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Not all at sea: Fleet Air Arm fighters in the Battle of Britain


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Hi Heather,

 

Assuming it is not some fancy photography it looks like you have a nice view from your house - looks good as background in the Gallery shots.

 

Pete

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18 minutes ago, PeterB said:

Hi Heather,

 

Assuming it is not some fancy photography it looks like you have a nice view from your house - looks good as background in the Gallery shots.

 

Pete

It’s a couple of miles from here. I took a panorama across the valley, and did some selective edits. I really need to get a proper large format print done, because occasionally to can see the joins on my prints where they’re stuck on the board!

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Back to the Fulmar.

 

50337624323_cddfca95d6_b.jpg

 

The Montex mask set is sold as being for the AZ Fulmar. Well, the AZ kit is the same as this one. It’s been around a fair few brands has this mould. The fuselage joint needed a little filler, and a bit of sanding, but it’s not too bad. I’ll review whether to rescribe some panels in due course.

 

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The wings have been assembled. I’m doing a rudimentary blocking-in of the wheel wells.

 

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One thing bugging me is the huge trenches at the wing roots. On investigation, it turns out the lower wing moulding had lost its dihedral, and was essentially flat. Pushing the wings up closes the trenches, so I need to work out how best to do that so the shape is held while glue goes off.

 

Back to paying work Monday, then my postponed delayed cancelled minor surgical procedure happens on Tuesday. How quickly I recover from the general anaesthetic will dictate how quickly modelling work will resume.

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* waves back to Heather! *

 

Lovely little Martlet - she's a beauty.

 

Looks like the Fulmar is coming together too - the application of those masks deserve some applause :clap:

 

I hope it all goes well tomorrow - thinking of you here :) 

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47 minutes ago, CedB said:

I hope it all goes well tomorrow - thinking of you here :)

Cheers chuck!

 

My mood is unsettled due to the impending thing. I don’t know why I’m worried, because I’ve been through it before a couple of times. I think it’s more down to getting to and from the hospital safely. 
 

It'll be alright on the night.

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Ah, s*d it. I can’t concentrate on paying work, and I’m just sitting here worrying about tomorrow. Let’s do something!

 

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The last acts yesterday were gluing the canopy transparency in place, and attaching the wings. Yes, I did remember to fit the small gunsight! Once the canopy was firmly fixed, I glued and clamped the wing assembly where it all touched the bottom of the fuselage.

 

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Happy the wings were fixed firmly, having set overnight, I played about with tape to see if the wings could be persuaded to sit at a better angle. Happy with the alignment, I flooded this wing root with CA and left it alone to go off. The second wing I fixed with solvent, and it has worked just as well.

 

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This is where things are now. A little work required around the underside to fair things in, but otherwise I reckon a witness coat of something is needed to see where work is required.

 

It won’t be long until painting can commence on this model, which is nice. I’d better work out what the thing is supposed to look like!

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Does interior green count as witness/primer/base coat?

 

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I think it does. Just a light dusting of enamel IG. I felt the experiment with the Humbrol enamel "primer" worked so well it was worth trying out other colours. Since the transparency needed IG as a first coat, why not use it for the rest of the airframe as well? We will see.

 

On a personal note, the hospital visit has ended up with me being encumbered with extra plumbing again. It’s supposed to be temporary, but we all remember how that worked out last time. Not quite the outcome I had hoped, but I’m just getting on with it. 

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Chaps, I need some guidance on camo for the Fulmar. 
 

I have the Lloyd book - and I know the author is a BMer, but I’m afraid I missed his tag in another thread, but I hope he might pop by and share his deeper knowledge - and I am supposedly building a plane of 808 Squadron. On page 94 there’s a photo which is captioned as a plane of 808, code 7L, possibly N1868, on Ark Royal late 1940. It shows some interesting features, such as what looks like aluminium in the wheel wells, and the Sky Grey fuselage sides overpainted with Sky Type S below. 
 

Aha! Thunk I. That one will do.

 

However, turn a couple of pages further, and the colour profiles show the same plane (page 104) but attribute it to 807 Squadron. There is an 808 plane opposite, but it’s the 1941 camo pattern. So, is the photo or the profile erroneous?

 

From what I can tell, the code letters (number+letter) were generally when a Squadron was embarked on a particular carrier. I assume a code letter alone was assigned while shore-based. 
 

Anyway, the issue I’m having is pinning down a particular serial and code to model a specific aircraft. Any guidance would be most appreciated, as I’d really like to do that interim four colour scheme.

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Hi Heather,

 

He did pop up a few days ago on the Sea Gladiator thread I believe. @iang unless I am mistaken - uses a pen name for the book.

 

Pete

Edited by PeterB
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2 hours ago, Heather Kay said:

Chaps, I need some guidance on camo for the Fulmar. 
 

I have the Lloyd book - and I know the author is a BMer, but I’m afraid I missed his tag in another thread, but I hope he might pop by and share his deeper knowledge - and I am supposedly building a plane of 808 Squadron. On page 94 there’s a photo which is captioned as a plane of 808, code 7L, possibly N1868, on Ark Royal late 1940. It shows some interesting features, such as what looks like aluminium in the wheel wells, and the Sky Grey fuselage sides overpainted with Sky Type S below. 
 

Aha! Thunk I. That one will do.

 

However, turn a couple of pages further, and the colour profiles show the same plane (page 104) but attribute it to 807 Squadron. There is an 808 plane opposite, but it’s the 1941 camo pattern. So, is the photo or the profile erroneous?

 

From what I can tell, the code letters (number+letter) were generally when a Squadron was embarked on a particular carrier. I assume a code letter alone was assigned while shore-based. 
 

Anyway, the issue I’m having is pinning down a particular serial and code to model a specific aircraft. Any guidance would be most appreciated, as I’d really like to do that interim four colour scheme.

Hi Heather,

 

The profile on p.104 is an error - and one I'd not spotted before. It is 7L (possibly N1868) from 808 Squadron, not 807 as captioned in the artwork (Indeed, looking at the Fulmar artwork on pp.104-5, 807 are incorrectly described as 808 and visa-versa).  I think the notes on p.94 are a fair summary of what is likely. 808 Squadron seem to have used spinner tip colours to identify squadron sections, so if I would say yellow is a better guess than Sky-Grey. The profile is based only on this photo, which doesn't show the rear of the aircraft. However, I don't think there is any doubt that it would have carried a full-span markings on the fin at this stage. The serial is also unknown, but N1868 was a very early Fulmar and one of the few that is known to have had 808 Squadron service, so it's probably a pretty good guess (and there are not many other possibilities). The undersurfaces have clearly been repainted and this is likely to be Sky, rather than sky blue. 

 

HTH

 

IG

 

 

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On 17/09/2020 at 21:50, Cookenbacher said:

The Martlet looks wonderful in the Gallery Heather - you make it look so easy, but I know it's not!

Thank you, my dear. It’s just like I always say, practice makes perfect. Oh, and hiding the worst flaws away from the lens. :selfie:

 

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Progress has slowed a little, because reasons. After some remedial work on fuselage seams, more interior green was sprayed on. The next step was the FAA Sky Grey. I decided to spray all the underneath that colour, as it gave me the option to go with it as the original scheme if I decided to.

 

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In the end, I decided to go for the intermediate scheme, with the actual undersides Sky Type S. Some masking was done. I wasn’t too bothered about the top, as that will get the EDSG/SG camo treatment in due course.

 

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I blame the after effects of a general anaesthetic, because I had convinced myself I had a tin of ColourCoats Sky Type S in the paint drawer. I was mistaken, and I must remedy this error. Anyway, rather than break out the Xtracrylix I decided to go with a nice old tin of Humbrol 90. Thinned with their own thinners, it sprays nicely, and I hope it will be as hardy as the CC. 
 

I may get the tape off in a short while, then I’ll leave things for a while to harden before I try to mask for the upper colours. I also want to try to paint the fin flash, since the Airfix full width flash transfer is rubbish. How hard can it be? :penguin:

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Patience, they tell me, is a virtue.

 

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My first proper go at airbrushing the fin flash. A base coat of white for starters.

 

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Humbrol 104 is a bit bright, but it’s the closest I have. Another paint collection error to correct is getting suitable colours for markings.


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I do have right shade for the dull red. Inevitable paint runs under the tape. I’ll have to let it harden and retouch in due course.

 

Now, watching the clock so I can begin masking for the camo. :waiting:

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Well, this can go one of a couple of ways. There was a little paint lift during fin flash operations. I’m hoping that won’t repeat itself to a damaging degree later.

 

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Once the flash was dry, I set about masking the underside. The high demarcation for the grey makes for fun, and I’ve had to guess a little over the wing roots. A coat of Dark Slate Grey went on last night. This morning I used the Copydex latex glue truck to mask for Extra Dark Sea Grey. Now I am waiting for long enough to attempt masking removal. If you hear a loud noise, akin to an existential scream of angst, emanating from the bottom right hand corner of Blighty, you’ll know things haven’t quite gone to plan. 

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Well...

 

50366808328_c69c098f54_b.jpg

 

Not too bad. Quite happy, actually.

 

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Not happy with that, but I needed some retouching there anyway.

 

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Another area lifted around the wing root leading edge.

 

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This little patch under one tailplane as well. 
 

On the whole, then, I think that’s a nine out ten considering the amount of masking that happened. A little hairy stick action should deal with it.

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Nice work Heather - looking very smooth :) 

 

Lifting is a pain… I normally wipe the model over with IPA before priming and that seems to make sure everything sticks. Fingers crossed.

 

Pleased to hear the hospital visit went OK(ish) and wishing you a speedy recovery :) 

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7 hours ago, AdrianMF said:

You seem to have lifted all your blue overspray! I wonder if you subconsciously pressed the tape harder into that corner because of the prior leakage?

You might be right, Adrian. Even using the Tamiya tape, I’m alway wary of pressing too hard along edges over fairly fresh paint. Mind you, the ColourCoats behaves remarkably well in most situations.

 

I've got some of that Tamiya tape for curves, and I’ve read several reports that it can be a bit tenacious. It behaved really well for me.

 

55 minutes ago, CedB said:

Lifting is a pain… I normally wipe the model over with IPA before priming and that seems to make sure everything sticks. Fingers crossed.

 

Pleased to hear the hospital visit went OK(ish) and wishing you a speedy recovery :) 

Cheers Ced! I should try the IPA next time. You may note I’ve left off parts like radio masts and pitot tubes while I’m painting, as they were definitely bound to be broken during the process.

 

I am hoping to hear from the hospital soon about getting back to normal. It was a good thing I hadn’t disposed of remaining supplies from my previous encumbrance, though. Getting back into the routine has proved unhappily easy.

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