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1:72 Aki Products Hawker Sea Fury FB.11


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What a kit!

 

I’ve just stumbled into this thread.  But if you hadn’t Shown pics of the box, bu5 only the contentsI’d have happily assumed it’s injected plastic!

 

Is this what we can expect in the future?  In 1/48 scale, of course... (smirk).

 

Jonny

 

 

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52 minutes ago, Navy Bird said:

What does it mean when I say I'm quite fond of the Fairey Barracuda?    :doh:

It means that I agree with you!  Mind you, I’m not sure I’d be so bold as to call the Barra “beautiful”.  Purposeful, and a better aircraft than the mythology would yave you believe.  But not really a stunner!

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On 3/8/2019 at 2:29 AM, Navy Bird said:

 

Thanks, Steve. Do you think these blue Sea Furies had black walkways on the wing root? The warbirds that are painted that way today have them, but I want to model the aircraft as it was back then.

 

Cheers,

Bill

I had a look through the mess I call an archive.

WH.589 definitely had them, WH.588 may have but its not very clear.

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Really liking where you're taking this Bill, to say I'm just the teenist bit envious is a mild understatement. I'm really quite happy with my old Frog Sea Furies, really. :unsure: 

As for your paint samples, on the awfully hi res & colour perfect screen of my phone, I'm liking the right sample. No science involved I hasten to add. :)

Steve.

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14 hours ago, Ex-FAAWAFU said:

After all, @Fritag once alleged that helicopters are all ugly - I understand his corrective eye surgery is imminent, but even so...

Such allegations are shocking .................. this must go a long way to explain his continued absence, some sort of shameful abstinence perhaps?

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Back to the kit, I share the slight envy (even though it is not my scale)!  Mind you, I have the Fisher 1/32 Sea Fury in my stash, which looks of a similar quality.  Given the awful destruction of the Fisher home and everything in it in the California wildfires, I doubt any more willl be produced, which definitely adds to the pressure.

 

Besides, there is much pleasure to be gained from watching such a fabulous kit being done full justice by a modeller who really knows what he’s doing.   BZ, Bill!

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7 hours ago, stevehnz said:

As for your paint samples, on the awfully hi res & colour perfect screen of my phone, I'm liking the right sample. No science involved I hasten to add. :)

 

I'm quite amazed at how well modern display screens are at reproducing colour. Not perfect, of course, but a far cry from where it was way back when. And I suspect there is some science behind it.    :)

 

Nobody asked which paint samples were which - I guess it was self-evident?

 

7 hours ago, Silenoz said:

A really superb kit in the hands of a master builder (in my eyes at least). Looks the deal too...

 

Thanks! This kit captures the look of the Sea Fury better than the other 1:72 scale kits I had (Trumpeter, Special Hobby...).

 

5 hours ago, bigbadbadge said:

What a great kit Bill and a cracking job you have done. Can't wait to see the blue scheme go on.

 

She be blue! I'll be posting some pix later, as I have some touch up to do around the wheel wells and engine, etc.

 

4 hours ago, Terry1954 said:

Such allegations are shocking .................. this must go a long way to explain his continued absence, some sort of shameful abstinence perhaps?

 

I think he's too busy traveling around the world sampling wine. Precious little to do with helicopters I'm afraid.    :)

 

3 hours ago, Ex-FAAWAFU said:

Back to the kit, I share the slight envy (even though it is not my scale)!  Mind you, I have the Fisher 1/32 Sea Fury in my stash, which looks of a similar quality.  Given the awful destruction of the Fisher home and everything in it in the California wildfires, I doubt any more willl be produced, which definitely adds to the pressure.

 

Besides, there is much pleasure to be gained from watching such a fabulous kit being done full justice by a modeller who really knows what he’s doing.   BZ, Bill!

 

Truly tragic what happened to the Fisher family. I read about the fire, but it didn't say whether the masters and associated tooling were destroyed - do you know? The website simply says that orders can't be filled "at this time."

 

Do you have a link to this modeller who knows what he's doing? I'd like to see that myself!     :banghead:

 

Cheers,

Bill

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1 hour ago, Navy Bird said:

Truly tragic what happened to the Fisher family. I read about the fire, but it didn't say whether the masters and associated tooling were destroyed - do you know? The website simply says that orders can't be filled "at this time."

They were, unfortunately. There was a GoFundMe, the unofficial official social safety net of the USA, for them a while back.

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On 1/29/2019 at 4:53 PM, Navy Bird said:

However, I'll be choosing a scheme from Xtradecal sheet 72074. Which will it be?

 

The Dutch one. Obviously.

 

:)

 

Cheers,

 

Andre

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6 hours ago, Navy Bird said:

Nobody asked which paint samples were which - I guess it was self-evident?

Nope, it wasn't, so, which was which? I must say that seeing them on a bigger screen the right sample looks paler than I thought before & comparing them to the earlier photos in the pristine paint jobs with the blue spinners, maybe too light, but then again, was the photo too dark?  :unsure: :shrug:

Steve.

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On 09/03/2019 at 13:54, Hook said:

The Dutch one. Obviously.

 

Oops, I picked the Aussie one. Sorry - how about a build a Dutch Buffalo sometime?

 

On 09/03/2019 at 17:06, stevehnz said:

Nope, it wasn't, so, which was which? I must say that seeing them on a bigger screen the right sample looks paler than I thought before & comparing them to the earlier photos in the pristine paint jobs with the blue spinners, maybe too light, but then again, was the photo too dark?  :unsure: :shrug:

 

The sample on the left was Mr. Paint, that on the right was Hataka.

 

**

I opted for Mr. Paint, this being the first time I've ever used the stuff on a model. Being an acrylic lacquer, I figured it would have some "bite", but I first cleaned the fuselage with isopropyl alcohol, and then did a 2,000 grit sanding followed by another wipe down with the alcohol. The Aki resin is exceptionally smooth, and I wanted to make sure that I wouldn't have any paint lifting later on when some masking was necessary.

 

As I mentioned before, Mr. Paint's airbrush-ready lacquer has about the same viscosity as water. I suspect most modellers don't dilute their paint this much, but I've always been one who thinks that thinner is your friend. You can't open up your airbrush and just blast away. Some patience and respect for the viscosity is essential. I found it took about 6-8 coats for solid, opaque coverage with nice colour depth. That sounds like a lot, but these were applied in rapid succession due to the paint drying very quickly. No need to wait between coats - by the time you get back to where you started, the paint is sufficiently dry for the next coat.

 

Some advice, based on my statistical sample of one. Due to the viscosity, I sprayed at 15 psi (1 bar) and held the airbrush about 2 inches away from the surface. This was for the broad application of the colour. I used my workhorse Paasche H single action, external mix, siphon feed, old technology, had already been superseded by newer models when Nero was Caesar, airbrush with a 0.6mm needle. Yikes! However, by closing the air-cap down on the needle so only 4-5 molecules of paint were released per second, I could hold the brush right up close to the surface and make some incredibly fine lines without the airbrush clogging or the paint pooling, "spider-webbing," or running on the model. I was quite impressed with this, so I tried spraying some tests with my other two airbrushes - a Paasche Talon and Harder & Steenbeck Infinity. I was even more impressed with these. It was fun holding the airbrush in position and watching the colour appear like magic. The pigment must be incredibly fine.

 

Now for the other side of the coin. Again due to the viscosity, even after 6-8 coats the paint layer on the model has negligible thickness. This is great news for those who like to do panel line washes, and find that other paints fill in the lines so that the wash won't hold. I don't think you'll have that problem with this paint. But this also means that surface preparation is just as important as it is with metallic finishes like Alclad or Mr. Metal Color. Every little scratch, scuff, and dust particle will show up when the paint is dry. It won't hide anything.

 

So much for that. After the Oxford Blue was applied, I used Alclad for the metal panel behind the exhausts, and Tamiya Aluminum for the wheel hubs (the inboard half of each main wheel is not yet on). Some pix:

 

IMG_2928

 

IMG_2929

 

And I posed the flaps down for a couple of shots (remember, these are hinged - unlike your modeller who is quite unhinged):

 

IMG_2930

 

IMG_2931

 

One question that I forgot to ask involves the lips that the engine cowling panels rest against - should these be Hawker yellow primer as I've done, or should they be Oxford Blue?

 

I discovered after painting that the kit includes two tail wheels, and I of course used the wrong one. Easy to switch, and the one that is now in place matches all of my photos. I wonder what the other one is for? Did the Sea Fury have two different tail wheel designs?

 

The paint is probably glossy enough for decals without having to add a gloss clear coat. I will do some tests first to make sure that decal solvents play nicely with Mr. Paint. Tally ho!    :)

 

Cheers,

Bill

 

PS. I suspect these two display aircraft had their guns removed, especially if they were an aerobatic team. Too late about that now!

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Really lovely job Bill and am glad you opted for the Mr.Paint Oxford Blue as that’s one that I can easily lay my hands on. I’ve used these paints myself and was quite impressed with them. 

 

Just a quick thought. Does this kit have the bulge on the outside of the wheel gear doors like the 1/48 Airfix kit? I believe that this is not required for the ‘in service’ date of your build and may be something of a ‘warbird’ addition (please don’t quote me on that!). 

 

Cheers.. Dave 

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17 minutes ago, Rabbit Leader said:

Just a quick thought. Does this kit have the bulge on the outside of the wheel gear doors like the 1/48 Airfix kit? I believe that this is not required for the ‘in service’ date of your build and may be something of a ‘warbird’ addition (please don’t quote me on that!).

 

No bulges on the undercart doors.    :)

 

Cheers,

Bill

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That blue is a beautiful shade, you have applied it with great effect. I love the sea fury ever since I saw it fly at Fairford (had never actually heard of it before) majesticly brutal! But in that blue it’s going to look stunning... I like blue planes, can you tell?

 

Rob

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9 hours ago, Navy Bird said:

 

One question that I forgot to ask involves the lips that the engine cowling panels rest against - should these be Hawker yellow primer as I've done, or should they be Oxford Blue?

Hawker yellow like wot you dun.

8 hours ago, Rabbit Leader said:

 

Just a quick thought. Does this kit have the bulge on the outside of the wheel gear doors like the 1/48 Airfix kit? I believe that this is not required for the ‘in service’ date of your build and may be something of a ‘warbird’ addition 

Its a later service mod after a second oleo section was added to the main gear to eat up the higher landing forces

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