Airfix 1/24 scale Hellcat.

[Jim R]

Hi Barry
Thanks for the masking tips and the 'how to spray yellow' method - certainly works a treat. Shame about the MIG softener. It may be worth giving Karl's suggestion a go. As he says nothing to lose.
Jim
Great that Airfix came through with the part.

[BarryW]

Bugger! Or similar such words......

I would be tempted to try a different softener over that, just in hope more than anything else, like respraying over varnish "bloom". You've nothing to lose.

Good suggestion. I will play around when next at the bench.

[BarryW]

Some fun and games fitting the wings.

the top wing must be slid into a slot fitting. To be fair Airfix do say in the instructions that some sanding might be needed. Quite a lot actually and that is after some sanding I did in a test fit at an early stage.

Look...at the bottom you can see where the part slots into.

It is tight very tight
get to this stage and it refuses to go further.


so I had to do a fix then I got this...

it’s home but not a perfect fit. Lots of filling and sanding to do.

a modification I had to do - see the ‘square’ angle at the top


It needed sanding at an angle to get it to slide into position


That finally did it.
But, it was a struggle as the gun barrel broke off, always a problem when we have to fight a kit and sometimes use force. I got off lightly as other protruding parts bent but did not break.

Not a problem it can be glued into place.

But, I cocked up, when looking at the other wing I realised the middle gun should also protrude a little....

I am not sure yet how to fix this. I may see if I can get metal gun barrels so I can drill them out and glue metal one into place.



It was a real issue getting the two parts of the wing to meet up. Pressure had to be applied and clamps just slide off and could not be made to hold in the right place. So while the cement dried I had to maintain pressure.

On the other wing I did a lot of sanding to see if I could improve the fit. I also cut away some raised tabs as well as on the first wing I could not get the rear part of the wing completely flush. It will give me an issue with the flaps and aelerons.

below is what I mean


I did what I could with it, carefully carving away some plastic. It improved but was not perfect. The other wing, again not perfect but thangs to the major surgery I did it was a bit better, front still an issue but the rear fitted a bit better.



The problems are partly caused by warping of the awful cheap Airfix plastic and the over-complex engineering. Quite frankly, the wings really let down this kit, very poor engineering indeed.

in some way they have improved over the Tiffy but this kit, overall, is inferior to that. After all, the only real issue with the Tiffy was this crap plastic.

we will see..


Now I have to decide how I am going to sort the guns.

[BarryW]

A quick p.s. to this.
I am really glad I decided not to try to have open panels on this kit. All the painting and work for that would be ruined by the struggle and work to get it all to fit. It would not be fun at all.

[BarryW]

I have ordered set of brass barrels, a Master set. I will have some drilling to do to fit them but does any know if it easy to cut the brass down? If so what’s the best tool for that?

[KarlW]

Brass is quite soft. I have a pair of yellow handled cutters dedicated to cutting metal rods.
A Dremel with cut off disc is a bit overkill but works too

[Neil Merryweather]

Brass is quite soft. I have a pair of yellow handled cutters dedicated to cutting metal rods.
A Dremel with cut off disc is a bit overkill but works too

I use a Jeweller's saw with a fine blade.

[BarryW]

Thanks Neil and Karl.

i have another example of poor engineering and fit.

The above are panels that fit in the underside of the wing. Note the tabs on the bottom one, I had to cut them off to fit the piece. They are meant to slot in but don’t. Your can see where they are meant to go below. Note also how the internal detail comes right up to the top on the bottom of the aperture.


The edge of the part is chamfered but not nearly enough.


I needed to sand that down a fair bit and also I cut away some of the detail to make room.

Above you can see the problem.

A bit of work and I got the parts to fit. Here they are clamped up drying.


some filler was needed to finish. Still some cleaning up to do of the filler when dry.



I will do that with a cotton bud dipped in i.p.a. It will remove the surplus without damaging detail, a bit of elbow grease..

These have arrived so I will carry on with the wing tonight.


a bit expensive for something for which only the tips will be seen!

[Tim Marlow]

Going well Barry. The replacement gun barrels look excellent, they will sharpen up the guns no end. Another way to cut brass tube is to use a flat bladed scalpel and cut the tube by rolling it on a cutting mat. The tube can be dressed to size by holding it in a pin vice and using good sharp fine files.

[BarryW]

I have painted the wing tip lights, I am attaching the transparencies before fitting the wings. The fit of these is not great. I have masking elements for them. I have or will mask other wing transparencies as well.





i have nearly finished the 500lb bombs, they look good. Just now got to matt varnish them and add a spot of weathering.


in attaching the wing transparencies I used masking tape to help hold them in place. Gator glue was used as it is ideal for these. The one below has no location fixings and is prone to pop right through into the wing. The solution for this was simple, a strip of tape to hold it in position so you don’t lose it inside the wing. Another example of some poor engineering associated with the wing. I am hoping that Gator Glue on the edges will hold it securely enough.....


I attached the wings to the fuselage, the fit is good but I did needed to do some sanding because of the tolerances.

above you can see how good the starboard fit is. But on the port side it does not sit nicely down into place without some pressure. Consequently I am cementing in stages. Starboard first, held securely by clamps. Note the gun barrels, fitting them was not hard and I would recommend getting the brass ones to anyone building this aircraft even if you are closing it up simply because then soft plastic ones are so vulnerable, the brass can take a knock or two.

below is the port side. I have not cemented that yet, once the starboard side is fully cured I will remove the clamps and press down to cement the port side. The picture does not show the gap, it is not a large one, but large enough.

[Jim R]

Hi Barry
You're making good progress even with the fit issues to deal with. Gator glue is a very useful glue to have on the bench.

I will do that with a cotton bud dipped in i.p.a. It will remove the surplus without damaging detail,

That sounds a great idea. What filler do you use? Do you let it dry completely before wiping with IPA?
Jim

[BarryW]

Hi Barry
You're making good progress even with the fit issues to deal with. Gator glue is a very useful glue to have on the bench.

That sounds a great idea. What filler do you use? Do you let it dry completely before wiping with IPA?
Jim

I use three fillers, all can be 'sanded' with cotton bud/ipa method. Mr Dissolved Putty, Mr Surfacer 500 and Vallejo Plastic Putty. Yes, I let it completely dry. You need to use a fair bit of elbow grease and be patient as you rub.

[Jim R]

Thanks Barry

[BarryW]

The pace of this build is picking up a little having been bogged down with issues arising from the warped plastic. I am convinced that 90% of the problems are because of the crappy unsuitable plastic. Smaller parts fit into place well, the issues really are with large pieces which has a knock on effect. Done in a decent plastic this could be a great kit.

See the gap here. I am convinced that is a result of fuselage fit issues due to warping.


I have got more use out of my clamps on this build than the last four builds combined.




A few more subs just click perfectly into place.


that bottom seam filled with Vallejo Plastic Putty. I might apply a drop of Mr Dissolved Putty to finish it off.



The engine fits nicely into place.


I know the bottom panel fits perfectly and I will show a pic soon. Test fitting looks as if other panels will not be so good and some trimming and filling will be needed. Again I am sure its a knock on from this awful plastic.

[KarlW]

Airfix plastic is a bit weird, reminds me of "plastic resin" a lot of wargames company are doing things with for the last few years, but with a lot of the downsides of thermoplastic injection moulding present.
(I've just heard some hints that there may be changes coming at Airfix, but as to what I'm not certain.....)