1/48 Eduard Spitfire Mk.IIa 71 Eagle Squadron "Bill Dunn"

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lawdog114
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1/48 Eduard Spitfire Mk.IIa 71 Eagle Squadron "Bill Dunn"

Post by lawdog114 »

I figured I'd share my latest excursion. After Tamiya's new Spitfire Mk.I, which is probably one of the best kits ever made, I was surprised that Eduard released a new early Spit series. Even Tamiya's old 1993 Mk. I is quite good in my opinion. So of course I can't resist an early Spitfire so I had to give the Eduard offering a whirl to compare the two and see if they set the bar even higher. I decided on their Mk.II release as something a bit different.
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This is one awesome package. I love how Eduard provide two full kits, one Mk. IIa (machine gun) and one Mk.IIb (cannon) kit. I decided on Bill "Poppy" Dunn's 71st Eagle Squadron Mk IIa machine from 1941. Dunn was one of several Americans who joined the RAF before America entered the war. They were placed into the 71st Squadron which would eventually become the 4th FG when the US entered the war. Dunn would hold the distinction of being the first American ace and would claim 8.5 in the air, along with 4 unconfirmed and 3 probables by war's end. Of course I had to pay homage to this hero.
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As I said I wanted to compare it to Tamiya's Spitfire. In short, Eduard wins in surface detail as I don't think they missed a rivet. I also appreciate all the extras included that you don't have to buy, so you can just get busy building. I did have a few fit issuesm particularly the starboard wing root. It may have been my fault though.

This said, Tamiya's engineering is second to none. Eduard still has the tenency to overcomplicate things, making the build more challenging than necessary, hence my wing root issue I suspect.

I wanted to depict a well used Spitfire and continued to practice chipping, however, I was going for a bit more restrained than a typical Japanese machine. I kept chipping limited to the port wingroot, nose, and wing leading edges. Paint is Tamiya XF-81 RAF Green, XF-82 Ocean Grey, over XF-83 Medium Sea Grey which was all heavily faded.

All main markings were painted on with Maketar masks. The decals I did use were wonderful. I've read all the hoopla about about their new decals and the film on them. Apparently if you try to peel it off the decal it will rip it off. I had no such issue. I just left the film there and it's not even visible. Ammo Mig enamels were used for a wash and I added a dark brown fliter to dirty it up, especially at the wing root.

In conclusion, I'm quite happy. I see their new Zero 21 in my near future..
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A few in-progress pics....
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Can you fly this plane and land it? Surely you can't be serious? I am serious, and don't call me Shirley
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KSaarni
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Re: 1/48 Eduard Spitfire Mk.IIa 71 Eagle Squadron "Bill Dunn

Post by KSaarni »

Looking extremely good!
That fading effect is outstanding, how did you do that ?

And very interesting information regarding Tamiya versus Eduard! Have never built Tamiyas new Spitfire but have started, though never finished, a number of Eduards Spitfires. Detail level on Eduards Spitfire is really good.

- Kari
---
On the bench:
Tamiya F-4B Phantom II 1/48
Kinetic F-16A (new tool) 1/48



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mustang1989
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Re: 1/48 Eduard Spitfire Mk.IIa 71 Eagle Squadron "Bill Dunn

Post by mustang1989 »

Excellently built bud. Really like all the weathered effects that you put into this bird. Subtle but still most effective. What I find most interesting is the speed at which you build yet you put all this great detailing, paint and weathering into these little gems. It takes me months to achieve something even remotely close to this.
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tempestjohnny
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Re: 1/48 Eduard Spitfire Mk.IIa 71 Eagle Squadron "Bill Dunn

Post by tempestjohnny »

Damn Joe .......you keep getting better and better. Museum quality again
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BlackSheep214
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Re: 1/48 Eduard Spitfire Mk.IIa 71 Eagle Squadron "Bill Dunn

Post by BlackSheep214 »

I quit! What a great finish! :shoutout: :shoutout: :shoutout: :bow: :bow: :bow:
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LyleW
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Re: 1/48 Eduard Spitfire Mk.IIa 71 Eagle Squadron "Bill Dunn

Post by LyleW »

simply a beautiful build. Spits are some of the best looking a/c anyway! Wow.
To make each build less crappy than the last one. Or, put another way, "Better than the last one, not as good as the next one!"..
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Stikpusher
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Re: 1/48 Eduard Spitfire Mk.IIa 71 Eagle Squadron "Bill Dunn

Post by Stikpusher »

Another beautiful build LD! I’m not used to seeing a Spit looking so war weary. At least not outside the occasional North Africa builds that go that route.
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Duke Maddog
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Re: 1/48 Eduard Spitfire Mk.IIa 71 Eagle Squadron "Bill Dunn

Post by Duke Maddog »

Once again I'm gobsmacked! You nailed this perfectly! What a magnificent masterpiece! :shoutout: :shoutout: :shoutout:
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Gary Brantley
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Re: 1/48 Eduard Spitfire Mk.IIa 71 Eagle Squadron "Bill Dunn

Post by Gary Brantley »

Beautiful work! :shoutout:
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mostrich
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Re: 1/48 Eduard Spitfire Mk.IIa 71 Eagle Squadron "Bill Dunn

Post by mostrich »

Thanks for the comparison, very informative! I also really like the build. Weathering is spot on.
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