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Bill_S

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Posts posted by Bill_S

  1. Some progress:

    DSCN3143-1.jpg

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    So far, the fit on this kit has been phenomenal.  I've started on the landing gear; I'm waiting for a few bits to dry prior to installing the IP and control stick. Once I paint the lap belts, the seats will be ready to go as well. Then, it's time to button up the fuselage.

    DSCN3144-1.jpg

    DSCN3145-1.jpg

    • Like 11
  2. 7 hours ago, DocRob said:

    Interior is looking nice Bill. Which livery have you chosen for yours, plain green or camo?

     Cheers Rob

    Thanks, Rob. According to the instruction booklet, the upward firing cannons are for the green (boring) paint scheme. I thought I saw a photo posted by Martin (who else) that had the dark "streaks" over aluminum. I like that paint job, even though it may be challenging.

    5 hours ago, BlrwestSiR said:

    The interior and IP both look great Bill. Are you going to weather them a bit or leave them as is?

    Carl, if I do any weathering, it will probably be minimal. I've always been partial to the "factory fresh" look. Or maybe I suck at weathering...

    2 hours ago, Peterpools said:

    Bill

    Nice work on the interior - looking mighty good. Just can't beat Quinta 3D sets.

    Thank you, Peter - but there is no 3D printed detail available for this kit. I'm using photoetch (by Eduard, but marketed through Z-M). I'm not a big fan of their pre-painted stuff, the pebbled texture doesn't look right when you get up close. When I got the kit, it came with the PE, so I'm using it.

     

     

    • Like 4
  3. So far, the fit has been excellent. This is the PE instrument panel; I'm thinking a drop of future on the dial faces will be in order.

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    And the radio box. More PE.

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    Rear gunner's station. I still nave to finish the seat.

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    View from the front. Still some detailing to do on the seat, side consoles and stick.

    DSCN3137-1.jpg

    Coming soon will be fitting all this into the fuselage halves. ZM provides multiple warnings about test fitting. We'll see how it goes.

    • Like 10
    • Thanks 1
  4. I'm seeing too many Kotare Spitfires being built. I've decided to put mine away until my back heals well enough to focus on detail painting. I picked up the Z-M Nick from a fellow club member just before Christmas... The plan is to build it (mostly) OOB. The kit, as received, came with the Z-M cockpit PE set, so I'll be using that. I've a fondness for upward firing cannons, so the scheme I'll be building is the late production Kai Tei version. The kit comes with a boatload of clear plastic; almost a full airframe. Give me the opaque styrene, please.

    DSCN3126-1.jpg

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    I've always been an "engines first, then internals" kind of guy, but I'm switching modes for this build.

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    Cockpit color is Mr. Color C384 Kawasaki cockpit color. To my eye, it's a great match to the colored PE bits.

    DSCN3131-1.jpg

    • Like 14
  5. 19 hours ago, Landlubber Mike said:

    Looking really great!  Can I ask how you go about cutting the piano wire?  I didn't know if special tools were needed, and if you have to smooth out the ends and make them round again if you use a crushing-type of cutter.  Thanks in advance!

    Mike, Piano wire is tough stuff! Depending upon diameter, the recommended method is to use bolt cutters to chop to approximate length, the grind to final length. In my case, the diameter was small - I had an old pair of sprue cutters that I sacrificed to the cause. Even at this small diameter, the cutting edge got pretty chewed up (a good excuse to buy a new tool!). I didn't have to do anything to round off the ends.

    • Like 1
    • Thanks 1
  6. On Monday, I finally had it done. Supposed relief that has plagued me terribly the past couple of years. Spinal stenosis, a closing in of the vertebrae, causing a pinch of the spinal cord. The surgeon removed part of the aft side of four of the lumbar vertebrae, leaving just muscle and scar tissue to protect the nerve. No pins, screws or rods involved! Right now, it is one angry nerve, too. I'm still in a lot of discomfort, but at least the pain down both legs has subsided.

    While I'm recuperating, I've yielded to temptation and started drilling lightening holes in the Kotare Spitfire. Don't expect progress reports any time soon.

    • Like 9
  7. Got a really good price on this one off Amazon.

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    I was at Noreastcon in Albany on Saturday. I picked up a 1st (Tamiya A6M2) and a 3rd (Pfalz D.IIIa). They had a pretty good vendor area. I got this for a decent price.

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    Dana Bell was there; I missed his talk, but I picked up one of his books in the raffle.

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    • Like 7
    • Thanks 1
  8. 1 hour ago, BlrwestSiR said:

    How are you finding the kit? It's one I've been interested in getting for some reason. 

    Carl - a little history on this kit. When it first came out, the fuselage forward of the cockpit was way off. So much so that the importer made Trumpeter retool the fuselage (you can imagine the rumblings on TOS!). Trumpeter complied, but neglected to make changes to the cockpit and firewall. As such, the fit in these areas is wonky. I had to clamp things together with zip ties, and even then there was a gap that needed to be filled.

    When fitting the wings together, I had some interference; it took me a while to figure out where it was. If you lay the bottom wing on the top, you're guaranteed to get interference (see arrow in the picture below).

    interference1.jpg

     

    interference2.jpg

    A little bit of gymnastics is required to get things to fit. The wing is designed so that the outer wings have to be sandwiched between the short stubby wing sections.

    All in all, it's not a bad kit, and I got it pretty cheap!

    • Like 3
    • Thanks 2
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