SPA Modeler

Time to start cobbling the cockpit parts together. Here is the floor board with the foot rests and control stick in place.


I've decided to use the decaled instrument panel instead of the photoetch. Detail is noticeably heavier than the PE but this might be a good thing once the panel gets covered by the coaming. The compass has been added, topped off by PE cover as the decal folded onto itself and became unusable.


The seat has been glued onto the bulkhead and the PE harnesses have been added. I've added some random kinks and bends to get rid of that straight-as-ruler look that PE belts often have. I also dirtied them a little by adding a dark wash around the buckles. The delicate tubular sidewalls have been not been glued onto the bulkhead just yet as I'm just checking out fit.




The floor board is now temporarily slide into place.



The cockpit is noticeably smaller than what I am used to working on but very good detail out of the box.

Wow! That looks really sharp so far John…

Very nice!!

Looking great John. Nice details.

Very nice work!

Thanks guys! Last night, I went a little further and tried to get the instrument panel into place.


A little too much pressure and the starboard side sidewall collapsed.


I managed to get the tubular frame back together with some Tamiya Extra Thin cement. I decided to let the glue cure overnight and then reinforce the broken joints with CA glue the next day.


Thankfully, the repair went well and I was able to proceed with the cockpit assembly without further hiccups.

Fantastic work as always John. Even in this scale!

Repair....I don't see no stinkin' repair. Looks great, you'd never know you had an issue

Cracking work as ever John. How're you finding working in 1/48th for a change?

keavdog wrote: ↑Mon Apr 29, 2024 7:04 pm Fantastic work as always John. Even in this scale!

Thank you John! I appreciate it!

tempestjohnny wrote: ↑Tue Apr 30, 2024 2:30 am Repair....I don't see no stinkin' repair. Looks great, you'd never know you had an issue

Thanks Johnny! Because of how the part broke, I was able to align the breaks so that the parts fit back together naturally. The plastic reacted very well to spot welding with Tamiya Extra Thin and I played it safe and let it dry overnight. If you look really close in the photos, you can see the glue joints but they will not be visible once the cockpit is closed up within the fuselage as you'll see.

Stuart wrote: ↑Tue Apr 30, 2024 4:09 am Cracking work as ever John. How're you finding working in 1/48th for a change?

Thank you Stuart! I am enjoying the change of pace, especially the speed of the build. But I prefer the larger 1/32 scale personally. Bigger is better in my (ageing) eyes.

A few views of the cockpit embedded in each side of the fuselage.





This is just a test fit but you can see how the cockpit starts to disappear once the fuselage halves go together. The view will be further restricted by the top deck piece which includes the coaming over the instrument panel and the turtle deck behind the pilot seat.




Before the fuselage halves are glued together, the radial engine facsimile is painted. Keeping it simple since hardly anything will be seen through the front cowling.