Skypirate's Hideaway

[Migrant]

Lovely paintwork on both David, that F-4 looks especially tasty. Are you using enamels?

[ShaunW]

Lovely paintwork on both David, that F-4 looks especially tasty. Are you using enamels?

+1 from me as well David, those two are looking excellent.

[skypirate]

Yes, Xtracolour gloss enamels are my preferred paints. I have started substituting Humbrol where I must, since my supplies of Xtracolour is dwindling.

Some work to show on the old Airfix Hurricane:



Evergreen styrene used to add a bar for the pilot to sit on, plus fine strip shims to widen the nose to accept the slightly wider replacement spinner, plus a new internal plate which will be drilled for the new propeller shaft. More styrene is reinforcing the plate in the extreme nose. The propeller blades are glued to the back plate of the spinner, and those iffy joins are reinforced with superglue (the spinner will not add any strength to those joins).

Plus I have shown some decal bits which I can use if the original decals are too far gone. The replacement squadron codes are from an old Almark sheet and may be prone to splinter in water. Both FJ-C and FJ-B are Mk.IVs documented with 164 Sqn in September 1943.

Thanks,

David

[ShaunW]

Great to see the old Hurricane underway David. Old decals can often blight a classic kit build IMHO and I nearly always try to replace then nowadays with more modern replacements. That said, some old decals can be remarkably resilient to the passing of time and behave themselves admirably!

[skypirate]

Approximately 55 years after my first build of this 1956 kit, here is another example taking shape.
The complete wing being offered up under the fuselage leaves considerable gaps all round, which I have filled with styrene strip in advance of model filler.



2 of the prop blades did not survive the handling. Maybe those blades and that spinner/backplate, all from the spares box, were not out of the same kit. I certainly can't remember.



You can see how the nose has been widened a fraction to match the new spinner better.
I have added a couple of rocker cover bumps. You can see the original soft 'panel lines' on this original kit. That's the way it was in 1956! Just a few lines around the cockpit and on the wings have been scribed. The wings had similar soft flying control edges, and a few very fine raised panel lines.



It takes a lot of filler to smooth out that fairing! And I have 'sharpened' the exhaust outlets just a bit and will drill out the rearmost ports.
Modifications will be kept to a minimum (like a radiator face to hide the mounting posts, a rear view mirror, landing light and nav lights).

Thanks for looking,

David
Listening today: CCR, Black Sabbath, J J Cale.

[DavidWomby]

Nice to see you working your magic on this oldie, David.

David

[jssel]

Nice stuff David. And I love JJ Cale.

[ShaunW]

Looking good David and a few mods as you describe will help lift this golden oldie I feel. Pity about the prop but it will repair!

[iggie]

Nice to see such an oldie getting an airing, and coming along so well too!

[skypirate]

Thanks, guys!
Yes I expect the prop blades can be reinstated with plenty of glue, maybe epoxy, to fill the void.
I have primed the Hurri ready for painting. I aim to hand-brush it, in the spirit of its generation. That means I can't use my Xtracolour (too thin for the hairy stick), and even the modern Humbrol equivalents are satin, and also a bit thin for brushing, I find. That means older Humbrol matt colours. I now have these lined up, though I know that Humbrol 30 is a bit 'off' IMHO. But I have used it before. Maybe I can tweak it a bit. Anyway, top surfaces DG and DSG (before Ocean Grey became readily available) and MSG (not the food additive) on the undersurfaces. Sky spinner and band on rear fuselage.

Elsewhere on the bench:
The IL-2T. The torpedo mounting bits and positioning are a very dodgy. No useful references to be found. I will make the best of it. Decals soon!

The F-4F Phantom. Fiddly bits being painted. u/c will go on soon.

Thanks for checking in,

cheers,

David
Listening today: Eric Clapton

[skypirate]

Here is hand-brushed topside of the 1956 Airfix Hurricane.
I was able to mix a more acceptable RAF matt dark green from Humbrol HU8 (USAF mid green) with a little black mixed in.



I wish I had the sense to try that mix for the Airfix 1/72 Mossie Mk XVIII, and MPM Defiant that I finished a few years ago. Humbrol 30 is just not right.

Thanks for looking,

David

[Ratch]

The colour looks right

[iggie]

Nice brushwork!

[skypirate]

On the other hand, the IL-2 decals are quite disappointing. Neither Microsol nor Mr.Softer seems to be taming them. They are well-printed, but a bit stiff, reminiscent of 1980s Italeri decals, though thinner. The tiny decals have mostly silvered, and the yellow fuselage number is not opaque to the underlying colours. The stars are good. If I had another set of decent markings I would be tempted to strip the rest off.
The most-produced warplane of WWII deserves a place on my shelf, but not looking so amateurish. Maybe really heavy weathering can hide the poor markings.

cheers,

David

[DavidWomby]

Maybe you could ask if anybody has a spare set? Doubling up can usually deal with transparency.

David