The Wooksta's Mosquito Blog: Plan V3.0

[The Wooksta!]

"That's a completely brilliant idea, Mike. I've been wanting to do this for a long time!"

The bulk of the cockpit internals are all painted, I just need to do some detail painting with the R1155s, as well as find the gear for the NF.XXX, as it would appear to have gone walkies.  That one isn't quite so important, though I painted the interior this afternoon - even if it's dropped from the plan, it's got that shade further forward.  I've just dug through the dregs of my Mosquito resin bits and found some radar gear that will need some sanding and a new scanner boot, but I can get that from the spares left from many NF.II boxings.  A bit of filling with superglue and baking soda then on with the boot.  Not ideal, but I doubt anyone will notice, much less care.

The modified cowlings for the B.XXV are now assembled, but need priming.  I've found another set, but they just need scribing.  I think they may end up as part of an FB26, probably of 249 Sqn in Kenya.  I've a photo of one, and the camouflage has the wonderful wavy lines of Canadian production aircraft, but the squadron codes could prove problematic, being red outlined in white.  I have an idea, but it could be expensive.  Although a search of the relevant seller on eBay is fruitless.  My wallet is grateful.  I'll have a look through the production list to find a more suitable FB26 or perhaps a T.27, and 151 Sqn had one of those. 
The other Canadian option would be one of the five modified to carry the 4,000lb bomb, with the bulged bay and enlarged elevators. I've a couple of Aeroclub bays and the Sea Mosquito elevators.  IIRC, all five ended up being issued to 627 Sqn at some point, one (serial unknown) being coded AZ-V.

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This is one I'd like to do, as apart from the bulged bay, it has the Z-lamp recognition gear, similar to that carried in the nose glazing of the Lancaster, mounted in the nose. That's those circular deelies above the flat panel, and 627 likely got it due to operating closely with 617 Sqn.  How to do it... well, that's going to need some thought.  Some of the ejector stubs in various kits *could* be trimmed down, I s'pose.  Need to find the serial though, so downloading 627's ORBs for 1945 could be helpful.

The TT35 I started, VP191, is on hold due to the lack of seats.  I positively loath the clunky piece of crap that Airfix provide and thankfully I have an iffy mould that just about produces usable castings, but no resin and it's way too cold to try casting in any case.  I've got it to a stage where it wouldn't take too much work to get it together, but there's the ever-present issue of radio gear, which also stalled my other TT35.

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A photo of the aircraft in question, and yes, they are day-glo strips, which is my primary reason for doing it. I'm curious as to the spinner colour, as I've a feeling it's Aluminium Dope, whereas most TT35s seem to have red spinners.  No matter, I can do both - I have some spare Airfix spinners and numerous spare Tamiya paddle blades, which do fit the Airfix spinners with a modicum of surgery to the backplate.  Why substitute the props for Tamiya?  The Airfix props are just too thick.  Not to say the Tamiya ones are perfect - there's a raised line either side of the blade tip that needs sanding off - but they're a 100% improvement on the Airfix.

I'm aiming to have several fuselages closed up by close of play Sunday, which I think is a reasonable aim.  It would be ironic if one of those is the NF.XXX, which is the furthest down the priority list...

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[The Wooksta!]

"Then what are you looking in the cellar for?"

So, I've been doing a bit of research on t'interweb and have been looking up the five Canadian production B.XXV aircraft that were converted to carry the 4,000lb bomb.  The Ian Thirsk Wingleader book on single stage Mosquitoes gives me the following serials:  KB409, KB416, KB490, KB561 and KB625

The production list I have gives their potted histories as:
KB409    B25    608/627/109    SOC 18.3.48
KB416    B25    608/627    Stalled on asymmetric overshoot Woodhall Spa 3.7.45
KB490    B25    627/109    SOC 7.11.47
KB561    B25    627/109    Swung on landing and u/c collapsed Wickenby 25.10.45
KB625    B25    627    Swung on take-off and u/c collapsed Woodhall Spa 5.5.45

And then the 627 Sqn AIR-27 aka the Operational Record Book gives the following serial/code tie ups:

KB409 AZ-Y
KB416 AZ-F
KB490 AZ-Q
KB561 AZ-V - so I now have an ID for the 627 Sqn aircraft in the last post.
KB625 AZ-L

There's a curiosity in the March '45 ORB, with  PF444 listed as a XV - but it's just a typo, it's one of the few BXVIs 627 received, being coded AZ-N.

The good news is that I have decals to do AZ-Q - actually, two of the same set - but the serial is for a B.IV, DZ415.  The history has it with 105 then 627 squadrons, before being SOC in Sept 45.  I'll have a look at the relevant Form 78 for a more detailed history. But aircraft changed ID letter quite often for various reasons.  The second copy of the sheet is the only decal sheet I picked up at Telford, on the grounds that spare sheets are always useful and doubly so here.  So I think the third B.XXV is settled and I'll use an Aeroclub bulged bay on the grounds that it's got a better shape than the Paragon one.  I've a feeling I *might* have a spare Magna one (from his TT.39 conversion) somewhere in a box of bits, and I know that's got a decent shape.  If all else fails, I may even use an Airfix one...

I'd like to do PF444 at some stage, but I'm not sure if I have a yellow outlined N in the correct size.  A trawl through the decal box beckons.

In other news, all the cockpit interiors are painted, seats decalled, and are almost ready to go in.  I just need to fit the sticks and the instrument panels, then a few gunsights and I can start closing things up.  Apart from the two Airfix PR.XVIs, as I need to sort the seats out.  There's two kicking about and as the two 618 Sqn aircraft are easy paint wise, I'll keep the TT.35s on the back burner for now.  The starboard hatches have been deleted, but that was easy, considering Airfix have made them so near invisible that they as well not bother putting them on.

So, critical mass approaches.

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[The Wooksta!]

"I'm right here. I thought the vacuum cleaner looked a bit on the tentative side so I souped it up a bit."

Having a set of modified cowlings and an ID for a bulged bay B.XXV, as well as available decals is not a good combination with a compulsive builder.  I did consider going into a rather cold loft to drag out another B.IV to make a start on. 

Well, that was the idea.  I had a look through the bits box for Gee radio gear and found the very last available box that goes on the parcel shelf and plenty of the ones that sit behind the pilot.  So, yes, it can be done that way.  But then I remembered I had an assembled fuselage - complete with installed Gee gear (well, not the one on the parcel shelf...) - that whilst intended to be a second B.IX, it was sitting forlorn and abandoned as I'd stolen the wings for the abortive build of a gun nose MP469.  I hate wasting anything and it would seem to be a quick shortcut to getting that bulged bay B.XXV.  I just needed to find a set of wings, which turned out to be in an FB.VI box.  That one will eventually be either an RNZAF one or a Coastal Command OTU, with being mentioned upthread.  I am almost - almost - tempted to start it, but I think I may just hold back for now.

Now to brave the cold and the pouring rain to look in the shed.

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[The Wooksta!]

"Well he knows a lot about the Mersey sound."

Cockpits are all done.  Well, the sticks are in and instrument panels glued in place.  I just need to add the gunsights on all the fighter aircraft.

This is the cockpit for B.IV DZ410 of 192 Sqn, 100 Group.  They were bomber support, so flew with all sorts of electronic wizardry to beat German radar and night fighters.  In the profile, it looks to be carrying some Serrate type radar and definitely has Gee aerials.  The Gee equipment is the black box on the parcel shelf and the alluminium one behind the pilot's seat.  I've added a radar unit just under the instrument pilot on the navigator's side, taken from the NF.II.  Don't know if it's right or even if it's in the right place, but TBH, you can see sod all in that cockpit where it is.  Underneath is a switch box, also stolen from the NF.II.  I have a lot of spare bits from those.  The profile on the decal sheet and also in Martin Streetly's book on 100 Group aircraft has the nose glazing painted over too.  Happy with that.

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This is the internals for the B.XXV and the paintwork isn't fantastic, but given that it came as a complete unit in a part started kit, I think it looks okay.  There's a better view of the Gee gear too.
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I didn't find what I was looking for in the shed, other than a spider escaping from a box of resin bits and some cast Mosquito FB.XVIII flaps and a NF.XII thimble nose (unfortunately for the 1973 Airfix kit) that really should be elsewhere.  So they came back into the warmth.

Whilst warming up, I went looking for some u/c doors and found a box with some chopped Mosquito tailplanes to allow for fitting the elevators with the enlarged tailplanes.  The same box also had the resin elevators too. This was very handy, as the bulged bay B.XXV will need them.  Now to find the requisite Aeroclub bulged bay and I'm set.

What had been a small plan to do half a dozen or so is growing, as my plans are won't to do.  I was also thinking earlier that when I get to the decalling stage, a few of those that had stalled some weeks back could be pushed a tad further forward. 

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[The Wooksta!]

"Brilliant! Let's fill it in!"

Having assembled the fuselages of most of the current tranche of Mosquitoes - enough for a flight! - I attached the bulged bay on the B.XXV.


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I've got the first application of filler on - the back isn't too bad a fit, but the front will need a fair bit os sanding and quite likely repeat applications.  I also scribed the moved panel line on the cowlings and assembled the nacelles.

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It needs a coat of primer and perhaps a bit of tidying up. As you can see, the trapezoidal panel and the rivets around it are filled and sanded back.  The white line forward of it is  the filled panel line and you can just about make out the new panel line that's just in front of the filled panel.  That is the amount of work you have to do to change to a Canadian production aircraft.  The Australian ones, with the six stack exhausts outboard and the revised intakes, are much more difficult. My initial idea works, but it's not quite right.  A replacement resin drop in cowling might work better.

I hit the target of getting the bulk of the fuselages closed up, although I'll need to fit the cannon ports and the bay doors, but I'll do that once I've sanded back the bulk of the filler.  One thing I have noticed is that for the camera port underneath - a holdover from the fact that the Tamiya kit is modular and it's there on the B/PR.IV as a glazed panel and you get a solid piece for the other options - the clear piece is a better fit.  It's sometimes a bit proud which helps, because it can be sanded back.  If you use the other insert, you need to resort to filler which can shrink.  Yes, it's underneath and not as easily noticed, but I know it's there and it's annoying.


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[The Wooksta!]

"What about Jelly Botty, where you have to eat 18 curries?"

Did I warn of critical mass?  Well, it appears to be hitting.  The wings are on all of the Tamiya Mosquitoes underway - I'll hold off on the Airfix ones for a while, although I do have the seats for those.  I may build one of the kit seats as a comparison.  I mean, the canopy is so thick and distorting it may hide the issues and in any case, it's the externals that I really want seen.  The radio gear issue that's been plaguing me for six months has hit there too, cured oddly by using the same set up I've ben removing from everything else. 

With the Tamiya kit, it boils down to the fact that it's basically a late production FB.VI airframe (albeit with plug in alternate noses and for the bullnose NF, different radio gear) with early FB.VI radio gear and, like other aircraft, the real thing was a series of continual modifications over a period of time.  If you're modelling a particular aircraft at a particular point in time, then you need to know what those differences are.  If you don't... Well, most wouldn't care but a lot do, and whilst I've always been happy building what if, I'm of the belief that's it's a "turn left" kind of deal, and the resulting model has to follow the same rules as a real thing.  I also like to have the most accurate basis possible. 

This doesn't help when you discover that something you've modelled in good faith shouldn't have certain things because you didn't know about it and you can't fix it because it's now baked in.  For example, all the Mosquito kits - by which I mean the post '99 kits - all come with the raised oval stiffener pads on the u/c doors.  This was a post March 1944 modification, something to do with the u/c retraction, so any Mosquito modelled prior to that date shouldn't have them and quite a few after then didn't get them either (it was a unit level modification), so checking photos always helps. Now as I'm building real and where possible obscure aircraft, that's not too difficult.  Sand the blister off and we're good to go. It's an easy enough fix if it's a built model as I always attach the doors on a Mosquito with PVA because they never quite fit and I can wiggle them until I'm happy.
But then you find out about the spar caps on the wings, which were added from the FB.VI onwards to strengthen the wing.  The F.II didn't have them, neither did the B.IVs unless they were re-winged (and many were, as there are photos of them with underwing tanks) and nor did the PR.IVs or the early production T.IIIs.  And I have a trio of F.IIs, a T.III and a PR.IV all at the painted and ready to decal stage with the spar caps in place.  No, I'm not going to scrap them, I'll just finish them as is, because most won't know and even fewer will care.  They'll just see a differently finished Mosquito on the table.  But for future one?  Well, the mods get done.
There are others - the Mod. 167 reinforcement strake on the starboard side, introduced from 12th Dec. 1942, which shouldn't be on the 105 Sqn option in the Tamiya kit, which should also have the balloon tailwheel, rather than the twin contact anti shimmy tailwheel provided in the kit. No spar caps either.  The NF.II option in their FB.VI boxing is similarly affected. And you learn something new every day - I only checked a small detail on the Canadian production B.XXVs yesterday after a question on another forum, only to find that the circular windows are absent from the bomb doors when I checked the relevant references.  I'd painted over them in the one I've already done (too late to fix now and it's underneath anyway) but I could fix the one underway - it didn't matter on the other one, as I've replaced the doors with the bulged bay.

Like I say, proper minefield.

Is this verging on JMN territory?  Hmmm.  If you're going to do something real, you may as well do it as correctly as possible to the best of your abilities and knowledge base.  I can't do anything about those painted, but I can ensure the ones I'm building going forward are relatively correct.

But anyway, where am I up to?  As I said, the wings are on all the Tamiya Mosquitoes currently under way, apart from the Highball one as I need to do some remedial work on the weapon bay insert to fix some iffy casting.  A few have even had the tailplanes fixed on, which brings me to the two photos.

Current progress with the bulged bay B.XXV.

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This is the Aeroclub vac form piece, which was intended for the far more portly Matchbox fuselage, so the fit is a bit meh.  Filler time after some trimming.

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And this is the modified tailplanes, with the elevators having the larger horn balance.  Copies of the Paragon Sea Mosquito elevators.  Now, I don't know for sure that the five bulged bay B.XXVs had the enlarged elevators - I've not seen any photos to prove it one way or another - but given that the similarly modified B.IVs did have them to cure the instability caused by the bulged bay, it's a reasonable assumption that they did.  The instability, a CoG issue, was cured on the bulged bay B.IX and B.XVI by the expedient of the longer two stage Merlin bringing the CoG under control, so the larger elevators weren't needed. No matter what Richard Franks claims in his tomes on the Mosquitoes, it's complete bollards.

I also primed an F.II, which was an assembled one that had stalled due to the wing tips not being on it when I was priming everything else back in August.  I had that many on the go, I'd just bunged it back in the box and back on the shelf.  I've done the relevant sanding to remove the spar caps, complicated by it being assembled, and fitted the wing tips.  Having chosen a particular aircraft on one of the many decals sheets - a 605 Sqn example - I added the single light wingtip.  The Tamiya distructions tell you to use the dual light tip, but these were replaced from mid 43 for the single wingtip light with the small RESIN* fairing on the trailing edge, and the aircraft I was going to do was mid '43 onwards, so it seemed fine.  But then on rereading the decal sheet distructions I find that option is an FB.VI, so a quick search for another aircraft ensued.  I found a 605 Sqn F.II on a DK sheet with a rather natty looking shark mouth, which is the subject of a photo in Chaz Bowyer's Mosquito Squadrons of the RAF, so that's what I'll be doing.


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*RESIN - REStricted INtensity light.  There's some thought that this may have been an infra red identification system and was the cause of much argument on Britmodeller some years back. One highly regarded researcher was told by many keyboard warriors that he was talking bollards.  Given that Mosquitoes were definitely carrying the Z lamp IR recognition equipment from early 1945 onwards (the starboard leading edge glazing), then the RESIN lights being IR wouldn't be too great a stretch.

[The Wooksta!]

"Well, now we can go to the Rent Tribunal. You don't have to pay as much for a house with an outside lavvie."

Amongst many of my gripes with the Airfix B/PR.XVI is the fact that the seat is clunky.  Twenty five years ago, Tamiya moulded it in one piece and much finer than Airfix managed, and the latter did it in four pieces.  Now normally, I'd simply replace it with a resin cast one, but it's way too cold to be casting in the shed, even if I had any resin.  So let's try and do something with what we've got.

These are the bulk of the bits on the sprue, the back rest isn't in this shot.

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This is an initial release, the more recent boxings in the dark grey plastic have a sodding great ejector pin which is a pain to remove.

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Airfix have moulded the seat pan with a cushion, for some inexplicable reason, when it's a bucket seat to allow for the fact that the pilot sat on his parachute.  You know, like most RAF fighters.  I've a feeling that the one they measured up at Cosford has an actual cushion, for people sitting in the cockpit on open cockpit days, if such a thing is still allowed, and the Airfix researchers simply assumed it was always there.  When I went to an open cockpit day, back in '99, the Spitfire 16 I sat in had a wonderful floral print cushion in the bucket.  I can't recall the Mosquito having one, but it was twenty five years ago and I can barely remember twenty five minutes ago sometimes.

So, let's do something about it.  Saw the top off, using the top of the rear attachment lug as a guide.

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Then, ream the sides out to make it a bit more bucket shaped.  Not quite there yet, more to do, but this is a proof of concept anyway.

And so we get it together after a bit more sanding and this is the result.

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Now I had intended to use some thin plastic card to fill the base, but dropped it and picked up what had been the top that I'd sawn off.  Well, waste not want not, so that got glued on.

It's not exactly pretty, but it's better than it had been beforehand.  After a coat or two of paint, plus some straps, it could look lot better.  And under that Airfix canopy, who's to tell?


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[The Wooksta!]

"There's those girls!"

Well, a quick squirt of primer and a few minutes with a hairy stick and we have this.

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And from the side:
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So, as you can see, it looks a lot better and even more so with the mk 1 eyeball.  I'm quite pleased with how it's turned out and the second is underway.  Once installed and under the Airfix glass - which I still have to modify to take off the rear external framing as it should be internal - it should be okay.

So, I can get one cockpit finalised tomorrow, possibly two, as the seats have been holding them up.

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[The Wooksta!]

" I still tend to think that the whole outfit is somethat on the snug side."

Well, the second seat is all done and fitted into the first cockpit.

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That's the Tamiya radio gear - Airfix give the T1154 that goes on the parcel shelf, but not the R1155.  I think the detail on the Tamiya is better.  Both have the back empty, so you need to fill them.

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I think it looks okay.  I think perhaps another lick of paint and add the sight, plus the straps on the Navigator's seat, but it's just about ready to close up.  I've still to find a spare Tamiya B.IV bomb door or two, because the Airfix example is awful.  I know where I can get one, but a second means a trip to a cold loft. As it turns out there was one where I knew it was and another in a box with one of the stalled Highball aircraft - I'll go back to those after Bolton, or after the current tranche is complete, whichever is sooner.  Finding the glazing for the camera ports took a little longer.

The Tamiya door does fit the Airfix, but it needs a bit of a trim fore and aft, plus the entry door piece needs a swipe or two with a sanding stick.  There's a bit of a gap underneath, but some PPP should sort that out.  TBH, I actually need a third, as there's another PR.XVI that stalled at a similar stage, but I've something in mind for that one, in a scheme similar to that worn by the late SEAC PR.XVIs and PR34s - Aluminium dope on top and PRU Blue underneath, with likely Roundel Blue spinners - but this has type B markings.  It's a photo I got off eBay some years back and I don't know where it was taken, although the tail fin of what looks like perhaps a C-47 is in the background and that looks to have a SEAC fin flash. The aircraft being RG132, coded D by the looks of it.

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And the brief history looks like this:

RG132    PRXVI    684    SOC 30.5.46

684?  Means the Far East, so a check with the relevant Form 78 should confirm.

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That's a screenshot.  There's a very handy site that has the RAF Form 78 movement cards for quite a lot of RAF aircraft, including the Mosquito (not the ones allocated to the Navy, obvs).  It can be found here:
https://www.lancasterbombers.net/form-78-aircraft-movement-cards-2-2/

Hmmm.  I've just realised it'll need a set of replacement prop blades as I detest the Airfix ones, so I'll dig in that bag of spare Tamiya ones that's nearby.

The bulk of the Tamiya kits are about ready to prime, apart from the Highball one, but the weapon bay is now in place and filler applied.  I've decided on 619 as the squadron - it formed a month after 618, so it's in the right timeframe.  That should be assembled and primed by next weekend.  Weather permitting, natch, but I'll be getting a can of primer and a new can of Aluminium (for the 47 Sqn one) tomorrow, plus a trip to Fenwicks to get some Humbrol acrylics.

I've also got seat no.3 assembled, so I'll put it in with one of the target tugs.  They'll remain on the back burner for now until I can sort out the radio gear.  I've too much on to ponce about with all the masking needed for those bloody TT stripes.

Part of me is tempted to throw together another Tamiya FB6 as one of the aircraft 618 used as continuation trainers in the UK, but then reason takes hold and I forget about it.  Maybe.


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[The Wooksta!]

"You got them closed?"

Seat and cockpit done for RG132

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Don't know why it's so dusty.  Looks clean enough to my eyes.

Anyway, all three Airfix fuselages are now closed up, with the first having had a coat of filler and a jolly good sanding.  I'll give the lower surface a quick coat of primer tomorrow, to see what needs fixing, then I can scribe in the relocated hatch, add the port side reinforcement strip and a few other bits.

The Highball B.IV now has it's wings and isn't far off priming.  I'll give the nose glazings a dip in some pledge and leave them to dry overnight.  Get those in place and it's out with the Maskol.  Positively hate the stuff, but tap and compound curves are even worse.


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[The Wooksta!]

"That's brilliant Neil! It's working!"

One of the things I've been tinkering with all week is fitting a strike camera fairing into a spare Mosquito nosecone.  Drill a hole, widen it, try fitting rod, more filing, and repeat.  Ad bleedin nauseam.  And this is the result.

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Bit rough and ready, but it's more of a proof of concept than anything else.  Quite a few Banff strike wing aircraft had them, including RS625 NE-D - which is in the Tamiya kit, on which I'll come back to -  and RF610 DM-H did too.  But there's another that I'm thinking of, TE610 which was sold to New Zealand and served as NZ2336 YC-B of 75 Sqn RNZAF and is currently preserved, after spending fifty years in a shed.  I've long wanted to do one of the RNZAF aircraft and as this one was fitted with the nose mounted strike camera, it's oddball enough.  RNZAF Mosquitoes also had the tropical filters and the big underwing tanks plus the starboard leading edge glazing.  I've already got the relevant mount holes drilled out and the nacelles already modified so do I go any further with a full build programme already underway?

Ideally, I'd like a trio of RNZAF aircraft - one with the Type C roundels, one in Type D and a T-bird.  The latter is interesting, as some of the T-birds New Zealand received were Australian production ones, so they were armed with the 4 .303s and have six stack exhausts outboard and different cowlings, so that's one headache I'd like to avoid for a while. The bulk of the RNZAF aircraft were ex-RAF, with most being straight from store.  There's one of the T-birds that was supplied by Australia that had been ex-RAF anyway - it flew as a standard trainer and was armed at some point later before being sold to New Zealand.  Other than the cockpit internals, it looks to be fairly easy in it's initial guise as there's no tropical filters and quite possibly no external reinforcement strip on the wing either.

As for the Tamiya kit Banff option.  I mean, it's nice as the codes have a splash of colour and I like the EDSG over Sky scheme a great deal, but I don't do kit options per se unless they're something interesting, but with the strike camera, starboard l/e glazing, big tanks and the double tier rockets (which I am not confident of doing correctly, so I'd have empty rails), it's just different enough from the kit option to peak my interest.  And obviously someone would be bound to say it's wrong - when I've photographic evidence to prove that I'm right?  I'm just bloody minded enough to do it. RF610 is finished in a similar way, but with dull red codes further up the fuselage, so that's my other go to option for Banff aircraft.  I've markings for several, including NE-D on a decal sheet produced after the Tamiya kit - why on earth did their researcher choose a kit option?  No one buys aftermarket sheets if they want to do the kit option.  Or do they?  Perhaps they thought that someone would want to use the positively elderly and quite frankly horrible (from my point of view) 1973 Airfix kit in which to use those markings.

There's a post war 14 Sqn aircraft I'd like to do which is perhaps not quite real but maybe not quite a whiff either?  143 Sqn were renumbered as 14 sqn and continued in the maritime strike role for about a year, before they were disbanded and then reformed as a Mosquito bomber squadron with B.35s.  Anyhoo, I'd just use the B.35 squadron codes in their nice black outlined yellow form, as well as the unit badges on relatively clean or repainted airframes - all the photos of the ex-143 Sqn aircraft are quite tatty and worn, so it's the type of thing that they would do, for say the King's birthday or some Air Marshall's visit. 

There have to be some what if Mosquitoes in the collection, but I've precious few Tamiya FB.6s in the stash as it is and I really don't want to use them for whiffer when there are so many real Mosquitoes I'd like to do.  I've already burned through 3 of the five that I received last month.  I really don't want to use the awful Airfix FB6 when I'm standardising on two base kits for the planned collection.



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[The Wooksta!]

"Okay, I'll change it, then! Hello, Cliff Richard!"

After almost suffering frostbite from spraying in a somewhat cold shed, I've got the second upper colour on three and a final retouch of the base colour on two others. 

One of the latter is the 192 Sqn B.IV, which is the cause of some concern.  The decals have the profile with a high demarcation and Night undersides and fin, whereas the profile in Martin Streetly's The Aircraft of 100 Group has the profile with the scheme closer to that of Mosquitoes in the Day Bomber scheme, albeit with the lower Medium Sea Grey replaced by Night. So, which is correct?  I'm leaning towards Streetly, because 192 Sqn and 100 Group in general were somewhat loose with camouflage regulations.  Given it's profusion of radar aerials, it's an interesting model anyway and an usual scheme is going to set it off more.  So I had to respray the fuselage to ensure better paint coverage for the lower demarcation line. 

I'm not far from putting the wings on one of the trio of Airfix PR.XVIs, RG132.  But then I had a second thought.  Given the date it seemed to enter service, it may well have had the Z lamp set up in the starboard wing leading edge and I'd filled all that bit in.  Balderdash!  So I stripped the wings and engines from one of the currently shelved TT35s, which didn't have the cutout filled nor the supercharger intakes fitted.  Wartime Mosquitoes didn't have the side grilles.  This means that I have to find a set of wings and engines for the TT35 and I can't use those taken from RG132.  So I go up into a cold loft and pulled out yet another PR.XVI to strip the wings from.

That's not quite the downside it seems, as there's another 192 Sqn aircraft I have on my target list, NS797 DT-N. This is an interesting aircraft, in that it has Dark Green sprayed in a disruptive pattern over overall PRU Blue.  I have the wings and engines already assembled, all I have to do is build the fuselage.  And I hit that colour conundrum again, as that particular PR.XVI in that scheme has been the cause of one controversy for years, with many stating that it didn't have the disruptive green and many claiming it did.  It's all very amusing.  There is a photo of a PR.XVI with a disruptive scheme over the base coat and although it's a big wig's aircraft, it does seem to lend some weight to DT-N being in that scheme.  So that's what I'm doing.

More masking awaits.

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[The Wooksta!]

"Honestly, Neil. Of all the stupid ideas."

I did have a plan, honestly.  It just...grew. And changed. 

It's all down to a set of partially cleaned up Bren Gun (nee Attack Squadron) two stage Merlins that I'd dragged out for comparison purposes - I'll come back to this later.  I'd idly fitted them together and then glued them, and before I knew it, I was heading up into the loft for an unstarted Tamiya Mosquito B.IV to convert into a mk IX.  And because I already had a set of assembled nacelles from the part started B.IV I got after Telford, one of which had a lump broken off on the engine half, I did the simple cut to convert to a two stage nacelle - straight down the panel line in front of the firewall.  After that, it's just a case of cutting the top off the wing back to a panel line.  It's really that simple.

What to do it as?  I've a painted bomber to finish, but most of the B.IXs seem to have been Oboe equipped machines and all the decals I have certainly are, quite a few with a different nosecone and no-one does one.  Which means a PR.IX instead but TBH, they're all rather boring and anonymous.  There's a few trials ones but nothing really grabbed my attention until I found a profile of a Far East one with SEAC markings in overall PRU Blue.   That'll do.  So the Tamiya kit had all the un-necessary rockets, bombs, props and other unused bits chucked in the spares box and then started.
Whilst I was in the loft I dragged out another B.IV, one I'd started, painted and abandoned as the scheme just wasn't working and the paint certainly hadn't.  Underneath was in Xtracolour, and anyone who has used it will remember just how bloody awful it could be when it was bad, because it had a curious habit of not drying when sprayed.  This had been one such example and it had been slung back in the box, way back in 2002 I think, and just left.  I had some half arsed plan to sand off the wing spar reinforcement strips on the wings and just respray it, but the Xtracolour just looked awful, even after sanding, so repeated doses of Dr Magic managed to get most of it off.  I'd protected the cockpit with tape, but even so the nose glazing came off at the end.  Bit of filler here and there, sand of the reinforcement strips and it's ready to prime.  Sort out the glazing, fill the cockpit with sponge and out with the primer.  Few more areas to tidy up, prime again and off to the shed for some PRU Blue.  Now with this I did have something in mind, DZ473 of 540 Sqn, and yes, other than the markings and serials it's all very anonymous, but it was the aircraft that photographed Penemunde and the first V-2s, so it is of more note.

And the comparison bit?  Well, I've trying to figure an easier way of doing the cowlings for the few UK Based Mosquitoes with the outboard six stack exhausts.  All of the Australian produced FB.40s and T.43s had the same set up, and there's quite a few RAAF Mosquitoes in interesting schemes that I want to do, including one T.43 that was sold on to New Zealand.  Using the spare cowlings from the Special Hobby kits is possible, with some surgery, but the inner cowling is also different to the normal production one, although it still has the 5 stack setup.  I though that using the Brengun cowling top, cloned and cut back to fit, then the inboard exhaust slot filled to a degree could be a better option.  I'll mould up a set from an untouched Bren Gun set I still have before going any further.

Never did get that masking done, although RG132 has had the underside masked and ready for a date with a can of aluminium.  I assembled one of the spare canopies with the useless teardrop blister side panels to use as a cockpit mask.  I've a feeling Airfix may try to release it as a mk IX at some point, even though their flat bomb bay section has no detail at all and the canopy is totally wrong for a mk IX - the XVI had revised and heavier framing due to it being pressurised.  Markings could be nice though.

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[The Wooksta!]

"Look! Look, when they get back, tell them I'm incredibly sorry!"

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Yes, yes, yes.  I know that's not a Mosquito and yes, it is a Hornet fuselage, but it IS connected via Barnes Wallis and Highball.  The weapon was proposed for use by various aircraft post war, Hornet principally, but also Sturgeon and Wyvern.  TBH, I can't see how it would work with the latter although a Highball equipped Sturgeon would look really cool.  Beginning to wish now that I hadn't sold that spare PR.2 that I had but that's not important.

What is more important is that I've figured out how to do a Highball equipped Hornet, based on the drawing in the Tony Buttler/David Collins book on the type and after a conversation with TsrJoe via messenger.  It's only taken fifteen years...  That's a Skybirds Hornet you see and the fact that the lower fuselage is a separate part is key to making it possible.  I mean, yes, I could chop up a Frog or AZ one, but I had the Skybirds to hand and with a jolly good sanding inside the fuselage (marked), that resin insert will fit.  What the fairing around it should look like?  Well, I'm not sure and neither is the drawing - it just shows the installation.

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I think something cobbled together from the remains of an Aeroclub Mosquito bulged bomb bay could work.  No drawings, no photos of the Sea Hornet modified to carry the weapon PX219/6 either, so who can prove me wrong?

I DID find a photo of PX219 - but not with Highball.

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Not keen on an Aluminium scheme after all that conversion work, so a late Sea Hornet scheme with the high demarcation or the earlier two tone uppers with the low demarcation?   I'm minded on the latter, although the former, with Korean War stripes on an aircraft attacking North Korean dams is an amusing thought...


We now return you to our scheduled programming "Basterd Squad"



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[The Wooksta!]

"That's OK, Neil. It was bound to happen sooner or later."


You knew.  Don't kid yourself otherwise, you knew that this was going to happen.  I always get itchy when I have projects at the paint stage and want to just get building, chopping and sanding.  And scraping and filing, of which there was a lot here.

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Yes, that 2mm-ish deep channel either side of the fuselage to enable the resin insert to drop in and fit snugly.  And the fuselage fits together reasonably well now.

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 It's quite handy that the plastic is so thick.  I'm curious to know how it could work with a Frog/Novo one, but TsrJoe has that part started, so I'll just carry on with the Skybirds one.  Hopefully the build won't take the 7+ years the last one took.

I'll confess that this was a Sea Hornet dragged out months ago and part started, with the intention of doing it as an in service one in the Far East, wearing either SEAC or BPF markings, probably with rockets or bomb racks, I never decided which. Until I realised it would take effort away from the very real Mosquitoes I was doing, so put it back in the box, admittedly a Novo Hornet box rather than the Skybirds one (which you can never get all the bits back in properly, even with my tessellation skills it doesn't quite fit) and back on the shelf it went.  I hadn't planned to look at it again for quite a while, but the conversation with TsrJoe earlier had piqued my curiosity and so here we are.

The wings got a final sanding on the mating surfaces and glued together, followed by a liberal coating of filler.  I may well follow up with superglue, as this seam has a tendency to come back.  This may well end up in overall Aluminium, although I'd rather something more in service, so I'd rather not have that happen.

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The next task is to clean up and assemble the engine nacelles.  But I really should get back to the part painted Mosquitoes and get them masked, because I really want something new finished for Bolton.  This one is not quite that urgent.

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