Airfix 1/48 Gloster Javelin.

[Head in the clouds.]

The Airfix Gloster Javelin is a jewel of a kit that slips together pretty well and the largest model I have built to date, when fully assembled it is a good size piece of plastic and as such you feel you have your money's worth. The kit was recently re-issued so I purchased another 2, each of which is earmarked for conversion and being such a lovely kit to build now holds no fear for me.

 

As is well know the Gloster Javelin is a large delta design that joined the ranks of the RAF in the mid Fifties and served on the front line until the late Sixties, with one or two examples still flying with experimental establishments until the early/mid Seventies, not the longest of service lives for a combat aircraft! It was superseded in service by the EE Lightning which was a more advanced aircraft and once this change started the Javelin squadrons soon exchanged their mounts for the new kid on the block. 

 

It is one of those experimental aircraft that I have built, XH754 during it's time with A&AEE at Boscombe Down, a very colourful aircraft and one which seems very camera shy, I have only seen two photographs of XH754 and none in the scheme I have done, the two photographs being when it was in the Far East doing rain trials for the TSR2 programme where it wore a partial scheme of what you will see. As well as being camera shy there also seems to be little information that I could find about this airframe so a truly  elusive aircraft, which does not bode well when trying to do research, this is the first time I have built a kit with no pictorial information to guide me, have to look at previous builds and the conversion kits instructions.

 

For this build I used AlleyCats superb Mk7 XH754 conversion set which gives you a new resin nose radome, new resin rear fuselage, fillets to remove the four Aden gun ports, a blade antenna, 96 vortex generators(more of which later) and decals.

 

The nose radome is a simple one for replacement however the rear fuselage does throw up a small issue. If you follow the instructions and cut on the panel line you end up with a small step where the replacement joins so it is better to cut a couple of millimeteres further back and this will solve the issue, the resin is a solid lump so no worries about any further blending in. This is an area you need to watch when building Javelins as the rear exhaust area changed across the various marks so do your research. The fillets to blank the gun ports are a simple cut and replace with some blending needed.

 

Now those vortex generators. AlleyCat kindly give you 48 more than you need, these being for any that the carpet monster may digest or those that ping off into low Earth orbit never to be seen again. The kit items are clunky and two thick and these will look much more realistic but it comes at a price, that being 48 holes of 0.8mm dia to be drilled in the upper wing surfaces to receive said PE generators. And to rub salt into the wound they have to be set at the correct angle but fear not, AlleyCat supply a very handy jig to aid in this job. Not a quick job and one that is best done in shifts of about 4 hours....😉. Eduard also supply a set of generators of a slightly different design being more like the real items but I went with the supplied PE. You makes your choice, you takes your chance! As it turned out it went well with only a small number needing removal and replacement. Obviously the kit items have to be chiseled off first.

 

The only other item that I replaced were the two prominent pitot tubes on the wings, the kit items being discarded for new Master items which are far superior. These do need some careful blending in to the wing and are best left till near the end save for them being knocked off in oblivion.

 

With the building work done I was then faced with the daunting task of painting this rather large 'Dragmaster' as the Javelin was nicknamed. Tamiya and Xtracolour paints were used and lots of it. The whole airframe was sprayed in a white undercoat, several coats being applied with Tamiya white sprayed on the upper surfaces and xtracolour yellow on the undersides, none of which presented any issues. The radome and rear fuselage were then given another coat of white undercoat and then light yellow, then sprayed with xtracolour International Orange. Once dry the dayglo was given a light abrasive rub to reveal the yellow underneath to represent wear and fade.

Now came the fun bit the black strips underneath as seen on target towing airframes. The amount of masking used here was immense and I had to adjust the layout several times and again this took many hours of bench time, as ever, removing the masking tape was a nervous moment but only a little touch up was needed. The only other painting was the buff colour on the leading edges of the flying surfaces. Only a little weathering was applied around the vortex generators but again having no pics to work from this is purely from my imagination.

Both the kit decals and the AlleyCat items were used and went down well but some of them are big and care is needed as are the black walkway decals, these are very long and flimsy and they did put up a fight.

 

This is a lovely kit to build and the conversion too is of good quality but if you are going to build XH754 be prepared for some hard miles at the bench but the reward is worth it.

 

To finish it I will get a mirrored base and use the kit crew ladder to add interest.

 

Thanks for looking.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[David H]

Heckuva conversion, but a great paint scheme! I will need to get some of the P/E vortex generators, i think.

 

Really nice job. Amazing what some people are doing with the 48th scale Airfix Javelins.

 

-d-

[CJP]

I agree that this is a great kit and good value - you've written a really interesting background story to your great model of this Javelin version.

[SAT69]

I've never seen that color scheme and it looks good on the Javelin. Your model work is excellent.

[billn53]

All that white, and then you show the underside. Wow!

[Antti_K]

Lovely Javelin, I like it a lot! It really is a great shame that one can press the "Like" button only once...

 

This is probably the first Airfix Javelin I've seen that has been modified using the Alleycat set. Everyone who uses those PE vortex generators should earn a medal. I tried with a couple and gave up. I still have one Javelin in the stash with Alleycat conversion set for a FAW.4 of No 41 Squadron. But then, I'm currently having a soft spot for that red and white test Javelin.

 

Cheers,

Antti

[cngaero]

The old Flat Iron looks very smart in that colour scheme.

A great model indeed.

[Head in the clouds.]

9 hours ago, David H said:

Heckuva conversion

Thank you David, I have always found AlleyCat to be good quality products that make life a little easier.

 

9 hours ago, CJP said:

I agree that this is a great kit and good value - you've written a really interesting background story to your great model of this Javelin version.

Thank you CJP, I wish I could have written more about this airframe but as yet I have found little on it but I live in hope.

 

9 hours ago, SAT69 said:

've never seen that color scheme and it looks good on the Javelin

Cheers @SAT69 the paint scheme is probably the hardest part of the build, trying to keep everything evenly spaced around all those curves and to the painting guide took many attempts .

 

7 hours ago, Antti_K said:

This is probably the first Airfix Javelin I've seen that has been modified using the Alleycat set. Everyone who uses those PE vortex generators should earn a medal. I tried with a couple and gave up. I still have one Javelin in the stash with Alleycat conversion set for a FAW.4 of No 41 Squadron. But then, I'm currently having a soft spot for that red and white test Javelin.

 

Give it another go @Antti_K it really is a great kit to build, with regard to the voertex generators I had a practice run on an old wing with some of the spares just to get a feel but they are small critters so a good set of tweezers is a must. The red and white Javelin is on my 'to do' list too but I see more masking in my future.😃

 

6 hours ago, cngaero said:

Flat Iron

Another less than glamorous name for the Javelin, thanks for you kind words,

[Duncan B]

You have done a great job on this illusive beast and the colour scheme will stand out in your display case for sure.

 

Duncan B

[Retired Bob]

Amazing paint scheme and as you say, very camera shy, I have never seen it before.  Great model, looks superb!  

[Bertie McBoatface]

12 hours ago, Head in the clouds. said:

those that ping off into low Earth orbit

Haha!

 

That's an interesting model and well made too. Thanks for the narrative which was also interesting and well done.

[John_W]

Very nice build.

Before my Time (I grew up with Lightnings and Phantoms) but my mother who lived on numerous airbases over the years always said the Javelin was the noisiest of all the aircraft that flew over the house.

[F-32]

That looks gorgeous, great build!

[dambuster]

Great model, I have the same conversion set in the stash and I hope my effort turns out as well as yours.

 

Further background information on this aircraft. There is a small photo of it in this scheme in Service History of the Gloster Javelin  Marks 7 to 9R by Roger Lindsay (my copy priced £2.70 from The Aviation Hobby Shop!) and also a short background history.

 

The original colour scheme was based on the standard scheme but “upwards of the datum line XH754 was painted semi gloss white”. It was flown to RAF Changi in March 1961 for a series of high speed trials in heavy tropical rain. Yellow brown plastic sheathing was added to the leading edges of wing, fin and tail plane, and it carried a modified dark blue Firestreak on the inboard port wing pylon for recording - no other pylons seem to have been fitted. There is a photo of this configuration in the booklet. It was zapped with a black Kiwi on the nose at Changi, and then with a red Kangaroo on the rear fuselage whilst undergoing some repairs at RAAF Butterworth.  
 

After return to the UK it acquired the Yellow/Black undersurfaces and the Dayglo orange nose and tail, and carried the four underwing pylons, finally being retired from flying in Dec 1964.  In the photo of this scheme the black Kiwi zap can just be discerned. 
 

Peter

Edited January 17, 2022 by dambuster

[Britman]

Excellent work and not an air brake in sight!

I don't know if I will build one or not as the afterbuild storage has to be considered. I look forward to seeing more.

 

Keith

[Head in the clouds.]

7 hours ago, dambuster said:

Further background information on this aircraft.

Great info Peter, those 2 paragraphs have just double my knowledge on this airframe, in particular the brown/yellow sheath on the leading edges of the flying surfaces. I will have to get a copy of the book you mentioned.👍

 

7 hours ago, Britman said:

not an air brake in sight!

That's what my research told me Keith although having such items open and visible adds interest even if not technically correct. There will be more but like you I am running out of space under my bed and this build has just relegated me to the spare room 😄 so I need to have a change around in the cave and purchase a display cabinet.

[RMCS]

Fantastic 

[mcdonnell]

“Hello,Gary” - Brilliant work with this Javelin.She looks absolutely beautiful and I love your chosen scheme.I have this kit patiently waiting for attention.I hope you got my earlier Email,dear friend.

👏😎👍

[Maginot]

That's a real Jekyll and Hyde of a paint job. Very nicely done.

[MRMRL]

That's a great build and paint job. You ain't gonna miss that belly anywhere, very interesting scheme. Nice to learn a bit more about the aircraft too, that era is a gap in my plane knowledge. WW2 is the period I have most interest in and then I grew up next to RAF bases, but they were mainly onto the tornadoes by that point.

 

[Head in the clouds.]

23 hours ago, mcdonnell said:

“Hello,Gary” - Brilliant work with this Javelin.She looks absolutely beautiful and I love your chosen scheme.I have this kit patiently waiting for attention.I hope you got my earlier Email,dear friend.

Thank you Paul, it is a nice kit and there are some colourful alternatives too. I did get your email, thank you, Julie and I will have a day out in your neck of the woods so I will call you to arrange a meet up but it wont be for a  little while, I need all my central heating pipework replaced and as you know that means digging up floors.

 

21 hours ago, Maginot said:

That's a real Jekyll and Hyde of a paint job. Very nicely done

Thank you @Maginot it certainly tests ones taste buds...😄

 

21 hours ago, MRMRL said:

That's a great build and paint job. You ain't gonna miss that belly anywhere, very interesting scheme. Nice to learn a bit more about the aircraft too, that era is a gap in my plane knowledge. WW2 is the period I have most interest in and then I grew up next to RAF bases, but they were mainly onto the tornadoes by that point.

Appreciate that @MRMRL it is an eyecatching scheme but does involve a lot of time to do all the masking which then has to come off, another nerve racking moment. I would love to live next to an operational base but I count my luck for living in Lincolnshire and being surrounded by airbases North, East, South and West.

[djos]

Simply great model, i like how it looks in this unusual colours.

Thanks for the story and explanations.

Regards Djordje

[Marc the Builder]

That's looks superb. The Javelin is a special bird and so typical of her time. Very well done!

[Tomcat101]

I have always loved the Gloster Javelin. Your Javelin is fantastic!  Very nice job. The target tug stripes on the underside really make it pop. 

[Head in the clouds.]

11 hours ago, Marc the Builder said:

That's looks superb. The Javelin is a special bird and so typical of her time. Very well done!

 

5 hours ago, Tomcat101 said:

I have always loved the Gloster Javelin. Your Javelin is fantastic!  Very nice job. The target tug stripes on the underside really make it pop. 

 

Thank you Gentlemen, it was a fun kit to build with many options and aftermarket to help it along.