Olmec Head Posted October 4, 2020 Share Posted October 4, 2020 Excellent finish across the board, I will be delaying my Spitfire a bit to get some separation in the gallery! The Eduard kit does look good and the rivets do add to the overall look of realism that you have achieved. Where there any gotchas in the kit build please? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevehnz Posted October 4, 2020 Share Posted October 4, 2020 Fabulous job on that Ray, it has definitely convinced me I might need 1 or 3 or so of these. Steve. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Roberts Posted October 4, 2020 Share Posted October 4, 2020 Lovely result there Ray, well done. A great job. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted October 5, 2020 Author Share Posted October 5, 2020 8 hours ago, Olmec Head said: Where there any gotchas in the kit build please? The kit has no vices. Only very minor issue is the instructions having the wheel well walls R18 and R19 on the wrong sides. Also, I pinned the outer part of the ailerons to the wing as the joint is weak. Maybe I am ham fisted, but I have broken these off with their other Spitfire builds. 7 hours ago, stevehnz said: I might need 1 or 3 or so of these. Go ahead and enjoy. 6 hours ago, Peter Roberts said: Lovely result there Ray, well done. A great job. Thanks Peter, I am looking forward to getting this back to Australia and sitting it beside my Tamiya and Airfix to compare. They should make a nice Dark Earth, Dark Green, Sky "Vic" formation. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retired Bob Posted October 5, 2020 Share Posted October 5, 2020 Superb Spitfire Ray, that looks perfect. I agree it's the best kit for a 1/48th early Spitfire, anyone building them just have to make sure all the later additions to the airframe are filled or removed, same with the Tamiya kit. Are you going to have fun getting your models back to Australia. Buy a freezer, when I moved back to the UK from being stationed in Germany I packed as many built models as I could into a chest freezer, nothing was damaged but the removal men were stumped when I told them to be careful there were Blackbirds in it, I showed them a couple of SR-71s, not what they were expecting. 1 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted October 5, 2020 Author Share Posted October 5, 2020 4 minutes ago, Retired Bob said: Buy a freezer, Thanks Bob for the compliments. Buy a freezer! 🤣 Now that's original. You will have to post that suggestion on one of the "packing models" posts that occasionally comes up. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retired Bob Posted October 5, 2020 Share Posted October 5, 2020 36 minutes ago, Ray_W said: Buy a freezer! 🤣 Now that's original. You will have to post that suggestion on one of the "packing models" posts that occasionally comes up. Just saying, worked for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greg Law Posted October 6, 2020 Share Posted October 6, 2020 Sensational build Ray. A very fine finish. I could never achieve such a fine finish. Even the closeups look perfect. Well done all round. I like your approach to the weathering. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cookenbacher Posted October 6, 2020 Share Posted October 6, 2020 Wow, well done Ray from wingtip to wingtip. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted October 6, 2020 Author Share Posted October 6, 2020 @Greg Law Thanks Greg. I was reasonably happy with the finish and weathering. These early mid-BoB Spitfires just do not look too beat up. I noticed very little exhaust staining and tried to limit the wear. Now, I am really looking forward to my next build, that being a Desert Tomahawk, to apply some heavier weathering. @Cookenbacher Hi Cookie, thanks for the kind words. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Belbin Posted October 10, 2020 Share Posted October 10, 2020 Great build, congratulations. Nick 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merlin Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 Hi Ray, Good to know that GS have brought out a new Dark Earth to head away from their H72 orangey brown, one can see its nearer my photos in daylight of the RAF Museums Spitfire Mk I. Can you photograph your Spitfire Model in daylight please at the same sort of height and angle, interested to see how it compares to the photo in my Sept 16 post., outside in the daylight on the unveiling day. Just whats the story behind the dig and the head rest ? Fantastic to see the Dunlopillo interior rubber, and the leather covering. How did you get on with the 1/48 red circles, I bought the £69 circle cutter but it doesnt produce circles at small diameters such as 2.8mm diameter, elipses and occasionaly a circle. Diameter setting is hit and miss, moves when set, it needs a knurled wheel to turn for micro adjustment. The sharpened dividers do exactly that. How did you sharpen the one 'prong' ? The painted on approach is always far superior, When I first tried it I had a 3D spot, as overpainting one which was too small on a decal by the time I couldnt see the printed spot the valejo paint had gained a thickness., amazed as it has a good opacity or so I thought. Regards the white undercoat any chance of a white edge perhaps could be alleviated by spraying toward centre with white, and outward from centre with the blue. subtle but might just make the difference. What paint did you use on the exhausts ? Great model and methods, well done. Merlin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted October 16, 2020 Author Share Posted October 16, 2020 Hi Merlin, In response to your questions: 6 hours ago, Merlin said: Can you photograph your Spitfire Model in daylight please at the same sort of height and angle, interested to see how it compares to the photo in my Sept 16 post., outside in the daylight on the unveiling day. I'll get some photos on the weekend and post them in this thread. Note that Gunze also have a revised Dark Green C361 that I would of like to try. Maybe less olive than the Tamiya XF-81. I could not source a pot in time for this build. 6 hours ago, Merlin said: Just whats the story behind the dig and the head rest ? Here are a few links regarding the excavation of X4593 that you may find of interest: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-34549846 http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/38768 https://www.greatfen.org.uk/about-great-fen/heritage/spitfire-excavation https://www.wildlifebcn.org/news/spitfire-excavation Photo record of the dig here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/63884732@N04/albums/with/72157659442230046 6 hours ago, Merlin said: How did you get on with the 1/48 red circles, I bought the £69 circle cutter but it doesnt produce circles at small diameters such as 2.8mm diameter, elipses and occasionaly a circle. Diameter setting is hit and miss, moves when set, it needs a knurled wheel to turn for micro adjustment. The sharpened dividers do exactly that. How did you sharpen the one 'prong' ? Yes, my small set of dividers are excellent for cutting small circles and transferring dimensions. Hard to capture a good photo with what I have, but here it is: The left hand point is sharpened to a micro "blade point" initially using a very fine sharpening stone just on the inside and outside surface. This stone is back in Australia so I have kept it sharp with some 2000 wet/dry taped to a piece of glass plate. As usual, when cutting, I rotate letting the blade do the work and not forcing the cut. It does cut neater angling the dividers slightly down in the direction of cut rather than holding perpendicular to the surface. For smaller circles 2.00 mm and below I use my RP Toolz Punch set. Always better to paint your colour first then a apply a mask small "dot" rather than spraying into a small hole. 7 hours ago, Merlin said: Regards the white undercoat any chance of a white edge perhaps could be alleviated by spraying toward centre with white, and outward from centre with the blue. subtle but might just make the difference. This is exactly how I did it, I spray away from the masked edge. If you take a close look at the pictures you will see this thinning towards the edges. When you have a white edged marking, for example US National Stars and Bars, I find it easier and achieves a better result by spraying the white first and masking the insignia before the main camo colours goes on. 7 hours ago, Merlin said: What paint did you use on the exhausts ? I start with Gunze 1500 Black Mr Finishing Surfacer as an undercoat. then use a combination of Gunze Mr Metal Colors to achieve the effect I want (mostly sprayed, some brush) finished by a smoke mix again altered build-to-build as necessary. I will polish some areas with a cotton bud or finger if the prototype shows evidence of it. I go by the photo evidence and try to duplicate - one day I will get it right!. This means nearly every kit exhaust is different. For example I note the lack of exhaust staining both on the stack and fuselage side on the BoB era Spitfires and the difference in stack colour of the front section compared to the following two. In this case, I used Gunze iron, copper and gold (brassy effect). I fit them after the final clear coat to preserve their look. then apply any smoke staining. It is actually a quick and fun process. Glad you like it and will post some natural light photos soon. Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SGS2024 Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 Hi - Not sure if this the right place to post but I have recently moved to Holme Fen and found out that a spitfire crashed nearby. Being ex RAF I would love a model (not sure which scale) of the spitfire in question. However at 65 my modelling days are behind me! So the question is do any of you excellent modellers do "commissions" - ie could you build a pint a model for me? Please advise. Thanks. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted February 2 Author Share Posted February 2 17 hours ago, SGS2024 said: So the question is do any of you excellent modellers do "commissions" - ie could you build a pint a model for me? Please advise. Thanks. That model was mine, although it's currently on the other side of the planet and I am not so much into commission work. However, your question might be better raised in the modeller's chat section where you will get a broader response and some may offer you a solution. By the way, I was 61 when I built that model and I'm still planning future projects and making kits. Just warming up. Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SGS2024 Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 Quick question - again - does anyone know how I can get hold of the decals for Spitfire X4593 - all stores seem to be sold out. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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