I LOVE the clipped-wing Mk V, Louis! And its' color pattern, too. They all look outstanding.

If my fellow DAT brother Jeff Bailey @mikegolf

reads this next post, he will probably be very happy. I just finished the clipped wing Tamiya Mk V Spitfire.

Here's the final steps on this one:

I took the original kit spinner and sprayed it red. I barely glued it together just enough ot hold it together for painting.

Then out came the graphite pencil... I added some sand erosion effects to the back side of the propeller blades. It is a very subtle effect and is noticeable when the light hits the prop just right. These planes operated in a very dusty environment. The sand quickly ate the paint off the back sides of the propeller blades. I tried to mimic the effects.

Once this was done I was able to sneak the prop blades into the spinner one by one. The a little touch of Tamiya thin glue and the prop was done.

I still had to spray the main canopy. So I masked it off using the blue liquid masking. I have had problems in the past with relying on just tape on canopies that had a lot of curve to them. This Spitfire canopy looked to be a good candidate for liquid masking...

The it was sprayed with some Middle Stone color.

The masking was removed and I was very pleased how it looked after I installed it using Future.

I finished the "dirtying up" process using the Tamiya weathering decks. The plane is almost done at this point.



The I removed the Airfix prop in preparation to add the correct Tamiya assembly.

It simply pressed in place. I added the rear view mirror to the wind shield. The last step was to heat some clear plastic from the trees holding the clear parts. I stretched out enough to make the radio antennae cables for all three Tamiya Spitfires.

A little touch up on the rudder tail lights, and this one was done.

I'll take some pictures of this one and get it posted in the headlines section soon.

The next time you see it will be during the reveal. Too bad I missed the 1940's decade, but it will show up in the headlines section in a day or so. Meanwhile I have two more Tamiya Mk I's that are almost done... So please stay tuned for updates on them.

Thanks for looking.

As always,
Comments are encouraged.

Good night.

Yaaaay! I do LOVE those square wingtip Spits! The only thing I like better than a Spitfire with square tips is a Spitfire with square wingtips and a bubble canopy! Like the Mk XXIV. (Yes, I know MOST folks like the traditional ones, but hey! I like what I like!) It's kinda like a P-51. I like the Bubble-top versions best of them, too. They're ALL great, no matter which one: Spitfire Mk I/MkV/Mk IX/Mk XXIV or P-51A, B, or D. Egal ! 😉

Great job, my DAT Brother from another Mother!

@lgardner

I think I may have changed my mind again, Louis!

Jeff my fellow DAT brother ! @mikegolf

This clipped wing Spitfire has turned out to be one of my favorites. But any Spitfire is elegant, with some being more so than others. Thanks for the comments and compliments.

Tom B. @tom-bebout

Your clipped wing Spitfire was the inspiration to build this clipped winged one. I originally wanted to build it up during the Kasserine Pass GB, but simply ran out of time. So many models, so little time... 🙂

Paul B. @yellow10

Thanks for the kind words... I just finished up two more Spitfires from this journal, and hope to get them posted soon.

See what you think... 🙂 You just might change your mind again... and that's OK.

I just finished up these two Tamiya Mk I Spitfires. One was done as a machine flown by Al Deere and is marked as "KL B". The other is a machine that was flown by 222 Squadron. It is marked as "ZD R". I wanted to build a model to represent the evolution of the colors used on the undersides of thes Spitfires during this time frame.

With some serious help from Paul Nash, @white4freak

I was able to get things in order...

To begin with, I added a rear view mirror to the "inside" of the front wind screen on Al Deere's KIWI plane. I used some bare metal foil to give it a more reflective look. The instrument panel details are visible in this picture as well.

The sliding canopies were painted and ready to install at this point.

Taking advice from Paul Nash, I removed the barrel protrusions from the leading edge of the wings on both Mk I Spitfires. Then I drilled them out and finally gave them a coat of dark gunmetal gray. They look much more acceptable now.

Thanks Paul for the tip !

Here is the underside of KIWI II. You can see how some wash was applied to replicate oil streaks and grime.

This next picture shows both planes sitting side by side... getting closer !

I wanted to add this picture to show the differences between the Rotol (propeller which is on the left), and the De Havilland prop on the right. The Rotol has a more rounded shape to it and the blades look to be wider as well.

Here are the two planes in the same pose, but the picture was not zoomed in to show the propeller and spinner details.

This next picture shows the difference between the colors I chose to use on these two. Here is where Paul Nash was extremely helpful. Al Deere's KIWI II is on the left, while ZD * R is on the right.

Taking Paul's advice and running with it, I ran across this next picture. It shows a Spitfire being serviced and armorers working on the wing mounted .303 MG's. What is so great about this picture is that it shows the leading edge gun details very well, and it gave me an idea to boot...

On KIWI II, I added some red decal material to represent the tape that was used to keep the barrels clear of debris and help improve the performance of the plane at the same time.

Then I used a straight pin to poke a hole in the area ahead of the muzzle. A little digging with the pointed end of the pin helped to replicate the torn and tattered look the tape took on after the wing guns were fired. This was done to KIWI II. I left the 222 Squadron machine as is.

The canopies were installed using future. After a little more "dirtying up", KIWI II was done. This plane did not have an antennae cable mounted to the radio mast.

I did add an antennae cable on the other Mk I Spitfire. Then it too was completed...

Two more Spitfires were finished today at the "Iron Werks" (or Casa Bromwich as some have called it).

The next time you see these two will be as an article in the headlines section. I'll also post up a few pictures in the 1940's decade in a few.

Thanks for following along so far, and please stay tuned for updates... I have a George Beurling "Malta" Spitfire that is almost done now too...

as usual,
Comments are encouraged.

Louis - I suspect the one thing both you and I learned about RAF Fighter Command's underwing colours during the Battle for France and the early days of the BoB is that despite the Air Ministry desire to have all fighters painted with Sky type S after the withdrawal from France, the reality was that supplies of this shade from the manufacturers was insufficient to meet requirements. This was further complicated by the description of Sky by the AM which seems to have wobbled between duck egg green to duck egg blue. With virtually no contemporary colour photos to help define the actual colour on individual a/c, defining what colour may have been used at squadron level is a bit of a rubik's cube conundrum, since it's all about interpreting grey shades which vary due to an endless list of factors.

Personally, I think you've made the right choice with your 222 Sq and Kiwi II but I'm sure there are many out there who would disagree, preferring the "safer" option of going for a Sky shade. In any case, your 2 Spits are fantastic - like all the iron werks' products.

Incidentally, yesterday 2 of the 3 new Tamiya kits arrived yesterday. A brief look inside the boxes show that this time, they've focussed on that early war period where your 2 models were involved (no muzzle brakes though).

Good luck with the Mk V batch and best wishes to you and Sandy for a calm but enjoyable Christmas.

Paul