New tooled early production parts include non-armoured canopies with flat and raised hoods with open and closed options, exposed fuel tank, original style non-trimmed cowlings, 2-blade propeller, open & closed "ring-pull" cockpit doors, ring & bead sights, aerial mast, gun flash eliminators, anti-spin parachute guard, external Type 22 camera gun, dual tube pitot head, early style exhaust manifolds and instrument panel.

• Optional pilot's seats with and without Sutton Type K harness detail
• 28 page fully illustrated instruction manual
• Hand pump undercarriage retraction and wheel well jack detail
• Wheels with weighted tyres featuring correct alignment
• High quality Cartograf decals for 3 early production Spitfire Mk.I.

Spitfire Mk.I colour schemes are surprisingly varied and complicated. Interior areas were primed with light grey before being painted aluminium, except for the cockpit between frames 8 & 11 which was painted in a colour described as "Supermarine green" and "apple green". Note that this is different from the paler, greyer, "Grey Green" (of which various colour mixes have additionally been noted) used on later production Spitfires built by other manufacturers. Major internal components supplied by sub-contractors could be delivered in various shades of grey-green or aluminium or even black.

The underside paint finish varied greatly throughout Mk.I production and service, initially being painted aluminium until late April 1939 when the port side was painted Night (black) and the starboard white (split along the centreline). Then from late February 1940, supposedly all "white" except for the port main plane (only) which was Night, although photographic evidence indicates that the undersides of the nose, rear fuselage and tailplane were usually painted with aluminium. From June 1940 the undersides were supposed to be painted "Sky Type S...duck egg bluish green" but sky grey and sky blue also appear to have been used and then from November 1940 the port main plane (only) was again finished in Night. Aircraft were re-painted in various interpretations of these specifications in the field as time and supplies of paint (including local mixes) allowed, which ensured that a wide variety of finishes were possible.

Contemporary photos confirm different shades of Dark Earth and Dark Green (even on the same airframe) which were applied with a hard demarcation line on the Spitfire Mk.I. Camouflage was applied in 2 designs, the A and B schemes which were mirrors of each other. Spitfire sub-assemblies were usually supplied pre-painted so a single aircraft could exhibit a variety of shades, and sometimes the camouflage pattern would not match perfectly from one sub-assembly/component to the next. Additionally, extensive weathering and re-painting also helped ensure that a wide variety of tonal differences could be seen. The fabric covered rudder, elevator and ailerons were undercoated in red-brown dope before being painted and frequently appear paler than the adjacent camouflaged metal parts. Therefore, unfortunately, there is no "one true" Dark Earth, Dark Green, Sky Type S or interior grey-green paint colour suitable for all Spitfire Mk.I models so, while we have tried our best with our paint suggestions, there is no doubt many will disagree with us. Which is O

K.