1/48 Airfix Spitfire Vb. Dog Fight Doubles (Completed)
I have this build going in the Aces GB and since I never see any Airfix kits being build in here, that I can easily remember, I thought I would post a thread of this one.
Some background on this kit. I bought it on a whim at the LHS for $30 because it has a Spitfire and a Bf109 all in one kit for a decent price. When I opened the kit and examined the contents I found to seperate bags of planes, as expected. One Spitfire is very old mold, 1979, low on detail with raised panel lines and a Bf109 which is newer with recessed panel lines. I haven't looked any closer at the 109 since I am building it a bit later.
But the Spit is, shall we say, not too great. It reminds me of the Revell F4U-4 that has such a poor fit. This kit is on par with that one. The raised detail is a bit rough and I must admit I am just a tad disappointed in the kit overall. However, that being said I am plowing forward to make it into a decent little bird.
To correct the fit issues I have sanded and filled and I must admit it has not fought me is coming together in that area and the gaps are nearly gone and it may actually spray into a nice little kit. I have been looking at a great many photos of the Vb and I fine the plane to be really quite smooth in appearance, so that works well with loosing some of the raised details.
The kit doesn't allow for the cockpit to be posed open and the tires are cheap two piece units better displayed closed. So, i will pose this kit in flight, without the pilot because I can't fit him in with the fuselage halves closed. I should have put him in when I closed them, oh well, too late now. I will be painting a pilot figure for it, standing and wearing short sleeves for the North Africa/Italy area where he flew. The pilot is Neville Duke.
The kit has loads of flash and like I said, there are plenty of fit issues. The instrument panel has no detail for gauges and no decals in the kit for that either. I painted it up, dry brushed it a bit and added some Future for shine on them to at least give it something. I could have found some instruments but it will be closed so why bother with this one. The rest of the cockpit is not too bad and there is more detail in it than the old Tamiya Zero, so that's okay. I rushed through the pit painting and detailing, did a wash and closed it up. I painted the pit with Mr Color cockpit green and black Flory wash. The seat is painted Mr Color brown.
Now here you can see in the shots that the panels don't line up very well and the gaps are huge. I was able to make this look better, much better actually, and like I said, it is not fighting me in allowing for corrections. At least it is will to work with me.
Now with just a little work I have been able to fix all the fit issues. The panels now line up, decently. I am still working on the wing roots and the lower air intakes for the radiator but they will close nicely. I will also remove all the raised round access points and rescribe only a few to cut down on the wing clutter. There are 8-10 of those things above and below each wing and they look horrid. In photos I can only see 3 or so on each wing on top and 2-3 below. So I will reduce them for looks, not accuracy. The fit at the lower wing to flaps and stabilizers is crap and will take some work to even out the gaps. I most likely will have to fill them and scribe in new gaps. They just vary too much as is.
Here is where I stand today. Some more sanding and scribing and the surfaces will be acceptable.
And a quick shot of the pewter pilot figure before I begin work on it.
