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Simple Airfix 1/72 Supermarine Spitfire MkVb


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Getting back into scale models! First one in many, many years!

 

Just a wee £8 kit, something simple to warm up with...

 

Assembled and some filler to fill some gaps in:

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Painted and ready for decals!:
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Decals coming soon!

Edited by themcgarvie
Fix images.
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Nice work so far.

Depending on how old the decals are, I would go for a clearcoat or two over them prior to use. Anything Airfix over ten years old can bite you if you don't watch out. You will need to trim them if you go that route.

A gloss coat on the model will pay dividends as well, giving a much smoother surface for the decals to snuggle down to. A satin or flat coat over everything brings the finish back to where you are now but hopefully with a uniform finish and no silvering on the decals.

Good luck,

 

Tony.

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Great start back, nice neat work on the camo. A few little points that might help:

 

-Tony's suggestion of clearcoat is well made. Since you're brushing, 'klear' type floor polishes are a good and often relatively cheap option. Something to look into for your next build if you're feeling game?

 

-it can sometimes be helpful, when applying filler, to use a toothpick or apply some masking tape just a mm or so either side of the seam. This prevents the filler going anywhere it isn't needed and gives you a much smaller and easier sanding job, while retaining more of the surface detail. If the gap isn't too large, actually CA (super) glue can be very effective.

 

-airbrushes are pretty cool but do come with a lot of cost, faff, extra things to go wrong. It's a slippery slope once you consider compressors, masks, spray booths and all the extra variables to potentially go wrong. So do be aware of this. The reason I mention it is that it's easy to forget what fantastic results can be achieved with the humble old hairy stick. Check out any of Chris's @bigbadbadge builds for example, which way are better than most of us can achieve with all the expensive gubbins. I'm not one to talk because I can't do it (!) but the smooth quality of finish that can be achieved by thinning your paints and applying in many thinner coats always amazes me.

 

Anyway feel free to ignore, just a few things to consider. Lovely looking spit so far, looking forward to seeing it really come alive with the decals. Looking forward to seeing your other models, please to do post them!

 

Cheers,

Andy

 

 

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5 hours ago, Ngantek said:

Great start back, nice neat work on the camo. A few little points that might help:

 

-Tony's suggestion of clearcoat is well made. Since you're brushing, 'klear' type floor polishes are a good and often relatively cheap option. Something to look into for your next build if you're feeling game?

 

-it can sometimes be helpful, when applying filler, to use a toothpick or apply some masking tape just a mm or so either side of the seam. This prevents the filler going anywhere it isn't needed and gives you a much smaller and easier sanding job, while retaining more of the surface detail. If the gap isn't too large, actually CA (super) glue can be very effective.

 

-airbrushes are pretty cool but do come with a lot of cost, faff, extra things to go wrong. It's a slippery slope once you consider compressors, masks, spray booths and all the extra variables to potentially go wrong. So do be aware of this. The reason I mention it is that it's easy to forget what fantastic results can be achieved with the humble old hairy stick. Check out any of Chris's @bigbadbadge builds for example, which way are better than most of us can achieve with all the expensive gubbins. I'm not one to talk because I can't do it (!) but the smooth quality of finish that can be achieved by thinning your paints and applying in many thinner coats always amazes me.

 

Anyway feel free to ignore, just a few things to consider. Lovely looking spit so far, looking forward to seeing it really come alive with the decals. Looking forward to seeing your other models, please to do post them!

 

Cheers,

Andy

 

 


Yeah will keep in mind for the decals!
I did use a pick :) But was a bit too generous with the paste, obviously had to sand more than I should have. Masking tape I think is the way forward :)
I have seen people recommending and using airbrushes that "nail technicians" use, they're around £50-odd which seems worth a punt! My father-in-law has his airbrush so I'll prob use that initially before spending too much more - got paints for the spit and my King Tiger which is next, surprising how quick a few £2.50's add up! Plus brushes and thinners.

But again, thanks for the advice!

Also on the lookout for a seaplan/floatplane at 1/35 scale if you know any kits off hand ... and a speed boat of suitable scale to the seaplane/floatplane :)

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6 hours ago, TonyW said:

Nice work so far.

Depending on how old the decals are, I would go for a clearcoat or two over them prior to use. Anything Airfix over ten years old can bite you if you don't watch out. You will need to trim them if you go that route.

A gloss coat on the model will pay dividends as well, giving a much smoother surface for the decals to snuggle down to. A satin or flat coat over everything brings the finish back to where you are now but hopefully with a uniform finish and no silvering on the decals.

Good luck,

 

Tony.


Great advice, don't know the age of the kit to be honest, picked it up in the bargain section at one of the vendors at Scale Model World last weekend :)

 

Wishing I took a couple more now!

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1/35 scale is usual for tanks etc. You’re much more likely to find aitcraft in 1/32 (which is pretty close of course).

I know Revell released an Arado 196 in 1/32, I can’t comment on its quality or availability, though. 

Edited by Tentacles
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3 hours ago, Tentacles said:

1/35 scale is usual for tanks etc. You’re much more likely to find aitcraft in 1/32 (which is pretty close of course).

I know Revell released an Arado 196 in 1/32, I can’t comment on its quality or availability, though. 

 

Of course I meant 1/32 :) Thanks for the tip, I'll look it up!

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I would echo @Ngantek 's comments about airbrushes.  I bought one at the start of the year as I was fed up of the endless battle to keep brushes in a decent state and forever picking 'bits' out of my paint jobs.  In my head, you plug in the airbrush and everything's awesome.  Ha - no!  You've got to thin the paints properly, clean the airbrush properly, I have to spray in my garage as I have no ventilation options in the house.  I find it a lot more hassle and sometimes look at my previous, brushed, paint jobs and wonder of they were really so bad after all 🙂 

 

A £50 airbrush may not come with a compressor, which will mean its pretty much useless..  I bought a Fengdu kit from Amazon which has everything you need (well, apart from a mask) for around £100.  The airbrush itself is OK, worth about £25 I think, but the compressor has served me well so far.

 

Al.

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