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Given that Airfix released the Spitfire MkXII and the Seafire MK XVII kits in 1/48 about 9 years ago, I think, I can assume by now everyone knows that one can kit bash them together to get a Seafire Mk XV? And this was before I knew of Special Hobby's Mk XV - which makes the effort of kit bashing the Airfix kits a bit pointless anyway. So not long after the Mk XVII release, that was my plan. But it all went wrong. My first mistake was to cut the fuselage to make use of the moulded open hood and rear section 'all in one' part (I won't do that again - vac-form or spares box will be used next time to get an open hood). My second mistake was to damage the part before I used it. And my third mistake was the damage the replacement part!! Doh! 😭 It ended up on the shelf of doom for many years. But, with lockdown time on my hands I've got it sorted - only to add to the list of screw-ups. The main remaining issue, after polishing out my second canopy, was to paint the part such that the Dark Slate Grey colour showed through the open hood section as part of the rear airframe. All good. But... having masked the hood, I then managed to get the Extra Dark Sea Grey and Dark Slate Grey around the wrong way on the camo pattern - causing a miss match of colour to that shown under the hood!! And I didn't spot this until well after several more coats of varnish and decals!! Double-doh!!! 💩 Anyway, here it is, complete with too much chipping (again!)... I didn't want to waste the Mk XVII kit so I used a resin moulding process to clone some of the parts. (Here's a link to the Mk XVII kit I managed to finish some years ago!!) Additional items used in this build: Cloned parts from the Airfix Seafire Mk XVII kit: Large rudder Large oil cooler/radiator tub Carburettor intake Use of the alternative tail hook (extended) from the Mk XVII kit. Uses the folded main wings and supports from the Mk XVII kit. Modifications needed: Clipped wheel covers. Fuselage strengthening strips – longerons Lifting/hoist points Catapult hooks Re-shaped elevator horn balances to later double-cranked style Scratch-built tail wheel guard Enhancements: Resin exhausts from Quick Boost. Resin block tread wheels from Eduard. Brass cannon barrels. Decals from Model Alliance. And, finally, in my haste to finish it up I forgot to add the radio aerial and undercarriage indicators... Calling it done, and moving on! If you're interested, here's a link to my Special Hobby Seafire Mk XV - 13-9/T (serial number unknown) of 806 squadron, Fleet Air Arm based at Trincomalee in 1945.

Hi all, and I'm pleased to say that I've finally finished a model - the 1/72 Seafire XV from the Sword kit. I made heavy weather of it unfortunately (well over two years from start to finish), and ran into a last-minute snag by applying Alclad Clear Cote as a near-final varnish, which then took four months to dry. Yesterday I reckoned it was dry enough to put something over the top, in this case Humbrol 135 satin enamel. It could do with being a bit more glossy to be honest, but I'm calling this one done now. I built the kit pretty much out of the box, although these Sword kits need a bit of fettling to get certain things to fit (e.g. canopy). After a false start on the paint-job, I settled on something a bit different, as I've always liked the look of SW847 in its (I think) black over sky with silver spinner. The real aircraft had been modified a bit, with guns, gunsight, catapult hooks and arrestor-wire guard for the tailwheel removed - all of which made this modeller's life easier. The whole sorry process is recorded in the WIP: https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234998719-172-seafire-xv/. Any road up, here are some pics taken this afternoon: And here she is in the cabinet with her Mark III sister, also from the Sword kit but was somehow much easier to put together: Here are a couple of photos of the original: Thanks for looking, and comments very welcome as ever. In the meantime I'm not sure I can face another session with the Sword Mark XIV Spit. And conversion of a Sword Seafire XV to a Mark XII can definitely wait a while. Oh the horror...! Justin

Welcome to my first WIP on the forum. I'm a student modeller who's been modelling for much of my life but haven't done much forum posting. My general modelling philosophy is 'cheap and cheerful'. Although I think it's fun to make a model as accurate as possible, I can leave super detailing to those who can afford the expensive kits and PE sets whilst I chug along with whatever cheap plastic is available. This subject is a kit I picked up for just £8 recently in Halifax Modellers World. With so many of the model shops of my childhood now closed it was lovely to find such a great shop open and busy on my visit to the city. The Hobbycraft kit was cheap for a reason. The recessed panel lines and overall fit seem OK, but throughout, detail is a little soft. The decals are completely unusable; they're completely out of register and are extremely limited anyway. No stencils or details; just the basic insignia. So I've tracked down a scheme which I'll be able to reproduce without purchasing a decal sheet (remember my 'cheap' modelling philosophy - I'd rather spend the money on more kits!). I've turned up this rather handsome aircraft: These plans come from the rather more expensive Special Hobby kit of the same aircraft. I think it is rather handsome, and I have a soft spot for FAA subjects, having grown up visiting Yeovilton's Fleet Air Arm museum and its fantastic model show (RIP ). To recreate this scheme, I'm going to use a new tool for me - a circle cutter - to create masks to paint those roundels. I've got some appropriate numbers left on a decal sheet. I might also have a go at masking some stencil detailing, such as the black lines on the wings. So this whole project could go wrong quickly! Unfortunately, I actually sold a perfect set of decals for this aircraft on ebay 6 months ago, but I got almost enough to cover the costs of the kit for them, so hey ho. I'll post some pictures of the kit, and interior work so far, a little later in the day.

Hi all, You might enjoy this Pathe video. Interesting old and new roundel on a Firefly (that was a Hellcat a second before) as it slides across the deck. bob p.s. Bonus 10 minutes 1945, Seafires folding wing, Firefly, etc.