AirFix 1:24 Hawker Typhoon Mk.IB 'Car Door'

[JetLag]

Hi all

New kid on the block, deiced it's time to get into something new and decided to buy a scale model.... ended up buying a Airfix 1/24 Hawker Typhoon. Absolutely loving the build and the struggle and all the small details, have a few questions if anyone would like to help out.

• What airbrush nozzle sizes are best for model building ? currently only have a 0.3mm
• What ratio is best to mix the paint and thinners ? currently using a 1:1 ration with Tamiya X20
• Is it best to paint small pieces by hand and airbrush only the bigger pieces ? find it hard to get a "good" finish when painting "larger" pieces by hand.

Will post pictures as I progress, currently almost done with the cockpit and engine assembly.

Regards

 

[Airborne01]

Greetings Karl! Nothing like going in at the deep end - 1/24 Typhoon is quite an entree!
Steve

 

[Tim Marlow]

Hi Karl
Welcome to the forum. Interesting first toy there. That’s quite a size! Looking forward to your pictures.

In answer to your questions…..
…0.3 should be fine.

…that’s a good starter ratio. Some pigments might need a little more, some a little less. Paint thinning is down to the airbrush and air pressure as well as the paint itself. You will develop a feel for it, but practice is the only real way to learn.

… I would say yes, but don’t try to brush paint with tamiya, it’s not great for it. Invest in some Vallejo for small parts, it’s much more brush friendly.

 

[Jakko]

• What airbrush nozzle sizes are best for model building ? currently only have a 0.3mm

That should do fine, I would think. Airbrushing is very much a skill-dependent activity: if you have the very best tools but no skill your work will look a lot worse than that of someone with decent skill but mediocre tools. In other words, practice is more important than equipment, certainly if you’re just starting out.

• What ratio is best to mix the paint and thinners ?

There are too many variables to answer that question with any accuracy. It depends on which type of paint you use, which brand, what you sue as thinner, at which pressure you’re spraying it, even how old the paint is (because once the bottle/tin has been opened, thinner will evaporate from the paint slowly, so old paint is thicker than new paint).

The basics of it is: if it sprays like you want it to, you’ve thinned it sufficiently. Again, this comes back to skill and practice.

• Is it best to paint small pieces by hand and airbrush only the bigger pieces ? find it hard to get a "good" finish when painting "larger" pieces by hand.

That is the main use of an airbrush in modelling, IMHO: to get a good, even finish on larger pieces. Sure, you can airbrush everything, if you want, but I think you’ll quickly find many things are simply easier to brush-paint because you won’t have to worry about masking (or cleaning that damned airbrush, of course).

 

[papa 695]

Hi and welcome to the forum Karl. Will sit and watch this, as I’ve got one in the stash.

 

[rtfoe]

Welcome Karl. The basics have been answered. The rest boils down to practice and the number of kits under your belt. There will be catastrophes and some accomplishments but as you progress enjoyment is the key.

Cheers,
Richard

 

[Andy the Sheep]

Welcome Karl.
A brave choice, that of yours, but you will have a lot of fun in building an highly detailed model of such an iconic aircraft.

Andrea

 

[JetLag]

Evening all

I've attached my current progress on the build, cockpit is done and the engine is about 50% complete. The amount of detail and small pieces on the engine is insane.... colour of the aircraft frame is incorrect as I used the wrong Humbrol- Tamiya cross-reference number (own fault ) and the leather seat is the wrong shade as I could not find the Humbrol paint number locally. Paint touch ups will done when the total build has been completed.

Please let me know if the pictures are clear enough or if you would like to see the build from an different angle.

 

[Jakko]

The pictures are fairly clear, but would benefit from better lighting One lamp on each side, towards the front, would improve them markedly, I suspect. Also, if you photograph the items at an angle, they will look more interesting (unless you’re specifically taking the photos like this to show details etc. of course).

 

[papa 695]

Looking good Karl, but like Jakko said better lighting would help more.

 

[rickoshea52]

Nice kit and good start.

 

[Niho]

Hi Karl
You've got a beast of a model, not in any negative way, oh no..... bet there are some old salts that have sage advice for you..... me, not built this, but will join the 'rabble' and watch n learn
Nick