A Cuban Sea Fury.

[Howard Moon]

Hi Kurt,

 

great to see this coming together. Looking forward to seeing the paint go on, do you intend to spray direct to plastic or are you going to prime it?

 

Cheers,

H

[huvut76g7gbbui7]

3 hours ago, amos brierley said:

I`m wondering if you`ve given any thought to the arrestor hook

Not sure about the first batch but as the second batch were ex British FB11s,I can't see them going to the trouble of modifying the fuselage and rudder when it would be a simple matter of just removing the hooks.

I was reading this the other day and the very poor quality pic at the start of the page suggests a two tone camouglage.

 

http://www.cubaheritage.org/articles.asp?lID=1&artID=239

[Diggers11]

8 hours ago, tank152 said:

Spent most of yesterday afternoon faffing around fitting the gunsight. After i'd fit it I couldn't get the windscreen on as it fouled it due to the rake. I ended up having to carefully prise the sight off and re fix it, i've had to compromise in it's position to get everything to fit. 

The sight is out of a Brassin Spitfire MkIX cockpit set and looks about right, to me anyway.

As you can see, it sits to low, if i'd have had it at the correct  it would have been directly over the stick and would have looked enver worse.

Everyone is now madked up so hopefully I'll get her coloured in today.

Tim. 

Hi Tim,

 

I hate it when things like this happen. You carefully glue some cockpit detail in, only to find later something else wont fit because of it. Usually due to the over scale thickness of the canopy at these scales.

 

Still looking great though.

 

Mark.

[tank152]

10 hours ago, Ilan said:

Unfortunately not much as I would love to. Life is full of other things to do.

 

I know exactly what you mean with that one IIan.

9 hours ago, Bedders said:

This looks lovely. Great cockpit and really nice to se the airframe taking shape.

 

Justin

Thanks Justin, you know you're moving in the right direction once the wings are on etc don't you.

9 hours ago, Blitz23 said:

That cockpit looks fantastic, great job so far!

Thanks glad you like it. 

7 hours ago, amos brierley said:

Hello,  am glad to be following this subject, Cuban colour conundrums aside, I`m wondering if you`ve given any thought to the arrestor hook?????????? I`m looking at the Xtradecal set with the overall Dk Green option....... Known is the fact that the Cuban A/C did not have the arrestor hook, but, was this just a case of removing the hook? Or, as I was looking at recently, it was a case of : a new longer rudder and the bulge at the rudder post being removed and the tail skin being re-instated as flush. I recently thought it was the latter as period photo`s don't really show the tail area, but, looking at the restored A/C seems to show the arrestor hook bump and cut away rudder. The preserved A/C in overall Dk Green under a sun shelter looks fantastic.  Thanx  

Hi Amos, If you're refering to the Iraqi Furies with the extended rudders etc then I believe that they were a different Mk to the one's used by Cuba? I'm certainly no expert on anything Sea Fury so happy to be proved wrong. I'm sure that the arrester hooks were just removed, maybe they pop riveted some aluminium over the recess to tidy things up a bit, who knows? Right or wrong that is the approach i've taken. I'll also be giving it a light green mottle.

Cheers.

7 hours ago, janneman36 said:

Nice job you are doing on this Sea Fury, following this with interrest ..

 

 

Cheers, Jan

Thanks Jan, how is your Iraqi one coming along??

6 hours ago, Howard Moon said:

Hi Kurt,

 

great to see this coming together. Looking forward to seeing the paint go on, do you intend to spray direct to plastic or are you going to prime it?

 

Cheers,

H

H,

I'll be giving it a coat of black primer before hitting it with some green.

4 hours ago, Scimitar said:

Not sure about the first batch but as the second batch were ex British FB11s,I can't see them going to the trouble of modifying the fuselage and rudder when it would be a simple matter of just removing the hooks.

I was reading this the other day and the very poor quality pic at the start of the page suggests a two tone camouglage.

 

http://www.cubaheritage.org/articles.asp?lID=1&artID=239

Weren't the one with the extended rudder a different Mk?

Yes i'll be giving this one a mottle of a light green, like you say the pics of these Furies aren't the best but i'd say the colours were mottled on rather than a solid colour as depicted in the available decal sheets.

2 hours ago, Diggers11 said:

Hi Tim,

 

I hate it when things like this happen. You carefully glue some cockpit detail in, only to find later something else wont fit because of it. Usually due to the over scale thickness of the canopy at these scales.

 

Still looking great though.

 

Mark.

Hi Mark,  yes it makes you want to scream doesn't it when these things happen, I had to do the time honoured thing in the end, go and have a brew!!

Thanks for looking in again.

Tim.

[huvut76g7gbbui7]

33 minutes ago, tank152 said:

Weren't the one with the extended rudder a different Mk?

As it was too cold up in the workshop,I retreated and spent a couple of pleasant hours reading about the Sea Fury.

It appears that the only ones with the extended rudder and fuselage were the Iraqi Single Seaters (ISS) and two seaters (IDT)

Morocco and Egypt got some of these from Iraq. Egyptian ones were mainly ex-RN.

The Dutch FB50  and 51 had the hooks fitted.

The Pakistani FB60s didn't have hooks but had the fairing and cutaway rudder.

Burma got ex-RN too.

 

Cuba got 15 FB11s from Hawkers.They were delivered in 1958 but most of them weren't assembled until the next year. They were ex-Royal Navy stock. As I said earlier,other than removing the hook,I doubt if they were modified.

I would just build the kit without the hook.

They also got two T20s. I've never seen a picture of them in Cuban marks.

[tank152]

30 minutes ago, Scimitar said:

As it was too cold up in the workshop,I retreated and spent a couple of pleasant hours reading about the Sea Fury.

It appears that the only ones with the extended rudder and fuselage were the Iraqi Single Seaters (ISS) and two seaters (IDT)

Morocco and Egypt got some of these from Iraq. Egyptian ones were mainly ex-RN.

The Dutch FB50  and 51 had the hooks fitted.

The Pakistani FB60s didn't have hooks but had the fairing and cutaway rudder.

Burma got ex-RN too.

 

Cuba got 15 FB11s from Hawkers.They were delivered in 1958 but most of them weren't assembled until the next year. They were ex-Royal Navy stock. As I said earlier,other than removing the hook,I doubt if they were modified.

I would just build the kit without the hook.

They also got two T20s. I've never seen a picture of them in Cuban marks.

Hi, this is just the thing i've missed about not doing a wip in ages, learning things as I build. 

This is what i've done where the hook was.

Like you say, they probably just left the gap.

Must say I fancy building say a Burmese one in the future which brings me to another question, would they have been finished in NMF or painted silver?

Thanks for your information. 

Tim.

[tank152]

After yesterday's performance with the gunsight it was time to get going again and prepare for paint.

Airfix very kindly provide masks for the wheel wells. 👍

Canopy masked up and in the spray booth. With the engine being such a great fit i've decided to leave it off to make masking the NMF panel easier later in the build, as per the Airfix mag article.

Here she is all primed up.

More pics later. 

Tim.

[tank152]

So after giving the primer a bit of time to dry off I broke out the RAF Dark Green.

 

 

 

 

By this time i'd began to loose feelings in my feet even though i'd cranked the heater up in the shed so decided to call it a day besides it will give the paint chance to dry off so that I can finish off the port wing. Then it'll be time for the exciting part, the mottling.

It certainly looks a different beast in green compared with the usual EDSG/Sky.

Tim. 

[janneman36]

Well Tim I had some hickups but did a small update today!!

 

 

Cheers, Jan

[amos brierley]

Hi-yer ,  looking good , so far I`ve only sprayed one model with those MRP paints , shake vigorously , poor into airbrush, et-voil-la!! One silky smooth finish.       Keep up the good work, 

[tank152]

23 hours ago, amos brierley said:

Hi-yer ,  looking good , so far I`ve only sprayed one model with those MRP paints , shake vigorously , poor into airbrush, et-voil-la!! One silky smooth finish.       Keep up the good work, 

Hi, yes they're without doubt the best paint i've used to date.

I'm back at work now so unfortunately the build will slow down.

Tim.

[Howard Moon]

Hi Kurt,

 

Paint job looking really good so far, looking forward to seeing how the mottling goes.  Any news on your paint masks??

 

H

[k5054nz]

I'm not very familiar with the Cuban machines beyond the preserved examples, was the mottled camouflage very common?

[tank152]

12 hours ago, Howard Moon said:

Hi Kurt,

 

Paint job looking really good so far, looking forward to seeing how the mottling goes.  Any news on your paint masks??

 

H

Hi H,

Cheers for your comment,  no haven't heard a thing, must fire Alek another email.

8 hours ago, k5054nz said:

I'm not very familiar with the Cuban machines beyond the preserved examples, was the mottled camouflage very common?

Hi i'm going to attempt this one.

How common the scheme was I don't know?

Tim.

[Diego]

4 hours ago, tank152 said:

How common the scheme was I don't know?

Tim.

The few operational FAR (Fuerza Aérea Revolucionaria) Sea Furies, as well as the last surviving T-33As, have been dispersed and camouflaged in dark green with grass green mottling after the first bombing attacks effected by the invading FAL (Fuerza Aérea de Liberación) B-26s on April 15th, 1961, two days before the actual Bay of Pigs invasion (April 17th) , and took part in the combats in this scheme. It is very probable that the mottling has been applied on the uppersurfaces of the aircraft only, the undersurfaces remaining in the original dark green color. (The T-33As, originally in NMF, were repainted in dark green/grass green on the uppersurfaces with light blue undersides).

On April 17th, Enrique Carreras, flying Sea Fury "FAR 541", sunk the Brigada 2506 transport ship "USS Houston" using rockets. On April 19th, Carreras shot down a FAL B-26 flying the Sea Fury, and, later the same day, he was credited with another B-26, this time shot down when flying  a T-33A. 

National markings were not applied - only the Cuban flag on the rudder, and "FAR" and small serials on the tail.

 

Greetings

Diego

 

Edited March 21, 2018 by Diego

[Biggles87]

Good luck with the mottling.

 

John

[Buzby061]

She's coming along nicely, will be following this. Not sure which scheme I'll do mine in yet, got an old Aeromaster set of decals. Also got Ali's resin mod, 2 of which arrived today.

 

Sorry about your loss, my Dad died when I was 17 & my Mum when I was 23. It's not an easy time.

 

Pete

[tank152]

6 hours ago, Diego said:

The few operational FAR (Fuerza Aérea Revolucionaria) Sea Furies, as well as the last surviving T-33As, have been dispersed and camouflaged in dark green with grass green mottling after the first bombing attacks effected by the invading FAL (Fuerza Aérea de Liberación) B-26s on April 15th, 1961, two days before the actual Bay of Pigs invasion (April 17th) , and took part in the combats in this scheme. It is very probable that the mottling has been applied on the uppersurfaces of the aircraft only, the undersurfaces remaining in the original dark green color. (The T-33As, originally in NMF, were repainted in dark green/grass green on the uppersurfaces with light blue undersides).

On April 17th, Enrique Carreras, flying Sea Fury "FAR 541", sunk the Brigada 2506 transport ship "USS Houston" using rockets. On April 19th, Carreras shot down a FAL B-26 flying the Sea Fury, and, later the same day, he was credited with another B-26, this time shot down when flying  a T-33A. 

National markings were not applied - only the Cuban flag on the rudder, and "FAR" and small serials on the tail.

 

Greetings

Diego

 

Diego,

Many thank for that information,  so if I understand you correctly all I need to use from this decal sheet are the FAR 541 for the tail plus the Cuban flag on the rudder?

https://www.hannants.co.uk/product/THD48015

I think i'll be using RLM82 for the  bright green mottles.

 

3 hours ago, Biggles87 said:

Good luck with the mottling.

 

John

Cheers John, its the part i'm looking forward to.

39 minutes ago, Buzby061 said:

She's coming along nicely, will be following this. Not sure which scheme I'll do mine in yet, got an old Aeromaster set of decals. Also got Ali's resin mod, 2 of which arrived today.

 

Sorry about your loss, my Dad died when I was 17 & my Mum when I was 23. It's not an easy time.

 

Pete

Hi Pete, that really must have hit you like a bolt out of the blue, life can be so harsh at times can't it.

I think Ali is on to a winner with that resin cowl, i'll certainly invest in one for my next build.

I'll look forward to seeing yours on here once you start.

Thanks for looking in.

Tim. 

[Diego]

13 hours ago, tank152 said:

Diego,

Many thank for that information,  so if I understand you correctly all I need to use from this decal sheet are the FAR 541 for the tail plus the Cuban flag on the rudder?

https://www.hannants.co.uk/product/THD48015

I think i'll be using RLM82 for the  bright green mottles.

Tim,

Great to see you have the rudder stripes.

As on the available shots of the camouflaged FAR Sea Furys there aren't visible codes on the fuselage, I would suggest you to use only small black markings "FAR" and "541" on the tail.  Yellow markings were only applied during a certain period of time to the Sea Fury at "Museo Playa Girón" and, unfortunately, THD simply recreated the museum example that, as you have cetainly seen, has been repainted many times with highly inaccurate markings...

The poor T-33 at the museum was also left in NMF, the codes changing from 703 to 701 (that was lost before the Bay of Pigs invasion)...and there are shots of 703 wearing the same camo as the Furies during the Girón battle.

It seems that RLM82 could be indeed a very good choice

As the underside of the planes seems more shiny than the light spots on the uppersurfaces, this seems to confirm that the matt grass green mottles were applied on the uppersurfaces only leaving the undersides in semi-gloss RAF green.

 

Greetings

Diego

Edited March 22, 2018 by Diego

[tank152]

12 hours ago, Diego said:

Tim,

Great to see you have the rudder stripes.

As on the available shots of the camouflaged FAR Sea Furys there aren't visible codes on the fuselage, I would suggest you to use only small black markings "FAR" and "541" on the tail.  Yellow markings were only applied during a certain period of time to the Sea Fury at "Museo Playa Girón" and, unfortunately, THD simply recreated the museum example that, as you have cetainly seen, has been repainted many times with highly inaccurate markings...

The poor T-33 at the museum was also left in NMF, the codes changing from 703 to 701 (that was lost before the Bay of Pigs invasion)...and there are shots of 703 wearing the same camo as the Furies during the Girón battle.

It seems that RLM82 could be indeed a very good choice

As the underside of the planes seems more shiny than the light spots on the uppersurfaces, this seems to confirm that the matt grass green mottles were applied on the uppersurfaces only leaving the undersides in semi-gloss RAF green.

 

Greetings

Diego

Hi Diego,

Thanks again for further information 👍Hopefully i'll be able to progress with the painting this coming weekend. 

Tim.

[tank152]

Made a bit more progress today. First job was to finish off the port wing. Then with some RLM82 I made a start with the mottling.

 

 

 

Still a bit of tweeking to be done before i'm happy with it. Its just a case of going back and forth with the 2 greens. 

Tim.

[Col.]

Tidy work Tim. The paint looks to be going down smoothly.

[huvut76g7gbbui7]

It's coming along nicely.

Agree with the tweaking.In the photo in post 35 they look quite stark.

Although I have no idea why they would mottle underneath,I am not convinced that the undersides there haven't been mottled.

I was going to suggest that it may have just been under the leading edge but it looks like it's on the undercarriage door too.

Regardless..it will be one smart beastie and will certainly stand out from the crowd in those colours.

[Howard Moon]

Coming along nicely Kurt, going to look spectacular when finished. 

 

H

[tank152]

On 24/03/2018 at 21:21, Col. said:

Tidy work Tim. The paint looks to be going down smoothly.

Thanks for your comment Col.

On 24/03/2018 at 22:26, Scimitar said:

It's coming along nicely.

Agree with the tweaking.In the photo in post 35 they look quite stark.

Although I have no idea why they would mottle underneath,I am not convinced that the undersides there haven't been mottled.

I was going to suggest that it may have just been under the leading edge but it looks like it's on the undercarriage door too.

Regardless..it will be one smart beastie and will certainly stand out from the crowd in those colours.

Hi, after the paint had dried off over night the RLM82 had blended in even more! I'm going with you, re the undercarriage doors and just under the wing leading edge with the camouflage. 

 

 

 

On 25/03/2018 at 08:39, Howard Moon said:

Coming along nicely Kurt, going to look spectacular when finished. 

 

H

Yes its completely transformed the look of it in these colours hasn't it. Will look even better once it receives the Cuban flag on the rudder.