1/48 Hasegawa Spitfire MkVIII

by Darren McGuinness

--------------------

 

Hello everyone,

This is my Hasegawa MkVIII Spitfire in the markings of RAF No. 145 Sqn. based in Canne, Italy during November 1943. This is the clipped wing version of the MkVIII, designed for combat at low altitude which served with the RAF and USAAF in the Mediterranean.
This is the first Hasegawa Spitfire that I have built and for the most part, it builds up into a decent replica of the real thing. It has a nicely detailed cockpit and the fuselage is engraved with fine panel lines and rivets.
The build process is fairly straightforward, however attention is needed around the wing roots when attaching them to the airframe as the fit is slightly uneven, however it is nothing a little sanding cannot fix. Apart from this, the kit parts fit together quite well.

Click on images below to see larger images

For this paint scheme I used Humbrol enamels dark earth and middle stone for the upper surfaces with azure blue for the underside. I mixed in a little white to the upper colours to give a faded look and added a wash of black/grey water colour to accent the panel lines and weather the aircraft. 

The decals were as usual, to Hasegawa's standard and conformed to the model with little need for setting solution. Overall, this kit is a good offering and an enjoyable project and my model was built straight OOB with the exception of some PE seat belts from Eduard.

Happy modelling!

Darren

Click on images below to see larger images

Photos and text © by Darren McGuinness