Hi all.
Heres my Mosquito Mk2 nightfighter. Its the Airfix 1/72 and built OOB in the markings of 23 Sqn.RAF.
Although im very pleased with how it ended up it was an interesting build and seemed to bite me at almost every stage.Still,,I got through it in the end.
Its painted in Humbrol enamels and was the first time Id used my Badger 150.Certainly made a big difference and Id recommend one to anyone thinking of getting a double action airbrush.Took quite a while to get a uniform matt black finish and being able to spray really thin coats with the Badger helped greatly.
Undercarriage was washed with Paynes Grey oil/thinners.Thanks Mal for the demo at MK I tried a few different washes to bring out the panel lines but nothing seemed to show up against the black.Exhaust stains are Davey Grey pastel chalk dust and weathering was done with a silver pencil.Ariels are invisible thread coloured with a black sharpie.
Thanks to everyone that gave me canopy masking tips after my last build,(109).I kept it well away from the primer and it made a world of difference.
Heres the photos,,(i hope!)











Thanks for looking and as always please feel free to comment and give me advice on future builds.

Very nice - the effort put into the black finish was certainly worth it I think!

Another nice one Nigel!
I especially liket all the detail your putting to your builds. One thing I noticed right off was the realism of the tires. The silver pencil is doing the trick as well.

Might I suggest you tackle another German or even an American subject? That poor lil' 109 must be getting lonely on your shelf. :-)

Again, great job. Congrats!
Hermon

Well Nige what can I say, if your Spitfire and Bf 109, which I have seen in the flesh for those reading this, are anything to go by then this will look even better in the flesh also, very nice.

I have struggled to find anything to suggest so I'm in real nit picking mode here
Tyres, IMHO, look better painted dark grey rather than black.
The pito tube, near the top of the fin, would look better if replaced with stainless tube and wire
Again IMHO, I would use smoke colour invisible thread, rather than colour it.

Nit pick over another nice build Nige, what's next? I can't wait
Mal

nice one mate! weathering a matt black aircraft can be a really difficult thing to do, but you've pulled it off on this one. airbrushing is a real eye opener after using brushes is'nt it!

Lovely job. I think Mossies are great looking aircraft.



What problems did using primer give you?

Hi Nigel,

Congratulations on an excellent build. Aren't airbrushes great?

The only (hopefullly constructive) criticism I can make is that the red lettering on the fuselage shows a white edge, something which Airfix decals are prone to and not always east to spot before they are applied.

One way around this is to try to cut as close as possible round the decal to remove it, not easy on curved lettering or roundels, or you might find it useful to buy after market decals when building Airfix kits.

Nigel, great looking Mosquito!...N

Hi all.
Thanks for your comments.Nit pick away as much as you like,,its all taken in and put towards the next build
Hermon



Ive a couple of German fighters in my stash,and I picked up the Tamiya Thunderbolt at Milton Keynes show, so the 109 will be getting some company at some point.My Texan will be in USA markings when I sort out the decals.

Mal.


At the moment im painting tyres matt black then dry brushing them in a dark grey.I intend to take my son to Hendon on half term holiday and its on my list to pick up some tyre black from Hannants while Im down there.
Im on the lookout for some smoke coloured thread.
To be honest mate,,I wouldnt know where to start with making a pito tube out of tube and wire :-)
Whats next?,,,you'll have to wait and see but it involves the white sausage camo technique
Ripster and Almonkey.
Yes it was a challenge getting a nice finish in matt black but well worth the effort.

Murdo.



On my 109 I fitted the canopy before I primed the model and when I unmasked it there was a fine white line under the main colour.On the Mossie I left the canopy off when I primed,then fitted it.I then painted the interior colour first before overspraying the top colour. Hope this helps.
Brandydoguk


Ive noticed this on 3 out of 4 of the Airfix kits Ive built and its a pain.On the tailfin markings I was able to trim it but with the squadron codes the only way I could see of getting rid of this was,as you suggest,trimming the decals. I reckoned that if I tried to trim these it would have ended up looking like a kids scrapbook :-)
So,,I bit the bullet and left them as they are.

Thanks again for you comments and advice guys.Its great to be able to show my models and I learn something everytime I log on.

Blimey,,,this reply has turned into "War and Peace" :-)

Great work, Nigel! You keep producing and it keeps getting better and better!

Stick with those 1/72 kits! Isn't the Airfix Mossie a great build for such a low price. Bought one myself last year, but somehow it turned out Swedish... :-)



What's next on your agenda? Something mottled, perhaps, so that you can really get some practice with that airbrush?

Cheers!

Hi Polar Bear.
Thats a great looking Mossie and nice to compare 2 very different versions of the same kit.
How did you do the "dont walk" markings on the wing between the engine and the fusalage?
On mine,I painted the area red and then tried to mask those lines with thin strips of masking tape but it just wasnt having it so I gave in and settled for matt black.
Ive got a feeling that on some kits this comes as a decal?
There are a couple of Luftwaffe subjects in my stash that will be getting the mottle treatment sometime in the future.Watch this space
Nige

It was indeed decals (albeit lousy ones). You might want to try some aftermarket decals for those Airfix kits. - Otherwise, I think the easiest way to achieve tiny lines is to cut stripes from decals of the same colour.

Cheers!

Yes thanks. The reason I'm asking is because I have a 1/32 Revell Beaufighter and I fitted the canopy, masked it and primed the plane and I hope to paint it soon. Now I'm worried.

We live and (hopefully) learn.

Murdo.
Dont panic!
On my 109 I touched up the frames by hand afterwards,and then rubbed any excess paint away with a cocktail stick.After that I gave the canopy another coat of Klear and it worked out ok.

If you look closely you can see that the inside of the frames are white,and if you leave the canopy off until after you have primed the inside of the frames will be the interior colour and match the rest of the inside of the cockpit.
Nige

Please forgive an ignorant Yank, but what parts of the Mossie would wear to an aluminum finish? I assume the engine covers and possibly the wing leading edges. If a Mossie did show wear on a wood portion, what would it look like?

Hi Steve.
I took it easy on the weathering on this.
I imagine the engine cowlings,props,and hatches would have been metal.
Im not sure about the leading edges of the wings,or indeed what the wood was covered with, so I left it alone.
Hopefully someone will be able to answer this better than myself.
HTH
Nige

Very well done Nigel.
I know those Airfix Moosies in 1/72 aren´t an easy build.
Your Moosie looks great.