1/72 Airfix Spitfire PR.1G Diorama

Gallery Article by Stephen & Lyta Carr on Feb 6 2017

 

      

My daughter's first model was a Revell Red Arrows Hawk, started just before her 4th birthday and completed about 4 months later. Despite quite a lot of help, and around a half to three-quarter hour attention span, she did really well for such a young age. To follow on from that, I decided to try and push her with more than just a model, and decided to go for a diorama!

The Airfix Battle of Britain diorama seemed ideal, not too big, but with several models that could be built as sub assemblies to keep variation and interest. Rather than a BoB scheme, and to keep it girly, we went for a pink Photo Recon Spitfire PR.1G. The kit was bought just before her 5th birthday, late in 2014, and as you can see from the picture, the set looks huge. I loved those days when I was young, coming back with a huge kit box. I bet that many here still have that same feeling, though the kit boxes are generally smaller in comparison to us.

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Experience with the Hawk taught me she was ok using a scalpel so long as she was watched, and was fine working on painting sub assemblies. So she was able to cut and sand parts which we both trial fitted, and I either taped, held or jigged parts together for her to glue. We started by painting Spitfire parts, figures and the base, though the base was going to receive additional work, so the green was just an undercoat.

After the green base dried, it was painted with PVA glue, and sprinkled with fine sand, to give a better texture for the grass. Building sessions could be a bit longer as she was older, with some being 45 minutes to an hour. Some days we managed multiple build sessions, interspersed with Disney films while parts dried. There were also times of weeks going by and not doing anything.

My dad started modelling at the same time as me, so we were both beginners stumbling along together, making the same mistakes. My daughter has had the benefit of my 40+ years of experience, and so I have been able to guide her and prevent her from making many of the mistakes I did. One simple tip was to use Blu-Tac to hold down the paint and glue to prevent spills.

Once the Spitfire was built and painted, I gave it a sprayed clear coat, and then with further help and guidance, she applied the decals. The kit decals weren't right, but I found some in the spares box that would do, close enough compared to a wartime photo I had. I gave it a dirty wash and a sprayed matt coat.

The tanker followed the Spitfire, but I modified the top after reading the Airfix version with the booms was a post war tanker. I turned a new dome on my lathe, and cut away the bulk of the rectangle moulding on the top, leaving my daughter to sand and blend it flush with the rest of the tank. The kit doesn't include windows for the vehicle, and I decided for simplicity, not to make any. The "Mickey Mouse" camo on the tanker had the outlines painted by me, with the rest filled in by my daughter. I glossed it, she applied the decals and I sprayed a matt coat.

The base was epoxied to a piece of MDF. The grass blast walls were painted in two blends of green and a brown from household emulsion tester pots, then the concrete was painted in grey from the Humbrol enamel range. I gave the concrete a dirty sprayed coat and using a black fine line pen, drew the tar joint lines. I found a few boxes and barrels from the bits box for accessories around the dispersal. My daughter had painted the figures in blue and black boots, but decided I should paint the hands and faces. I also modified one to be holding a refuelling hose, to sit on the wing, about to stand and fill the fuselage tank. When the figures were done, I cut the bases off, and we used Lego blocks to support them while the glue dried, a combination of either PVA or Cyano, depending on gluing area.

The model was completed in the first few days on January 2017. It was great father/daughter time, and we are both very proud of the finished result. She's got two more models to build, a 1/144 scale B-17 which I may stand back further from, and see how she gets on, as it's a fairly low parts count. The other is a 1/72 scale Fokker Triplane which will be a joint project. Having heard the song "Snoopy Verses the Red Baron" over Christmas, we decided to make a 3D picture to hang on the wall. The picture frame will have sky and land as the background, and the Triplane and a scratch built Snoopy and his Kennel flying out from the frame in a dog fight.

Stephen Carr ( age 47 ) & Lyta Carr ( age 7 )

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Photos and text © by Stephen & Lyta Carr