Xtrakit 1/72 Supermarine Scimitar F.1
Jun 11, 2021 14:32:12 GMT 1
northbynorthwest, ian531, and 8 more like this
Post by acklington on Jun 11, 2021 14:32:12 GMT 1
Recently finished, but just some quick photos on an indoor background;
XD220, 618, 736 Sqdn Lossiemouth, Acklington B of B, 15 Sept 62 (3) w by Philip Pain, on Flickr
XD220, 618, 736 Sqdn Lossiemouth, Acklington B of B, 15 Sept 62 (5) w by Philip Pain, on Flickr
XD220, 618, 736 Sqdn Lossiemouth, Acklington B of B, 15 Sept 62 (7) w by Philip Pain, on Flickr
XD220, 618, 736 Sqdn Lossiemouth, Acklington B of B, 15 Sept 62 (8) w by Philip Pain, on Flickr
The first airshow I ever attended was the 1962 RAF Acklington Battle of Britain display, and the 736 Squadron aerobatic team from Lossiemouth were lined up with their six Scimitars. I remember them well, the only active Scimitars I ever saw, but no spotters logbook in those early days. The full serials list has since been found on the web, plus some photos which show three different variants of Scimitar - some with refuelling probes - some without - and one with the early non-radar nose. None of the six had drop tanks fitted, which was normal for aerobatic displays. So I've picked '618' XD220 for my model, and this just happens to be one of only three surviving Scimitars - it is now on the USS Intrepid museum in New York harbour.
The Xtrakit model is a bit of a nightmare, it looks like a Scimitar, it is painted like a Scimitar, but put a tape measure anywhere near it, a Scimitar it ain't! The wings are too short, at the roots; the tailplane is too large, also at the roots, and the tail and wing tips are all the wrong shape. The lower fin trailing edge needs extending to a correct shape, and there are other inaccuracies, most of which I have ignored. I do intend to add the drop tanks to the model, as optional 'clip-on' extras, just like the real thing, but I haven't done this yet as their pylons need correcting.
I had to make my own squadron markings for the model, and the double lightning flashes on the fin were a challenge. I eventually did this by taking a strip of masking tape and freehand cutting it in half with scissors, the two halves then being angled apart on the model. This took many trial & error attempts to get right, and both sides of the fin are somewhat different. At the last count I used 37 individual strips of masking tape on this model!
But the end result more or less matches my 59 year old memory.
XD220, 618, 736 Sqdn Lossiemouth, Acklington B of B, 15 Sept 62 (3) w by Philip Pain, on FlickrXD220, 618, 736 Sqdn Lossiemouth, Acklington B of B, 15 Sept 62 (5) w by Philip Pain, on FlickrXD220, 618, 736 Sqdn Lossiemouth, Acklington B of B, 15 Sept 62 (7) w by Philip Pain, on FlickrXD220, 618, 736 Sqdn Lossiemouth, Acklington B of B, 15 Sept 62 (8) w by Philip Pain, on FlickrThe first airshow I ever attended was the 1962 RAF Acklington Battle of Britain display, and the 736 Squadron aerobatic team from Lossiemouth were lined up with their six Scimitars. I remember them well, the only active Scimitars I ever saw, but no spotters logbook in those early days. The full serials list has since been found on the web, plus some photos which show three different variants of Scimitar - some with refuelling probes - some without - and one with the early non-radar nose. None of the six had drop tanks fitted, which was normal for aerobatic displays. So I've picked '618' XD220 for my model, and this just happens to be one of only three surviving Scimitars - it is now on the USS Intrepid museum in New York harbour.
The Xtrakit model is a bit of a nightmare, it looks like a Scimitar, it is painted like a Scimitar, but put a tape measure anywhere near it, a Scimitar it ain't! The wings are too short, at the roots; the tailplane is too large, also at the roots, and the tail and wing tips are all the wrong shape. The lower fin trailing edge needs extending to a correct shape, and there are other inaccuracies, most of which I have ignored. I do intend to add the drop tanks to the model, as optional 'clip-on' extras, just like the real thing, but I haven't done this yet as their pylons need correcting.
I had to make my own squadron markings for the model, and the double lightning flashes on the fin were a challenge. I eventually did this by taking a strip of masking tape and freehand cutting it in half with scissors, the two halves then being angled apart on the model. This took many trial & error attempts to get right, and both sides of the fin are somewhat different. At the last count I used 37 individual strips of masking tape on this model!
But the end result more or less matches my 59 year old memory.
