shortCummins

To give the illusion of wear vallejo panzer aces 305 light rubber was used as a dry-brush to highlight both the grey/green and German grey. The seat cushion was highlighted with a mixture of German grey and light rubber, sponge chipping was also applied. MRP-363 Boeing grey 707 was used for the compressed air tanks. The sidewall sub-assemblies had their various parts attached. Next I’ll be adding the PE and decals to the cockpit… until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins)

Various boxes and instruments were picked out with vallejo 70.995 German grey. Various colours including mig metal steel, vallejo 70.801 brass, 70.918 ivory and 70.957 red were used to pick-out pipes, switches and controls. Next I’ll be weathering the cockpit… until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins)

thanks Rob61 very good value, that weekend kit has decals for 4 different aircraft, apart from seat belts these kits don't really need any aftermarket so I'm really interested on one, or more, of these. thanks James I read somewhere "Spitfire pilots were often sent off to meet the Luftwaffe, with very little combat training, 14 seconds’ worth of ammunition, 85 gallons of petrol and facing the greatest airborne enemy the world had ever seen – in a ‘cardboard chair’" really makes you think doesn't it rgds John(shortCummins)

thanks Chris does the MkV have raised rivets? this one does and their fantastic, I was impressed with the MkVIII & MkIX's but this "new" moulding is another level! you're more than welcome Mark these "new" Eduard Spitfires are very nice, and when they get around to producing a "weekend" edition they'll be very competitively priced rgds John(shortCummins)

Xtreme metal AK488 matte aluminium was used for the "unpainted" rear of the fuselage. The aluminium colour was then masked and Alkan BS:283 grey/green was sprayed on the rest of the interior. Early versions, up until around May 1940, of the Spitfire had aluminium seats when a new seat was made from SRPB, synthetic resin bonded paper, was used to help minimise the use of aluminium. These early aluminium seats were mostly?, painted the same interior grey/green as the rest of the cockpit, so here I’ve masked the back cushion and painted the rest of the seat BS:283. Next I’ll be adding some detail painting for the cockpit boxes and instruments… until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins)

thanks Christer Funnily enough the cockpit "parts" are all new, at least the sprue layout is very different, certainly as far as MkVIII's or MkIX's, as well as quite a few additional pieces such as different gunsight(s), big levers, different seat and seat frame/bulkhead. The fuselage halves are very different inasmuch as they now include the upper cowl, the exhausts can now be added later in the the build, and also the airframe rivets are both raised and recessed, when you rub your finger over the plastic they're very noticeable. I always liked the Eduard offerings, they've really "ramped up" the quality for the MkI, I'm assuming that their MkII is largely the same sprues and I can see one of them in my future, perhaps another BoB aircraft? rgds John(shortCummins)

I spent a happy couple of hours or so identifying the cockpit parts and preparing them for primer. There were some sink marks on the exhausts, the electrical cover on the fuselage and part of the seat bulkhead needed filling, so out with the sprue-goo. Where practical I assembled the sub-assemblies. PE was added... …and then gave everything a coat of Stynylrez black primer* *Finn sends his thanks to Bertie for his walk over the Country Park Next I’ll be applying the “base” cockpit colours. until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins)

she looks really good with invasion stripes rgds John(shortCummins)

if you enjoyed building your MkIX then you'll enjoy an early mark as much, it looks as if Eduard have simplified the wheel wells and the exhausts can be added later in the build, and they're one piece rather than the awkward arrangement for later marks? thanks Chris this is the first time I've built 2 of the same (if different versions) type of aircraft one after each other. In theory any "issues" should be fresh in my mind and make this build go smoother, we'll see. thanks Zac I have a soft spot for Commonwealth pilots and as I wanted to build a BoB Spitfire this one was the obvious choice. thanks James its amazing how many RAF airfields are dotted around isn't it, up here in Nottinghamshire I'm really close to a lot of the bomber airfields in Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire, I've a Tamiya 1:48 Lancaster that I really should build, its on my "list" rgds John(shortCummins)

This Spitfire came together really quickly, for me, and was a very enjoyable build. A few things didn’t work quite they way I though they might, using oils for exhaust stains!, fixing the cockpit to one side of the fuselage etc. lessons learned (probably) and extra skills picked up along the way. Previously I’ve built Airfix, Tamiya and Eduard Spitfires, I’ve not built the “new” Tamiya MkI only a couple of their MkV’s, I’ve now built 5 Eduard Spitfires, a couple of MkIX’s, a couple of MkVIII’s and a MkXVI. The Tamiya kits are easier to build but lack "something", you'll need to add their provided pilot (not a bad thing) as their seat is very short (to allow for the pilot?) in my opinion the Eduard offerings are head and shoulders above, trickier to build but do have that "something". As a side note when I built the Tamiya MkV’s Eduard didn’t have a MkV offering, I’ve now ordered an “overtrees” set from them as I’ve a plan for another “different” scheme, a night fighter, that I plan to build shortly. I’ve also another MkIX along with some decals for G-IRTY, that I’ll get around to before too long, I just have to work out how to make it really shiny, I better at really dirty 😊 Anyhow if your interested you can see my RFI here… Next for me is yet another Eduard Spitfire, did I mention I like them?, this time a MkI in Battle of Britain dress. until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins)

I was inspired by Roman Schillart’s 1/72 Spitfire IXe “Soviet Air Force” build… …I really liked the lightening bolt/arrow along the fuselage and along with the white tail, which reminded me of an Aussie shark mouth MkVIII scheme, so I had a look for some aftermarket decals as Montex don’t have a mask set for this scheme. AML have a “lend-lease” set that includes a white lightening bolt/arrow on a Russian green base, so although it’s a different scheme to Roman’s it was close enough for me. The kit was an Eduard MkIXe weekend edition, other aftermarket was a Barracuda Cast upper cowling (the Brassie version doesn’t fit!) and some Eduard seatbelts. Paints were mainly Tamiya with some, Mr Color, Extreme Metal and MRP. 502 Abteilung oils were used for weathering along with some Tamiya panel liners. Here’s the photos… You can see my build log here… until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins)

simply stunning rgds John(shortCummins)

thanks Steve I really like the Eduard Spitfires and I enjoy making the build logs, if only as a reminder on how I did "whatever", hopefully it shows others that you can recover from things that didn't quite go to plan? thanks James keep an eye on the kingkit site kingkit.co.uk as they specialise in unstarted 2nd hand kits, you never know they might acquire one soon? rgds John(shortCummins)

I've just finished this kit, I did a Russian version, have a look at Steve1602's build where he tacked the upper cowl in place and then added the exhaust stacks later in the build, saves a lot of headaches masking the exhausts. will you be doing the Dauphine or La Fayette scheme? the sharks mouth is good but the tricolour rudder would be my choice rgds John(shortCummins)

thanks Chris I've just ordered an "overtrees" MkV from Eduard that I plan to build another "different" scheme, this time a night fighter, I really like the idea of an all black Spit! I know you'll enjoy your build, the only "over complicated" parts were the wheel wells and exhaust stacks, the MkV stacks look far simpler and you can also add them towards the end of the build, the wheel wells still have too many pieces, in my opinion, however with care their not too much trouble. thanks for the tip Bertie Adding agitator balls is the first thing I do to Stynylrez, then shake the bottle for 20-30 seconds before use, someone suggested standing the bottle on a coffee warmer pad, as I don't have one of those your tip of a long dog walk will be put into action, Finn, my springer spaniel sends his thanks. thanks Bertie I agree no markings on the upper wing is very strange, I was really tempted to add a couple from the AML set as there's a few left over, glad I didn't now as she looks even more unusual? rgds John(shortCummins)

The tyres and wheel wells were a bit too clean, compared to the rest of the aircraft so I “muddied” them with some pigments. Many moons ago, when I came back into the hobby, any sort of weathering was a new idea to me, UMP had, still have, some clay based weathering washes, Flory also have similar products, that I used to highlight the panel lines. As “things” have moved-on, Tamiya panel liners, 502 Abteilung oils etc. I still have some of these clay washes sitting in my cupboard that I probably won’t be using for their “intended” purpose. So rather than waste them I’ve “dried” some of them, in plastic shot glasses, by allowing the liquid to evaporate leaving the coloured clay(s). These can then be ground giving you a fine coloured powder that can be used as a dry pigment. Three colours from these powders, dark dirt, light dirt and concrete, were stippled onto the landing gear and into the wheel bays. Canopy masks removed, one of my favourite parts of any build… …a little bit of touchup required. Cockpit door nailed in place. Landing gear attached. Bubble canopy fixed in place with PVA glue. Radio antenna and pitot tube added… …and finally the propellor. Next I’ll be taking some photo’s for the RFI board. until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins)

Having left the oils to fully cure for a couple of days, I really should have left it longer but I’m far too impenitent, it was time to revisit the exhaust stains. Chris suggested using weathering powders, I know I’ve got some somewhere but can I find them? I think my problem with the exhaust stain is that its too dark, so I’m going to try and create a lighter version. Rather than oils, I don’t want to wait another few days if I need to tweak it, see I told you I was impenitent, so I’m going to airbrush the stain. My previous mix was Tamiya XF-27 black green and XF-68 NATO brown, I think the XF-27 simply meant that the mix “melted” , colour wise, into the Russian green as its a darker hue on the same colour range, art lessons were a very long time ago so that could be total rubbish? Anyhow I’ve made a “lighter” mix, one that’s not a darker version of the “base” colour, this time I’ve mixed XF-24 dark grey, XF-82 ocean grey and XF-68. The mix was highly thinned with Mr Color thinner, not levelling thinner as I think levelling thinner makes a more satin finish, I used 95%, perhaps even a bit more thinner, and built up the statin in thin coats. Once I was happy(er) with the base stain I applied heavily thinned, same ratio, of XF-57 buff to the centre of the stain… My lesson learned here is: don’t use oils for exhaust stains without a lot more practice! Using an airbrush gives (me) an easier, closer to what I’d envisaged, result providing I thin the paint mixture more than I think I need to, building the effect in layers is (my) way to go. Next I’ll be adding the final bits’n’pieces. until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins)

While I’m waiting for the oils to dry on my Russian Spitfire, I need to add a flat coat to protect them and I don’t want to risk the varnish reacting with the oils, so I’ve decided to start another Spitfire, after all you can never have enough Spitfires! I really fancy building a MkI so while I wait for the Kotare 1:32 version, if I only buy one kit this year the Kotare Spitfire will be it!, I’m going to build one from my stash, Eduard’s 1:48 MkI early version. I had toyed with the idea of building a two bladed Spitfire, however I recently watched a documentary called “Empty Skies” where RAF fighters pilots spoke about the Battle of Britain and their experiences, cracking stuff and so I’ve got to build a BoB version. Not being a fan of decals I opted to buy a Montex mask set, unfortunately this set is for a different (earlier release?) Eduard MkI offering. The “other” Eduard/Montex kit/set has 7 scheme’s for you to choose from, I’ve opted for F/O Brian J Carbury’s aircraft flying from Hornchurch late August 1940. I’ll use the roundels and fuselage codes from the Montex set, the only thing I’ll have to “work around” will be the aircraft serial numbers, I’m not sure what to do about those, perhaps I can “bodge” something from the kit decals, or I might not apply any as some early Spitfires didn’t have them, I’ll worry about that later in the build. Here’s the writeup on XT-W from the Eduard instructions… R6835, flown by F/O Brian J. Carbury, No.603 Squadron, RAF Hornchurch, late August 1940 Spitfire R6835 XT-W was flow by a New Zealander named Brian J Carbury, who shot down two Bf 109Es on August 27th 1940, when No.603 Squadron arrived at Hornchurch to replace battle-weary No.65 Squadron. He scored 15 1/2 kills during the Battle of Britain. On August 31st, he shot down five enemy aircraft over the span of three sorties, becoming one of two RAF ‘Ace of the Day’ pilots able to claim that status during the BoB. His aircraft carried the standard RAF Temperate Land Scheme consisting of Sky bottom surfaces. The blue/white/red roundels painted on the bottom surfaces were mandated by the Air Ministry on August 11th. The aircraft was equipped with a TR.9D radio with the wire antenna stretching between the antenna mast and fin. The IFF device is not yet installed, explaining the absence of the associated aerial wires between the fuselage sides and the horizontal tail. No rear-view mirror was carried yet, nor was the head armour plating in the cockpit. Next I’ll be starting, as usual, on the cockpit… until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins)

thanks James I know that I "over weather" my aircraft but I treat it as "artist licence" and I reason that these were hard used with their ground crews not having time or the resources to keep their machines in showroom conditions thank you you're very kind, I've plenty of room for improvement but I'm enjoying myself and think that each model is an improvement on the last, trying new techniques is always a learning curve, even when they go wrong! thanks Chris that spinner had virtually no paint on the brush, a lesson in "restraint" that I'll try to use in future builds rgds John(shortCummins)

painted marking are so much better than decals 👍 I always try to find a Montex set for whatever I build, I'm very tempted to get a plotter and be able to make my own. rgds John(shortCummins)

After priming the prop’ tips were masked and painted MRP-122 marking yellow. White oil paint was dabbed onto the blades… …and then blended. Alkan BS:210 sky type “S” was used for the spinner and base plate. The rear of the spinner had some grime added… …and then the spinner and prop’ assembled. Here it is placed onto the aircraft. Next I’ll be re-visiting the exhaust stains. until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins)

thanks Chris I'm not sure how to "fix" the exhaust, I'd not thought of powers, can't hurt? I "think" the issue is that the staining is both patchy and too dark I'll try something on the paint mule. ha ha James I've got another 2 waiting, I'm really tempted by a Eduard MkI, waiting for the oils to fully cure might just force me into starting a new build thanks jackroadkill my idea on documenting my builds is to make it easier for me to know how to achieve something I did previously, hopefully others will see how easy, or otherwise, is it to do something, also most importantly I can show that mistakes can be rectified so "having a go" at some new technique needn't be a disaster if it doesn't work how you imagined. it is interesting to look back on how I've changed the way I build, paint and weather now as opposed to when I returned to the hobby, back basing and using oils, for me, have been game changers. rgds John(shortCummins)

The undercarriage legs and wheel hubs were painted aluminium. Oils were used to weather the landing gear covers. The tyres were first sprayed with Stynylrez black primer, then MRP-077 NATO black and MRP-255 night camouflage added. Each wheel sub-assembly was put together. Next I’ll be dealing with the prop’ and spinner. until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins)

thanks James my "issue" is that it's not as "defined" enough for my liking, once the oils have dried I'll be able to add to the effect, trying to add to it while the oils aren't fully dry only spreads them about too much, causing them to look like this. rgds John(shortCummins)

I’d made a “base” for the exhaust stains by spraying a highly thinned mix of brown and green black, this was “enhanced” with some sepia and starship filth oils stippled on. Once again these were blended with a dry brush and then the centre of this stain had dots of faded white blended in. I’m not too happy with how this turned out, I rushed the "blending", so I’m going to leave it for a couple of days, mainly to let the oils fully cure, and then I’ll look at what I can do to “improve” the stains. Next I’ll be having a look at the landing gear. until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins)