Airfix SEPECAT JAGUAR GR1 1/48 by Smithy

[Smithy]

Looking forward to paint. That’s when the model comes alive.
I have some hobby sanding files, they look like thick nail files.

I think decal day is the magic moment, though I will enjoy the switch to airbrushing.

I’m frustrated that I haven’t been able to get anything else done to the Jaguar. Nice to be busy though.

 

[Smithy]

Wings on!



Can you tell which are engraved panel lines and which is the glued joint?

 

[Smithy]

The assembly continues. With the flaps and the strakes added, the complicated, but I think graceful shape of the Jaguar is beginning to develop. I haven’t put the nose on yet because I have yet to mask off the canopy and I thought it would be easier to do that if I put my nose in a vice.

For a while, I thought that it would be more ‘efficient’ to have two units to work on. I could glue something to the nose and then while the glue was drying, I could glue something to the remainder of the aeroplane. I would use critical path analysis. And then I corrected myself. That kind of thing is efficient in our working lives when we are required to produce something in the minimum amount of time. Now that I am retired, a possible definition of an efficient hobby is one that fills the maximum amount of time at minimum cost. It serves me to build my models as slowly as possible.



My modelling bench is also my dining table and this has helped me to get into the habit of using this partitioned plastic tray for my regular use tools. I am not completely disciplined yet, but most of the time I pick a knife or a pen or whatever from the tray, use it and then replace it in the tray. This is the kind of efficiency that I like to employee. I hate wasting time looking for things on the desk. That’s no fun at all.

 

[Dean62]

She’s looking good. I may have to get one in 1/72 scale!
I always say organization is the key to efficiency. I want to spend my time using tools, not looking for them. However, crawling around on the floor looking for dropped parts is not very efficient!

 

[Smithy]

However, crawling around on the floor looking for dropped parts is not very efficient

I usually have to feel for them. I have the fatal combination of poor eyesight and a grey fleck carpet - an exact match for the grey polystyrene we all know and love.

 

[RussF]

...it would be easier to do that if I put my nose in a vice.

Also good for stopping nosebleeds.

 

[Dean62]

I usually have to feel for them. I have the fatal combination of poor eyesight and a grey fleck carpet - an exact match for the grey polystyrene we all know and love.

My solution is to get my small vacuum and put a sock on the end of the attachment and vacuum the carpet. Then turn it off and check my sock for parts. Works very well. But sometimes the carpet gremlins carry the parts off to unknown destinations never to be seen again.

 

[Smithy]

My solution is to get my small vacuum and put a sock on the end of the attachment and vacuum the carpet. Then turn it off and check my sock for parts. Works very well. But sometimes the carpet gremlins carry the parts off to unknown destinations never to be seen again.

Do you remember when our trousers used to have turnups? That was always a good place to look for lost parts. These days, as if by magic, lost parts seemed drawn to the area immediately behind the wheels of my office chair. Crunchety-crunch!

 

[Smithy]

If putting the decals on the aircraft is one of the highlights for me, then masking canopies is the nadir. I have been finding little excuses not to do it; too tired, too busy… But even a master procrastinator such as myself can’t put it off forever.



First, sharpen your saw - or in this case fit a brand-new blade.



And the old blade is safely put away.



I always use Tamiya masking tape. It’s more expensive than some of the alternatives, but it is the best, in my opinion?. (Other opinions are available. Terms and conditions apply.)



Once the tape is in position, I push it into the angle between frame and windscreen with a toothpick. Preferably a wooden one. This bamboo rubbish is splintery and hard enough to scratch the plastic. It was misleadingly advertised as wood, but at least I got my money back.



Then comes the drama. Running a knife around the edge of the frame. If your blade wanders you will make an irreparable mess of the glass!




The compound curves of the movable canopy aren’t as tricky as you might think. I simply work around the edges and then fill in with scraps.



Using masking tape on a deeply concave area such as an undercarriage bay is very difficult for me. Packaging foam is much easier and more secure.



And ditto for the mains.



With the masking done, I have given the Jaguar a nose job

 

[Dean62]

If putting the decals on the aircraft is one of the highlights for me, then masking canopies is the nadir. I have been finding little excuses not to do it; too tired, too busy… But even a master procrastinator such as myself can’t put it off forever.

View attachment 559613

First, sharpen your saw - or in this case fit a brand-new blade.

View attachment 559612

And the old blade is safely put away.

View attachment 559611

I always use Tamiya masking tape. It’s more expensive than some of the alternatives, but it is the best, in my opinion?. (Other opinions are available. Terms and conditions apply.)

View attachment 559610

Once the tape is in position, I push it into the angle between frame and windscreen with a toothpick. Preferably a wooden one. This bamboo rubbish is splintery and hard enough to scratch the plastic. It was misleadingly advertised as wood, but at least I got my money back.

View attachment 559609

Then comes the drama. Running a knife around the edge of the frame. If your blade wanders you will make an irreparable mess of the glass!

View attachment 559608


The compound curves of the movable canopy aren’t as tricky as you might think. I simply work around the edges and then fill in with scraps.

View attachment 559607

Using masking tape on a deeply concave area such as an undercarriage bay is very difficult for me. Packaging foam is much easier and more secure.

View attachment 559606

And ditto for the mains.

View attachment 559605

With the masking done, I have given the Jaguar a nose job

A lot of people don’t understand the importance of prep work, and how much work it can entail. Looks like you’re ready for some paint!

 

[Peter Voogt]

If putting the decals on the aircraft is one of the highlights for me, then masking canopies is the nadir. I have been finding little excuses not to do it; too tired, too busy… But even a master procrastinator such as myself can’t put it off forever.

View attachment 559613

First, sharpen your saw - or in this case fit a brand-new blade.

View attachment 559612

And the old blade is safely put away.

View attachment 559611

I always use Tamiya masking tape. It’s more expensive than some of the alternatives, but it is the best, in my opinion?. (Other opinions are available. Terms and conditions apply.)

View attachment 559610

Once the tape is in position, I push it into the angle between frame and windscreen with a toothpick. Preferably a wooden one. This bamboo rubbish is splintery and hard enough to scratch the plastic. It was misleadingly advertised as wood, but at least I got my money back.

View attachment 559609

Then comes the drama. Running a knife around the edge of the frame. If your blade wanders you will make an irreparable mess of the glass!

View attachment 559608


The compound curves of the movable canopy aren’t as tricky as you might think. I simply work around the edges and then fill in with scraps.

View attachment 559607

Using masking tape on a deeply concave area such as an undercarriage bay is very difficult for me. Packaging foam is much easier and more secure.

View attachment 559606

And ditto for the mains.

View attachment 559605

With the masking done, I have given the Jaguar a nose job

Nice to see the care that you take for the preparation. And often change the scalpel knife is a good option. The price of a box of 100 isn't a bad deal. Especially if they don't need to be sterile.
Regards, Peter

 

[Smithy]

A lot of people don’t understand the importance of prep work, and how much work it can entail. Looks like you’re ready for some paint!

Not quite, there are a few odds and ends to glue on yet, but it’s getting close!!!

Nice to see the care that you take for the preparation. And often change the scalpel knife is a good option. The price of a box of 100 isn't a bad deal. Especially if they don't need to be sterile.
Regards, Peter

Years ago I bought 500 of each of the five types I use. That drove the price per unit very low and I have a lifetime supply. For a while, I thought I had more blades than I would ever need.

In the last few years my modelling mojo has been very low. I had finished only one model in about three years and it wasn’t as good as it could have been, or as much fun as I had expected. I thought for a while that I was finished with modelling but I held on and completed my Anson a few months ago. I believe that I am building the Jaguar to a slightly higher standard than the Anson and hope that my enthusiasm to build will continue to grow.

The next one will be the new Airfix Lysander in 1/48 scale, which I would like to at least begin before the end of 2025. The last of the plastic models that I have on hand is a big old beast of a ship kit - the Matchbox Flower Class Corvette in 1/72. I have wanted to build that one for about 40 years. I wonder how I will get on with such an old kit.

 

[Smithy]

Matchbox Flower Class Corvette in 1/72

Come to think of it, since this is SHIPS of Scale, I might do that one first. I could pretend I’d had it for a present and open it on Christmas Day morning. What do you all think?

 

[Smithy]

Planning two models ahead? Looking forward to Xmas? Taking deliberate exercise (quick marching instead of dawdling)? I’m convinced these are the effects of that higher protein diet even though it’s only been a week so far. As well as feeling lively, I no longer pause in the middle of conversations because I can’t remember words. And I don’t feel the cold anymore.

Of course I am spending a lot more on food but perhaps this is partially offset by not running the heating at home so much.

I’m sorry to keep digressing on this topic, but it is modelling related in the sense that I have more enthusiasm for everything including the Jaguar.

 

[Smithy]

The spruces are empty now that all the fiddly bits are attached. I’m delighted to say that I didn’t drop anything onto the carpet, which has got to be the first time that has happened.

There are now aerials and vents and scoops and sensors, all of them very delicate, attached all over the beastie. This makes handling the model a very difficult for me with my clumsy fingers. Next job is to find a way to hold it safely for painting and then finally we can get some colour on it..

 

[Smithy]

Tonight we paint!

 

[Smithy]

It’s now primed, two coats. This is one of those transformative operations when the model, previously a loose collection of parts and glue marks becomes a single integrated thing. Despite my many errors in construction I’m happy with the result.

The primer is Stynylrez from the Badger airbrush company and as you see, it’s self levelling, heavily pigmented and sticks like stuff to a blanket. In fact, my only criticism of the stuff is that it’s the very devil to get out of my airbrush at cleanup time.

I had planned to paint the undersides this evening but I’ve had a nip with dinner and no longer trust myself not to stage a disaster

Deferring the painting gives me a day to walk about with the paint in my trouser pocket where the warmth and agitation will thoroughly mix and revive the paint, unused for years. I did the same with my bottle of primer and had zero blockages while spraying.

 

[Smithy]

The primer is Stynylrez from the Badger airbrush company and as you see, it’s self levelling, heavily pigmented and sticks like stuff to a blanket. In fact, my only criticism of the stuff is that it’s the very devil to get out of my airbrush at cleanup time.

It seems that I was right. I tried spraying the very pale gloss grey on the underneath today. The airbrush just would not cooperate. I got two coats down but very badly. I stripped the brush for normal daily cleaning and it didn’t seem to fix it. Then I asked myself how long is it since I did a full annual overhaul? Er… 2019?



It will sit in that bath of alcohol for the rest of the day to soften up the many layers of paint crud which inevitably get past the needle seals, a few molecules at a time, jamming up the trigger and air valve.

Airbrushing isn’t the easiest skill to acquire and there are two mistakes which newcomers to spraying always make. The first is not thinning the paint enough and the second is neglecting routine maintenance of a precision machine. Guilty as charged your honour!

 

[Smithy]

It was just like having a new airbrush this morning. Not only was the thing clean but I found an unopened pot of Tamiya Matt white paint. Yesterday I was using an old pot of gloss white which was very translucent when thinned enough to spray.

I don’t have the ‘correct’ colour which is a pale grey so I built up thin layers of white over the primer’s grey until it looked right.

I seem to have rediscovered sufficient interest in modelling (in plastic) to justify some small investments in paints, other materials and equipment. There’s no pleasure in staggering on with ‘not quite right’ paint, glue, paintbrushes, and so on; that’s self-defeating.

A larger expense which I’m planning will be a new airbrush with the gun style trigger. My poor old hand cramps up too easily now for extended sessions with the top trigger.

 

[pugwash]

Coming along nicely, Smithy.

The Jaguar always looked to me like a mini version of the much lamented TSR2