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1/32 Tamiya F4U-1a Corsair - Boyington's 17740


Thunnus

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41 minutes ago, LSP_Kevin said:

Superb stuff, John! Your work is fast becoming some of my favourite on here.

 

Kev

Thanks Kev!  I appreciate that!  Just learning and sharing!

 

Some more thinning of trailing edges...
IMG-5212.jpg

 

The horizontal stabilizers have been assembled.  The tab actuators are separate parts so need to scratchbuild.  The stabs are not mirror imgs of each other but are actually identical to each other.
IMG-5213.jpg

 

The main gear struts have been painted.  Still figuring out how to weather these white legs.  The tail leg was kind of test of different things to see how they would look and I've started to consolidate some ideas on the main legs.  Primarily, after painting and a dark wash, I've added some grey chipping using a sponge.  Some areas were then dabbed with AK Fresh Engine Oil, which is a new one for me.  It is a translucent enamel wash, I believe.
IMG-5217.jpg

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Previously, I had shown the wheel hubs painted white.  I just did this automatically, without really thinking or looking at any references.

IMG-5168.jpg

 

But looking at some photos, I started to form a different opinion. 

 

Below are some photos of the aircraft that I am modeling, Bu No 17740.   The outside hubs appear dark in color with the center cap in a lighter in color.  Are these silver or white hubs that got dirty?  Perhaps.  But interestingly the inner hubs appear to be a lighter color corresponding to the landing gear legs.  If the outer hubs were dirty, it would stand to reason that the inner hubs would be similarly affected, if not more so.
F4-U-Inst-48-72-copy-4.jpg
F4U-1Corsair_White_740_VMF214_Bougainvil
VMF-214_CO_Boyington_s_F4U-1A_Torokina_S

 

Here are some other photos of VMF-214 Corsairs from the book Swashbucklers and Black Sheep .  These are not of 17740 but since they are serving in the same unit at the same time as the subject aircraft, I consider these photos to be a relevant reference.  These photos tell me that the coloration of the hubs could have varied from aircraft to aircraft.  One has obviously light-colored hubs, either silver or white. The other two show a darker hub.  Again, there is a possibility that these were lighter hubs that had gotten dirty but my eyes tell me otherwise.  They are too uniform to be stains.  They look to be painted in a darker color.
VMF-214-03.jpg
VMF-2144-02.jpg
VMF214-01.jpg

 

What that darker color could be, I do not know.  It could possibly be one of the two blues for the upper camo since those colors would've been available.  Here is a photo of another F4U-1a that served with VMF-214, #883.
Vought-F4U-1A-Corsair-VMF-214-Gregory-Bo

 

Not to be considered a reference, I found this profile of 883 that showed blue-colored hubs, which is an interpretation that I am leaning towards based on my thoughts above.
Vought-F4U-1A-Corsair-VMF-214-Gregory-Bo

 

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Nothing interesting to comment on?:shrug:

 

I've attached the inner wheel hubs to the main landing gear legs.
IMG-5219.jpg

 

The legs are far from being done though.  The parts in grey need to be painted.  It's a testament to Tamiya that the bits and pieces, which include the hydraulic brake lines, can hold together like this without glue.
IMG-5220.jpg

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Guest Vincent

I have a similar issue with the Fargo Express hubs. On color pictures, the US spitfires seems to have dark hubs. My theory is that they were red and got extremly dirty but it seems that painting hubs was more widespread than we think (?)

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I can't help you with the real colors of the wheelhubs. According the pictures you are showing I think the dark blue of the camo looks close. 

 

As D.B.Andrus mentioned the oleos are at maximum compression. This can not be possible (even under full load) because the suspension will buttom out at the start wich is not a good thing because the plane can become uncontroleble. Just a minor thing.

 

I think your paintwork looks real great, especially the tires. 

 

 

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Thanks guys!  That IS interesting about the oleo compression.  Unfortunately, I'm too far into the build to do anything about it.  The way the legs are engineered, I guess there is an opportunity to strengthen the legs and extend the legs by plastic surgery and the use of a longer metal insert?

IMG-5175.jpg

 

The oleos themselves are molded as two pieces but are split vertically (right and left) so opening them up would be difficult.

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After looking at many Corsair photos, I'm not sure Tamiya was completely mistaken after all. About 50% of the shots with visible landing gear showing the pertinent area had almost fully compressed oleos and the other half didn't. Maybe it has to do with how smooth the runway surface is. Maybe Dana Bell could answer this.

 

D.B.

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