Master Model produces finely crafted small detail parts for models which have been damaged or may be subject to rough handling. Their collection of antennas and pitot tubes are invaluable for the modeler whose friends (or former friends) handle models less than carefully. There’s a picture below. This particular set is the guns for a Spitfire IXe.

The Spitfire IXe had a pair of 20mm cannons in the wing. These had been moved outboard to allow more ammunition for the Browning .50 caliber machine guns. The cannons stuck pretty far out from the wing, but the Brownings barely showed. The “fix” for the Brownings was to put the muzzle inside a tube which extended from the wing.

The kit contains six parts, two cannon barrels, two .50 muzzles and the wing tubes for the Brownings. The cannons for the early ‘e’ wing were conical in shape. The later ‘e’ wing had a more elliptical shape for the cannon fairings. Since Master Model also produces the guns for a late ‘e’ wing, you may want to check your model before buying the gun set.

Assembly

I started with an Eduard Spitfire IXe which I had previously finished. The first part of the project is to remove the kit guns. I did this with a sprue cutter. This left me with two pretty easily seen spots on both wing leading edges. I then started to drill the .8mm holes needed for the cannon and .50 cal. I couldn’t get the large drill to center on the wing leading edge. So I went to a finer drill (.3mm) and drilled pilot holes. Although this worked fairly well, I still didn’t quite get the holes perfectly centered on the leading edge. One of the holes cut through the skin of the underside of the wing.

Once the holes were drilled, I had to clean up the edges, as the drill left some residue. While I did this, I used my finest round file and a #11 blade to better center the holes top to bottom.

I put the cannons in first. They went in with only a little work needed to get the holes aligned and large enough. The machine guns were a different story. The gun muzzles fit inside the tube. The back end of the tube is closed, so you can only use one end. I had to use my magnifier to even see those holes. And I found that my hands shook too much to get the gun muzzle into the tube. My fix was to anchor the tube in a block of modeling clay, and then insert the gun muzzle. With only one shaky hand, it was possible. I used a bit of Gator Glue inside the tube to hold the gun.

I used gel-type CA to hold the cannon and guns in place in the wing. I used accelerator, which caused the glue to turn white. No big problem here, though, and the CA acted as a filler for the spot where the drill was off-center.

Painting

I used a fine brush with Model Master paints to match the previously painted Spitfire wing.

Overall Evaluation

I marvel at Master Model’s ability to turn out such fine parts. I am also amazed at how well the gun muzzles fit into the tubes. Recommended.

Many thanks to Master Model for the review item, and to IPMS USA for allowing me to review it.