Having built the Jaguar and stated in no uncertain terms that that was the finest 1/48 aircraft kit yet seen from Airfix, it came as something of a shock to see just how good this one was as well!
2nd July 2025
After the excitement of releasing my new Jaguar book for presale yesterday, this morning was a chance to continue with the Airfix Spitfire TR.9, reacquaint myself with Marillion’s masterpiece ‘Clutching At Straws’ and hope that the weather cools down enough to start chucking paint around. It was quite the start to the day.
First things first: the Jaguar book...
I’m literally stunned by the reaction to this presale. This has been the fastest selling new book I think I’ve ever released. After one day, I’m up to where I wanted to be at the end of the two week open window, so thank you all very much for your interest and your orders!
If you would like to order a copy before I close the window down and send it off to the printers, here’s the link to yesterday’s update:
And so on to spitfires with more than one seat…
I have to say that I wasn’t overly enthused by the idea of a Spitfire TR.9 in miniature. Undoubtedly the ugliest of the Spitfire variants, I took only a passing interest in the announcement. Now that it’s here though, good Lord! What a lovely kit it is and a real step up from the other Spitfire kits Airfix have released, lovely though they are.
For more information on the Airfix Spitfire TR.9, check out their blog at:
Detail is superb, most notably the surface detail, rivets and panel lines, which certainly give Eduard and their much-vaunted family a kits, a run for their money. You can certainly see how much of the 1/24 kit’s design has influenced this one and if this is any indication of what the upcoming 1/48 Mk.IX will look like, modellers are in for a real treat when that kit hits the model shop shelves, later this year…
The last day or so gave me the opportunity to assemble all of the smaller parts and then clean-up the rest of the airframe. I have to say that this was an easier and less stressful process than I experienced whilst building the Tamiya F-35C, assembly of which seemed to take days, rather than the hours for this thing. I’m sure that I run the risk of have hundreds of pitchfork-waving modellers on my doorstep baying for my blood with this opinion, but single-engined fighters are so much more straightforward than their modern counterparts!
Much of that was done to the simplicity of the aircraft of course, but equally, it was helped by the kit’s superb design and the quality of the engineering, breakdown and fit. Having built the Jaguar and stated in no uncertain terms that that was the finest 1/48 aircraft kit yet seen from Airfix, it came as something of a shock to see just how good this one was as well! I’m now a little torn as to which one I prefer, though it’s likely to be SEPECAT’s masterpiece, just because of my love for the real aircraft. Hmm, who says you can’t be biased when it comes to the kits you love the most..?
Anyhoo…
Today, I spent a few hours painting all of those bits I’d assembled yesterday (at least in their basecoat layers) and then a few more hours trying to fathom the actual colour of the exterior surfaces of the Irish machine. I’ll discuss this more in my article, but in the end I settled on a homebrew based on RLM02, which seemed about right, if not entirely on the money. This decision was helped thanks to Drewe and Jonathan, who both took time out of their busy days to help a whining, middle-aged reviewer who couldn’t make an informed choice on his own. I’d like to thank them for their time and promise I won’t bother them again any time soon… Until of course, I do.
Oh and finally… Having placed a large order with Hannants on Monday that I should have had today (but which Parcelforce decided they couldn’t be bothered to deliver until tomorrow, you know, for reasons…) I discovered I had no Eduard seatbelts for the Spitfire. Instead of being organised and checking before I placed that large order, I only discovered my lack of belts today. They then needed a separate order. The result is a delay in getting the cockpit finished and photographed, those belts being unlikely to arrive much before the weekend. So much for forward planning, eh? Like I say: it’s been quite the day.
See you tomorrow.
TODAY’S PLAYLIST...
Marillion: Live At The Edinburgh Playhouse
Dire Straits: Alchemy Live 1984
- A MODELMAKER’S LIFE: WHY HAVE I NEVER BUILT A LIGHTNING?
Is it time to build BAC’s masterpiece at last? - A MODELMAKER’S LIFE: A TRIP TO BRISTOL…
A trip to a bakers on the rain will be remembered because of a young man on a bridge… - A MODELMAKER’S LIFE: A RELAXING DAY…
A day of Christmas shopping and time on my PlayStation… - A MODELMAKER’S LIFE: HOW MANY MORE KITS DO I HAVE, HALF STARTED?!
When I found a half-built kit up in the loft, I wasn’t sure whether to be annoyed that I forgotten it, or happy that most of my work was already done! - A MODELMAKER’S LIFE: 2025 ALL WRAPPED UP!
After a very busy year, I’m finally on leave for Christmas.
SPENCER POLLARD'S KIT BOX 
It’s kismet I tell you, kismet. Thanks for picking up the “family model” Spitfire just in time for me to bite the postal fee bullet and order one of my own. I’ll happily let you have the lead, intent on your observations. I’ll have my Mk.24 finished just in time for the arrival of the new kit.
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Yes, the Airfix Tr.9 is a real eye opener. They have seen the future, and it is spelled E-D-U-A-R-D. But what they have done that it is really masterful is they have gotten the Eduard surface and cockpit detail, while avoiding the fiddliness that is the main complaint modelers who aren’t full-on puzzle solvers. The simplification of the gear wells, and the intelligence applied to how the exhausts are assembled and attached beat the daylights out of Eduard’s solutions in those spots. And the final result will be nearly indistinguishable from any Eduard Spitfire sitting nearby. (and thank goodness I did have Eduard belts – they should be Q’s, not Sutton’s – before getting ready). I’m going to mine as one of those money-making machines you have over there to relieve fans of several thousand pounds in exchange for a ride.
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