1:48 de Havilland Vampire F.3 wheels and canopy paint mask outside only (for Airfix 06107 kit)

A twin-boom aircraft that crossed the Atlantic

The Vampire belonged to the first generation of British jets. A short engine nacelle with a centrifugal-flow Goblin engine was supplemented by two tail booms, thanks to which the exhaust nozzle could sit as close behind the engine as possible. The F.3 version received more fuel and modified tail surfaces, which extended its range enough for six machines of No. 54 Squadron to cross the Atlantic in July 1948, the very first time jet aircraft had managed it. The front part of the fuselage of the Vampire was meanwhile still of plywood construction, that is a technology inherited from the war years.

What the set is good for

The canopy of the Vampire is fairly small, but its framing forms a tight pattern in which every inaccuracy is immediately visible. Pre-cut film removes that problem: tracing the shapes is unnecessary, the edge comes out straight and nowhere does the paint run over the frame into the clear area.

Before you start spraying

The clear parts need only be washed in lukewarm water with a drop of detergent and left to dry freely. Then lay the mask, run a blunt tip along the edges and only then reach for the airbrush. The film covers the outside, so paint the inner frames before you seat the clear part into the fuselage. The cut matches the parts of one particular Airfix kit; on a Vampire model from another brand the dimensions might not fit.

A fair number of F.3 machines flew in an unpainted metal finish or with a silver coat. Such a surface is merciless to a build: it reflects light and brings out every unevenness and every notch at the boundary between colors. All the more reason with it to have the frames solved with film and not to rely on a steady hand and adhesive tape.