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Edgar

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Everything posted by Edgar

  1. Scrape the top surface away, to leave a hollow, then heat, and fill, as above. I did this, for over 20 years, making resin a/c instrument parts, out of epoxy resin. Edgar
  2. Welllll, it just so happens that I have 30ml bottles, of MEK, for sale, at my club, for £1.50, plus resin stands, which have been made to fit. The resin, that I buy, only costs about 1p, per gram, so I can sell a stand, for 50p, without a problem. 1 kilo, of rubber, is around £25. Edgar
  3. If the holes are a reasonable size, and the resin is thick enough to take it, make the hole wider, with the point of a knife blade, then heat the resin under an ordinary table lamp. Mix up some standard epoxy adhesive (not the 5 minute variety,) and, using a piece of thin wire, set a drop into the hole. The heat will liquify the adhesive, and it will run into the hole, like water. Leave it, or, if you're in a hurry, put it back under the heat, to go off, completely, leave it to cool, then sand smooth. Edgar
  4. Blue-tac, or double-sided tape, it into a saucer, or buy some plasticine, and form it into a small "vesuvius" around the bottle. If you're really resourceful, you can make a rubber mould, from the mound of plasticine, then turn out resin copies, and sell them to other modellers. Edgar
  5. No, no, don't misunderstand me, that model follows a very well-known photograph, of a Mosquito which flew through an explosion (He111, I think) and had large areas of the fabric/paint burned off. When new, though, the fabric, covered by paint, was all that you would see. Edgar
  6. It depended on the position of the wood. On the fuselage, joins would be vertical, except at the nose, where the complex double-curvature meant that the strips ran fore-and-aft. At the tail, even though the joins might have been vertical, the grain was set to run at an angle, to couteract the twisting motion, in that area. Extra strips were used, as strengtheners, where the two halves were glued together. I fear that you're doomed to disappointment, anyway. The wooden areas were covered with Madapolam and Irish Linen, long before final assembly, so, at the very least, it would be painted silver. The aircraft were (mostly) built, near here, at High Wycombe, and, although the fuselage halves left the factories in bare wood, the wings, tailplanes, and fins, were covered, then painted with red dope, then overpainted with anti-u/v silver dope. One other small point; the ailerons, and elevators, were metal, so would have been painted in primer. Only the rudder was fabric covered. Edgar
  7. The photo is in "War Prizes," by Phil Butler, page 147. That Zero was BI-05; BI-12 was supposed to go to Australia, but there's no trace of it having arrived, according to the book. Never heard of any decals. Edgar
  8. If the "very basic" part means an airbrush where the paint is kept in a bottle, then dragged out by air flowing over the top of the nipple, that could be the problem. In a "true" airbrush, the paint is mixed with the air, inside the body, then expelled as a paint/air mixture, giving a much finer spray (they're known as "internal-mix" airbrushes, for this reason.) There are too many airbrushes, to list here (everyone has his/her own favourite, anyway,) but it pays to handle them, if you can. I have large hands, so Badger brushes feel too delicate. I, therefore, use a Paasche VL double-action. Single action means that you pre-set the pattern, then start the airflow; double -action means that the trigger controls air, and paint, flow at the same time. This can look daunting, but, once mastered, is very rewarding. Compressors, like airbrushes, are many, and varied. Often, the very quiet ones use mechanics almost identical to the "innards" of a fridge. Again, inspection, and listening, is advisable, but look for the flow of air. There should be a minimum of .5cu.ft., per minute. Any less, and it might not provide enough air for your brush, and the flow, of paint, will "pulse," and you'll never get consistent results. Edgar
  9. I haven't found anything, on that particular Squadron, but Ian K. Baker found a real oddball scheme, for some Buffaloes. Aircraft, which had been earmarked, and painted, for the Netherlands East Indies, arrived too late to be delivered, so were taken over by the Australians. Upper colours were Dark Olive Drab 41 and Medium Green 42, over, initially at least, aluminium undersides, which were, later, oversprayed Sky Blue (not "our" Sky.) The original, early, American stars have been painted out (with Foliage Green?) then repainted blue/white, on the upper wings, red/white/bue/yellow on the fuselage sides, none, at first, underneath, blue/white later. No help at all, I know, but thought you might find it interesting. Edgar
  10. Any paint/thinner ratio can only, ever, be a guide. I've found that my Paasche brush will cope with paint slightly heavier than what a Badger will manage. Then there's your operating pressure, the volatility of the thinner, and the distance from which you spray. And, just when you've got that little lot sorted out, there's the time of year. Unless your home is a constant temperature, paint, in winter, is thicker than in summer, so you'll need to adjust the mix to suit. There is no substitute for experimenting, until you find what suits you. Edgar
  11. 39 Squadron, Biferno, Italy, Dec, 1944 to Jun 1945, Marauder Mk.III Dec, 1944 - Sep., 1946 (disbanded then.) Examples HD606 "B", HD607 "F", HD665 "T". No codes listed after Dec., 1940. No photos, that I can find, but I'd guess standard U.S. camo., by then. Edgar
  12. Edgar

    CA Accelerator

    Gentlemen, there's more than one accelerator; you need to cast around for one that doesn't affect plastic, and is labelled as such. White spirit will accelerate super glue, but will knacker plastic; in an emergency, try filling an old perfume spray with water. Edgar
  13. Not sure which mark, of B-26, the Monogram kit is, but Profile 112 concentrates on the B & C, and includes a set of colour drawings, of a "short-span" Marauder Ib, from 14 Squadron, in the Western desert. There are two side drawings of 24 Squadon SAAF Marauder IIs, as well. Edgar
  14. Edgar

    Respirators

    A gas-proof cartridge is the only one worth having; it's proof against fumes, and, definitely, resin dust. I also use a secondary, fabric, filter on top. Belt and braces never harmed anyone. And pull the straps as tight as you can stand; smear the seal with vaseline, if you have to. The girls will love your baby-smooth skin. Edgar
  15. Edgar

    Beaufort

    Strangely enough, I've just finished reading this book, and note that the cover painting shows two Beauforts, in Temperate Sea Scheme, with Azure Blue undersides. I know that "artistic licence" has been a real pain, over the years, but the artist, in this case, is Chris Thomas, who, as well as painting, is a researcher, of some quality; he is co-author of the current 3-volume 2nd TAF series, and co-wrote "The Typhoon & Tempest Story." There's no chance that he would have slapped any old colour onto that painting; he would have researched it, thoroughly, first. Roy Nesbit, Roger Haywood, and Norman Franks, all top researchers, were also involved; can't see them allowing a dud painting to go through, unchallenged. Edgar
  16. Red = Farnborough/airshows, only. One-bedroom flats don't have lounges, only living room (and not a lot of that) Edgar
  17. Any colour, you like, as long as it's black. Now, where have I heard that, before. If you're really stuck, my living room needs painting. Edgar
  18. Edgar

    Beaufort

    It's very unlikely that the Beaufort was anything other than in Temperate Sea Scheme (Dark Slate Grey/Extra Dark Sea Grey/Sky.) These were the colours, specified for Beauforts, in an AMO July 2nd., 1942. Some Coastal Command a/c were black underneath. Edgar
  19. Do it on individual components, since they're more pliable, that way; if you try to do it, after construction, you'll only split the joins, or, worse, crack the plastic. Edgar
  20. 1/. Wear gloves 2/. Have running hot water, as hot as you can take it for about 30 seconds. 3/. Have a bowl of cold water ready Flex the wing slightly past the point at which it looks right, then hold it, with both hands, under the running water. When you're at the screaming "Can't take the pain, any more" stage, plunge your hands (still holding the wing in position) under the cold water. With luck, one application will do, but repeats are possible. After a few goes, masochism will never appeal again. Edgar
  21. Can't help with the Airies set, but the seat was the Martin-Baker 4, in all versions. As usual, the seat was, mainly, black, but had a grey seat-base. There were differences, in the type of instruments, between the early, and late, Lightnings, with some dial-type instruments being replaced by strip-type. The throttle levers changed, too, possibly as a result of that unscheduled flight by the Duxford Mk.1. Mk.Is (possibly IAs, too) had black cockpits, grey thereafter. Edgar
  22. The Pilot's Notes show it as black, and the handgrip is a "0" shape, rather than the usual "O." We suspect it was to stop the pilot whacking the armament panel, on the port wall. Hendon, and Duxford's Spitfire 24s have the same column. Edgar
  23. Casadio, or Casio (Italian, I think,) made a series of 1/48th metal Spitfires, plus some accessories, around 25 years ago. The Aviation Hobby Shop, in a tidy-up, found a couple of them, tucked away, and still had at least one of them, at the original price, when I last looked. That prop might well have come from the same source. Edgar
  24. The Swiss pylons were angled, so I'd suspect that these are more likely to be similar to those fitted to the Sabre. Again, it's just a guess, but I'd say that the fitting, on the Sabrina, is the seeker, for the Sidewinder. Edgar
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