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1:32 Tamiya Supermarine Spitfire Mk.IXc


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This thing of considering the sub-assemblies like littlebproject makes perfectly sense in this scale - lovely detailing going on here :worthy:

 

Plus it makes for a perfect excuse to fit in another build, as you already pointed out... :coolio: :rofl:

 

Ciao

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I did some work on the gear retract quadrant, including adding some 0.3mm diameter solder to represent the hydraulic lines. I used the resin quadrant from the Barracuda set instead of the kit part, as it has a better representation of the housing where the hydraulic lines attach. I drilled it out a bit, hoping to have a better glue joint, but the part is quite small. The solder itself is extremely malleable, you can just look at it and it will bend. Hopefully, that will help prevent me from breaking them off!

 

I used the quadrant handle from Eduard and a small piece of styrene rod, but I'm not sure I like it. Barracuda include a resin handle, which is more to scale than the kit handle, so maybe I'll use that. What colour should the hydraulic lines be during the war? Were they painted or left bare metal (bronze, copper, or brass)?

 

IMG_2616

 

And the cockpit proper is starting to go together. I'm so used to building short run kits that the closer tolerances on the Tamiya parts was a bit of a surprise. The thickness of the paint interfered with the fit on a couple of parts, and had to be removed. It's actually starting to look like a Spitfire cockpit, and that's a good thing!

 

IMG_2618

 

I suspect that the rudder actuators have cables attached to them that lead back to the rudder, but I'm thinking that's probably not necessary as the seat will hide them. Some additional detail painting is being done on the sidewalls, and will be required on the instrument panel bulkhead as well. There is plenty of room for more detailing in the cockpit, so I suspect that more wire and solder is in my future. I also decided to drill out the lightening holes on the seat support. The Eduard photoetch and a wash wasn't realistic enough.

 

I'm using colour photos of a restored Mk.IX warbird, and I hope I don't make any silly mistakes. I also have the Pilot's Notes, and several period photos, and I find myself constantly cross-referencing between them. The things I do for you guys...

 

Cheers,

Bill

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I'm pretty sure that the hydraulic lines were unpainted ( probably ) copper, and the rudder cables were in tubes until just under the seat as depicted by Tamiya. The two semi circles at the lower end of the retraction gear are guides for the chain which runs under the flat cover and would be bright metal.

HTH

John

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Very nice Bill, very nice indeed.

 

15 hours ago, Navy Bird said:

The things I do for you guys...

And I, for one, am very grateful :) 

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Can anyone tell me the configuration of Wing Commander George Keefer's Spitfire MK826 GC-K from 412 Squadron RCAF? No nose art, but he was quite an accomplished and decorated pilot. It looks to me like it has the extended carburettor intake and narrow cannon blisters, but I can't discern things like aerial fit, or whether it's an "early" or "late" Mk.IX, etc. These markings are on the same decal sheet as Keltie's.

 

The EagleCals sheet also has BS152 AE-W with nose art featuring a skull. Any configuration info on that one?

 

Cheers,

Bill

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Catching up on this one this evening. 

On 8/22/2018 at 5:45 PM, Navy Bird said:

It's actually starting to look like a Spitfire cockpit,

It certainly is that!

 

Terry

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Superb work on that cockpit Bill. I hope mine turns out half as good if I ever get to start it (once I've finished the Typhoon).

7 hours ago, Navy Bird said:

Can anyone tell me the configuration of Wing Commander George Keefer's Spitfire MK826 GC-K from 412 Squadron RCAF? No nose art, but he was quite an accomplished and decorated pilot. It looks to me like it has the extended carburettor intake and narrow cannon blisters, but I can't discern things like aerial fit, or whether it's an "early" or "late" Mk.IX, etc. These markings are on the same decal sheet as Keltie's.

 

The EagleCals sheet also has BS152 AE-W with nose art featuring a skull. Any configuration info on that one?

I've only come across the one shot so far of Keefer's MK826 which is on page 209 of Chris Thomas's 2nd TAF Vol. 2. The lighting's tricky so it's difficult to see the cannon bulge properly but it gives the impression of a narrow one to me. Can't see carb intake.

5 slot wheels (no covers). No obvious invasion stripes visible (can't see the wing undersides). No date on the photo. There is a line under the stbd wing which might be the IFF blade antenna , or it could just be something in the background.

 

Did you get Robert Bracken's Spitfire II?  It's got two shots of Lorne Cameron's BS152 (skull art) in that (Pages 34/35). Short carb intake, 5 slot wheels. Can't see bulges for cannons at the angles in the photos. 30 gal slipper tank fitted.

Can't see an IFF antenna. 

Sorry I can't find any more at the moment. 

 

Looking forward to seeing more progress shots.

Cheers Bob.

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Addition to my last post Bill.

Found another shot of Keefer's MK826 in Bracken's first 'Spitfire - the Canadians', page 107.

Looks like it was taken the same day as the other I mentioned, but from the front.

Yes to the extended carb intake, yes also to the IFF blade antenna fitted under the starboard wing and yes to invasion stripes under the wings.

Unusually, they finish short of the leading edge and have a hard demarcation line. No slipper tank fitted.

The spinner is either very dirty, or it has a light colour band going around the rear third to just forward of the blade apertures.

Camouflage on nose cowlings overlaps and extends down to below the panel line onto the bottom cowling.

Cheers Bob.

 

 

 

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1 hour ago, bobsyouruncle said:

Addition to my last post Bill.

Found another shot of Keefer's MK826 in Bracken's first 'Spitfire - the Canadians', page 107.

Looks like it was taken the same day as the other I mentioned, but from the front.

Yes to the extended carb intake, yes also to the IFF blade antenna fitted under the starboard wing and yes to invasion stripes under the wings.

Unusually, they finish short of the leading edge and have a hard demarcation line. No slipper tank fitted.

The spinner is either very dirty, or it has a light colour band going around the rear third to just forward of the blade apertures.

Camouflage on nose cowlings overlaps and extends down to below the panel line onto the bottom cowling.

Cheers Bob.

 

Thanks Bob, that's good info. I bought Bracken's "Spitfire II - The Canadians" as it has the photos of Keltie's aircraft. No photos of Keefer at all. Page 107 is RM817, a 430 Squadron photo recon bird. The book has a couple of shots of Cameron's BS152, though. I'm kinda linking that skull.

 

Keefer's aircraft sounds like a late model IXc. The Eagle Cal sheet refers to it as a IXb, uh, OK, but I thought that was just an unofficial designation concerning the engine. They show it with invasion stripes on the underside of the wing only, and they look thinner than normal. They claim this scheme is from September 1943 - I guess he was practicing for D-Day for nearly a year.    :)

 

Cheers,

Bill

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2 hours ago, Navy Bird said:

 

Keefer's aircraft sounds like a late model IXc. The Eagle Cal sheet refers to it as a IXb, uh, OK, but I thought that was just an unofficial designation concerning the engine. They show it with invasion stripes on the underside of the wing only, and they look thinner than normal. They claim this scheme is from September 1943 - I guess he was practicing for D-Day for nearly a year.    :)

Those were proto-Invasion Stripes adopted for Operation STARKEY on 9 September 1943, a dummy amphibious landing near Pas de Calais; as you note, the stripes were only on the wings. 

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13 hours ago, Navy Bird said:

Can anyone tell me the configuration of Wing Commander George Keefer's Spitfire MK826 GC-K from 412 Squadron RCAF? No nose art, but he was quite an accomplished and decorated pilot. It looks to me like it has the extended carburettor intake and narrow cannon blisters, but I can't discern things like aerial fit, or whether it's an "early" or "late" Mk.IX, etc. These markings are on the same decal sheet as Keltie's.

43512216834_cc141461d7_h.jpg2018-08-23_10-30-51 by Edward IX, on Flickr

 

Here's what I was able to find in my library. No STARKEY stripes visible, though. 

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OK, I have compressed air and oxygen bottles. Tamiya say black for the latter, and that's what I remember. The compressed air bottles, however, are described variously as aluminium, black, or grey-green. (Tamiya say "Smoke.") Were these different colours at different times, or for different Marks? My references seem to be all over the map. I always used to paint them aluminium, but what do I know?   :doh:

 

Cheers,

Bill

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17 hours ago, Procopius said:

Those were proto-Invasion Stripes adopted for Operation STARKEY on 9 September 1943, a dummy amphibious landing near Pas de Calais; as you note, the stripes were only on the wings. 

 

Nice sleuthing, and thanks for the pic. EagleCals have the stripes only under the wing, and not under the fuselage, so then might not be easy to see in that photo. In any event, that's the first photo I've seen of MK826. So GC-K were his initials, like JE-J?

 

So STARKEY was a feint then?

 

Cheers,

Bill

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16 minutes ago, Navy Bird said:

OK, I have compressed air and oxygen bottles. Tamiya say black for the latter, and that's what I remember. The compressed air bottles, however, are described variously as aluminium, black, or grey-green. (Tamiya say "Smoke.") Were these different colours at different times, or for different Marks? My references seem to be all over the map. I always used to paint them aluminium, but what do I know?   :doh:

 

Cheers,

Bill

This might be worth a read:

 

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19 minutes ago, Navy Bird said:

 

So STARKEY was a feint then?

Yep, an attempt to draw the Luftwaffe (which failed, they stayed away, though some fighters staged into different airbases just in case) and to see what worked and didn't work for the Air Plan.

 

22 minutes ago, Navy Bird said:

So GC-K were his initials, like JE-J?

 

 

Yep, I gather his middle name was Clinton.

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Thanks @Beard, that was an interesting read.

 

Edgar said that Tamiya have the placement of the oxygen bottle wrong, and that it shouldn't be mounted on the starboard sidewall under the rear glazing. Yet, the photo in the thread (that one which shows the anchor for the harness) clearly shows the bottle in that position. Is this simply another one of those mistakes from using a restored warbird as your primary reference? The photo is from the Spitfire Site, and is of a restored Mk.V which they claim is very accurate to the original. So, going on the assumption (gulp) that an early Mk.IX is not unlike a Mk.V, I'll put the oxygen tank there. That, and I don't have anything else to replace it with. (I seem to remember something about the Mk.IX having a fuel tank back there...)  :)

 

So, little things count as my mother always said. So I strive to do little....no, wait, back up. The radio channel selector is mounted on the port sidewall, just under the windscreen, as seen in this photo:

 

 

02es09_016-640x480

 

Note that the radio box is mounted on a sheet metal bracket with a slight wedge built into, so that the box angles out, presumably so the pilot can see and manipulate the controls easier, and has a better line-of-sight to the instruments behind it. Tamiya do not duplicate this bracket, but Eduard took a stab at it. Bend it up, slop on some paint, and slap it on:

 

IMG_2620

 

It would have been more realistic if they had designed the folding to match the original, but never you mind as won't be able to see it. Because the radio channel selector box covers it up.

 

IMG_2621

 

The effect is OK, as the radio is definitely angled toward the pilot. Worth it? Who knows...

 

I've been spending a lot of time working on the lower sidewalls - the detail painting and small photoetch pieces are every bit as frustrating and infuriating as in my normal scale (except there I wouldn't be doing most of this stuff!). Here is the work-in-progress for the starboard side:

 

IMG_2623

 

It's an interesting combo. Barracuda resin for the major pieces, Eduard photoetch for control faces and switches, and both for placards and labels. You can even read the placard that is over the IFF destruction buttons. It says "DANGER - If you're going down you'd best press these two buttons simultaneously before you bail out."

 

Hopefully you can see that the handle on the gear quadrant is much nicer than the one I scratchbuilt. The solder used for the hydraulic lines were painted with Mr. Metal Color Brass. Hard to tell from this angle, but the lines have already been bent around the instrument panel bulkhead via test fitting with the cockpit sub-assembly. The solder is really soft and bends very easily. Don't bump it. For God's sake don't try and buff it. And there actually is a windscreen de-icing cock made from photoetch, but don't look at it. It will zingerate at first glance.

 

The port sidewall is also underway, but if I posted a picture now you would see all my mistakes. Need to cover those up fix them first.

 

I used some Gunze H47 Red Brown to represent the base shade on the iconic bakelite plastic thermosetting phenol formaldehyde resin tufnol red brown seat. I plan on some post-shading with a lighter version of this colour to add some interest. The Barracuda seat is one piece resin, and includes the brackets and stand-offs that mount it to the bulkhead. Some interesting masking ahead.

 

Tamiya don't include the IFF Remote Contactor Box, but Barracuda include it in one of their resin sets. They also provide a junction box and dimmer, which I think are part of the Mark II reflector sight. I haven't even begun researching gun sights yet.

 

If this was a 1:72 scale kit, I'd be done by now. Jeez.

 

Cheers,

Bill

 

PS. The Yahu instrument panel arrived. It's easily the nicest of the aftermarket panels so far, but I don't have the replacement Eduard LooK unit yet. So we'll see. For sure, Yahu has very legible printing on the dials.

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3 minutes ago, Procopius said:

I think Keefer's Spitfire should have the standard gunsight, rather than the later GGS.

 

I'm sure you're right, which is why I've delayed adding those resin components. I'll need to commit to a marking scheme very soon. I'm liking Keefer's because of his history. Barracuda says the GGS was called the "Acemaker II." True fact or alternate universe?

 

Cheers,

Bill

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2 hours ago, Navy Bird said:

Barracuda says the GGS was called the "Acemaker II." True fact or alternate universe?

My understanding is that this was the nickname given to the K-14 (the US-produced version of the same sight) within the 8th Air Force. 

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3 hours ago, Navy Bird said:

Barracuda says the GGS was called the "Acemaker II." True fact or alternate universe?

 

1 hour ago, Procopius said:

My understanding is that this was the nickname given to the K-14 (the US-produced version of the same sight) within the 8th Air Force. 

 

Maybe they were both called that by the companies that produced them - if you're after that big contract from the MoD or the Department of Defence or whoever, best not to introduce your new gunsight by saying "We call it 'squinty'!" or "Allow me to present, the Mr Magoo II!" :D 

 

Nice work so far Bill, that cockpit is going to be a little jewel B)

 

Cheers,

 

Stew

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1 minute ago, Stew Dapple said:

 

 

Maybe they were both called that by the companies that produced them - if you're after that big contract from the MoD or the Department of Defence or whoever, best not to introduce your new gunsight by saying "We call it 'squinty'!" or "Allow me to present, the Mr Magoo II!" :D 

"The boys down at the lab have cooked up this little beauty: the MissMaster."

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