Severus

I will achieve it in very twisted way. I wrote somewhere else, that it will be speedy not so speedy...

Just a look on workbench... What an excitement might have felt the people at Castle Bromwich or Woolston (I hope I remember the names correctly)... Well I feel, the first few might have been fun, but in the wartime, everyone probably could feel it as nemesis... Well, from near to far: Spit. PR.Mk. I type G Spit. PR Mk. VII Spit. Mk.IIc ASR Speed Spitfire. Tried my best on window - In my humble opinion, even better than previous attempts on Mk.IV... Sight thru glazing...

As a I'm not born english speaking, can you kindly translate it into more conservative language?

Changed mind about building another sword's spits apart from the one - std. winged - XII. This one I'l try to finish in time, and instead of seafires XV and XVII I will build PR.I.G/VII and speedy spit. As a basis will be used new tool airfix I/IIa. Pics from nightly build... What's done so far: Mk.I type G Speed Spit: Speedy needs to get sanded the plating around the wing-fuselage joint, as there was overlap, very visible, that's missing on new tool Mk.I.

A little progress... Stands on it's own legs now (tailwheel will be painted later). Underwing blisters... Acompanied with previously finished IV And, what do we have on the bench next?

Just a few hints for fellow builders, that are applicable not only on PR spits: 1. significant improvement on "spitife look and feel" is sanding fusselege sides around the arched line, from the upper side, that will make look of overlapped sheets, apart of simple flat joint line. Surprisingly, old spits I and Vb of Airfix had this feature incorporated, end even the repeatedly cursed new IX has this feature, even on the bottom side... 2. If trying to use acetate (vacu) canopies, instead of trying to attach middle part to match windshield and behind the cockpit, make the canopy opened. And, instead of gluing it in place, glue stretched sprue on the bottom line of the hood. Then, if you will push the finished hood on the fusselage, the attached sprues will easily slid into rails on the fusselage. As a bonus - no wories of CA fog, no problem of dust collected inside, as you can easily remove it as needed, clean up and push it back. BTW, this is also applicable on other kits, if canopy is a little on narrow side. This was very expensive trick to learn, as I tried CA (to get fogged canopies), and future (sometimes too much, that flew between the windows, distorting the look). 3. Used thinnest hypodermic needle (from insulin cartridge) to drill the locks on legs. such a stupid detail, nevertheless, it makes miracles. 4. Happily I had omitted bottles behind the seat, as there's almost impossible to look, thanks to two clear parts, and also thanks to the thick longeron from very top of bulkhead. Spare your time, if possible, and use the bottles, where sorely needed... 5. I really hate to trim acetate, especially the part behind the cockpit. I simply used the kit provided part, and cut the desired part with razor saw. 6. lines on the right side of tail (under tailplane) are wrong. Repair is very simple with CA, razor saw and sand paper. Well, I omitted this on currently build PR Mk. IC... Simply I had forgotten.

Looks good! What makes me wonder - sometimes I see the lightened earth turning onto pinkish side, sometimes into yellow side. What it should be on british paints? I somewhere read, that only somehow reddish/pinkish earth was applied on P-40's, as it's been du-pont's approximation of earth according to B.S.

Larry, honestly said, in this moment there are jut two holes into fuselage. I had had windows there, but as I glued it with just future (as well as canopy and other clear parts), I somehow pushed the glass inside Will be solving this matter next week, just waiting until the paint will be hard enough (enamels).

Thanks, this sounds surpricing, this one is the first one I had presented on this web nevertheless, if really decisive on PR conversions, there's no need to buy whole PR spit sets with urethane parts, just canopies (PR spits bundle, see for yourself on pavlamodels.cz) will be enough to produce PR.IA, IB, ID, IG without any aditional urethane. Of course, unless you'd buy decals from Aviation Workshop, there's no need for aftermarket, if you are able to make masks for roundels and/or you have spare decals box... What I do love on the subject - minimal investment into kit, (almost) no aftermarket, great subject, and very simple and eyecatching schema... Thanks to the price, I had no worries on messing something up, so if something might happen really bad way, I simply could tear the bag of the other kit and replace messed parts. Really fast build, most of the work to the decaling #1 (wing had to be painted and decaled twice, as I messed paint job by strong decal sols) had been done within 12hrs.

Little progress on decaling...

Concerning the Pavla sets, for double of new Mk.I price I find it terribly expensive, even with the underwing blisters, that can be easily made from spare aux. tanks - perhaps of FW-190, Mustang, P-40, etc. Even the canopises included don't improve the situation, as they are on narrow side, and I found typical micro-cracklings in the windshield after paint job finished. Nothing to leave me crying over it, but at all, nothing to write home about. BTW, did I tell you about mis-registered decals?. I have two PR's now. Next time I will buy just Pavla's PR spits canopies set, as mostly it's just question of canopy, and whatever version will be made from spare bits, if necessary.

PR Mk. IC nearing finish! http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=71309 And a few pics of IV in daylight...

Used Pavla PR Spits set for Tamiya, therefore the enlarged nose sculpted from Milliput, Underwing blisters and canopy from set. Just a few pics after paintshop...

Thanks all for kind words!!!

Scheme is described on 14th page of On Target Profiles #8, PR Spitfires in worldwide services. My interpretation is different of author's opinion, as they described the upper shade as azure blue. If initially painted with what so ever blue, it most probably was PRU Blue. Otherwise, if initially being PRU pink, that is described as quickly fading, the blue applied on upper surfaces would be most probably PRU Blue again, as this plane is described as being assigned to PRU. Conversion kits: Only conversion kit is canopy from Pavla, and part of some old Eduard PE, probably for Spit IX (recycled instrument panel). To tell the truth, there's not so much to convert. Currently I have PR Mk.IC, that is somehow more demanding on conversion kits matter, as I'm lazy to make underwing blisters from scratch, though with some selection of scrapyard the blister may be easily made from spare fuel tanks from P-40, FW-190D, P-51D etc.. Most problematic part are decals, as PRU used non-standard sizes, and this one even used non-standard shape of roundels. In this case I used old Airfix Hunter FGA.9 on upperwing, and some pieces of old Travers decals (Spitfires), with scrap pieces (red dots in side roundels) from P-40 of Tally Ho decals. Lettering came from AZ's Spit Mk.Ia, basic edition. That's it

Ever heard about laziness? Really... I just wanted to get this thing finished. In the near future I will get PR Mk.IC finished, perhaps I will scratch the doors for both.

Almost finished...

Well. I dyslike - generally - building without photo evidence. I found this one in Aviation Workshop's On Target Profile vol. 8, page 16. Source is reported as private photos, though I have certain doubts.

If you plan building nice XIV, forget Academy, and get another XIX and IX, and cross kiit. What a bonus - you may also build up nice looking XI... ;-)

Just to mess up some really cheap piece of plastic... I didn't bother myself with in-progress-pics, as this thema is dedicated 2 griffon spits/seafires: Humbrol 34 and 230, decals from spares....

I got one tatally frameless canopy. I made unintentionally frames this way: 1. dip in future. 2. fake framing made from thin strip of tamiya tape. 3. added masks from tamiya tape + latex (masking sol). 4. stripped "framing" 5. interiour color 6. grey primer from can (enamel based). 7. final paint 8. Then disaster struck... Had to strip to plastic. But as canopy held up good, I left it over there. 8. Grey primer 9. Final paint 10. Final flat varnish. Canopy stripped off. As Squadron is on soft side on framing, this way I made sharp looking frames. Can't guarant success, instead of painting, I dusted relativly dry paint until it built up it's thickness.

What opportunity missed by Italeri. Gracefully they omitted dessert VI's, at least one is well known, messed Czech(czechoslovak) roundels (should be mirrored, blue facing forward, the red allways bottom)...

What a waste of sight, patience and precious money on such terrible kit. If U R restarting after some modelling vacancy, perhaps would be better start with Spit Mk.IX c or Mk.Ia of Airfix. If carefull enough, no need for putty...

If I ever would like to be inpolite, I would point out something about complaining of lazy, simple minded glue sniffers.

Depends also on contrast to environment as well as contrast to other camo shades. BTW... Color perception also varies even between the eyes of single person.