Scott_ Posted January 31, 2016 Share Posted January 31, 2016 (edited) So, I finished off the 1/700 Prince of Wales, and thought that the new Airfix Beaufighter would make a good subject. But first, a short story... Last year, my local IPMS chapter decided to run group builds on their Facebook page, in addition to the themes and group builds run within the club. Our first was a P-47 GB - as per the Britmodeller one being run this year. So far, nothing much to see here, but... Our first meeting for this year had a "Best of British' theme. Adding to that, two of our three IPMS yearly GBs have British subjects - the Airifx new release Beaufighter and the Takom Chieftain. So of course, I come over here and....hmmm It gets better. Helicopter GB scheduled for mid-Feb? - my clubs version started in Jan. "Red Storm Rising"? not far from our Russian Jets GB that ran from October last year. So - should I worry about the Britmodeller spy in my club, or just pass them this year's calendar to make it easier for them Anyway - enough Tinfoil. Given the Beau will satisfy two group builds, it made an obvious choice. Plus I love Beaufighters - I have this, plus a Matchbox TF.X, a 1/72 Hasegawa RAAF kit and the Tamiya 1/48 Mk.VI. So far I've kicked off with some interior green for the first asemblies. Our club group build specifies that it must be OOB apart from decals, so that's what it will be. Hopefully this fuselage will fit together a little better than the new Blenheim did... Edited February 10, 2016 by Scott_ 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted January 31, 2016 Share Posted January 31, 2016 Welcome to the GB Scott. Are you going with one of the kit decal options of adding some aftermarket into the mix? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted February 1, 2016 Share Posted February 1, 2016 Big Brother is watching! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott_ Posted February 1, 2016 Author Share Posted February 1, 2016 Welcome to the GB Scott. Are you going with one of the kit decal options of adding some aftermarket into the mix? Right now I'm thinking SEAC markings from the box - I don't have any other SEAC subjects built at the moment. Plus I'll likely buy the TF.X update when Airfix releases it and do that in the gray coastal command scheme later on. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliffB Posted February 1, 2016 Share Posted February 1, 2016 It's great when themes overlap. I've had fun too this year juggling BM GB subjects with club ones Cliff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott_ Posted February 10, 2016 Author Share Posted February 10, 2016 (edited) Update: This kit has threatened to let me down several times, but in the end things just seem to work out. Not sure why this is the case, but unlike the Airfix Blenheim, this kit has gone together (mostly) smoothly. Firstly, when assembling the fuselage halves, I thought they were warped. I just couldn't push the two halves together with any force without the nose being out of alignment or the tail section springing open. This was actually due to the fact that the floor assembly is added later, and acts as a brace across the bottom. Without it, the fuselage halves are quite soft and flimsy - potentially a trap for new builders. Once the floor was in place though, the set was aligned and quite secure. That done, the kit was taking shape. Next, the wings. Again, I was concerned that the wing spars would end up pushing the wings themselves out of alignment. They did on one side, but sanding the top of the spars on that side fixed the issue and the wing root mated up pretty well. Some sanding across the top of the wing root at the junction prior to glue made things better again, to the point that a little putty will finish the job later. Overall, it wasn't too much fuss. Next comes the engines and nacelles - I'll include them in a later post soon. Edited February 10, 2016 by Scott_ 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliffB Posted February 10, 2016 Share Posted February 10, 2016 Looking good Scott . I've only made one Airfix kit with wing spars (their Lanc'), and I thought the approach worked pretty well. Cliff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott_ Posted March 5, 2016 Author Share Posted March 5, 2016 (edited) It's been a little while, but work continues. However - I've decided on a change of colour scheme, after coming across a fascinating story concerning Beaufighters used by, of all places, Israel. The short version is thus:- When the newly-formed Israeli state was threatened with attack and invasion, the urgent call went out for combat aircraft of any description to be acquired to form an air force. A Jewish former RAF pilot somehow managed to gather together five surplus BeaufightersHwoever, the British Government had placed an embargo on arms shipments to Israel, and so an alternative method of delivery had to be found. Five aircraft were purchased, repaired and gathered together at Haddenham airfield, Oxfordshire, in July 1948, under the guise of making a film about the exploits of Coastal Command Beaufighters during the second world war. However, after some minor filming as a cover, it came tiime for one of the major scenes to be recorded. The five Beaufighters started their engines, powered up and took off, never to be seen over England again. Instead of heading to Scotland (where they were meant to continue the film's production), they instead made their way south, to Israel, to be used in that country's war with Egypt. Fake films and "stolen" aircraft - I couldn't resist. Thus, I've decided to save the SEAC version for another day and build an Israeli AF Mk.X instead. Meanwhile, the kit itself has been going together quite well. Unlike the Blenheim, the engine nacelles fitted quite well. A little sanding was all that was really needed. Next, I masked up the canopies before gluing them to the fuselage, and prepared for painting Undercoat was put on tonight, once it dries the painting can begin. Edited March 5, 2016 by Scott_ 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliffB Posted March 5, 2016 Share Posted March 5, 2016 It will be nice to have another 'in foreign service' build in the GB - there aren't too many at the moment Cliff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted March 5, 2016 Share Posted March 5, 2016 After reading that short version of what sounds a very interesting exploit I can understand why you chose to do an Israeli machine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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