I was checking out the stash, thinking about the next project… 2010 is the 100th anniversary of the Canadian Navy, and I’ve been sitting on a Hobbycraft 1/48 Seafire for at least 10 years now, it seems an obvious choice. From what I’ve seen in some online reviews, I have some work in my future!! Anybody out there tried one? I know I’ll want some aftermarket replacements (spinner - canopy - cockpit - landing gear and decals are all potentially required), any suggestions?
(I’ve since found a spinner, props & wheels in the spares box from a Hasegawa Mk IX Spitfire - gotta be closer than what’s in the Hobbycraft box…)
Vance, while I cant comment on the seafire, I did purchase an A-4 from hobbycraft last month (1/48 kit for price of a 1/72, what a fool I was) and all I can say is I quickly convinced the missus to let be buy a ‘real’ kit to get back into modeling with, Because after only getting the seat and cockpit basics together showed me it was gonna be putty and scratch hell. Now the kit is in my stash while I ponder to go deep into that nightmare or go AM. Either way should be fun
I also have one of these in the stash, the tricky bits will be those details that you mentioned. Definitely replace that landing gear! Spinner might be OK, but check the props, as for decals…yep, throw the box ones away and start again.
Also, you’ll need to rescribe the surface details around the engine bulges. Hope you have a good build, good luck!
Thanks guys. Yes Konigswolf, I bought the Seafire at a “good price” before I had any idea about the decal quality & detail etc. What can I say, I got drawn in by the “Canadian factor”, wasn’y very easy to find such things when I actually bought it 10 (?) years ago. But one way or the other, I’m building this sucker!
I’ll be stocking up on putty & plastic sheet in the meantime…
One… Build, don’t buy… That said, is theat version one with the tail-“stinger” hook or A-Frame hook?
IIRC, the A-frame arresting gear caused a number of prop-tip “deck-pecking” incidents (Due to the A-frames location being too near the palne’s, CoG), which resulted in no two Seafires having the same-diameter props, because the fitters would simply whack off the damaged portions of the tips, then cut to length and balance…
At any rate, that would result in a unique look for your Seafire, having square-tipped blades, lol… You’ll probably wanna vac-form a canopy too, since the only time it was closed was during flight. Canopies were open and locked to aid in pilot extraction on deck crashes, and egress for ditching and bolters…
Not sure which hook this one has, I’ll have to check that out. Lop them off & re-balance?! Yikes, I’d be worried about the integrity of the whole blade if a piece had been taken off. That’d be an interesting thing to include though, making the rivet-counters something to argue about. I’ve never vac-formed anything, so I’m going to have to learn or buy in that case. I remember seeing a how-to on fixing the exhaust bulges somewhere, I’d like to tackle that on my own for sure.
Yupper, there was a series of photos and a paragraph or two about it in “Wing of Fame” covering the Seafires… I’ll have to dig it up for ya… And you’re right… This’s EXACTLY the kind of stuff I love to hit RCs with right their collective pusses…
speaking of the RCN, I am working on a Hawker sea fury. the really neat part is that I have a real RCN sea fury here in calgary at the museum of the regiments to work off of. as well as a seafire, which in itself is pretty amazing up close…
Nothing around here for museum pieces. But I do have a contact at the airport, this summer I got a heads-up about a Corsair that was stopping for fuel etc, got some great pics & got to listen to that big radial engine - amazing sound! I’ll be doing some scratchbuilding on this one, do you have any pics of the Seafire? Or maybe they have an online gallery you could direct me to?
Got any access to “Wings of Fame”? back issues? I don’t have a scanner, but I can kinda take pictures of pictures…
As for the the other, nah… Not a whiff of their stinkin’ hides… I’ve made contacts with re-enactors regarding the green stuff, and other assorted militaria, but the kits are gonna be goners, I’m sure…
as far as I know, there are no online collections of pictures of these two planes, which also includes an F-101 voodoo in RCN colours. BUT, I am hoping to go there on monday to take some measurements of the five-bladed seafire propeller. so I will take my digi-cam and take some pictures of the airplane. if I manage to get there, is there a particular area you would like the focus to be on?
Hans - can’t say I’ve ever seen a Wings of Fame that I know of. As for the styrene raiders, surely the plastic modeling gods will curse them, ensuring that they lose fingertips to the Xacto knife if they ever try to assemble any of your kits. (Think “curse of the Mummy”, with sprue snippers!)
Longbranch, just sent you a conversation, to save space here. Thanks!
