http://uamf.org.uk/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=471&start=1110
I give you Airfix's early suggestion of a Hurricane IV R.P in the markings of 164 Sqn. My research places this at RAF Manston around September 1943.
Now, it wasn't built as nature intended! There was a little help along the way. One propeller blade was broken and too short to re-attach. So a replacement spinner and blades was sourced from the spares box. Missing rocker cover bumps were added to the front of the upper engine cowlings, as seen in the above photo.
The main u/c legs were weakly mounted outside the wheel bays, so support struts were added. Also landing light covers, nav lights, carby air intake (from Airfix new-tool Mk IIC), and pitot tube. Holes were drilled for the 2 wing guns usually retained in the Mk IV.
Aerial mast was added to the rudder. You can't see it but a basic gun-sight was added to the cockpit coaming. Canopy retraction tracks were inked in. Paint worn from fasteners was simulated with pinpoint flat aluminium. The original pilot is in there!
All control surfaces were rescribed before painting and inked at a late stage, after post-shading and before final matt coat.
Decals came from the spares box and codes from an old Almark sheet performed surprisingly well. Only the serials are original.
All painting by hand with Humbrol enamels, to keep in the spirit of the vintage kit. I mixed the dark green myself since there currently appears to be no correct Humbrol matt shade.
What I finished up with is clearly the vintage Hurricane kit with just a few improvements to make up for obvious deficiencies.
No corrections to shape were made. I did not attempt to scribe accurate panel lines or line the wheel wells. The model is underscale and sits a bit low, to my eye. The wing/fuselage fillet needed plenty of filler, and the canopy was not a good fit. The model is not well balanced on the Airfix stand, and much as I'd like to I cannot risk leaving it on the stand as nature intended!
Here is the old girl with my other 1/72 Hurricanes:
Right, front, is the Hasegawa IIC modified to a IID with a resin 40 mm gun set which included the Soviet decals. Bringing up the rear, left, is the old Airfix Hurricane Mk 1 (brush-painted and showing inappropriate Humbrol dark green), and on the right, the Heller IIC missing the tropical filter which passed to the Hasegawa IID!
Thanks for looking; this was an enjoyable project!
cheers,
David
