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1/24 Airfix RCAF Mustang IV…finally done


R Palimaka

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20 hours ago, Anthony in NZ said:

That is absolutely superb!  You have really taken the 'toy-like' look out of this kit and really refined her.  Just beautiful!  Still makes me want to do one to go with my 24th Mossie project....

Thank you so much Anthony! I guess I got a lot of hours of "fun" out of the initial investment. :) I would love to see you do a Mustang as well...Oldmodels from NZ have two sets of 1/24 scale RNZAF Mustang decals available...just saying. Keep at your other projects though!

 

19 hours ago, LSP_Kevin said:

Fantastic result, Richard!

 

Kev

Thanks Kevin! "Ready for Inspection" photos next weekend!

 

10 hours ago, MikeMaben said:

:speak_cool:

 

Thanks for looking in again Mike!

 

Richard

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12 hours ago, scvrobeson said:

It looks fantastic!  You should be really proud of yourself for taking on that kit, and producing such a fine replica at the end of it.

 

 

 

Matt 

 

Thank you so much, I appreciate it coming from you! For a fifty-year old kit, it was a Forest Gump "box of chocolate", they included a surprising amount of detail, and omitted so much to accommodate the working features. I enjoyed every minute. At least Airfix seems to have actually looked at a Mustang when they designed it.

 

7 hours ago, dodgem37 said:

Bravo!  Inspirational.  Great show!

 

Sincerely,

Mark

 

Thank you Mark. I would do it again...in fact I am. Love the Mustang! 

 

Richard

 

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  • 6 months later...

Haven't been very active here for months, life and other issues got in the way. Had some time over Christmas and New Year, and with Omicron requiring working remotely from home, I thought I should finish the last bits to go on the Mustang, so I can finally call it done.

 

...but first, another distraction.:)  I bought the superb AIMS 1/24 FAA/RAF pilot figure, and the flying gear closely matched a colour photo I have of an RCAF Mustang pilot, so I thought that I would tackle that first. It will provide some scale for the Mustang, and a bit of "life". The figure itself is excellent...crisply moulded and sharp features that are easily painted. If you have a post-war Commonwealth aircraft subject in 1/24 scale ( I know, not exactly thick on the ground ) that needs a pilot, you need to order this one. I may order one more just to have another crack at it.

 

Here is the progress so far. I've never painted a figure before, and found acrylics aren't very good at blending. I found laying down thin coats of very thinned paint built up the depth in a convincing (to me) manner. Skin...still not happy with that but I'm going to leave it alone. There are still some bits of equipment and hoses, ties, and straps to paint but I'm pleased so far. It needs to be matte coated to make the fabric look more natural, and less shiny and wet looking. 

 

The map he's holding is a copy of a vintage military air navigation map I found online and reduced it to scale size and printed it. Funny enough, it's of southern Ontario and the Great Lakes from 1952, which would have been the area 424 Squadron would have been flying over. 

 

bSzAMuHl.jpg

 

The head also has a separate mask with dangling straps and oxygen hose, which I haven't painted yet. Still needs a bit of refinement...

 

C2Tl6Vxl.jpg

 

Anyway, I'm not dead, just been very busy the last few months. I need to catch up on all the fabulous work you've all been doing!

 

Richard

Edited by R Palimaka
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  • R Palimaka changed the title to 1/24 Airfix RCAF Mustang IV…just finish the darn thing, would you!?
8 hours ago, Wolf Buddee said:

Beautiful Mustang!

 

……..and done in just the right markings. I love the spiral on the spinner!

 

Cheers,

Wolf

 

Thank you Wolf, means a lot coming from you.

 

I've always loved 424 Squadron's markings, ever since I first saw Dennis Bradley's restored Mustang in the early 1980s. 

 

Richard

 

 

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  • R Palimaka changed the title to 1/24 Airfix RCAF Mustang IV…finally done

So a show, Heritagecon in Hamilton, Ontario at the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum, finally convinced me to finish this project after five years. It was a race to the finish as it was a last minute decision to enter. 

 

The major stumbling block was drilling the hole in the canopy for the antenna wire, which caused me all kinds of problems. I was hesitant to do it after all the work to get it clear, but in the end it was fine. The next step was to create the roller mechanism inside the canopy, one of the two types on the Mustang. The wire itself is beading wire, which can be bought at Michael's. It's very flexible but not stretchy if that makes sense. It consists of extremely fine wire braided and covered with clear plastic, and looks very authentic. The insulators were made from beads of white glue. In the end it wasn't all that bad, but the fear of ruining the canopy made me hesitate...for months. :huh:

 

The two types of roller mechanisms/pulleys, for those that might find it interesting.

9253 had the second type (figure 6):

DY4IFrel.png

 

How it all turned out:

 

TZbIiWSh.jpg

 

And the final addition was the spike antenna under the starboard wing:

 

46tNhKYh.jpg

 

RIchard

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Some photos from the show, which was held on March 27. I didn't expect to win anything but it was fun to enter and talk LSPs with others. I'll get some proper RFI photos once I get a spot set up.

 

beg1wOzh.jpg

 

SdVX0lWh.jpg


And the pilot which I was quite happy with. It's the AIMS FAA pilot converted to an RCAF pilot from the 1950s.

HisfARph.jpg

 

More finished photos soon.

 

Richard 

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14 hours ago, LSP_Kevin said:

Congrats on getting the build finished, Richard! It has turned out amazingly well, and you should be justifiably proud of your results, prize-winner or not!

 

Kev

Thank you so much Kev! Finally! A bit late for the group build from 2016! Although I’ve started another 1/24 Airfix Mustang, I’m going to put it aside for a bit to do something out of the box and much easier. :)

13 hours ago, Uncarina said:

Really nice work Richard! Well done, and a great subject aircraft.

 

Cheers,  Tom

Thanks Tom, it’s been a labour of love. I’m a bit obsessed with RCAF Mustangs. 

11 hours ago, themongoose said:

Beautiful build! Love the eyes on your pilot, very realistic looking kinda sideways. Congrats on the big finish and getting your girl to the show!

Thanks! It felt good to get pushed to finish her. The figure kit itself is brilliant and easy to paint, and the eyes are molded so even a rookie like me could do a decent job. 

2 hours ago, crobinsonh said:

Great build of an old model.

Thank you! For a fifty-year old kit it still looks great with a bit ( i.e.huge ) amount of work. 

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