Eric Mc Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 Being a glutton for punishment, I have retrieved this old antique from the loft. I apparently started this at some point in the long distant past - I reckon in the early 80s. I obviously then lost heart and it languished in various lofts and garages for almost four decades. The imminent release of Airfix's new tool Wellington prompted me to try and get it finished. The box shows the year 1975 but I know the moulds actually date back to 1959 - so very early in "the story of Airfix". The parts are few and ill fitting and my Humbrol filler is going to get depleted quite rapidly I can see. The original propellers have also gone walkies but I have some Aeroclub alternatives. The original decals were still in the box but they are well beyond their "best by" date. I have some Xtradecal alternatives. The best thing about the kit is the fantastic artwork by Roy Cross - which is my favourite I reckon. The above images were taken a few weeks ago and I've made a fair bit of progress since then. 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbudde Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 (edited) I'm in here for that. I want to see how it builds up. A hard to resist plane in the seventies for me, but that dramatic Matchbox box art won in the end. So I only built the Matchbox one once. Here is another wip on bm of this old kit at the moment. I will link it, when I find it again. Anyway: Ok, found it: http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235033904-back-to-the-beginning-airfix-wellington-iii/ Cheers Edited March 27, 2018 by bbudde 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy G Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 Thanks for linking my build Benedict. It will be interesting to see what features the old girl throws at you Eric. Mine seems worse than the samples I built in the 70s, but that could be rose tinted glasses. Andy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corsaircorp Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 Oh, what a brave man ! Can I have a seat ? If you don't mind ! Sincerely. Corsaircorp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Mc Posted March 28, 2018 Author Share Posted March 28, 2018 Pull up a pew by all means. I'm reminded of the line by Bette Davis from the film "All About Eve", "Fasten your seatbelts. It’s going to be a bumpy night". Although in this case it really means "bumpy weeks". As I mentioned above, I have already been working on the model for a few weeks and here are some more progress shots. As predicted, the build has turned out to be a filler monster so I've spent quite a bit of time filling, sanding, priming - repeat ad nauseum - As can be seen, there are some prominent ejector pin marks in fairly obvious areas - so these needed filling. Main airframe assembled and primed. The fabric surface and stringers etc are done quite nicely coinsidering how old the model is. The Airfix "rivet fiend" hadn't swung into action back in 1959 so rivet detail; is minimal (as it was on the real aeroplane) 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdrianMF Posted March 28, 2018 Share Posted March 28, 2018 Looks good with the primer on Regards, Adrian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amblypygid Posted March 28, 2018 Share Posted March 28, 2018 Yes, looking very nice primed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Mc Posted March 28, 2018 Author Share Posted March 28, 2018 (edited) And some more pictures . Cockpit canopy in place and the the collector rings painted and masked off. Edited March 28, 2018 by Eric Mc 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
perdu Posted March 29, 2018 Share Posted March 29, 2018 Ah yes I remember it well And on that (rather bum) note Eric would you mind me enjoying this from the back? As you are no doubt aware I love the 'bringing these old and moribund creations back from the depths' tasks you undertake Great start too, nice one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted March 29, 2018 Share Posted March 29, 2018 So, did you paint the collector rings a nice shiny copper colour? I hope not. These would have been a darker, heat-stained steel colour. Sometimes they were painted over with a black stove enamel type of paint, to cover the hot glow from Luftwaffe nightfighters. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PietB Posted March 29, 2018 Share Posted March 29, 2018 When I was a child the Airfix Wellington was my first "large" plane to be built. Meanwhile I've got two of these in my stash - and at least one of them should be build before the new tooled one ... will follow this build highly interested Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martian Posted March 29, 2018 Share Posted March 29, 2018 This is really starting to look the part. I have a much earlier example of this kit, I wonder if the fit is any better? Martian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Mc Posted March 30, 2018 Author Share Posted March 30, 2018 13 hours ago, dogsbody said: So, did you paint the collector rings a nice shiny copper colour? I hope not. These would have been a darker, heat-stained steel colour. Sometimes they were painted over with a black stove enamel type of paint, to cover the hot glow from Luftwaffe nightfighters. Chris They are at the moment - but I don't intend to leave them that way. Part of the "weathering" will be to matt them down and apply some tone variation to them. Looking at photos (including the famous colour pictures taken by Charles Brown), it's obvious that collector rings could be a wide variety of colours and shades. They started life quite bright and shiny but once the aircraft entered service, heating from the exhaust and the effect of exposure to the elements caused them to dull down and start changing tone quite quickly. Anyway, some update shots - Airfix omitted the runners behind the side cockpit windows so I have added some using cut up Avery type labels. I've also added some preshade in an attempt to have the top colours look a bit varied. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted March 30, 2018 Share Posted March 30, 2018 Looking very nice indeed. I remember as a youngster, seeing my mum wrapping one of these up for Christmas and getting excited about opening it on the big day. Only to be disappointed as it was for my cousin. That'll teach me not to try and discover what my pressies were !!! Keep up the good work All the best Chris 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted March 30, 2018 Share Posted March 30, 2018 9 hours ago, Eric Mc said: They are at the moment - but I don't intend to leave them that way. Part of the "weathering" will be to matt them down and apply some tone variation to them. Looking at photos (including the famous colour pictures taken by Charles Brown), it's obvious that collector rings could be a wide variety of colours and shades. They started life quite bright and shiny but once the aircraft entered service, heating from the exhaust and the effect of exposure to the elements caused them to dull down and start changing tone quite quickly. Anyway, some update shots - Airfix omitted the runners behind the side cockpit windows so I have added some using cut up Avery type labels. I've also added some preshade in an attempt to have the top colours look a bit varied. Very good! I await further progress. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Mc Posted March 31, 2018 Author Share Posted March 31, 2018 Basic camouflage pattern applied. Toning down and touching up still required - 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amblypygid Posted March 31, 2018 Share Posted March 31, 2018 Camo looks great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
perdu Posted March 31, 2018 Share Posted March 31, 2018 I like it Eric but my monitor is showing it as a Light/Mid Stone and Dark Earth scheme Must get the colour balances checked Are you going to do the canopy framing with tape? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Mc Posted March 31, 2018 Author Share Posted March 31, 2018 Your monitor is correct. It is a North African based Wellington of 424 Royal Canadian Air Force. I've been working on various techniques for the canopy framing. I've ended up using painted tape and a bit of brush painting. Because the transparencies were such a poor fit, I decided early on that it was pointless masking and painting the canopies in advance - as I usually do. I reckoned that the painted framing would be damaged by the sanding and filling required. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Mc Posted April 1, 2018 Author Share Posted April 1, 2018 Further progress. Canopy framing and side window framing now painted. The colours have been toned down somewhat although there is a bit more tro be done in that area. I'm leaving it semi-gloss for the moment to aid the decal application. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adey m Posted April 2, 2018 Share Posted April 2, 2018 On 30/03/2018 at 07:40, Eric Mc said: They are at the moment - but I don't intend to leave them that way. Part of the "weathering" will be to matt them down and apply some tone variation to them. Looking at photos (including the famous colour pictures taken by Charles Brown), it's obvious that collector rings could be a wide variety of colours and shades. They started life quite bright and shiny but once the aircraft entered service, heating from the exhaust and the effect of exposure to the elements caused them to dull down and start changing tone quite quickly. Anyway, some update shots - Airfix omitted the runners behind the side cockpit windows so I have added some using cut up Avery type labels. I've also added some preshade in an attempt to have the top colours look a bit varied. That grey mottle finish should fool the German night fighters ........... very cunning cheers, adey 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adey m Posted April 2, 2018 Share Posted April 2, 2018 (edited) The instruction sheet from my late 1960s Airfix Wellington. The mouldings look to be very good. Red instrument panel anyone ? adey Edited April 2, 2018 by adey m 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Mc Posted April 2, 2018 Author Share Posted April 2, 2018 I'd mislaid the instructions from the box years ago so found a copy like yours on the internet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
perdu Posted April 2, 2018 Share Posted April 2, 2018 That canopy framing looks very nice Eric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Mc Posted April 2, 2018 Author Share Posted April 2, 2018 As long as you don't look too close. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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