So, what to do while the filler's drying? I know! What about knocking up a spinner backplate. This is something I like to add if a model doesn't already have one. The real aircraft would have a backplate to the spinner and I think my models should have, too. Yes, a little bit OCD, but it keeps me happy.
Anyway, for your information / interest / boredom / whatever, here is how I go about making one.
Step 1: Cut out a piece of styrene sheet of appropriate thickness sized to fit in the above template on my trusty Humbrol cutting mat. The blob of blu-tack in the centre is to mount it so that it doesn't move around too easily.
Step 2: Stick the styrene on the blu-tack and, using a steel rule and a propelling pencil, mark in the position of the blades (5 obviously in this case).
Step 3: Add a circular shape to the styrene of smaller radius than the internal radius of the spinner. This is to stop you cutting too far into the centre of the shape.
Step 4: Mark out the width of the propeller openings around the blade positions and cut down to the circle. Score out the remaining piece of styrene between adjacent tabs and break off. Et voila!
Step 5: Fettle the thickness of the blade 'spikes' so that the backplate fits the spinner. Then trim 'spikes' to length. And there you have it. Far from perfect, but it'll look alright at scale distance.
Apologies if this was teaching you to suck eggs, but haven't seen this described elsewhere.
regards,
Martin
. I am also puzzled by my inability to find anything resembling the "long range ferry tanks" on my - admittedly small - numbers of Sea Fury references. They all look really similar in size (and identical in shape!) to the 45 gal Tempest tank.
