Quick (ish) OOB (ish) 1/72 Army Hobby Hurricane MkIID (The 1/48's little sibling)

[Fritag]

Ok so.  Where was I? 

 

IIRC - and it was quite some time ago  - my last build thread was a 1/48 Arma Hobbies Hurricane MkIIC Trop, which with the assistance of Fusion and Elegoo I was attempting to turn into a 6 Squadron MkIID with the 40mm Vickers 'S' Guns.  

 

 

 

Life rather got in the way of progress and my last substantive post was as long ago as 25/11/23, with a brief proof-of-life post on 26/1/24 when I rather erroneously suggested I'd get back to it in mid-February (2024).  Which, uumh, I didn't... 

 

Dunno what's happened to the last 15 months.. but work, life and other activities conspired to distract me and I've kept largely away from BM so as not to be reminded of how great the hobby is and how I should be spending at least some of my time doing it...!

 

Anyways; I'm now taking a 4 month sabbatical from work starting, well basically now... and whilst Mrs F and I are off to Australia for 6 weeks in a couple of week's time, before then I've got a short window of opportunity to hopefully get back into the swing of a bit modelling a bit before we go - and the plan is to pick it up again when we get  back.  Before we go to the Shetlands for a few weeks that is... And then pick it up again when we're back 

 

Not sensible to try and immerse myself in the 1/48 IID build again in that time; so I'm gonna do summat that's less demanding, more OOB and in which I can make proper progress quickly.  But as I'm still a bit hooked on the 6 squadron Hurricane idea, step forward the Arma 1/72 Hurricane IID.

 

The Arma IID is the Arma IIC with some 3D printed extra's - the S gun and fishtail exhausts.  But it seems crazy to use Arma's bits and bob's when I've created my own in 1/48 scale already and can have a shot of downsizing.  I probably should just have bought the cheaper IIC kit   But at least I got some appropriate decals.

 

For context and background you really need to skim through the 1/48 build as far as it goes.  Not least because of the great input from notable and generous  BM'rs and to see the genesis of Fusion work in 2023.  Either use the link below or the one above.

 

 

So, I started to muck about a bit on the computer at the back end of last year but was so busy with work that I never had time to commit properly.  But I did a bunch of modelling in Fusion as an avoidance of work activity and have now fettled a bit of plastic n'all 

 

The Arma IIC/D kit is just luverly and I'm gonna refrain from mucking about adding owt by way of detail to the cockpit, undercarriage bay etc. etc. not least cos I don't want to get bogged down, and also cos this is not a full-works job...

 

 

Obviously, for a IID the cannon stubs moulded into the front of the wing have got to go, as have the bulges on the top of the wing and the hatch lines behind the bulges.

 

So cannon stubs and bulges are now gone and hatch lines filled with 'spru goo' waiting to be smoothed down.

 

 

Nice plastic to work with.

 

 

And so to the 40mm Vickers S guns.  Lots of chat about the gun on the 1/48 thread with valuable input from @Troy Smith and others resulted in the Fusion modelling and prints in 1/48 here:

 

 

 

And not without trepidation some stuff was rescaled and then test printed at 1/72.  The bits ain't big:

 

 

Seems to work.

 

Gun fairing with gun barrel.  This'll be underneath the starboard wing.

 

 

 

And the naked S Gun.  Quite small:

 

 

Detail held up well:

 

 

 

And the 2 halves of the fairing.  Pretty thin; quite surprised (but pleased) they printed:

 

 

The naked gun needed a cut-out in the port wing for the ammunition drum to sit in.  Bit rusty with the old fettling skills, but neat enough.

 

 

So port gun in fairing and starboard gun naked.  Test fit:

 

 

 

 

Should be fine.

 

Although I've just noticed I've got a gun barrel length mismatch.  One of em is too long - or maybe one of em is too short .  Note to self to correct the incorrect one...

 

On the 1/48 build I was planning to open up some of the fuselage side panels and show the internal structure so modelled some structure in Fusion  See here:

 

 

 

Would it be stretching the idea of an OOB (ish) build too far to p'raps do summat similar? Nah.

 

So seeing as playing about on Fusion was a good work avoidance activity, I adjusted the frame to fit the 1/72 kit contours, detailed the TR1133 VHF Radio and survival kit items and added the flare gun and flares and some visible pipework, thus:

 

Rather surprisingly it test printed ok.  The radio, survival kit tray and flare tubes were printed separately and then all combined (and here with a quick spray of white primer):

 

 

 

 

Bit of surgery required on the fuelage (obvs.).  Bit delicate at 1/72.  Worked ok.

 

 

 

Oh, and because I'm not as much of a muppet as I sometimes often seem to be I did remember to take a RTV mould of the hatches first:

 

 

Just in case a hatch or two posed on the wings would look good, I can cast some resin copies.  RTV mould? How's that for old school?

 

 

Oh, and I didn't forget that we need some proper-nice teeny fishtail exhausts:

 

 

And a quick proof of concept lash-up of the work so far suggests that it may even all be doable (the exact fit of the bits obvs. needs some tinkering):

 

 

 

 

 

 

Should I pose then naked gun with half a fairing?

 

 

So, it's basically just an assemble and paint job now, innit?

 

Good to be back.

 

Edited April 20 by Fritag

[keefr22]

1 hour ago, Fritag said:

Good to be back.

 

Good to see you back!

 

Some marvellous 3D work in the one true scale there!

 

Must say I was surprised the thread wasn't about a certain new 1/48th Jag though....  

 

Looking forward to more (before you swan off again...!! 🤣 )

 

Keith

[Whofan]

Lovely build so far, the 3D print additions do look the biz.

 

I could see your 40mms guns easily as being a manufacturer's aftermarket, so good they are.

 

When I did my Arma Hobby IIc in 1/72 I had fit issues with their wheel well inserts, hopefully you won't.

[mark.au]

This should be fun to follow along not least because watching you attempt "quick i(sh) OOB (ish)" will offer lots of opportunity to debate the interpretation such phrases. If your Aus itinerary includes Canberra, would be happy to show you around.

[Ragtag]

Loving how this is shaping up so far, very nice work on the home-made parts!

[bigbadbadge]

Looks phenomenal already,  great job, enjoy your holidays.

Chris

[kitchentable]

You always educate as well as entertain.  Great stuff.  Kitchentable

[phantom61]

nice work Steve...
as usual... meticulous and precise.
it's not my subject...but I follow

 

🤣

 

ciao 

Silvano

[Terry1954]

Welcome back to the BM fold Steve.

 

Shame it's going to be a plain old OOTB build, I was looking forward to some 3D work, and a bit of old school resin casting etc ......... 

 

Love the way this 3D stuff has scaled to 1/72.

 

What more can I say except ............... superb start!

 

T.

[Tomoshenko]

Lovely work Steve and welcome back to the fold. The 3d prints have scaled down to 1/72 beautifully and will look superb with some paint on. And yes pose them naked gun with half a faring (sure there's a film title in there somewhere) as it's a shame to cover up that lovely detail.

[Fritag]

21 hours ago, mark.au said:

This should be fun to follow along not least because watching you attempt "quick i(sh) OOB (ish)" will offer lots of opportunity to debate the interpretation such phrases. If your Aus itinerary includes Canberra, would be happy to show you around.

 

The lack of specificity in the phrasing is not of course accidental.  

 

Aiming to be in Canberra for a few days at the beginning of June, Mark.   Obv’s I am neither in charge of planning, nor even presently aware of the plan  but if the opportunity does present, a coffee would be good? I can PM you nearer the time.

[Navy Bird]

Welcome back. It's nice to know that your definition of OOB is the same as mine.   

 

Cheers,

Bill

[Hamden]

 

Nice to see you back at the bench Steve and your Hurricane has progressed at pace, I'll squeeze in at the back and watch this come together.

 

          Roger

[perdu]

16 hours ago, Navy Bird said:

Welcome back. It's nice to know that your definition of OOB is the same as mine.   

 

Cheers,

Bill

Bill its likely that Steve and I and many others of us developed our definition of OOB from you mate

 

OK Steve, consider me transfixed already...

[Navy Bird]

2 hours ago, perdu said:

Bill its likely that Steve and I and many others of us developed our definition of OOB from you mate

 

You just wait - one of these days I'm actually going to build one out of the box. Really. Well, except for some fiddly photoetch stuff of course. Oh, and maybe some resin or a 3-D printed framicator here and there. I suppose an after market sticker sheet goes without question, eh? But other than that - strictly out of the box.    

 

Cheers,

Bill

[Fritag]

You Bills are as bad as each other 

 

Baby steps today.  Mustn’t rush at it after all…

 

Thinning down the plastic around the underwing gun cut-out so it looks a bit less obviously overscale:

 

 

Probably shave a little more off yet:

 

 

Not really sure why i’m bothering with that; it’s underneath and who's gonna notice; but ol’ habits die hard…

 

Filed, sanded and smoothed the sprue-goo panel line filler.  I mixed it up from Arma plastic, so it bonded and behaved nicely:

 

 

And for the first time in bloomin yonks, the smell of TET permeated the workspace as plastic got glued to plastic…

 

 

I worked out that the naked gun was the correct length whilst the gun barrel peeking out of the pod was too short.  Easily remedied, once I’d remembered how Fusion worked:

 

 

You’ll just have to trust me when I say that piccie shows the lengthened gun barrel… 

 

The rest of the day was spent sorting out Tax and VAT stuff.  Taxman doesn’t care that your having a few months away from work…

 

Was hoping to splash some paint at bits of the the insides tomorrow; which would be unseemingly hasty for me; but I’m also hoping to do some real life aviating - and as I’m rather uncurrent I’d better spend some time trying to remember how to do it - so the paint sloshing may have to wait.

 

 

[mark.au]

36 minutes ago, Fritag said:

Thinning down the plastic around the underwing gun cut-out so it looks a bit less obviously overscale:

I suspect that the cutout would have been boxed or at least braced. I doubt it would have been just the aluminium skin out to the edge of the opening. But, it’s also fair to say I’ve never even played an airframe fitter on tv so hardly a reliable resource on this.

[Terry1954]

A very neat sague back into the modelling world there Steve, I could even smell the TET from down here in Dorset. It's like you've never been away.

 

These Arma Hobby kits are pretty neat jobbies. I have one of their 1/72 Mustangs. Lovely kit.

 

 

40 minutes ago, Fritag said:

but I’m also hoping to do some real life aviating

 

So you are off flying again soon ........... do I sound envious! Hope the ASI does it's job properly this time 😉

 

Enjoy the flight!

 

T.

 

 

[Fritag]

7 hours ago, mark.au said:

I suspect that the cutout would have been boxed or at least braced. I doubt it would have been just the aluminium skin out to the edge of the opening

 

Ha.  I suspect you’re correct, Mark.  But I’m content to assume there would at least be a lip around the opening, with the boxing or bracing set back a little.  Hence the next stage:

 

 

 

Tending towards the Bill² concept of OOB now…

 

 

 

[81-er]

Nice to see you've found some time to grace us with your presence, Steve  The 3d printed bits have scaled nicely to 1/72 too

 

James

[Robin-42]

I was wondering where the ex-Jaguar driver had got to. I had thought the new Airfix Jaguar would lure him out, but he is mum on the subject so far….. In the meantime, the simple little build should be fun.

[Fritag]

Evening peeps,

 

A little progress as I slowly exercise atrophied modelling muscles.

 

Thinned down the plastic around the fuselage hatches, whilst bearing in mind that the hatch edges on the 1:1 are  pretty substantial (I checked, Mark )

 

 

 

 

And the results:

 

 

 

Cockpit bits prepped for painting.

 

Thinned the sides of the seat and drilled out the seat strap cut-out; emphasised the armoured headrest with a razor saw and again drilled out the seat strap cut-out.

 

All the bits had the mould seams scraped orf.

 

 

Going to resist looking at photo’s of the 1:1 cockpit as I don’t want to go down the rabbit hole of detailing the cockpit.  That’s not the purpose of the build.

 

The undercarriage bay is beautifully moulded, and all I’ve added, from thick fuse wire, is the prominent (radiator?) pipe. 

 

 

Printed off what may (I hope) be the final kit of parts for the gun, exhausts and rear fuselage internals.  It’s been a while and I had to download software updates for Fusion and Chitubox and initially my Mars 3 wouldn’t recognise the Chitubox-sliced files.  Bl**dy hate software…

 

 

 

So, now I need to see if my airbrush works.  Hope I cleaned it before sticking it in the cupboard in 2023…

 

 

 

 

Edited April 25 by Fritag

[Troy Smith]

On 23/04/2025 at 06:56, Fritag said:

But I’m content to assume there would at least be a lip around the opening, with the boxing or bracing set back a little.

 

https://youtu.be/rrxT4Lc0W6E

 

link to time of gun being loaded.   Edge of bay not that clear,   but may be of use.

 

Have you got a scheme in mind for this Steve?  Are you going for a 6 Sq options?

I probably linked this before, but AFAIK it fed into the Arma IID kit marking choices

https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235071194-hurricane-iid-6-squadron-leading-edge-wing-stripe-and-some-marking-observations/

 

Great bit of work going on

 

cheers

T

 

[81-er]

Nice work on the plastic bits, and a lovely looking kit of 3d printed ones

 

James

[perdu]

On 25/04/2025 at 20:44, Fritag said:

Bl**dy hate software…

 

Hate away Steve, nevertheless that is another 'Friday Triumph'

 

Radiator pipe?

 

Shucks it made me go back to see whether my Airfix Hurri had one, 

 

Phew relax there was one in the kit...