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Fairey Firefly Mk V - Airfix 1/72


CedB

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I have to say it too

 

I have Airwaves stuff for Jaguars and Scout /Wasp

 

Doesn't fit the size in any dimension, the Jag one has airbrake skins that are, hmm, better than the Hasgawa kit but... Not the right shape

 

The Scout/Wasp gives tail fold circles ( this you may be aware is very important in my life at the mo') that are huge-er than the tail diameter by a country mile and its crew seats are surely a jest

 

What worries me is that I also own their sets for Fairey's Gannet and Blackburn's Buccaneer soon to enter the build stakes...   :(

 

Notwithstanding which I reckon you will get it sorted, thanks for heads up for Lidl's stuporgoo, I shall test the stuff forthwith

 

A sally to the shops beckons and you all know how much we pensioners enjoy blocking the lanes at Lidl

 

 

Yeehaa!

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On 2/26/2017 at 18:58, limeypilot said:

I've only attempted to use Airwaves once and binned most of it! I've not seen a build on here where it fitted either....sorry....

 

Ian

10 hours ago, perdu said:

I have to say it too

[snip...]

Notwithstanding which I reckon you will get it sorted, thanks for heads up for Lidl's stuporgoo, I shall test the stuff forthwith

 

A sally to the shops beckons and you all know how much we pensioners enjoy blocking the lanes at Lidl

Yeehaa!

 

Thanks Ian and Bill - once again I should have checked before purchase! Oh well, it's giving me a pain in the an interesting time (see below)

I hope you like the glue Bill - working well for me and no cursing those little tubes anymore (although I'm not sure how you know it's running out - better get a spare one).

 

On 2/26/2017 at 20:09, The Spadgent said:

Great start Ced and an excellent choice of plane. I'll stand here by the wall like a late parent to a school show.:o

I think Tony had problems with his Airwaves PE fitting on his Cuda. Luckily I have never come across any, the IP looks smart now you have it fitted. Bravo sir.

 

John. B)

 

Thanks John and welcome! IP's not fitted yet, but soon, hopefully.

 

23 hours ago, 71chally said:

Love the Firefly (especially the IV on) and always fancied doing this kit.

 

Looking like a damn fine build so far and will follow with interest.

You will do one of H E Chaplins' prettier designs good justice I reckon!

 

Welcome - I hope I do it justice!

 

7 hours ago, Leonl said:

I'm standing at the back again!!

 

I built this one many years ago and was one of my favourites. Still is, it just looks right!

 

Thanks Leon and welcome.

 

2 hours ago, Spookytooth said:

OK Leon, I will join you there.

Just hope that I can see over the heads.

 

:popcorn::popcorn::drink:

 

Simon.

 

Hi Simon and welcome to the kit bashing!

 

 

A long break (for me) in the posts as I was sorting out the Avia. I did some work on this today but quickly got, er, cross. Why? Well, having fiddled with the PE I thought "Best way to do this is to fit the kit parts and then bash the PE into shape based on that":

 

32335860113_014263d0ea_z.jpg

Untitled by Ced Bufton, on Flickr

 

Now look what's happened:

 

33151164245_7fd2017963_z.jpg

 

The kit parts don't fit either! Oh joy. I've had a quick look at other's builds and I think I can see that they had the same problem, or quickly covered the gap with the canopy, which is thick. Very thick. The PE does close the gap a bit:

 

32994873812_c657782eb9_z.jpg

 

but it doesn't fit here (surprise):

 

32305773624_61431086b8_z.jpg

 

File it, fit it, make a groove in the fuselage (both sides), file it etc etc

 

32995029282_3660ed2174_n.jpg 32995285632_4debf2d271_n.jpg

 

and finally it fits, so glue it to the kit part. Oh, hold on... does the PE stop the canopy fitting? Gaaahh! Rip it off again. Pause. Breath. How about the pilot's bulkhead?

 

33110412346_d3bd846944_z.jpg

 

In an unusual Airfix / Airwaves collaboration, neither fits. More joy tomorrow.

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Aargh. 'Respected Britmodeller in Airwaves Misfit Hell.' Reminds me of the time I had to cut down all their bits on the Meteor, oh and a Sea Venom...I have to agree with Martian's comments from experience Ced...

10 hours ago, perdu said:

What worries me is that I also own their sets for Fairey's Gannet and Blackburn's Buccaneer soon to enter the build stakes...   :(

Me too Bill! Back when I was young and naive (last summer!) I bought both their internal and external sets for the Buccaneer. Je regret everything now I am old and wise. I bought a Frog Sea Vixen off the 'bay at the same time and it actually had two sets of Airwaves stuff stuffed inside under the instructions. You know when sellers start hiding it like that there's something amiss!

 

Err, sorry Ced. I'm not exactly making  with the positivity. You do realise that an anagram of Airwaves is 'Aw, varies'?

 

I wish you fortitude in this brass valley...

Tony 

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25 minutes ago, Spookytooth said:

Oh, the joys of P.E.

I thought it was there to give added detail to thee build, not added stress...

 

 

How wrong you were. Any added detail is merely an incidental side effect.

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Good job bashing everything into submission, Ced :clap: I forgot to mention that the sole time I used Airwaves, I also used my Dremel with a sanding disc to reshape them; works wonder, you just need to go feather handed. HTH

 

Ciao

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Hi Ced,

 

the Firefly box art has always been my top favorite among the Airfix kits. I should have bought it when I was young, although I never came across it. Then, after I had grown into an extremely intelligent and discerning Homo (almost)sapiens, I kept bumping into reviews telling the world what a problem child this kit was, with the chord of the wings being way too narrow and several other woes I have forgotten. Bottom line, I got cold feet. And I am an idiot for having let myself be influenced.

So have a lot of fun!!!

Re Airwaves, I love their generic PE, like seat belts, etc.

For the rest, I will be with the others, ready to cast stones at the fit of their product. Surely, we have all been extremely unlucky. Some PE, somewhere, must fit the kit it is intended for!

 

JR

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Ooo :o. It looks a bit problematic. Challenging. Frustrating. Words like that.

 

I find with ludicrously badly made (for no apparent reason) Airwaves sets, 'overkill' works.

 

Get out a Dremel and other such satisfying tools of vandalism. Cut the Airwaves down to fit, not so much the kit.

 

Good luck and kudos for trying the Airwaves set Ced (the big yellow H deserve a good KUTA regarding many of their etch sets, why make them in a rubbish way, when it costs just the same to make them right?).

 

TonyT

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15 hours ago, Beard said:

Hmmm, it's not even like a bad suit (that fits where it touches). I have no doubt you'll overcome though.

 

Thanks Simon for the vote of confidence - it will help top up the mojo tank!

 

15 hours ago, Spookytooth said:

Oh, the joys of P.E.

I thought it was there to give added detail to thee build, not added stress...

 

Simon.

 

Me too - after the ICM decals I'm beginning to think there are some right sadists in the AM industry - "Hey, run a scalpel over the decal sheet. Hee hee!" and now "That PE fits really well... let's make this bit wider, this bit longer...". Or perhaps I'm just paranoid.

 

14 hours ago, TheBaron said:

Aargh. 'Respected Britmodeller in Airwaves Misfit Hell.' Reminds me of the time I had to cut down all their bits on the Meteor, oh and a Sea Venom...I have to agree with Martian's comments from experience Ced...

Me too Bill! Back when I was young and naive (last summer!) I bought both their internal and external sets for the Buccaneer. Je regret everything now I am old and wise. I bought a Frog Sea Vixen off the 'bay at the same time and it actually had two sets of Airwaves stuff stuffed inside under the instructions. You know when sellers start hiding it like that there's something amiss!

 

Err, sorry Ced. I'm not exactly making  with the positivity. You do realise that an anagram of Airwaves is 'Aw, varies'?

 

I wish you fortitude in this brass valley...

Tony 

 

"Aw, varies" - clever! Thanks Tony.

 

14 hours ago, Procopius said:

How wrong you were. Any added detail is merely an incidental side effect.

 

Indeed! I'm looking at the stuff more closely now and thinking "Does that really look like a radio? What is THAT lump" and worse (see below)

 

14 hours ago, keefr22 said:

Hmmm. Maybe not quite so painless after all Ced...!!

Good luck with the rest of it - and good work getting it to fit so far!

Keith

 

Thanks Keith - I have promised myself something painless next time AND I'll check the instructions, parts and reviews BEFORE I commit.

 

14 hours ago, The Spadgent said:

Oh hell. That looks a bit painful. Must have been Tony's Venom build I was thinking of. Either way, bobbins P.E.

 

Im sure it'll come out good in the end.

 

Jont.

 

Thanks Jont - more confidence booster - thank matey!

 

4 hours ago, Biggles87 said:

Looks like you've done it again! 

 

John

 

Is that you Britney? I do laugh at this:

 

 

We need to talk about Kevin.

 

4 hours ago, giemme said:

Good job bashing everything into submission, Ced :clap: I forgot to mention that the sole time I used Airwaves, I also used my Dremel with a sanding disc to reshape them; works wonder, you just need to go feather handed. HTH

 

Ciao

 

Thanks Giorgio - great tip... I'll put away the hammer and chisel for a while then :) 

 

4 hours ago, wyverns4 said:

We have faith, you can do it!:like:

 

(Now moving to the back seats to duck and cover).

 

Christian, exiled to africa

 

Thanks Christian - more mojo boost!

 

2 hours ago, jean said:

Hi Ced,

 

the Firefly box art has always been my top favorite among the Airfix kits. I should have bought it when I was young, although I never came across it. Then, after I had grown into an extremely intelligent and discerning Homo (almost)sapiens, I kept bumping into reviews telling the world what a problem child this kit was, with the chord of the wings being way too narrow and several other woes I have forgotten. Bottom line, I got cold feet. And I am an idiot for having let myself be influenced.

So have a lot of fun!!!

Re Airwaves, I love their generic PE, like seat belts, etc.

For the rest, I will be with the others, ready to cast stones at the fit of their product. Surely, we have all been extremely unlucky. Some PE, somewhere, must fit the kit it is intended for!

 

JR

 

Thanks Jean - it is great isn't it. Hopefully the finished model will look something like it. I just need to get the PE out of the way.

 

38 minutes ago, TonyTiger66 said:

Ooo :o. It looks a bit problematic. Challenging. Frustrating. Words like that.

 

I find with ludicrously badly made (for no apparent reason) Airwaves sets, 'overkill' works.

 

Get out a Dremel and other such satisfying tools of vandalism. Cut the Airwaves down to fit, not so much the kit.

 

Good luck and kudos for trying the Airwaves set Ced (the big yellow H deserve a good KUTA regarding many of their etch sets, why make them in a rubbish way, when it costs just the same to make them right?).

 

TonyT

 

Thanks TT - another vote for more 'positive' action - taken to heart below.

 

 

You know I'm never sure whether to use the 'quote' feature or just reply in 'plain text' and have people scrolling up and down... thoughts? Do we need the exercise?

 

Anyhoos, more internals. The instructions say to use plasticard block to make a backing for the radios. Well, excuse me, but having four blobs on a bit of PE do not a radio face make. Even so, rather than fiddle with the punch set to make my own knobs I pressed on, just to show it can be done. It also gave me an excuse to use the mitre block for the first time:

 

33164818915_b93211b599_n.jpg 33164983795_3cb7c10749_n.jpg

Untitled by Ced Bufton, on Flickr

 

Tiny stuff and hard to line up. I glued the PE to the end to act as a guide. Helped a bit. Done now:

 

33037390641_9d95111a01_z.jpg

 

Very realistic. Not. Fitted to the internal part ready for painting:

 

32782875890_2c77b2ae9d_z.jpg

 

I've straightened that bent edge. Does this add anything? We shall see what a coat of black and some Pitt pens can do. You can see how frustrated this is making me by the state of the bench:

 

32351259513_6b8b8e6de0_z.jpg

 

Messy for me. Next up, the fuselage frames:

 

33010033882_7b97909f34_z.jpg

 

Front next. Oooh look, that bit goes across the slot I had to cut to get the IP in:

 

32321357984_8f34c123c9_z.jpg

 

Right, out with the scalpels. I also used the fibreglass pen to clean up the sink marks:

 

33166688105_9615fb0a41_z.jpg

 

Nice tool - thanks Nigel!

This side of course has to be lined up 'by eye" (uh oh). I ended up positioning the part, using thin CA and capillary action to glue and pressing it down with the actuator pen. Yes, by this time I didn't care!

 

32351665113_08ccedfc39_z.jpg

 

It would also appear that the Nav has the throttle and trim wheel. Presumably the pilot just shouts out the settings. 

 

Speaking of which Ernest and Alfie are almost ready - they need a matt coat. 

 

32784344920_fe7cf8f9d0_z.jpg

 

Not my best work, but when you have a pilot who's wearing a onesie and has a box of cereal down his jacket, needs must, And why does Alfie look more like a cat? Perhaps he's not feline very well... :coat:

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1 hour ago, CedB said:

It would also appear that the Nav has the throttle and trim wheel. Presumably the pilot just shouts out the settings. 

 

 

That surely can't be right! Looks like another Airwaves c*ck up to me! Perhaps they used pics of a trainers rear 'pit as refernce?

 

K

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1 hour ago, CedB said:

It would also appear that the Nav has the throttle and trim wheel. Presumably the pilot just shouts out the settings. 

I think the nautical term is a telegraph and repeater, unless they're using a Gosport tube!  You'll probably find that there's a stoker down in the propulsion machinery spaces to ensure a full head of steam to achieve 'Ahead Full'.

 

Nice detail and remedy work going on there.

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The navigator has obviously hot-footed over from his day job where he is appearing as the lion from "Wizard of Oz". He looks like he has straw stuffed down his chest so maybe he's doubling up as the scarecrow too...

 

Regards,

Adrian

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One thing to take into account with P.E and Resin is that companies will take measurements from plans or the real thing and produce .

Not taking into consideration the thickness of the plastic of the fuselage walls etc.

Hence a lot of times you are having to remove vast quantities of plastic to make things fit.

 

Still, there is the enjoyment of it I suppose, if you are that way inclined.

 

Simon.

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