1/48 Hasegawa Spitfire Mk VIII
This is the 1/48 Hasegawa Mk VIII Spitfire flown by Squadron Leader Lance Wade. Wade was from Texas and enlisted in the RAF in Canada. Being from Texas myself I like building planes flown by Texas pilots. I apologize to you Spitfire buffs for not lengthening the fuselage but my eye is not tuned that fine and that required more skill than I can muster. The only additions are an Eduard instrument panel, Ultracast seat, wheels, elevators and exhaust stacks. The paint is Gunze-Sanyo middlestone and dark earth with a homemade mix of Tamiya for the azure blue. The photos make it seem way more yellow than it is. The pilot figure is a metal figure from Hecker and Goros. He scales out at 6'06 so since the fuselage is about 6” short it about averages out in the greater scheme of things. The Decals are from Fundekals which worked great. There is a picture on the Fundekals site of this aircraft flown by Lance Wade showing the sheep next to it. The sheep are O guage railroad livestock from Preiser. They are pretty rough but the only ones I could find. This is my first true diorama…I generally do a plane on groundwork with a figure but no real story. I call this one “Get the flock out of here!”
All I can say is that it looks "flocking" great John.
Well one mate.
Thank you, Simon.
I like it...although the black & white photo of the pilot does have a rather "sheepish" look on his face, doesn't he?
I don't recall seeing such 'pointy' wings on a Spit before, but then again, I'm no expert on all the variants.
Thank you, Craig. I took a little liberty as I am a Texan from a cattle ranching family and no self-respecting Texas cattleman would be happy with sheep on the flightline. The wing tips are a high altitude attachment more often seen on the mk VII and XII I believe. I don't like them much as the take away from the beauty of the eliptical wing but this particular mk VIII had them installed. Its a bit hard to see in the small photo.
Great diorama! I love the theme, really wonderful/
Thank you, Rob.
From one Texan to another - that is one cool diorama. Well done!
What part of Texas are you from?
Thank you, Jaime. I am in Abilene. Where are you from?
John, I'm from your part of Texas, born and raised in El Paso. Job took me east, so now I'm in Houston.
I have a thing for building planes flown by Texas pilots. I think my next project will be an F6F-5 Hellcat flown by Arthur Ray Hawkins.
Good, simple story being told. That's what you accomplished here.
Nice work on the individual pieces too.
Thank you, Al.
he looks like terry thomas...fine job...the panel lines and weathering are extraordinary
Thanks Bob
You've done a fine job on this Spitfire, John, and the diorama really adds a lot and makes a great story, in fact, I can baaaarely think of anything else to add!
Thank you, George
Wow, use the "wrong" Spitfire kit, get a great model. 🙂
For those wondering about the tips, the early Spitfire VIII had the extended tips for the high alititude rated Merlin engine. The tips were found on both the VIII and the VII to inhibit roll rate in aerial combat and were replaced with the standard tips, since they didn't really have that much effect on high altitude performance.
Thank you, Tom
Very nice diorama I very much liked the idea and the presentation of the event
Thank you, P.k
I like it John, can't go wrong with a Spitfire - even with the pointy wings :). Nicely composed diorama too. Great job all round.
Thank you, Gregor. I hated the pointy wings at first but they have kind of grown on me a little.
Very nicely composed and beautifully built dio, John.
Thank you Mike. Are you the same Mike Grant that makes the decals? If so I like your stuff
I am. Thank you John 🙂
I have your set for Neel Kearby's Fiery Ginger with a flat keel from Mike West. He is another Texas pilot I plan to get to before long.
John, a simple and effective dio. The 'weight' of the flock of sheep counterbalances the aircraft and gives the scene equilibrium ,and of course there's the nice modelling...
Thank you, Rob
Great looking Spitfire, John. Superb weathering. Your sheep look just fine too!
We don't often see the extended wing tips on models so it's nice to be different.
Thank you, Tony
John,
Not baaaaaad, actually it is beautiful. I recognized Wade's airplane right off as I also did his Spit. I did Tamiya's 1/32 for a guy and he wanted the round wing tips. That made me happy as I am not a fan of the pointed tips either. I used Fundekals for the markings.
Thank you, Frank. I like building planes flown by Texas pilots and the Fundecals were great. The sheep picture came from their website I believe.
Great-looking Spitfire and dio!