1:48 Hawker Sea Fury FB.11 wheels and canopy paint mask outside only (for Airfix 06105 kit)

The last piston fighter of the Fleet Air Arm

The Sea Fury FB.11 closed the development line of British propeller fighters. It was powered by an eighteen-cylinder Bristol Centaurus radial of around two and a half thousand horsepower, the propeller had five blades and the machine was among the fastest piston aircraft ever to take off from a deck. The Fleet Air Arm flew most of its work over Korea with it, and on 9 August 1952 Lieutenant Peter Carmichael managed to shoot down a MiG-15 jet, a feat still cited today as proof that a capable propeller machine was not without a chance against jet equipment.

What the set does to a model

The cut shapes follow the division of the canopy frames and the outline of the landing gear wheel hubs exactly. Once stuck to a dry and degreased surface, the covering paint is sprayed over them, the film is taken off when dry and an absolutely straight edge stays under it. With the Sea Fury that is especially useful on the wheels, because their tires have a pronounced tread and outlining the hub by hand with a brush tends to show on them.

A practical note on the build

The masks cover the outside of the glazing. Paint the inner frames before you set the clear part into the fuselage, otherwise you will no longer reach them. Before you press the mask into place, check that the glazing really is clean; even a small fiber under the film creates a channel through which paint will run. The cut comes from the parts of the Airfix kit in this scale.

The Sea Fury had folding outer wing panels and bulky landing gear legs, so the model is awkward to hold while painting. Fit the masks therefore before the propeller and the antennas go onto the fuselage: a finished machine is harder to grip and the risk of catching one of the fine parts grows.