forum.ww1aircraftmodels.com
Modelers Lounge => The World of Scale Models => Topic started by: Brad Cancian on November 19, 2023, 06:10:12 PM
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Hi everyone,
Here's my next project; the little 1/72 Airfix Hawker Hurricane Mk.1, with the early fabric wing. I've been collecting a few bits and bobs over the last year or so, with the idea of having a couple of engine and gun panels off, to add a little more interest. The Airfix kit is a nice little kit - not quite up to Arma standards, but still the best game in town for an early fabric winged aircraft.
(https://i.imgur.com/l9VEsO8.jpg)
I will state up front that I am very much NOT an expert on these aircraft... so be gentle! I have a plan to perhaps finish this one as a Belgian or Battle of France aircraft (noting I'll need to get a two-bladed prop from somewhere, if I want to do the former).
A very small start this afternoon - I started prepping the engine bay for the CMK resin engine set. It's always daunting hacking into the nose of a perfectly good kit...! I did think about extending the removal of the cowlings to the panel in front of the cockpit (to scratch build and show the fuel tank), but the CMK firewall is not quite the correct shape to do this, so I settled with only having the front most three cowling panels off, as per the set. The CMK set looks very nice at face value, with some crisp details on the Merlin engine and the firewall. It did take a bit of hacking and sanding to get the parts off their casting blocks (those engine cowls are wafer thin...!).
The biggest problem with this set is that the engine bearers are too short and too shallow, which means they don't follow the line of the chin panel. I scratchbuilt new bearers from strip styrene:
(https://i.imgur.com/ERLovtk.jpg)
I also had to shim the bottom of the engine cowl piece so that the nose was long enough to accommodate the engine but still allow the exhausts to clear the fuselage panels aft of the engine bay.
A quick test fit:
(https://i.imgur.com/RqBMBYe.jpg)
And a quick test fit in the model:
(https://i.imgur.com/m2vtVLM.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/sZzvKFI.jpg)
Now, the modified bearers are far from perfect, and not quite 100% accurate, but I think this should work reasonably well to give the appropriate impression. I will need to take care as I do a little more clean up of the plastic opening, and as I add details. I'll also need to take care to make sure everything is square on the finished model.
(https://i.imgur.com/6M6sQ1v.jpg)
As I said, not too much of a start... but it's a start none the less!
Cheers
BC
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As I said, not too much of a start...
I beg to differ: removing the kit cowls, scratching the engine mount? That's huge! Well done Brad! I admire anyone who can work wiith exposed engines in 1/72. I'm very excited to follow along.
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Knowing what your standards are I Really Look forward to your further progress!
RAGIII
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Thanks chaps! ;D
Hi all - many thanks! I appreciate the kind words and encouragement (And many thanks for the offer Steve, but I have managed to secure a sprue for the single bladed prop - I really appreciate your offer though!).
Small work in the past day or so. I have added some wiring to the engine bay; I have not gone overboard, firstly because I just want it to look 'busy enough', and secondly, my eyes and hands aren't that good! :)
(https://i.imgur.com/o2T8z67.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/pdjaif1.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/gseS3ZQ.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/gkhhYt7.jpg)
I think this will suffice for detail
I started some basic work on the wings today also. I know the Airfix kit didn't get the inboard section of the wing quite right; the 'fabric' section on the aft part of the inner wing were metal, so I taped this area off, in preparation for some filling and sanding.
(https://i.imgur.com/FhZ4jW8.jpg)
I also decided to add the CMK flaps (from their resin flight control set for this kit). I know that Hurricanes generally did not sit on the ground with the flaps extended, but I couldn't help myself...
(https://i.imgur.com/VsUCman.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/8ni6V9m.jpg)
The set fits quite nicely, though I will have to take care when gluing the upper wing trailing edge, as there is a chordwise gap there (to be fair, this was there also with the basic kit), so sanding of the underside of the top wing piece will be needed.
I also want to use the CMK fabric wing gun bay for this kit, so, some more hacking to the wing to open the gun bay. I have only done the starboard side at this stage. Again, the fit here is reasonably good, and the piece sits against the wing with the appropriate 'inset' to replicate the edges of the bay where the wing panels would fix into (though again, I do need to do some more minor fixing here to straighten a few bits and pieces up).
(https://i.imgur.com/VZoiO1l.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/Riw8RGm.jpg)
Question for the crowd - should I open up the other gun bay also, or just the one, to leave a little more visual interest?
Thanks for looking!
Brad
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Nice work so far Brad, love Hurricanes
I've nothing but admiration for those of you who work with 1/72!!
Andrew
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Looking awesome Brad!
RAGIII
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Hi Brad, I'm fascinated by the way you're proceeding with this build. My (probably old-school) instinct would be to prepaint all the components and then assemble them after scraping off the contact surfaces, but I've noticed that many people now are painting after everything goes together. I assume you're airbrushing the larger areas and then touching up with a brush...?
RE: the gun bays, I saw an amazing HE-219 at the IPMS show I went to a few weeks ago, with every possible panel removed and detailed—guns, radar equipment, wheel wells, everything. It was a real tour de force, but you kind of didn't know where to look... my vote is to leave it at one bay :)
Dutch
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Thanks gents!
Dutch - I do tend to keep things in big enough sub-components to allow ease of construction primarily, with paint generally following afterward. I find that sometimes trying to be too clever with painting subassemblies can end up being a mess when one has to make adjustments for fit, or when one has to thread wiring / piping etc around an engine.
Rick - thanks also for your message - Rick kindly pointed out that I had the wing correction wrong; I smoothed the inboard panel at the wing root, when I really needed to fill the panel aft of the gun bays, i.e. it should be like this:
(https://i.imgur.com/hKc7y1h.jpg)
So, this afternoon I re-added the fabric look on the wing root panel (using sandpaper wrapped around a small file), and filled and smoothed the section aft of the gun bays. I then added the panel lines which provided the demarcation between the metal and fabric sections. Hard to see in these photos, but hopefully this should do the trick...!
(https://i.imgur.com/IRGhALL.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/cBeeIm1.jpg)
Cheers Rick!
BC
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I am Happy I was able to help and that you were able to easily correct the error! With all the added detail and now the proper correction this will certainly be a winner!
RAGIII
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Thanks, Brad! I learn something every day on this forum (often two or three somethings...). This is going to be another gem.
Dutch
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This is so great!!! <insert image of Flounder from Animal House>
I'm really looking forward to following along with this.
Warren
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Hi all - just a minor update, the gun bay has been detailed. I foolishly followed the CMK instructions and installed the ammo boxes with their length running fore to aft, which I thought about afterwards and worked out after the fact was wrong; they needed to be rotated 90 degrees to run lengthwise (which makes sense). I destroyed much of the edges of the bay trying to remove them. I then needed to rebuild the edges of the bays, which I tried to do by cutting pieces off the spare bay. It's far from perfect, but it will do. In the bay itself, I added ammo chutes from strip plastic, wiring from fuse wire, and breech details and fastener attachment points from the ends of etched rigging turnbuckles.
(https://i.imgur.com/SdAA8S0.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/rds29wj.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/jPM9a6c.jpg)
In the end, a tad bittersweet and entirely preventable if I hadn't just blindly followed the instructions... sigh!
Cheers,
BC
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Wow!
Another masterclass job coming from your stable, Brad!
Regards
Dave
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Great progress and a save since last time! One of my favorite books of all time is Fighter Pilot by Paul Richey. I Would love to see his airplane although it was a pretty bog standard scheme....maybe Cobber Kain?
Steve
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Wow! Amazing details Brad.
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RE: the detail/paint sequence, now you've got me really curious... how the heck are you going to shoot color into that bay and get coverage on the floor and sides of the without paint buildup? Just a super-light touch...?
Dutch
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RE: the detail/paint sequence, now you've got me really curious... how the heck are you going to shoot color into that bay and get coverage on the floor and sides of the without paint buildup? Just a super-light touch...?
Dutch
Indeed Dutch - a light touch :) I'll also use alclads which spray quite thinly to paint the aluminium. I'll pick out the guns in a black with some drybrushing and a wash to finish it off.
Currently focusing on the cockpit; it's already pretty good out of the box, save the instrument panel and seat. I have the Eduard etched fret for the kit which will sort out the instrument panel, but I think I am going to need to scratch build a seat, as the kit one is pretty bad. Oh well, i'm always up for a challenge...!
Cheers again,
BC
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Very fine modelling. Especially the Brownings compartment draws my attention.
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Exquisite work Brad, the extra detailing will really make this pop! Hard to believe it's only 1/72!
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Thanks all!
Some more minor progress this afternoon. I have scratch built a seat from 10 thou plastic card, as well as a bulkhead, which will cover the seam between the kit part and the fuselage halves. The kit seat is next to the new seat for comparison. I used parts from the Eduard SS501 sheet for the pan detail and adjustment handle.
(https://i.imgur.com/eLnGkTc.jpg)
I scratch built a new control column also, as the kit one (right) is a bit chunky. My scratch built effort is not entirely accurate, but it will do the trick.
(https://i.imgur.com/GFAAxL8.jpg)
I also went back to the flap wells; I decided to remove the roof of the longer bays as I was not happy with the trailing edge join; this way I can simply thin the kit's upper wing and be done. I also discovered to my dismay that the CMK flaps are about 2-3mm too long (as you can see from the resin flap piece i've sat next to the left bay for comparison)... this is odd as the bay inserts fit reasonably well... did CMK not even measure the kit? Sigh. There was no way to trim out the extra length due to the resin parts rib spacing, so, I scratch built a new set of flaps from 10 thou card and thin strip (in white). I might as well have not bought the set, to be perfectly honest...
(https://i.imgur.com/f1e3dG8.jpg)
I think we're just about ready to start putting some paint on this thing somewhere...! That being said, I expect a slow down over Christmas due to work and family commitments... oh well.
Cheers,
BC
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Looking good, Brad.
With a bit of luck you might be hit by a freak snowstorm over the
Christmas holidays and get snowed in. Then you can concentrate on modeling.
I look forward to seeing your next installment from here in the northern hemisphere.
Kevin
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Bravo Brad, the extra detail you're adding will really set this one off!
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This is continuing to be inspirational Brad. Awesome work!'
RAGIII
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Thanks gents!
Slow going on this one over Christmas and into the new year with family visiting, plus some reviews still to do - hopefully some progress late on in January on this one once things settle down!
Cheers again!
BC
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Hi everyone - happy new year to you all! I managed to finally get some paint onto the interior, engine, and gun bay:
(https://i.imgur.com/Y88XNPd.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/SKnRDnl.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/IEEGvpl.jpg)
This thing is tiny for my old eyes... I think i'm at the point of getting some of the major construction elements done next... finally!
Cheers!
BC
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If this is your swansong for 1/72 then it's a banger, brilliant work Brad! It looks fantastic! I'd love to achieve effects like this in this scale.
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I was wondering how you were going to pull the paint on those gun bays off... brilliantly, as usual! I built the old Revell Hurricane a couple of times back in the late '60s/early '70s, and remembering how small it was this all seems even more impressive.
Dutch
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Amazing work!
Steve
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Amazing work!
Steve
Agreed!!
This is shaping up to be a little beauty for sure :)
Have you used washes? If so, what do you use?
Andrew
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Thanks gents!
Andrew - indeed I do; the wash on this one is raw umber oil paints.
Progress update - fuselage halves are together and wings are mounted. I fitted the upper wing to the fuselage halves first; the fit of the upper wing panel / piece is very nice. The lower wing piece was then added - the fit here is not so great; it looks like the wings are actually slightly different spans and chord... sigh. Nothing some filling and sanding can't fix (though it is still a tad annoying for a modern kit).
Cheers again!
BC
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Looking forward to seeing the progress... I had to do a double-take when I read that you'd fitted the upper wing first, though... :D
But then (doh!) I realized what you meant. Still, the idea of a biplane Hurricane is kind of intriguing, in a perverse sort of way.
Dutch
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Hi Dutch - funny you mention that, there was indeed a Hurricane biplane prototyped. Called the 'slip wing' or Hillson Hurricane, the aircraft was actually designed to enable a Hurricane to lift a greater load or take off from a shorter field, with the wing jettisonable after takeoff. It was found that later Hurricane variants could achieve the requirements on their own, so the idea was not necessary.
(https://i.imgur.com/D8m4dj6.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/lSXakzb.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/IcgEs8X.jpg)
There are some conversion kits out there for this variant - it's definitely something that would make a cool model :)
Cheers,
BC
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Andrew - indeed I do; the wash on this one is raw umber oil paints.
Cool, I'm going to have a go at oil washes on the Bf109E3 I'm currently in the middle of ;)
Andrew
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Wow! All the reading I’ve done on British types, and I never ran across that one!
I'd hate to have been the test-pilot assigned to that project; "So, Smithwick, when you get her up to oh, say, four thousand or thereabouts, give a good hard tug on this lever, and your top wing will fall off..."
You have to love those D.VII-style struts, though.
Dutch
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All part of being in the service, old chap! Haha!
The struts do remind one of the Fokker D.VII... who wants to do some kind of weird what-if crossover...? ;D
In any case, I now have something resembling a Hurricane (engine, front cowl and prop are dry fitted). Still need to do some more clean up to deal with the bottom wing dimensions but thankfully nothing too serious.
(https://i.imgur.com/spHgWHR.jpg)
Cheers,
BC
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Looks marvelous from over here across the Big Pond. Question: Why did you choose the white primer? And was it airbrushed or a rattle-can?
Dutch
(and, one wonders, would a D.VII/Hurricane hybrid be a "Fokkacane"...? :D )
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Beautiful work Brad, she really is shaping up nicely. Being a two-blader adds more visual interest too!
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Thanks gents!
Dutch - there's no primer on the model at this stage; the kit plastic is quite light (and probably looks lighter with my photo editing, as I was trying to get the details to pop out a little more in the picture).
(https://i.imgur.com/sy1e598.jpg)
When I do prime, it will be with some Mr Surfacer which is a medium grey colour.
Cheers,
BC
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That is absolutely gorgeous work Brad! The detail painting and washes on the engine and gun bay in this scale is amazing.
RAGIII
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Thanks Rick!
I thought i'd try my hand today at something i've never done - scratchbuilding wing tip lights from clear sprue.
The kit moulds the wing tip lights as part of the wing panel. The lights on the real aircraft were coloured bulbs within a clear plastic exterior covering. I trimmed out the locations for the lights, and fashioned some new lights using clear plastic sprue. I drilled a small hole in the clear piece and added small dobs of clear red and clear green to represent the lights. I glued them in, then sanded and polished once the glue had dried. Here's what they look like:
(https://i.imgur.com/TXGJ5gy.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/Z8Y3Ero.jpg)
Far from perfect, but much better than trying to paint up the solid grey plastic.
I also added the landing light clear pieces, having painted the back of the insert with a blob of silver to represent the bulb. These pieces were not a great fit, but look ok enough I think.
(https://i.imgur.com/OYBIAus.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/k79WUs9.jpg)
As an aside, I might need to look at that starboard wing dihedral.. but as far as the lights go, overall a successful first try, me thinks.
Cheers,
BC
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Awesome Brad. Once again you are raising the Bar for the rest of us 1/72nd guys 8)
RAGIII
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Masterful work Brad. I really like the lights you’ve scratched up.
Tim
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I agree with Tim. I always paint a light on the reverse of a landing light part, but never though to make a whole new navigation light. It looks great!
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Years ago, following a tip in the old Fine Scale Modeler from somebody or other (probably Bob Steinbrunn, who was, and is, one of my modeling heroes) I started saving clear colored sprues/Christmas oddiments for just such an application. But it never occurred to me that it would only be the bulbs that were colored, and not the covers...
Dutch
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Just catching up - Im really impressed with your skills! What a great build :D
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The finesse of your lights make those elevators look a little.....mmmrr mmmr mmm clears throat ;)
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Looks great!! Clear handled tooth brushes are a great source for those wing tip lights and clear red, green and blue for those that have coloured covers.
Steve