1/48th Special Hobby Wirraway- Finished

[tonyot]

Hiya Folks,

                I also bought a Special Hobby Wirraway today and while pre painting my Spitfire I thought I`d crack on with this alongside it too;

Here are the parts;

 

I`ve not fully decided upon the scheme yet but it will probably be one of the wartime kit options and I`m looking forward to adding a quarter scale Wirraway to my RAAF model collection,

Cheers

           Tony 

Edited April 27, 2017 by tonyot

[Troy Smith]

Hi Tony

 

maybe worth noting that Red Roo do/did an update/correction set for this kit

http://www.aussiemodeller.com.au/pages/Reviews/Conversions/RRR48151Wirraway.html

 

Probably hard to get here, (Blackbird Models are the UK  RR distributor and it's not listed)  but maybe worth using as a guide  for the  odd tweak.  

 

I had memories of Aussie Modeller having a Wirraway glitch list, which I can't find  right now,   IIRC  don't think any of it was really awful, more a mixture of variants and smaller details.

the  above review does list what in the set

Maybe Ed Russell (or other Antipodean members) may pitch in with some information.

 

I know you are not too precious, but also like to be as close as possible with going barmy,  so hope of some use.

 

cheers

T

 

 

[tonyot]

10 hours ago, Troy Smith said:

Hi Tony

 

maybe worth noting that Red Roo do/did an update/correction set for this kit

http://www.aussiemodeller.com.au/pages/Reviews/Conversions/RRR48151Wirraway.html

 

Probably hard to get here, (Blackbird Models are the UK  RR distributor and it's not listed)  but maybe worth using as a guide  for the  odd tweak.  

 

I had memories of Aussie Modeller having a Wirraway glitch list, which I can't find  right now,   IIRC  don't think any of it was really awful, more a mixture of variants and smaller details.

the  above review does list what in the set

Maybe Ed Russell (or other Antipodean members) may pitch in with some information.

 

I know you are not too precious, but also like to be as close as possible with going barmy,  so hope of some use.

 

cheers

T

 

 

Cheers Troy,

                   That looks like a cracking set from Red Roo as usual and some good info too. I`ve not seen a Vickers K Gun in the Special Hobby kit but luckily I have one in the spares box which I can dig out. Pity the canopies cannot be made to open,...... I did have an MDC Harvard Mk.I conversion knocking about somewhere which may have an extra vacuformed canopy,..... but I`ve not been able to find it since the other half tidied my stash while I was in hospital! 

I did some pre painting while watching the new series of Car Share on telly last night,......really funny!

All the best

                Tony

[tonyot]

Hiya Folks,

                  I had bought a set of resin wheels for my recent Harvard `spree' but I`ll probably use them on this model instead. Also pictured with the wheels is the Vickers K Gun from my spares box having been left over from a Walrus kit,..... quite a strange omission from the Wirraway kit really;

Here are the parts mid way through their pre painting session with the fabric sides of the fuselage painted using 70 Humbrol Brick Red to replicate the initial coats of dope bleeding through the inside of the fabric. I`ll probably mask off some stringers,..... I`m not sure yet;

Cheers

           Tony

[Max Headroom]

Blimey, you don't hang around do you?

 

Quantity AND quality.

 

Skip load of popcorn ordered. 

 

Trevor

[tonyot]

Here are some reference pics;

I quite like this twin Vickers K Gun option! The caption from the AWM reads "Wirraway aircraft of No. 4 Squadron RAAF showing twin mounted Vickers gas operated guns made up in the Squadron. Identified are: 401866 Flying Officer John Maxwell Utber (Pilot); 431015 Flight Sergeant (Flt Sgt) Kenneth Davis (Observer). Flt Sgt Davis was killed in operations in New Guinea while serving with 100 Squadron, RAAF. ";

not to forget the Navy;

So many good schemes to choose from,...decisions,.... decisions,..... I do quite like the Malaya campaign markings!

I`ve already built one of the kit options in 1/72nd scale, so might not choose that one again;

 

Cheers

           Tony

 

Edited April 12, 2017 by tonyot

[mhaselden]

Hi Tony,

Watching this one eagerly.  I have this kit, plus the RedRoo set, in my stash awaiting sufficient courage on my part to tackle it.  I'm planning on doing A20-86 'GA-O' (illustrated prior to hostilities in one of your pics above) when it equipped W Flt in Malaya.  There are pics of this aircraft after its capture by the Japanese at Batavia, NEI.

 

I'm looking forward to seeing how you approach the kit...hoping to learn a lot from your build (as I do with all your builds).

 

Cheers,
Mark

Edited April 12, 2017 by mhaselden

[Rabbit Leader]

Great spread of Wirraway pics there Tony. 

Although (being an Aussie) I tend to think that I'm more than familiar with this aircraft, however there are a few pics that you've just posted that I've not come across before.

All the best with your build, it just might spur me on to tackle my 1/72 kit.

 

Cheers ... Dave.

[Martian]

Great choice of subject Tony and some great reference pictures too. The twin gun mounting in the first picture looks very interesting!

 

Martian

[tonyot]

Wow,.....thanks fella`s,....glad to have you on board with this one! 

I`m going to see if I have any suitable decals for the Malaysian based aircraft,.... pity that Special Hobby didn`t re do the decals in 1/48th as they have just re released the 1/72nd scale kit with these decal options;

The last one is quite interesting too! 

I may just buy the 1/72nd scale kit and build the Malaysian based Wirraway from that if I cannot find any suitable codes and serials.

 

These are the kit options as they stand,...... I`m not sure whether a `Sea Scheme was ever applied to Wirraways although I have read about it before;

 

Montex have some interesting masks for trainers,....but I don`t think I`m brave enough for brush painting masks yet?

 

Cheers

         Tony

[tonyot]

Well here is a bit of an update,....... but don`t know how this will progress from here as we`ll see,.........

 

First off,.....the wings have been assembled;

Here is the cockpit frame with the fuselage halves and engine cowling,......although I`ve made a mistake here which needs to be rectified;

 

The fuselage was sealed up and then the framework was inserted from below through the hole for the wings,....but don`t forget to add the rear section of cockpit flooring;

Then the wings were added to the fuselage;

 

Now,.....this is where a personal `hiccup' occurred as while putting the kit parts back into the box after photographing them,.......I had a sharp pain in my back again and it has left me in quite a lot of pain! Hopefully the disc has not moved as far as last time and it will settle back into position,...fingers crossed!

 

Anyway,.....while confined to the settee I added some plastic card shims into the wheel wells where the wings and fuselage meet up as it is quite a sloppy joint here;

The engine cowling was bugging me so going through the reference pics that I posted earlier it dawned on me what the problem was,......so I removed the air intake and fitted it correctly,.....it looks much better now and a bit of filler and sanding should do the rest;

 

 

All the best and I hope to get back to this as soon as possible,

Cheers

           Tony

 

Edit,....I`ve also noticed that some Wirraway`s don`t appear to have this air intake on te cowling,.... an early variant?

Edited April 13, 2017 by tonyot

[Rabbit Leader]

Tony,

 

Apologies if you've already seen this, however here is a link to a good Wirraway site - http://dbdesignbureau.buckmasterfamily.id.au/drawings_cac_wirraway.htm

There's plenty of other pages here two, so go back to 'home' and navigate from there.

I'm sure not all Wirraways had this front cowling scoop, however cannot readily identify which CA-? version this relates too. If I get a chance, I'll start digging.

Have you decided which serial you will be modelling?

 

Cheers.. and best of health with the back... Dave.

 

 

[Kahunaminor]

Great start Tony,

 

Can't have too many RAAF builds!

 

Regards,

[tonyot]

26 minutes ago, Rabbit Leader said:

Tony,

 

Apologies if you've already seen this, however here is a link to a good Wirraway site - http://dbdesignbureau.buckmasterfamily.id.au/drawings_cac_wirraway.htm

There's plenty of other pages here two, so go back to 'home' and navigate from there.

I'm sure not all Wirraways had this front cowling scoop, however cannot readily identify which CA-? version this relates too. If I get a chance, I'll start digging.

Have you decided which serial you will be modelling?

 

Cheers.. and best of health with the back... Dave.

 

 

Thanks Dave,......that is a very good website too, cheers mate.

14 minutes ago, Kahunaminor said:

Great start Tony,

 

Can't have too many RAAF builds!

 

Regards,

Cheers and I agree wholeheartedly!!!

[Ed Russell]

On 12/04/2017 at 0:11 PM, Troy Smith said:

maybe worth noting that Red Roo do/did an update/correction set for this kit

http://www.aussiemodeller.com.au/pages/Reviews/Conversions/RRR48151Wirraway.html

Probably hard to get here, (Blackbird Models are the UK  RR distributor and it's not listed)  but maybe worth using as a guide  for the  odd tweak.  

 

 

Unfortunately hard to get anywhere as we are out of stock. We may do another run as they are quite popular and the SH kit is now available again. It's quite comprehensive and takes the kit to a new level. It's always hard to assess the demand for something like this....... maybe a flood of PMs saying "No I don't one" would be very useful! I'll extract a few pages and send them to Tony.

[georgeusa]

Quite a,lot of progress on this one in a short time. Again, I'm sorry for the back flare-up and hope it resolves itself shortly. I know how frustrating a nagging, physical, reoccurring injury can be and how powerless it can make one feel. Find something enjoyable on the TV and hopefully your back will right itself. The hardest thing to do is stop yourself from attempting to just push through it when that would only make things worse. 

Oops!  Forgot to tell you the quick progress is very impressive!

[Kahunaminor]

7 hours ago, Ed Russell said:

 

Unfortunately hard to get anywhere as we are out of stock. We may do another run as they are quite popular and the SH kit is now available again. It's quite comprehensive and takes the kit to a new level. It's always hard to assess the demand for something like this....... maybe a flood of PMs saying "No I don't one" would be very useful! I'll extract a few pages and send them to Tony.

Put me down for two....there, sorted.

[tonyot]

Having received the instructions for the Red Roo conversion set from Ed all I can say is WOW,...... the instructions themselves could be sold as a book on the type and will help anybody building a Wirraway model. I wish that I had them to hand when starting the interior as there are fantastic photos and I would have gone with my initial hunch of painting the inerior silver and not Interior Green as per the instructions,....dohh! 

Cheers

          Tony

[tonyot]

Hiya Folks,

                 Well I`m bored stiff being confined to the settee with the back playing silly buggers again,.....so I`ve got on with a bit of light modelling using my trusty tray! Having gone through the Red Roo instructions and had it confirmed that the interior was silver (why don`t I just follow my hunch sometimes eh!) I have taken the seats out and re painted the inside using Humbrol Metalcote dull aluminium;

I`ve also added some filler to the wing roots and fuselage;

 

I also decided to cut the canopy down and removed the rear section no problem but when I came to removing the windscreen I slipped with the razor saw and have marked the glazing,.....arghhh!!!....I`m hoping that it might polish out, but we`ll see.

So a little sanding and then hopefully time for some paint!

Cheers

           Tony

[Martian]

Nice work on the cockpits Tony. How well did the kit parts fit together?

 

Martian

[tonyot]

6 hours ago, Martian Hale said:

Nice work on the cockpits Tony. How well did the kit parts fit together?

 

Martian

Cheers Martin,.....the kit parts aren`t bad mate and fit quite well, standard Special Hobby really,.....some need a bit of sanding at the seams. The interior framework is all butt joints but once it starts taking shape it becomes quite rigid. I was quite pleased with the fit of the wing to fuselage, although removing a bit of the floor section helped one wing to drop into place more freely,

Cheers

           Tony

[tonyot]

HHiya Folks,

                Well a bit of an update,...... I ordered this Montex mask set from Hannants as I quite liked both options;

 

However,......they have sent me a mask set for a Japanese aeroplane instead! I have another Wirraway up in the stash somewhere so if Hannants do come up trumps with the correct set I`ll use it on that instead now!

 

So,...... I still wanted to depict an early war operational Wirraway so fell back on that instead, but I could not find suitable codes for a 21/ Y Sqn GA coded aeroplane, so decided upon one from Rabaul or one of the Australian based units and while swatting up on my admittedly limited Wirraway knowledge I noticed that early Wirraway`s had a cowling without the air intake mounted in the top quarter of the cowling and also had a smaller intake under the engine too. As the Special Hobby kit only includes the later cowling I had a dig around in the spares box and came up with an old cowling from a Monogram Harvard in case this came in handy. Here are some photos to show what I mean;

Early cowling;

and again, but with a scoop fitted under the intake below the engine;

 

This is the later cowling with integral air intake in the top quarter,...some had the earlier flatter underside intake and later ones a more bulged intake like this one, which isn`t in the kit;

Another view of the later bulged intake below the engine;

 

I`m thinking of going for the aeroplane shown below (thanks to the excellent ADF Serials website) which is A20-163 of 4 Sqn RAAF based near to Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory during October 1941;

Which looks to have the later cowling with an integral air intake fitted and the early lower intake with scoop fitted, both as depicted in the kit. I`d be happy if somebody can tell me if I`m wrong (I have admitted that my knowledge of the type is sketchy!) and then I can fall back on my ex Harvard cowling!

 

Onto the model,.....well I should have a suitable Medium Sea Grey `D' and I have some serials plus black under wing codes and roundels,....I just hope that I can find some number `2's' of the correct style for nder the wings!

 

I`ve sprayed the undersides silver using a Tamiya rattle can and then masked them off ready to apply Polly Scale RAAF Earth Brown. Although I found some suitable yellow edged fuselage roundels for the Malayan scheme from the underwing markings from a 1/72nd Hurricane sheet,......the correct style `GA' codes were just a Bridge Too Far, so I`m opting for another scheme;

Here are the kit cowling (left) and the Monogram Harvard cowling (right) with the kits resin engine;

Here is the kit canopy, which should be painted black on the inside of the frame lines, not green! The rear has been removed but I slipped and marked the windscreen,......Special Hobby have kindly agreed to send me a new one;

And here is the model following a couple of coats of Polly Scale RAAF Earth Brown...although I`m not sure if it is dark enough?;

 

Next I`m researching whether to go for RAF Dark Green or a darker colour like RAAF Foliage Green,....

 

Cheers for now,

                          Tony

 

Edit,..... well I couldn`t find a suitable grey letter `D' and the under wing serials are proving troublesome too,..and I don`t have the option of the Montex mask serials either...although I may have solved the serials elsewhere,..stand by on that one. I have another decal option in mind instead; 

either;

12 Sqn`s A20-150 coded M at Darwin;

or;

A20-132

 

or;

A20-210/E 5 Sqn,.....which might have the later cowling?;

or;

A20-118

or 

or even this 24 Sqn aircraft from 1940;

 

This colour photo of the fabric from Wirraway A20-119 is interesting too, note how light the blue is;

 

Although most of these might need the Harvard cowling? 

 

I had another Wirraway or two in the stash lined up for another scheme but the missus couldn`t find anything in the loft,..arghh! I cannot get up there to check! 

 

Cheers

          Tony

 

 

Edited April 18, 2017 by tonyot

[tonyot]

On 16/04/2017 at 0:49 PM, Martian Hale said:

Nice work on the cockpits Tony. How well did the kit parts fit together?

 

Martian

Sorry Martin,

                   I really thought that I`d answered you,....either a computer glitch or the painkillers that I`m taking! Yes the kit parts go together quite well, typcal Special Hobby really, some parts need cleaning up here and there along the seams but otherwise nice and crisp. The floor section needed to be trimmed a bit on one side to enable the fuselage and left wing root to fit properly. The cockpit framework was surprisingly easy although I got the left and right frames mixed up and rather than taking the frame apart again I removed the rear seat electrical box from the left side and switched it to the right! The resin engine even fits well into the cowling without the need to be trimmed,....unlike some kits!

I`d highly reccomend this kit to somebody with your experience,

Cheers

            Tony 

edit,....Oh I did reply after all,.....that didn`t show up earlier! 

Edited April 18, 2017 by tonyot

[Biggles81]

Hi Tony, 

 

Lovely build - note per your colour comments all your options will have RAAF Foliage Green applied - no RAF Dark Green to be seen on Wirraways.

 

Cheers,

 

Ken

[Kahunaminor]

Tony,

 

You have the Wirraway juices flowing now. I know I have at least one plus some aftermarket in the form of masks or decals upstairs. I am away at the moment but I shall have a look and see if there is anything you are particularly after, that I have.

 

Regards,