Supermarine Spitfire Mk.Vb
I wanted to do this Spitfire out of the box, but the back needed some help. I made an "A" frame out of styrene to connect the seatbelts to. The kit just had an ugly half bar. Getting the curve of the A to fit the fuselage was a nice challenge.
I decided not to use the decal for the cockpit. I might try parts of it cut up tomorrow but using the whole thing wasn't to my liking.
Old school cockpit details
I scratch built the crossbar, "A" frame and seatbelts. Kinda fiddly at 1:72.
The back wheel needed to be reinforced with a steel pin or it would have broken off. I reshaped the wheel joint by carving the super glue.
The wings did not align and left a bad gap that I filled with super glue and sanded down. I had to be careful to work around the raised elements on the engine hub.
I had to fill some seams around the wing joints with super glue and do some difficult sanding.
Ok, after a bit of effort I got this crappy canopy on. It didn't fit at all and I had to add styrene to fill the gaps. I wanted to have it open but it's not possible due to the shape of the "clear" plastic. Oh, and it has a small air bubble from when they cast it.
Primer went down today, revealing a few seams and scratches that need to be worked out.
Filled, sanded down and ready for a second coat of primer.
More sanding. Repaired panel lines. Added a Morris code light on top. Almost there.
Got the belly painted today.
A little bit of avocado color for the undercarriage.
Undercarriage color came out clean
The first phase of the camouflage paint job is done. Just a million more steps to go.
Apparently I didn't stir my paint well enough because there were glossy spots that came off when I rubbed them with a wet cotton bud. I've sanded it even with 2000 grit sandpaper and will try again. I hope I don't have to strip the whole paint job.
I decided that rather than messing around with trying to make something work that isn't working, I would start over. Some alcohol removed most of the problematic paint.
Ok, Shit happens. Not only did the horizontal stabilizer break off, but so did the back wheel and the tail mast. Major surgery was required when I am supposed to be dealing with surface work. 🙁
Sometimes it's better to just say f*ck it and get naked.
New primer
Tried 3rd generation paints. They seem to work.
New paint on the underside.
Starting to look like a plane.
I scratch built an antenna stand.
Decals are on and the first stage of weathering complete.
Decals are on and the first stage of weathering complete.
Completed
Completed
Completed
Completed
Completed
Boxed up and ready for the wall.
Comments
61 19 March 2023, 17:36
SkyhikerAnyone know why some paints turn glossy when they are supposed to be matt?
31 March 2023, 07:58
SkyhikerOk, today is not my day. Both the horizontal stabilizer and the back wheel just broke off. F**k!!!
31 March 2023, 08:48
Alessandro PettinacciHello skywalkeer, may i ask what brand paints did you use and if you used an airbrush or paintbrush?
Also, don't get frustrated, a hobby is supposed to be fun 🙂 stuff happens all the time
31 March 2023, 09:46
Живко ДжаковThe paint thing is an interesting topic. It happened to me that glossy paint remained matte. And not everywhere. Somewhere they explained that this happens with dyes that are small in the bottle and cannot be mixed well.
31 March 2023, 09:53
Alessandro PettinacciItv could also be due to incorrect mixing and high pressure? (assuming you're using an airbrush)
31 March 2023, 10:27
SkyhikerI was using Tamiya with Mr leveling fluid and an Iwata airbrush. Same as I normally do. I think the paint just didn't get mixed enough.
31 March 2023, 10:45
SkyhikerI remember when I started with Revell enamels that the anthracite color was notorious for turning glossy and never drying. But I have never had that happen with Tamiya acrylics before.
31 March 2023, 11:03
SkyhikerThanks Nicolas, I finally got tired of mixing my own paint and went out and bought a decent set of colors. I still have to adjust to the different acrylic but I think the 3rd generation paints will work out well for my needs.
13 January, 20:46
SkyhikerFinally completed!!! I did some scratch building to make the antenna and mirror. Let me know what you think.
15 January, 22:38
Thomas Bischoffnice spit - I have this one in 1:48 and I appreciate also your high mirror, just like the original 👍
26 January, 19:37
SkyhikerNicolas I started putting my models in frames, as a temporary solution to keep the dust off of them, after I found a model on my shelf covered with an inch (2cm) of dust. The mirror I stuck underneath the plane because I wanted to be able to see the bottom of the plane. Some day I hope to have enough room to make a proper display case with dramatic lighting, but for now the frames will have to do. They are pretty versatile but have some draw backs. Acrylic cases would be better because then I could see more of the plane, but I can't afford that. The frames are 7 times cheaper to make.
27 January, 14:07
SkyhikerThomas, thanks for the compliment. The canopy mirror from the kit was just a dumb little bump that I ended up sanding off. I replaced it with a cut down needle and some styrene after looking at photos of the original plane. It was hard to find vintage photos but eventually I came across a few. I think it came out pretty well considering the 1/72 scale. Of course photo-etch would have been better but I couldn't be bothered with that. I just wanted to finally get it done.
27 January, 14:17
