Piero

Here the link: http://www.trumpeter-china.com/a/en/produc.../0314/1872.html Same shape's problems as for the previous AV-8B series, plus some missing items specific for the GR.7s, as the ejection seat, chaff&flare underside dispenser, laser pod and fuselage adapter, inaccurate and incomplete stencils... and so on. Only the 65% LERX are provided, not correct for the ZG512 option on the decal sheet. CIAO! Piero

... I wish for a GR.7/9 scale-up in 1/32 or much better in 1/24!!! CIAO! Piero

Hello, I just finished this big RAF Hawker Hurricane Mk.IIC BE 581 JX-E, as flown by Flt. Lt. K.M. Kuttlewascher with 1° Squadron on night intruder missions from Tangmere, around July/August 1942. Sorry for the poor photos, I'll try to do a better job next time. The WIP of this model can be found at the link: http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=54548 Critic & comment are welcomes. CIAO! Piero

Hello, thanks to everybody for the kindly words on my Hurricane. Here the model with the (few) decals on. Rotor's blades are painted too. CIAO! Piero

Hello, a little-big progress on my Hurricane... roundels and fin-flash were painted on... not really and easy task to cut roundel's masks like these. Some Tamiya's Smoke paint was sprayed along the panel lines. Now its time for a good wash. CIAO! Piero

Hi Graham, its really good your Hurricane! Did you use decals for roundels and codes or are painted on? CIAO! Piero

Hi, painting stage is started well... Some silver paint to simulate the metal skin... Now the basic camouflage pattern of Ocean Grey/Dark Green... Yellow band were painted over the wing leading edge... and the Sky band was painted too... I start to paint the underside with Night Black paint but still needs some work on... The red nose has to be glued... still needs to be painted and finished with the right shade of red. Bye for now... CIAO! Piero

Hi, working on the Hurricane is going on a little bit slow... but still going on! Here the progress, most of the kit is ready for the painting stage. I added the flame-shields over the exhaust made from scratch with plasticard... ... some other details as strength plates and canopy rails were added too... ... as for the vents on the lower side. All the holes/rivets over the wings were closed using Mr Hobby's white liquid putty. Photoetched details were added inside the undercarriage bay. All the panel lines were rescribed, after a lot of fitting-glueing-filling-sanding work all over the front underside of the fuselage. One of the few disappointing thing of this very good kit are the movable control surface... or well, I suppose they should be movable but not at all if you don't re-work all the joints. In the end I decide to move only the vertical rudder and the trimmer. The windshield has an armoured clear plated and an anti-fog pipe added inside. The canopy and the windshield has the frames painted black inside. Now its time to clean all the parts from dust and to be ready for a primer layer of primer... ;-) CIAO! Piero

I can confirm that a new box for the G222 kit in 1/72 from Italeri will follow. CIAO! Piero P.S: I've been at the Model Shown in Rome last week and I've won the "Best of Show" trophy with my Harrier GR.3 in 1/24th. CIAO!!!!!!!!

I'm in too. Airfix's AV-8A of USMC in 1/24th scale. CIAO! Piero

Hi Graham, your Hurricane is coming really good!!! Did you use Xtracolor 's enamel for the camouflage? I'm thinking to use the new OG/DG Tamiya's acrilyc paint on mine. CIAO! Piero

Hello, just back on this WIP and... thank you for your kindly words on the model!!! Some answers... the green cutting mat on my table is an A3 size from Tamiya. I always use Humbrol's enamels to wash over the Gunze/Tamiya's acrilyc paints. This time were black and brown mixed in the same parts. Now some progress with the finished cockpit and the basic engine assembled and painted just to fill the nose on the model. Closing the fuselage is an easy task, but some filler will come later. Almost another easy task is the assembly of the wings, with a nice fitting of the guns upper panels. The cockpit has no floor, so some interior grey-green paint must be sprayed inside the center seciton of the wing... painting process as for the cockpit. CIAO! Piero

Hello, I've started to build a model of the RAF Hawker Hurricane Mk.IIC BE 581 JX-E, as flown by Flt. Lt. K.M. Kuttlewascher with 1° Squadron on night intruder missions from Tangmere, around May 1942. This will be the "sister in scale" of my RAF Harrier GR.3. The kit is very good in shapes and well detailed, maybe one of the best aircraft model from Trumpeter production. Starting as usual from the cockpit area, here the parts already painted with acrilyc colours from Gunze (airbrush) and Vallejo (brush). Some small details were added or replaced using PE parts of Trumpeter set. Then I added some cables and tubes. CIAO! Piero

Thank you guys! I'll post a new "WIP" topic as soon as I'll start the model. CIAO! Piero

Hello, I'm going to build an RAF Hawker Hurricane Mk.IIC BE 581 JX-E, as flown by Flt. Lt. K.M. Kuttlewascher on night intruder missions from Tangmere, around May 1942. This is a "first time" for me, because usually I build jets "tubi di stufa" in italian model-slang... and I have some questions on this subject. - Colour of the seat: it was the same of the cockpit interiors (RAF Interior Grey Green) or the "some kind of brownish red"? - Colour of the wheel bay and inner undercarriage doors: it was RAF Interior Grey Green or aluminium as for the undercarriage legs? - Flaps position: I know that flaps were lowered only when in use and never when the aircrafts were parked, but I found a picture on a book showing an Hurricane parked with lowered flaps. Could be for some kind of maintenance? Finally, any books or sources on the Hurricane Mk.IIC you want to suggest me? Thank you in advance. CIAO! Piero

First of all I would like to thanks all of you guys for your kindly words on my Harrier model!!! I really appreciated you suggestions and compliments... I hope to do much better on the next one. Now, I made a simple base to be used for display the finished model, so I just taken some other pictures of the model. Ok, this morning I've got my next 1/24th scale model to start... an Hurricane Mk.IIC by Trumpeter to be finished in RAF 1° squadron markings. I think she will be a nice sister for the Harrier. CIAO! Piero

Hello, just after almost one year of happy modelling, here my big Harrier model finished. Sorry for the low quality of the pictures, but that's all I can do at home with my hardware. I hope to take some better pictures with the help of my model friends. All the long WIP can be found following this link: http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=33210 I don't know if I'll ever build another one of this kit, but I really enjoyed the kit and this famous subject. Now its time to think on the next one to put alongside the Harrier... I have an idea and I'll post a new WIP topic soon... I wish! CIAO! Piero

Hello, last WIP on my big Harrier, here the canopy with details added and ready for painting. Now this topic is ready to de moved to the "Ready for inspection" forum... CIAO! Piero

Hi Bill, all, many thanks! I found many pictures in the "Harrier from the cockpit" and "Airdoc RAF Harrier Part.1" books were the SNEB Matra rocket pods are attached on the Harriers without the frangible tan covers showing the holes clear and empty. I suppose those SNEB pods were used for trials only... so are just ok for my model CIAO! Piero

Hi Kirk, many thanks! 1) Yes, the tabs inside the intakes were to retain the FOD guards. 2) Sorry, the metal pitot tube was "one shot" custom made by another modeler... CIAO! Piero

Hi, here the nozzles pianted. And now I can see the light at the end of this long term project. I just noticed that one fuel tank is not lined with the pylon... I will fix it this evening. Still missing the canopy and the pitot tube but I should be able to finish her in the next weekend. CIAO! Piero

Hello, last sunday I was able to put my big Harrier on her undercarriges. All five wheels touch the ground... but what a pain!!! Now I have to add some minor details on the undercarriages, doors and inside the bays as well. Also I worked on the vectoring nozzles... Actually the nozzles are already painted, I 'll show some pictures next days. CIAO! Piero

Hi, many thanks to all. Actually I'm painting the undercarriages, I had to add a lot of details on the legs. With a big help from a modelmaster here in Rome, now I have a new spectacular metal pitot tube. I should post some new pics in the next few days. CIAO! Piero

Hello, since last post I was able to complete the decal and weathering phases. A big effert was needed to obtain a good finish effect mixing clear paints, due the size of the model compared with the 1/48th I use to model. Now its time to complete the cockpit area, than still to work on the undercarriages, canopy and vectoring nozzles... I hope to complete this model the summer. Hope you like it! CIAO! Piero

Hi Simon, thank you. For the washing I prefer to use the Humbrol enamel colours, this because for me are easy to use and quick to dry compared with the oil based colours. Here how I did the wash. First I sprayed in the model a base of gloss clear cote and let it dry. Than I mixed in a cup some black and dark brown Humbrol enamel colours, well thinned with commercial turpentine (not the Humbrol thinner). Using a small pointed brush I picked up some of the mixed dark paint and I painted all over the panel lines and rivets. Now you have to wait from 10 mins up to 1 hour before start to remove the excess with a soft cloth wetted with some turpentine. You can repeat the washing and the cleaning phases as you prefers until the result is good for you. Remember, beware of using the Humbrol thinner or others enamel thinners, that's because are too much aggressive with the paints beneath... CIAO! Piero