Fly 1/32 Hurricane BE500 night fighter - picture heavy

[Chaotic Mike]

Well, for me quite a swift build... about 2.5 months.  The WIP is here.  It was a fun build, and put enough challenges in the way to keep me 'interested'.  I am getting increasingly adept at using a pin drill to put 0.3mm holes into 0.5mm wide pieces of plastic!  I think it (the kit) captures the basically thuggish look of the Hurricane very well, and it will be interesting to see how Revell's new tool stands up against Fly's multi-media approach.  I augmented the basic kit with Master gun barrels and a Yahu instrument panel, and HGW frustration units seat belts.  I also had a play with Mig Ammo worn effects inside the pit.  All effort basically invisible, of course, just the way we like it.

 

On with the show.  I realised after I took the pictures that I hadn't fixed either the rear view mirror or the pilot's step so you're going to have to trust me that they are there now IRL!  Also, I declared 'Life's too short' for some teeny bits of PE that were something to do with the tail feathers, and the handles for the canopy. 

 

A general overview or two:

 

You can see a little leading edge paint chipping on the propeller blades.  Although the Rotol blades were made of a compressed wood material, they had a brass leading edge sheath, so I used a bit of Citadel Skullcrusher brass (love those names...) to emulate this.

 

Head on, guns blazing, daga-daga-daga, etc...

 

Now from a little higher up.

 

Starboard side.  Note (a) the absence of the Cawnpore crest as these seem to be hard to come by, and (b) getting the tiny gap between the trailing edge of the spinner and the oil capture ring. 

 

One view into pit.  Notice lots of chipping:

 

And in the other direction.  I got mildly irritated when the Tamiya extra thin decided to use the power of capillary action to go places it wasn't welcome.  You can also see a close up of one of the cunning HGW wet-decals-that-you-peel-the-carrier-from-AFTER-applying-them.  They worked pretty well on the tiny stencils.  Unfortunately they have a small registration problem that I'm not going to try and deal with.  Of course, you can't see the issue until you apply them :

 

Here, I was trying to get the angle similar to a famous colour pic of BE500 carrying a 4-blade prop.  Only in the picture, she's airborne.

 

Starboard three-quarter, escaping:

 

A tatty looking underside:

 

Fly give you quite a lot of detail to put into the wheel wells.  It comes on a resin block that needs some serious thinning on the top to get to sit comfortably with the cockpit framing.

 

Close up on the wheel well.  You see the 4 little legs that hold the intake guard off the carburettor?  They were a major pain.  The PE comes with these as part of the surround for the guard's mesh.  There is no way on earth that they are going to 'work' (well, not if you are me, anyway).  *After* having faired in and painted the carburettor intake, I concluded that the only way to mount the guard would be to drill holes, add wire and CA the guard to the wire.  Well, it wasn't possible to get a drill into the available space so I had to lever off the (very well affixed) air intake, repair the damage I did to it, then install the wires.  After that, re-attach, re-blend in, re-paint then place the PE:

 

This is a view through the radiator, showing the moire effect of the two grids at each end.  My experience of looking at real Hurricanes in Duxford shows the same effect!

 

And a couple of pictures of a black plane on a white background, with the intention of causing my camera phone difficulties!

 

 

As usual, comments and polite criticism are welcome.

 

Mike

[spitfire]

Nice one, looks good and it's great to see one finally built.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

[JohnT]

Very nice outcome there and great finish with that worn black lived in look

 

Only one serious criticism that must be corrected in my view.  Nothing to do with the model which is great but in your narrative of the build above you suggest the kit "captures the basically thuggish look of the Hurricane" very well.   "Thuggish" ??? !!!    Heresy I say !!  Its like calling Audrey Hepburn a bit of a dog or Kirsten Scott Thomas a bit of rough.  Recant now while you can and before @Troy Smith comes to set about you.   Personally I always thought she had rather nice if comely lines.

 

Either way the model looks fabulous 

[ColinChipmunkfan]

What a great job you have done on this well done sir!!

Colin

[ModelingEdmontonian]

Love it, thanks for sharing! 👏

[NMLeonov]

Awesome Hurricane! A very menacing presence in nightfighter livery, and your detailing is superb.

[Chaotic Mike]

Thank you everyone for your kind words. I am now considering my stash... 

SH Tempest II Hi-Tech

Lukgraph Nimrod

Fisher model Sea Fury

SH Whirlwind 

GWH P-40 (just turned up : jaw dropping kit). 

 

Decisions, decisions... 

[RMCS]

Lovely work 

[Chaotic Mike]

15 hours ago, RMCS said:

Lovely work 

Thank you! 

[stevej60]

Great finish,love it!

[Col Walter E Kurtz]

Really nice indeed! It looked a nice kit indeed..

I have a original WW2 colour picture of the exact Hurricane BE500. My Uncle was a fighter pilot with 56 Squadron flying  Tempest Vs . He kept a scrapbook during his flying traianing in Canada. At the end of it he made a montage which shows a Halifax and a Hurricane. With his own question.. Which of the two will it be?

Both pictures must have come from magazines circa 1944. Is this the ' famous picture' you refer to? Anyway I hope you enjoy the pic and don't mind me adding it to your thread.. Regards, Andy

 

 

 

[Chaotic Mike]

Hi Colonel, 

Nice story, and yes, that is the picture I was working from, courtesy of being put onto it by @Troy Smith.

BR, 

Mike