Another Revell (ICM) 1/48 Mk.XVI Spitfire - All Finished

[PlaStix]

A while ago, while browsing kits on Amazon, I came across Eduard's 1/48 MkIX Spitfire that seemed to come with additional bits and pieces (PE, masks, etc.). Checking on BM I realised that it seemed like a rather good kit. At the time, however, I hadn't made a plane kit for more than 20 years or more. So rather than risking spending £28 on something I may not be able to make a reasonable job of, I decided to try out my skills on some cheaper 1/72 Spitfires first. I ended up making 3 of them:

I think these all turned out alright. However I am still kind of reluctant to risk trying a £28 kit when my 1/48 kit building skills are zero - I have never made a 1/48 plane kit. About 25 years ago I did make some larger plane kits but the results were not great! So the idea is to build the much cheaper (less than half the price) Revell MkXVI first. If this one turns out okay I'm going to order the 'late' Eduard version and then build it as part of the D-Day 70th Anniversary Group Build.

Right enough waffle - obligatory box, sprue and decals photos first:

Now, to me, the detailing looks pretty good in 1/48. I know there are issues with this kit, including sink marks and some problems with the fit of some parts but I'm rather looking forward to making it.

For example the inside cockpit walls are a lot better detailed than the Italeri kit where I had to scratch everything

These two photos show the Revell Spitfire's cockpit walls:

These look like a good start to me and I have some ideas for some additional scratch built details - if anyone knows of any good photos of an actual MkXVI cockpit I'd be most grateful - the ones I've found aren't great.

Also I have seen some poor photos of the actual engine used in this type of Spitfire and, as I intend to build a diorama for this kit with the engine on show I would ask If anyone could please point me in the direction of any good photos or diagrams so I can try and improve the one in the kit.

Woody37 reviews this kit here: http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234925990-revell-spitfire-mkxvi-148-04661/

With regards the diorama I also got hold of these:

which I'm going to use for this kit and the Eduard one. I'd read before about the Revell MkXVI actually being an old ICM kit but I discovered (as you all probably know already) that these figures also seem to be from ICM as well. Anyway both look good to me.

I'm hoping to get started tomorrow on this - I got all the parts washed in warm soapy water this morning.

All comments and suggestions welcome.

Kind regards,

Stix

Edited October 26, 2014 by PlaStix

[Miggers]

Read this carefully first Stix:

http://www.hyperscale.com/features/2000/spitfireixconstructionrs_1.htm

If you want the cowlings off and engine on display,ditch the kit's underscale

effort and nab this:

http://www.aeroscale.co.uk/modules.php?op=modload&name=Reviews&file=index&req=showcontent&id=9507

Judging from those three Spits you shown further up,you'll have a ball.

The Merlin you need to be looking at is the Packard built 266,similar to the

Rolls built 66,but different enough not to be interchangeable.

This'll help you with the engine/fitting/cowling info:

http://spitfiresite.com/2010/04/spitfire-mk-ix-xi-and-xvi-variants-much-varied.html

This is close for the XVI's panel(no retactable tailwheel on the XVI though):

http://spitfiresite.com/2011/11/spitfire-mk-viii-instrument-panel.html

Edited April 25, 2014 by Miggers

[PlaStix]

Hi Miggers,

Thank you for taking the time to give me such a detailed reply - really useful.

Robert Swaddling's article will prove very useful for being warned about some of the kit's issues.

With regards the engine - I would love to include the Eduard version but unfortunately at more than £20 it's over double what I paid for the kit and I'm on a budget these days! I'm really having a go at this kit to practice some kit building skills so I do't mess up the Eduard MkIX that I'd like to have a go at next. I still count myself as a beginner compared to some of the modellers on BM as I've never done much in way of alterations to kits before working on the three Spitfires above and the alterations to those we're pretty minor compared to what others do. I will see what I think I'm able to do with the engine provided - this morning I've been trawling the internet for more pictures - real Spitfire engines look extremely complicated!!

And thank you for the links to information about the engine and cockpit panel - extremely useful.

Thank you again.

Kind regards,

Stix

[HOUSTON]

Stix,

Look forward to your Spitfire ..

Neat start.

[PlaStix]

Thank you for your comment Houston.

Bit of a slow start today. Spent the early part of this morning looking through the information Miggers provided and looking at stuff on the internet before deciding I needed more information/visuals about the engine before I'm going to make it - I'm going to try and make it a bit more interesting/accurate as I want to have it on show. So I skipped ahead in the instructions to the cockpit. As Dreamcatcher mentions in his build thread of this kit, there is a lot of prep work to do - including, in my case, repairing part 7 which seemed to be a bit worse for wear!

.........still some work to be done.

While waiting for that to dry I spent the time creating and filling holes:

More later or tomorrow.

Comments and suggestions welcome.

Kind regards,

Stix

[PlaStix]

Got a bit more done this afternoon:

Reference has been made by a few people on BM that the shape of the top of the joystick provided by Revell is square when it should be round - so I used some fuse wire to replace the top section. I also added the cables down the front.

Original:

Replacement made from fuse wire:

Sorry about the quality of these photos - I wasn't working in my usual spot in the kitchen.

Part 7 - armour plate panel now looking a bit more like it should:

Cables added left below the instrument panel:

Cockpit door cut out:

I might get some paint on tomorrow unless I think of anything else I need to do first.

Comments and suggestions welcome.

Kind regards,

Stix

Edited April 26, 2014 by PlaStix

[Miggers]

Bit more for you Stix:

http://www.barnstormers.com/eFLYER/2008/022-eFLYER-FA01-Spitfire.html

Temora's XVI

http://jetphotos.net/viewphoto.php?id=7564623&nseq=111

http://jetphotos.net/viewphoto.php?id=6572775&nseq=62

http://jetphotos.net/viewphoto.php?id=5824849&nseq=85

Are you doing a wartime or post-war aircraft?

Edited April 26, 2014 by Miggers

[PlaStix]

A great range of photos - thank you again Miggers. They are really going to help although whether I can do them justice is another matter!

With regards your question: at the moment I'm planning on doing the wartime version - the instructions have it as part of 421 Squadron, RCAF, Germany, April 1945.

Thank you again.

Kind regards,

Stix

[woody37]

Judging from your superb 1/72 builds and what you've done so far on this, I'm confident you're going to do a cracking build here. I did a review on this kit last year, but unfortunately not got round to building it yet, but think this could be the motivation I need

[PlaStix]

Hi woody37,

Thank you for your comment. I included a link to your review in my first post in this thread as it was one of the articles I read that convinced me to try it as my first move up to 1/48 kits. So thank you for that too!

This afternoon I started getting the first bits of paint on the cockpit parts. It all seems a lot larger than 1/72 which is good in some ways........ All brush painted as usual. Nothing special - just Humbrol 78, cockpit green, for the most part with a bit of Revell Anthracite in places:

If I get chance I'll get another coat on later. Next, but maybe not until next weekend, I will try and paint some of the more detailed parts. I'm going to try and paint the instrument panel rather than use the decal and I want to do more work on the control column.

I also added some styrene today to the back of the seat to make it look a bit more padded. This will be painted black once I've finished tidying it up.

Comments and suggestions welcome.

Kind regards,

Stix

[phildagreek]

I built this it last year as a Canadian version, it sits proudly now on my shelf with the engine open for inspection. It built really nicely and I don't recall any hair pulling out moments. All in all it was rather pleasant, I hope you have a similar experience.

[PlaStix]

Hi Phil,

Good to know you had a good experience with this kit. By any chance did you do a WIP for it?

Thank you.

Kind regards,

Stix

[HOUSTON]

Excellent work so far..

[PlaStix]

Thank you Houston. Unfortunately I'm probably not going to get chance to do any more on it before the weekend!! :-(

[Pawel Szczudlyk]

this is going to be fun to watch

carry on Stix!

[jer]

Great start! The previously built ones are cracking by the way!

[kwaterous]

You may want to have another look at the IP

unless im mistaken (not uncommon) there may be a ingerprint in the left side...

also, the padding might be helped by using miliput or blutak (just been reading te other thread) depending on the look you're going for

K

[PlaStix]

Hi sdk_uk and jer - thank you for your comments - so far I am enjoying working in this scale.

Hi Kwaterous - I'm not sure it's a fingerprint but a ripple in the surface of the plastic itself - unless it's a fingerprint impression in the plastic - if you look carefully you can see it over most of the panel - clearly visible on the right too. It doesn't look as bad in real life as it does in the photo. I'm not going to try and smooth it out as I think, with my clumsy great fingers, I'll mess up the other detail on the panel. I think by the time the panel has more of the detail on it won't be as noticeable....... I hope.

With regards the seat - I saw Dreamcatcher's and it does look really good. I've still got some work to do on mine so I'll see what I can do.

Thank you for your suggestions.

Kind regards,

Stix

Edited April 30, 2014 by PlaStix

[PlaStix]

Only a small update.

Got some work done on shaping and painting the back padding on the seat:

Started detail painting on some of the parts including on the instrument panel. I opted not to use the decal as it seems way too bright and I'm not sure I could have got it to follow the contours of the plastic too well. Having looked at some of the photos Miggers had given me the links to of real Spitfire panels, they seemed mostly to be dark grey/black with the only white highlights being on the dials themselves. So I dry brushed on some dark grey over the whole panel, painted the dials black, added some white for the hands and then added a drop of Future to give the impression of glass. It's not perfect but when it's closed up in the fuselage I think it will look okay. The IP is what took up most of the time this morning.

I also did a bit more work on the control column and started getting paint on some of the other cockpit parts.

Still got some detail painting to do before I start assembling. I also started some work on the sides of the cockpit but didn't get any photos taken. More later I hope!

Comments and suggestion welcome.

Kind regards,

Stix

[Miggers]

Good work Stix,that panel looks good enough.

The quadrants(chassis and throttle)are pretty much the same,just shades of black and grey.

IIRC on both my ICM XVI and Airfix's Seafire XVII,I picked out the actual "arm" of the levers

(pitch,throttle,mixture and u/c)with an aluminium-ish silver,just to give a smidge of contrast

in there.

[PlaStix]

Thanks Miggers, yes I'm quite happy with the panel - it looks better in real life - the photo makes it look much lighter than it actually is. And thank you for the advice about the levers. I'll have a go at them once I've made up some seat belts.

Quick photo update showing the majority of internal cockpit parts after I'd cut them off from the sprue and touched them up. (I'd not cut the pedals off at the time I took the photo). I have also assembled some of these ready for making and fitting the aforementioned seat belts but I haven't taken a photo yet.

Kind regards,

Stix

[Miggers]

ASAP,get the fuse.glued up nice and tight so that you can start fettling

the firewall and the bottom of the I/P to get the fuse. right for the wing mate.

Dreamcatcher looks like he's just banged the firewall in as is,there's a very small gap

in his seam just above it and in the fuel filler recess.

He'll have some fun with his wing fit there.

Edited May 3, 2014 by Miggers

[PlaStix]

Thanks again Miggers. Yeah luckily I'd read your post for Dreamcatcher about the engine firewall - it was one of the reasons I didn't start at the beginning of Revell's instructions. Once I've got all the cockpit sidewalls finished and cut off the front sections of the fuselage I'll get the fuselage glued together. Then I'll start removing the offending edges. Can I please ask how much you think you removed off both the firewall and IP?

Kind regards,

Stix

[Miggers]

IIRC Stix,a good 1 mil off the firewall(1/2 per side)and good scrapes off the I/P

and seat bulkheads.

You need 'em so that they'll all slide in by just "easing" the fuselage open and then

it "relaxes" back into position against the edges of the F/W and I/P.

It really is trial and error with it mate,but it has to be done otherwise it puts the wing fit

(you need to take material off the bottom of both F/W and I/P too)all to cock by pushing

the fuselage sides out too far ruining the dihedral and making the root joints great fun.

That's why I say to get the fuse glued up nice and tight ASAP,it takes a lot of abuse

whilst getting the internals to fit properly.

Check the last two pics in D/Catcher's thread,he's got a pretty dodgy seam ahead and

behind the cockpit,I did warn him!!!!

Edited May 3, 2014 by Miggers

[PlaStix]

Thanks again Miggers - it's a good job you're on BM!

Quick update before I start this morning - this is where I got to yesterday:

Now I'm going to try and make the seat belts. I may be back later...........

Kind regards,

Stix