1/24 Airfix Spitfire (the new one)

[stona]

I finally got this thing primed and ready to spray and mask the Sky fuselage band and Yellow leading edge stripe, I'll also do the propeller blade tips. It looks exactly like the last photo, just a slightly different grey

The Sky band was only 18" wide, which equates to just 12.7mm (call it 13mm) at this scale.
The Yellow tips and leading edge stripes were both just 4" wide, which equates to 4.2 mm (call it 4 and a bit) at this scale. I'll be cutting some masking to the correct widths for these two. I see a lot of models on which the leading edge stripes in particular are much too wide!

 

[adt70hk]

Looking forward to the colour flying Steve!

 

[stona]

Looking forward to the colour flying Steve!

I use Hycote Plastic Primer, which is good stuff, but does need 24 hours to go off/harden. I always give the primer coat a quick polish with a fine (2500 grit) paper before I start painting, so I really have to wait until tomorrow before I carry on.

 

[adt70hk]

I use Hycote Plastic Primer, which is good stuff, but does need 24 hours to go off/harden. I always give the primer coat a quick polish with a fine (2500 grit) paper before I start painting, so I really have to wait until tomorrow before I carry on.

Do you decant into a container for the AB or straight from the can?

 

[stona]

Do you decant into a container for the AB or straight from the can?

Straight from the can.

You've just got to be careful not to flood the model. I seal the cockpit with Blu-Tac, which is why the sliding hood not sitting quite right, and attach other removable panels in the same way. I use the good old wet tissue method to mask wheel wells, intakes etc.


Primer always shows up something I've got to fix (like the back inch or so of the wing root nearest the camera)!

 

[adt70hk]

Does look good Steve. Something about a coat of primer!

ATB.

Andrew

 

[stona]

That bloody wing root. I think that the join cracked after I originally made it, because it was fine then! The plastic of the upper wing is pretty thin there and doesn't make a robust join.

Anyway, a bit of superglue and talcum powder mix and a few minutes later it's all better.

 

[papa 695]

Looking good

 

[tr1ckey66]

Looking good Steve

 

[stona]

Correction on the Sky band in post #81.

It was 18" wide which is 457.2 mm. Divide that by 24 and you get a scale band at 19.05 mm, call it 19 mm.

The 4" for the prop tips and leading edge stripe is correct in the original post.

To be fair, as soon as I measured my incorrect number it just looked completely wrong.

 

[stona]

I've applied a first coat of camouflage using the MRP paints.

As an enamel user it's been years since I've had paint drying at the tip, even necessitating stripping and cleaning the airbrush half way through a job, but I've done it today...several times It was so bad that I switched to a brush with a smaller cup (this is a 1/24 scale model) and flushed between cups. Spraying a camouflage pattern like this freehand, as I've done, is nigh on impossible if your paint/airbrush don't work properly, neither can you rush it for fear of the paint going off in the airbrush.

Rather depressingly I'll have to do it all again, probably tomorrow, as the Dark Green has dried not looking too clever, but it's too late to change now ):

 

[tr1ckey66]

What’s wrong with the Dk Green Steve? It looks fine to my eye. Is it the pattern edge or paint coverage/color?
From the pic I honestly couldn’t say there was anything wrong
Anyway, whatever it is, I have every faith that you’ll crack it.
Cheers
Paul

 

[stona]

What’s wrong with the Dk Green Steve? It looks fine to my eye. Is it the pattern edge or paint coverage/color?
From the pic I honestly couldn’t say there was anything wrong
Anyway, whatever it is, I have every faith that you’ll crack it.
Cheers
Paul

It's just a matter of coverage. I'll give it another coat and it should be fine. I won't be making any touch-ups around the colour boundaries until that's done.

I quite like the paints, but the drying at the nozzle is really irritating! I would happily use them to spray other, smaller, things, just not a freehand camouflage pattern on a model this big

 

[stillp]

That's the first time I've heard anyone complain about tip drying with MRP.
Pete

 

[stona]

That's the first time I've heard anyone complain about tip drying with MRP.
Pete

Definitely happening, on the needle/in the nozzle. This is not a particularly fine nozzle, 0.3mm.
It dries in the cup too. I don't like to rush and for longwinded jobs requiring finesse it will be back to enamels.
I could have done that paint job with Color coats and never disassembled an airbrush. It would just have taken a few hours longer, but then they cover better too.
If you are spraying to masking or spraying something one colour, then MRPs are fine. That doesn't take long.

 

[Andy T]

That's the first time I've heard anyone complain about tip drying with MRP.
Pete

Same here. In fact the lack of it is one of the things I like best about mrp, despite only having a few.

Sorry to hear about the trouble it's caused Steve and hope you get to the bottom of it.

 

[stona]

I've sorted the camo this morning.

Next up spraying the markings,

 

[adt70hk]

That's turned out very nicely Steve, despite the problems.

I've never used them but I've never heard anyone ever complain about MRP and dry tip either.

Looking forward to the markings.

ATB.

Andrew

 

[Jack L]

It's just a matter of coverage. I'll give it another coat and it should be fine. I won't be making any touch-ups around the colour boundaries until that's done.

I quite like the paints, but the drying at the nozzle is really irritating! I would happily use them to spray other, smaller, things, just not a freehand camouflage pattern on a model this big

Another one here who’s never had issues with MRP drying on the tip. I’ve come back to a model an hour later and it’s continued to spray fine (surprisingly, and only down to me forgetting to clean the airbrush through).

 

[Tim Marlow]

Never tried MRP, but if it’s drying in the cup perhaps try fitting a cup cover to minimise evaporation? If the AB doesn’t come with one some clingfilm with a hole pricked in it to let the pressure equalise will work…..