mark.au Posted January 20, 2022 Share Posted January 20, 2022 1 hour ago, shortCummins said: perhaps a couple of Battle of Brittain Spitfires?, now there's an idea. All the cool kids are building BoB Spitfires you know… 😉 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortCummins Posted January 20, 2022 Author Share Posted January 20, 2022 The control stick was fixed in place… …followed by the instrument panel and gun-sight bulkhead. Foot pedals were attached. And then the remaining lower cockpit fuselage. The firewall subassembly and rear wheel point glued in place and then the fuselage halves nailed together. This was the first time I’ve built the cockpit sub-assembly “attached” to the fuselage, while it helped with the bulkhead alignment, next time, there will be a next time, I’ll be building the cockpit as Eduard suggest “stand-alone” and then fitted to the fuselage. Both front wing roots were fixed in place, the gun camera hole was first drilled in the starboard side. Next I’ll be looking at the wheel wells and wings. until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins) 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortCummins Posted January 20, 2022 Author Share Posted January 20, 2022 Eduard, in my view, have overcomplicated the wheel wells, 14 parts, 15 with the central spar, are required to build them… …still, they do make a decent representation once all the pieces are assembled. Both top parts of the wing were glued in place… …and then the wing attached to the fuselage. The fit of the wing to the fuselage is very good requiring very little sprue-goo along the wing root, in truth I could have got away without using any filler, I'll find out once I spray some primer on them. Next I’ll be looking at the exhaust stacks. until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins) 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortCummins Posted January 21, 2022 Author Share Posted January 21, 2022 The other part of the build that I would like Eduard to “simplify” is the exhaust stacks… …my “issue” is the lack of location tabs, getting the “back” of the sub-assembly aligned while “balancing” the exhausts. With practice, this is my 3rd or 4th time I’ve built an Eduard Spitfire and I think I’m getting the hang of how to do them. Eduard (Brassin) do supply resin versions where the “back” is a single piece and each exhaust pipe is separate, I think I’ll try these in my next build. Having said all that, the moulding of these exhausts is very nice, I especially like the way they’ve made them appear hollow. Anywho, the exhausts were assembled and then given a coat of Stynylrez black primer. A “base” colour of Xtreme metal AK488 matte aluminium. The ends of each pipe was then dusted with some AK486 pale burnt metal… …followed by AK484 burnt metal, towards the “root” of each pipe… …and finally, all pipes except the front one, a light coat of AK486 jet exhaust. Next I’ll be finishing the fuselage assembly. until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins) 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve 1602 Posted January 21, 2022 Share Posted January 21, 2022 I like the effect you’ve achieved with those John Steve 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortCummins Posted January 21, 2022 Author Share Posted January 21, 2022 1 hour ago, Steve 1602 said: I like the effect you’ve achieved with those John Steve thanks Steve the Extreme metals are really good paints, they come in numerous "shades" and dry very quickly, if I hadn't been photographing each step I could have completed painting them in 5 or 10 minutes. rgds John(shortCummins) 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortCummins Posted January 21, 2022 Author Share Posted January 21, 2022 While I waited for the paint on the exhaust stacks to dry I set about removing the mould pour block from the Barracuda Cast one-piece seamless upper cowling. I also removed part of the underside support to enable it to sit flush on the fuselage. Here I’ve balanced the resin part to check the fit. This is a far better size/fit compared to the Eduard version. The exhaust stacks were fixed in place. Then I fixed the resin upper cowl with some CA glue. Next I’ll be applying the other parts of the fuselage, lower cowl, horizontal stabilisers, flaps etc. until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins) 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retired Bob Posted January 21, 2022 Share Posted January 21, 2022 24 minutes ago, shortCummins said: This is a far better size/fit compared to the Eduard version. Having bought several of the Eduard ones I was very disappointed how bad they were. Who would have thought that an Eduard resin 'improvement' part for an Eduard kit could be so bad. 🙄 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
81-er Posted January 21, 2022 Share Posted January 21, 2022 Those exhausts look very nice indeed, I'll have to try the extreme metal paints James 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortCummins Posted January 21, 2022 Author Share Posted January 21, 2022 1 hour ago, Retired Bob said: Having bought several of the Eduard ones I was very disappointed how bad they were. Who would have thought that an Eduard resin 'improvement' part for an Eduard kit could be so bad. 🙄 I know, if the Barracuda version was either too long or short I wouldn't have been too surprised, how Eduard have got the measurements wrong is beyond me? 1 hour ago, 81-er said: Those exhausts look very nice indeed, I'll have to try the extreme metal paints James thanks James the Extreme metal paints are lacquer based, you can't thin them with "water", unlike vallejo metal colours (which are also very good), also their a little bit smelly however they go down beautifully and if you spray in thin coats you can mix and blend them, as I've done here, to create interesting hues. rgds John(shortCummins) 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortCummins Posted January 21, 2022 Author Share Posted January 21, 2022 The horizontal stabilisers were glued together and fixed in place… …and then the elevators attached. Then the “pointy” type rudder glued in place. Both ailerons were also attached to their respective wings. I’m making this Spitfire with “clipped” wings, Eduard give you the choice of using either solid plastic wing tips or clear versions, I used the clear ones and masked the wingtip lights with some liquid mask and then glued them onto the wings. she's beginning to look like a Spitfire now, albeit without the iconic shaped wing. Next I’ll be adding the remaining pieces, mainly to the underside of the airframe. until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins) 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted January 21, 2022 Share Posted January 21, 2022 Great progress John, it is looking good, glad to see tge Barracuda nose panel is the right size, thanks for the heads up. I am waiting for mine to arrive in the post. Great work Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortCummins Posted January 23, 2022 Author Share Posted January 23, 2022 To finish off the fuselage the “chin” cowl halves were joined and then added to the aircraft. The radiator panels were given a coat of Extreme metal aluminium and fixed to the intake sub-assemblies. I’ve left off the rear louvers, they’ll be painted separately and fitted later once the sky grey underside colour has been painted. Turning the aircraft over I fixed both the fuel cap and the antenna mount in place, once again I’ve left the antenna off, to be added later, as I know if I add it now I’ll break it, along with the wing cannons at the first opportunity, ask me how I know! Next I’ll be preparing the airframe for primer. until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins) 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted January 23, 2022 Share Posted January 23, 2022 Coming together well John, looking forward to the paint now. Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortCummins Posted January 23, 2022 Author Share Posted January 23, 2022 1 hour ago, bigbadbadge said: Coming together well John, looking forward to the paint now. Chris thanks Chris, me too, it seems to have taken ages to get to paint? perhaps it's because painting is my favourite part rgds John(shortCummins) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortCummins Posted January 23, 2022 Author Share Posted January 23, 2022 I’m going to have the cockpit door “open” for the finished build however I’ve temporarily attached the “closed” version, with some masking fluid, to help protect the interior from over-spray. I fixed the “missing” part of the gun-sight, it wouldn’t have been the first time I’d forgotten to add it. The windscreen was masked using a Montex mask from a previous build, the joy of “sticky back plastic” masks is that they can be re-used, for the rear cockpit glass I used some Tamiya tape… …then the resulting “gap” was masked with more tape. Tamiya tape was used to mask the previously painted exhausts. Next I’ll finally be applying some primer. until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins) 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted January 23, 2022 Share Posted January 23, 2022 Excellent, I foresee paint is in your very near future. 😀 I think we have all forgotten the sight at some point in the past, then awkwardly trying to attach with tweezers !!! Great job Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortCummins Posted January 25, 2022 Author Share Posted January 25, 2022 The cockpit glazing was given a coat of Alkan BS:283 grey/green then, before I sprayed someStynylrez black primer I cleaned the whole airframe with an isopropanol wipe. This showed that a couple of seams needed a little attention. So I used some of my coloured sprue-goo, “normal” sprue-goo, sprue off-cuts melted in Tamiya extra thin, I then added a drop or two of AK real colours azure lacquer paint, I only used azure as I don’t think I’ll use it too often? I’m reasonably sure that all of these seams were down to “operator error” rather than an issue with the kit. I let the sprue-goo cure, sanded/scraped it flush, along with some other “lumps and bumps” that the primer spat out, I’m getting near the end of my bottle of Stynylrez and as its 2 or 3 years old now I think I’m getting the dregs which cause the odd “splatter”, time for a new bottle… For some reason the underside seams needed a wee bit more sprue-goo, so I spread it on quite thinly, with the hope it’ll cure quicker. Once the additional sprue-goo had cured, it was sanded flush and the primer re-applied. Next I’ll be applying the underside colour. until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins) 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve 1602 Posted January 25, 2022 Share Posted January 25, 2022 Looking good John - I almost always find things after the first coat of primer as well. Looks like our Spits are at very similar stages 👍 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortCummins Posted January 25, 2022 Author Share Posted January 25, 2022 1 hour ago, Steve 1602 said: Looking good John - I almost always find things after the first coat of primer as well. Looks like our Spits are at very similar stages 👍 thanks Steve I'm enjoying your build, where are the exhausts on yours? Nearly every time I spray along seams I find something, nothing that 5 minutes work with some sort of filler, homemade sprue-goo is my current favourite, won't sort out, especially using black, for some reason shows up "errors" better than when I use grey primer. One thing I've noticed is that the older the Stynylrez gets, my current bottle is over two years old, the more prone it is to "spitting", 99% of it self levels so its not an issue however the remaining 1% drys as a blob and needs to be sanded. by-the-by I use a .6 needle for Stynylrez, I am thinking of getting different primer, I've heard good things about Mr Hobby finishing surfacer, the other primer I'm thinking of trying is MRP (I really, really like their paints) fine surface primer however I've not read any reports on it. I tried vallejo primer and won't bother with that again. rgds John(shortCummins) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve 1602 Posted January 25, 2022 Share Posted January 25, 2022 6 hours ago, shortCummins said: thanks Steve I'm enjoying your build, where are the exhausts on yours? Hi John, I don’t like having to work around masked exhausts if I can help it, so I fix the cowling with a couple of small blobs of pva. When the painting is done, I then pop it off and fit the exhausts before fixing it permanently. There’s obviously a risk that paintwork gets damaged, but as it’s around a natural panel line I can always hide things with a little bit of weathering. 6 hours ago, shortCummins said: I am thinking of getting different primer, I've heard good things about Mr Hobby finishing surfacer, the other primer I'm thinking of trying is MRP (I really, really like their paints) fine surface primer however I've not read any reports on it. I tried vallejo primer and won't bother with that again. I hadn’t heard of Stynylrez before - I either just use Vallejo model air black paint (rather than primer) or Tamiya rattle can primer usually. I think the Mr Hobby primers are rated by many - I don’t like using lacquer based paints if I can help it because of the odour, but if I had a better workspace I’d certainly give them a go Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortCummins Posted January 25, 2022 Author Share Posted January 25, 2022 4 hours ago, Steve 1602 said: Hi John, I don’t like having to work around masked exhausts if I can help it, so I fix the cowling with a couple of small blobs of pva. When the painting is done, I then pop it off and fit the exhausts before fixing it permanently. There’s obviously a risk that paintwork gets damaged, but as it’s around a natural panel line I can always hide tings with a little bit of weathering. I hadn’t heard of Stynylrez before - I either just use Vallejo model air black paint (rather than primer) or Tamiya rattle can primer usually. I think the Mr Hobby primers are rated by many - I don’t like using lacquer based paints if I can help it because of the odour, but if I had a better workspace I’d certainly give them a go Steve thanks for that Steve having a removable cowling is a very good idea, I shall be stealing it! I've used Stynylrez for years, the only "issue" is that its so thick, I used a .6 needle and have the pressure set to (at least) 2 bar/30psi, even then it can clog up if I've not shaken the bejesus out of it and as my current bottle is nearly empty I thought I'd try a different primer. I'd tried vallejo, before Stynylrez, but I never got on with it, I could never sand it and more often than not everything would peel off when I removed masking tape no matter how gentle I was. rgds John(shortCummins) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treker_ed Posted January 26, 2022 Share Posted January 26, 2022 (edited) 15 hours ago, Steve 1602 said: Hi John, I don’t like having to work around masked exhausts if I can help it, so I fix the cowling with a couple of small blobs of pva. When the painting is done, I then pop it off and fit the exhausts before fixing it permanently. There’s obviously a risk that paintwork gets damaged, but as it’s around a natural panel line I can always hide things with a little bit of weathering. I hadn’t heard of Stynylrez before - I either just use Vallejo model air black paint (rather than primer) or Tamiya rattle can primer usually. I think the Mr Hobby primers are rated by many - I don’t like using lacquer based paints if I can help it because of the odour, but if I had a better workspace I’d certainly give them a go Steve It's repackaged in the here in the UK by Ultimate Modelling Products under their own label primers. There's even a review on here for it Edited January 26, 2022 by treker_ed Added link 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortCummins Posted January 26, 2022 Author Share Posted January 26, 2022 Barwell airbrush supplies... barwellbodyworks-shop.com sell a range of Stynylrez coloured primers White, grey, black, red brown, olive green, neutral, light flesh, ebony flesh, dull pink, oceanic blue, metal, gloss black, bronze, copper, gold, terracotta, pale sage, pale mustard the red brown, ebony flesh or terracotta would be prefect as a base for rust rgds John(shortCummins) 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortCummins Posted January 26, 2022 Author Share Posted January 26, 2022 I’m a fan of “black basing”, so I first applied a “marble” layer using various colours, Mr Hobby H66 sandy brown, Tamiya XF-68 NATO brown and XF-24 dark grey to add patches of colour. Tamiya XF-83 medium sea grey was used for the “main” marble layer Highly thinned XF-83 was then applied in light coats to “blend” everything. Next I’ll be starting the green and grey camo’. until next time as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received. rgds John(shortCummins) 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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