Dick Montgomery Posted January 10, 2014 Report Posted January 10, 2014 It's been a while since this kit was started, lots of interruptions, but the project is now completed. This is the ICM Spitfire Mk. VIII in 1/48th scale. I've included a link to the photo album at Photobucket so that you can view the dozen or so images, ( http://s192.photobucket.com/user/dmontgomery_photo/slideshow/Completions%202014 ) and that link should take you to a slideshow of those images. 1
ghodges Posted January 10, 2014 Report Posted January 10, 2014 Good looking Spit. The white wing edges give it a different look! GIL
Dick Montgomery Posted January 10, 2014 Author Report Posted January 10, 2014 I found the kit to be rather easy to assemble. The fit was very good and the engraved detail is crisp and clean. The elevators were molded into the stabs, both rt and lft, and since the elevators drooped when the Spit was at rest I had to remove them. That's not too tricky even though the cuts have multiple angles. The rudder is a separate piece so it can be adjusted as the builder wishes. The decals were a waste, but that is due to the age of the kit and the fact that it has been exposed to severe heat and humidity. I've done some other ICM kits new off the shelf and didn't have any decal issues. One needs to be cautious though. I found a misspelled word on one of the decals that goes on the under-surface of the wing. I would not have caught it except that I was working under an Optivisor at the time. The cockpit is nicely detailed, as is the engine. I left the engine out of the build....it can't be seen without opening some access covers and I'm not into that. The clear parts are problematic. Again, that may be because of the heat/humidity but they were hazy. A gentle scrub with some 12,000 grit and a bath in Future did the trick. I enjoy ICM kits. They are not difficult to build, have very nice detail, and fit very well. Of course, the "fit" tolerances were much tighter than on some kits and one must be cautious getting the fit done properly before gluing, but that isn't much of an issue, even for a slacker builder like myself.
Mark Aldrich Posted January 10, 2014 Report Posted January 10, 2014 Super Cool!!! Lots of white. Does not seem condusive to Camoflague!
Dick Montgomery Posted January 11, 2014 Author Report Posted January 11, 2014 Super Cool!!! Lots of white. Soes not seam condusive to Camoflague! Mark, I agree, but then the pilot was an Ace and probably wasn't too worried about hiding. C.R. Caldwell was his name. When painting and building the model I thought that the white leading edge would be a real headache to keep clean, and it did present some interesting handling challenges....so I went thru quite a number of the latex gloves during construction keeping it bright and clean....only to add weathering as the project came to an end. A fun kit to build!
Ron Bell Posted January 11, 2014 Report Posted January 11, 2014 A mis-spelled word on the bottom of the kit that you only caught with an optivisor. I probably wouldn't even have caught the mis-spelling. Nice work, Dick. A bit of a change from your usual space-themed-I-found-this-in-an-attic-half-built projects that turn out so well.
Zglossip Posted January 17, 2014 Report Posted January 17, 2014 I really like your aircraft good job!
Dick Montgomery Posted January 17, 2014 Author Report Posted January 17, 2014 Thanks. It was a fun build!
Recommended Posts