I’ve always wanted to try a desert scheme “tropical” Spitfire. Its a subject I’ve never done. I got the 1/48 Tamiya Spitfire MK.Vb “Trop” at Hobby Lobby a few years back (when they still sold the good stuff…remember that?..shame) with a 40% off coupon. I have since accumulated some Ultracast goodies, to include a seat, 20 mm Hispano cannon barrels, and wheels. I also managed to procure the Victory Productions “Aces of the Empire” Spitfire decal sheet which has 40 Spits. There are several MK. Vb Trop subjects to choose from. So here I go. If it’s anything like their MK, I kit, I’m in for a treat. Ahh…the things I really enjoy in life…my family, catching drunk drivers, and building Spitifres (that order).
I started with some minor surgery. These two braces or whatever they are should not be there. They are apparently a post war phenomenon (Edit…apparently they were on some combat versions…I was misinformed). The cannons will be hacked off in favor of the Ultracast versions which are much more detailed.
I carved these off and sanded the area smooth. This was actually easier than it looked.
Other than an Ultracast seat, the cockpit will be out of the box. I don’t think its half bad and the Instrument panel is nicely done with alot of raised detail, but theres no gauges…just circles??. I just wish they offered a decal for it. I will continue to practice my lackluster drybrushing here. I used XF-71 cockpit green mixed with a touch of XF-66 Light Grey. To me this formula is great for RAF Interior Grey-Green. The seat was done with XF-7 Flat Red mixed with XF-64 Red Brown to simulate that bakelite resin used for the seats.
Since my MK. IX build, I have learned that from the rear seat armor bulkhead back was NMF. I represented that with Alclad Aluminum. After a Detailer wash, here’s were I’m at.
Joe, the Spitfire is probably my favourite aircraft (for the allied side anyways) and I expect nothing less than perfect on this one - and it looks like you are well on your way.
Without actual photos representing the exact subject you are modelling, you are correct to remove those pair of “braces”. Their more proper names are wing stiffeners or reinforcing strakes. They were used during the war, but were post factory additions as it was found the wing was weak in this area.
If interested, a more in depth discussion can be found here:
Thanks Jack. Double thanks about the “stiffeners” info. That should serve me right for acting like I know what I’m talking about. Interestingly, that link you posted mentions where I heard those stiffeners were post war. I now remember Brett Green over at Hyperscale saying they were a “museum feature” which stuck out in my memory over the years. That said, I still don’t like them so I’m glad I shaved them off.
Wow, Lawdog. You work fast. I like that cockpit. Nice pic Antoni. Is that a V though? I’m think the only way to say for sure is to find a pic of the exact a/c you are modeling to see if the stiffners were added. And that can be a challenge.
I do appreciate your vast knowledge on the Spit, it’s your etiquette I had to scratch my head about. I understand I am not an expert in the Spitfire nor do I claim to be, but I take issue with being told my ideas or reasoning on something is “complete nonsense”. I normally don’t mind being corrected when its done in good taste. I show other modelers respect in this forum so I would appreciate the same in return. This was enough for me to actually spend some time and dig up Green’s article where he apparently erroneously stated the “Strakes” (or whatever they’re called) were a “museum feature”. I think Brett Green is a fantastic modeler and his work is usually the first thing I seek for as inspiration on a subject, especially when it comes to the Spitfire or Messerschmitt. Aside from all this, the strakes still look stupid and I’m glad I shaved them off. Here’s Green’s article for those who are interested.
Here’s an idea for instrument gauges in your cockpit the for the next time you run into a dash with no gauges. Make instrument decals with a laser printer? Ink jets are no good at that size. You can print black on white decal paper and cut or punch them out, or you can print black on clear, and paint the back of the gauges white.
I’ll be watching this one closely Joe, as I don’t normally do WWII and happen to have a Tamiya 1/32 Mk.XVI Spit in the build que (for my dad - it’s his favorite aircraft). You’re off to a fine start!
Thanks for all the compliments. Chris…great idea, but I’m way too lazy for that though. Perhaps in a bigger scale that would be beneficial. Waldron punches are very expensive too. Speaking of the Instrument panel, I’m actually pretty happy with how it turned out. I drybrushed it with Floquil Old Silver and then picked out some buttons and such with red and yellow paint on a toothpick tip. I gave it a Detailer wash then a dullcoat. I finished off by adding 5 minute epoxy to the lenses to simulate glass.
I did get to the airframe together which more or less built itself. These Tamiya Spits have to be some of the best fitting kits out there and are a joy to build. This literally took about an hour and I’m being generous. A little trick, use a silver Sharpie to check your seams. Any areas that need work will stick out like a sore thumb. No wing root issues either. Theres a slot that joins the two surfaces which prevents this from being a problem.
I then added a panel line preshading before I got to te paint scheme Ever since I switched to using Tamiya Lacquer thinner to thin my Tamiya paint, I’ve found that primer is really not needed. This stuff just has a great “bite” to it. I do still prime sometimes, especially under a NMF finish.
From the Victory Productions sheet, I decided on a 92nd Squardon MK. Vb flown by Neville Duke in Lybia in '43. This plane sported the “Vokes” air filter (which I hate…talk about killing the lines of a Spitfire) . It also carried the Tropical schem of Midstone and Dark Earth over Azure Blue, which will be a first for me. I started with Tamiya’s formula for the Azure Blue, which called for XF-2 Flat White and a little bit of XF-18 Medium Blue then a touch of X-16 Purple. I’m no expert here but I don’t think it turned out too shabby. I added condensation streaks then the control surfaces were then lightened.
Next I added a postshade of diluted XF-64 mixed with XF-69 NATO Black (I keep this pre mixed in a glass jar for convenience). This adds another dimension and gives it that war-weary" look I’m always trying to achieve. I’m just not into museum or air show subjects. I like them dirty. This is about right but it may get dirtier later…
I should get to the upper surfaces soon. Stay tuned…
Joe , impeccable work on the cockpit. Not sure what happened to your azure mix, seems to have lost all of it’s bluish-purple hue and is grey? Still, the pre-shading and all looks great.
