discussion Tamiya Beaufighter Mk.VI in 1/48

[OldWalrus]

This is the 1997 release of the Beaufighter and my first real attempt at producing a kit in that scale (we’ll pass over an Airfix Spitfire that was a bit of a disaster…).

I had been told that Tamiya kits were well engineered and this was definitely the case, the option to build the engines and undercarriage modules separate to the fuselage and wings simplified the process, and yes everything did go together beautifully.

Lessons learned:

Preshading – get it evened out, happy for a first attempt, but plenty of scope for improvement
Seams – build the confidence to do something about them!
Weathering – I decided to quit whilst I was ahead and didn’t
Decals – very thick, but on the whole behaved with Microset/Microsol, but one tiny bit of silvering.
Paint – I tried Matt Black from the new ATOM range, it is very matt, but sprays well
Varnish – ‘Ammo Lucky’, despite following the psi and distance guidance, there were a couple of issues on the underside.
Paint Booth – this is definitely the largest kit that will (just about) fit


I really enjoyed making it, only one loss to the carpet monster: the gun sight.

 

[colin m]

Hello Nick, that's a nice write up of your findings. Any plans to add a pic or two ?

 

[OldWalrus]

Hello Nick, that's a nice write up of your findings. Any plans to add a pic or two ?

Hi Colin, I did and they showed in the preview.....now added and appear to be showing, I need to enhance I.T. skills too!

 

[colin m]

Hi Colin, I did and they showed in the preview.....now added and appear to be showing, I need to enhance I.T. skills too!

I'm glad you persevered. Your description was good, but the pictures show something far better. Any mono tone colour is awkward, black might be the worst, but you've done a nice job bringing it to life with a bit of variation.

 

[flyjoe180]

Very nice result Nick, the Beaufighter looks great in black

 

[papa 695]

Very nice indeed Nick.

 

[OldWalrus]

Thank you all for your comments. My first published build and no matter how supportive this forum is, there is still some trepidation before doing so.
Great hobby with good people.

 

[Jim R]

A very nice result Nick. You enjoyed the build, learned a lot and have a great model to show for your efforts. What more could you want :smiling:

 

[Lee Drennen]

Nick beautiful bird and one of my favorites of the Brit fleet. Well done.