Airfix 1/48 Bristol Blenheim Mk1

[BarryW]

Fuselage sides joined and a couple of panels firted. Fit good, seams need sanding and there is some filler needed in a couple of places.


A quick shot of the pit.

[adt70hk]

Coming on nicely!

[rtfoe]

Looks really nice Barry. Progressing very quickly.

Cheers,
Richard

[Jim R]

Looking very good and no real issues so far :thumb2:
Jim

[BarryW]

While MDP applied to the seams is drying I have worked on the undercarriage. I should have taken some pics at an earlier stage but I can report that the fit and engineering is excellent. Here is a u/c assembly fitted into the engine nacelles ready to paint, something I will do before I cement the top of the wing into place. The wings have some warping, but again not a problem to rectify on a small 1/48 kit

[Jim R]

Hi Barry
Good progress. The undercarriage detail looks very nice.
Jim

[BarryW]

I have been working on the engines and wings while between filling and sanding sessions on the fuselage seams.

The engines are nice but the panels are not great fit and they needed some filling and sanding. One join between two panels is particularly problematical to sand due to some raised detail. But it all came together in the end.

Both wings had some warping issues, one worse than the other. While manageable in this scale it would have been a massive problem with a larger scale. It really proves my point that this horrible soft Airfix plastic is unsuited for large scale kits. On the wing that had the most severe warping a dry fit shows that fitting the aileron will need some sanding and fettling.

[Jim R]

Hi Barry
It's such a shame that the plastic causes issues. Surely it would add hardly any cost to use a decent plastic. For a less experienced modeller it could easily put them off the hobby completely.
Jim

[LloydRey]

This is brilliant, would love a setup like this, may I ask where you bought that setup from, did you get this online or self built?

[BarryW]

This is brilliant, would love a setup like this, may I ask where you bought that setup from, did you get this online or self built?

The units on the desk are HobbyZone modules available from Scale Model Shop. The ‘benches’ are desks of an appropriate shape and size bought from Wayfare and the shelving built in by a carpenter.

https://www.scalemodelshop.co.uk/products/accessories/auxiliaries/paint-stands-and-storage/hobbyzone-pl-module-storage-system/

[BarryW]

A bit more work done, panels attached as are rudder and stabs.





the stabs had a really nice positive fit.

[Ian M]

Looking like a very nice kit with some good surface details.
A shame about the warpage in the wing parts. But is this only an Airfix issue? Serious question.
I wonder how other European brands plastic compare. Is the real culprit an EU directive that has forced changes to ingredients in the plastic. I recall some other brands also have quite soft plastic as well.

[BarryW]

Looking like a very nice kit with some good surface details.
A shame about the warpage in the wing parts. But is this only an Airfix issue? Serious question.
I wonder how other European brands plastic compare. Is the real culprit an EU directive that has forced changes to ingredients in the plastic. I recall some other brands also have quite soft plastic as well.

The ICM Cobra had very nice hard plastic with no warping on any of their kits that I built.

Airfix are not bound to obey EU Directives of course and neither is India where Airfix kits are manufactured. I have not found this soft plastic on any other brand I have built.

[BarryW]

Airfix provide a really nice building jig for the turret, something I have only seen on some high end kits before. Here it with with the first couple of parts positioned.


and more



All done and off the jig



Also I masked the wing tip lights. These masks are odd in that they are over sized and hang over the edge and don’t fold over.


Engines fitted to wings, nice fit.

[scottie3158]

Barry,
Looking good I don't know how soft the plastic is but the IBG kit I am building is also soft and has the same appearance as your Airfix plastic.