Barry's Build **FINISHED**

[Barry]

Ok..thanks to a gentle prod from the mod, I'm awake and ready to go. I got my kit( with a cracked fuselage and broken wind screen, and no decals ) in a plastic baggie way long ago. Somewhere along the line I found a Matchbox Mk IX/XVI kit, so I'm going to use the Mk XVI decal from that kit and, maybe, the bubble canopy as well.

I've read that the only fault with the kit is that the radiator boxes are too deep. Before I cut them off and match them to the Matchbox ones, can anyone verify that this is correct?

[DavidWomby]

I've read that too. That this kit has deeper radiators that are appropriate to Griffon engined versions not the Merlin ones. I can't prove it. Does anybody have 1/72 drawings and can make the comparison for us?

David

[lancfan]

I have four different sets of spitfire 9/16 drawings and they all show radiators much shallower than the kit.
do you want drawings emailed to you? PM your email addies and I'll send them on.

David.

[Barry]

Thanks for the offer David, but not necessary. It seems that the XVI was basically just a IX with an American built engine so, I feel comfortable cutting those radiators down to size.

[PaulBradley]

The ones in the new Airfix IX are certainly much shallower.

[Martin R]

I can't give definitive information, but it's my understanding - backed up by looking at pics of the aircraft versus kit - that the rads are too deep. I will be attempting to remedy this on one of my builds at least.

regards,

Martin

[Barry]

And, so to work. I didn't have any cockpit green so improvised using slate grey dry brushed with Israeli light green (Modelmaster). Seat is MM 'Leather' with some red added. I was going to add some 'rods 'n bars' detail to the floor, but I don't think it would be visible unless the hood was posed open, and there's not interior detail to warrant doing that.





Panel came from this card which was handed out last year at Telford. Don't know why Photobucket rotated the image nor how to fix it.






Oops, removed too much. Adding back 20 thou.

[Jagewa]

Ah that's more like it, when I read only a cracked fuselage I thought, this isn't like one of Barry's builds, likes a challenge he does I said to myself...

[Barry]

Hi Jag...I forgot to mention that the seat had gone missing. I was lucky to find a suitable replacement in spares.

[Barry]

add mesh for the rads and a 'roof' to the bay.





It went together nicely. Just a slight gap at the roots and the fuselage/wing joins underneath.

[Barry]

What's the color for the underpinnings? Wheel hubs, gear struts, bay and inner door faces?

[Old_Tonto]

I was wondering the same thing. Interior green seems appropriate but I could be wrong - it happens quite a lot.

[Jagewa]

I think underside colour is an option too.. but I'm just lazy...

[lancfan]

If it helps-I always copy historically well restored airworthy Spitfires which seem to have light grey undercarriage legs and aluminium/nmf wheels, wheelbays & undercarriage doors are often in the same light green/grey as the cockpit. I believe there were changes in the finish of the wheel bays in late production aircraft, you would have to research the particular version you build.


David.

[mattbacon]

I believe Spitfire gear bays mostly started out in silver/aluminium paint (certainly not bare metal), but if the aircraft had been repainted in the field (ie going from Sky to Medium Sea Grey undersurfaces) then the bays end up the same colour as the undersurface. Legs are always painted greyish silver, and hubs are the same...

bestest,
M.