extra Thin cement and a long setting time?

 

Sorry for the lag in response time. It was not quite the same on both sides. I don't think I got the cockpit assembled with the correct front-to-rear angle, and when the fuselage was assembled the cockpit wouldn't go in correctly. This then caused the wing-fuselage gap....and then with the ailerons.

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Fast forward a few weeks - the wing-fuselage debacle is mostly resolved, although at a loss of surface detail. My friend is no rivet-counter, and she signed off on the fix. I ended up using Apoxie Sculpt, then Tamiya grey putty, and eventually got the gaps to go away.

Before-and-after - the port side wing was far worse than starboard.

 

 

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Last night (3/5) the Spit received a "rough draft" of primer, Mr Surfacer 1500 (black) - wow, does it highlight surface imperfections. I think I saw the footprints of a gnat!

 

So I'll be doing a bit more sanding - more like polishing, likely with a piece of simple notebook paper. (A nd I spilled a drop of Mr Levelling Thinner on the port side wing.)

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

After getting some rough spots filled and sanded, another coat of black primer went down, then the underside "sky" grey. The first attempt at the upper dark green/dark Earth left me very much "meh", so I did a salt mask and lightened the colors. I'm still "meh." Maybe the green needs to be darker.

 

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So I re-mixed and a third upper camo coat went on...I'm afraid that by the time I get to a color mix I like, the paint will obliterate any surface detail.

 

I settled on a blend shown in the first pic - a 1:1 mix of RAF dark green and 34102 medium green, and a 2:1 mix of 30219 dark tan and the RAF dark Earth.

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1 hour ago, AlienFrogModeller said:

Looking good!

 

Cheers

 

AFM

 

Thank you, thankyouverymuch.  (Mitch has left the building.)(He's on his way downstairs.....TO THE WORKBENCH!")

 

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10 minutes ago, MA Cooke said:

 

Thank you, thankyouverymuch.  (Mitch has left the building.)(He's on his way downstairs.....TO THE WORKBENCH!")

 

I just bought the same kit, watching with keen interest!

 

Sooooooooooooo

 

I'm watching you!!! The cameras are for research ONLY!!

 

Cheers

 

AFM

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2 hours ago, AlienFrogModeller said:

I just bought the same kit, watching with keen interest!

 

Sooooooooooooo

 

I'm watching you!!! The cameras are for research ONLY!!

 

Cheers

 

AFM

 

I'm kicking myself for not assembling the cockpit floor/bulkheads IN the fuselage - I'm certain that's why I couldn't get the wings to seat and fit properly.

 

Cameras on.....well, fairly warned, be thee, says I. With a weight north of 21 stone and a height just shy of a fathom, and that clothing is something I rarely bother with, surveil at ye own risk!

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13 minutes ago, MA Cooke said:

 

I'm kicking myself for not assembling the cockpit floor/bulkheads IN the fuselage - I'm certain that's why I couldn't get the wings to seat and fit properly.

 

Cameras on.....well, fairly warned, be thee, says I. With a weight north of 21 stone and a height just shy of a fathom, and that clothing is something I rarely bother with, surveil at ye own risk!

LOL, they are pointed at the desk...

 

Cheers

 

AFM

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19 hours ago, AlienFrogModeller said:

LOL, they are pointed at the desk...

 

Cheers

 

AFM

 

Hah. Yesterday I took a day off of work, and picked up a couple clamp-on work lights, to supplement my fluorescent fixture. What began as a simple "I need to get an extension cord into that outlet back there" ended up being a 2-1/2 hour rearrangement of my corner of the basement.

Thought I'd tell you so you could reposition the camera's field of view.

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10 hours ago, MA Cooke said:

 

Hah. Yesterday I took a day off of work, and picked up a couple clamp-on work lights, to supplement my fluorescent fixture. What began as a simple "I need to get an extension cord into that outlet back there" ended up being a 2-1/2 hour rearrangement of my corner of the basement.

Thought I'd tell you so you could reposition the camera's field of view.

LOL, yeah, I noticed, thanks...

 

Cheers

 

AFM

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  • 2 weeks later...

I finally achieved colors (ahem - colours) I like, and this bird is inching towards completion. I called the decals "done" (left off the walkways on the upper wings and the lift points on the underside), friend is OK with it.

 

I purchased white metal landing gear, as I'd seen reports that the kit gear was a bit weak. Not sure if there's any special prep before painting white metal, if anyone has tips, please advise.

 

I was trying not to over-do the exhaust staining, but may go back and add a little.

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21 hours ago, Mr.Happy said:


MA Cooke,

 

Fantastic work on the build. I like that rivet work you employed on your Spitfire. 

 

EDDIE would be prou:punk:

 

Mr.Happy

 

 

 

Thanks Mr.Happy. I used the Tamiya panel line wash (dark grey), but added a bit of Model Master enamels to thicken it just a tad.

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99% done. I have a few small final touches, and will post higher quality pics in "Display Case" or "Critique Corner", haven't decided yet.

 

(If anyone has ideas/tips on how to do "gore", I was thinking of putting a figure on the ground, maybe disemboweled or missing limb(s), after an unfortunate encounter with a spinning prop. My friend was really into Goth, she'd find that hilarious.)

 

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Edited by MA Cooke
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