This is another one that I feel I should know off the top of my head, but don’t. Who makes the best 1/48 Spitfire. I just realized I haven’t built one in more than ten years, and I want to do one of the early ones, anywhere from a Spit 1 to a Vb. And suggestions, as always, will be most appreciated.
I got the idea after a volume of the hardbound edition of Osprey’s SCALE WARPLANES, Vol. I, which covers the Spitfire and the Bf-109, fell into my hands. If you aren’t familiar with them they are really fine books to have. They have everything from color walk-around photos, to kit historys, to aftermarket parts, and how to build up to about five different versions of the plane, using AM, or fairly simple scratchbuilding techniques, or OOB. And the normal softbound versions (mine are Mil. Book Club editions) dont’ cost much more than a D&S volume . (I also wound up with SCALE ARMOR I and II. (Vol. I covers the M4 Sherman and the PzKpfw VI Tiger Tanks, and Vol. II covers the Panther IV and Panther V tanks, which means little to me, since I’m ignorant of tanks, and I haven’t tackled armor yet, after 30-odd years of modeling. But this book inspires me to try a Sherman when it’s feasible.)
Thanks
Tom
For a 1/48 Mk.I Spitfire, the Tamiya kit is the best IMHO. For a Mk. V, some prefer the Hasegawa kit, while others prefer the Tamiya. I’ve built several of each & prefer the Tamiya, but they both have strong & weak points. For either kit there is a ton of AM Resin, PE & decals available. You can’t go wrong with either.
Regards, Rick
Set your sights a little higher, “my kingdom for a 1:1 scale Spitfire”!
Both, the Hasagawa and the Tamiya kits look very good. Do one of each. rangerj
Can’t afford to do both, yet. What I do have is the Waldron Spitfire set, which includes, among other things, all the cockpit placards. But no seat or structural parts. So I need an affordable AM update set as well. But my ace in the hole, if I don’t screw it up, is this Waldron set with the extremely finely-etched PE throttle quadrant and some other tiny cockpit details. The throttle quadrant is about the size and shape if you took a dime and cut it into quarters (a triangle with a rounded top.) It has no fewer than a dozen parts, and I’m going to have to come up with some kind of magnifying source to try and construct it. I have the 1/32 set, too, and I wish I had a kit so I could do that one first, since it is larger (but still really tiny – imagine a 1/48 or 1/32 human hand in relation to the size of the throttle), before tackling the microscopic 1/48 parts. The little levers even work, and you’re supposed to connect throttle and mixture levers to tiny lengths of stiff wire representing the throttle/mixture connections to the engine. The instructions show a teensy-weensy jig you have to make from a base of sheet plastic with three thin pieces of wire sticking up through it in a triangle pattern. They fit through what would be the bolt holes on the corners on the inner and outer covers that hold together the throttle quadrant. Anyway, I’ve given you more than you wanted to know here. This is one that begs for a digital camera and a good macro lens, which I won’t be buying real soon, I don’t think.
Tom
Don’t forget the microscope w/light to enable people to see all of that detail. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a hobby and the real joy is doing it the way you want it done. Personally, I find it tedious to do all that work and close it up where it can’t been seen. Yeah, you know it’s there and you’ll explain it and watch their eyes glaze over.
I guess that’s why they make so many kits; you get to do it your way.[2c]
No, didfal, if it was going to be invisible I certainly wouldn’t do it “because I’ll know it’s there.” I consider that a waste of my money, my time, and what precious little talent the Good Lord gave me. Actually, the throttle quadrant will be quite visible, especially with the side door in the down position to cast a little more light upon it. As for how much work goes into this throttle quadrant, there will be some element of “I’ll know, at least.” But other modelers will certainly know at a glance. And I’m guessing – again, if I don’t screw it up – they’ll want to know how to get hold of their own. It is truly a unique model product. (No, I don’t work for Waldron, and I think some of their stuff is grossly overpriced, though their level of craftsmanship is at the top of the game. They make it very clear they don’t cater to beginning modelers, or to people who want a quick-and-dirty build.)
To further the point, I use Waldron’s Luftwaffe rudder pedals, which are made out of thin, stamped stainless steel. No PE fret, no folding. Just a little vial stuck to a card containing a pair of shiny, tiny, foot-shaped rudder pedals with mounting studs on the back. In other words, they come in 3-D, not flat. And they are beautiful to those of us modelers who appreciate that kind of stuff. But I don’t use them in planes where they can’t be seen, which is difficult with rudder pedals. But they are too nice, and certainly too pricey, to be hidden. Certainly perfect for, say, an He-111, where the rudder pedals are hanging out in midair, right in the middle of the glass nose. Can that ProModeler kit still be had?
You can see the rudder pedals? Up under the instruments, with the halves closed? In 1/48th scale? You Go Guy![bow][bow][bow]
Yep. I first noticed it when I was working at Confederate Air Force, and I was standing under that big greenhouse nose of the El Bombero de Espana (my little nickname for it) He-111 one day in the hangar. Looked up, and there they were, sticking out in front of everything were the rudder pedals. I can’t imagine what it must have belt like for pilots flying through British flak. Very naked and vulnerable, I would imagine…
I built the Tamiya 1/48 spitfire mk 1 kit last year. Used the Waldron placards, squadron’s bulged wheels and Eduards PE set. The Tamiya kit fits well, dosen’t leave a bunch of heavy duty seam work (some, but the wings & elevators fit real good).
I really liked the kit, quality manufacturing counts! If you want to go real nuts[banghead] get a mk V and open the wing panels and put in resin gunbays. Engine too, it’s all available. I think the Eduard PE set is 13 to 16 bucks oh yeah it comes with flaps if you want to drop those (I did, not too hard of a job) I also saw advertised PE flaps for spitfire and bought a set not knowing they came with the main set[D)] . Have fun… G.L.