1/48 Spitfire Mk 1 (Watts prop) 19 Squadron 1939 +FINISHED+

[JMChladek]

Well, I've wanted an excuse to build one of my two 1/48 Airfix Spits with the two blade Watts props, so this sounds like as good an opportunity as any. I'll be using Airfix kit #05115 (silver box) with the Illiad Decals Pre-war Spitfires decals to do the bird up as WZ-C as seen at Duxford in May, 1939. Although I may change my mind and do it as K9795 instead possibly. But since both birds build exactly the same with the small canopy and two bladed prop, I don't necessarily have to choose until I get to the paint stage.

Edited December 7, 2012 by JMChladek

[Doug Rogers]

Nice one JM, those early Spits had a lovely look to them didn't they.

[CliffB]

those early Spits had a lovely look to them didn't they.

Totally agree - there is something particularly evocative about a two-bladed prop

Good choice!

Cliff

[dadgaddad]

I'll be watching this one with interest, my next project will be an early Mk I spitfire. Where did you get the decals from? I have found them in 1/72 easily enough but 1/48 is proving to be harder.

[JMChladek]

The sheet I am using is Illiad Designs 48003, Pre War Spitfires. I see it is out of stock at Hannants and Squadron, but doing a Google search may net a source for it. I've seen it pop up on eBay USA from time to time for relatively cheap prices, so it may do the same on eBay UK as well.

Anyway, here is the manditory kit and references shot:

The "Spitfire, Flying Legends" book has some nice images of the pre-war Spits at the beginning of it and I managed to find this nice image which provided the inspiration for my specific build:

The camo pattern on the nose of WZ-C is a little weird and I don't entirely know if I'll try to replicate that exactly. But, I do want to add the points to the "C" marking since they look a little more distinctive. Apparently this plane also had nice offset coloring for the ailerons on the bottom. So the black wing had a white aileron and the white wing had a black one. If I can do it right, it should look smashing.

Looks like the first thing I'll be doing is deleting the armor from the cockpit's headrest, which will require a little surgery. I haven't decided if I'll do it canopy open or closed though. If I do it open, I'll need to use a Falcon vac pit piece for the sliding part of the canopy.

[JMChladek]

Well, it's been a slow start as I've been gathering information about the pre-war Spits. The main hangup was the cockpit color as there has been some discussion and debate as to what color was used on the pre-war Spitfires before things standardized on the RAF gray green interior shade. Since I don't have easy access to Humbrol colors in the States (and I don't feel like waiting for a paint order to arrive), I went ahead and mixed up a color consisting of 2/3rds Tamiya XF-21 Sky with 1/3rd (almost) Tamiya X-28 Park Green until I got a shade I liked. These images probably make the color look a bit closer to "Sky" on your monitors, but to my eye on the model it looks like it could be at least close enough to the elusive "apple green" shade I've only heard about, but never was able to find a firm picture of.

Same color with a flash

I'm checking to see if I might need to do the areas behind the pilot seat bulkhead in silver or aluminum since I'm seeing hints that it might be the case. But once that is done, I can move on with the next bit of work, modifying the seat bulkhead and seat mounts to get rid of the Mk IX armor plate mounts.

[dadgaddad]

There is a Mk I spitfire at the RAF museum Cosford which is just down the road from me. Although it is a bit later than yours, the area behind the bulkhead is definately silver/aluminium. Not saying they all were, mind you but it is something to consider.

[JMChladek]

Thanks. I came to the same conclusion not long after I posted those images yesterday as I got confirmation of it. I shot some images of the Cosford Spit in 2003 when I was over for Telford and thought it looked aluminium, but didn't confirm it for sure until I saw some images of the open cockpit and ones from another early Mk I undergoing restoration. I wanted to make sure. I've made the appropriate color alterations to the pit now and I'll show images of that here pretty soon when I am further along with my work.

In the meantime, I spent the past few hours working on the rear seat bulkhead part.

When Airfix tooled up the Mk I kit, they utilized a few parts trees tooled up for the Mk IX/XVI kit (and many of these pieces are based on the old Mk Vb kit, being almost direct copies). As a result, the rear cockpit bulkhead section has armor plate around the head rest and another armor plate behind the seat. Both items have to be removed for a proper early Mk I (that armor I think is okay for a Mk II, depending on when the alteration was made fleet-wide). I could have gone with a resin pit I suppose, but I prefer to work with original kit plastic as much as possible. So, consulting photos, diagrams and images of early Mk I pits, this is what I came up with:

The shape of the sides of the bulkhead were a little off, so I extended them with plasticard and filed them to shape with some various needle files. I also had to alter the contour of the center part of the arch opening (the hole after the plate was removed flared up a little too high). The head rest was sawed off flush and reglued back on after the rest of the modifications were complete. Once that was done, the lightening holes were drilled in with a pin vise. For the seat itself, I just cut down the armor plate so it can't be seen around the seat once glued into the pit (I'll show that once the pit is finished).

I suppose if I had used Tamiya's Mk I kit, I could have just built that cockpit stock. But I like having to flex my part manipulation skills with the Airfix kit and I'm happy with the results thus far. I may try some similar alterations to the instrument panel to make it look more Mk I based, even though the Mk IX panel in the kit is at least close. A new ring and bead gunsight will also need to be scratchbuilt or scavenged from some other source (and I think I have one, I'll keep you posted if it works).

[JMChladek]

Okay, I managed to get some work done in the cockpit over the past few days. Before work got going in earnest, I reevaluated my cockpit color and redid it in Tamiya XF-21 Sky. If you've been following the WW2 threads, Tamiya Sky is apparently too dark and green for RAF aircraft bottoms, but it looks like it is a decent match for early Supermarine cockpit green. I liked the color results after I resprayed my parts and an off the shelf match makes things so much easier in some regards.

The next challenge after deleting the armor from the back of the pit was making a new ring and bead gunsight (the reflector sights didn't come until a little later) and try to do a proper representation of a Sutton harness. For my harness, I had some leftover photoetch belts from an old True Details set at my disposal, but the shoulder straps were too short for a Spitfire pit, so I extended them with some Aizu 1.5 mm wide tape. The results aren't 100% perfect, but they will do fine I think. I just need to touchup the paint a little more:

Moving onto the gunsight, my first step to making one was to bob the reflector box off of the kit's sight stem and scratch some new sidewalls with some sheet styrene (very tedious to shape styrene that small with a file, but I did it). As for the ring itself, it came from a 1/48 Monogram P-40 kit. I just cut three parts of the crosshair out of the ring. Not a bad representation for a ham fisted Yank I would say (one who is too cheap to go resin or photoetch for the sight).

The instrument panel was decalled with some various gauges found in a set of Pro Modeler (Revell made) cockpit panels for USAAF and British aircraft). Airfix put some decent relief on the gauges, but I had to use the decals since there are no needles or relief inside the round gauges. The wprk was tedious, but worth it. My test fit of the gunsight also shows that it is apparently going to work just fine.

I've now got the pit more or less done as my last task this evening was to cut the escape door off to add the open one. I was successful in cutting a flat sliding portion of a canopy from a Falcon vaccuform set, so doing an open canopy with this bird is now possible. The cockpit isn't quite done as I still need to add the bracing in the back for the Sutton harness attachment and tweak a few things in spots. But given that the cockpit is probably one of the most time consuming steps of Spitfire models (especially pre-war ones with the need for a new gunsight and armor plate removal), I am making good progress. Another thing of note is the spade grip also needed minor alteration to make the firing button look round since it is a better representation of a cannon armed Spit V or IX as opposed to a .303 armed Mk 1.

I also need to add a light wash in spots, but overall I like where this project is going. I might be ready to finish the pit completely in another 24 hours.

Edited September 18, 2012 by JMChladek

[Troy Smith]

neat work JM

You might find some useful info on the Airfix Spitfire in the posting I made here

http://www.britmodel...9

[Though if you do modify the nose the 2 blader probably won't fit...]

In particular check the Prime Portal link - http://www.primeport...ndex.php?Page=1

from Etienne's flickr stream - http://www.flickr.co...157605269786717

colour pre-war spitfires...

this one is not pre-war 19 sq in flight

http://farm5.staticf...44ab0dd13_b.jpg

there are some pre-war Hurricanes in the photostream

http://www.flickr.co...157605269786717

http://www.flickr.co...157605269786717

http://www.flickr.co...157605269786717

Battle w Gladiator in background

http://www.flickr.co...157605269786717

Lysanders

http://www.flickr.co...157605269786717

HTH

T

[JMChladek]

Thanks Troy. I likely will not do anything with the downthrust, unless I really get bothered by it at that stage. The Watts prop really messes with the nose of the Spitfire anyway relative to the lines of the later birds with the DeHavilland and Rotol props. I'm also aware of the thick trailing edge issues as well and have a strategy for what I can try when I get to those assemblies. The flash suppressors on some of the guns protruding outside of the firing ports on the wings is something it looks like I will need to likely address though when the time comes.

In any event, the work continues...

[sunshine coast]

Nice job so far ........the build and research are coming on well.....

Regards Trevor ....

[JMChladek]

Minor bump. I've got some resin Browning .303s on the way with the conical flash suppressors since it looks as though the outermost Spit wing guns had them (the inner ones too, although they can't be seen) until the decision was made to delete them. So I am going maybe a little more slowly on the wing assembly until they arrive and I figure out how best to attach them and when (during construction, or can I drop them in after paint). In the meantime though, the cockpit internals are essentially done as the last step was to add the front brace of that triangular Sutton harness mounting bracket just behind the rear perispex area since the model looked kind of naked without it (and my combination etch/tape seatbelts were just floating in space back there).

I'll get some pictures shot of the work, but my primary computer apparently crapped its motherboard on Friday (hopefully the hard drives are fine). So I am having to use my laptop for the time being until my new system is up and running.

[JMChladek]

Here are a couple more images of my cockpit work. I drilled out some holes in the aft most lofting section of the cockpit. I'm not sure if these holes will be all that visible once the rear clear piece is added (since it will be a thick kit part), but it is the thought that counts. I also added the front frame of that triangular Sutton harness attachment frame at the base of the opening, just underneath my combination photoetch/tape seatbelts. Where the belts overlap at the "Y" point is probably a little too far back, but I think it will work fine for this model.

I also had to add a thin strip of styrene to the bottom of the side door opening since once I removed all the molded in shut door detailing, it looked like the open door would sit too low. The cockpit is essentially done now except for the canopy work and some minor touchups. But I am focusing on the wings, now that I received my Browning gun barrels and flash suppressors in the mail a couple days ago. So I'll be concentrating on wing work this weekend.

Edited September 28, 2012 by JMChladek

[kpc7676]

Nice job so far.

[CliffB]

Coming along very nicely

Cliff

[Killingholme]

The camo pattern on the nose of WZ-C is a little weird and I don't entirely know if I'll try to replicate that exactly.

Looks more like a stain running along a panel line to me? Only problem with it being a fuel stain would be it would have to ran uphill along the horizontal panel line!

Will

[JMChladek]

Looks more like a stain running along a panel line to me? Only problem with it being a fuel stain would be it would have to ran uphill along the horizontal panel line!

Will

Good point. I'll probably just paint the camo pattern as normal and not worry about this little bit (or I'll slightly darken some brown ever so slightly to that specific area rather than doing green there).

I got the wings and tailplanes on the model today. Pictures coming soon!

[JMChladek]

Okay, things are progressing somewhat slowly, but they are progressing and there is light at the end of the tunnel. The model has a layer of primer on it now and I am in the process of fixing some of the minor flaws that it highlighted. Before I got to that stage though, I decided the thick rear stabilizers with very little definition for the elevator control splits bothered me too much. So I decided to do a little "plastic surgery" as it were to correct that. I popped the stabs off (one of them was sitting a hair too high anyway) and sawed off the elevators with a razor saw. I used the Mk XII Spit tailplane parts as a guide for my corrections.

After a few hours (I don't like rushing an alteration like this) of shaping both the stabs and the elevators with sanding sticks and needle files, this is what I ended up with:

Not bad for my first attempt at drooping control surfaces on a kit where they weren't originally designed to be drooped. And no, I did NOT drop the flaps (gluing them in the up position caused a few minor headaches though). By comparison, the Mk XII Spitfire looks like a much better kit in many ways, so I may try doing a nose graft on one of those next time I want to do a Mk I through V series Spitfire (after I've built one out of the box at least). Enjoy!

[AndyC]

Fantastic, detailed work and research JMC

[JMChladek]

I am edging a little closer. I had to do some work to the rudder area before taking a stab at doing a rudder guard for the tail. I got the work done tonight, although I might try a second pass at a rudder guard to see if I can get its shape ever so slightly better. Then it is down to the old style pitot tube, then on to one more layer of primer, and finally painting (and my first attempt at salt masking as I try to represent a worn wing walk area).

Anyway, here is the bird with primer to help check for flaws:

And here is my first attempt at the rudder guard:

It looks okay, but I think I can do better. Think I'll work on the pitot first while I mull this over.

Edited October 25, 2012 by JMChladek

[CliffB]

That rudder guard is looking pretty good - what did you use to form it?

Cliff

[dadgaddad]

NIce work, it's coming along well. What are your plans for the pitot tube?

[JMChladek]

Well, Edgar sent me a great article written by Ted Hooton in the early 1980s detailing the differences with the early Spits. The pitots on these early planes were a double decker stacked configuration inside of a teardrop shaped housing and the article showcased its shape a little better in a drawing than photos alone could (same goes for the rudder guard). So, now that I have a good sense of what it looks like, I am going to have a go at converting one to this style (using a piece from a trashed Spit kit so the original pitot can still serve as a backup).

As for the guard, I used some .025 diameter styrene rod and bent it into shape. It was a bit tricky as I had to brush some liquid glue on it to help make it bend a little easier. I drilled three holes in the tail with a pin vise to mount the guard. I may have a go with trying to make a better shaped one out of music wire since it should hold its shape a little better (the guard to my eye needs to be slightly wider). If I succeed, I'll pull off the old one and mount the new one.

Even when I get the new pitot done, I won't add it until after the main paintwork is done so I don't risk knocking it off until I have fitted the undercarriage.

[dadgaddad]