Hello folks,
I figured I’d share may latest project. It’s been quite awhile since I’ve done a Battle of Britain subject. I decided to have another go at the new tooled Airfix Hurricane Mk. I.
I’d be hard pressed to find a more interesting subject than the cover art machine, so I figured I’d chose this option. It’s 501 Squadron Ken Mackenzie’s Hurricane, serial number V6799. On October 7th, 1940, Mackenzie ran out of ammunition so he used his wingtip to knock the tail plane off a Bf 109 sending it plummeting. He then managed to land the stricken Hurricane with a damaged wing, earning the nickname “Super Mack”. Mackenzie would score 11.5 before being shot down and POW’ed himself in 1941. I read that he spent most of his time trying to escape and even managed to convince his captors that he was crazy, so he was released on 1944!.
As I said, I built this one when it first came out. The only thing I remember was that it’s better than the Hasegawa kit, which I also built years ago. I started with the pit, which is quite nice. My formula for RAF cockpits consists of XF-71 Cockpit Green with a few drops of XF-19 Sky Grey added so it leans more into the grey area. I added some Eduard belts from the stash.
Airscale decals take care of the instruments.
Wing spars ensure proper positioning of the cockpit to the lower wing. It’s also integrated in with the landing gear bay.
I had this together in no time. The fit was great.
I deflected the control surfaces. I always do this when I can.
In general, I hate RAF roundel decals. They’re big, clumsy and I find then dfficult to snuggle down. I decided a long time ago it’s easier to paint them on. I figured I’d use Montex for these then the kit decals for the fuselage codes and such. I was fortunate to discover that Montex offers this exact subject, so I jumped on them. When they arrived, I spent several hours painting and masking. It was tedious but worth it.
The fuselage was sprayed XF-19 Sky Grey before I added the SD-X masks.
Once I had all the markings painted in and taped off, I started on the underside “Sky Type S”, or whatever they called it (It’s my understanding there’s a duck egg bluish color too, but I prefer this color better). My “recipe” for this consists of XF-21 Sky, with a few drops of XF-7 Flat Yellow, and a few drops of XF-19 Sky Grey. I then added some white for fading and streaking. After it was all said and done it looks like this. I will weather it heavily with a postshade later.
I ran out of time. I’ll go topside on this turkey soon.
