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RNZAF Mustangs x4 / Airfix 1/72


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I was doing an RNZAF Mustang for an Aus/NZ GB, but couldn't decide which of the four squadrons to depict, so did all of them! The kits are all Airfix, 3 F-51s and a P-51 and the decals are by Ventura. NZ2413 is the odd one out from the P-51 box, as it was the only RNZAF Mustang to use the cuffed propellor, and the only one of the four in a painted HSS rather than factory painted/NMF finish (the models are a bit shinier/more distinctive than in the photos). These aircraft were operated by the RNZAF Territorials in the early 1950's and very well looked after, hence little to no weathering, with the checks being the provincial colours of each squadron.

IMG_6767s_zps1e39dfa5.jpg

1 Squadron (Auckland)
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2 Squadron (Wellington)
IMG_6784s_zpse7edff89.jpg

3 Squadron (Canterbury)
IMG_6781s_zps5a9df822.jpg

4 Squadron (Otago)
IMG_6782s_zps0e1646f5.jpg

IMG_6793s_zps77362b9c.jpg

Thanks for looking :)

Edited by mumbles
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YEAH!!!!

They look absolutely awesome.

What a brilliant idea and together they just have the WOW factor.

Love the all metal finish.

Great builds, great finishes....wish they were in my collection! :winkgrin:

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Mumbles,

They are all truly lovely and I can understand why you could not stop at just one.

I reckon the Airfix kit is a real cracker.. and at its price and quality really rivals some of the more expensive 1/72 offerings.

If I'm seeing things correctly, I also see that you've puttied all those wing panel lines that were filled in on the originals to improve laminar flow - well done.

Now tell me what paints did you use, Alclads? or some other product.

Cheers and once again congratulations on a great set of Stangs.

Dave.

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Thankyou everyone! It seemed an easy project at first but doing 4 of everything actually becomes a bit of a grind, and it wasn't without it's issues and setbacks. Aside form adding seatbelts the builds themselves are straight out of the box. I'm quite pleased with how they turned out though, pretty much on expectation which isn't always the case :).

Edited by mumbles
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Mumbles,

They are all truly lovely and I can understand why you could not stop at just one.

I reckon the Airfix kit is a real cracker.. and at its price and quality really rivals some of the more expensive 1/72 offerings.

If I'm seeing things correctly, I also see that you've puttied all those wing panel lines that were filled in on the originals to improve laminar flow - well done.

Now tell me what paints did you use, Alclads? or some other product.

Cheers and once again congratulations on a great set of Stangs.

Dave.

Cheers. I for one am loving the "new" Airfix producing moulds such as this one (which albeit has a couple of minor foibles) which are great quality and great prices. I've built the Vampire T.11, these (and I want to do at least one more to do the Dominican F-51, which I now have three decal sets for if anyone wants one), and am about to build the Hurricane I. I've got the Spitfire 22, Typhoon and Gnat in mind as well among others. Most new 1/72 Airfix releases these days have me saying "I want to build that" :)

You are correct, the wing panel lines were filled as per the factory finish. It's not really visible on the pictures, but I varied the finish between painted and natural metal on the wings as required too.The RNZAF Mustangs were delivered new in 1945, and then promptly placed in storage until 1950 when they were activated for the TAF squadrons. They only operated until 1955, and were well looked after in service, so I figured still having filled wings in 1953 (when the checker markings were introduced) wouldn't be anachronistic. At any rate, the fill is imperfect, with most lines disappearing completely, and others not quite filled or otherwise hinted at. I intentionally left it that way as I thought it would be more representative of a working aircraft.

As for the finish, the models were undercoated in gloss black, before being base coated in gloss aluminium from a Tamiya spray can. the rudders were all left off during painting and painted separately in flat aluminium to distinguish the fabric surface from the rest. This was the final finish for '13, as like many of the RNZAF Mustangs it received an overall High Speed Silver finish in service. References showed the other three aircraft to be in the factory NMF finish, so to replicate that I masked off the fuselages and relevant areas of the wings and applied a well polished coat of Rub n Buff. It doesn't show too well in the photographs but there is a definite difference in tone and reflectiveness. I was intending not to clear coat the models at all, but the decals were a but glossier than I was happy with, so I applied a thin coat of Klear/Future overall to give a more satin effect.

Edited by mumbles
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Mumbles,

Thanks for the reply. Not sure if you have a copy of Dave Muir's Southern Cross Mustangs, however from your history brief above it appears you may have.

I've been thinking about doing a RNZAF bird or two, and your kits are very inspirational. Need to get that Ventura decal sheet soon.

Shame you had not placed these in the Mustang STGB, which I believe starts today? - woops I better get cracking.

Cheers.. and once again thanks.. Dave.

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Mumbles,

Thanks for the reply. Not sure if you have a copy of Dave Muir's Southern Cross Mustangs, however from your history brief above it appears you may have.

I've been thinking about doing a RNZAF bird or two, and your kits are very inspirational. Need to get that Ventura decal sheet soon.

Shame you had not placed these in the Mustang STGB, which I believe starts today? - woops I better get cracking.

Cheers.. and once again thanks.. Dave.

Not a problem. While having handled said book, unfortunately I don't have a copy for myself - it's definitely on my acquisitions list though. I resourced from a varety of places, like the Wings Over New Zealand and KiwiModeller Forums, and got a lot some useful info from Charles Darby's book "RNZAF: The First Decade 1937-46", which had the only pic I found of '13 with the cuffed prop to confirm the repeated statement from various sources that it had one (other pics of '13 with the uncuffed prop had me doubtful). The same pic also showed it had black windscreen framing which I replicated. '27 was also going to be in the HSS scheme until I found a post retirement pic of it on this site that showed it in NMF.

Agreed it's a shame the two GB's didn't overlap, but I could put them in the gallery for inspiration lol. I'm not done with RNZAF Mustangs yet though. After I've done the Hurricane I've got the Flying Kiwi's release of the Hasegawa 1/72 mould to do and a Verlinden engine and cockpit detail set to go with it. I've also got a Matchbox Mustang in the stash to replicate the one I did in 1985 and see if three decades has made any difference to my finishing skills :)

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