spitfire

My wife spotted it in our TV and Satellite Magazine, we are both big fans and looking forward to it's return Cheers Dennis

Great Information, thanks or posting. Cheers Dennis

February 1979 in a red Datsun Cherry, I passed first time, before that I was a biker and totally uninterested in cars. I passed my bike test in 1968 and it was also a first time pass. It was only an impending marriage and the thought of a family that got me to drive a car, its still something that I don't enjoy at all. Cheers Dennis

Nice one, that should stand out among the "normal" Spitfire builds. Cheers Dennis

I only use enamels and Xtracolor and Colourcoats are the main paints that I use, especially Xtracolor as it save time and effort by giving a decal ready finish. For detail work I use Humbrol, but I also have a good stock of Testors Model Masters enamels and for some special colours Revell enamels, their Anthracite is perfect for the Blue Black of Japanese cowling for example. I have used the Xtracolor range on RAF, Italian, Japanese, VVS, and French subjects and they do seem to be accurate. For Japanese subjects I always check Nick Millmans Aviation of Japan site for matches in both Xtracolor and Colourcoats ranges for Japanese subjects, likewise I check the Stormo site for Italian subjects and the "Modellling the VVS" site (Massimo Tessitori) for GPW Soviet information. The paint chips in the British Aviation Colours of World War two (RAF Museum Series) are my main reference for RAF colours. And of Course Britmodeller is a great source of colour information. Cheers Dennis

Nice one, looks just the job. Cheers Dennis

Now that is a really nice build of a Hurricane that has beeen used but not abused. Cheers Dennis

That looks familiar, this was taken at the RTAF museum on a visit in 2001. Cheers Dennis

One impressive machine, it's good to hear that it has found a home. Cheers Dennis

Just for info Cheers Dennis

Looking good, you are doing a cracking job. Cheers Dennis

No problems but this is an example of what I meant about Mk.V walkway lines on an IX, this was the subject of a longer thread here on Britmodeller. Cheers Dennis

According to "Spitfire the History" (page 307 onwards) there was Vc conversions to IX, RR carried out conversions at Hucknall were it is reported that 300 conversions were completed and as above the cowlings were different to production IX's. See lots of Edgar threads for more details. Cheers Dennis

Looking through other photos of USAAF Spitfires in the Med it is not that clear, the subjects seem to be heavily weathered on the upper wings, however there are several close up shots of Mk.V's and IX's with wing walkway markings. However as the subject was a converted Mk.V it gets even more interesting as the earlier Mk. V walkways may be present. I built ES276 WD*D Mk. V with wing markings. I only briefly looked through my American Spitfire Camouflage and Markings part 1 and 2 books though so not an exhaustive search. Cheers Dennis

Neither, just bacon Cheers Dennis

Great Photos, as I am about to start my PCM C200 build they will come in very handy, thank you for posting them Cheers Dennis

Used but not abused, and it looks great, the Revell kit does need the Barracuda parts and they really make a difference Cheers Dennis

That looks fantastic, the black finish as mentioned above looks good with the subtle silver highlights, and what an impressive sized model that must be. Cheers Dennis

Very sad, I used to love his show way back then. Dennis

Great subject choice, another one who's attention was grabbed by an Airfix Whirlwind, it has always been a favourite subject of mine, I even dropped down to 1/48 scale to build one (Classic Airframes) before the SH kit came out. So of course I have one in the stash and will pop in now and again to see how you are getting on. Cheers Dennis

Great build Max and great photos, and like all PCM builds it is a "challenging" one. Cheers Dennis

Nice one, it looks great, I'm amazed at people who can build to this standard in 1/72nd scale, my normal scale is 1/32. And it is nice to see a post from you Nick. Cheers Dennis

Great photos, thanks for posting, it's been a long while since we were there, must try and get down there some time in the future, Cheers Dennis

Beautifully built, painted and weathered, great photography too. Cheers Dennis

Some snippets from my Edgar files, I'm not totally convinced, regarding the cushioning, on the seat back, and feel that it might have been introduced, for comfort, when the Mae West wasn't worn; anyway, all those, that I've seen, are black. And That later plastic seat, of yours, is a late/middle-war variant, since it has the lozenge-shaped indentation for the dinghy's airbottle (most uncomfortable to sit on.) Early pilots just had to make do with a Mae West. More on the Lozenge shape in the seat. Can't give a precise date, but it was during 1940, possibly quite late, since the lozenge shape is mentioned as being in a few seats in early December. Prior to that it was a square depression; the change seems to have been brought about to so as to have no right-angled "corners," thereby lessening the stress on those points. Early metal seats had no depression, just an undulating base. The "lozenge" recess was designed to accept the air bottle, which inflated the dinghy (not carried during 1940, hence the simpler undulating base.) In 1940, the pilots had a thin sheet of sorbo rubber between parachute and bum, which they forfeited when the dinghy arrived, so discomfort increased, and became a way of life. At least they didn't suffer as long as Mustang pilots (lack of fuel can have its benefits.) Edgar Another question Very interesting post - especially the pic of the seat. Do you know whether the very early production Spits had a seat cushion? John As far as I can tell, they didn't; perhaps the Mae West, plus extra warm clothing was originally sufficient, but, with more efficient cockpit heating later, some pilots flew in shirtsleeves, at times, which could have led to discomfort. The backrest, in the photo, is obviously a late addition, since it has the cut-out, for the hole. Edgar More Metal seats were green, or, earlier ones, black. Plastic seats were various shades of red, and went into service from May, 1940. They were originally intended for 1939, but production problems delayed them, and were also meant to be exclusively for Castle Bromwich, but the bombing of the Supermarine works probably changed everything. The seats were completely interchangeable, so no-one can say that you're wrong if it's red or green. One sure thing, though; on the Vb, the Sutton harness straps did not go through the hole in the backrest. Edgar From this I would guess that the early seats without the dinghy would mean thet the pilot wore a Mae West and there was no padding. For a later seat the back padding would be present. Who knows for sure Cheers Dennis