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1/24 Spitfire Vb- 20th July- FINISHED 25/07


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8 minutes ago, BIG X said:

Glad the eligibility got sorted - I am looking forward to this one - BIGTIME :popcorn:

Hope you aren't disappointed. 

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1 hour ago, Antb said:

Hope you aren't disappointed. 

Remembering what you did with the 110 i doubt it ;)

 

(got the one that was for sale on here btw 👍)

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28 minutes ago, Lawzer said:

Remembering what you did with the 110 i doubt it ;)

 

(got the one that was for sale on here btw 👍)

Thanks mate that's very good of you. That's great news! Glad you got it mate. 

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Morning guys, 

 

unfortunately i I didn't get chance to do any modelling or even crack open the box yesterday so not much to report. However this morning with SWMBO and the kids still asleep I managed to get the box lid off, cut the plastic bag open and lay out the sprues for the first time. 

 

I have even managed to glue 4 pieces of engine together before chaos ensued and everyone decided to get up. Typical. 

 

Id like to make a disclaimer before I start posting progress of my build.  I'm not a rivet counter and don't concern myself with being 100% accurate in my builds. I don't have the time, or patience for this, and I just enjoy sticking bits of plastic together painting them up to make them look like a representation of what the aircraft is. 

If there are things that aren't historically accurate etc please point them out but don't be offended if I don't correct them or take your advice on board, I'm not being rude my pleasure is with getting stuff built up to a decent standard with the time and busy family/work life. 

 

I dont have brillaint modelling skills skills so some stuff may be above me but I'm going to Give some detailing and a bit of scratch a bash. So let's see how we get on! 

 

Anyway enough of my ramblings here are are some images. 

 

First off off the sprues. My word. Just look at the flash. This is clearly an ancient moulding (apologies if you were born before 1970 😂 I don't mean you're ancient) 

 

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i haven't photographed the wing sections yet but they're just as bad as the rest of the kit with flash. 

 

The other day day there was some discussion in respect of the kit being re tooled in 2005 and @BIG X kindly confirmed the additional sprues. Well, here they are. The moulding is so much better but still not brilliant. The plastic is completely different with them too. 

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and finally. I'm not using the pilot but thought I'd put him together just to see how he fits. Is this a sign of things to come?....

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enjoy the sunshine if you have it. 

 

Take care 🐜

 

 

 

 

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Nice model intro. Having been through the busy work/kids life,  I’m fully aware of what your going through. It’s tough but family comes first so enjoy whatever modelling time you can scourge. To be honest, it’s makes this GB build even more remarkable. My two sporn are in their teenage years now and although they still require a bit of TLC can occupy themselves all day long - it’s the wife that now wants all the attention!! 

I must say, that miniaturised James May pilot look-alike seems to have crocodile jaws for legs!! That’s some serious mould warping and hopefully its just limited to this worthless piece of plastic.

 

Cheers and good luck. You might have to live on three hours sleep a day for the next three months to get this beast done. 

 

Dave. 

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The new sprues look good - steady as you go and don't forget the mantra 'we are here to have fun' :smile:

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Good to see all the bits laid out again.

 

It's a BIG model and quite impressive once it's all put together. Take your time fitting all the components and it will progress smoothly. If you only add one thing of your own to the model do the wheel wells. Its worth doing and not that hard. Mind you if you want to have the undercarriage move up and down then don't bother 😁.

 

Looking forward to seeing your progress.

 

Greg

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I never built the 1/24 Spitfire as a kid, one Christmas my younger brother got one and I got the Hurricane and it has set the tone since then, I'm definitely more of a Hurricane man and he's a Spitfire man, But seeing the Airfix kit laid out like that certainly makes me feel like getting one to go alongside the recently acquired Hurricane.

Hence I'm looking forward to seeing how it goes together. A great choice and good luck with the build.

Cheers, M.

 

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8 hours ago, Rabbit Leader said:

Nice model intro. Having been through the busy work/kids life,  I’m fully aware of what your going through. It’s tough but family comes first so enjoy whatever modelling time you can scourge. To be honest, it’s makes this GB build even more remarkable. My two sworn are in their teenage years now and although they still require a bit of TLC, can occupy themselves all day long - it’s the wife that now wants all the attention!! 

 

I must say, that miniaturised James May pilot look-alike seems to have crocodile jaws for legs!! That’s some serious mould warping and hopefully its just limited to this worthless piece of plastic.

 

Cheers and good luck. You might have to live on three hours sleep a day for the next three months to get this beast done. 

 

Dave. 

Thanks for th comments Dave. You're not kidding about the legs, glad I'm not using him but I'm sure some clamping would sort him out. 

 

Wife and kids do take up loads of time but I wouldn't change it for the world. 

 

8 hours ago, BIG X said:

The new sprues look good - steady as you go and don't forget the mantra 'we are here to have fun' :smile:

Noted. Cheers matey. 

 

7 hours ago, GREG DESTEC said:

Good to see all the bits laid out again.

 

It's a BIG model and quite impressive once it's all put together. Take your time fitting all the components and it will progress smoothly. If you only add one thing of your own to the model do the wheel wells. Its worth doing and not that hard. Mind you if you want to have the undercarriage move up and down then don't bother 😁.

 

Looking forward to seeing your progress.

 

Greg

Funny you should mention the wheel wells. They have been in the plan for this build right from the start. I've got some plastic strips that I think should look right for the job once done. 

 

6 hours ago, MarkSH said:

I never built the 1/24 Spitfire as a kid, one Christmas my younger brother got one and I got the Hurricane and it has set the tone since then, I'm definitely more of a Hurricane man and he's a Spitfire man, But seeing the Airfix kit laid out like that certainly makes me feel like getting one to go alongside the recently acquired Hurricane.

Hence I'm looking forward to seeing how it goes together. A great choice and good luck with the build.

Cheers, M.

 

Thanks M. If you're thinking of getting it, don't. 🤣

 

Seriously though if you enjoy a challenge it's certainly one to keep you entertained. Although let me come back to you in a few months time when it's done. Or binned. And I'll let you know if it was entertaining or not. Ha ha. 

 

Ive been plodding away for an hour or so today so should have some progress to share shortly. 

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Evening chaps 

 

so my hour today actually turned into around 3 despite being out for most of the day with the family. Still unsure how I've managed it but we have progress. 

 

Righto, here we go. 

 

We start art with the engine. I've been trying to find some good clear engines of a merlin 45 the type fitted to a Vb but the ones I've found are few and far between and not all that clear. This is probably the best one I've found so far but it's a merlin 23 and not quite the same.  (This is one posted onto the internet so if there's a copyright issues, which I don't think there is, I'll gladly remove it). 

 

IMG_0844.jpg

 

The engine I'm working on looks nothing like this and probably won't but we shall give it a go nonetheless. 

 

So first up up this is the basic engine block we are working with

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not bad but not great. So off with the chunky "wiring" under the exhausts to be replaced with some thinner silver wire. 

 

Et voila. 

 

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Came off quite easily actually. Blimey, these close up photos make things looks rough don't they? 

 

So that they wiring didn't appear to sit on the surface I drilled some holes and fed the 0.5mm wire in and super glued in place. The holes were bigger than the wire but the super glue will help cover the hole so it won't be an issue

 

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one end of the wire fed through the hole, held in place and glued. We have this. Excuse the messyness of what you see it won't look that bad once it's been tidied up. 

 

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i decided I'd leave the wiring on the sides of the main block for a few reasons. A because most of it won't be seen once all the bits and pieces are installed to the engine and I also wasn't sure how it would affect the overall fitting of the engine. Might not make a difference but I didn't want to put all the work in for it to cause an issue. 

 

With that hat curing I thought I'd have a bash at fitting the top of the engine block. This was fun..... nice and easy I thought drop it onto the engine sides already fitted, no problem thought I. Erm.....

 

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what the flip is this all about? Luckily I managed to shave a bit off the bottom fitment and with some severe clamping managed to get it down into position so the fit isn't too bad. I've managed to hide most of the bad fit behind other pieces so it's not too bad. 

 

Next up fitting the front, the bit that makes the prop spin. Technical aren't I? 

 

Id already had to sand away a lot of the fitting at the front of the engine, see photos above, to get it to this point but it just didn't want to sit flat. No idea why so in the end was a case of glue it in place, and I'd sort out any gaps afterwards. Luckily there was just this small one...... 

 

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But now I'm a proper modeller (I have stock of plastic strips etc) I had an easy fix. 

 

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Looks like one of those tags you pull out of a toy etc to get it work.... once the glue had set a quick trim and sorted. 

 

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Even looks like one of the ridges and part of the actual engine proper. Proper modelling. 🤣

 

with all that drying lets cut off and get the last few bits of the engine sorted. Enter the swan that's just swallowed a frisbee.... what on earth is this all about? 

 

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awful moulding and a truly awful fit. However it gets better. 

 

The top of the engine is covered by the classic rolls Royce name plate. Just slots on to the top and glued in place. Problem is this. 

20180603_182418.jpg

 

look at the gouge just above the exhaust fitment. Thinking it was me after cutting the piece from the sprue, comparing it to the pictures I have of a real merlin engine I was both pleased and frustrated that it wasn't me but was the kit. The other piece is exactly the same. Great, that looks a mess. 

 

So so being a proper modeller I had a solution on hand. Whether it looks right or not in the end I've no actual idea but the thought of being a proper modeller is all the encouragement I need to get this problem sorted. Enter more plastic strip. 

 

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once the glue has cured I'll sand it down and hopefully it will pass muster. 

 

For those interested heres another view of that gouge... 

 

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so after all that where am I exactly? 

 

Well bits are curing, I've applied some filler onto some of the ridiculously fitting bits that I can't proper modeller into submission, it's all drying and I'm about to have a beer because, well, to go any further with this kit I'm going to need one. 🤣

 

I know now my updates a bit daft but honestly I'm enjoying it so far. I just hope I can live up to expectations and produce a decent representation of a spitfire that's good enough to grace the gallery when she's finished. 

 

For now, have a great evening what's left of it, and I hope you're all giving your kits what for and showing them who is boss. 

 

Take care

 

🐜

 

 

 

 

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Great start.  I think the engine is probably what stalls a lot of these Spitfire builds.  It is all too easy to lose all hope with the poor quality of the parts provided on what was supposed to be a 'dream build' for many folk.  Luckily it looks like you have the necessary patience and skill to get you over this obstacle.

 

Keep up the good work :goodjob:

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1 hour ago, BIG X said:

Great start.  I think the engine is probably what stalls a lot of these Spitfire builds.  It is all too easy to lose all hope with the poor quality of the parts provided on what was supposed to be a 'dream build' for many folk.  Luckily it looks like you have the necessary patience and skill to get you over this obstacle.

 

Keep up the good work :goodjob:

Thanks mate. 

 

I think you might be right about the engines stalling or stopping the builds. You would expect a really nice fitting kit pretty straight forward and if you are when faced with this it's easy to give in. But I know what I'm taking on, ish, so it's baton down the hatches and move forward. 

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52 minutes ago, the South African said:

Liking it ALOT.Love the sense of humor too.

 

Regards 

Why, thank you 😜

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23 minutes ago, peterairfix said:

Are you going panels off and engine on show or fully buttoned up as if you have the engine on display the panels won't fit as I have discovered a few times.

Engine open hopefully. There's no way I'm attempting trying to fit the panels 🤣

 

I've heard stories that the engine doesn't fit in properly so it might not make it in. I

 

Fingers crossed though 

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1 hour ago, Antb said:

Engine open hopefully. There's no way I'm attempting trying to fit the panels 🤣

 

I've heard stories that the engine doesn't fit in properly so it might not make it in. I

 

Fingers crossed though 

I did mine engine in - but it was 'pretty' to look at - so I then buttoned her up - it's amazing what a LOT OF GLUE AND FILLER can achieve in hiding something ugly :lol:  Again I feel a lot of people get sucked into doing the engine and then suffer all the problems it causes by being in there.  I simply cobbed the engine in the bin when I got round to doing my 1/24 Hurricane.  I had heard terrible stories and even saw a grown man cry on youtube - because if you put the engine in the Hurricane it can pull the nose down so far that it can't be fixed.

 

Your doing great though - power on through Ant :clap2: 

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1 hour ago, BIG X said:

I did mine engine in - but it was 'pretty' to look at - so I then buttoned her up - it's amazing what a LOT OF GLUE AND FILLER can achieve in hiding something ugly :lol:  Again I feel a lot of people get sucked into doing the engine and then suffer all the problems it causes by being in there.  I simply cobbed the engine in the bin when I got round to doing my 1/24 Hurricane.  I had heard terrible stories and even saw a grown man cry on youtube - because if you put the engine in the Hurricane it can pull the nose down so far that it can't be fixed.

 

Your doing great though - power on through Ant :clap2: 

Oh man, I've been known to be emotional so I'm glad this is a picture only build 😢

 

Anyways, this evening the wife went out straight from work with her work chums, my little boy fell asleep by 7 so meant some bench time on the engine. 

 

Now picking the engine up tonight o night I didn't feel that the moulded wiring was quite up to the job: 

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and the other side 

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off they came to be replaced by some very fashionable red 0.5mm wire. 

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Excuse the mess it will all be cleaned up once everything has dried fully. 

 

Next up, the rear portion of the engine, better known as the frisbee swan. This bit was an absolute nightmare. Who knew fitting this into place would be so difficult and so frustrating. The whole thing wasn't square, the attachment point wasn't square and it just didn't sit right. No matter what I did it wouldn't get to the position it should have done so in the end I smothered it with super glue and fitted it in the best I could. Technical skills came out....

 

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just look at that fitting....

 

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Next up fitting the engine covers to the top. Remember the repair job I did last night? Well it worked. Shame the whole thing didn't fit right though 😡😡😡😡. There's a them running through this kit isn't there. 

20180604_192618.jpg

 

That got sorted and here's where we are at tonight. 

 

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oh, see the screw looking bit. That didn't fit right with the engine ring going on at the front. Wouldn't fit in properly, kept falling off and getting in the way. Managed to sort it out ish but guess the real test comes when it's to fit in the fuselage. 

 

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the whole thing looks a bit ragged and a bit messy but it should look ok with some primer on which I'm hoping will be tomorrow. 

 

Ive made a decision regarding the fitting of the engine. If it doesn't fit in, I'll cut of the supporting brackets and have the spitfire with the nose section off completely looking like it's having works done on stripping the front down. 

 

We we shall see. 

 

Take care. 

 

🐜

 

 

 

 

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Nice work😯 

 

I built mine without the engine in the end as in was having a lot of bother getting it to fit. Plenty other folk have managed it though. Plenty of dry fitting is advisable with this kit as you have seen already the basic fit of the main components can be challenging.

 

Great work, and good luck 😀

 

Cheers Greg

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3 hours ago, GREG DESTEC said:

Nice work😯 

 

I built mine without the engine in the end as in was having a lot of bother getting it to fit. Plenty other folk have managed it though. Plenty of dry fitting is advisable with this kit as you have seen already the basic fit of the main components can be challenging.

 

Great work, and good luck 😀

 

Cheers Greg

Thanks Greg. 

 

I managed a cheeky 5 minutes before heading out to work this morning. Primer is on the engine. 

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1 hour ago, Antb said:

Thanks Greg. 

 

I managed a cheeky 5 minutes before heading out to work this morning. Primer is on the engine. 

I've stopped sitting at the bench before work as a few weeks ago I thought "ahh I have 10 minutes before I need to leave"....

An hour later mrs lawzer shouts up the stairs "are you not going to work today then?".....oooops! ;)

 

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24 minutes ago, Lawzer said:

I've stopped sitting at the bench before work as a few weeks ago I thought "ahh I have 10 minutes before I need to leave"....

An hour later mrs lawzer shouts up the stairs "are you not going to work today then?".....oooops! ;)

 

Dangerous ain't it? I shouldn't do it but the engine was just staring at me daring me to spray it. So i gave in.... 

 

Would have been rude to have not done it seeing as though it insisted. 

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...my biggest problem in the past has been 'nipping home' - just for a tinker - whilst I should be working.  I am endeavouring to get out of this naughty habit - but it is 'hard'.  A number of people at work have suggested I set up a bench at work - seriously...

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