Bill Bunting

Thanks for the background information. I saw the aircraft only once at Gatineau but never saw her fly. I really loved the low back look. Because of that I wanted to build SL721 to the best of my skill and to make the donor of the kit, Graham Cairns proud. I was very happy that Mike Potter accepted it and I hope it brings good memories to him. Cheers.

Hi Paul! Don't you remember? I'm the fat bald guy! Mike Potter is looking very smart and holding the model.

Last Friday I was able to visit the Mike Potter Collection in Gatineau Quebec. I met with Mr. Potter and presented the model on behalf of the donor, Graham Cairns, and myself. Mike was very pleased and appreciated the effort to replicate the aircraft as it was when he owned and flew it. It was a great day for me too as I was able to take over 250 photos of his Spitfire IX, Hurricane XII and P-51D for future projects. Here's Mike Potter and myself. In the background is his award winning DeHavilland Beaver. Cheers.

This is my recently completed 1/32 Tamiya Spitfire XVI. I have tried to represent ser. SL721 as she was when owned by Mike Potter in Gatineau, Quebec, Canada up until a few years ago. SL721 has been modelled by others in these markings "AU-J" / C-GVZB and also in it's original guise as "JM-R". The original aircraft was modified over time to suit the owners' needs and I have tried to capture the ones as she was when in Canada. SL721 is now in Belgium and registered as OO-XVI. This is my first attempt at a lot of "scratch building" and it was very rewarding. Mods to the base kit were: - Replaced the Hispano canon wing panels with flat panels (they are now luggage compartments). - Improved engine and firewall details with additional wiring and plumbing. - Improved cockpit detail with additional wiring, switch panels, seat cushion, modern seat harness, sidewall details, checklist storage, GPS mount, map lights. - Addition of modern radios in the cockpit and antennae on the upper and lower fuselage. - PE seat harness from a Tamiya P-51D were used to represent the modern type belts. After market parts used were: - Ultra cast cockpit door, Master brass canon barrels and ResKit 3-spoke wheels/tires. Paints are Tamiya lacquers and gloss coat. Masks were used for the National markings (fin flash is kit decal), AU-J codes, serial number and the wing walk lines. Custom decals for the "William Harper" dedication, civil registration, propellor labels and the "Chief" head dress emblem. This model will be presented as a gift to Mike Potter next week as a Thank You for preserving the only flying Spitfire IX, Hurricane, Lysander in Canada along with a P-51D and until very recently a P-40 (sold). Comments/feedback welcome. Cheers!

AU-J has a bucket seat, leather back rest, no flare rack and a modern "Hooker" brand seat harness. I bought the Barracuda resin seat for another kit and dressed it up. Here it is on the left next to the kit seat. UNFORTUNATELY....being made of resin, the mounts on the back are very brittle and three of the four broke when trying to attach it to the bulkhead. So I decided to try the cushion myself on the kit seat. I moulded it from Tamiya epoxy putty, my first attempt was acceptable. The "Hooker" harness is very similar to those used in some US military types (and the PT-26 that I fly) so I stole the Tamiya PE set from a P-51D kit. Painted they look good. I tried to replicate stitches by running a riveting wheel over a marker pen and then on the straps. OK but not perfect. It looks OK in reality, awful in the pictures. A little more weathering after this picture blended. That's it for now. Cheers.

Thanks. It's my first try at this much detailing. So far it's not difficult other than getting good photos of the exact aircraft. AU-J is now in Belgium. Next time I do one of these I will take my own pictures first.

Right sidewall detail added include a small storage box above and behind the canopy crank and a simple canvas strap below the crank with the paper checklist. The holes in the former were drilled to a greater depth. Lines added to the botyom of the undercart control. AU-J has a modern VHF radio and a transponder. In order to fit them a box was built just below the trim wheel on the left side. I used plastic card to build out the box. Wires were added to the electric coils. Seat and harness next.

The simplest of improvements is drilling out all those holes. I like Tamiya's approach to the instruments on their 1/32 kits, they come out looking very nice and in this case the artificial horizon is better than some others, it's the original style and not a modern type. To replicate AU-J, some detail was removed from the lower right and a modern CO detector sticker was painted. It's the white rectangle with the orange dot. I could have made a decal but this will do. The panel is also missing two large brass toggle switches, the magnetos, at the lower left. They were made using copper wire. The panel bulkhead received the hydraulic lines on the lower left and the fuel shut off valve beside the compass mount. The little peg on the bulkhead, on the right side is the engine primer. It's a brass plunger in a frame made of four rods. I carved the peg to simulate the four rods and painted appropriately. That's it for now. Cheers.

Spitfire SL721 was selected by Air Vice Marshall Sir James M. Robb as his personal aircraft in 1946. Soon after taking possession of the aircraft, it was sent to a maintenance unit and while there, the canons were removed and the canon bays were made into luggage bays and new flat covers were fabricated without the blisters. At this time the aircraft was painted PRU light blue and the AVM's initials "JMR" were used as the codes. Later it was repainted dark PRU blue and the same JMR codes were applied in a new format. For this build I had to duplicate the flat gun bay covers, since they are still there. It was an easy-ish task, just a matter of tracing the kit covers on to sheet plastic., adding rivet detail and a panel line. The new panel on top and the kit panel in the bottom. Tamiya's amazing fit is evident here. Cockpit time. Why not start with a useless exercise? I thought I would ramp it up by improving the kit's aileron pulley by making it a pulley rather than a disc. Well it took a few minutes and it's there but will be totally invisible later. Next I moved on to the control column. The existing hydraulic lines were removed and replaced with lead wire. A bit of foil as a retainer, paint and voila - much improved. And check out that pulley! I know this isn't new to most here, but it's new territory for me. The rudder push rods received a bit of work. Those discs on the rods should be "knobs". they are there to adjust the pedals for and aft. I carved away a bit of material to try to duplicate the knobs. The right one is done, the left is next. OK I guess but it is dark down there so they may be OK.

Engine mounts next. One small modification to the kit parts - the circular piece in the middle of the picture and its mount was removed. The kit parts added and painted. The only extra in this picture is the piping along the upper engine bearer made from two pieces of solder. Using a great photo found of AU-J found on the web, the left side received some extra piping made from copper wire and solder. Still a couple more things to add but getting there... With the engine just placed into the mounts, clearances were checked to make sure that the extra bits on the firewall and mounts did not interfere with the engine or alignment. Considering this is my first attempt at adding so much extra piping and wiring, I am pretty happy with the result. Just a couple of wires here and there to add after the cowl framing goes on.

You know the scene... It's 2AM and of course I can't sleep, my mind wanders and then a "Eureka!" moment. That photo could be for the Hurricane XII that was undergoing restoration, (now flying!), a few years ago. Some middle of the night time on the computer (be polite!) and sure enough, that is a Packard 29 (similar to RR Merlin XX I think). Unfortunately the "helpful" photograph was not so much, no fault of the fellow who sent it to me, I should have triple checked. Anyway off with the centre ignition leads and coolant pipes and re-do as a Merlin 61. Fortunately there are excellent photos of "61's" around, especially a great photo essay of the one in the Smithsonian. So the wrong parts were removed.... And the new harness was added using solder for the tubing and copper wires for the leads. Also the elbow-shaped coolant pipes that run from the cylinder heads to the coolant tank were made from solder. My mind at rest at last! Next, the engine mount and more plumbing!

Thanks for the picture - I have all I need now. I see there are some pipes and bits missing there. Yes the picture I was working with originally was the wrong engine and that was where I was going with my story. (it's a Packard Merlin 29).

Did I mention this was my first "Super Detail/scratch a lot" project? Well it is and not surprisingly, I learned a lot on the way... When I started the project, I asked the Chief Pilot and folks on the Vintage Wings of Canada (VWoC) F-book group for any photos of AU-J when she was there. AU-J had been sold a couple of years prior and so there was no chance to go there and see her in person. In particular, I wanted engine and cockpit pictures. I did not receive much, a couple for the interior and only one for the engine. This picture of the engine was taken by a visitor to the museum and the photographer said that it was AU-J's engine on the bench. It is the only picture of the top of the engine I had. Looking at the ignition harness and the rocker panels, it is very different that most photos of a Merlin. I know that the Mk. XVI had a Packard 266 /Merlin 66 and the photos available on line showed a very different arrangement on top of the engine. BUT this photo is supposed to be AU-J's engine. Perhaps there was an engine change? I sent a couple of emails out to a couple of the folks that worked on the aircraft and unfortunately there were no replies. So I went ahead on this configuration. The photo Another two pictures of different engines with the same 'snake nest' and full length coolant pipes. So I went about trying to represent the centre-line ignition harnesses and the two pipes running from the coolant header tank at the front along the cylinder banks to the rear of the engine. It looks OK compared to the pictures BUT I was never convinced this was right for AU-J and somewhat later on I came to realise what was going on....

Hello. It's been a while since I've posted here but I have been working on a big project that I'm ready to share. Spitfire Mk XVI SL721 AU-J was a veteran of the RAF and has been kept flying until the present day. Right now she is in Belgium, registered as OO-XVI. This aircraft was previously owned and operated by Vintage Wings of Canada and the Mike Potter Collection in Gatineau Quebec, close to Ottawa here in Canada. This kit was obtained by a fellow named Graham C, a member of the VWoC and he had hoped to build it. He decided, however, that it was beyond his ability to do it justice and decided to donate it to VWoC if someone would volunteer to build it. I said I'd give it a crack and here it is. I won't go into detail on the 1/32 Tamiya kit as it has been covered many times but will try to focus on the modifications and extras I attempted. First off SL721, AU-J reg C-GVZB as she was in Canada. I decided to start with the engine firewall. Using as many photos as I could collect I added piping and lines. Next up the engine was assembled and base coat of X18 semi gloss black. The left side received spark plugs and wires. These are VERY thin wires with most of the insulation stripped, leaving just a little on the end to represent the spark plug boot. The yellow would be painted over later. Some oil lines were added using lead wire and the and the ignition wire tube was made from plastic rod. The right side... The supercharger... And underneath... That's it for today. Next I will show the upper (inside) ignition harness, both the first and second versions....

Fixed it! 😆

Thanks Gents. You may be right about the outer portion being yellow and made black by the photo process. It crossed my mind too. All the pics I can find of 111 Sqn with that outer portion in yellow seem to be taken in Canada. The photos where the ring appears black were taken in Alaska. Unfortunately in the Alaska photos I can't identify any other yellow so a bit inconclusive. Obviously they wanted to reduce the visibility of the wing roundels so perhaps they did paint over the fuselage yellow. Regardless it makes for good discussion. Cheers.

Here is. my 1-48 P40E Kittyhawk. This is the Italeri kit out of the box and kit decals. It is a rebox of the AMT kit and is quite nice given its vintage. The engraved details are finely done, level of detail is acceptable and fit is pretty good except for the engine cowl panels. The moulds are quite old and as a result there is flash on almost all parts that requires clean up. Apparently these Kittyhawks were painted by Curtiss to RAF described colours but using American standard paints. The Sky was from Gunze Aqueous, The Green is Tamiya RAF Dark Green and the tan is Aeromaster enamel mid-brown. I'm not sure it's 100% correct but it suits me. What is most interesting to me is the 111 Squadron RCAF roundels and codes used while stationed in Alaska. The wing roundels have the blue extended inwards. The fuselage had the outer yellow portion painted black. Then the letter codes on this example were underlined. Additionally the codes and the serial numbers overlap the fuselage band. The Italeri decals worked very well, however, I think the letter codes are slightly too large. They were very thin and easy to apply as long as you used lots of water to place them. They settled down with Daco strong solution. The only issue was placing the fuselage band which comes in two parts and this is not shown in the instructions. The solution is to leave a small gap on the right lower side for the base of the letter "L" and the small piece of band fits on the bottom. It is important to do the band and the letter codes and the roundels all at the same time- as I said use lots of water and don't let them set until they are all in alignment. Well here she is....

Very nice. That's the next one on my bench, after my P40. I love the RCAF "bat". There's a 2 seat Vampire near here painted in those colours flying on a regular basis. BB

Very nice! We don't see many of these built. I have one on the shelf, hope it turns out as nice as yours! BB

Nice one there Paul! These are certainly colouful Mustangs. I have to find the 1/32 or 1/48 LEM set 48.81 or 32.18. That sheet has BA-S on it. There is a privately owned P51 near here, a friend of a friend finished in those markings. I want to build a replica for him. Will need to keep an eye on the for sale sites. Cheers for now!

Thanks for the kind words. Maybe later for a silver/blue one. Next up is a bathroom renovation that will seriously interrupt model making. I did 3 1/2 kits in January, I was on a roll! After the reno it will be a 442 Sqn Vampire or a 111 Sqn (RCAF) P40E. Or maybe even a F101 Voodoo 409 Sqn. Plus I just ordered an Eduard Mustang IV and a Spitfire IX that I will build for my friend Dave who flies each at Vintage Wings Canada near Ottawa. They are both finished as 442 Sqn. Y2-C and Y2-K. Cheers!

Nice clean build and finish. I really like the chipped paint on the door. Eduard should have made the bar a separate piece, not your fault of course. Thanks for sharing. BB

1/72 (new) Airfix. Out of the box and kit decals. This one took just over a week due to the extra work on the transparent parts. IMO this is a nice kit except for the over heavy panel lines on the wings. The fit was good except for the side windows and the upper nose/canopy. To fit the side windows, I had to sand a bevel on all four sides of each window c heck the fit and sand again as necessary. this n you needs to be done before fuselage assembly to ensure no dust sticks to the windows and just in case you. push it through the opening. They were then masked with liquid mask for painting. The main canopy part was a bit wider than the fuselage so using a bit of heat I was able to squeeze the sides together to the correct width. Now this meant that the canopy was too 'tall' so I had to sand a bit of material from the bottom of the part to compensate. In the end I needed a little filler at the top fuselage to blend it in. NOTE: use hot water to soften parts - not direct flame, heat or a hairdryer. Water applies heat evenly and direct heat applies heat to the closest section which can result in parts curling up and melting. ( he said from experience). Paints are Tamiya acrylics. XF23 Blue, XF27 Black Green and XF61 Dark Green. (RLM 65, 70,71). I think the XF61 is a little dark resulting in very little contrast with the black-green. I am not unhappy with it and I do observe that in most WW2 photos it nearly impossible to see the difference in tones. I have used XF58 on other models and it gives more contrast. The kit decals were good and responded best to the triple whack of Microset/sol and Daco Strong/red. I ended up smearing the codes on the right side so no pics for you! I still think Microset/sol and a hairdryer work best. Clear coat is Tamiya clear flat and Future mix. Cheers!

Finished this one 2 weeks ago. It was 5 days in the making and is basically out of the box with micro-tube gun barrels and I had to add "vents' ( thin plastic rod sanded into triangles) to the lower nose panels.. It is the Italeri kit which is Hasegawa sprues and Italeri decals. It went together very well but ahhh those decals. They are really well printed, sharp with good colour and register. The option I chose, RCAF 442 Sqn., however, has overly large codes. I think the decal designer started with the standard 18" scale letters then added the yellow border making them a scale 24" - far too big. The other codes on the sheet look OK. The box art and decal instructions do not show the codes as oversized. Finally a glance at Eduard's instructions for the same subject confirm it. Unfortunately this was not discovered until after the model was fully painted and I had no choice but to go with them. Now another "issue" appeared as the decals were rather "stiff" and did not want to settle into the details. Despite using Microset/sol, daco and Mr. Mark Softer, they just didn't want to soften as much as I wished. In the end, Micro set and sol followed up with a hairdryer on "hot" got them to behave. Paints are Tamiya acrylics with the yellow a mix of flat yellow with a few drops of orange. Incidentily Y2-B took part in the last official Allied air sortie of WW2. On 9 May 1945, the day after the armistice, she flew cover over the Channel Isles just in case the surrender of the island did not go smoothly. The vents were made by sanding some plastic rod into a triangular profile and then adding right over the existing panel. This was later filled and sanded to blend in a bit better.

Love that one Paul.