Jim Kiker

Hi Troy, I have seen these pics before, but not all in one spot (I think), so thanks for reposting them together. Thanks too for the commentary you added regarding colors and interior finishes; most helpful. My goal is to portray EN343-E which did BDA work immediately after the Dams Raid in May 1943; in some respects an early PR XI such as this one is from a earlier place and time from the later aircraft in Italy. Thank you very much for all the information! Cheers,

Hi all, As the title implies I am working on a Spitfire PR XI conversion and I need some help in detail painting. I am doing a mid-war aircraft so of course it's PRU Blue overall. However, I am unsure about the interior of the wheel wells, including the tail wheel well; I think they would be IGG but perhaps not. I think the landing gear struts should be silver, such as dull aluminum. Spinner- roundel dull blue or black? The serial number should be 4" and painted in Sky Grey? Roundels- 40" B type on the upper wings and 30" B type on the fuselage; also correct? There needs to be an antenna mast just behind the cockpit, with an unpainted Bakelite mounting plate, is that right? And finally, were the plywood interior bulkheads for the camera compartment finished in clear varnish, or paint? If paint, what color? This aircraft requires a sliding canopy with the large, clear blisters. I've been through four different sets of vac formed canopies (none made specifically for the Airfix 1/48 scale PR XIX kit) and while I don't know who is most correct, nothing I've found for the canopy sections works dimensionally without significant work! Any light you can shed will be much appreciated. Thanks, Jim P.S. If anyone is working up a vac form to fit this kit to help convert it to a PR XI, please let us know!

Julien, thanks for the pictures and the additional information they contain. Pete, having drawn a few red lines in my time I have NO problem reading the data. The additional information is just what I needed to "top off" and prepare for making some new boxes. Cheers, Jim

For Troy, Chris, and Jerry, thank you for your inputs; they all help get me to the point where I can approximate the dimensions well enough to serve my purpose. For Pete, always a pleasure to see you on the 'net, my friend. Thank you for the picture of those kit parts, the drawing, and the picture. Very helpful! Cheers all, Jim

Hi all, Thank you for the various replies. Yes, this is in regard to the 20mm shown the the first reply; however, as was pointed out, only a very few first airframes used the 60 round drums. "Night Fighter" by Jimmy Rawnsley is one of my favorite books on wartime experiences, and removing the empties and fighting to get the loaded drums installed while in a running battle was a pretty amazing feat in my book! After that small first batch, the Beau received large rectangular boxes for a significantly larger load of ammo for each cannon. The Tamiya kit has two rectangular boxes with no detail. Having a picture of the feeds is certainly useful, but it is the boxes that can be seen between the crew stations when everything is buttoned up. So I continue the search- what were the dimensions of those four boxes? Thanks and cheers, Jim

Hi all, I am interested in improving the 20mm ammo cans that are in the 1/48 scale Tamiya Beaufighter kit. I have a technical drawing showing the feeds, but what I need is the dimensions of the cans themselves. Any light you can shed will be most helpful. Thanks in advance, Jim

Hi Grey, Sorry about that, mate, but that's just the sort of thing I wish to avoid. Great looking model! Cheers, Jim

Nick and Iang, Thanks for responding, it's much appreciated. At least I'm not alone in trying to pin down those camera ports! For Iang, I have that picture but had not noticed that bump, whatever it is. Thanks for providing a possible lead to additional information. Cheers, Jim

Hi Jamie, Please count me in for one set of correct tail planes for the the Tamiya kit. I'm only doing one of them but I have a collection of improvement sets to give her full justice; correct tails will polish her off nicely! Thanks, Jim

Hi all, I am asking for help in tracking down an article from the old, but missed, "Quarter Scale Modeller," Issue #4 dated August 1996. That issue included an article on FAA Corsairs that I would really like to have. I would be fine with having scanned pages, or buying the entire magazine if you prefer. I am happy to pay a reasonable amount for either option plus mailing to the U.S. Can you help a brother out? Thanks, Jim

Hi all, Concerning Maj R.C. Hay's 'personal' Corsair JT427, to my knowledge there is no photographic proof that this Corsair was modified to carry a camera. Written accounts indicate that this modification was done, but I have never seen visual evidence. I have seen pictures of this a/c but never one that clearly either shows an oblique camera port, or a clear image showing nothing. Come to think of it, I have not seen any BPF Corsair pictures showing a camera port. How about it, boffins? Thanks, Jim

Hi Dana, So glad that you replied in this thread; you are the source of my information, along with Mr. Sullivan and fundekals decals. It may be a while before my plan results in painted plastic, but I have a taste for the unusual in camouflage schemes and this will be a fun build. Thanks to all for the input and for the information on the decals; I'll have a think about how to proceed there. Cheers, Jim

Hi all, I have an upcoming Corsair project and I need some information about decals. I will be building and painting the model as an early F4U-1D in "3 tone" scheme. Actually, I reckon I should say "4 tone" given the information Dana Bell has discovered and shared. I will be needing decals to add a 3-digit code number, 12" high, on the fuselage sides. Fantasy Printshop has a sheet of white numbers that would fill the bill, but these will be going on over the GSB paint. So the question is, will Fantasy's decals turn translucent when applied over a dark color, or will they stay (at least mostly) white? Thanks in advance for any light you can shed. Cheers, Jim

Hi all, For what it's worth, someone put together a listing of mixes for Tamiya paints some time back. Here is the US listing: USA NON-SPEC. SEA BLUE (also GSB):- XF17:5 + XF8:3 + XF2:2 INTERMEDIATE BLUE:- XF18:5 + XF2:4 BLUE-GRAY:- XF18:3 + XF2:1 LIGHT GRAY:- XF19:2 + XF2:1 USN INTERIOR GREEN:- XF3:2 + XF5:1 I am not sure how accurate these are, but I note that the formula for GSB is the Tamiya dark blue, with quite a lot of medium blue and a dash of white. I think that would give you a better match for the WWII era, but I am not a U.S. Navy boffin. HTH, Jim

Hi Colin, I have a few observations and techniques to pass along. Bear in mind that it takes some experimentation to work out how you will use/adapt the practices of others. Also, it's worth noting that applying panel line washes is not, in my view, weathering. It certainly adds to the look of a model and makes a great companion to weathering techniques. I always try to do a little practice on an old model/kit pieces before working on my current project. Painting: I agree in general with Giorgio. I use lacquer/enamel (solvent based) paints for my basic painting. I then apply an acrylic clear gloss on the model and apply the decals. I seal the decals with another clear acrylic gloss coat. I then apply an oil wash into the panel lines. I use Payne's Grey for the lines between the flying control surfaces such as the ailerons and around the often removed panels like engine cowlings. For ordinary panel lines a wash of gray that's just a little bit darker than the base paint works well. Overly dark/stark panel lines do not, in my view, add realism to models. I use pastels and artist's oils to add stains around the engine panels, and seal everything at the end with a clear acrylic flat or semi-flat coat. The main point here is to use alternating layers of paint formulas to act as a barrier for the next layer. I start with enamels then use clear acrylic clear gloss, oil washes, and so on. You can start with acrylics and go to clear enamel coats just as easily as starting with solvents. However, remember that in general, the order of layers would be lacquer, enamel, and acrylic. Modern paints make breaking this "rule" possible, but if you apply a lacquer over acrylic with a heavy hand it can eat into the acrylic. There are a variety of methods that can work and how I do it is just one of many. Experimenting on old model parts and learning to make things work is a great way to figure out these techniques and it will limit the number of mistakes one might make on the model project. As you try out new things I look forward to seeing how you make out. Let's see how it goes! HTH, Jim

Hi Troy, Great minds on the same track. That is the tool I'm using for the fastener details! Cheers all, Jim

Hi all, Thanks for the interesting and varied responses. In the name of transparency, I have done several other conversions of fighter Spitfires turned into recce types and so I have a good idea of the mods needed; converting the wings to the D type is not hard but it is time consuming (at least the way I do it). Your responses caused me to review the work I have previously done. I started with the Airfix PR XIX kit and I have added a Merlin nose for the Mk IX. For this I used one of John Adam's Aeroclub sets; it has a very nice shape but I had sanded off the surfaces and mostly lost the panel fastener detail. I was dreading trying to replace that detail but on balance, it will not be more difficult than I can manage. I also found that I had re-profiled the vertical fin to match the Mk IX size and shape and I'll use a pointed rudder for my build. To my surprise I found that I had also cut down the XIX kit's radiators and modified the radiator housings to the less-deep Mk IX configuration. In short, I put it aside at the point of adding the surface detail to the nose and then getting on with the actual build. Wonder why I stopped! Thanks again for the input. No doubt the PR XI kit will surface in 1/48 scale a few months from now... Cheers, Jim

Hi all, Desiring to have a Spitfire PR XI in 1/48 scale, I started a build using the Airfix PR XIX kit and grafting a Merlin nose onto it. That effort eventually stalled, and now I'm wondering if there is an easier way to do the deed. Has anyone tried fitting the Airfix kit wing to someone else's Mk IX fuselage? If so, what kit's fuselage? I know Airfix did a Mk IX a few year back. Eduard has a great Mk IX, but could it be crossed into the Airfix wing? Are there any other alternative cross-kit possibilities? I know there are rumors of a new PR XI kit, but I'd prefer to move along now versus waiting for a kit that may not come for some time yet. All inputs welcome! Thanks, Jim

Hi all, Looking at all the information uncovered and at what the build itself will include, I wonder if there is a way establish the type of tailplane setup this aircraft had beyond having a picture. My understanding is that the dihedral tailplanes are not an automatic indicator of the aircraft's type as a MkVI. There was some mixing of MkVI versus Mk I, flat tail versus dihedral tail, at least early in the MkVI production runs. If that is correct, is there a known point in the serials which we know the dihedral tails were definitely on the MkVI's. A picture sure would be helpful! Also, when was the porcupine exhaust setup added to the production lines? I admit to being partisan towards the early short exhaust pipe and the flat tailplanes, but I'd rather get this right than build it to what I want. Thanks, Jim

Hi all, Thanks to Dennis and Seahawk for the additional information. Granted, "ought to be" and "really were" are two very different things, but the only way to find out is for me to complete this Beau as described here. I can assure you that within a month of that, several good quality color pictures will surface, and the scheme will be EDSG/Night with red codes edged in yellow, no fin flash at all, and type A roundels under the wings! Thanks again and cheers all, Jim

Hi Jerry and all, I saw that entry as well, but other accounts I found indicate that the PBY attack resulted in several casualties but apparently not a lot of damage to the sub. But as stated, it may be another sub. Ivor, thank you very much; that is very helpful information! Can we pin down the camouflage and markings for this aircraft for June 1943? Thanks and cheers, Jim

Hi all, While digging around the 'net looking for more Beaufighter information, I ran across several short entries concerning a 236 Sqn machine other than T4800. On Jun 1, 1943, a 236 Beaufighter armed with rockets sank the German submarine U-418. One account mentioned the aircraft code letter "B." Does anyone have further documentation on this aircraft? I'd like to verify all the usual items; aircraft codes, serial number, aircraft type (such as Mk VIc?), paint scheme. Based on other information, the little information here suggests a Beaufighter Mk VIc, with standard TSS and red codes. Can anyone provide useful data? Thanks, Jim

Hi all, As a side question from the thread about Beaufighter ND-C; how was the change from Type A1 fuselage roundels in the RAF to Type C1 actually supposed to be done? Was Dull Blue used to paint over most of the outer yellow ring, leaving a 1" ring of yellow, or was the original yellow ring over painted in camo color, leaving the narrow yellow ring? And for completeness, I believe that the center Dull Red dot was expanded outwards, leaving a 1" ring of white between the red and the blue. I ask this because if you use camo paint to cover up most of the yellow ring, you wind up with a substantially smaller roundel, whereas if you expand the blue to cover most of the yellow then the roundel will retain its original size. TIA, Jim

All, So, were there any further messages/orders regarding CC Beaufighter camouflage between Jan 1941 and June 1942? Thanks, Jim

Hi Dennis and all, I showed the B&W picture of T4800 taken later to a buddy of mine who is a better researcher than I am. He noted that the undersides of the a/c, on that day at least, seem to show that the Sky under surfaces look like they have been repainted in a dark color; Night/black perhaps? Neither of us can see a bit of light color/Sky on the lower engine nacelles, nor at the area just behind and under the wing trailing edge. Is it possible this picture came at a noticeably later date and the a/c was then on night ops? Re-muddying the waters, I know... Cheers, Jim