1/48 Dehavilland Vampire F.3
This is the brand new Airfix kit. It’s well engineered and fits great. I did trim the bottoms of the cockpit consoles to get a better fit between the upper and lower fuselage parts. One other thing to be aware of is that Airfix reversed the wingtip part numbers on the instructions. Swap accordingly. I built this out of the box with the exception of seatbelts which I fabricated from tape and plastic card. The overall silver paint is Tamiya LP-11 applied with my Paasche Talon. All other pants are Humbrol enamels. The decals are from the kit and are exceptional. High end Cartograf set. This kit is another winner. Keep ‘em coming, Airfix.
11 additional images. Click to enlarge.
Felix said on March 9, 2022
Wow, such a beautiful build! That metal coat surely looks pristine. Airfix sure has produced some great kits lately.
John Healy said on March 9, 2022
Thanks, Felix. These planes were painted silver, not left natural metal. In fact, the Vampire had a substantial portion of its fuselage made from wood.
Lis said on March 9, 2022
fantastic build! And my fav squadron 🙂
John Healy said on March 9, 2022
Thanks, Lis!
Dan Lee said on March 9, 2022
Nice result. Very clean lines.
John Healy said on March 9, 2022
Thanks, Dan! It is an elegant design.
John vd Biggelaar said on March 9, 2022
A wonderful result, John @j-healy
The overall silver paint looks perfect.
Your new compressor does its work perfectly.
It was great to follow your thread, thanks for sharing.
John Healy said on March 10, 2022
Thanks, John!
Spiros Pendedekas said on March 9, 2022
Superb result out of the good Airfix kit, John!
A very enjoyable build thread, as well.
Congratulations!
John Healy said on March 10, 2022
Thanks, Spiros!
Greg Kittinger said on March 9, 2022
Looks great! Airfix is really stepping up their game. Your game is pretty good too!
John Healy said on March 10, 2022
Thanks, Greg! Yes, it’s a nicely done kit.
Gary Brantley said on March 10, 2022
Yes, it is elegant, and beautifully done as well John! Super scale model @j-healy! 👍
John Healy said on March 10, 2022
Thanks, Gary!
Eric Berg said on March 10, 2022
Ditto what everyone else commented previously @j-healy.
Airfix is on a roll with each new release better than the previous one it seems.
John Healy said on March 10, 2022
Thank you, Eric!
Tom Cleaver said on March 10, 2022
Definitely a great result, @j-healy! One of my favorite early jets and Airfix has really come up with a winner.
John Healy said on March 10, 2022
Thanks, Tom! Now if they’d do a Sea Venom/Venom….
Tom Cleaver said on May 12, 2022
If you can find the Classic Airframes Sea Venom, it's good. Done by Sword. Resin cockpit is excellent. Injection canopy can be opened. I managed to miss this when it first came out, but Rareplane Detective had one in March for only $34 (it goes on eBay for north of $100) so there was no choice but to grab it. Well worth keeping a weather eye out for a bargain, and likely the only one that will ever be done. (Please surprise me, Airfix!)
dale travis said on March 10, 2022
Fine wok John. I've always liked twin boom planes.
John Healy said on March 11, 2022
Thanks, Dale!
George Schembri said on March 11, 2022
Great result with this amazing looking kit John. Very nice work.
Seeing the vampire in person, I was surprised just how small the aircraft is and the minimal ground clearance.
John Healy said on March 12, 2022
Thanks, George!
Bob Torres said on March 12, 2022
Great looking Vampire, nice job on the whole build.
John Healy said on March 12, 2022
Thanks, Bob!