Eduard 1/48 Spitfire Mk. IX. Wing Commander Johnnie Johnson.

[Willem]

cheers Martin.

I had spares so they're on and she's had a panel line wash. Camera threw a fit otherwise I'd have put some up.

Hope to finish her tomorrow then on with the base.

Thanks for kind comments.

[felisbarcinonensis]

A very neat job Willem

[Willem]

Cheers Felis. Had hoped to have her done by now but I've been lucky to have some more work come in. Will be back at the bench on Tuesday then it's diorama time

[rodrant]

Hi Willem , nice to see your build so advanced now , congratulations on the fine job you did on painting , very crisp , very nice , bad luck with those decals ...it's hard to be so near the end and decals could be such a pain ...but know that you now will finish a great build , beautifull Spit !

[Willem]

Hi Antonio. Thanks for your kind comment. The decals weren't a big set back as I had some spares. I think it was my fault for not giving her a third coat of clear varnish as I've had a few decals silvering. Never mind, everyday is a school day and I'll know for next time.

On to the finishing touches with this build now.

Roundels replaced and sealed in then a heavily diluted dark wash was applied and nearly immediately removed to leave just a faint accentuation of panel lines.



Exhaust staining applied with pastels (still don't trust my AB skills to spray these on). A bit of light scuffing applied with a silver pencil to high traffic areas like around the cockpit, engine cowlings, gun panels etc. I also added some streaks around the filler cap using an oil mix heavily thinned. Not totally happy with how that turned out.



I sprayed a coat of Alclad matt varnish and removed the cockpit masking.





I think I got away with it on this build!

The cockpit access door with it's crow bar was attached using a tiny dab of CA.



I need to get the silver pencil out and do a little chipping here.






Undercarriage going together. The tyres are now drying and waiting for the hubs to be attached. The undercarriage legs were dry-fitted and they fit nicely with good alignment. The tail wheel is painted and attached by this point.



The Wing Co has been painted using some old Humbrol enamels for the uniform and I used the Vallejo skin tones for his head and hand.



Still need to practise my figure painting but I'm quite happy with the way he has turned out. I need to find or scratch build a parachute pack for him.

I added the propeller this morning.



I think it makes a big difference to the model.





It's funny how you think you are about done but little jobs and fiddly little details hold you back. There is a bit of photo etch to add to the canopy hood that I'm not particularly looking forward to. Also, because this build has been so enjoyable, I think I may be sub-consciously delaying the end.

That's about it for now.

Thanks for taking a look and many thanks for the comments.

[UKguyInUSA]

Nice recovery with the decals Will. She's looking gorgeous and your Wing Commander looks the business! It'll soon be Tally Ho and Chocks away with this one



Cheers,

Martin

[FishBowlMan]

Very, very nice, Will.

I know what you mean about the fiddly bits at the end. A couple of my builds have stalled for this reason.

[Willem]

Very, very nice, Will.

I know what you mean about the fiddly bits at the end. A couple of my builds have stalled for this reason.

Cheers mate. Yep, fiddly fiddly stuff.

MK392 is done! Maybe, possibly, sort of.

Undercarriage, pitot tube and all of the underside sorted.





Some oil streaks applied using heavily thinned oil wash. Spitfires could get pretty dirty under here.





There is one thing left; the canopy hood pull. This is a bit of etch. At the moment I'm not sure how I'm going to fix this to the hood as CA is likely to cause fogging of the clear part.
I've left the hood loose for now while I puzzle this one out. Any suggestions or thoughts welcome.



So the topside more or less sorted as I've added the RT mast and the rear view mirror and painted in the wingtip lights.







The last stage of the build will be a little base for the Spit, the Wing Co and his dog. I picked up some bits and bobs from a local, generic hobby type super store. A picture frame.



I removed the glass and the card inlay and switched the inlay to the back so that the base won't be loose in the frame. The glass will be used as a photo etch cutting surface- win.



I picked up some scenic stuff and some glue.



This could get messy and interesting.

Lastly, I played around with positioning for the Spit.





Seems to fit ok. Will get onto this next week as I'm off on a gig weekend in a bit- Truro and Buxton

Thanks for looking. Any tips about using these scenics are welcome.

Enjoy the weekend.

[UKguyInUSA]

Looks a gorgeous clean build Will

I've just dull coated my Stuka and when it's dry, I'll be adding all the little fiddly bits and peeling the masks off the canopy. She looks really weathered and when I compare photos of the before and after weathering....I'm wondering if I should have left it alone and not weathered at all?! My Wife keeps asking me to do a build that looks fresh out of the factory or museum quality, but, I tend to get carried away I think?! It's hard to judge at a small scale, and then when you take photos...the camera picks up every little flaw that you couldn't see with the naked eye.

I was looking at black and white photos of the Stuka being worked on by ground crew and in some of the photos, there were some that looked really dirty, grimy, stained and chipped.

The reason I mention the above is; I look at your build and I think I prefer the cleaner build than the weathered build. It's too late now, I can't reverse the process on my Stuka now...she has to stay the way she is.

Hoping to get a reveal video released before the end of the day, but we have our 4 1/2 month Grandson arriving at 1.30pm today and we have him until Sunday evening again.

Stunning job, mate....she's worthy of the number one spot on your lounge cabinet!

Cheers,

Martin

[felisbarcinonensis]

Jeez Willem! that's becoming top notch material. execellent work buddy!

[Willem]

Jeez Willem! that's becoming top notch material. execellent work buddy!

Cheers Felis. Just got in after a 280 mile drive so you've cheered me right up.

Looks a gorgeous clean build Will

I've just dull coated my Stuka and when it's dry, I'll be adding all the little fiddly bits and peeling the masks off the canopy. She looks really weathered and when I compare photos of the before and after weathering....I'm wondering if I should have left it alone and not weathered at all?! My Wife keeps asking me to do a build that looks fresh out of the factory or museum quality, but, I tend to get carried away I think?! It's hard to judge at a small scale, and then when you take photos...the camera picks up every little flaw that you couldn't see with the naked eye.

I was looking at black and white photos of the Stuka being worked on by ground crew and in some of the photos, there were some that looked really dirty, grimy, stained and chipped.

The reason I mention the above is; I look at your build and I think I prefer the cleaner build than the weathered build. It's too late now, I can't reverse the process on my Stuka now...she has to stay the way she is.

Hoping to get a reveal video released before the end of the day, but we have our 4 1/2 month Grandson arriving at 1.30pm today and we have him until Sunday evening again.

Stunning job, mate....she's worthy of the number one spot on your lounge cabinet!

Cheers,

Martin

Thanks Martin. I think weathering is a very subjective er.... subject.

Two reasons for my approach on this build-

1) CO's aircraft and I'm depicting her in the early stages of D-Day.
2) I'm pretty awful at weathering though I'm going to go a bit further on my next build. (Can't wait to start).

Checked your Stuka out and I think it looks the bizz. I am a fan of heavy weathering when it's appropriate and done right.
BTW Both your Tiffy and the Stuka fit the above and look spot on and I've thoroughly enjoyed following your posts on here and your vids.

I think the key is to do what you think is right and enjoy it. That's the approach I'll be using. Seems to me that you are already there.

Thanks again for the very kind words mate.

[Willem]

Apologies for the delay in finishing this build. I've been messing about trying to get the figure of the Wing Co and his dog sorted. I was fairly happy with how the pilot figure turned out but I really struggled to make a parachute pack for him and I'm afraid I've tried and failed to realistically paint the dog. Never mind, when I'm happy with the figures, I'll add them to the base but, for the purpose of this GB, I'm calling this done.

I finished of the base and got over enthusiastic with the glu gun.





It was at this point that I suddenly found myself fancying a bowl of pasta and pesto. (No idea why). After some serious drying time I added the Spit to the base.



The rest of the pics will be in the reveal section. This has been my first GB and I've thoroughly enjoyed taking part. I'm thrilled that pictures of my work will stand next to the amazing builds of others. Thank you Gents, it's been a blast.

[Twokidsnosleep]

It is a gorgeous plane with a great story behind it
Do you know the significance of the maple leaf decal on the side??
I don't find any info on searches. I have a plan to do the spit of George Frederick "Buzz" Beurling, a Canadian ace in Malta

[Willem]

Hi mate. Johnson was Officer Commanding a Canadian wing hence the Maple leaves. There is some conjecture as to whether they were painted on both sides of the fuselage and some say they were green. Tell you what though, I liked the red.

Many thanks for looking.

[Twokidsnosleep]

Ahh, I see
Thanks for the response
You have done this model proud

[rodrant]

Hi Willem ! Very Nice build , The plane looks splendid in that Base !

Good work !

[Willem]

It is a gorgeous plane with a great story behind it
Do you know the significance of the maple leaf decal on the side??
I don't find any info on searches. I have a plan to do the spit of George Frederick "Buzz" Beurling, a Canadian ace in Malta

'Buzz' Buerling's Malta Spit is definitely a build I want to do in the future too. There should be some stuff on line but I think I've got some aircraft profiles somewhere so, if you get stuck, give me a shout.

Hi Willem ! Very Nice build , The plane looks splendid in that Base !

Good work !

Many thanks, Antonio.

[felisbarcinonensis]

The plane looks beautiful!!

[Navcom]

Awesome Will! Nice!

[MikeyKb]

absolutely incredible build. love how the stripes came out, and you can't see the seem on the front at all!
very nice figure painting for your first go! excited to see how the dog came out