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Posted

Earlier this year Hubert very kindly sent me a KH Texan T-6 kit which he thought unlikely to build, a very generous gesture nonetheless.  Knowing my penchant for Harvards the box was soon winging its way to darkest Dorset, where it's been sitting waiting for the Muse to strike.  She's struck!  

 

So I've started my second KH "Harvard"; I have the AlleyCat canopy for it but I'm getting round the other issues of undercarriage/wheels and prop length by modelling her flying, so undercart retracted and prop blurs.  Unlike my first silver one, this one will be yellow:

 

7kuTey.jpg

 

like some flying in this "Balbo".  I need to do a bit more research with Dad's logbook, dates and serial numbers to try to establish exactly which one, but safe to say it'll be yellow!

 

Made a start yesterday on the engine:

 

YGnkCM.jpg

 

and today with the pilot and lower cockpit floor area.  The pilot is adapted from Mike Good's wonderful model of "Sailor" Malan of BoB fame, but oxygen masks and especially Mae Wests were rarely (if ever in the MW case) needed in S Rhodesia, so a bit of butchery was needed:

 

JRfe6O.jpg
 
23kwST.jpg
 
d7afvY.jpg
 

A3huvs.jpg 

 

More soon.

Max

Posted (edited)

Thanks Harv and Ernie.  The props are too long, Harold makes replacements available from Sprue Bros over on your side of the pond: AMS32100 1:32 AMS Resin T-6 Texan 9' Prop Blades (KTH kit) and very good they are too.

 

pCkPhU.jpg

 

On the left the kit blade, on the right AMS Resin's (from my first build).

Max

Edited by mozart
Posted

Work progressing on painting Sgt Pilot (under training) Toby Williams (Dad):

 

GAYs0s.jpg

 

and making sure that he fits into the cockpit and can reach the rudder pedals:

J0Mm6L.jpg

 

He must of course have his seat belt on:

LvVrMR.jpg

 

Fiddly! default_smile.png

Posted

Thanks Harv, this is going to be a simpler build than the first Harvard but still lots of popcorn to eat!! :)

Max

Guest Clunkmeister
Posted

Your Dad looks all the business.

Posted

Good to see you making use of this kit, Max. Looking forward to see your progress with it :popcorn:

Hubert

Thanks Hubert, your generosity is intrinsic to this build, I'm enjoying it immensely!

 

Your Dad looks all the business.

The real man certainly was the business Ernie, miss him terribly since he passed away in 2006. As for the plastic figure, it's curious just how much the camera makes the lower half seem so much darker in tone than the upper. I obviously try to consider shading and the differing effects of light on the figure so the pilot's upper torso will be lighter, but I may modify it a bit when I have a more objective look at it later.

Posted

Excellent, another Max special.  Pulling up a pew to watch, and putting a few of your namesake's Piano Concerti on the stereo.

Posted

Excellent, another Max special.  Pulling up a pew to watch, and putting a few of your namesake's Piano Concerti on the stereo.

I'll try not to keep you sitting for too long Mike, those pews can be damned hard after a while. I've been putting bits and pieces together for a while now for a Bf110G4 so I'm hoping to take the plunge with that before too long!

Posted

Very nice max

 

The personal connection is always a good one....you have now given me an idea to do the same of a Harvard in RNZAF colours which my dad did two tours in Wigram.......one on basic training n later as qfi

 

I track your project with great interest and.....if start searching for deals.....the pilot figure used really looks well detailed as well as the belts.....

 

Rgds n have fun

 

Brian

Posted

Cheers Brian.  All my modelling is driven by a personal connection to one degree or another either directly through my father or through his best friend and my namesake Max Venton who was shot down and killed in a Lancaster in March 45.  I find it difficult to build "random" models, there has to be a reason! :)  Sadly there's a lack of training aircraft in our scale, they're not "sexy" enough. :(

Max

Posted (edited)

And considering that without trainers there would be no aircrew to fly anything else ...

Edited by MikeC

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