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A pair of Airfix Hawks in 1/72. Finished.


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I don't like them at all

 

😕

 

Well OK yes I do but they look as if they've been sunning on the beach at Torrethingmy, that place in the Med

 

I'm quite serious too

 

The legs themselves are exquisitely perfectly formed which i love but I think you should have toned them lighter to give us a decent scale effect effect

 

LAG is a brown keynoted grey anyway, this looks too over the top to me, however they're still the best aircraft legs I've ever seen

 

Just my honest opinion and as always you should go by your own instincts

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited by perdu
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That's just great modelling Steve. Beautiful undercart and those stencils are the icing on the proverbial. I really like the Hawk, but seeing your work kind of puts me off going near a 1/72 kit of one. Then I'll see your two finished articles and won't be able to resist. But then you'll start the Jags and it'll get really complicated... Maybe I shd try and finish me Mustang first.

 

Justin

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Hi Fritag,

 

Stunning stuff as usual, they look so realistic

 

Are you sure you haven't got a 'miniaturising machine' stashed away in the basement somewhere, set to 1:72...

 

I think a few others on BM have such a machine too (we all know who they are..)

 

Awaiting with bated breath the next instalment

 

Geoff

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19 hours ago, perdu said:

they look as if they've been sunning on the beach at Torrethingmy, that place in the Med

Don't you go for the the TOWIE look then Bill? :D

 

Some of that warm orange glow is down to the iPad colour balance autocorrect correcting for the artificial light and so they're not quite as Essex as they might appear ^_^  - however you're right about the darkening effect of the oils I applied - it's something that happened with the cockpit too and I ended up doing a sort of post-shading exercise with lightened colour to mitigate the effects.

 

I'm gonna have to be careful when it comes to the grey and green camo colours that it doesn't end up too dark - I might pick your brains for the best 1980's grey/green combo when the time comes.....

 

 

Edited by Fritag
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As a life time working with 'Oil Motor Vehicle Lubricating' showed me, oil does tend towards the brown dump at the yucky end of the spectrum, so brown is right but for the model look I'd have gone more into a grey hazy middle of the range myself

 

And after exsperrymenting with the colour copying abilities of the 'tablet computer' I recognise that brown-out to be difficult to avoid

 

Apologies if I was too harsh, but I am such  Fritafan I'd hate to see the marster slip

 

😉

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12 minutes ago, perdu said:

Apologies if I was too harsh

Hush now.... Aint that part of the reason we post? Remember the (inter alia) JP nasal curves I say............

Edited by Fritag
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Thought it may seem hard to remember - there are a couple of aircraft to which the undercarriages are intended to attach.

 

So by way of recap.  This is the  RAF Valley TMk 1.  I can tell that cos the intake has been pre-painted red :) Actually - to be really anal about it there is also a difference in the layout of the rear seat right instrument console but let's not go there.....

 

IMG_1333_zps4jfhowp2.jpg

 

Since I started the build Eduard have brought out some painted PE for the recent Revell 1/72 Hawk; and with some judicious reshaping and some careful re-painting of the background grey of the PE panel to match the painted cockpit - these look rather better than the unpainted PE panels that I spent ages hand painting all those months ago........

 

There's no way I was able to capture the red and amber of the warning panel in the way Eduard have done :)

 

These are dry fitted test efforts but I'm gonna go with them.  The panels are slightly different on the Chivenor TMk 1A because of the weapons controls and the Eduard set even has those (or close enough) as options. 

 

IMG_1332_zpsvtvfcrd2.jpg

 

And here's a test fit of the vac moulded front and rear coamings:

 

IMG_1330_zpsvpwxg4l8.jpg

 

IMG_1329_zpsfp4i9vac.jpg

 

A bit of fettling to do and also the addition of a couple of PE bits for little surface details such as the retractable stopwatch holder and frequency card - also handily supplied on the new Eduard fret.  But that'll be proper progress (whisper it.....).  Oh and mustn't forget the weapons sights on the TMk1A.

 

Steve

 

 

 

 

 

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Good to see an overall of these two after all this time, Steve :coolio:  :D ( pot to kettle, I know ... :analintruder: )

 

The coamings are looking great, so are the two whole tubs anyway :worthy::clap::clap: I'm even more stunned now that I actually know how tiny these 1/72 Hawks are :frantic: 

Looking forward to those added details :popcorn:

 

Ciao

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Yeh I was just about to post exquisite work Steve, very convincing and realistic, almost looks like a real cockpit...and but then Tony sussed you out. Shame on you trying to fool us, and a man of standing in the legal profession too!

 

Edited by Tomoshenko
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13 hours ago, woody37 said:

not far off the paint now surely Steve?

 

Deceptively close now.

 

I should make a proper list of stuff I need to do first - but the things that spring immediately to mind are:  (1) getting the instrument panels/coaming in place (2) vac forming and fitting the windscreens (3) Weapons pylons for the TMK1A (4) Vortex generators on the upper wings (5) wing fences (6) finessing a little surface detail; still go the odd little exhaust vent/pipe to do and I'm thinking of a little judicious riveting here and there with a riveting wheel/punch just as a contrast with the HGW rivets on the rear fuselage.

 

I did some resin casts of the kit windscreen as a staring point for vac forming - but I'm not wholly persuaded by the Airfix shape- I think it's too raked back, so I also did some resin casts of the recent Revell canopy - which I think is a better shape but there may be issues blending it into the Airfix fuselage....

 

I haven't decided how to do the vortex generators.  For real they are 'L' shaped in cross section with the flat plate on the bottom stuck onto the top of the wing.  The only options I think stand a chance are to try and recreate the same construction out of 0.1mm plastic card (albeit that 0.1mm is a scale thickness of 7.2cm!) or spare PE/Brass sheet (not sure how to cut the stuff that accurately though).  The choice seems to be between representing them over-scale or not at all.   If I was @Cheshiretaurus I'd do some home brew PE.  P'raps I should hunt down his tutorial on BM and have a go...........

 

The pylons will be a pain as well.  I haven't yet found any good references from which to work.  In particular I haven't got any decent side on and head on photographs to work from.  As far as I can see the pylons Airfix (and for that matter Revell) provided in their kits are pretty fictitious.

 

The wing fences should be easy enough (?) as they are included in most aftermarket PE sets for the Hawk.

13 hours ago, TheBaron said:

Photoshopping pictures of a real cockpit into photographs of your model. Disgraceful behaviour! :D

 

LandudnoTownShow_zpsa4abfb69-1.jpg

 

Have I ever mentioned my time in the Red Arrows :whistle:.........Obviously this was taken outside the display season hence no red flying suit........:tease:

 

Ok - maybe not.................but not photoshopped...........but not a real Hawk neither.........

 

20 years old & between training courses.  IIRC it's after finishing the TWU at Chivenor on the Hawk and before the starting on the Lightning Training Flight at Binbrook.   A week standing by the RAF recruitment fibreglass Hawk on the seafront at Llandudno.  Trying hard to look cool.....and failing miserably.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited by Fritag
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Did they make you build it before standing beside it?

 

Is this where the Fritag fascination with modelling began?

 

Will you make me eighty six vortex generators?

 

Tomorrow...

 

 

 

LTF, must have been everyone's dream posting

 

I know it was bad luck they kept breaking the things at inopportune times but a really cool posting

 

 

(nb m'lud, I do not make reference to m'learned friend's photogravure...)

 

😉

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57 minutes ago, Fritag said:

Trying hard to look cool.....and failing miserably.

 

Those wings on your chest make you look cool enough matey...!!

 

Could you cut your favourite champagne bottle foil accurately enough for the V.G.'s....or would that be too thick too??

 

Keith

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28 minutes ago, keefr22 said:

Could you cut your favourite champagne bottle foil accurately enough for the V.G.'s....or would that be too thick too??

I was thinking along the same line. But I also wondered about the stiffness of those thingies ... i.e. prone to be bendy ... :hmmm::unsure: 

 

Ciao

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20 minutes ago, giemme said:

I was thinking along the same line. But I also wondered about the stiffness of those thingies ... i.e. prone to be bendy ... :hmmm::unsure: 

 

Good thought Keith - my guess though is that it would be thin enough but not strong enough.  I wonder if drink-can metal would be an option.  I've no experience of using it - but it might be soft enough to cut to shape but string enough to hold it's shape?

Edited by Fritag
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A problem with drinks can metal, they are formed by deep drawing steel or aluminium

That process creates a massive metal memory problem that makes the stuff difficult to keep flat

 

But I suppose if I cut some along the vertical axis it might not show on a few (dozen) vgs

 

Have hammer will thump. 😁

 

Ideally a small punch and die setup might allow a double process, bend and press out blank

 

I wonder if....  🙅

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28 minutes ago, Fritag said:

 

Good thought Keith - my guess though is that it would be thin enough but not strong enough.  

 

I did think about that Steve (& Giorgio) but I guess it depends how they'll be displayed? If they're in a case & won't need dusting, then with careful handling (which these gems will obviously need anyway), they should survive OK?

 

But let's see what Engineer Bill comes up with...!!

 

Keith

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1 hour ago, keefr22 said:

 

I did think about that Steve (& Giorgio) but I guess it depends how they'll be displayed? If they're in a case & won't need dusting, then with careful handling (which these gems will obviously need anyway), they should survive OK?

I was thinking more of the handling prior to that, that is when you have to prime/paint/weather etc - that's me being rather clumsy, it doesn't necessarily apply to others ... :banghead:  :chair:

 

Steve, as for drink-can metal, my experience is, as Bill said, that it's difficult to keep them straight and moreover tend to snap when you bend it with a very small radius. PE leftovers would be much better in that case - but you would probably need to score a bending seam for easing the job. Out of curiosity, how many of those things you need to do ?

 

Ciao

Edited by giemme
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11 hours ago, Fritag said:

A week standing by the RAF recruitment fibreglass Hawk on the seafront at Llandudno.  Trying hard to look cool.....and failing miserably.

As Keith sez: Wings on chest. Plus leaning against aircraft.

Cool enough for me.:D

Tbh Steve I thought that was a young Lord Byron in the photo at first until you said it was you. 

If there'd been photographs in Byron's day.

And aircraft of course.

10 hours ago, keefr22 said:

Could you cut your favourite champagne bottle foil accurately enough for the V.G.'s

Exactly how many types of champagne does he own from which to select a favourite from?:lol:

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Wrong colour wings, natch.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

But moderately cool, I grant you!

 

One can get remarkably thin brass sheet, Steve - I can't remember the thinnest I have, but it's FTB (... thin brass).  I "cut" it by repeated scoring and sone v gentle clean-up with the wondrous Tamiya PE file.  Might that work?

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