Something to do, meantime

I am a bit stuck on the LaFerrari because I don't have the right Ferrari red. The only one that I have is for racing cars from the 60s. I have order a bottle but it won't come until Monday and I now have itchy fingers for making plastic models again.

I had a look around my stash, such as it is, but having two cars on the go, fancied something different. I went looking for my half completed 1:72 scale Trojan T-28 but I seem to have disposed of that. I wanted something simple so didn't fancy tackling the Sword Seastar - the only aircraft kit lest (so I thought). These Sword kits are tricky to make and I am in the mood for some easy builds having got into the Tamiya LaFerrari.

First off, I did some repairs to existing models - I glued a wing back on the Buckeye, a wheel back onto  the T-45 and found a spare prop blade and wheel for the Supermarine Seafire. Having done those little jobs, I fished out a 1:144th Revell P-47D that has been sitting there for years. I have a nice little collection of 1:144th aircraft so this would fit in nicely.

This is tiny - just 70mm long - and very few parts. First off, the fuselage was put together.

This got a sprayed on coat of silver and then was masked up for the coloured bits.

I had to cut a little mask out for each side of the fin as, when they painted the tail, they didn't want to repaint the serial code so they masked that off giving the code a silver background. I then sprayed the red nose and, looking at the box art, got out some orange for the tail. Having sprayed this, something didn't look right. By checking with the instructions (maybe I should have done that before!), I saw that the box art was wrong and the tail should be yellow AND! I had sprayed the tail with fluorescent orange - no such thing in 1944! It was then that I realised that the only bottle of yellow that I had was a Vallejo one and the bottle was empty. After all those years of owning a model shop, it seems very strange having to buy paint. Normally, I just took what I needed off the shelf. Sunday morning, 10.30, I was off to my local Hobbycraft to get a bottle of Tamiya yellow. As mine was the last model shop in Ipswich, there is now nowhere that I can buy paint off the shelf, unless I want Revell or Humbrol. Thank goodness that Hobbycraft opened last year as, at least, I can now buy Tamiya easily.

Anyway, 8 miles to Martlesham and then 8 miles back with one pot of paint. Well, actually, I bought a silver marker and an Italeri Spitfire Mk. VI (in 1:72) as I would like to get back to doing a few small aircraft.

I sprayed the tail silver again, as I still have to have a silver background for the serial code and then re-masked the tail for the yellow. That is where I am at this moment.

When the yellow is dry, I will un-mask the serial code area. I will then be able to put the decals on and finish the kit off.

Update.

There was a lot more faffing around I had forgotten to paint the black areas on the fuselage upper surface. Extra to that, I needed to paint the propellor. Thank goodness my airbrush is now behaving as painting yellow would have been a longer process without it.  here we are then - the finished article.