Hawker Hurricanes around the world

[Wulfman]

Arma do a Mk.Ilb, and don’t forget the Free French !

 

Wulfman

[RJP]

I don't use expensive sprue cutters, a cheapie flea market wire nipper does just fine for the first cut.  The key is to use a really sharp blade for the finish cut. 

 

I still use a safety razor blade for that.  Yes, you can still get them in drug stores though I haven't let one near my face for probably 30 years.  They are cheap and flexible and don't require a handle.  They make extremely smooth cuts and will not leave nubs so there's no need to sand or file anything to finish up.

[opus999]

Sometimes I've used my finest razor saw -- it just depends how much clearance you have around the part.

40 minutes ago, 2996 Victor said:

Agree with Troy re cutting out - with small parts, cut out chunks of sprue, then cut the parts off the piece of sprue with sprue cutters (I have a Citadel set) leaving big chunks of gate, and then trim with a sharp scalpel. Care is the key!!! And even then bits snap - ask anyone who's built an Airfix Tomahawk or Mustang about the control column 

 

+1 for this method too.

[ModelingEdmontonian]

2 hours ago, Troy Smith said:

As for the kit, your model, your choice,  just providing information,  it's a public forum,  so maybe of use to other reading this as well.    

 

Yup, and thanks to your information I can at least make an informed choice of when I want to modify something versus leave as is!  Thanks for the tips and all the info! You really are an expert!

[ModelingEdmontonian]

2 hours ago, 2996 Victor said:

Hi ME,

Absolutely agree - the PE parts in the "Expert" kits can take a model to the next level, and they're definitely worth a try! Better modellers than I would be able to create a work of art using these parts, but I'm afraid that's not me! But if you'd like to waste an hour and see how I got on (mediocre, at best!), have a look at my Arma Hurricanes build.

The mask set is definitely worth it, though!

My next Hurricanes might well be a Belgian Mk.I and or a ML-KNIL Mk.IIB.

Looking forward to seeing your next instalment.

Cheers,

Mark

Thanks for sharing! I have the Belgian Mk I (Airfix) and Dutch Indies Mk IIb (Arma) queued too, so will love to see yours if you get to them first!

 

Btw, do you think I have a chance of getting multiple uses out of the Arma masks, or are they one-and-done?

[ModelingEdmontonian]

1 hour ago, Wulfman said:

Arma do a Mk.Ilb, and don’t forget the Free French !

I have the Arma Mk IIb/c kit, and likely will get the new Arma Mk IIb too (have you seen it yet, I assume it's as good as the others?). Free French will be an Mk I though using another Arma kit.

[2996 Victor]

13 hours ago, ModelingEdmontonian said:

Thanks for sharing! I have the Belgian Mk I (Airfix) and Dutch Indies Mk IIb (Arma) queued too, so will love to see yours if you get to them first!

 

Btw, do you think I have a chance of getting multiple uses out of the Arma masks, or are they one-and-done?

 

Hi ME,

 

There have been a couple of Belgian Mk.I builds here on BM, Heather Kay's and Marcel's spring to mind, and there will have been others, too, I've no doubt. There are also a number of threads covering the ML-KNIL Hurricane Mk.IIBs, again Marcel has built a very nice example. There are a number of threads on here that touch on the colours of these aircraft, and in particular the underside colour - Peter Boer's book is a veritable treasure trove of information on the ML-KNIL aircraft, and well worth tracking down even though its quite expensive.

 

It can a bit difficult to track down decals, but I've got Kora Decals sheets on order (from LF Models) for both my planned Belgian and ML-KNIL builds. I'd also like to do a Portuguese Hurricane (and also Gladiator and Mohawk), and again the correct national insignia for the time seem hard to find.

 

As for the masks, I really couldn't say how re-usable they are - if I get that far before you do, I'll report back!!!

 

13 hours ago, ModelingEdmontonian said:

I have the Arma Mk IIb/c kit, and likely will get the new Arma Mk IIb too (have you seen it yet, I assume it's as good as the others?).

The Mk.IIB/C kit is the same as the Mk.IIC kit with the addition of an extra sprue with the Mk.IIB wings and ordnance - you can build either from the one kit. I managed to make a muck of my first Mk.IIC kit (entirely my fault!!!) and have a spare fuselage etc I can use up  The mouldings are all of the same superb standard.

 

Cheers,

Mark

[luis pacheco]

Good luck.

 

Built a Portuguese one some years ago. Airfix kit.

 

[Troy Smith]

14 minutes ago, 2996 Victor said:

It can a bit difficult to track down decals, but I've got Kora Decals sheets on order (from LF Models) for both my planned Belgian and ML-KNIL builds.

A word of caution, Kora aren't always great on research, and tend to be pricey

14 minutes ago, 2996 Victor said:

I'd also like to do a Portuguese Hurricane (and also Gladiator and Mohawk), and again the correct national insignia for the time seem hard to find.

Carpena and Colorado did sheets for markings, and specific types.  OOP but keep an eye out on ebay

 

For Portuguese info, I highly recommend this, https://www.abebooks.co.uk/9788363678456/Portuguese-Fighter-Colours-1919-1956-Piston-Engine-8363678457/plp

I have seen copies really cheap at times, great book, as are all the ones in the series,  note, they can often be got fairly cheap when available, and the the price rockets.  

And, bearing in mind my sig line, these have profiles WITH the reference photos!

 

As posted earlier, this looks a decent set overall

https://www.hannants.co.uk/product/KW172144

 

I've not really gone carefully through it  though so,  but nothing screams 'wrong'  ... trying to remember if the Free French  Lorraine cross is read or blue..

....  but a lot of schemes.  Bear in mind the Netherlands East indies one is based on descriptions, as there are no photos.

 

HTH

[2996 Victor]

1 hour ago, luis pacheco said:

Good luck.

 

Built a Portuguese one some years ago. Airfix kit.

 

Hi Luis,

that's very nice! Without wanting to hijack @ModelingEdmontonian's thread, can I ask what scale and are the markings decals?

Kind regards,

Mark

[luis pacheco]

1/72 scale.

 

The decals are from a portuguese brand "BlackCat":

 

http://bigcat.com.pt/index.php?route=product/product&path=64_65&product_id=4445

[2996 Victor]

Hi Troy,

 

1 hour ago, Troy Smith said:

A word of caution, Kora aren't always great on research, and tend to be pricey

After our discussion on Xtradecal recently, I can only say, "Aaarrrrggggghhhhhh!"  is there no-one who does good research? I'll be sure to check them thoroughly when/if they arrive!

 

1 hour ago, Troy Smith said:

Carpena and Colorado did sheets for markings, and specific types.  OOP but keep an eye out on ebay

Thanks - I've heard of Carpena, and only very recently of Colorado (are they one and the same?), and some of the big suppliers have some supplies (e.g. Colorado's Portuguese squadron badges), but the national markings seem to be only of the post-1952-ish type with the blue circular outline. I'll keep looking.....

 

1 hour ago, Troy Smith said:

For Portuguese info, I highly recommend this, https://www.abebooks.co.uk/9788363678456/Portuguese-Fighter-Colours-1919-1956-Piston-Engine-8363678457/plp

I have seen copies really cheap at times, great book, as are all the ones in the series,  note, they can often be got fairly cheap when available, and the the price rockets.  

And, bearing in mind my sig line, these have profiles WITH the reference photos!

Just spotted this, too. Still available new from Mushroom, but expensive - Abe is my "go-to" so heading over there next!  

 

1 hour ago, Troy Smith said:

As posted earlier, this looks a decent set overall

https://www.hannants.co.uk/product/KW172144

 

I've not really gone carefully through it  though so,  but nothing screams 'wrong'  ... trying to remember if the Free French  Lorraine cross is read or blue..

....  but a lot of schemes.  Bear in mind the Netherlands East indies one is based on descriptions, as there are no photos.

Thanks - I think I'd spotted this set but not looked closely. I've got some KitsWorld sets for my P-51Ds, and they look like nice quality if perhaps a little thick. Red or blue Cross of Lorraine - I never know!

The ML-KNIL Hurricanes are elusive birds. There are a few photos in Peter Boer's book: one is the well-known one where there are a couple of wingless Hurricanes being transported along a road, and a couple crop up in the background of some B-339 photos. Also one is shown in Japanese hands. At least no-one can prove models are wrong!  

 

Thanks as always for the extra info, and back to ME!  

 

Cheers,

Mark

[2996 Victor]

10 minutes ago, luis pacheco said:

1/72 scale.

 

The decals are from a portuguese brand "BlackCat":

 

http://bigcat.com.pt/index.php?route=product/product&path=64_65&product_id=4445

Thanks, Luis, that's absolutely brilliant!

[Troy Smith]

13 minutes ago, 2996 Victor said:

Red or blue Cross of Lorraine - I never know!

 

 

Really...needs a photo where you can see roundels/fin stripes to make a decision.

the image of Z4434, has a low contrast ....

 

more FF Hurricane Mk.I's here

https://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Hurricane/Free-French.html

 

There is a photo of a FF Mk.IIB, BG640 (or BG something or other, ) in Hurricane at War 2. 

[tonyot]

If this is of interest,.... the USA did operate some Hurricanes,...... I`ve also seen a photo of 2 x USAAF marked Hurricane`s said to have been taken in China!!.....honestly!

 

[2996 Victor]

16 minutes ago, tonyot said:

If this is of interest,.... the USA did operate some Hurricanes,...... I`ve also seen a photo of 2 x USAAF marked Hurricane`s said to have been taken in China!!.....honestly!

 

Incredibly interesting, Tony! Although I when I saw the twin-canopied Hurricane in the first photo, I did have to check that the date of the post wasn't April 1st!

 

Cheers,

Mark

[tonyot]

1 minute ago, 2996 Victor said:

Incredibly interesting, Tony! Although I when I saw the twin-canopied Hurricane in the first photo, I did have to check that the date of the post wasn't April 1st!

 

Cheers,

Mark

No worries Mark,..... the 2 seat Hurricane at North Weald was converted along similar lines after these photos became known! Used by the USAAF blokes as runabouts and to give ground staff jollies. 

[Marklo]

Don’t forget the Irish Aer Corp also operated Hurricanes.

 

 

[Foxbat]

This sheet has a Hurricane IIB used as a squadron hack by the US 350th FG. Olive drab uppers, full US markings and a shark mouth make for an interesting scheme.

 

US Hurricane

 

Andy

[ModelingEdmontonian]

7 hours ago, Marklo said:

Don’t forget the Irish Aer Corp also operated Hurricanes.

Not forgotten, although interestingly so far these are the only decals eluding me... I know Airfix did a Mk I kit with Irish markings so I thought it would be easy to find, but no luck so far. I got outbid on one on eBay (with shipping from UK to Canada it was over 30 pounds, which seemed excessive), but I'll keep looking. I have more than enough to work on at the moment, so no particular rush. At this point I have Italy, Germany, and Japan lined up as well after all (wasn't planning that originally), so this project is at something like 18 Hurricanes!

 

7 hours ago, Foxbat said:

This sheet has a Hurricane IIB used as a squadron hack by the US 350th FG. Olive drab uppers, full US markings and a shark mouth make for an interesting scheme.

 

US Hurricane

 

Andy

Fascinating! I didn't need to cheat and use the Operation Torch one to find US markings, I guess.  And I love the shark mouths... Oh well, maybe if I still love Hurricanes after all of this I can do that one. Thanks for sharing.

[ModelingEdmontonian]

11 hours ago, luis pacheco said:

Good luck.

 

Built a Portuguese one some years ago. Airfix kit.

 

Beautiful! I can't wait to do Portugal, and I'll be using the War Birds decals.  Certainly don't expect a result this stunning, though!

[Beard]

If you want the Irish Air Corps stickers that came with the Airfix kit, PM me your address and I'll pop some in the post.

[ModelingEdmontonian]

It is extremely crude, but for now this is my method of keeping everything straight as I proceed working on multiple parts of multiple kits at once. Each letter or letters corresponds to the country name (e.g., "P" for Poland).

 

 

Then I sort accordingly.

 

 

Meanwhile, where less precision is needed, interior green slopped on the cockpit walls:

 

 

Cockpits are going to be very basic, especially on the closed canopy AZ kits. The canopies leave little to be seen and I won't bog down there on these 'canes.

 

Argentina has been selected to move ahead of the others, so some of the Mk IV pieces are out there too getting initial coats.

Edited April 6, 2021 by ModelingEdmontonian

[GrzeM]

Of course sometimes the good sharp razor blade (or Czech razor saw) is the only choice, but in most situations the really top class cutters - eg. Tamiya 123 with fine, thin tips, are enough. Really, the proper cutter makes a difference. Watch this film:

 

[Troy Smith]

9 hours ago, ModelingEdmontonian said:

interior green slopped on the cockpit walls:

except for late aircraft, (and a few very very early) only the rear bulkhead and upper cockpit walls are grey-green,  the internal frame work, lower side walls and pretty much everything else is aluminium paint, including wheel wells, 'late' Hurricane wheel wells are the underside colour.

Late in your case will be the Iranian and Argentinian.