AnonymousA667

I would recommend you download Irfanview. It is freeware and has all the functionality you need for re-scaling images. peebeep

Some kits provide the inner framing as thin decal strips to be applied inside the canopy. You could make your own decal or simply paint the transparency. For the undercarriage your best bet would be to 'borrow' some legs from an Airfix or Tamiya kit. IIRC the Revell kit parts do not depict the tubular framework that is part of the door retract mechanism. peebeep

Contact Paul at little-cars.com for Bare Metal decal paper. If you have an inkjet printer then you need inkjet paper. Scaling images depends on which program you are using to manipulate the image, some will do it as a percentage, others you will need to do it by a proportional reduction in pixels. peebeep

Contact Paul at little-cars.com, he has Bare Metal decal paper for ink jet printing, which is good stuff. It's best to print on white to get correct colour density, if you print on clear film you will still need a white backing. Use a heavy ink setting, let it dry completely, then spray with Klear or Micro liquid decal film. The instructions say you can brush on the over coat, but if you do you will risk smudging the ink. I've been thinking about drawing up some artwork for 74 Sqdn machines as there seems to be a lot of interest in it, maybe after Telford. peebeep

I don't have all my references to hand, but I'm pretty certain that the aft glazing is common to all versions. Confusion stems from the narrow tubular framework being on the inside. These pics hopefully help: peebeep

Because they make lots of money out of them? Horses for courses marketing as I see it, but it is very annoying if you're only interested in the kit and not the Little Johnny paints, cement, brush etc. peebeep

I read somewhere that the 'D' wing was relocated slightly aft to allow for C of G variation due to the removal of the upper part of the rear fuselage. The wing root fillet encloses some engine gubbins, so the forward position was retained. Sounds plausible. peebeep

Great model and very nice picture of Duxford! peebeep

Yes peebeep

How about getting hold of a good old fashioned spring bow compass with an ink attachment? It could be modified into a blade and you'd be able to cut pretty small circles. peebeep

The PRU blues haven't been out for all that long, maybe your Antic's haven't caught up yet? They'd be daft not to stock it if they're selling Airfix Spitfire XIX's. peebeep

John, those links don't appear to be working properly (for me at least). Keith, your paint charts are out of date, PRU Blue is definitely available from Humbrol. Try this link. peebeep

Anything that's got a good dollop of isopropyl alcohol in it, or pure ipa. I use window cleaner and it works a treat. peebeep

Very nice 109 Ian. It is quite normal to see the slats deployed on the ground as they are spring loaded and pop back into the wing under aerodynamic loading, the amount of pressure required being quite low. They pop out at low airspeeds to delay the break up of flow across the aerofoil and Eric Brown records in one of his books that this could be quite disconcerting in a tight turn, as they could operate assymetrically. On the ground I believe they have to be locked shut for the wing to be 'clean'. peebeep

Bill, there's not really a lot to choose between the three 1/72 kits. I've a soft spot for Frog kits and their Swordfish is not at all bad and has the bonus of offering a floatplane option. OTOH the Matchbox has the radar housing. If you can find one (might be difficult), the Co-operativa boxing of the Frog kit comes with some very useful looking PE and resin bits. If you can find somebody willing to split their set then the Airfix Club FAA Edition comes with some very nice decals. The kit itself is fairly typical early 1960's Airfix, although it was tarted up at some stage and scrubs up quite well with a bit of TLC. If I can dig them all out I will try and get some sprue shots up. peebeep

There are a couple of photos in Profile 111 and these appear to be metal skinned wing machines. Fabric wing machines were in the serial batch prefixed 'L', whereas the first Gloster batch were prefixed 'P'. peebeep

As an alternative to masking/painting you can use clear decal film painted the appropriate colour sliced into suitable strips. peebeep

I said above I've got an open mind on the matter. Never mind, I won't comment any further, Bill asked for the picture and I obliged. peebeep

Bill, I have never in any of my posts said that I don't think the checks were never bordered with pale blue, quite clearly - and I have stated myself that I have photos to show - blue borders were carried. What I am saying is that the specific photos above do not clearly demonstrate that there is a blue border, so either there is something wrong with the prints or you might have to accept that actually what the picture shows is how they looked at that moment in time when the shutter clicked on the camera. I have an open mind on it and I don't have any blinkers on that force me to go along with a notion that I've held for a long time. If you sincerely believe that they always had blue borders I don't have a problem with that, but I don't see why you should have a problem with me keeping an open mind on the subject when I have a photo in my possession that appears to show something else. I'd quite happily build a model with the white or blue border because on the evidence that I have either is applicable. peebeep

That's my opinion. I've been looking at the scans under extreme magnification and there's no blue tones from the image from the Ian Black book or the monograph that Bill posted. Obviously it would be better if you could examine the negs (or slides if they were from trannies) and as Bill points out the decals are still wrong, because the checks have no border at all. peebeep

They're the same images Bill, I cropped mine to make the nose markings more obvious. I've scrutinised the print at close quarters and there's absolutely no hint of blue surrounding the checks, but another image in the book of XM176 airborne shows the border reasonably clearly. peebeep

That's less than half the original image Mike, the whole picture has red tails going to the horizon! Well eleven of them anyhow. We could do with a 'woody' emoticon! peebeep

Your wish is my command. peebeep

I've got the Ian Black book and as Edgar states the photo shows the aircraft lined up with no blue border, although the checks don't extend to the edge of the white bar, so there is effectively a white border. Another pic in the book shows an F1A with what could be a blue border, but it is difficult to determine. It is probably the case that at some stage there was no blue border, but then it was added later. peebeep

Klear is absorbed into matt finishes like water in a sponge and may require several coats before it comes up anything like gloss. If you're brushing, load a small amount into the widest, flattest brush you have and cover with one pass only. If you find it is pooling wick off the excess with a dry brush or the corner of some paper towel. Air bubbles can be dealt with in the same manner. If you still end up with any bubbles or rough spots you can polish them out with the fine abrasive or sanding sticks and then buff the whole lot up with some old denim. peebeep