Airfix Sea Vixen build - part one

Before starting on the project I did some research around the net looking for other people's builds and recommendations.

One of the first things I struggled with was how to do the cockpit. On the airfixtributeforum I found a very nice build by DH764 that used only the kit provided parts. Then on the Military Modelling site I found Keith Christie's lovely build in which he used the early allied jets decals from AirScale .

Pavla have a resin version of the cockpit which include seats as does Aires

Finally Eduard have an etch package that includes two etches, one of which is colored cockpit components.

As some of you may know there are a number of other secondary market items out there for this kit including wheel wells, air brake, undercarriage legs, wing fold mechanisms and cockpit seats.

In the end I decided to go for the Eduard Etch for a couple of reasons. Firstly I had seen the True Detail resin ejector seats for this model and they are outstanding. Secondly I wanted to give my cockpit a little more than a straight out of the box build, finally the full Eduard etch pack includes items for the air brake, undercarriage and other assorted items on the aircraft so I knew if I felt brave enough I could add a few other elements to the model.

So off to Squadron I went to order the etch along with the True Detail seats some new undercarriage legs and an Eduard mask for the cockpit glazing.

For those of you that have built kits using an etch before this is probably old hat but I'm an etch virgin so it took a deal of courage to start filing off the original kit detail in order to fit the etch parts. And aren't they tiny!!

In my mind you have to prepare yourself to do this kind of work. Its a real challenge and worth the effort but preparation is key. The Eduard instructions are very good so I followed their sequence and took it one part at a time. Some parts could be handled with fingers and tweezers, others needed trusty cocktail sticks and a bit of spit to pick them up. By planning each move how I was going to cut, move fit and (if necessary) glue a part I built up what I think is a special looking cockpit.

Painting was straightorwardf, lots of black! However, I tried out a technique I had read about to create the impression of worn metal. I ffirst sprayed gunmetal then when dry I brushed warm water where I wanted to represent the worn metal and then sprinkled salt on to the water. Once the water had dried off I oversprayed with black. Once dried I could wash off the salt with warm water and I was left with worn looking parts. Some of it is very subtle other parts less so, it really depends on how haevy you go with the salt. It worked for me anyway.

Next up the Martin Baker ejection seats from True Detail.