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A Spiteful question


Bedders

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Folks, I know this is a crazy idea, but I'm thinking of doing a 1/72 Spiteful. The airframe I have in mind is NN664, which was the first one with the new fuselage. Photos I've seen show NN664 with the original Spitfire XIV tail section, whilst the Xtradecal Attacker/Spiteful sheet has drawings of it with the new Spiteful tail. Have Xtradecal got this right? Has anyone seen photos or other primary sources referring to NN664 with the big tail, or did retain the earlier tail for all its life?

 

TVM,

 

Justin

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I think NN664 like most prototype /development airframes went through several different incarnations in it's time. Best thing is to find a photo of what it is you're looking for and go with that, off the top of my head I'm sure it had both tail sections during its development.

Good luck with the build.

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There is a photo of NN664 in "Spitfire the History" with the large tail.  The rudder is painted in camo colors, but the aircraft in general still appears unpainted.  It has "Royal Navy" above the serial, which is curious to me.  (Yes, I know about the Seafang, but I don't know what part NN664 played in trials/development.)  RB515 was apparently flying with the large tail in May '45.  It is possible that it was the first, but I'm really not sure without further digging.

 

Edit: Just found a quote from one of Price's books: "By that time [October '45, NN664] had been fitted with the larger tail."

Edited by gingerbob
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Thanks folks. Gingerbob - just dug out my copy of the bible and found that photo. Great reference and thanks for pointing it out. Would make an interesting model with that painted rudder. Now to find a kit worth the effort...

 

Justin

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Go with the Pegasus one if you can find it, preferably the second tooling in the grey plastic with the white metal u/c and prop blades.  He got the tail surfaces completely wrong so you'd have to replace them anyway.  It's too long according to the Aviation News drawings, but how accurate are they?

 

The AZ one is too small and the CMR kit it's based on isn't much better.  Plenty of Rareplane vacforms about, but they have the same tail surface shape issues as Pegasus.

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Thanks. I had the Pegasus Mk 2 in mind, though it's harder to find than the CMR, about which I've read some not entirely complimentary reviews. When I was a younger kid than I am now I had the original Pegasus Mk 1, but it's been lost in all the house moves. On length I'm not too fussed: it's not a real model unless you've used the saw and some harsh language on it....

 

Justin

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At all cost, stay away from the CMR kit, it's god awful. Nothing fits or line up, the cockpit, incl the canopy is dead wrong and the undercarriage is very fragile. About the only use it has is as an inspiration for a 100% scratch build.

 

I don't know if you are aware of it, but the Spiteful had a cockpit that was completely different from the Spitfire; there are a few pictures and drawings on the net that you can Google. 

Edited by FinnAndersen
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Just as a point of information , Hannants currently have the Xtrakit Spitfire 22 on special offer at around 6 quid .  It would be an ideal source of a Spiteful-type tail for the Pegasus kit to save the bother of scratchbuilding .  The kit has numerous dimensional issues , but the tail's apparently pretty good .  There may well be various detail parts which would prove useful for improving the Pegasus kit also .

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On 2017-5-8 at 7:32 AM, grahamf said:

 

IMG_2735L

 

 

Please tell me that's not 1/72...

 

18 hours ago, rs2man said:

Just as a point of information , Hannants currently have the Xtrakit Spitfire 22 on special offer at around 6 quid .  It would be an ideal source of a Spiteful-type tail for the Pegasus kit to save the bother of scratchbuilding .  The kit has numerous dimensional issues , but the tail's apparently pretty good .  There may well be various detail parts which would prove useful for improving the Pegasus kit also .

 

Good thought. I've got a few bits & bobs in the stash, including from Special Hobby and Airfix, which could come in helpful.

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PM me with your address.  I may have something in the resin bits box that could be of some use. :evil_laugh:

 

It'll be a bit rough and needing some work, but I'm sure it'll be useful.  Edit: Found everything you'll need plus some spares.  Some are rough with air bubbles but nothing a man of your talents can't overcome.

Edited by The Wooksta!
Joyless fascism
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20 hours ago, The Wooksta! said:

PM me with your address.  I may have something in the resin bits box that could be of some use. :evil_laugh:

 

It'll be a bit rough and needing some work, but I'm sure it'll be useful.  Edit: Found everything you'll need plus some spares.  Some are rough with air bubbles but nothing a man of your talents can't overcome.

Will do. I'm intrigued!

 

16 hours ago, Work In Progress said:

 

OK, "that's not 1/72"

http://www.iconicair.com/spiteful/

That's a relief. What a beauty. J

 

 

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