Stokesy's 1/48 Eduard Grumman F6 Hellcat

[Stokesy44]

Its on its way........

[Twokidsnosleep]

I bet its new shoes




just joshing

[Kevthemodeller]

[Tomcat64]

[digger303]

I bet its new shoes




just joshing

[Stokesy44]

As Sherrif Bart said, I always like to keep my audience RIVETED!

Good to see the thread has started in the right tone. Bring the anarchy boys

[Tomcat64]

[Stokesy44]

[RangerNeil]

As Sherrif Bart said, I always like to keep my audience RIVETED!

Good to see the thread has started in the right tone. Bring the anarchy boys

[Stokesy44]

Good to see the thread has started in the right tone. Bring the anarchy boys

Challenge accepted

[Stokesy44]

Right then,

Time to cut out the silliness, no more memes, jokes or general buffoonery. We are modelers which means we are serious dudes, leave your sense of humor at the door please.

I thought about going big, I was tempted to get Trumpy's 1/32 Dauntless but decided against it as I would probably have ended up getting a load of after market for it and totally blowing my budget. Same for the Airfix 1/24 Hellcat. I was saved from that monster due to a lack of availability.

I haven't made a 1/48 fighter for a few years and I've never built the Hellcat. I knew an Eduard kit at that scale is a slam dunk so here we are.



Here's some nerd words or geek speak from Wikipedia

The Grumman F6F Hellcat is an American carrier-based fighter aircraft of World War II. Designed to replace the earlier F4F Wildcat and to counter the Japanese Mitsubishi A6M Zero, it was the United States Navy's dominant fighter in the second half of the Pacific War. In gaining that role, it prevailed over its faster competitor, the Vought F4U Corsair, which initially had problems with visibility and carrier landings.

Powered by a 2,000 hp (1,500 kW) Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp, the same powerplant used for both the Corsair and the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Republic P-47 Thunderbolt fighters, the F6F was an entirely new design, but it still resembled the Wildcat in many ways. Some military observers tagged the Hellcat as the "Wildcat's big brother".

The F6F made its combat debut in September 1943. It subsequently established itself as a rugged, well-designed carrier fighter, which was able to outperform the A6M Zero and help secure air superiority over the Pacific theater. In total, 12,275 were built in just over two years.

Hellcats were credited with destroying a total of 5,223 enemy aircraft while in service with the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, and Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm (FAA). This was more than any other Allied naval aircraft. After the war, Hellcats were phased out of front-line service in the US, but radar-equipped F6F-5Ns remained in service as late as 1954 as night fighters.

The Kit

The plastic is beautifully crisp and there's plenty of extras in the box, including some resin wheels, which I did not expect.

Its a brutal design, there's nothing pretty about the Hellcat, its a triumph of straight lines and radial engined chunkyness.









2 sets of canopies and windscreens, only 1 option in the kit.



Lovely extras - paint mask for the canopy and windscreen, colored PE for the cockpit, standard PE which includes an ignition harness for the engine and finally, resin wheels! Not bad for a kit that cost £24.



Here's the 'Dont screw it up book', typical Eduard.





I plan to do the version on the left



So there it is, its a cracker of a kit so if it turns out bad its entirely my fault.

No pressure then

[cor]

Those profi pack kits are great. Should be a cracker.

[RangerNeil]

Ooohhh - looking forwards to seeing this build progress!!! Those Edouard kits really are excellent.

[Kevthemodeller]

Oh yes this is going to be good

[Quax]

after the triumph of the 109 this is one to watch!

Paul

[Twokidsnosleep]

Excellent choice
Welcome to the buddy build

[Stokesy44]

Excellent choice
Welcome to the buddy build

Cheers. Hoping to break ground at the weekend

[Stokesy44]

Finally got going this morning.

Cockpit assembly. Basic stuff, floor, seat and rear bulkhead then sanding the various consoles ready for the PE.









Ready for paint now, then I can start on the PE and weathering.

[digger303]

[Quax]

good start

Paul

[RangerNeil]

Posted in error - moved to correct thread!!

[Stokesy44]

Both fuselage halves are now complete. Which means most of the PE is complete, thank god. So the next job is to physically join the two halves.

Now look here you man, I'm all for a bit of healthy rivalry but posting YOUR work on MY thread really isn't on.

You need to take a long hard look ay yourself Sir.

[RangerNeil]

Oops - sorry about that......
Will relocate it ASAP!!

[Twokidsnosleep]

How is the styrene in the Edward kit?
I don’t think I have built one but have a few in the stash
The Tamiya Buffalo styrene is chippy/brittle. Even careful cuts off the sprues leaves a chip out of the show side of the part
I have been building Revell/Amt UsA car kits and that styrene is soft like butter poor definition and hard to deal with
I think the WNW WWI aircraft styrene is the best I have touched

[Stokesy44]

How is the styrene in the Edward kit?
I don’t think I have built one but have a few in the stash
The Tamiya Buffalo styrene is chippy/brittle. Even careful cuts off the sprues leaves a chip out of the show side of the part
I have been building Revell/Amt UsA car kits and that styrene is soft like butter poor definition and hard to deal with
I think the WNW WWI aircraft styrene is the best I have touched

The styrene with Eduard is uniformly good for their modern kits. Its at the harder end of the range but still easy to work with. If I buy an Eduard kit I am expecting accuracy, good styrene, good surface detail and good fit.

I'm not a fan of Revell, even their new stuff lacks the finesse of other modern manufacturers.

How old is the Buffalo? I've never had a problem with modern Tamiya and I'm always interested in anything new they release.

[Twokidsnosleep]

How is the styrene in the Edward kit?
I don’t think I have built one but have a few in the stash
The Tamiya Buffalo styrene is chippy/brittle. Even careful cuts off the sprues leaves a chip out of the show side of the part
I have been building Revell/Amt UsA car kits and that styrene is soft like butter poor definition and hard to deal with
I think the WNW WWI aircraft styrene is the best I have touched

The styrene with Eduard is uniformly good for their modern kits. Its at the harder end of the range but still easy to work with. If I buy an Eduard kit I am expecting accuracy, good styrene, good surface detail and good fit.

I'm not a fan of Revell, even their new stuff lacks the finesse of other modern manufacturers.

How old is the Buffalo? I've never had a problem with modern Tamiya and I'm always interested in anything new they release.

I think the Buffalo kit was like ‘74 issue
So certainly Tamiya has improved their styrene since then
If you ever have the notion, try a WingNutWings kit, the styrene is truly lovely to work on; maybe the Kotare kits would be similar ???

[Stokesy44]

I think the Buffalo kit was like ‘74 issue
So certainly Tamiya has improved their styrene since then
If you ever have the notion, try a WingNutWings kit, the styrene is truly lovely to work on; maybe the Kotare kits would be similar ???

I know WNW are universally acclaimed but I've never seen a subject I REALLY want to build. I'm not really into WW1 projects but I am aware I'm missing out on the quality when it comes to WNW.

Kotare is another matter, like WNW they are pricey but I am severely tempted by their soon to be released Hurricane Mk1 (early). If I had to zero in on a point in time that sparked my interest in history and the hobby it would be 1940 with the Battle of France and the Battle of Britain. My novel is also about a Hurricane squadron so I can hardly say no this one.

[Kevthemodeller]

Coming along very nicely

[Stokesy44]

Base colour of Tamiya interior green cut with a little yellow for the cockpit then it was time for the interior PE.

First up was the IP, lots of different pieces, some on top of the other.







Then it was on to the side panels





I lost the top off the throttle so I'll have to fabricate that. Then its on to the seat harness and weathering before closing it up.

[Twokidsnosleep]

oh wow
That's nice!

[digger303]

wooh fulling out all the stops.

[Kevthemodeller]

Lovely PE work there mate

[Stokesy44]

Decided I needed to get on with this. The den is starting to get cluttered with unfinished kits.

After fiddling about with the PE seat harness I got on with putting the airframe together. Surface detail is very nice and the only joins that needed more than a little sanding were the fuselage halves.

No engine yet. Everything else is there though. Its a proper boxy design. All straight lines and solidity.



Flaps, ailerons and elevators all fit nicely and there are no oversized gaps like you see on some kits.





Very little of the cockpit can be seen although I just need to add a lick of paint to the head rest and the hand grip on the joystick



The underside showing how nice and tight the control surface joins are. Thank you Eduard



And on the upper wing surfaces too.



More slab sided engineering. Must have been good for mass production. One thing I noticed was the stabs and elevators are mirrored. The left side has the round inspection panels on the upper surface, they are underneath on the right. Another nod to mass production? You only have to produce one as it fits either side.



I plan to work on this tomorrow then prime it alongside the Archer at the weekend. That's the plan anyway.

[digger303]

Man with a plan...how can anything go wrong I'm sure murphy is planning a come back.
Nah seriously hope it works out as planned.

[Quax]

office and the rest of the build came together very nicely! It was interesting to read about the mirroring for ease of construction! looking forward to seeing the paint go on

Paul

[Stokesy44]

Man with a plan...how can anything go wrong I'm sure murphy is planning a come back.
Nah seriously hope it works out as planned.

Never a truer word is spoken in jest.

Brief hold on the build as my filler has gone 'off'. Vallejo putty ordered and due today so hopefully I'll be able to sort out the fuselage seams and crack on with firing up the airbrush.

[Kevthemodeller]

[Stokesy44]

Well, life kind of got in the way and things have been pretty quiet with the F6.

Finally got back to it yesterday and today. Joints have been filled, panels rescribed and the undercarriage fitted.









The kit comes with a set of resin wheels which have really nice detail. I managed to shave a flat spot into the tyres so they sit nicely.





I may get to prime tomorrow but given recent promises, don't hold your breath

[aur0ra145]

Those are some nice wheels. Which squadron markings are you going with?

[Stokesy44]

Those are some nice wheels. Which squadron markings are you going with?

Hi, not sure yet. I need to decide soon though as its ready for paint now.

[Stokesy44]

Finally scratched the itch yesterday. Using a brand new bottle of Ultimate Black Primer I fired up the air brush and got on with it. It was a 2 for 1 deal as I also primed the Archer at the same time.

And who said men can't multitask?

Primer went down nicely. Fair bit of tip dry but I kept up with it and cleaned the offending bit repeatedly.

The seams look ok. My new Vallejo plastic putty looks like being a good buy.







The lower fuselage join was the one I was most concerned about but it looks ok along with the panel lines.



Marbling is up next then its on to the Sea Blue all over.

[Stokesy44]

Another one that's been delayed.

Marble coat done this morning.









I have the approximate color for the dark blue from Vallejo but I also have a Tamiya mid blue. I'm tempted to add some black to the Tamiya paint as I much prefer the brand to Vallejo.

[digger303]

[Stokesy44]

Fired up the AB today for the base coat. I thought I had the right colour in a Vallejo set but the bottle only contained the extinct remains of the paint. Ah well, that'll learn me.

So it was out with the Tamiya Blue and Black mixed for the base. Its a fraction light on drying but I can fix that when I gloss if for decals by misting a deeper colour on. The marbling looks ok, a bit agricultural in places but I plan to really dirty up the bird anyway.

Paint went down well and there was hardly any tip dry. I think I had to wipe its nose just once.













Every time I look at the Hellcat I am reminded of the brutal engineering of the airframe. Its all straight lines with the slab like wings and chunky tail surfaces. There are no nods to style, just the most pragmatic design for dog fighting bolted to the best possible engine.

Gloss varnish is next then it will be decal time. I also need to paint the engine at some point!

[digger303]

[Stokesy44]

Thanks mate. I need to reassess how I take my photos. I use a daylight light for my bench sessions and that is on when I take my photos. It bleaches color out of paintwork and changes the general hue of the subject. I had a good look at the Hellcat last night in normal lighting conditions and it is much darker and far less blue - just as it should be.

I need to make up my mind what to do about the color (if anything) as I need to mask up for adding some white flashes for the variant I have chosen from the instructions.

[Portman]

That is a very nice bit of painting!

[Stokesy44]

That is a very nice bit of painting!

Thanks mate.

More fun at the bench today. A rather disappointing session although it was the modelling equivalent of a self-inflicted wound. After the last painting session I failed to clean the AB as thoroughly as I should have and I paid for it today. I really struggled with the white flashes with the result I had some bleed on the left wing which had to be cleaned up. When I cleaned the AB (properly this time), the needle was in a right state

Got the prop and engine primed along with the yellow blade edges.









I turned the bench light off for the last photo, you can see how much the daylight light bleaches out the kit's true appearance. Its a constant pain because I use a phone for pictures. And despite what the makers say, its not as good as a proper camera.



Glossing is next then decals, all good fun and still enjoying the kit

[digger303]

Thanks mate. I need to reassess how I take my photos. I use a daylight light for my bench sessions and that is on when I take my photos. It bleaches color out of paintwork and changes the general hue of the subject. I had a good look at the Hellcat last night in normal lighting conditions and it is much darker and far less blue - just as it should be.

I need to make up my mind what to do about the color (if anything) as I need to mask up for adding some white flashes for the variant I have chosen from the instructions.

Just had a phone upgrade to a iphone from a el cheapo android. So hopefully my pic's will be better....cross my fingers.

[cor]

Nice plane. Looks like a clunker, but must have been otherwise as it designed specifically to kill the zero.