Revell early Mustang CHECK MATE!

[Guest]

Gizmo :  

[quang 1,319]

Nice info, Mike.

 

But I think what Chris had in mind is this:

 

There's a location hole on the kit but no part to fill it.

[Guest]

Ah, arrows always help

[Juggernut 1,675]

That's a vent.  The piping is indicative of a later block P-51D.

[quang 1,319]

That's a vent.  The piping is indicative of a later block P-51D.

 

 

Thank you for the clarification. Does that mean that earlier block P-51D didn't have the piping?

[alaninaustria 5,178]

Gizmo :  

Mike, did the pilots time the use of their drop tanks when selected, or did the drop tanks feed fuel into the main tanks? Am unfamiliar with the P-51 system... or, were the drop tanks a direct feed system?

Cheers

Alan

[Juggernut 1,675]

Thank you for the clarification. Does that mean that earlier block P-51D didn't have the piping?

No, it means that the piping went only aft.  The forward portion (small diameter tubing) wasn't there in earlier aircraft.  Below is a snip from the P-51D/K IPC. You see the vent pipe (item 33) and the two tubing connections.  The forward tube was added on later block P-51D's (I didn't read far enough to determine the serial number break for early vs. late) but the P-51D-5 would definitely have the early version of the vent.

 

Edited May 2, 2018 by Juggernut

[quang 1,319]

Thank you for the info.

 

It's much easier to reproduce something when you understand what it's for.

This is my take. Too late to go back 

 

[Guest]

Mike, did the pilots time the use of their drop tanks when selected, or did the drop tanks feed fuel into the main tanks? Am unfamiliar with the P-51 system... or, were the drop tanks a direct feed system?

Cheers

Alan

 

Yep, all 5 tanks were independent feed. Earlier a/c (again, no specific

cutoff date) had a fuel vapor return that lead to the left wing tank. Later,

they moved it to the fuselage tank (probably that pipe Juggernaut was

pointing out.) The pilot would find out which by asking his crew chief.

The tank that received the vapor would need to be used first so there

was room in the tank for the vapor overflow.

 

 

hth

[alaninaustria 5,178]

Thanks for info Mike!

Cheers

Alan

[Guest]

I'm guessing the vapor overflow vent was moved to the

fuselage tank because pilots liked to use the fuselage tank

first as it affected the balance of the a/c.

 

?

[Juggernut 1,675]

Taken from the P-51D/K, Mustang IV Erection & Maintenance Manual: P-51D fuel system in case anyone's interested.

 

Edited May 4, 2018 by Juggernut

[quang 1,319]

A single drawing is worth a thousand words. Thanks Juggy!

[Trak-Tor 783]

Great lesson!

Thanks.

 

Juraj

[quang 1,319]

DEALING WITH THE CLEAR PARTS

 

We all agree that the main issue of the Revell Mustang is in the clear parts, notably the canopy and the windshield which present some awful distorsion in their transparency.

 

While the Revell canopy can be replaced by one of the three optional canopies included in the Tamiya 1/32 P-51D kit, the main problem resides in the windshield, particularly the central panel which has to be optically flat, i.e. without distorsion, There is no other solution than to replace it.

This is how I did it.

 

Original kit windshield

 

A piece of Scotch Magic Tape is stuck over the windshield and the central panel contour traced over it

 

The Magic Tape is removed and stuck on a suitable piece of clear polystyrene, in this case a CD case.

It's our template for the new central panel

 

 

Now, the nerve-wrecking part: holes are drilled around the contour of the central panel. Masking tape is used to protect the remaining part of the windshield from scratches.

 

Center part is removed and ready to be cleaned-up and adjusted.

 

Windshield ready for new central panel

 

New central panel is cut using the Magic Tape template.

 

After numerous adjustments, the new panel and the receiving windshield are joined and secured with UV-curing glue.

 

The modified windshield in-situ

 

 

That's it for now, folks. Hope you like it.

 

Hasta la vista,

 

Quang