BUILT
John Colasante
The Eduard Mk1 Spitfire made a perfect basis for the Supermarine Type 300. The main
changes to the airframe was to sand away
all of the details from the wings and to
smooth and reshape the nose cowling.
Then, re-scribing the wing details to
match the prototype‘s panel decking
was the next task that took a lot of
time. Other traditionally scratch
built details include the rudder counterweight and the windscreen, made
by sanding the Eduard windscreen
to a round shape and then plunging
a clear plastic over it similar to vac
forming but without vacuum.
The rest of the modified parts were done
in CAD using Fusion 360. I measured the
kit landmarks with a caliper and transferred those measurements into CAD ensuring that the parts would be a perfect fit.
The unique radiator was the most challenging part to create.
The finish represents a somewhat controversial choice. My main reference for the
project was the seminal book „A Spitfire
Story“ by Alfred Price. He described the
airframe as „unpainted“ for the demo at
Eastleigh, so I went with unpainted aluminum panels using shades of Alclad Aluminum and Steel to match the reference
photos.
Eduard‘s 1/48 Spitfire is such a pleasure
to work with, and it really brought K5054
to life. I eagerly look forward to Eduard‘s
next kit.
64 eduard
INFO Eduard - April 2021