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yet another spitfire - 1/24 (finished)


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After building two mkVs I thought I would do something different, but one of the kids bought me the 1/24 Airfix Mk1 for xmas, so after two weeks of tinkering here is what I have on the desk. I'd be interested in tips on this one - when it's finished it'll be hanging from the ceiling with wheels up, I notice they appear to be retractable, but I'm dubious about the alignment. Oh, and this is the first time I've tried posting from Flickr...

23899794843_56547cb7d1_c.jpg1/24 airfix spitfire Mk1 by Andy Moore, on Flickr

Edited by andymoore
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It was a long time ago but I seem to remember that the undercarriage fits quite well in the wheel wells, just make sure you attach the covers at the end when the wheels are retracted so you get a good alignment with the openings.

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A little more progress - a lot of this is dry fitted at the moment, but it's getting there. I have no idea what those plates are at the front end of the engine mount & I guess they should be black. So far everything fits & the other side matches up quite nicely.

24631640925_140b3e0a89_c.jpg1/24 airfix Spitfire Mk1 by Andy Moore, on Flickr

24631641145_8090b3b777_c.jpgWP_20160126_19_45_34_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

Edited by andymoore
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I managed to find a few hours to spend on this today & managed to get the fuselage closed up - I glued the front section together last night & then the remainder this morning.

24596572102_dbd70769d8_z.jpgWP_20160130_20_19_56_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

so onto the wings....

This picture doesn't show it to well, but the alignment on the port undercarriage is poor - it will catch on the underside of the wing. When it's finished this will be hanging from the ceiling wheels up, so i'll fit the fairing once the wheels are retracted & not attempt to align it with the leg.

24346688489_51509e2784_z.jpgWP_20160130_20_15_46_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

It does actually look like it would sit quite nicely, but I don't have room for this to sit anywhere, particularly as there is a 1/24 hurricane under the desk also waiting to be built.

24087514573_a5c6639874_z.jpgWP_20160130_20_14_52_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

So the target for the forthcoming week is to get the wings completed & fitted & then the whole thing filled/sanded etc ready for painting.

Edited by andymoore
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I believe you need to put your own additional spar in the wings or they sag, think the engine cowls will be an issue and the undercarriage is at the wrong angle, others will be better informed than me though

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Engine cowls are an issue but mine never sagged be prepared for a fair amount of filling around the gull wing section at the back. Looking nice BTW

I'm toying with the idea of using some wire (taken from Faller car system) & miniature magnets to keep the cowlings in place.

I have a heap of milliput ready to go - I'm also wondering how a narrow strip of tin foil would look over the top of any gap. By the way, I have given the whole thing a coat of white Citadel primer, which explains why it's white & not grey.

Edited by andymoore
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well I went ahead & fitted the wings last night. As well as leaving the plane upside down, I also put tape on to attempt to pull the wingtips up & towards each other...

/24431501869_11e581716e_z.jpgWP_20160203_07_39_38_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

As soon as I got home from work this evening I went & had a look to see how it had fared. Alas the wings still came out a little saggy. Aside from that, the fit of the wings was surprisingly good & I won't need much filler - just a bit at the rear....

24799179005_cc3bb9a539_z.jpgWP_20160203_07_41_26_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

24172291253_4906ebaba9_z.jpgWP_20160203_18_48_57_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

24431499189_e3f1636b32_z.jpgWP_20160203_18_50_13_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

it is a lot bigger than what I usually build !!!

24799176175_82a77e549c_z.jpgWP_20160203_18_52_03_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

Edited by andymoore
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  • 2 weeks later...

I managed to get a fair bit done over the last week - it's when you get to this stage & the tape starts to run out at a great rate of knots that you come to appreciate just how big this thing is. I'm pleased with the undercoat I used - I the only flaking I can see is a little patch on the underside where I rubbed the body down & didn't re-apply the undercoat.

Anyway here are a few pics showing that she's finally starting to look like a Spitfire...

24775870740_7f6df7cdf3_z.jpgWP_20160214_17_35_56_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

25071477015_f12ca62100_z.jpgWP_20160216_18_30_29_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

24953351072_0208da465a_z.jpgWP_20160216_18_46_19_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

Edited by andymoore
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  • 1 month later...

It's been a while since I did any work on this - I lost interest when the decals started to disintegrate. The big roundel on the port wing broke up around the gun access cover & the roundel on the port side of the fuselage simply broke up - it was crunchy as I applied it. Today I decided to revisit it & had a theory that maybe the water I used to remove the decals was too cold - using warm water has certainly improved things. But I'm left with this disaster on the fuselage...

25938151825_e57e4e4403_z.jpgWP_20160318_17_22_51_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

Only one thing for it - tidy it up as far as possible & then go to town giving her that beaten up look.

After three hours of carefully applying more decals, gently dabbing with cellulose thinners, applying sepia wash & tamiya weathering powder she's starting to come together. She will eventually hang from the ceiling wheels-up, but it's useful to have them in the down position at the moment.

Still plenty of work to do, but I don't think it's a complete disaster yet.

25305439884_165a207046_z.jpgWP_20160320_17_18_21_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

25912229246_3af4812f8a_z.jpgWP_20160320_17_20_14_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

25843189771_d65482bb97_z.jpgWP_20160320_17_19_57_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

25938150315_d8bf338ecb_z.jpgWP_20160320_17_18_06_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

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Re. the plates at the front of the engine bearers (post 5) they look like the lead weights usd on early aircraft to cater for the three types of airscrew available: Watts, de Haviland or Rotol. The wooden Watts was lightest and needed most ballast to keep the CG somewhere near its rightful place. IIRC the Rotol was heaviest and needed least ballast, but still required some. With cowling s on not many people are going to know, and we won't tell ;-).

How old's your kit? This could account for your woes with the decals. You could try contacting Airfix via their website and asking for a replacement set, but be prepared for a bit of a wait; their customer service seems to be going through a rough patch at present. A member of this forum known to me has been waiting since last autumn for one part for his Whitley.

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stever - thanks for the info on the weights, it makes sense, as I can see no other function or something in that area of the engine bay. The kit was bought for me at xmas, so it isn't that old. I must say that since switching to warm water, I'm not having the same decal problem - with cold tap water, they were actually crunching & shattering. Thankfully I've never needed any replacement parts for my Whitley....

Anyway, I've never given a model a proper weathering - so this one is now going to get a damned good pummelling.

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aggghhh - I didn't realise !!!!! So there's another lesson learnt.

No wonder it was so difficult to fit the windscreen.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I must admit, I'll be glad to see the back of this one, A little progress today - more decals fitted, a tiny bit more 'weathering' & then I sprayed the top with humbrol acrylic matt cote before finally removing the masking from the canopy. The matt cote was mostly excellent - except that a couple of the decals decided to dissolve, these were the D on the port side & the large roundel on the starboard wing. So more weathering to cover it up. I'm sure that the mechanics looking after these birds never let them get in this state & It's hardly surprising the pilot looks so worried - his aircraft is covered in muck & his gunsight has been fitted the wrong way round !!!

Oh I've glued the starboard & top engine covers on as I simply can't get them to stay in place.

26150974421_6517df3c4a_z.jpgWP_20160403_21_02_13_Pro_LI by Andy Moore, on Flickr

26150978291_ec4cc4daa8_z.jpgWP_20160403_21_00_46_Pro_LI by Andy Moore, on Flickr

26124826162_cd41299cba_z.jpgWP_20160403_21_00_05_Pro_LI by Andy Moore, on Flickr

Edited by andymoore
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  • 1 month later...

Well it's finally finished & hanging up in the 'office'. I did put the rear view mirror somewhere safe, and just as soon as I fathom out where that place is I'll fit it.

26804167896_31dcc8b157_z.jpgWP_20160505_18_38_56_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

maybe I need to start arranging them by scale....

26838338585_caca3b01a5_z.jpgWP_20160505_18_41_54_Pro by Andy Moore, on Flickr

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Where's that build been hiding Andy? Can't believe I missed it. It's a good job you have done there; very battle hardened. Ill use your thread to help me with mine if you dont mind.

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