**** DONE: 1/48 Tamiya Spitfire Mk.I DW-O 610 Sqdn BoB GB

[ozhawk40]

Great work CR, shame about the rear canopy piece, but I'm sure you'll come up trumps.

Cheers

Peter

[T Bolt]

Too bad about the canopy Andy, I'm sure you'll get it worked out. The cockpit looks fantastic!

[Crimea_River]

Thanks guys.

[Airframes]

Hope you get the canopy sorted Andy. Let me know if you continue to have problems, as I have two or three different Spit canopies which might work.

[Crimea_River]

Thanks Terry. Furtunately I'm in the same boat with two unbuilt ICM kits. Mind you, the parts still need shaping but so did the Tamiya one.

Don't know how I got such a crappy fit on this one. Very unlike Tamiya and I'm wondering if this led to Jason's mishap and whether Glenn had this problem.

[Jayl]

Sorry to hear you had the same problem Andy. I think mine has the same problem. The front was hitting the top of the seat and I thought the seat sat too high or the canopy was too short. After reading what you posted I'm starting to believe that the piece is too wide and that's why it's not fitting. I may need to build it up and sand it flush to make it fit right.

[Crimea_River]

Exactly my issue. The front was hitting the top of the seat bulkhead and the bottom edges protruded beyond the fuselage surfaces. I had the masking tape on and in pinching the bottom edges in a few times for dry fits, I noticed what looked like a hairline crack. When I lifted the tape, away it went right through.

I looked at Glenn's pics and it looks like he got his on with only a slight overbite which I could have lived with but mine was way more than that.

Oh well, going with plan B.

[T Bolt]

I had a closer look at mine and it doesn't even look as bad at it did in the picture, just a slight overhang on the left side. The only thing I can think of that would make a difference between your two Spits and mine is possibly that I used Testors tube glue to join the fuselage halves and the thickness of that glue might possibly made the fuselage just enough wider that the clear part fit.

[Crimea_River]

No way that the amount of overhang on mine would have been made up by glue Glenn. Here's a question though: if you look at your joint between the seat bulkhead and the fuselage wall where the hatch is on the port side, do you have a gap or is it closed? I had to clamp my fuselage together to close a sizable gap at that point and I have a feeling that may have pinched the fuselage tighter. But it was needed to close this very visible gap at the hatch location.

At any rate, I got a new piece on from my ICM Spit VIII and there's also a bit of an overhang. However, it's almost completely hidden by the open canopy so I think I'll be back in production soon.

[Dr. Wartenberg]

Amazing cockpit detail!

[Wayne Little]

Glad you will overcome this slight hiccup rather quickly, Andy...

[T Bolt]

No way that the amount of overhang on mine would have been made up by glue Glenn. Here's a question though: if you look at your joint between the seat bulkhead and the fuselage wall where the hatch is on the port side, do you have a gap or is it closed? I had to clamp my fuselage together to close a sizable gap at that point and I have a feeling that may have pinched the fuselage tighter. But it was needed to close this very visible gap at the hatch location.

At any rate, I got a new piece on from my ICM Spit VIII and there's also a bit of an overhang. However, it's almost completely hidden by the open canopy so I think I'll be back in production soon.

My cockpit is sealed up right now for decaling and clear-coating, but I looked at some un-resized pics I took right after I slid the cockpit into the fuselage and it looks tight. Did you close the fuselage halves around the cockpit, or close up the fuselage first, then slide the cockpit in from the bottom? maybe that's why you had the gap between the frame and the side. Anyway with the bubble canopy slid back over the rear section a little ledge shouldn't be noticeable.

[Crimea_River]

Thanks Glenn.

I actually glued the pit onto the right half before gluing the left half, then closed the gap with clamp. That may have contributed, but only if the pit was in th eworng spot which I'm sure it wasn't.

Anyway, that's ancient history now. The ICM part has been glued in, filed and sanded down, polished and has a coat of Future that's drying now. Pics soon.

[Airframes]

Sounds like you've got it sorted Andy, well done mate.

[T Bolt]

Thanks Glenn.

I actually glued the pit onto the right half before gluing the left half, then closed the gap with clamp. That may have contributed, but only if the pit was in th eworng spot which I'm sure it wasn't.

Anyway, that's ancient history now. The ICM part has been glued in, filed and sanded down, polished and has a coat of Future that's drying now. Pics soon.

I think I have it figured out! I looked back at pics of your cockpit and comparing them with mine it looks like my rear bulkhead is sitting a millimeter or so too high. The wedge shaped of that bulkhead would have spread the fuselage wider as I pushed the assembly into place. So it looks like by pushing the cockpit in a little too far it saved myself a headache with the canopy.