[REVISITED] Spitfire Down!

[Scott Girvan]

Thought I should start my thread here. I've been researching this build since I finished the Ma.K. and I think I am ready to get my hands dirty. Kits will arrive Tuesday. I think I have finally - after many, many, many attempts - figured out how I can model a decent looking quarter scale cornfield.

More to come.

[Jeep]

you mean these: http://www.sceneryexpress.com/prodinfo.asp?number=FC3974

[Scott Girvan]

I've seen those. EXPENSIVE! $6 for 6 stalks. OUCH. I find they look a bit toy like too, in the photo at least. Thanks for the link though.

In case anyone isn't aware O Scale (gauge) in the model train world is 1:48.

[DreamKnight]

I've seen those. EXPENSIVE! $6 for 6 stalks. OUCH. I find they look a bit toy like too, in the photo at least. Thanks for the link though.

In case anyone isn't aware O Scale (gauge) in the model train world is 1:48.

OUCH! That's expensive corn!  Knowing you, I have no doubt you'd figure out a way to make them from scratch! lol

[Scott Girvan]

Here's the plan: Spitfire crashed in cornfield. Soldier came to the rescue in an Austin Tilly - he saw the plane going down and followed to the crash site via a farmers access road.

So I got the Tilly & Spitfire on order from Elm City Hobbies, and a great figure duo too.

I've been researching and researching. About 2 weeks now. Apparently the Austin Tilly didn't serve with the RAF, despite the box art Tamiya provides. I read this from ONE source online...can't believe everything you read BUT...I like the little truck - would love to give it a RAF blue paint job (another inaccuracy I guess, read that the Tilly had a 'Mickey Mouse' camo and only after '41) - so..... I might not end up with any accurate Tilly history at all - but I think it will look cool. The green/yellow cornfield - blue truck - dust - Spitfire camo - nice color pallet, lots of contrast.

Honestly I'd love to be totally accurate BUT being an artsy type I'd rather build a really great looking scene - if I can't have both.  I should have some more vids end of next week. It's been really hot here - too hot in the loft.

Feel free to throw in your 2cents on this. You guys know a lot more about the period than I do. Thanks.

[DreamKnight]

Meh, I wouldn't worry too much about being accurate to a tee... History isn't even accurate.  Just in the eyes of the writer. If you're worried about one little stroke, then it becomes rivet counting but if that's your type of game, there's nothing wrong with it.  I just find it funny that people would get worked up over there being 4 rivets on the front panel of a Spitfire when historically, there should be 5.

Of course, who's to say that the model you just built to represent wasn't the one spitfire who got that one aluminum panel from the metal shop that had a builder that worked to that said panel had already punch the 4 rivet holes and decide to go out for a smoke and when coming back, got chewed out by his foreman and in the rush of madness forgot to punch that 5th rivet hole and just threw the panel back on the production line. And in retrospect, then that panel go to QA the inspector jsut so happened to sneeze then the panel come back and misses that it only have 4 rivet holes instead of 5 and who's not to say that when the worker that was riveting the panel on the frame wasn't pre-occupied with the news that his G/F that morning told him that she might be pregnant and completely did not notice that where was only 4 rivet holes and who's not to say at the end of the day when there's 40 planes already built and everyone in the back staring at the rivet box trying to figure out why there's one rivet left didn't decide to say "Screw it, no one will know, let's go get a drink." cause seriously, who'd wanna go back and look over 40 planes to figure out which panel on which plane is missing a rivet?

[Scott Girvan]

My plane is missing a rivet! LOL.

[Carsenault]

Oh Noes!

lmao, good one Scott!

[JMac]

Meh, I wouldn't worry too much about being accurate to a tee... History isn't even accurate.  Just in the eyes of the writer. If you're worried about one little stroke, then it becomes rivet counting but if that's your type of game, there's nothing wrong with it.  I just find it funny that people would get worked up over there being 4 rivets on the front panel of a Spitfire when historically, there should be 5.

DK - why did you have to bring up the whole rivet thing - now everyone knows - and I'll have to go back and re-do my Spitfire ... ARGH! ( - I'm just joking of coarse)

You're right about it though - modelling is a hobby (sometimes an obsession) and you should have fun doing it. If fun is rivet counting and making things as historically accurate as humany possible given sources of information that are now approximatly 70+ years old (and in the field application / repair was the norm with material on hand) - then go for it. If making it look "good" and building your skill base is the goal - that's cool too. I personally don't aim to get it exact, I'm more of "let's get it done , and looking better than my last build" kind of guy, and in that frame I have fun.


BTW - Great scenario DK - which panel was that? (LOL - maybe someone could research up an as-built drawing)

[Scott Girvan]

I totally agree. I'm not a rivet counter and each build is to advance the craft. I gotta say though - I totally 'get' why some guys get caught up in the accuracy. There is a ton of amazing and interesting history and it's really tempting to try to get it all dead on.

[Iafrate]

Coming from the aviation world, missing a rivet/screw isnt a big deal. You think the planes you fly on have every single rivet/screw in them?!? Just depends, first if its caught by the ground crew or aircrew...and if it is, if it is apart of a ciritcal panel. (I guess you could also add the other factor, that being if the ground crew are lazy and decide not to replace it).Anyways, some panels have a screw every few centemeter. So missing one rivet/screw out of say 100 isnt that big of a deal.

[DreamKnight]

DK - why did you have to bring up the whole rivet thing - now everyone knows - and I'll have to go back and re-do my Spitfire ... ARGH! ( - I'm just joking of coarse)

BTW - Great scenario DK - which panel was that? (LOL - maybe someone could research up an as-built drawing)

Haha, I dunno which panel exactly... the one up in front? To the left?  Who knows, I made it up! lol

I totally agree. I'm not a rivet counter and each build is to advance the craft. I gotta say though - I totally 'get' why some guys get caught up in the accuracy. There is a ton of amazing and interesting history and it's really tempting to try to get it all dead on.

Totally.  There's so much to explore when you start up an historical plane, or armor, or boat.  when I say rivet counter I don't mean just counting rivet. I just made up that example from the source of where the name "rivet counter" comes from but I'm talking about trying to get it down to a tee.  It's tough.  So much awesome but conflicting data out there.  And part of it, as least for me, is not wanting to let down the memories of those who were there.

I'm pretty anal about stuff and that rubs off on modeling sometimes and what happens is I get caught up spending massive time researching and worrying about the tiny analistic details that I'm ripping things apart, molding the tiniest piece from putty, all just for an area that people will barely notice anyways.

Then I get frustrated when it take forever to get the model done that I just want to get it the heck off my table to do something else. So I start rushing and I make lots of mistakes and having it coming out hating what I did. It stops being fun and starts becoming "That darn model that'll never go away".  And if I put it aside for a break to do something else, it will ALWAYS be nagging at me, messing my experience of what I'm doing then.

It's a bad situation to get into when you get into that hole.  Get as close as you can and you'll be good.  Most people won't notice unless it's a glaring inaccuracy - "Dude... Hawker Hurricanes didn't carry an armament of tomahawk missiles!" - then people will enjoy it and so will you.

But I'm really glad to see you really get into it Scott, you're working on what I love about doing military/historical models.  Researching the subject and getting into the whole history of it.  It can get pretty addictive. Especially trying to replicate an actual scene from history.  And it's not just the event that occurred but learning about the people behind it and understanding what the went through and how great (or infamous) they were.

For what they did, they are heroes, they are legend.  For what we do, they will continue to live forever, immortalize by our work.

[Scott Girvan]

Well said.

[Scott Girvan]

Just got back from Elm City Hobbies. Fun, Fun, Fun! Picked up the Tilly (sweet little kit by the way), some CA accelerator, scale chain, and some Vallejo pigments/matte varnish. Gonna give that a try this build. Also grabbed some static grass.

Last night I worked on the cornfield. LOL. I need about 200-250 individual stalks from what I can tell in the diorama layout so far. You'll see in the next vid - they take quite a bit of time each. I don't even dare start counting...

[DreamKnight]

Scott, just saw the show.  Those figures look like it's just the right size.  I'm not sure why your tamiya figure is smaller though.

Ya know, if you put those figures walking away from the crash 5 or 6 inches away you wouldn't be able to tell anyways right?  Perception.

Those figure are just too perfect for your scene to not use em!