This
is my 1/48 scale Airfix Hawk T1 as used by the world famous aerobatic team, the
“Red Arrows”. The BAE Hawk is basically the same aircraft as used by the RAF
for advanced flight training but with the addition of an up-rated engine, a pod
that contains a mixture of diesel and coloured dye and a smoke generator that
pumps the diesel mixture in to the hot jet exhaust to produce the distinctive
smoke trails used during aerobatic displays.
Construction
started with the cockpit. The standard kit cockpit is a bit sparse so I included
a few scratch built details, including a new rear cockpit wall, modified the
cockpit combing and drilled out instrument dials on the control panels. The
ejection seats in the kit only bore a passing resemblance to Martin Baker
Mk10’s so I replaced them with some white metal seats from Aeroclub. The
cockpit was then installed in to the fuselage.
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images below to see larger images
As
the kit is a tail sitter, I added some extra weight in the form of some
lead bird shot and super glue in to the space beneath the cockpit tub. The
fuselage halves went together quite nicely with only a small amount of
filler used to conceal the joint. I didn’t really like the main wheel
wells on the kit, so I scratch built new ones. However, to make the wing
assembly fit after I’d done this, I had to cut out a section on the
bottom of the fuselage to accept the new, deeper wheel wells. I replaced
the jet exhaust pipe with a section of brass tubing. This was installed
after making the opening in the rear fuselage wider so it would leave a
slight gap around the jet pipe. I’d installed a new bulkhead in the
fuselage before gluing the halves together to make it easier to mount the
brass pipe. The smoke pipes were made from brass rod bent in to shape. The
kit’s main wheels also did not really look anything like they should, so
these were replaced with some white metal items from Aeroclub. I did use
the kit’s nose wheel as this looked better than the one from Aeroclub, I
also used the kits u/c struts, suitably modified and with the addition of
some brass wire to simulate brake pipes. The pitot tube was replaced with
a brass rod, and the little probe on the rear of the smoke pod was also
made from brass.
I
primed the model using Halfords grey acrylic primer and then sanded this smooth.
The main colour coat is Xtra Color Red Arrows (Signal) red enamel. I airbrushed
this on in several thin coats. After it was fully dry (even though the Xtra
Color Red is already gloss) I gave the model a coat of Johnsons Klear (Future)
so it would be ready for decaling. The Airfix decals went on without too much
drama, although my sheet had a missing white stripe (looked like a miss-print)
so I had to wait for a replacement to arrive from the Airfix spares department.
After all decals were applied I gave the model two more coats of Johnsons Klear
to seal everything in and to give it an extra glossy finish. I didn’t do much
in the way of weathering; my reference pictures of the Red’s Hawk’s look
like their aircraft have just been polished with several coats of car wax –
they’re just so clean and shiny.
The
last part was just to install the landing gear, seats and glazing. I dipped the
canopy parts on Johnsons Klear, and after they had fully dried I picked out the
MDC in the canopy with white acrylic paint.
I
really enjoyed this kit, and after the usual assortment of grey and/or grey
green camouflage patterns it was a real treat to paint something in a different
colour!
Enjoy!
Karl
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images below to see larger images
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