PilotOfficer

Hi all, I was wondering if you had any recommendations on brush painting gold? Specifically, I was thinking about brand recommendations - I've heard Testors, Vallejo Model Air and Humbrol (enamel) quoted, but I don't know if any of those will be alright. I should probably mention that I'm painting many small, oddly shaped parts where it would be too much of a hassle to use something like gold foil (or to fire up an airbrush - blasted things...) Thanks for any advice!

On reflection I'll just get the Special Hobby kit at some point. I was originally planning a conversion to use up some spare Seafire 17 wings, but this has been negated by the fact that I can't actually find them! As you've said, getting the SH kit will be the cheaper option in the end, and correcting the errors (as Troy Smith has kindly shown how to do) should be less work than converting two kits.

Thanks for your advice gents, I can confirm the intended scale for the conversion is 1:48. As I said I'm just talking hypotheticals here, but I might just start a conversion as soon as I get my hands on donor kits. Should have plenty of time now that my A levels are over!

Hi all, Just been playing with hypotheticals - would it be possible to combine the wings from the Airfix Seafire Mk. XVII with a Spitfire Mk. V fuselage to create a Seafire Mk. III? Thanks for any advice.

May I echo the above comment and say that, as a fellow brush painter, I am in awe of your skills! Can I ask, what matt varnish do you normally use? You always get a lovely matt finish which I've never managed to achieve.

My apologies for forgetting to mention the scale! It is indeed 1:48; the Seafire XVII is the Airfix kit, and the Spitfire IX is the Hasegawa kit. I'm aware of the shape issues with the Hasegawa - I'm not looking to make something absolutely accurate, just to use up leftover parts.

Hi all, I've been looking at the kits in my stash, and I was wondering about something. If I have a Mk. IX Spitfire fuselage, and a pair of wings from a Seafire Mk. XVII, could I combine those to create one of the Spitfire/Seafire marks? Thanks, PliotOfficer

Is this what I need? http://www.modeldesignconstruction.co.uk/mall/productpage.cfm/ModelDesignConstruction/_CV32001/-/Spitfire%20Mk%20I%20Correction

Hi gents, After an absence from the hobby, I'm aiming to get my mojo back soon with a few kits. One of those is the Revell 1:32 Mk. II Spitfire, which I'm planning to do over Christmas. My question is, what would it take to convert the kit into a reasonably accurate Mk. I? I think the propeller might need replacing, and the Coffman starter bulge certainly needs removing - have I missed anything?

As a fellow Doctor Who fan and Dalek enthusiast, I must say I really like what you are doing here! As to the thing you can't quite put your finger on, the Comet Dalek has a reputation for being "not quite right" shape-wise. I think the main problem is in the skirt, which is slightly too narrow with incorrect angles around the top and bottom. Honestly though, I think it looks fine as it is. The old Louis Marx Daleks were much worse anyway...

Excellent work as always sir - I'm in envy of your brush-painting skills. Can I ask how you avoid building up a raised ridge of paint when masking tape is used?

Here are a couple more of my older builds: Airfix 1:72 Supermarine Spitfire Mk.Ia by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr Airfix 1:72 Supermarine Spitfire Mk.Ia by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr This is an Airfix Mk.I, built OOB from the new tooling with no problems. Brush painted - the Sky and Dark Earth are Humbrol, while the Dark Green is Xtracrylix. You may notice a slightly shiny finish, caused by some Xtracrylix matt varnish which didn't come out quite so matt. Typical, really - I've tried several different brands of matt varnish, and each one has given me grief. Even to this day, the struggle continues... Smer 1:72 Supermarine Spitfire Mk. Vb by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr Secondly, this is a Smer Mk. Vb, which may not be the best kit out there but was still fun to build. Best of all, the decals were surprisingly good, and most of them have since been donated to other kits. For this one, I used Humbrol matt varnish from a rattle can - probably the best matt varnish I've used, but still tricky in that it tends to produce a slightly 'sandpapery' texture. The weathering is a mixture of Tamiya weathering powders and dry-brushed silver paint. At the moment, I'm still going through a considerable learning process. I'm experimenting with different ways to get the best out of brush painting - especially when it comes to matt varnish (tricky sod!) Comments, advice and criticism welcome (to a certain extent...)

Hello all, Here are a few more of my older builds: Academy 1:72 Hawker Tempest Mk. V by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr Academy 1:72 Hawker Tempest Mk. V by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr This is the Academy 1:72 kit, built OOB. Decals are from the Freightdog "Keeping the Peace (Part 1)" sheet. Paint is a mixture of Xtracrylix and Humbrol. Academy 1:72 Hawker Typhoon Mk. Ib by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr This is another kit from the Academy 1:72 stable - also built OOB, with Xtradecal decals. Built mostly so I could practice painting D-Day invasion stripes - it didn't go too well, though. Paint is a mixture of Tamiya rattle cans, airbrushed Xtracrylix and brushed Humbrol.

Hello all, After all of the kind remarks about my collection of Mustangs, I thought I'd follow them up with another one I prepared earlier - the 1:72 Revell (ex-Hasegawa) de Havilland Mosquito B. IV. Revell 1:72 de Havilland Mosquito B.IV by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr Revell 1:72 de Havilland Mosquito B.IV by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr This was bought from the little shop in the engine shed at Grosmont on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway and built OOB. It gave me a lot of trouble, especially around the nacelles, engines and wing-to-fuselage joins - next time, I think I'll save myself the bother and go with a Tamiya kit... Paint is Xtracrylix, applied by brush. Thanks for looking - more to come in due course...

Hello all, I've been on this site for some time, so I thought I'd better start posting some of my completed builds now that I'm getting the hang of Flickr. Here's a collection of Mustangs: North American Aviation P-51 Mustangs by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr First, we have two of the older Airfix Mustangs. "Big Beautiful Doll" came from the 'Duxford Fighters' gift set, and was built using the kit decals; for "Bunnie", I used spare decals from an Academy kit. These were printed by Cartograf - so, despite the horrible reputation that Academy decals have, I didn't have too many problems (not even with the yellow wing stripes). The paint on both was entirely brush painted using a mixture of Xtracrylix, Revell Aqua and Humbrol acrylic. Airfix 1:72 P-51D Mustang by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr Airfix 1:72 P-51D Mustang by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr Airfix 1:72 P-51D Mustang by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr Airfix 1:72 P-51D Mustang by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr Secondly, we have an Academy P-51B. The white wing stripes were brush painted with heavily thinned Humbrol acrylics, and I masked them off before spraying the upper surfaces with Tamiya rattlecans. The undersides were airbrushed, and the blue tail was also brush painted with Humbrol acrylics. The decals came from Model Alliance - not too bad, but some of them were slightly out of register (the fuselage roundels were replaced with spares from a Smer kit, but I couldn't find anything to replace the ones on the wing). Academy 1:72 P-51B Mustang by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr Academy 1:72 P-51B Mustang by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr Thirdly, an Academy P-51D. Decals from Model Alliance for an RCAF bird; paint from Xtracrylix, Revell Aqua and Humbrol, and was applied by brush. This is probably the least accurate of the bunch - it looks too wide around the fuselage, and it seems to sit too high compared to the others. Academy 1:72 P-51D Mustang by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr Academy 1:72 P-51D Mustang by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr Finally, we have the newest rendition of the Airfix Mustang. It was a dream to build - apart from the landing gear. The main legs were bent and difficult to remove from the sprues - and the wheels are on the wrong way, so the flats don't line up with the ground. Oh well - lesson learned for future builds. Decals are the ones that came with the kit - again, the paint came from Xtracrylix, Humbrol and Revell Aqua and was applied by brush. Airfix 1:72 P-51D Mustang by 6000KingGeorgeV, on Flickr Airfix 1:72 P-51D Mustang by [url=https://www.flickr.com/people/101836789@N08/]6000KingGeorgeV[/url], on Flickr That's all for now, folks...

Nice work, what did you use for the matt varnish?

The 'Big Lizzies'? Forget 'em! Now a reunion of all eight of Mr Collett's lovely Castles, that would be worth seeing - or possibly all three Kings ... (OK, OK - I'm a GWR fan. While I do have a fondness for Gresley Pacifics, Brunswick green and copper-capped chimneys are the way to go).

I can only apologise for the long wait - coursework got in the way of my posting intentions - so to compensate, here are some photographs of the Mustangs: Since the pictures were taken, I've done a little more work on the assorted seams and sorted out the poor-fitting flaps on the Academy kit. Time to start thinking about paint schemes...

Speaking of which...is there a decent Devastator or Helldiver out there?

Doesn't the new Revell Halifax have a suitable spare you can use? I've never tried it myself, so I could be wrong...

It reads 1974, so hopefully I can squeeze the P-47 in once the Mustangs are done. Not much done yet, but I've started painting the interiors - pictures later!

It's the "Daddy's Girl" starter kit (A50095).

Update: I've rooted through The Stash and come across a Matchbox P-47, is that also eligible?

Hi All, Well, this was a tricky choice, but I think I'll be doing a Mustang triple build - new Airfix, old Airfix, and Academy Mustangs. Obviously the old Airfix one will be the focus of this group build - photos will be up later this weekend if I can get the photo hosting sorted out...