Jump to content

Tamiya Spitfire MK IX- Battle of Britain


Recommended Posts

You're absolutely right Shaka. It definitely simplifies the build and lets me leave out a lot of painting and assembly.  I figure I've two already with fully painted and assembled engines so I'd save myself some work.

 

A small update for the moment.

I've cleaned up the inside of the fuselage in the cockpit area of ejector pin marks and started painting the various cockpit pieces.

 

IMG_20160317_231725.jpg

 

IMG_20160318_150210.jpg

 

I've given them a quick wash and after a dry brush, I'll start the detail painting.

 

IMG_20160318_151321.jpg 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nice fix on the wing bulges!! Just a heads up, i've repaired holes using this method, found the repaired area shrunk and caused a sink mark long after it appeared hard. Those movable surfaces reminded me of the early Trumpeter kits, was suprised to see them on a Tamiya kit. Interested to see how the engine/panel assembly fits to the fuselage.

 

Dob

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nice fix on the wing bulges!! Just a heads up, i've repaired holes using this method, found the repaired area shrunk and caused a sink mark long after it appeared hard. Those movable surfaces reminded me of the early Trumpeter kits, was suprised to see them on a Tamiya kit. Interested to see how the engine/panel assembly fits to the fuselage.

 

Dob

 

Don, thanks for the heads up on the possible shrinkage. I'll keep an eye on it. Hopefully since the styrene blank i glued in was mostly flush, there won't be any shrinkage or very little. 

 

 

Nice work Carl.

Omitting the engine or rather, closing it in, certainly helps the build progress. I did the same on a P-51D a while ago.

 

Nice job on the cockpit components.

 

Cheers.

 

Guy, it has certainly accelerated the build quite a bit. I'm still working on the cockpit but once it's done, I think it'll go even faster.

 

Carl

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks Maru!

 

I've made more progress on the build. I assembled the rest of the cockpit components starting with the seat bulkhead.

 

IMG_20160321_221341.jpg

 

I used fabric belts made by Wako. The instructions were a bit unclear but after reading the ones included with their deluxe set, I was able to figure them out.

 

I then built the IP bulkhead and side panels.

 

IMG_20160324_221805.jpg

 

 

All together:

 

IMG_20160324_225344.jpg

 

IMG_20160324_225401.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Which meant it was time to close up the fuselage halves.

 

IMG_20160324_230223.jpg

 

After this dried, I gave the seams a quick sanding. There are a couple small gaps to fill but Mr Surfacer 500 well take care of them nicely.

 

IMG_20160325_142015.jpg

 

 

The fuselage bone is connected to the wing bone...

 

IMG_20160325_142640.jpg

 

...and it's starting to look like a Spitfire.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On a slightly unrelated note, has anyone used the Masterdetails pilot figure in their Spitfire build? I'm concerned about the pilot's size, in particular his height. Here's the torso compared to the Tamiya kit pilot:

 

IMG_20160314_215253.jpg

 

The chute pack is shaped to fit into the kit seat but when you do so, he's still quite a bit taller.

 

Masterdetails pilot:

 

IMG_20160314_215611.jpg

 

Tamiya pilot:

 

IMG_20160314_215631.jpg

 

Any thoughts? Should I trim the chute pack and/or seat down a bit and get him to sit lower? Or will he fit OK?

 

 

Carl

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd be tempted to trim the parachute pack till he fits well, but it depends on which is the better figure from the moulding point of view; the crisper the moulding to easier the figure is to paint in my experience.

Max

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dennis, so I tried with his head on and the canopy won't close. So I guess I'll have to do some trimming.

 

Max, the Masterdetails figure is in tropical dress and will be for a MK VIII build. As well, the detail is quite nice and better than the Tamiya one. I was just surprised by the size difference.

 

Carl

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Carl

Terrific work on the front office.

Keep 'em coming

Peter

 

 

Thanks Peter! I've definitely been able to doesn't sound good at the bench today so I'll post an update shortly.

 

Confused? Build will include pilot? What about those wonderful belts?

Hi Shaka, the pilot is for another build. I had this one together so I thought I would check the fit of the pilot before I tackle that build. I have a Tamiya Mk VIII I want to build in-flight. Since I plan to do it as Grey Nurse,a pilot figure in tropical flight gear is more appropriate which the Masterdetails one is.

 

So I'm just thinking ahead. Sorry to confuse you.

 

Carl

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So, while waiting for the fuselage and wings to dry, I put together the tailplanes,rudder and prop.

 

IMG_20160325_184649.jpg

 

I then attached the rudder and tailplanes to the fuselage. Again, I just glued them directly on and eliminated the PE hinges and rods.

 

IMG_20160325_210656.jpg

 

For the first time,I ended up with some fit issues regarding the engine cowls. I'm not sure what happened so I decided the best approach was to start with the lower cowl. This has the most positive mount to the fuselage so I glued that on first.

 

IMG_20160325_212548.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...