discussion A 1/72 Unofficial Dogfight Double

[adt70hk]

Looking good Steve. Definitely looking forward to seeing these cross the finish line so I can learn a thing or 5!

Keep the good work.

Andrew

Ps. I managed not to break the 109 tailplane supports! Don't know how though....

 

[stona]

Ps. I managed not to break the 109 tailplane supports! Don't know how though....

I just broke the antenna mast for the Bf 109 too. I'm not fixing that, I'll cut a new one from a suitable bit of card.

It's also a miracle I didn't lose any of the aileron balance weights. They really are too small for injection moulding, so you end up having to sculpt them from the surrounding blob of plastic. I suppose in a kit like this there is no alternative.

 

[adt70hk]

I just broke the antenna mast for the Bf 109 too. I'm not fixing that, I'll cut a new one from a suitable bit of card.

It's also a miracle I didn't lose any of the aileron balance weights. They really are too small for injection moulding, so you end up having to sculpt them from the surrounding blob of plastic. I suppose in a kit like this there is no alternative.

Now the mask I did snap when removing from the sprue and so had to make a new one.

As for the balance weights you're completely right, I must have knocked one of them off about half a dozen times of not more....

The worst thing there was another thing that sticks out the bottom of the wing, not sure what it's called, but it was the biggest of the three.

When I came to put the decals on I realised I was supposed to put a cross decal directly over this thing.

the problem was I had already put the matching decal on the other wing and it was firmly fixed in place so I couldn't move it in a bit and do the same on the wing with the sticky out thing.....

So I had to snap this thing off off, put the decal over the top, and then make a small hole in the decal and reattach it at the right spot. Fortunately it went ok!!!

ATB

Andrew

 

[stona]

That sounds like this little beauty:



It's the pitot, which is the device that enables the pilot to know his air speed. I've knocked several off models over the years. I always include them with the little 'dangly bits' to be added at the last minute now...and still knock the B*&#dy things off

 

[adt70hk]

That sounds like this little beauty:



It's the pitot, which is the device that enables the pilot to know his air speed. I've knocked several off models over the years. I always include them with the little 'dangly bits' to be added at the last minute now...and still knock the B*&#dy things off :sad:

That's it. I wondered if it might be a speed related thingy.

It was rather ironic that throughout the build it was the only 'sticky out thing' I'd not managed to knock at least once and was then face with the prospect of having to deliberately snap it off. Good idea to leave them them until the last minute. I'll do that from now on!

I see the Spit also has it standing off the wing. Why did they stand slightly free of the main aircraft body? Was it to do with airflow?

Thanks as always.

Andrew

 

[stona]

Yes, pitots need clean air away from the boundary layer. They were usually offset like these or positioned on a probe in front of the wing, usually near the tip.
The actual pitot tube, the bottom of the L, was usually a brassy coloured alloy and could usually be heated too. A frozen or blocked pitot doesn't work!

 

[adt70hk]

Yes, pitots need clean air away from the boundary layer. They were usually offset like these or positioned on a probe in front of the wing, usually near the tip.
The actual pitot tube, the bottom of the L, was usually a brassy coloured alloy and could usually be heated too. A frozen or blocked pitot doesn't work!

Thanks Steve. And good point about the freezing!

 

[stona]

Slow but persistent progress on these two.

With the exception of the white wing tips and rudder on the Bf 109 the basic painting is now complete. If I get the white done today I'll be able to get some Klear on tomorrow and thing about some decals.

 

[adt70hk]

Looking good. Can't wait to see the decals. They do bring things to life!

 

[papa 695]

Slow but persistent progress on these two.

With the exception of the white wing tips and rudder on the Bf 109 the basic painting is now complete. If I get the white done today I'll be able to get some Klear on tomorrow and thing about some decals.

View attachment 399761

I'd have thought by now you would be able to tell the difference between both aircraft Steve. and the one on the left looks very good not a mess.
Only kidding great work both look very nice.

 

[stona]

Can't wait to see the decals. They do bring things to life!

They do. I always think of them as giving a generic subject an individual identity.

I'll tell you what though, there are a few on the Bf 109 sheet that won't be applied. They even supply the little numbers for the joins in the fuselage skins. I don't like doing them on 1/32 models and I'm definitely not doing them at 1/72 !

 

[adt70hk]

They do. I always think of them as giving a generic subject an individual identity.

I'll tell you what though, there are a few on the Bf 109 sheet that won't be applied. They even supply the little numbers for the joins in the fuselage skins. I don't like doing them on 1/32 models and I'm definitely not doing them at 1/72 !

I was sad and did them all because it was my first time doing one to this level of detail. Not sure if I'll be doing it again though!!!

 

[stona]

I was sad and did them all ...

Well done! Great perseverance! You're making me feel bad now for leaving them off

 

[adt70hk]

Well done! Great perseverance! You're making me feel bad now for leaving them off

I did manage to lose three though. They just pinged off the brush somewhere......

 

[stona]

The Spitfire now has its identity. That's Microsol sitting on the decals which will hopefully beat them into shape. If I have one criticism of what is a very nice little kit it would be the decals. They are terrible, like stickers, I had to glue down the part of the fuselage roundel that conforms with the top of the fuselage using some Klear. The code letters are off a sheet I found in the spares box and are almost the right size . The serial N3196 is also made up from spares and those are the right size.

 

[papa 695]

Looking good Steve.

 

[adt70hk]

The Spitfire now has its identity. That's Microsol sitting on the decals which will hopefully beat them into shape. If I have one criticism of what is a very nice little kit it would be the decals. They are terrible, like stickers, I had to glue down the part of the fuselage roundel that conforms with the top of the fuselage using some Klear. The code letters are off a sheet I found in the spares box and are almost the right size . The serial N3196 is also made up from spares and those are the right size.

Looking good Steve.

Sorry to hear about the decals. If anything I had the opposite problem and the bigger ones, especially the sqdn/plane ID/roundel combo decal, stuck a bit too well making it tricky to move them around.

But what about the 109?

ATB

Andrew

 

[stona]

But what about the 109?

Got that one done now too. Just sploshed the first lot of Microsol before taking this.

Having moaned about the Spitfire decals it's only fair that I extoll the virtues of those for the Bf 109. They are very good indeed, so good that I nearly lost my head and applied the dozens of little stencils supplied...but I didn't



Despite the omissions there are additions, the swastikas on the fin. There are none in the box, which is entirely understandable, given that Airfix want to sell the kit in territories where that might cause legal issues, so I've added a suitable size and style from the many sheets of swastikas I have accumulated over the years. I like to put them on, but appreciate that some people would rather leave them off. Each to their own, I don't think any less or more of a model depending on whether it has swastikas or not!

 

[adt70hk]

Got that one done now too. Just sploshed the first lot of Microsol before taking this.

Having moaned about the Spitfire decals it's only fair that I extoll the virtues of those for the Bf 109. They are very good indeed, so good that I nearly lost my head and applied the dozens of little stencils supplied...but I didn't :smiling3:



Despite the omissions there are additions, the swastikas on the fin. There are none in the box, which is entirely understandable, given that Airfix want to sell the kit in territories where that might cause legal issues, so I've added a suitable size and style from the many sheets of swastikas I have accumulated over the years. I like to put them on, but appreciate that some people would rather leave them off. Each to their own, I don't think any less or more of a model depending on whether it has swastikas or not!

So in other words you chickened out!

What kind of example does that set us novice plane builders!?!?!

It is looking good though! Great effort.

ATB

Andrew

 

[stona]

So in other words you chickened out!

Yeah, pretty much.

The Spitfire doesn't have any stencils at all, so they won't be missed. I think I will apply the wing walkway lines on the Bf 109 and I may draw them on the Spitfire at the end.