Christer A Posted February 1, 2016 Author Share Posted February 1, 2016 I found a great set of pictures of the cockpit sides over at the Spitfire site! http://spitfiresite.com/2010/07/anatomy-of-spitfire-cockpit.html/02es09_022 http://spitfiresite.com/2010/07/anatomy-of-spitfire-cockpit.html/03_side_wall_001 http://spitfiresite.com/2010/07/anatomy-of-spitfire-cockpit.html/03_side_wall_002 http://spitfiresite.com/2010/07/anatomy-of-spitfire-cockpit.html/03n_15_017 http://spitfiresite.com/2010/07/anatomy-of-spitfire-cockpit.html/04cn7253 Now, where did I put the good hairy stick? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jckspratt1 Posted February 1, 2016 Share Posted February 1, 2016 I like the thinking behind black basing your sidewalls - I'll try that next time - it certainly looks like it works for you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christer A Posted February 2, 2016 Author Share Posted February 2, 2016 (edited) On 2016-02-01 at 07:44, jckspratt1 said: I like the thinking behind black basing your sidewalls - I'll try that next time - it certainly looks like it works for you! Thanks! This time the effect didn't get as pronounced as it can be, since it's very much dependant on the angle that you spray in. It'll do fine for me though. I've finally got my Vallejo paints, but the strangest thing happened. I was looking at the Airfix Spitfire XII and all of a sudden I had cut off a few parts and some TETC bonded a few of the together... I guess that means that I've started on it, right? And two Spitfires are better than none, so let's get on with it! (thread title changed) Where was I? Right, Vallejo paints. They have a new primer as well, this time with a gloss finish. It's a little bit thinner than their standard one and sprays quite ok if you increase the pressure somewhat. For my first try it didn't turn out as glossy as Tamiya gloss black, but that might be due to lack of hardening time. It was dry to touch within a couple of minutes, and didn't look that bad on the Airfix fuselage. P1040200 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr Ok, so the primer is functional atleast. What about the actual metal pant then? Here is my test with semi matt aluminium  P1040201 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr P1040206 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr P1040207 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr P1040208 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr It seems to work perfectly both over black primer, xtracrylix interior grey green and even in bare plastic. Fantastic! FINALLY I've got something that is better than Citadel Chainmal/Mithril silver It has a slight yellow tint to it, but that might just be my lighting that's acting up. I need to buy some more shades I guess... Ok then, let's get this double spitfire build on the road then. The XII will receive some care, but nothing major. I'll not tackle the to high fuselage, short engine or even open the canopy. I'll just build it because it's fun. Edited August 12, 2017 by Christer A Flikr-fied 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biggles87 Posted February 2, 2016 Share Posted February 2, 2016 That aluminium certainly looks good, and I think the yellow tint must be something to do with the lighting, it's happened with mine sometimes, especially in close up. I'm looking forward to seeing your Mk XII, it seems to be a popular mark at the moment. I found it an easy build and the only problems were of my own making. Cheers John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homerlovesbeer Posted February 2, 2016 Share Posted February 2, 2016 Sweet thread......I've also got this kit so it's great to see a build on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christer A Posted February 6, 2016 Author Share Posted February 6, 2016 (edited) Thanks John and Homer! I was quite amazed by difference in rear fuselage between Airfix and Eduard:P1040210 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr A slight discreptancy in chord as well, but so much as the picture below could imply.P1040212 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr The rear trailing edge on Eduard is actually on the bottom wing! All this makes the Airfix XII look fat, and that's not realy how a griffon Spit should look like right? Oh well, I'll just avoid displaying these next to each other. To let XII close the gap on the Aussie VII I started on the wings. One good thing is that Master Brass-barrels is a perfect fit!P1040213 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr Nice! The airfix ones looks very long though so it's all for the best. Comparing Eduard with Master is a little unfair, but Eduard is good enough!P1040215 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr It's a good thing that I have my master-supplier on speed-dial Well, some interior Grey/green was delivered by air, like the previous one. Here the effect is a little more pronounced which is good since I intend to go for closed cockpit.P1040216 by Christer Andersson, on FlickrP1040217 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr Off course we have a few known problems of ejector pin marks.P1040218 by Christer Andersson, on FlickrP1040219 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr Thanks a lot, toolmakers! I cut some PC to cover the seat, lets hope for the best.P1040220 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr Right, let's get cracking on the cockpit then! Edited August 12, 2017 by Christer A Flikr-fied 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Winenut Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 This is really coming along nicely. Lovely work Looking forward to more Cheers Bruce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christer A Posted February 7, 2016 Author Share Posted February 7, 2016 Thanks Bruce! More stuff to follow! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homerlovesbeer Posted February 7, 2016 Share Posted February 7, 2016 Great stuff Christer! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PlaStix Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 Lovely progress Christer! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christer A Posted February 15, 2016 Author Share Posted February 15, 2016 (edited) Thanks both of you! Both seats are now painted and ready to receive some belts. P1040238 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr I didn't add the tonal variation of the "plastic" on the Airfix seat. I don't think it will be visible with a closed canopy. Also, the Eduard Seat is approximately 1mm wider. Strange. Instrument panels are also completed. I didn't like the idea to paint the Airfix one, and strangely no decals is provided, so I nicked one in my Eduard IX boxing instead.P1040234 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr It actually fitted surprisingly good! The right one shows the Eduard panel with three layers of etch. Standard approach for this kit I guess. Question-time: Should I run some cables on the left side of the Airfix panel too? Will it be seen with the canopy closed? Edited August 12, 2017 by Christer A 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biggles87 Posted February 15, 2016 Share Posted February 15, 2016 I think you can get away with a painted representation of the cables if you are going to close the canopy. Strange how different manufacturers have different ideas on the seat dimensions, the Tamiya seats are also wide and in 1/32 the Hasegawa (and Aires ) seats are way over scale. Cheers John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homerlovesbeer Posted February 15, 2016 Share Posted February 15, 2016 Hey Christer, the fiddling continues eh hehe. The instrument clusters look great. Regarding the wiring I think simply painting it should suffice with canopy on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christer A Posted February 15, 2016 Author Share Posted February 15, 2016 Fiddling is what I do... I'm actually quite bad with waving a hairy stick in a straight line so I resorted to adding some wires anyway. Mush easier this way Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christer A Posted March 13, 2016 Author Share Posted March 13, 2016 (edited) Gosh has it been almost a month since the last post? Well, my spits are still alive and kicking, but at a slow pace. As usual. The Airfix cockpit is completed now.P1040293 by Christer Andersson, on FlickrP1040294 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr This will probably be good enough for a closed cockpit. I made a complete mess of things with the etched belts though P1040297 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr The CA-glue rather stuck my fingers together than fixated the belts in place, or took ages to harden. Trying some Gator Grip instead gave no improvement, just the opposite. After all this wrestling, I finally got them in place, but it doesn't look pretty. Oh well, I'll get some other CA for my Eduard VIII, and hope for better luck. I did see some XII here on this forum that replaced the inlet on top of the engine with a metal one. I just had to try it too...P1040296 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr My first try was in thin plastic card, both those just deflated like a bad soufflé, so I used some metal from and etch fret. Well, after that I decided to stick the fuselage together P1040298 by Christer Andersson, on FlickrP1040299 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr Lets see if I can get it looking like a plane soon //Christer Edited August 12, 2017 by Christer A Flikr-fied 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob85 Posted March 13, 2016 Share Posted March 13, 2016 It looks like a plane christer.... Just not a complete one! But it is looking like a very good incomplete plane!! Nice work on both of these. Rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christer A Posted March 13, 2016 Author Share Posted March 13, 2016 (edited) Thanks Rob! Just debating whether I should add the slipper tank or not. It could add some flair, right? P1040302 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr Edited August 12, 2017 by Christer A Flikr-fied 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob85 Posted March 13, 2016 Share Posted March 13, 2016 Do it! You never see them enough! I want to sort one out for a spitfire in my future, something a bit out of the norm which is always a good thing Rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christer A Posted March 13, 2016 Author Share Posted March 13, 2016 All right! I just understood that I don't need to add it now, but I can wait until after the weathering. After all, it's droppable and a XII underside looks DIRTY! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tbolt Posted March 13, 2016 Share Posted March 13, 2016 (edited) Some great work going on here, makes me want to start a Spitfire right now (must finish something first!). Reference your comment about the upper and lower engine cowl's - the lower one is actually in two halves, there should be a panel line running down the centre (not on the intake fairing, that is one piece). Some resin replacements have missed this. Edited March 13, 2016 by Tbolt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christer A Posted March 14, 2016 Author Share Posted March 14, 2016 Thanks Tbolt! Looking at restored warbirds (yeah, I know, not to be trusted as reference and so on), the panel line on the lower cowl seems to be of the "sometimes you see it, sometimes you don't" variety. http://www.airliners.net/photo/Supermarine-361-Spitfire/2278467/L/&sid=f1630363dcd1234505f2783c614f405c http://www.airliners.net/photo/Supermarine-300-Spitfire/2270527/L/&sid=f1630363dcd1234505f2783c614f405c http://www.airliners.net/photo/Supermarine-349-Spitfire/2262277/L/&sid=f1630363dcd1234505f2783c614f405c http://www.airliners.net/photo/Supermarine-361-Spitfire/2536282/L/&sid=f1630363dcd1234505f2783c614f405c http://www.airliners.net/photo/Supermarine-361-Spitfire/2510560/L/&sid=f1630363dcd1234505f2783c614f405c My guess is that it's made in two pieces, joined together at the factory so that the cowl is then one piece when used on the aircraft. Since there are no fasteners running down the middle I´d guess that it's not possible to just remove one half of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tbolt Posted March 14, 2016 Share Posted March 14, 2016 (edited) Thanks Tbolt! Looking at restored warbirds (yeah, I know, not to be trusted as reference and so on), the panel line on the lower cowl seems to be of the "sometimes you see it, sometimes you don't" variety. http://www.airliners.net/photo/Supermarine-361-Spitfire/2278467/L/&sid=f1630363dcd1234505f2783c614f405c http://www.airliners.net/photo/Supermarine-300-Spitfire/2270527/L/&sid=f1630363dcd1234505f2783c614f405c http://www.airliners.net/photo/Supermarine-349-Spitfire/2262277/L/&sid=f1630363dcd1234505f2783c614f405c http://www.airliners.net/photo/Supermarine-361-Spitfire/2536282/L/&sid=f1630363dcd1234505f2783c614f405c http://www.airliners.net/photo/Supermarine-361-Spitfire/2510560/L/&sid=f1630363dcd1234505f2783c614f405c My guess is that it's made in two pieces, joined together at the factory so that the cowl is then one piece when used on the aircraft. Since there are no fasteners running down the middle I´d guess that it's not possible to just remove one half of it. Yes I didn't mean that it can be removed in two pieces, it is a factory butt join and there are four rows of countersunk rivets running down the middle attaching to a butt strap on the back. One of the pictures you show is a Mk.I and another a Mk.V - complete different cowl on the earlier marks, as you can see this type of cowl is split into three laterally. Being a rivetted butt join, it tends to be a tighter gap than removable panels so often isn't that easy to see, but then neither are the other production butt and lap joins that are 'oversized' on our models! So on my models I make it match the other panel lines for size. Early chin cowl. Edited March 14, 2016 by Tbolt 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christer A Posted March 14, 2016 Author Share Posted March 14, 2016 (edited) Yes, since the engine installations are different on Mk1, Vb, VIII and so on all cowlings are different as well. From what I can see on the VIII, the panel line is very hard to find This appears to be a mkVIII in a natural metal state. If the cowl on MkVIII were split in the middle it should show here right? Afterall, all cowls were handmade to fit on just one aircraft and were not interchangeable. Is it possible that they did both variants? Possibly. I'm polishing my VIII cowl anyway. After all this, why not add some wings to the XII?P1040303 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr Clipped wings and that enormous spinner makes it look like a beast. What's the reason behind the larger spinners on the Griffon spits anyway? All lumps and bumps fitted ok in the front. P1040304 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr It looks like I don't need to break out the filler for the wing roots. Yay! Speaking of cowls though Airfix supplies a one-pice cowl... The smaller cooler underneath the left wing (oil cooler right?) doesnät look very good, and and lots of filler was used. Thick paint will save it, I hope! Parked Spits, seems very often to have drooped elevators, so that's how i fixed mine.P1040305 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr Also added some linkage to the rudder.P1040308 by Christer Andersson, on Flickr (yes the small small solder-wire) Lets hops that the CA-glue won't disappoint again and that this poor wire can be straightened out too... Time to check a few seams! Edited August 12, 2017 by Christer A Flikr-fied 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tbolt Posted March 14, 2016 Share Posted March 14, 2016 (edited) This is a better quality shot of that aircraft (click to view full size) and you can see the join and the lines of rivets running along it, if you look just behind the prop blade. It's just not going to be that obvious from that angle and the quality of the join may vary. The Mk.XII is looking good, the oil cooler looks fine in that picture. Edited March 14, 2016 by Tbolt 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christer A Posted March 15, 2016 Author Share Posted March 15, 2016 I see it! Right, I'll try to make a very faint line on the lower cowl then, if possible. And thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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