SPA Modeler

1/24 Hawker Typhoon Mk.1B 'car door'
No 486 (NZ) Sqn. RAF Tangmere 'Operation Spartan'



In 2014, Airfix contacted me and asked if I would build them the original bubble-top incarnation of their 1/24 Typhoon. As they had three other modellers also building, I was left with the shark mouth scheme....not that I was complaining. The model took around 7 weeks from start to finish and was one of the most satisfying builds I'd tackled in years. The blue infill on the mouth was also a talking point . There's no doubt that the finished model is impressive and imposing, yet not without its issues, such as seams that need removing, and some complicated plumbing work. Like many other modellers, the Typhoon that really interested us was the earlier car-door version. Thankfully, Airfix recently released this one, and I was asked again to build too.

Original kit photos

















The new release looks as engaging, but isn't without a few niggles. I will be building scheme 'B' which is the earliest machine from the options given. This means removing the fish plates from the tail strengthening joint, meaning the missing detail from under the plates will need to be restored. Despite this being a necessary evil, for some bizarre reason, Airfix will have you slice away the plastic on the deck to the rear of the pilot, and replace it with an insert. The reason? Simply to replace the moulded detail with a less detailed alternative. Having tried this and screwing up a fuselage half, I decided to just remove the raised plastic detail and recreate the lapped panel detail, as per the tail unit fish tail area. Makes sense? Good, I thought so.


Before


After


This Typhoon is quite interesting. Like all schemes in this release, it has a three-bladed propeller, but it also has the early style car door canopy, early narrow chord tailplane, and short cannon fairings. If you think you'll see lots of weapons underneath the wings, then you'll be wrong. This one carries no external ordnance. Yes.....a plain wing, unhindered by things hanging from it!



After scraping the frames and other internal parts (for two whole days), the entire internal framework was assembled and then airbrushed with Xtreme Metal Aluminium. After a coat of Klear, a wash was added. Here is the result. I still need to add further staining and detail paintwork, but you get the idea. You'll also note the early pilot seat headrest/bulkhead.











More soon........

Wow!

I'll have to watch this. I've seen the kit at my LHSs and it is absolutely gorgeous to see up close. But it's too big a scale for my collections... I'll live vicariously here... I do wish that Airfix did some 1/32 aircraft kits. Their new 1/48 stuff is great!

James, it's been a while. Nice to hear/read something from you!

That's a georgeous build you show here, along with your detailed explanations about the kit's mannerisms
You say that

The blue infill on the mouth was also a talking point

. Is this kind of blue documented? It's just a feeling, but it's looking so un-WW2-ish...

mostrich wrote:James, it's been a while. Nice to hear/read something from you!

That's a georgeous build you show here, along with your detailed explanations about the kit's mannerisms
You say that

The blue infill on the mouth was also a talking point

. Is this kind of blue documented? It's just a feeling, but it's looking so un-WW2-ish...

The chequer blue/white tail band was applied at the same time as the blue gear doors, spinner and the blue shutter in the intake. It seems feasible that whilst the blue was out that they would use it as an infill on the mouth. The b/w photos aren't conclusive, and in some light, it doesn't appear to have the tone that says that it's red, but more towards the hue of the spinner etc. No one knows now, especially as all protagonists, including pilot, crews etc. have all now passed on.

I remember researching and the non-conclusion on the shark mouth color...quite frustrating!
I used these same markings on Airfix's 1/72 kit. Like ya said, in some pics, the tone looked to match the spinner...but in some, it looked different, plus the logic of every other mouth being red....I went with the red mouth.
Either way....still pretty cool!

Update, anyone?

I've been busy juggling a few builds recently, so apologies for weeks that have passed here.

This model is building up quite quickly now, but you really have to make sure that you are precise with all construction, as the tolerances are high and the part count also high. To set the spars onto the lower wing, clamps were used with sanding sticks to aid placement. Cocktail sticks are used to push the spars hard against the edge of their location. 



Most of the plastic parts in the gun bays were ditched in favour of Eduard's resin guns/ammo and photo-etch bins. I have to say that this really adds to proceedings when compared to the kit parts, with no ugly, ill-places seams to fix.



This is a LARGE model, and it shows at this stage. It's hard not to keep knocking the crap out of this as you start to manipulate it. 



More soon.

wow, that is BEAUTIFUL!!

Same here. Great skills, as I am used to see from you!

Thanks guys,

I've been so tardy with updates and stuff due to being swamped or badly organised. I promise to get more stuff posted here. I have a Supermarine Spiteful coming up, as well as a Lysander, Su-76i, P-39 Airacobra, F-104 in Bavarian colours (sorry Thomas, closest I can get to Swabian!) and a Tempest II. A real lack of any WW2 Luftwaffe....a real change for me.