1:32 Supermarine Spitfire - Airframe Stencil/Data (for Mk.IX & Mk.XIV / applicable to Mk.XII & XVIII)

Aviaeology AOD32S09M - Supermarine Spitfire Mk.IX and Mk.XIV, technical stencils and data, 1:32

A sheet from the technical stencil series: the small maintenance, service and warning notices on the airframe of the Spitfire. These are not national insignia or the markings of a particular machine - roundels, squadron codes and serial numbers are not on the sheet. The manufacturer specifies the sheet for the Mk.IX and Mk.XIV versions and states that it is usable for the Mk.XII and Mk.XVIII as well. With stencils that is the main distinction: the sheet is tied to the late versions, not to early machines with the first Merlins.

The real subject

The Spitfire Mk.IX received a two-stage supercharged Merlin and gave the RAF back its balance of performance against its German opponents at high altitude. The Mk.XIV had a Rolls-Royce Griffon engine with a five-blade propeller, a markedly longer forward fuselage and an enlarged vertical tail. The Mk.XII was a Griffon machine for low altitudes with clipped wings, and the Mk.XVIII a late, strengthened version that came fully into its own only after the war. That is precisely why the manufacturer ties the sheet to these late versions and does not list early Spitfires for it.

Application tips

Apply them only after the roundels and the codes, always onto gloss varnish. Cut the small notices out one at a time and work with tweezers. A mild softener is safer than a strong one on motifs this small - dilute the strong one and test it on an offcut of the sheet. Press the water out from under the decal from the center toward the edges.

Who the sheet is for

• modelers of late Spitfires in 1:32 scale
• those whose kit is missing the stencils or whose stencils match another version
• anyone interested in faithful service documentation of the airframe

This is an accessory for a model, not a kit. The base kit, glue and paints are not included in the package, unless stated otherwise.