Here are some pictures of my spitfire I am building. It is the 1st time I have tried PE parts or even spent a lot of time in the cockpit. I haven't started sanding or doing anything on the exterior except temporarily placing the cockpit shields (not sure what they are called) and setting the fuselage in the wings. Also the pictures are followed by some additional questions.







1) Any suggestions / comments?

2) On the 3rd picture I have circled a part the directions say to remove. Can anyone tell me what I will be removing? And is the best method to use a file and sand paper and just go at it?

3) With the gun barrels that stick out on the wing I am considering trying to drill in to make it look hollow, but am really worried about not going in straight and ruining the whole thing. Any advice on that? or should I just paint the tip black to simulate a hollow point?

Thanks for any help.

You have certainly done a good job on the cockpit, well done.
As for your questions, the 2 raised lines that you circled are depicting wing strengthening which was added to some spitfires. It was found that the skin over the wheel wells could show signs of cracking or wrinkling so this was a rush fix. It might be worth checking reference photos to see if the spit you are building had them or not.
If you do decide to drill out the cannon barrels I would make a start by using the point of a craft knife to make a mark in the centre, then use a smaller drill than required to do a pilot hole, then a bigger drill bit for the required size. You don't need to drill too deep as you can simulate more depth when painting.

The cockpit looks excellent. With regards to the instrument panel, are those instruments decals or part of the PE set. Either way, they look very good.

You've already glued the fuselage halves together right? If so, it might be difficult to add a wash to the interior of the cockpit but can be something for your next plane.

Martins right about the gun barrels, you don't need to drill too deep to get a good effect.

As far as what to remove on the wing, hopefully a spit expert will drop in and give some good direction. Would be helpful to know what version/variant spitfire you are building.

Thanks. Great advice that I wouldn't have done on my own. Now I just need to find a bit small enough - I think I have the next to smallest the local hobby shop has and it looks a little bulky next to barrel.




The instrument panel is PE. Again it is my first time using PE, and I lost of bent/ruined about half of them, but after seeing the results for what did go together, I doubt I will ever turn back!

I have glued the fuselage together after doing a light wash, but I agree with you that it is hard to tell that I did it (still learning that skill). I guess I don't quite know yet what is subtle (trying for that) vs. realistic vs. way overboard (my fear).

The variation is Spitfire Vb. It is the Tamiya's kit. However, I will admit that the PE set I got was for a different spitfire, since it was cheap and available. I have probably commited a sin here or something, but right now the skill development is more my focus.

Thanks again.

That you put a different variant cockpit in there isn't so bad, in my opinion. I haven't tried photoetch yet but after seeing some of the cockpits with them, I want to try. It just looks so sharp.

The reason I asked the variant is that I think on some of them the bulges on top of the wings were removed. Somebody else will know for sure.

I've been checking on the 2 wing "fences" you have circled, as I said they were used as a quick fix for fatigue problems on the wing skin. This problem came to light in the Battle of Britain on the Mk1a so for the 5b you should indeed remove them as the problem was quickly sorted out in the manufacturing stage.

Very nice job in the cockpit. Looking very good.
If your afraid of hollowing the gun barrels, you can use hypodermic needles instead. You have to cut the sharp point and cut them to the size. For that I use my Dremel. The effect is very realistic.

:-) Very nice looking cockpit, the fact that you used none Mk V PE set will not matter. Not many will be able to tell the difference anyway. If it was a Mk I cockpit you used there is very little difference to the Mk V.
Martin is correct about the wing strengthening ribs, the drawings I have do not show them. However I do have a photograph, in the same book showing them, so It might not be as "cut and dry" as it would first seem. Martins suggestion of finding a picture is the way to go, but that might be impossible to find. I am also building a Tamiya Mk V at the moment and unless I find proof, soon, I will be removing the ribs. To remove them I will use a new scalpel blade then clean up with fine emery paper, then re-instate the panel line. If you look closely you will see a small protrusion just inboard of the ribs. This represents the wheel up/down indicator. I will remove this as well, drill a 0.2mm hole and insert a short length of wire, painted red.
Drilling out the cannon barrels isn't difficult, if you do as suggested and mark the centre first. I use the sharpened point from an old pair of compasses. Best of luck :-)
Remember, "you just can't have to many Spitfires".
Mal

Very,very nice looking cockpit ! The detail is beautiful. I can't wait to see the kit when you get her finished.



(++)

Thanks everyone. Tomorrow I will start to grind away the wing supports - hope I don't grind too much!

Also, again thanks for the gun barrel tip. It doesn't sound that hard. Again I am amazed at how much skill can be gained by the resource this site (and its users). :-)

Hi there

That cockpit is looking absolutely fantastic!! :-)

I'm sorry I'm late in replying, but I've been wading through references about the wing strengtheners! I've come to the same conclusion as Mal... it's not totally clear - my refs contradict each other...

The one point I'd make is that in (almost) all of my references, the equipment mounted on the back of the headrest (voltage regulators?) seems to be painted black. Hopefully, it's not too late to get in there with a fine brush...

Wonderful job!

Rowan

Looks great, can't wait to see the finished product.

Russ