**** FINISHED: 1/48 Tornado F3 - Home Country Modern Aircraft / Spitfire Mark GB

[Airframes]

Panavia Tornado F3, 56 Sqn RAF, 'The Firebirds', 2011.

Username: Airframes.
Name: Terry.
Category: Judge - non competing
Kit: Airfix.
Scale:1/48th.
Accessories: 'Master' turned brass pitot, scratch-built cockpit fittings and seats, antennas, lamps, brake lines etc, some home made decals, and some from the spares files, lots of new curse words, sore fingers, cuts, bruises and an empty wallet due to going to the pub to calm my nerves!

I actually finished this just within Sunday's deadline, but didn't get a chance until last night to take the photos. There are a couple of small areas which still need a little tidying, but for now, it's done.
Thank you all for the kind words and encouragement during this tedious experience, and I can now add the bl**dy thing to my 56 Sqn collection !
Here's the six mandatory photos, and a couple of 'extras'.

 

[vikingBerserker]

BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Crimea_River]

You did a cracker of a job on that Terry. May your next project involve much less rectal pain!

 

[meatloaf109]

Very impressive!

 

[Aaron Brooks Wolters]

You are the MAN!!!! You have done one hell of a job on a very badly produced kit and you made it look like a five star kit. She looks SPOT ON sir!!!!

 

[Wurger]

Smashing...

 

[parsifal]

terry that is just so good.....I realy enjoy your cockpit treatments, they always look soooo good

 

[woody]

what a great job Terry.

 

[Airframes]

Thank you very much indeed chaps, I'm really grateful, and glad it's passed inspection.

 

[rochie]

looks pretty damn good to me Dogsbody

 

[Gnomey]

Good work Terry!

 

[Airframes]

Thanks Karl and Hugh.

 

[Vic Balshaw]

Stunning Mr T, simply stunning but how on earth did you do that heating line in the canopy so well!!

 

[Airframes]

Thanks very much Vic. The canopy heating trunking, fittings and latches etc are just slightly bent lengths of plastic rod, stretched sprue and scraps of plastic. Or do you mean the Miniature Detonating Cords (MDCs), in the canopy glass? If so, they were carefully scratched in with the tip of a scalpel blade.

 

[Vic Balshaw]

Ahhhh….I always thought that those lines on a canopy, it was these I was asking about, were a sort of super demister like you get on cars windows. You live and learn.

 

[Airframes]

Early examples, such as the F-86 Sabre, were de-misters. But on most (but not all) modern jets, the ejection seats go through the canopy, for speed of egress (no lag whilst the canopy blows and clears the airframe), so the MDCs shatter the canopy when the seat firing handle is pulled, followed about a quarter of a second later by the seat firing.
On average, from initiation to being under a full parachute canopy is 2 to 2.5 seconds.

 

[N4521U]

So much I don't know about planes...... detonator lines, who woulda guessed.....
I think our sonar cables in the whirley birds had a 45 cartridge to cut the cable in an emergency..

That's a mahvelous result you have there.
It's what I am striving for.

 

[Wildcat]

Simply superb Terry, well done mate

 

[Airframes]

Thanks very much indeed guys, it's very much appreciated.

 

[fubar57]

Fantastic job Terry

Geo