Thanks, very useful!

I am working a bit haphazardly on the weathering! Up until now I have used ProModelers Weathering Wash and an oil colour wash. I'll probably use pastels and the airbrush as well before calling it a day!


The glossy sheen on the wings is from Terpinex thinner that hasn't really dried yet!





Magnus

real nice work! i can never get smooth paint finishes, even when spraying.

Magnus...you are too kind ! Thank you...

I am looking on enviously at your fantastically smooth finish...as James says, I wish I could do that !

Thanks for the comments, I hope I won't make you (or me for that matter ) disappointed!

I am almost finished now. It got rather dirty...







Magnus

OK, it needs a rearview mirror and I will fix that in due time but for now I consider it at least "semi-finished"!







I am still trying to figure out how to weather my Mk XIX...



Magnus

Very nice

Now, keep going with my favorite from these two, the XIX


Cheers Nick

I will Nick but the weathering process worries me! I need to "bring it to life" a bit without making it look too dirty or worn. Camouflage finishes like the desert scheme on the Mk IX are more "self weathering", starting already from the beginning with all the mistakes and irregularities that you get while airbrushing. The Mk XIX is very even and semi-gloss, a bad start...



Magnus

Spitfire XIX finished as well!

I didn't really get the hang of the weathering on this one, most was done in one desperate session the evening before IPMS Sweden Open... Exhaust stains really went out of hand, I managed to tone them down a bit using light grey but it is still very obvious that some sloppy pilot have flown around with the wrong mixture settings...










And the traditional group photo...

The kits are not very similar even if they both come from Airfix and were released within a few weeks from eachother.

Mk XIX:
+ Quite nice interior.
- Heavier engraving than the Mk IX (but not excessively so).
- Camera port too high on the fuselage
- Anorectic exhaust stubs
- Useless Swedish AF decals and no stencilling included.

Mk IX:
+ Very nice engraving and a "petite" feeling allover.
+ Perfectly useful decals with a complete set of stencilling.
- No interior whatsoever (Matchbox of the 70s would have been a leap forward...)
- Strange looking carburettor intake and wrong cannon bulges for one of the decal alternatives.

What they both got in common is good fit and a good "Spitfire feeling" - I will do more of them without doubt! My favourite was the Mk IX and the shortcomings aren't that hard to fix. And if you don't care about them they really aren't fatal either!

There are few more easy things worth doing on the next builds that would enhance the final result:
* Opening up the carburettor intakes on both kits
* Toning down the rib/fabric effect on the Mk XIX rudder and elevator
* Maybe use aftermarket canopies on both kits to get them a bit thinner

I will probably do some more work on them before the autumn show season (at least a Rebecca aerial on the Mk XIX and a rearview mirror on the IX) but this will do for now. They have now been officially added to the collection.



Thanks for all comments and for following this thread!



Magnus

Hi Magnus
Excellent work on those two Spits. Really not my scale but you have inspired me to look adgain at the 1/72. The five bladed prop on the PrXlX realy suites the aircraft. I just love Griffon powered Spits. I must apologise, I took your PrXlX out for a spin while you were not looking and as you say did'nt get the mix right! Sorry!
tim

I'm glad that you survived the flight, I can always ask the mechanics to wash it down! I would love to fly a Spitfire but I don't think my flying experience is up to scratch (mainly gliders and the odd (and very boring) flight in a PA-28 every now and then)...

Good to hear that you have felt inspired to try 1/72 again, the trend seems to be for many to move against larger and larger scales. I'm doing the opposite...



Magnus