Supermarine Spitfire Mk.I PR Type B, KP Models 1/72, now Eduard 1/48!

[2996 Victor]

A couple of crappy photos - I was trying to catch the light to reveal the filled panel lines:

The port fuselage half hasn't been sanded/polished yet, and you can clearly see where the panel lines are due to the texture of the PPP being different to the surrounding plastic. Its quite a good effect, I think, but whether it will perpetuate through to final colour coat seems unlikely. There are a few flaws/missed bits to deal with as well......

Wing panels:

Gun access panels for the inboard pairs of Brownings retained as per the IWM photo, and I need to scribe a spanwise line between them for the camera access panel. The various inspection panels have been retained as I reckoned they'd be considered essential for airframe maintenance.

Anyways, next job is to detail and paint the cockpit, and given that these were early airframes I'm going to go with the non-"standard" Supermarine Interior Green (that rhymes!).

More soon with a bit of luck.....

Cheers,
Mark

 

[Vic Balshaw]

Blow you pics up and those panel lines look prity good.

 

[2996 Victor]

Blow you pics up and those panel lines look prity good.

Thanks, Vic, that's very kind of you! I'm hoping it'll look alright under its final coat of Camotint Blue-Grey (aka PRU Blue!).

Cheers,
Mark

 

[Wurger]

 

[36feet10inches]

That's looking great Mark.

If I ever start a band, I'm going to call it Supermarine Interior Green.

 

[Crimea_River]

Good update. I'm curious if the different texture of the PPP ultimately shows through to the finish. I found the stuff at my local hobby shop for 20 bucks which is still a bit steep so I left it there. I may go back and pick it up if the results are favouable.

 

[2996 Victor]

Good update. I'm curious if the different texture of the PPP ultimately shows through to the finish. I found the stuff at my local hobby shop for 20 bucks which is still a bit steep so I left it there. I may go back and pick it up if the results are favouable.

It certainly shouldn't show through if its blended in properly, and when I've used it in the past I've always had good results. I think the panel lines are still visible as its under a thin witness coat of paint and I haven't further sanded /polished that fuselage half. Also, even with the best will in the world I expect I've slightly over-scraped/sanded the PPP and reintroduced a slight concavity where the panel lines are, making them visible again. We'll see what happens when the actual primer is on!

PPP is certainly very easy to use, and for me its ideal as it washes off in water when I make a muck of things. Its also a useful characteristic for cleaning up filling on wing root gaps.

Cheers,
Mark

 

[Gnomey]

Good work so far!

 

[2996 Victor]

Welcome back, dear friends! Here's where the Eduard 1/48 build starts! Hopefully, this one'll reach fruition

Obligatory box and sprue shots:

Apologies for the slightly murky phone camera photos, I need to charge the battery in my proper camera! The second set of mouldings will be set aside for building Pedro Hanbury's 602 Sqn Spitfire Mk.I, one of the box schemes, which will eventually go alongside a 260 Sqn Kittyhawk in his markings.

Time to wash the mouldings

Cheers for now,
Mark

 

[Wurger]

 

[Crimea_River]

Looking forward to it Mark.

 

[Vic Balshaw]

Be great to watch this one grow.

 

[36feet10inches]

The second set of mouldings will be aside for building Pedro Hanbury's 602 Sqn Spitfire Mk.I, one of the box schemes, which will eventually go alongside a 260 Sqn Kittyhawk in his markings.

Great choice. I look forward to seeing your brace of Mk Is come together, and welcome to the world of 1/48 (I've never looked back!). I'm conflicted on whether to do Sailor Malan's or Eric Lock's from the same boxing...

 

[2996 Victor]

Great choice. I look forward to seeing your brace of Mk Is come together, and welcome to the world of 1/48 (I've never looked back!). I'm conflicted on whether to do Sailor Malan's or Eric Lock's from the same boxing...

Thanks, Tony! I must say I'm really impressed with the quality of the mouldings and just how comprehensive the kit is.
I know what you mean about being spoiled for choice, though for preference I tend to choose the lesser known aircraft where possible. Unless there's a specific scheme I have in mind (USAAF Mustangs and Thunderbolts for instance!).
I'm looking forward to making a start!

 

[36feet10inches]

though for preference I tend to choose the lesser known aircraft where possible

On my "big list" I have a handful of aces - Bader, Beurling, Malan or Lock... otherwise aaaaall kinds of stuff on the (distant) horizon...

 

[2996 Victor]

On my "big list" I have a handful of aces - Bader, Beurling, Malan or Lock... otherwise aaaaall kinds of stuff on the (distant) horizon...

The Big Guns, so to speak! I quite like the idea of Bob Doe's Mk.I in the Weekend boxing, and as I said Pedro Hanbury although he went on to become a great fighter leader before his death. So many great subjects, so little cash.....