Author: Bruces Scale Models

Kittyhawk 1/32 P-39 Bell Airacobra Mk1

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Year Purchased: 2016
Date Completed: 2017
​Aftermarket used
Eduard  Cockpit interior set, and exterior set ,exhausts
HGW Seatbelts RAF eraly style Sutton Harness
Mastercaster early style wheels and fishtail exhausts for Mk1
Master Model  .50in and .303 gun barrels with no flash hider
Maketar Masks  RAF and RAAF airacobra for Special Hobby kit

I have always loved the Airacobra in Royal Air Force markings, so when Kittyhawk announced their kit, thoughts turned to modifying it to represent a Mk 1 Airacobra as briefly used by 601 SQN
Research revealed there weren’t too many visible differences between the kit version and the one I wanted to model.  Fishtail exhausts, wheels, armament and a smaller diameter propeller being the main ones.  Mastercaster did wheels and exhausts for a Mk1.  Although made to fit the Special Hobby kit, they were easily adaptable to the KH kit.  Master of Poland supplied the gun barrels for wings and fuselage, the nose cannon being made from brass tubing.  I had planned to have the nose gun bay open, and had even gone as far as to replace the kit 37mm cannon with a 20mm hispano robbed from a HobbyBoss Spitfire, but in the end was not happy that I had portrayed the interior correctly, so reluctantly glued the panels shut.  The aerial mast was scratchbuilt from plastic strip, and the pitot tube came from a Trumpeter P-47
Overall I found the kit a reasonable build, although there were a couple of areas where fit was less than stellar, the wingroots being the main culprit.  This was due to the recess for the inner walls of the wheelbays not being deep enough.  The problem was solved by fitting the wings to the fuselage minus the wheelwell inner walls.  These were fitted after the wings were glued on.  To enable this, you need to cut the tabs off the wheelwell front and rear walls that the inner walls locate onto.  Do this and you will be rewarded with a join that just needs a smear of filler to hide.  It remains one of my favourite builds.

Bell P-39 Airacobra Mk1 601 SQN. Royal Air Force. Duxford 1941

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Kittyhawk 1/48 Super Etendard

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  • Built: 2017
  • Aftermarket Used: Dedicated Eduard PE set
  • Decals: Kit

The Kittyhawk Super Etendard Modernise was another build done for The Modelling News.  

www.themodellingnews.com/2017/01/build-guide-review-pt-ii-bruce-finishes.html#more

The only addition was an Eduard Zoom Set to help the cockpit. It was finished with Gunze paints and the decals from the kit. It went together pretty well with a minimum of filler, however if you are one of those modellers that don’t enjoy the construction phase, Kittyhawk kits aren’t for you.  Just about all the parts need refining with flash and ejector pins needing removing before assembly.  That said, I still enjoyed building this kit.  However should you wish to build an early Argentinian jet used during The Falklands War, you are best getting the Kinetic kit, as that includes the proper bullet fairing on the tail.

 

Bronco 1/48 Curtiss Tomahawk 81-A2

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  • Built: 2016
  • Aftermarket Used: Nil
  • Decals: Kit

This was the second review I did for The Modelling News and I had high hopes for it.  Unfortunately  the kit was  a bit of a chore, whether this was because I had just built a kittyhawk, or because of all the remedial work required,  I found myself having  to dig deep to finish the build.  
Despite its inaccuracies, the kit has some nice features, although I can not recommend it given the Airfix kit is far superior.  I imagine this will be relegated to the shadows, especially in the Western market.

Curtiss 81-A2 Hawk. American Volunteer Group. China. 1941

Special Hobby 1/32 Brewster Buffalo Mk1

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  • Built: 2016
  • Aftermarket Used: Nil
  • Decals: Montex masks

This one had a period on The Shelf of Doom due to me damaging the windscreen.  Special Hobby kindly came to the rescue and supplied me a new one free of charge.  Exceedingly generous of them seeing as I was the one who cocked it up.  I added a few additions to the cockpit such as a British reflector gunsight and armoured glass screen to reflect the British modifications. All markings are sprayed using Montex masks.  I have since discovered a few colour inaccuracies, the fuselage band should be sky blue and there should be no yellow ring on the underside roundel.  I still like it though.  Its actually a kit that I would like to revisit as I do i have a soft spot for the tubby Buffalo.  This being the third one I have built, well fourth, as I remember building the old tamiya kit as well. 

Brewster Buffalo Mk 1 67 SQN. R.A.F Burma 1941

Eduard 1/48 N.A.A. F-86 Sabre

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  • Built: 2016
  • Aftermarket Used: Multimedia kit OOB
  • Decals: kit

This is Hasegawa’s still very nice plastic rebooted by Eduard and supersized with some of their excellent resin and Photo etch.  

This was built for a review for The Modelling News, and rather than go through the build again, I will just send you there via this link

I was quite happy with the finished model and it still resides in my cabinet.

North American Aviation F-86F Sabre 390th FBS, Alexandria AFB, Louisiana, USA, 1955

Hasegawa 1/48 P-40E Kittyhawk

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  • Built:   2016
  •   Ultracast P-40 seat
  •   Ultracast P-40 Block tread wheels
  •   Ultracast P-40 Tubular exhausts

Decals:            Combination of Cutting Edge Pyn Up and Aussie decals

​Hasegawa’s P-40 series seems to be one of those kits modellers either love or hate 
 Flick through any of the fora and you will find modellers that rate it as a horrible fitting kit through to other modellers that have had no fit problems at all.  It does require care in assembly – like any kit – but I found mine went together reasonably well with only a small amount of iller needed around the gun ports and fuselage.  To be honest, I found the Cutting Edge decals a real disappointment, thick and reluctant to conform to recessed details.  The nose art decals, although very thin, were not sharply printed.  I dare say though printing technology has improved since these decals were first released.

Curtiss P-40 E-CE Kittyhawk

A.M.T 1/48 Douglas A-20C

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  • Built: 2014
  • Aftermarket Used: Master barrel brass gun barrels, RedRoo Models tropical cowls, Vector corrected control surfaces, MDC main wheels.
  • Decals: RedRoo Models

The second of a parallel Boston build, This one was finished as a RAAF machine. All the comments from my first Boston Build apply here too, including the spindly landing gear.

Douglas A-20C 22 SQN Royal Australian Air Force .

Goodenough Island New Guinea 1942

AMT 1/48 Douglas A-20 Boston IIIA

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  • Built; 2014
  • Aftermarket Used: True Details wheels, Master Barrel gun barrels Vector control surfaces
  • Decals: Various spare decals with nose art being hand painted.

Another two builds of the same kit in parallel.  AMTs kit is getting rather old now and we really need a new one.  Detail is soft, although there are now sets available for it from Vector, and it has several inaccuracies including metal control surfaces where they should be fabric and I believe the main landing gear is to far backward, or forward, cant remember which.  That said, it is a pretty viceless build.  The only weak point being the undercarriage attachment.  It is incredibly flimsy.  Mine have sheared off twice!!.  The doors also have poor attachment points.
I cut out all the control surfaces and replaced them with the Vector resin replacements,
I built the RAF one for a group build on an on-line forum.  It was the first time I had used the salt chipping method, and I was quite pleased with the results.  I wanted an machine that reflected the haste with which some units applied their invasion stripes., so the stripes were hand painted using vallejo paints.

As there are no decals for this scheme in 48 scale I used various generic sheets for the codes and national markings and hand painted the nose art.  She was flown by an Australian crew.  Im really hoping a new tool kit of this important aircraft is released soon.  The A.M.T kit has served well, but is long overdue for replacement.

 Xtracolour enamels were again used

Douglas Boston Mk IIIA Royal Air Force. England. 1944

Tamiya 1/32 Supermarine Spitfire MkVIII

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Date Completed:2015
Aftermarket:  barracuda Starboard cockpit sidewall. Barracuda Spitfire Block tread Wheels
Decals: Victory Productions Commonwealth Spitfire Aces

This Tamiya kit lived up to all the hype about it, which is just what I needed after coming out the other end of a mojo drought.  I didn’t bother with the engine, knowing it would slow the build down.  Rather than opting for the kit shark mouth scheme, I went for something different choosing Group Captain Clive Caldwell’s machine.  Codes and unit markings were from Victory Productions Spitfire Aces sheet, whilst all national markings were painted. A real joy from start to finish.
In retrospect though, I lightened the dark earth a little too much, so it doesn’t quite capture the darker looking camouflage of our spitfires. 

Spitfire MkVIII 80 Wing Royal Australian Air Force. Moritai. 1944

Special Hobby 1/48 Brewster Model 339 Buffalo

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  • Built: 2014
  • Aftermarket Used: Nil. OOB
  • Decals: Kit

The second part of my double Buffalo build. Like the other build, this one also went together quite effortlessly.

To paint it I used the then popular “black base” technique. I remember not liking it that much as I didn’t think it gave you a lot of range with the colours. The colours on this were all lightened considerably to portray a faded machine that had been operating under a blazing hot Northern Territory sun.

Extracolour paints were again used from my now diminishing supply.

I think this one turned out better than the U.S one I completed just prior.

Brewster Buffalo. 1 P.R.U SQN Royal Australian Air Force. Hughes Air Base.N.T 1942