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Paulo Castro
33 articles

Spitfire MKVIII RAAF (Otaki 1/48)

September 14, 2021 · in Aviation · · 18 · 2.1K

HI all

Here is something different for me. I usually build in 1/72nd scale but I had this old (70's) Otaki/ARII 1/48th scale kit sitting in my stash and I decided to get it a go.
The kit show its age, but surprisingly it goes together pretty well. The interior is the worst part of the kit and I had to scratch build some details on the cockpit (nothing major).
Painted with Gunze aqueous acrylic paints and Mr Color lacquer for the underside RAAF blue.
Weathered using a selection of Tamiya accent panel, watercolour pencils and dry pastels.
Not been used to this scale I liked the way it looked at the end.
Comments and critics are welcome as usual!
Cheers
Paulo

Reader reactions:
12  Awesome

21 additional images. Click to enlarge.


18 responses

  1. Gostei muito Paulo,tomara que vc se empolgue pela 1/48 meu amigo.Tudo bem aí contigo?Mande notícias from down under!

    Abração!

  2. This came out wonderfully, Paulo!
    You gave this old kit a new life as a great model!

  3. Turned out very well Paulo

  4. Well done, Paulo (@armouredsprue). I have a bunch of of the old Otaki kits and I really like them. They are a little sparse on the interior, but the exterior is usually nicely done.

    • Exactly right George. If you try to sell it’s worth next to nothing and if you build it you can try something different without fear of throwing the model in the bin.

  5. Looks fantastic - love the paint and weathering work. A real beauty!

  6. Wonderful build, Paulo @armouredsprue
    First time I build an Otaki kit, I was pleasently surprised by the fitting.
    Despite their age, they are very nice kits and your build clearly shows that.

  7. Paulo, You built this into a real beauty. These old Otaki always had a nice looking shape and some nice surface detail. I remember that the only flaw with this kit was a swirl flaw in the clear canopy, probably not too visible with it open. I always advised people to keep all those extra cockpit parts from Hasegawa kits in case you want to build one of these.

    • Thanks Terry
      The kit indee has good fitting and nice details especially if considering its age. The overall shape is pretty accurate except for the underside wing root which it fails to capture the correct and characteristic shape of the spitfires. Not a bad kit to start in the hobby or to experiment new things.
      Cheers

  8. Greta job with that Otaki kit Paulo, looks amazing. I don't know how many Otaki/ARII kits I got, and I like them all.
    Great products , especially when you consider when they were originally produced.
    Really like the weathering, especially the leading edge paint chipping.

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