Ready to start an Hurricane Mk II kit, Hasegawa 1/48

[Massimo Tessitori]

Hi all, 

after having delayed my Spitfire kit for decals issues, I'm ready to start an all-black Hurricane Mk-2 of Hasegawa, 1/48.  Yes, this time I've already checked the decals sheet and no cracks are visible. 

I would like to know consideraton and experiences of other people with this kit.  My idea is to build it out of the box, but if there are reasons to do not so, I would know before starting. 

About the landing gear: did black Hurricanes preserve silver-painted bays as other Hurricanes? A photo suggests that the inner face of the landing gear doors should be black. I suppose the same for the gear legs. 

Thank you for any suggestion. 

 

[Tail-Dragon]

There are 4 things I remember about the Hasegawa Hurricane IIb.  The area behind the seat armor to the rear deck should be beveled, not stepped as in the kit (I just filled mine with milliput) only a real issue if you are building open canopy (vacuform required), the panel line behind the canopy should not be there, fill it in. The lower wing joint to rear fuselage is ugly, I added a tab to reinforce it, and there is a nasty push pin mark in the wheel well - other than that, it was a delightful kit as I recall.  (there may be more, but that's all I remember)

Looking at photo's of Mk IIb night fighters, it looks as if the gear door and struts are still silver, not black.

 

Hurricane night fighter

 

Night fighter

 

 

 

 

[Troy Smith]

1 hour ago, Massimo Tessitori said:

I'm ready to start an all-black Hurricane Mk-2 of Hasegawa, 1/48.  Yes, this time I've already checked the decals sheet and no cracks are visible. 

Which boxing? 

This one?

Hurricane Mk.IIc 'Night Hurricane'

Hasegawa | No. 09264 | 1:48

 

 

BE500 LK-A is very very famous, from this, genuine wartime colour, not colourised. 

Hurricane Mk.V.......................          11 Aug. 1943. by Etienne du Plessis, on Flickr

 

the close up reveals some interesting details, that the canopy frame was orginally remained Dark Green, and that as the canopy bends when it moves, the paint often flakes off , Night revealing Dark Green, and then bare metal  

Hurricane pilot, c1942. by Etienne du Plessis, on Flickr

 

but this was a photo shoot, and there are more B/W from this

other side, note, in the B/W image you can se the spinner matches the roundel centres, and is red.... 

 

 

1 hour ago, Massimo Tessitori said:

About the landing gear: did black Hurricanes preserve silver-painted bays as other Hurricanes? A photo suggests that the inner face of the landing gear doors should be black. I suppose the same for the gear legs. 

yes, still painted aluminium, the top left image is also BE500, bigger clearer images clearly show the aluminium painted gear legs.

 

 

 

AFAIK, this is also BE500, taken a few months later when repainted into the Night Intruder scheme, this was done quickly, note the patchy paint,

 

1 hour ago, Massimo Tessitori said:

My idea is to build it out of the box, but if there are reasons to do not so, I would know before starting. 

depends on your degreee of Hurricane mania.... I can give you an error list,  the hardest is the fuselage fabric, there are others.   Unless you want to get bogged down I'd just ignore them. 

 

The underfuselage join is just a horrible mess, best off just sanding it down pretty smooth, as fixing it is tricky. 

 

HTH

T

[Massimo Tessitori]

Hi all, 

thank you for your suggestions. 

I see that the part behind the headrest is not nice, perhaps it can't be made much better because of the canopy thickness. I'll make some tests to see if the step can be reduced without giving fit difficulties. A vacuform canopy would help a lot. 

Yes, the kit is that one. I am surprised to see that this plane is so well documented. 

I see a lot of extractor traces, something on detailed surfaces. Not nice thing. 

I wonder if paint the model with normal black, or use something lighter (ex. nato black) and make some shadows in panels and recesses.

What is the color of the tail wheel leg supposed to be? The photo seems to show some dark grey, I wonder if if was a mix or black and silver or what else. 

The rough repainting as intruder is surprising. Are the colors supposed to be green and grey?

 

[Graham Boak]

The black scheme was using a finish called Special Night, or RDM2, which was very matt but not very good at remaining in place.  Aircraft with this finish would look very grubby very quickly.

 

The night intruder scheme was Medium Sea Grey and Dark Green on the uppersurface, with Night (black) underneath.  It seems that this aircraft was repainted whilst in service rather than having been stripped and the job done properly.

 

The Merlin also leaked oil, so the underside of the aircraft would rapidly become stained: not very noticeable on a black surface.

[Troy Smith]

Just now, Graham Boak said:

The black scheme was using a finish called Special Night, or RDM2, which was very matt but not very good at remaining in place.  Aircraft with this finish would look very grubby very quickly.

I think BE500 is just in plain Night, BE500 was delivered or taken on charge 21 Oct 41,  and does not have the typical appearance of weathered RDM2 

 

5 minutes ago, Graham Boak said:

The night intruder scheme was Medium Sea Grey and Dark Green on the uppersurface, with Night (black) underneath.  It seems that this aircraft was repainted whilst in service rather than having been stripped and the job done properly.

This was discussed, the operations book talks of a rapid repaint before the Dieppe raid,  I'll link it in if I can find it. 

21 minutes ago, Massimo Tessitori said:

What is the color of the tail wheel leg supposed to be?

Aluminium, looks to be oil stained if you look closely.  Merlins leaked a lot of oil! 

 

One detail that nearly ALL* Mk.II Hurricane kits get wrong, the carb intake, Hase use the Mk.I,  the Mk.II is wider, and has a rear fairing,  just about visible in the underside shot.  

*the 72nd Arma Hobby gets this right.   

 

25 minutes ago, Massimo Tessitori said:

I am surprised to see that this plane is so well documented. 

A propaganda press visit.   And one reason this scheme is in so many kits and decal sheets.   

HTH

[Massimo Tessitori]

The thing of the carburettor intake looks difficult to ignore. I'll have to modify it.

[Troy Smith]

50 minutes ago, Massimo Tessitori said:

The thing of the carburettor intake looks difficult to ignore. I'll have to modify it.

the wider intake is better seen on one of the BBMF IIC's, as you get good quality pics of the underside

eg

https://www.gettyimages.co.uk/detail/photo/hurricane-underside-royalty-free-image/502108771

 

the Hurricane IV in Birmingham has lost this rear fairing

Hawker Hurricane  - P3395 Think Tank 052 by touluru, on Flickr

 

Hawker Hurricane  - P3395 Think Tank 080 by touluru, on Flickr

 

this gives you a good idea how this is wider than a mk.I

Hawker Hurricane  - P3395 Think Tank 043 by touluru, on Flickr

 

 

 

 

 

Hawker Hurricane  - P3395 Think Tank 049 by touluru, on Flickr

 

A project I have not attempted my self,  yet...   my part done is buried in a box...

 

HTH

 

 

[Massimo Tessitori]

Thank you for the photos. The piece of the kit can't be corrected, a full scratchbuilding is needed. I hope to find some piece to start in the spare pieces box. The frame with the mesh is the most difficult thing, I fear that it can be properly done only with a photoetched part. 

[Graham Boak]

There's also evidence of differences in the radiator intake, the British-built examples having flatter sides as in the Mk.IV above whereas Canadian-built ones are a more elliptical shape.

[Massimo Tessitori]

I had a look to some 3 views drawings of Hurricane mk II on the web, but they forthemost show the carburettor intake as Mk.I. Is this right? Can Hurricane Mk II have this type of intake?

[Troy Smith]

2 hours ago, Massimo Tessitori said:

I had a look to some 3 views drawings of Hurricane mk II on the web, but they forthemost show the carburettor intake as Mk.I. Is this right? Can Hurricane Mk II have this type of intake?

NO.  The drawings are wrong.  error is still being carried on, eg last years Valiant WIngs book has Caruana drawings showing the Mk.I intake, The book has a photo showing a IID when the author finally notices the wider intake.   The book is full of this kind of error though.

 

The best set of Hurricane drawings don't show the MK.II unfortunately, well, their are roughs that do, not sure if they show the intake. (I have them saved, on a flash drive, I'd need to go on a search) 

You should be able to make a wider intake by eye,  the photos I posted above show that the position is the same, and just the intake is wider, the rear fairing is a simple shape.  I was hunting for a good photo, I know I have a couple saved. 

 

I can have a go at the modifications myself,  the 72nd Arma Hobby kit does have the correct intake, which is always helpful for shapes.

 

Problem is, in wartime photos this is usually in shadow, even in flight,  but on the few where you can see the shape, it's the same as the image below, which  is, which is LF363 of the BBMF,   not the best resolution, but if you compare with the Mk.IV photo above, you can see the fairing.   I presume that is there just to smooth the airflow, but it makes modelling it easier, in that you add a splice to the existing intake, and then add the faring at the rear, it's not a complex shape,  basically a triangle. 

 

Hurri BBMF underside crop by losethekibble, on Flickr 

 

it taper at the rear, as I said, not usually clear in photos, this is a walkround of the NASM Hurricane

https://forum.largescalemodeller.com/topic/5080-hurricane-mkiic-nsamuhc/

 

 

I'll have a look at my Hurricane projects box when I find it it....  there's a lot of other boxes...

[Massimo Tessitori]

Hi, 

I'm scratchbuilding it. I prefer so instead of modifying the existing piece because it is not that easy to cut it, widen it and reshape: the intake of the mk-1 has tapered sides, those of the Mk II are broadly parallel. I preferred to avoid a method that could ruin the original piece in case of failure. 

Thank you for the excellent images. 

[Wulfman]

On 26/07/2021 at 18:00, Tail-Dragon said:

There are 4 things I remember about the Hasegawa Hurricane IIb.  The area behind the seat armor to the rear deck should be beveled, not stepped as in the kit (I just filled mine with milliput) only a real issue if you are building open canopy (vacuform required), the panel line behind the canopy should not be there, fill it in. The lower wing joint to rear fuselage is ugly, I added a tab to reinforce it, and there is a nasty push pin mark in the wheel well - other than that, it was a delightful kit as I recall.  (there may be more, but that's all I remember)

Looking at photo's of Mk IIb night fighters, it looks as if the gear door and struts are still silver, not black.

 

Hurricane night fighter

 

Night fighter

 

 

Thanks for the great pics.

Wulfman

 

 

[Massimo Tessitori]

The work has started. I've scratchbuilt the intake and seems reasonably good, perhaps a bit wide. 

I've assembled the wings, but it was a bit painful work, particularly for the bits of the leading edge with the guns fairings which are a bit thinner than the wing thickness. I'm working to save the panel lines on them, I've not used filler till now. 

I hope to make the inside of the fuselage tomorrow.

Edited July 31, 2021 by Massimo Tessitori

[fishplanebeer]

If it helps I've just used Xtracolor 'Tyre Black' for the black undersurfaces of my ongoing Do217 project and it looks quite good as in definitely being black but not too black if that makes sense?

 

Regards

Colin.

[Massimo Tessitori]

This could allow to make darker shadows on panel lines maybe.