Supermarine Spitfire F.Mk.XIV (AZ Models)

1
August 13, 2016
The AZ kit is only for experienced "colectors." Good thing I are one!
2
August 13, 2016
I'll use Lacey's SEAC scheme on the left.
3
August 13, 2016
Some photoetch goodies - especially the Marabu cockpit set (upper right).
4
August 13, 2016
Master cannon barrels and Barracuda tyres - what more could you want? Actually, 3-spoke wheels aren't right for this bird.
5
August 13, 2016
Why, a Quickboost prop of course! Designed for Academy, so I hope it fits! And some 4-spoke wheels from SBS.
6
August 13, 2016
The Marabu photoetch cockpit and Yahu instrument panel. Everything is flat!
7
August 13, 2016
Start bending! Rear bulkhead and tread bars on left, seat support on right.
8
August 13, 2016
Seat support and armour plate added, seat folded up nicely!
9
August 13, 2016
After assembly and painting, I think this is much more true to scale than the kit parts.
10
August 13, 2016
Wheel wells added to bottom wing. Several nasty injection stubs ground away.
11
August 13, 2016
I don't like the seam between the wing and the wheel wells.
12
August 13, 2016
Putty is your friend!
13
August 13, 2016
I used my Dremel tool to open up the exhaust area.
14
August 13, 2016
This was necessary for the aftermarket exhausts to fit properly.
15
August 13, 2016
Scratchbuilding a compass for the instrument panel. Tiny little bugger.
16
August 13, 2016
Cockpit painted, installed, and given a wash. Plastic card added to prevent exhausts from pushing through.
17
August 13, 2016
Lacey's Mk.XIV had an extra armour plate behind the headrest - I used a spare photoetch part.
18
August 13, 2016
Hard to see, but the Yahu instrument panel dials are exquisitely detailed.
19
August 13, 2016
Fuselage together, and some filler added to make a flat surface for the spinner.
20
August 13, 2016
I like those exhausts!
21
August 13, 2016
Marabu also provide some nice photoetch radiator screens.
22
August 13, 2016
Wings on!
23
August 13, 2016
Some filler needed, but not too bad.
24
August 13, 2016
I spent some time sanding the carburettor intake so its lip looked authentically thin.
25
August 13, 2016
Master even provide an insert for the .50 calibre machine guns. Excellent!
26
August 13, 2016
Tailplanes on, and wing leading edges drilled out to accept the Master brass parts.
27
August 13, 2016
Radiators added, and no filler required at all.
28
August 13, 2016
The Master brass parts really look nice.
29
August 13, 2016
A close up - can you see the insert in the machine gun?
30
August 13, 2016
I used some card stock to build a well for the tail wheel.
31
August 13, 2016
The kit decals had no light blue in the roundel or fin flash - I'll use these from a Model Alliance sheet.
32
August 13, 2016
Ocean Grey is applied - I use Gunze H75 for this.
33
August 13, 2016
Followed by freehand airbrushing of the Dark Green, Gunze H73.
34
August 13, 2016
To get a nice edge, I used 80% thinner and a #1 needle on my Paasche H airbrush.
35
August 13, 2016
Next I used Gunze H309 to represent the fresher green paint over the ETO roundels.
36
August 13, 2016
The overpainted roundels were done freehand, with no mask.
37
August 13, 2016
I used used a base of Gunze H306 and postshading with several other greys on the underside.
38
August 13, 2016
The overpainted ETO roundels on the bottom of the wing are a bit too big. Oops!
39
August 13, 2016
I love the alignment jigs that Quickboost provide. How else could you get the alignment right?
40
August 13, 2016
Five-bladed props exude power just looking at them.
41
August 13, 2016
A Sky fuselage band (Gunze H74), a coat of Future, and the stickers go on!
42
August 13, 2016
The stencils came from an aftermarket decal sheet by Aviaeology.
43
August 13, 2016
With a magnifying glass, you can read those stencils, too!
44
August 13, 2016
Marabu include new gear doors in their photoetch set. Better than the kit parts, I think.
45
August 13, 2016
Landing gear scissor links also from Marabu.
46
August 13, 2016
I finally found someone I can vote for this year! Oh, and the control column too.
47
August 13, 2016
Flat varnish and some more post shading.
48
August 13, 2016
Post shading was done with highly thinned H338 Light Grey and H95 Smoke Grey.
49
August 13, 2016
She's done! Chips were done with a silver prismatic pencil. Pastels were applied to the tyres and exhaust.
50
August 13, 2016
Even though the outer machine gun bays were empty, photos of SEAC Spitfire XIVs show the red doped patches.
51
August 13, 2016
Coming at ya!
52
August 13, 2016
The windscreen came from the kit, the mirror from Marabu, and the rest of the canopy from Falcon.
53
August 13, 2016
The whip aerial is a piece of 0.005" Nitinol wire.
54
August 13, 2016
55
August 13, 2016
56
August 13, 2016
57
August 13, 2016
The only panel line wash was for the control surfaces.
58
August 13, 2016
59
August 13, 2016
60
August 13, 2016
61
August 13, 2016
A family portrait with the Airfix Mk.I and the Revell Mk.Vb.
62
August 13, 2016
The man himself, Sqn. Ldr. James "Ginger" Lacey (in a different Spitfire).
63
August 13, 2016
Plus, he liked to build model airplanes in the dispersal hut!

Comments

1 13 August 2016, 02:26

Bill Gilman
Hi mates - I've uploaded photos of my latest build. This was a quick little project to build the 1:72 AZ Models Supermarine Spitfire F.Mk.XIV in the markings of Ginger Lacey. By the time I got around to creating this photo album, the model was finished, so this is the first time that I've documented an entire build, start to finish, all at once. The kit needed some aftermarket to improve the details, but all told it went together nicely. Enjoy the photos! Cheers, Bill

13 August 2016, 03:37

Choppa Nutta
Really nice work Bill,
love the PE work and the group shot, lovely work 🙂

13 August 2016, 03:48

Hanno Kleinecke
Masterly done, as always Bill ! Especially the cockpit is absolutely stunning. Really hard to believe it`s not 1/48 ! 👍 👍

13 August 2016, 06:53

Mats Bengtsson
What a beautiful Spitfire. It is always a pleasure to watch your builds Bill.

13 August 2016, 09:38

Soeren R.
Wonderful work"

13 August 2016, 10:17

scalemates
well done Bill! 👍

13 August 2016, 12:55

Spanjaard
wow, really nice build. great detail, nicelly done. it looks certainly like 1/48 rahter than 1/72

13 August 2016, 13:06

Bill Gilman
Thanks, mates!

These older AZ Spitfire kits sometimes get some bad reviews, but I found it to be a typical build. I've read that the kit is somewhat under-scale, and that may be - particularly in the wingspan which is a mm or two less than the Airfix XIX. But the firewall to rudder post dimension seems to match the Airfix XIX kit almost exactly. And you certainly can't tell any wingspan difference when I posed the three kits for the group shot.

I really like that group shot, by the way. You can really see the differences just in those three marks, let alone the entire Spitfire line. Eventually, I'll have a kit of every mark, right? 🙂

13 August 2016, 13:47

Jens
👍 👍 👍 🙂

13 August 2016, 14:43

Stefan Schacht
very nice model 👍

13 August 2016, 14:44

Taarna Eckart
Nice build, Bill!!

13 August 2016, 15:18

Roy McKenzie
very nice build

13 August 2016, 18:04

Christian Bruer
Very nice and detailed work - well done👍

13 August 2016, 18:32

Es-haq Khosravi
Excellent job Bill!

13 August 2016, 20:50

Holger Kranich
Ah, uncle Bill has been at the bench again! I like These griffon engined Spittys! Again a masterpiece from the "garbage plate"! 🙂

17 August 2016, 13:13

Album info

This build will use the AZ Models kit along with several aftermarket parts to model one of the SEAC Spitfires flown by Sqn. Ldr. James "Ginger" Lacey, one of the highest scoring British aces of WWII.

Supermarine Spitfire F.Mk.XIV RN135 Ginger Lacey

63 images

1:72

Completed

1:72 Supermarine Spitfire F.Mk 14e (AZmodel AZS7205)

1:72 Supermarine Spitfire Mk.IX (Marabu M72014)

1:72 Supermarine Spitfire E wing late - Hispano 20mm & .50cal in fairings (Master AM-72-006)

Supermarine Spitfire Mk.XIVe

Royal Air Force (1918-now)
No. 17 Sqn. RN135/YB-A (Sqn.Ldr. J. H. Ginger Lacey)
1945

All albums

View all albums »