Sword Supermarine Seafire Build in 1/72 Scale Part I

Sword has packaged their Seafire line together, a total of five kits in one box. The kits were originally issued in 2011 – 2012, with this one you get a “batch in a box”, a good place to start if you want to build a series of Seafires.

Inside the individual kits are each packaged in their own zip-lock bags. These are limited-run tools with no locating pins and a prominent mold seam which will have to be eliminated from each part. Plastic is soft. As you can see, there are parts provided for a variety of options. This sprue is common with Sword’s Spitfire, including the main fuselage & wing components, so modelers with the right decals could also make standard Spitfire marks from this boxing if desired.

The Seafire-specific parts are provided on supplementary sprues for each mark. This accounts for the many subtle detail changes for the Seafire, and will leave several Spitfire components for the spares box when done.

I’m often asked how I keep things organized during a batch build, so here’s a shot of the bench at the beginning of the build. I always start with a clean bench. I save spare top-opening boxes to use as trays, and each box has the parts and instructions for each subject. The spare box on the right holds any aftermarket and is used to collect unused parts until the build is over. The subjects are arranged chronologically, with the earlier versions to the left.

I was intrigued by the extra Spitfire components Sword provides in these kits, which included several fuselages and a complete set of wings, among several smaller components. I already have left over parts from both Airfix and Eduard Spitfires from previous builds, so I decided to see if it would be possible to cobble together an extra Spitfire from the spares. Here is a photo of the Sword cockpit on top, the surplus Spitfire on the bottom with a mix of parts from the spares box and a little scratchbuilding.

A painted cockpit ready to close up, with a set of Eduard PE belts added.

Sometimes it is easier to sand subassemblies separately, and this is the case with the fuselages on this build. I generally don’t enjoy sanding, and the Sword kits require the removal of mold seams, test fitting, and sanding for each component.

Fit of the wings left a lot to be desired and will require some extra effort to smooth out. Assembly was a low point for this batch, and it required considerably more time than usual to get past the sanding stage. This view provides a good look at the resin exhausts though, which are well detailed and sharply cast.

Since I was already raiding the spares box here is a comparison of the Eduard landing gear components with those from Sword. The Eduard parts are the darker plastic, they are better detailed and require little clean up. They are also slightly smaller. I used the Eduard parts where I could, partially due to sanding fatigue.

I needed another canopy for the extra Spitfire, and there were none left in the spares box or any of the Falcon sets I had on hand. I plunge molded one using a Sword canopy as a master, here is the set up ready to take the plunge.

Part II here: https://inchhighguy.wordpress.com/2023/12/08/sword-supermarine-seafire-build-in-1-72-scale-part-ii/