nicholassagan Posted November 2, 2013 Share Posted November 2, 2013 In lieu of being able to finish out painting on some projects on the bench (my airbrush is out for repair) I decided to dip into the stash to build Eduard’s new Spitfire. This kit is really well detailed and there has been no shortage of documentation supporting that claim. So rather than focus on details/accuracy, etc, I just want to share my build progress. Per my becoming-standard-practice I’ve used magnets for both the attachment of the stand as well as for the propeller. I placed the stand magnet right on the spot where the cockpit bulkhead is located so I had to cut out a little section for it to fit. No prob. The propeller was neat this time because rather than gut out the base plate, there was room enough under the cap to fit a magnet. This also allowed for the axel pin to remain so that alignment won’t be affected by an off center magnet. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nicholassagan Posted November 2, 2013 Author Share Posted November 2, 2013 You’ll see I’m also using PJ Productions RAF pilot. :) He sit’s nicely in the cockpit and his hand even rests on the control stick!! PE seatbelts from the kit were easy enough to manipulate to wrap around the pilot, too. The gunsight is a really nicely crafted detail as well. I suppose you want to see the cockpit, too. :) I didn’t do much beyond OOB with it, but it did include the PE dash. I used Tamiya cockpit green and did a dry brushing of aluminum. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nicholassagan Posted November 2, 2013 Author Share Posted November 2, 2013 Fit-wise, there were some snags when trying to attach the wing sub-assembly to the main fuselage. The wing root joints were pretty tight so I had to shave a little bit to get them to fit without warping the wing angles too much. As for the wheels, I just used the back half of the tire to make sure there was room. All the other parts fit together really nicely, too. That’s my motto for this kit: really nice. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nicholassagan Posted November 11, 2013 Author Share Posted November 11, 2013 Canopied, primed and preshaded!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jennings Posted November 11, 2013 Share Posted November 11, 2013 SO far so good, but you need to lose the antenna wire. Mk.IXs didn't have the wire. The radio was a VHF set and the antenna was contained inside the mast behind the canopy. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nicholassagan Posted November 11, 2013 Author Share Posted November 11, 2013 Oops! I thought some of them did! I still have trouble discerning which variants actually had wire AND whether or not it's mast wire or side wires or both...the last IX I did with both... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jennings Posted November 11, 2013 Share Posted November 11, 2013 The wire from the mast to the tip of the rudder (not the fixed part of the vertical fin as you've attached it) was only found on Mk.I/II and early V's. All others had the VHF radio with the antenna inside the mast. The wires from the tips of the horizontal stabs to the sides of the fuselage (always both sides if present) were the early IFF set. Replaced starting in ~mid-1943 with a newer type IFF set, which had a slim rod type antenna mounted underneath the right wing. No aircraft would have had both at the same time, but the same aircraft might have had both at some point in its career. You have to know what time period you're modeling. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Av8fan Posted November 12, 2013 Share Posted November 12, 2013 Very very nice. Thanks for posting this. I will follow along until you finish for sure. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
carlizle84 Posted November 17, 2013 Share Posted November 17, 2013 I've got one of these in the closet, so I'll be watching this thread with a close eye to see what I can expect when I get ready to build mine up. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nicholassagan Posted November 17, 2013 Author Share Posted November 17, 2013 I clipped the wire off. :) But it's on the shelf until I have time to paint (probably closer to the holiday). I also have 4 other kits ready to paint so I'll have to make a day of it... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Plane Mad Posted November 20, 2013 Share Posted November 20, 2013 Looking superb so far, I'm now pulling up a chair to get comfortable. :D Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nicholassagan Posted December 3, 2013 Author Share Posted December 3, 2013 Mods please move this to In Progress? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nicholassagan Posted January 13, 2014 Author Share Posted January 13, 2014 Belly painted Royal Light Gray and then I masked the camo pattern to apply the slightly darker gray on the top. I decided this will be a hybrid Royal Australian Air Force bird, quite possibly a Grey Nurse squadron fighter with a white tail. I realize they flew MkVs and VIIIs (no IXs) but that’s why I’m calling it a hybrid… Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nicholassagan Posted January 20, 2014 Author Share Posted January 20, 2014 Medium gray on upper surfaces masked and painted….soooo close now!! After the green goes down it’s one more round of masking and painting for the white tail and leading edges. She’ll definitely be a Grey Nurse fighter. :) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nicholassagan Posted February 2, 2014 Author Share Posted February 2, 2014 Last rounds of masking!! I tried my hand at post shading with the green tones and I really like the effect…WAY more than pre-shading! However, I see the value in doing both. I think post shading is more necessary on darker colors whereas pre-shading might benefit lighter…Anyway, she’s really coming along. As I type this the clear coat in preparation for decals is drying. :) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nicholassagan Posted February 2, 2014 Author Share Posted February 2, 2014 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nicholassagan Posted February 6, 2014 Author Share Posted February 6, 2014 Decals process underway! The whole bird got a nice coat of Future before and decal application. Here are some shots with all the roundels and designation data. At this point (not pictured) all the stencils have been applied and the pre-weathering flat coat is down. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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