mywifehatesmodels Posted October 19, 2012 Share Posted October 19, 2012 It's time to put away the RLM paints for a bit and do something American. I've been wanting to build this plane for years and I actually got a little bit of a start on it, last year, when I mastered and molded the spent shell bins in resin. But first, here's a look at what I'm working with: And what I hope it will look like when I'm finished: In the builds that I've followed and the reading I've done about this kit in the last several years, it would seem that I've picked yet another monster to work on. The issues with this kit are well known (bulkheads too wide, being the biggest problem, but there are others). However, I'm hoping that some of the bright chaps who have come up with solutions to these problems will help me with my own build and that mine won't end up like Jay's (If you recall, he ended up literally throwing it against a wall!). This will be the first "official" build for me in my U.S. WWII era lineup, so I figured I would start with the P-36 and work my way up through the line. However, rather than do just a plain NMF, or OD paint scheme, I thought I would go for the temporary camouflage used for the 1939 Cleveland Air Races. Thankfully, I was able to secure a set of Cutting Edge decals that has the markings for one such aircraft. No real progress, so far, but I figured I better get a thread started so that I have some motivation to dive into this. Here's the pics of the masters/parts I made for the casing bins, last year: So, with that, I at least have something done. It may be a few days before I can actually start any real work, though. Happy modeling, John Derek B 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calaire Posted October 20, 2012 Share Posted October 20, 2012 Hello John, thx for the reply info about the 190A-5 kit.I missed that original issue. looks like you don't shy away from challenges,love the plane and the era. Don't like natural metal finishes? happy hobby! cal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tnarg Posted October 20, 2012 Share Posted October 20, 2012 This has got to be one of my favorite aircraft. Good luck with this build. Tnarg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mywifehatesmodels Posted October 20, 2012 Author Share Posted October 20, 2012 Thanks, guys. Cal, I don't mind natural metal. In fact, I kind of like them. However, I wanted to do something that not everyone else has done, so I chose this scheme, instead. I don't think I've seen another build with this scheme in 1/32 scale. Thanks again for the comments! John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calaire Posted October 21, 2012 Share Posted October 21, 2012 Hello John, A short note about design painted on ammo pod on left wing of 69. Bert Kinsey in P-40 warhawk in detail part one stated design is a women's face and Francis Dean in his masterpiece said it's a turtle. Guess again gentlemen! It's a frog,showing everybody the CO's bird has jumped the equator. Did the decal designers get this one? happyhobby! cal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mywifehatesmodels Posted October 21, 2012 Author Share Posted October 21, 2012 Hello John, A short note about design painted on ammo pod on left wing of 69. Bert Kinsey in P-40 warhawk in detail part one stated design is a women's face and Francis Dean in his masterpiece said it's a turtle. Guess again gentlemen! It's a frog,showing everybody the CO's bird has jumped the equator. Did the decal designers get this one? happyhobby! cal Cal, Yes, the Cutting Edge set does have this correct. Interesting to hear the other theories, though. I had not heard those, before. Thanks, John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tnarg Posted October 22, 2012 Share Posted October 22, 2012 The frog is correct. My dad (a Marine) crossed the equator as a "pollywog" before WWII and they had some rather elaborate celebrations. He still has the certificate that was hand made and given to all who were crossing the first time. That was on the way to the Samoan Islands in 1941, early in the year. They suggested that the ceremonies were significantly toned down after the beginning of the war. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSP_K2 Posted October 22, 2012 Share Posted October 22, 2012 What sort of references are you using? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mywifehatesmodels Posted October 22, 2012 Author Share Posted October 22, 2012 What sort of references are you using? Mainly photos from around the web and a few books (which are the same as what's on the web). However, a fellow member has been kind enough to share some more photos with me that I had not seen before (THANKS!). I've already determined that my spent casing bins are probably too deep and will need to be modified. Oh well. At least I won't need to start from scratch again. :-) John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iain Posted October 22, 2012 Share Posted October 22, 2012 Excellent project - *must* follow! Iain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 23, 2012 Share Posted October 23, 2012 Very interested in watching you on this one. Post away, mate !..............Harv Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mywifehatesmodels Posted October 23, 2012 Author Share Posted October 23, 2012 (edited) Thanks for the interest and encouragement, guys. So far, I've spent most of my time just getting the parts off the sprues and cleaning up the pour stubs and ejector pin "pillars". This kit has these things everywhere and in places/thicknesses that I've never seen before. Cleaning the parts up is a project in itself. I got the engine together and was just doing some research today on the wiring harness, which appears to be a little bit off here. I'll probably add some wires and spiff it up a little, but won't go too crazy. I'm just starting to look at the cockpit, as well and will add a bit there, too. The general layout seems to be there, but the wiring and plumbing are pretty much absent. Again, I won't be going to the last nut, bolt and hose, but will certainly liven it up a bit. I'll post some pics when I actually get something done that's worth looking at. John Edited October 23, 2012 by mywifehatesmodels Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mywifehatesmodels Posted October 24, 2012 Author Share Posted October 24, 2012 I finally have some pictures of things I actually built and painted! Starting with the engine, as I stated before, it was a bear to get all the parts out of the sprues and cleaned up. I ended up sanding away most, if not all, of the nubs and keys that would index the parts, particularly around the center/crankcase. So, I had to be careful in trying to index everything correctly when I glued the parts together. So far, it's just the basic assembly with a coat of silver. I painted the crankcase cover in a gray primer, but I think I'm going to have to go a little darker. This is what I have for now (the crankcase cover is just sitting in place. I won't glue it until everything is ready to be wired). Next up is the cockpit. Finding reliable and consistent references for this has been difficult. It would seem that a lot of the photos out there are from several different variants and export models and they all look different from one another. To add to the confusion, the kit parts seem to be backwards from some of the photos I have (right and left wall details flipped around?). So, I just went with my gut on what I thought would look best on the kit parts and added a bit of artistic license, as well, just to busy things up a bit. Also, for the color, I left it in natural metal. A lot of the photos I've seen would suggest that the quarter panels under the rear windows, as well as the rear bulkhead around the headrest, were NMF. I ran with that theory. Having read some of the build threads here on LSP, I was prepared for what it would take to assemble the fuselage/cockpit in a way that would not push out the wing roots and change the dihedral of the wings. Using the unmodified stock parts, this is a huge issue, as the bulkheads and the cockpit floor are much too wide. I decided not to even use the front bulkhead, as it can't be seen anyway and the engine mount plate will block any light from coming in from the front. The rear bulkhead has to be sanded down, mostly on the sides, to the point that it slides into place without spreading out the lower fuselage. The same holds true for the cockpit floor. I taped the fuselage together as tight as I could and started the sanding/dry-fitting process. It actually wasn't that bad. After I had determined everything was where it should be, I removed the interior parts and ran some CA glue down the seams of the fuselage, starting from the inside. After that, I slid the rear bulkhead back into place and glued that. I'll have some seam work and paint touch-up to do around the bulkhead, but it should turn out fine. I taped the pit floor/seat into place for these photos, but it won't be glued until I get the IP finished and in place, as well. For the IP, I started by painting it all flat white. Then, I put Micro-Mask in the instruments. After that dried overnight, I sprayed the IP with flat black, then removed the little masks. From here, my plan is to use black watercolor on the instruments and then lightly wipe it away from the raised surfaces to expose the needles and dials. This has worked for me in the past, but the detail on this IP is fairly shallow and faint, so I'm not sure if this will be successful, or not. If it is, I'll do a few touch ups, coat it with flat lacquer, then add the instrument "glass" with Future. My fingers are crossed at this point. Also, in looking at a lot of photos, it would appear that the gun sights were removed from these aircraft for the races. I'm not so sure if the guns were in place, either. The blast tubes all appear to be covered and, in the case of the wing guns, especially, even painted over with the camo colors. I haven't decided if I'll cover them, or not, but I know for a fact that I'll be replacing the plastic tubes from the kit with metal tubing. But that will come much later. Thanks for following along, John Iain 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DougN Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Good progress John! Watching with interest as I have one of these kits in the stash to build one of these days Doug Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waroff Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Interesting! I like this a/c For the interior area of fuselage, the notice of P-36/H75 A2 & A3, give primer tinted in "green color" and "aluminim enamel" for the interior of wing. The extinguisher was brass or nickel plated (on the right side it was french and finnish H75) On the left, there was twelve cartridge 1" cal, 4 red, 4 white, 4 green, This model of Special Hobby have a french radio (radio industrie 537) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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