1/48 Tamiya Spitfire Mk I 610 Sqn. FINISHED

That front office looks beautiful! I would like to get this one myself.

That's looking really nice.  I finished my tamiya spit last year but it was the older kit.  So much more detail here.  Awesome job so far 

Thats looking superb! Nicely detailed. 

What your mentioning about your issues with the flat clear suggest its drying too quick and needs a slow reducer/ retarder. Slowing it down will give it more time to flow and smoot out, could possibly still be a touch thick. And the silicas being forced to the surface too quickly and drying inconsistently. The whiteness is due to a higher concentration of silica in those areas.

Cheers, Josh

Office looks outstanding!

Thanks for the comments everyone!

Josh - thanks also for the tip on the flat clear. 

Here's the latest progress after this weekend. Base coat, masking and gloss coat complete and ready for decals. I had to clean up a bit of overspray but nothing major.

I used the full scale template supplied with the kit for the masking. Using mini masking tape rolls about 1/8" from the edge and pressing the mask down firmly after applying resulted in a "semi-hard" edge demarcation, my desired effect.

I've tried using the blu-tac worms, which definitely save time, but I find I'm working long after to pull up little globs of blue tac hiding in the panel lines and rivets on the fresh paint. Sometimes I've marred the paint surface trying the grab the small blu tac blobs with big blu tac blobs. The tiny masking tape rolls come up cleanly. I'm wondering if anyone else has experienced this issue or if there's a better solution for the "worm" strategy.

Looks perfect! You created a nice soft edge masking with the templates as you did, well done. 

Josh

THST'S 1/48th SCALE?!  that cockpit looks amazing!

Beautiful build thus far!

Hoss WA

Thanks for the comments everyone!

Josh - thanks also for the tip on the flat clear. 

Here's the latest progress after this weekend. Base coat, masking and gloss coat complete and ready for decals. I had to clean up a bit of overspray but nothing major.

I used the full scale template supplied with the kit for the masking. Using mini masking tape rolls about 1/8" from the edge and pressing the mask down firmly after applying resulted in a "semi-hard" edge demarcation, my desired effect.

I've tried using the blu-tac worms, which definitely save time, but I find I'm working long after to pull up little globs of blue tac hiding in the panel lines and rivets on the fresh paint. Sometimes I've marred the paint surface trying the grab the small blu tac blobs with big blu tac blobs. The tiny masking tape rolls come up cleanly. I'm wondering if anyone else has experienced this issue or if there's a better solution for the "worm" strategy.

 

Instead of the Blu Tac....Try using Silly Putty or MIG makes a putty mask that is really good as well.  The MIG version tends to be expensive but well worth it for what it does.  I experianced the same thing with the Blu Tac put the silly putty comes off clean, is not as aggressive with its tackiness and provides the same results. Great looking build!  

Great looking cammo! I also have used silly putty with good results.

Lowfly- thanks for the comments and the tip on the masking putty. I’ll check out mig for the next build. 

Thanks all for the comments. Just finished this. Final photos soon.

Here are some catchup photos from the decal debacle. I wasn't happy at all with the Tamiya kit decals. Very thick and uncooperative with MicroSol and Solvaset. I'm sure my technique was a contributor, but other decals I've recently used have been much more forgiving (and look better). I think I'll make an attempt at masks or aftermarket decals with my next Tamiya kit. 

On the good news front, I used Mission Models gloss prior to and after decals and was very happy with the gloss coat results. I've experienced orange peel and general rough finishes with gloss in the past and think I've finally learned how to get repeatable smooth glossy surface results by using low pressure and controlling distance and speed. 

Here are the final photos. 

Overall this is a wonderful kit to build. The fit is excellent, instructions clear, engineering and assembly approach very well done. The huge downside were the decals. I was really surprised by how thick they were and how different colors of the same decal were of different thicknesses. This is very noticable even after gloss and matt coats and after weathering, etc. I attempted to break up this effect with stronger panel lines than usual. Next time I build a Tamiya kit I'll definitely try aftermarket decals or perhaps masks. 

Another huge positive for me was the Eureka moment with my final flat coat. I've been using Mission Models and have been unhappy with the results. For this build I tested both Model Master Flat Clear Laquer as well as Alclad Klear Kote Flat. Both infinitely better than the Mission Models Flat Clear. I ended up using the Model Master Flat Clear Laquer and really couldn't be happier with the outcome.  Nice smooth flat surface, no white frost or powder and no rough sandpaper surface. Looks great and was very easy to apply.

Enjoy the photos. 

Beautiful work. I love it.

Outstanding work there sir....wonderful detail in the pit, and paint scheme.

V - E - R - Y    N - I - C - E  build. 

Jim  

You do amazing work, Hoss. Just flat out gorgeous.

Very nicely done Sir!

Thanks all for the really nice comments. They're very very much appreciated. Thanks again to the community here for tips and techniques. So much to learn.