Icarus

Morning all Long time no model, due to baby, house move and wedding preparation commitments. However, with the hot, sticky weather in London over the last few nights, I've been up anyway, so made a bit of progress on the cockpit using the fabulous PE bits from Eduard,, All a bit pointless, to be honest, as the cockpit opening is miniscule, but as they say, I'll know it is there. Made a decision to have the wings folded, so as this is the Hobbycraft kit I will be wielding the razor saw and Airwaves PE set (not in original piccie above), This will need to take a bit of planning, as the wing decals appear overlap the wing fold line... Oh, and in the end, never got a chance to go to the National Records to find out what the true Mig-killer's a/c ID was, so will have to go with the charlatan's version. Thanks for looking, Icarus

Morning all. I gave in to temptation, and added the PE detail around the canopy, including frame and mirrors. I also added the G-Factor Models white metal pitot. I will incorporate some of the photos in the Gallery: Icarus

Grumman F-14A Tomcat Cdr Jud Springer, CAG CVW-8 VF-84 July 1978, USS Nimitz Monogram 1:48 kit OOB apart from Quickboost resin seats, PE cockpit framing and white metal pitot Xtracrlix paints Weathering: ProModeller Light and Dark washes and Tamiya Weathering Master pigments, Windsor and Newton oil paints Build Thread: http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234960261-revellmonogram-148-f-14a-tomcat-vf-84-jolly-rogers-cdr-springer-cag-cvw-8/ [/url] Icarus

Ok. I think this is finished. I have some PE bits for the canopy, and a replacement white metal pitot, but I'm not sure they will much to the build. Will ponder, then post in the gallery as relevant Nice cockpit detail, despite the age of the kit. the seats are resin, from Quickboost And the underside. Again, good detail in the wheel wells.. Decals are from Aeromaster, with missile stencils from the spares box. Thank you for looking. Icarus

And a bit more progress... Icarus

Morning all. Haven't had much time to progress this recently - one house move, one 8-week year old, and a launch at work have derailed things somewhat. Anyway, this is an update.. Pre-gluing (those horizontal seams look like trouble..) Use of brute force to try and get those seams minimised (by the way, note the emergency nappy-changing kit at the bottom of the picture!).... And where we stand as of this morning... As you can see, I'm STILL trying to sort out those seams! Bless Monogram/Revell. Just about to spray on the light gull grey over the repair work, some black on the dorsal and ventral fins (and as a base for the Alclad). Hopefully more frequent updates from now on.. Icarus

Ermm... strange as it may seem, I actually live in Kew. Not entirely sure how the National Archives repository will take to a screaming 4-week old (my new son, not me) but there's only one way to find out. More news as it happens... Icarus

Hmmm. Although this version seems to have been directed by the British Military Establishment, rather than John Ford. Icarus

I have been stuck at the in-laws for a while (it has to happen sometimes...) so a bit of a delay on this build. Anyway, initial painting of the cockpit and resin seats is done. Need to weather them all, and add a matt varnish to bring it all together: Looking at this again, the reflections from the flash make the cockpit look an awful lot more weathered than it really is. Should look better with some matting down in the subsequent build.. Icarus

Thank you Procopius. Isn't it always the way - the guys that do all the work/save the day rarely get the credit due them? Great article. Oh well, young Carmichael's decals are the only ones I will be using, Will have to amend the description to "alleged Mig killer a/c"... Icarus

Morning (just) all. Can I join this Group Build with this oldie but goldie kit? The kit decals are a gonner, and I wanted to portray Hoagy Carmichael's Mig killer a/c, so new ones are on order. In the mean time, here are the initial kit and "goodie" photos: Icarus

Just cleaned the sprues ready to start painting this. I am startled by how good the existing detail on the kit items is. In all honesty I'm struggling to justify using the Eduard pre-painted cockpit PE. First time I've ever said that about a build.... Icarus

Thank you Gorgio. The Tomcat was a somewhat overweight aircraft that reportedly wasn't much use in a dogfight, but what a fantastic canvas for all those florid USN colour schemes. Icarus

Supermarine Spitfire Mk.I Ginger Lacey "Bounce" Spitfire 57 OTU Royal Air Force, 1942 Airfix 1:72 kit OOB Xtracrlix paints Weathering: ProModeller Light and Dark washes and Tamiya Weathering Master pigments Build Thread: http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234958686-ginger-lacys-bounce-spitfire-mk1-172-scale-airfix-old/ Icarus

Evening all. Could I join this Group Build? Lots of goodies to use, and I have to say the choice between using the VF-84 "Jolly Rogers" scheme and the VF-41 "Black Aces" was a tortuous one. Anyway, here goes with the initial kit shot... Icarus

Morning all. Unless anyone can see any glaring errors here, I'm now calling this finished. Happily, it won the club "Simple Build" competition last night. Thank you all for your encouragement and advice. Now to the Korea War Group Build... Icarus

Morning all. Decals now on, as are the wheels. Weathering, varnish then removing the canopy masking today, then hopefully all done! Thanks for looking, Icarus

I must confess the Xtracrylix paints are a real boon if you are entering a club model competition, in two days, and are barred from using an airbrush as part of the rules.... Tonight - decals! Icarus

Morning. Now it's starting to look like a Spitfire... A bit of filling needed on the lower joins. Now for the camouflage... Icarus

And now with some stripes... Icarus

Afternoon. Masking for stripes... And yes, they are a bit uneven, but that actually reflects the paint scheme - presumably added ad-hoc... Icarus

Good evening all. This has taken a bit longer than anticipated. Not sure if it's the kit, or me being cack-handed, but it took several sessions of filling and sanding to get the nose correct. Anyway, here goes, ready to mask those florid nose stripes.. Icarus

Thank you for your kind comments Speedman. Could you please tell me where you got your F-14 Tomcat GB II banner from? Icarus

Evening all. Having just finished the Egyptian Air Force Miles Magister for the "Training Types" Group Build, time to get cracking on this one! This is the first time I've included the pilot figure in a model since I was a teenager ( a long time ago I can assure you)... I have to say Ginger looks like he's got pernicious anaemia, so I may need to do some work with oils on this.. Thanks for looking, Icarus

Miles Magister L207 Royal Egyptian Air Force, 1939 Heliopolis, Egypt Flashback 1:48 kit OOB including enclosed PE details Xtracrlix and Xtracolor paints Weathering: ProModeller Light and Dark washes and Tamiya Weathering Master pigments Build Thread: http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234956067-egyptian-air-force-148-miles-magister/