August's RCAF Mk.XVI - FINISHED

[K5083]

Major painting and decals completed this weekend. Roundels are from old Modeldecal sheets, codes and serial from a small Aviation Usk sheet with 3 RCAF Spits from quite a few years ago. Despite advanced age, all decals performed well.





So now matte coat, little bits and touch up. You all know the drill. It's going to be a near thing, as I have a busy work week and some travel toward the end of it, but it should be close enough to call complete by the 30th.

August

[Chris]

Tough break with the tape, great recovery.

[Martin R]

That's looking great, August!

regards,

Martin

[Old_Tonto]

Very nice result & good recovery from your paint disaster.

[TimJ]

Looking good.

[K5083]

I was called out of town on a business trip today so I'm calling this one finished even though I still have the aerial and a few touch-ups to do at some point.

Building these models reminded me that you really can never have too many, and its because each new build (and looking at other new builds) gives new appreciation for Mitchell's masterpiece, the brilliance of its basic design, the numerous modifications and color schemes, and its significance in history.

The KP kit requires some extra work but is still well worth a build, and this won't be my last one. My accuracy mods met with mixed success. The canopy sit was definitely improved by my shimming, but Tonto was correct that it needs a replacement canopy anyway. I believe the windshield is raked back too much, giving it too sleek of a look. It is also thick and none too clear.

To correct the spinner and prop, I plugged the existing holes in the spinner and drilled new ones further aft, then cut apart the prop blades and inserted them. This made a big difference, but I think the spinner shape is a bit too conical, so although I generally prefer DIY, I'd recommend an aftermarket unit for this.

The Quickboost exhausts make a big difference and are highly recommended.

It was only on the last evening of assembly that I assembled the landing gear and realized how crude the main wheels and tail gear were. So much so that I decided they had to be replaced. I swapped in units from a Frog Mk.VIII/IX. That's right, the KP ones were so bad that the old Frogs were still better. Come to think of it, the Frog prop and spinner might have been a decent substitute for the kit ones as well.

I've never put a slipper tank on a Spit model before but did this time to hide the rear part of the chin scoop, whose shape I spent some time trying to correct but was not happy with the results. Anyway it's accurate for this unit and adds a little variety to my Spitfire lineup.

I didn't have time for proper photography or any post-processing but the morning light was reasonably kind, so here are the pics.

August

[DazDaMan]

Looks decent when finished.

I have a Franken-Spit that has the fuselage of this kit mated to the wings of a Matchbox Mk.IX in the projects pile!

[TimJ]

Nice work.