Mig88

Nice job with the unusual kit and subject. Miguel

Superbly recovered and adapted. Great work and brilliant idea on the family connection. Well done! Miguel

Thank you very much Miguel

When I did research for this project, I found quite a few photos of 405 throughout its service life on internet, many being of 2010 and of the final flight. As a curiousity, my brother lives in Canada, precisely in Longueuil. I went to visit him in the summer of 2022 and he pointed out the Pratt & Whitney Canada buildings when we passed nearby. When I found out that this machine was the first one assembled there and it flew from there (I found a photo of that moment too), it was an extra reason to build it. My brother kindly took me to Ottawa and we visited the museum there so I got to see the example on display there, 426. True to some degree. With the door open you could at least see something in the area opposite the dorr but alas it's completely void. I made a compromise and have the door slightly ajar. The other kits in this scale, Swwet and F-toys, ahave the door moulded in the closed position. I do recommend the kit but strongly advise to do research as aerials and little bits are missing. Finally, I agree, the early Canadian scheme is lovely. Making a machine later in its service life is possible, but a lot of scratchbuilding would be involved, even to make the kit as the decals truely represent, for the 2010 repaint. Thank you very much to all! Miguel

Hello everyone! Here is the second Spitfire kit from the Eduard Dual Combo which I finished yesterday. It is Eduard's Supermarine Spitfire LF.IXc representing MJ586/LO-D, flown by Pierre Clostermann, No. 602 "City of Glasgow" Sqn., RAF, Longues-sur-Mer airfield, France, July 7, 1944. I started this at the same time as the other kit, of 601 Sqn, which I have already posted a few weeks ago. It took longer due to the more complex paint scheme. As with the other one, I made a rear bulkhead with seat to put in the empty cockpit and scratchbuilt a rear-view mirror above the windscreen (sprue from etched parts with Kristal Klear) and the underwing probe (from stretched sprue). The kit was fully painted (freehand), weathered and varnished with brush. Apart from a couple of minor quibbles I have with the weathering, I am also very pleased with how this one came out. The D-day markings really make it eye-catching. Most of the paints for the main scheme were Vallejo except for the dark green which was PollyScale. Vallejo's Sky Type S is a bit too dark and dull and maybe I should have used Tamiya's paint instead which would have come closer to Eduard's code letters (which I feel are a bit off in tone too). Thanks for looking and all comments are welcome. Miguel

Simply smashing work there. Quite a return to the hobby indeed! Miguel

Very nicely finished indeed! Miguel

Absolutely smashing! Miguel

Beautiful!! Miguel

Outstanding work and finish! Thanks for sharing. It's a pleasure to see it. Miguel

I very much agree with all. Lovely work but, for me too, the panel lines are overdone. I prefer a more subtle approach since they weren't that visible. Superbly finished otherwise. Miguel

Very nicely done! Miguel

It's nice to see such an ugly plane so beautifully finished! Well done, it looks really good. Miguel

Outstanding!! Beautifully finished. Miguel

Errors or not, that is a real stunner. The scheme is spectacular and your kit looks great. Bravo! Miguel

Lovely! Very nicely finished. Miguel

Very nicely done indeed! Miguel

Both look smashing and beautifully finished. Well done! Miguel

Wow!! Superb work all around and a fantastic result. Miguel

Lovely!! Miguel

An absolute stunner!! The weathering is outstanding. Well done! Miguel

Smashing build of an unusual type. I don't know if anyone else was released a kit of this type in 1:72. You've done a great job with this one. Miguel

Thank you very much. In a box with two kits and five options, this one was an obvious choice being non-standard! The other one is taking longer due to the paint scheme with D-day invasion stripes! Miguel

Thank you very much! Miguel

Hello everyone! Here is my second kit of the year which I finished last weekend. It is Eduard's 1:144 scale Supermarine Spitfire LF.IXc representing MJ250/UF-Q, of No. 601 "County of London" Sqn., RAF, regularly flown by F/O Desmond Ibbotson, from Perugia, Loreto and/or Fano, Italy, summer 1944. It was built mostly OOB and was built together with the other kit from the dual combo boxing which is taking longer because if its more complex paint scheme. These kits are simple but very nice though, sadly, they lack cockpit detail. I decided to add some detail in the cockpit by making the rear bulkhead and seat only, the most visible elements. I used a spare Beacon Models Spitfire Mk.I part as a template and scratchbuilt the section with plastic card, stretched sprue and an etched seat from a Brengun set. I added harnesses from masking tape. I added some small sections of flat sprue to the cockpit sides to act as a support to attach the bulkhead. A bit of trimming was needed but the part fitted nicely and makes a big difference. My other additions were a rear-view mirror above the windscreen (sprue from etched parts with Kristal Klear) and the underwing probe (from stretched sprue). The kit was fully painted, weathered and varnished with brush. A photo I found of this machine shows it readying to take-off with another one and both are kicking up dust. Engine exhaust stains are clearly visible too so I made this kit a little on the dirty side. Sadly, there was no bomb to put slung underneath as seen in the photo. 601 Sqn was involved in attack missions at that time. Nevertheless, I'm very pleased with the kit and in a metallic finish, it really looks different from any Spitfire I have built so far in any scale. Thanks for looking and, as always, all comments are welcome. Miguel