Monogram 1/48 P-40 Rebuild

[LSP_Kevin]

Thanks Jessie. Fuel tank makes sense. I just realised I forgot to post a photo of the seat:

 

 

The seat belts are moulded on. I know some folks seriously dislike this, but as long as they're well done I think they're way better than adding a PE set.

 

Kev

[Sparzanza]

Cockpit looks great to me, hard to belive that it's actually 1/48th scale!

[LSP_Kevin]

Thanks Sparz! Time for the next update. With all the main cockpit parts finished, I was just about ready to close up the fuselage. But this kit would have you install the exhaust stacks from the inside prior to that step. I hate doing that, as it makes painting awkward, and increases the risk of the exhausts being damaged during construction. So I set about modifying the relevant parts to avoid having to do that.

 

First, I reduced the mounting plate of each exhaust stack on all 4 sides:

 

 

The final versions are much shorter again than these two. They can now slip through their respective fuselage openings from the outside. I also opened up the exhaust pipes even more than I had done on the build originally (a quite clumsy attempt with drill bit alone).

 

Next, I removed the forward mounting stub on the inside of each fuselage half (which had been rendered useless during disassembly anyway), and began to box in the interior of the exhaust openings:

 

 

 

And here's the port exhaust test-fitted for good measure:

 

 

 

Now I can paint the airframe and the exhausts separately, and install the exhausts at the end of the build. Success! I probably should paint the white styrene out in black though, before joining the fuselage together...

 

The only other thing I've achieved is to paint the headrest:

 

 

It's painted with Tamiya XF-67 Red Brown, over which I pushed around a bit of Burnt Umber oil paint. It looks OK, but a bit bland, and it's this kind of detail painting that I really want to get better at. I may try drybrushing some Raw Sienna or something over it, just to produce some highlights. Thoughts?

 

Kev

[Sparzanza]

Nice idea with the exhausts, wish I would've done that to the 1/48 Eduard FW190's. As for the headrest, it doesn't look all that bland to me, but I've learned that mixing the original colour with some white to brighten it up, and drybrush that on.. improves the effect a little, makes it look more convincing. I did it to my Spitfire pilot's uniform and was pleased with the end result.

 

Edit: If your "raw sienna" happens to be just that colour but brightened up, I apologize. I don't know what colour raw sienna is.

Edited November 5, 2013 by Sparzanza

[Out2gtcha]

Edit: If your "raw sienna" happens to be just that colour but brightened up, I apologize. I don't know what colour raw sienna is.

 

 

Its the opposite of the rarely used "cooked sienna".

[LSP_Kevin]

Thanks fellas. You wouldn't believe it though, but I've just spilled a bottle of Tamiya Extra Thin over one exhaust stack.   I'll leave it until tomorrow and the decide if it's a write-off or not. The question is, are there any resin replacements?

 

Kev

[Guest Peterpools]

Kev

Great idea with the exhaust stacks and surely the better way to go. What's old the saying: if it wasn't for bad luck, I wouldn't have any luck at all. Ultracaste makes resin sets for the P-40. Hope all works out.

Keep 'em coming

Peter

:popcorn:

[Guest Jessie_C]

The question is, are there any resin replacements?

Yes

[LSP_Kevin]

Thanks guys. I had a feeling Ultracast was the answer. My local supplier doesn't stock this set, so I'm fishing around for where I can get one without having to pay ridiculous international shipping rates. Having said that, I think I'll be able to save the doused unit anyway, so we'll see how we go. I'll paint 'em and see what they look like.

 

Kev

[Guest Peterpools]

Kev

Hope you find as they sure look sweet. and of course, not to mention: will save the day.

Keep 'em coming

Peter

Edited November 5, 2013 by Peterpools

[spacewolf]

Awesome and very creative work Kev. Love the problem solving.

 

 

Vaughn

[LSP_Kevin]

Hey, thanks again fellas! I've decided to stick with the kit exhausts for now, as I reckon I'll be able to salvage the one that I drowned in liquid cement. Got the fuselage halves together:

 

 

Due the jagged way they came apart during disassembly, you could see daylight through some of the seams, so I reinforced them from the inside using CA gel and accelerator:

 

 

I'll probably use a CA/talc mix as filler on the outside too, just to reinforce things a little more. Upon test-fitting the nose piece, I found that it was just a smidge too wide for the fuselage, so I inserted a spreader bar made from sprue (from a Revell 1/32 Corsair, just in case that's important!):

 

 

It probably only widens this section by about half a mm, but it sure made a difference to the fit! Unfortunately I couldn't get the nose piece to stay put long enough for a photo, but it's a definite improvement. Before I glue it on though, I need to decide whether I want to replace the protruding nubbins that Monogram would have you believe are the fuselage guns. And if I decide to replace them, do I go home-made or aftermarket...questions questions!

 

Kev

[LSP_Kevin]

Well folks, this build just got a whole lot harder! While examining the nose section and trying to determine what I could do about the 'guns', I suddenly realised that the two fairings are separate parts! I decided to prise them off, figuring this would make cleaning up the fuselage seam in that area a good deal easier. Well, one just popped off when I showed it the #11 blade, but of course I wasn't so lucky with the other one:

 

 

It has been rendered useless, effectively. And because they're handed (due to the curvature of the fuselage), I can't simply copy the good one in resin. Left a bit of a mess on the fuselage too, but at least I can clean the area up nicely:

 

 

So... ...do I try to repair the wrecked one and reuse them? Do I attempt to replace them with scratchbuilt items? In the spirit of that approach, I actually had a quick, somewhat half-hearted attempt at the 'sliced tube' method:

 

 

The result is pretty ugly, and the section of tubing I chose is too large. That doesn't mean it isn't the right approach though, given more practise. But is there a better way? Advice please!

 

Kev

[Guest Jessie_C]

How about drilling into the nose, sliding the tube in and then trimming it off?

[LSP_Kevin]

How about drilling into the nose, sliding the tube in and then trimming it off?

 

Yep, that's on my list of possibilities. I have two main concerns about it though. The first is that if I screw it up (highly likely!), it's hard to come back from. Secondly, the real things appear to taper in width along their length, whereas I imagine this approach would give a straight-sided result.

 

The only other possibility is to build up a shape using styrene and Milliput, but it's an awkward little area to work in, and producing two the same would be a challenge.

 

Kev