Airfix 1:72 Gloster J-8A (Gladiator)

[colin m]

Greetings everyone.


So, a nice little new tool kit form Airfix.


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So what attracted me to this kit. Well, new tool Airfix, I like these a lot. Also, unusual camouflage and Skis. Skis are cool.


The sprues: As you can see, some nice detail here.


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Ok, it's small being 1:72, so there isn't much to go in the cockpit. Once the glass is on, even less to see so I didn't spend too much time here and just followed the instructions.


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Which then looks a bit like this.


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The guns need to be fitted now, which might cause a bit of fun painting the camo' later. So, they have been dipped in maskol before threading them through the fuselage.


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Then is was time to squeeze the fuselage together and slap some wings on the bottom.


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At this point, still no filler has been used. Some parts are very tight and need a bit of careful sanding for a good fit. A strange thing though, the cowling above the cabane struts didn't seem wide enough at the cockpit end. A bit of hot water and gentle persuasion was all that was needed.


Any the sun is out now, so time to clean the pond filters. Then maybe a Sunday afternoon BBQ.


Colin M..

 

[dougie]

Nice.I like the look of this with the skis.


No bbq for me, just arrived in Shetland. It's pretty cold! I'll just imagine one instead as I've had only 2 this year.

 

[Dave W]

Looks a nice kit Colin.

 

[flyjoe180]

Nice work Colin. I'm trying not to buy any kits for a while. This is not helping my cause

 

[papa 695]

Cracking start Colin

 

[Polux]

Excellent start Colin.


I have one of this on my stash, so I will be attent


The ridding work will be a challenge....O_o

 

[colin m]

Thanks for looking in Gentlemen, sorry for the lack of updates. I am quite useless at keeping the updates flowing.

I've had only 2 this year

I think I only beat you by one, and I'm in the Midlands, a bit further south..
But anyway, some more work has been done.


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The little engine has been treated to a touch of Alclad, as has the collector ring. The cowling is made of three parts (the lower piece with exhausts is shown here) and may have a little issue with fitting. Some have reported some gaps where the cowling parts meet up. A quick check confirmed some very small gaps. My solution was to drill the locating holes on the inside of the cowling which position the engine. This seems to have worked quite nicely, allowing the cowling a close fit onto the engine.


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Canopy masked and in place. I'm not a fan of masking canopies, even little ones like this. Anyway, this pic shows some nice detail Airfix have moulded into their kit. You might notice a couple of holes drilled out for the rigging and control wires, all in 1:72.............................


Colin M..

 

[Airfix Modeller Freak]

The engine looks very nice. Waiting to see the rigging to go on


John

 

[papa 695]

Nice work Colin

 

[Laurie]

I'm not a fan of masking canopies,

Who is Colin :eek:


Just coming together nicely. Just love these craft so much going on. The ribbing is very nicely pronounced giving great guides for weathering.


Laurie

 

[takeslousyphotos]

This is looking good Colin... Cracking work.

 

[Doug Hughes]

Looking good so far Colin. I like the solution of dipping the guns in Maskol - there's always something you can learn by 'watching' someone else work.

 

[colin m]

Looking good so far Colin. I like the solution of dipping the guns in Maskol - there's always something you can learn by 'watching' someone else work.

Yes Doug, so lets hope it works !


So, a couple of more pics. This one, shows Airfix's clever idea for aligning the struts,


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That X shape is just there to keep the two struts in line and at the correct angle, once in place, they get cut off. The struts locate very positively in some decent recesses in the wing. A nice touch from Airfix. Another good idea is that the cabane struts are moulded in pairs (front and rear) and are very positively located under the cowling which again ensures correct alignment and spacing.


And finally, Lots of maskol used for the camouflage masking. As it's only a small model, painting a bit of rubbery paint on didn't take too long.


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Some of the Maskol edges are a bit 'feathery' it's as if the Maskol didn't want to sit still and leached across the surface. This normally undesirable effect might be useful for me. It might give me a look of some of the camouflage flaking off at the edges, as may of happened all those years ago.


Colin M..

 

[Robert1968]

I started using Maskol recently and I find it very good for canopies but touch up once removed can be a bit messy so careful use of Maskol is important.


Your making good headway with the Gladiator and camp should be interesting


Regards


Robert

 

[flyjoe180]

That's looking good Colin.

 

[colin m]

I started using Maskol recently and I find it very good for canopies but touch up once removed can be a bit messy so careful use of Maskol is important.
Your making good headway with the Gladiator and camp should be interesting


Regards


Robert

I think this is the effect I'm sort of hopping to get here. If my maskol leaves a very slightly ragged effect in places, I'll be happy with that.

 

[colin m]

Well, it's been a while. Holidays etc getting in the way of proper use of spare time has caused a delay to my build. Anyway, a little update.


Painting completed, I'm going for a slightly worn out look, with ragged edges and faded paint. Also, here you can see I've made a start with the rigging.


As it's a 1:72 I can't use rigging eyes so each piece of rigging is a single piece of stretchy stuff. I've attached all the wires to the lower wings first, then the top.


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Rigging, aerial and control wires all done.


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The rigging was straight forward if not intensive. However, it didn't go without problems. Some of the Ez line, seems to have absorbed some of the CA glue and deformed. Some I can straighten out, others will have to be replaced. Well, I say that, to the naked eye, it's fine, but the camera lens and magnifying glass show the deformities up. Maybe when they are all painted silver it will look better.


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Look at those skis. They look like something Ronald McDonald might wear.

 

[dougie]

Very nice work, looks great. Love the Ronald skis!

 

[yak face]

Great job on the rigging colin , and those clown shoes look massive!! Imagine the extra drag , must have really reduced the top speed ( which probably wasnt that much to start with !!) cheers tony

 

[flyjoe180]

Wow Colin, that is looking awesome mate. That ragged-edged camouflage effect is very nicely done, as is the extensive rigging job.