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Neptune P2V question


TheBaron

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Hi all,

I'm currently researching details on the Netpune P2V for a future build and had a question regarding the starboard wing tank. In many variants the front of this is a glazed teardrop fairing containg a searchlight, and on recon versions, a more powerful arc-light. My question is, was it only lighting fitted into that region of the aircraft, (even on Antarctic versions that I'm interested in specifically), and was there always a light present?

Any fruits of the collective wisdom gratefully received as ever.

Kind regards,

Tony

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Hi Tony,

I built an Antarctic P2V out of Revell  box scale kit some years ago.

0000109.jpg

0000109_2.jpg

 

The search light on the right wing tank is the standard equipment of the patrol version, even on the Antarctic versions. Here's a useful link to the VX-6 P2Vs featuring a bunch of color photos.

http://www.vaq34.com/vxe6/p2v.htm

 

Cheers,

 

Jun in Tokyo

https://www.flickr.com/photos/horaburo/albums/72157634923520672

 

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2 hours ago, Junchan said:

Hi Tony,

I built an Antarctic P2V out of Revell  box scale kit some years ago.

 

The search light on the right wing tank is the standard equipment of the patrol version, even on the Antarctic versions. Here's a useful link to the VX-6 P2Vs featuring a bunch of color photos.

http://www.vaq34.com/vxe6/p2v.htm

 

Cheers,

 

Jun in Tokyo

https://www.flickr.com/photos/horaburo/albums/72157634923520672

 

Hi Jun! Nice to hear from you again! 

That's not the first time you've helped me out with info - many thanks for that link!

Nice build by the way, I love that colour scheme.

What paint did you settle on for that orange on the wings and tail, if you don't mind my asking?

1 hour ago, 71chally said:

I've got the feeling that I've seen it that the P2V-7LPs had the early style large wing tip pods fitted, but not always with the light fitted.  Unsure if it was for weight saving or location of sensors.

Thanks James. There do seem to be a few shots in which no light is visible through the fairing. I'm still trying to get a handle on all the different variations - the Warpaint volume is of variable quality with regards to information.

 

Tony

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Tony,

 

From the quick research I did, I found written reference that P2V-4's had the small tip tanks with a searchlight in the RH one; P2V-5's had the larger bulbous tip tanks and searchlight, and that P2V-7's and P2H's (which were dash 7's renamed) had smaller, more streamlined tanks and searchlight. I have also attached a link to the P2V website that might help you in your modeling project. I also  built the old Revell boxscale ski-equipped P2V when I was a lad, and it was a very nice kit for its time. I vaguely remember mixing the international orange from Testors red and yellow enamels in the little flat sided bottles. Early Revell at its finest, and the box art alone was worth the price- 60 cents at the Dyess AFB exchange...ah, those were the days!

 

Mike

 

http://p2vneptune.com/index.shtml

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Wow Mike - thanks for all that info! 

 

The Hasegawa kit turned up this morning by chance and the instructions handily have some shots of the actual aircraft interspersed - a really nice way of helping you understand the structure in the instruction drawings - one of which is a decent shot looking in at the searchlight from an angle I haven't seen on the web. 

 

Those were indeed the days! :lol:

Tony

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It's a great kit isn't it, even more remarkable when you consider that it's 45 years old, and issued by Frog.

The instructions sheets are really informative about the type in general, a feature that seems to have gone by the by.

 

Another useful article is the one that appeared in SAM late 1983.  They also did another article on scratch converting the P2V-7 to a P2V-5 which showed detail of the large pod searchlight, looks like you could be going for a combination of the two!

 

I've built two in the past, my interest fired up by just catching the very last visiting Aeronavale Neptunes at St Mawgan.

I have two in the loft and the Falcon conversion to an RAF P2V-5...one day!

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On 2016/11/16 at 2:45 AM, TheBaron said:

Hi Jun! Nice to hear from you again! 

That's not the first time you've helped me out with info - many thanks for that link!

Nice build by the way, I love that colour scheme.

What paint did you settle on for that orange on the wings and tail, if you don't mind my asking?

Thanks James. There do seem to be a few shots in which no light is visible through the fairing. I'm still trying to get a handle on all the different variations - the Warpaint volume is of variable quality with regards to information.

 

Tony

Hi Tony,

Glad to know that my post might be some help. Orange was mixture of Mr. Color 4, yellow and 79, shine red to match FS595 International Orange 12917, but sorry I don't remember the recipe.

Jun in Tokyo

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A great-looking kit (I didn't realize with such an old pedigree) and also in original Japanese boxing with splendid caliigraphy. So even after the kit is built I'll be keeping the box as well then...:D

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Did P2V-7s carry the larger drop tanks?

I took these pics of aircraft of the Reserve Squadron (VP-67?)stationed at NAS Memphis in the winter of 1975:

 

22.jpg

 

21.jpg

Both have the small tanks with the spotlight in the starboard tank.

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1 hour ago, Don McIntyre said:

Did P2V-7s carry the larger drop tanks?

As standard they didn't no.

 

However a specific question asked is about the Neptunes converted for Antarctic work and many of those were P2V-7s (P2V-7LP, LP-2J after designation unification) fitted with the P2V-5 larger wing tip tanks, these can be seen in Juns' link in post 2, and on his lovely model.

 

The basics with the tanks were

P2V-3 none

P2V-4 slim small capacity tanks hung under the wing tip

P2V-5 / P-2E large 350 gal capacity tanks on wing tip centreline

P2V-6 / P-2F large 350 gal capacity tanks on wing tip centreline

P2V-7 / P-2H slim line tanks, similar in size to -4 on wing tip centreline

 

All had searchlights fitted as standard in the stb'd tank, but some sub variants had them removed

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2 hours ago, Junchan said:

Hi Tony,

Glad to know that my post might be some help. Orange was mixture of Mr. Color 4, yellow and 79, shine red to match FS595 International Orange 12917, but sorry I don't remember the recipe.

Jun in Tokyo

Thanks for your recipe Jun! :thumbsup2: I'm sure I can knock up some homebrew when the time comes!

2 hours ago, TonyTiger66 said:

Any chance of a pic of the box art Tony :photo:?

No messing about with this one - an atmospheric picture on the front to show you what it looks like:

31025719286_66c399d3a1_c.jpg

...and some elegant script on the side to tell you the name:

30919164302_4540d18dd4_c.jpg

Nuff said.

2 hours ago, Don McIntyre said:

Did P2V-7s carry the larger drop tanks?

Both Jun and James' posts beat me to answering that Don:D Those are splendid photos by the way sir - were you flying in the Neptune pictured?

1 hour ago, 71chally said:

As standard they didn't no.

 

However a specific question asked is about the Neptunes converted for Antarctic work and many of those were P2V-7s (P2V-7LP, LP-2J after designation unification) fitted with the P2V-5 larger wing tip tanks, these can be seen in Juns' link in post 2, and on his lovely model.

There's also some brief sequences of an Antarctic P2V-7 midway through this, that seems to show the larger tanks were a feature on at least some:

Smashing bit of film BTW for looking after your aircraft in cold weather. Now I just need to find a manufacturer who did that Sno-Cat: is my memory faulty or did Airfix do one BITD?

 

Tony

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lovely bit of film, brave aircrew and hardy engineers!

I think that probably all four -7LPs had the larger tanks as it was a requirement to have the higher fuel capacity.

Those snowcats are Tucker 743 Sno-Cats, beautiful things and believe that examples are either still in use or only recently retired.

 

For a moment I thought you might be maintaining your carrier based aircraft theme

6b386b1efce1589a199dea87d7885476.jpg

 

Actually your boxing is a relatively recent one, so forget my rose tinted twaddle earlier!

Edited by 71chally
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Thanks for the box art Tony :) 

Thats worthy of keeping after you've built it.

 

I cut nice ones like that out, wallop them in charity shop frames, and upset everyone in the home by hanging them up on my modelling area (front veranda) :D .

 

Can't wait to see a WIP on this one :whistle: .

 

Those Sno-cats really are awesome. I know when I was a wee lad Matchbox toys did a little red, tracked snow cat type thing, that probably would scale out close to 1/72.

 

One of the real things looks to have sold recently in the U.K.:

 

http://car-from-uk.com/sale.php?id=46459

 

Im not sure if these ever made it to the Antarctic?

 

The Matchbox one could form the basis of a model; get the brass pipe, plastic card and yoghurt pots out:

 

http://m.ebay.com.au/itm?itemId=272447647190

 

Must research if anyone did kits of those bigger ones...

 

ATB

TonyT

 

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11 minutes ago, TonyTiger66 said:

One of the real things looks to have sold recently in the U.K.:

 

http://car-from-uk.com/sale.php?id=46459

 

That's a Snow-Trac, immortalized in one of my favourite films, The Shining!

 

There is a resin kit of the Tucker, but haven't encountered a mainstream injection kit of it - sadly.

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2 hours ago, 71chally said:

Those snowcats are Tucker 743 Sno-Cats, beautiful things and believe that examples are either still in use or only recently retired.

Knew it seemed familiar :D

http://www.imcdb.org/vehicle_575504-Tucker-Sno-Cat.html

2 hours ago, 71chally said:

For a moment I thought you might be maintaining your carrier based aircraft theme

I love the propellor-tip vortices in that photo!

1 hour ago, TonyTiger66 said:

cut nice ones like that out, wallop them in charity shop frames, and upset everyone in the home by hanging them up on my modelling area (front veranda)

The Tiger collection. As featured in the famous Lovejoy episode 'Boxing Day Down Under'...

1 hour ago, TonyTiger66 said:

 

The Matchbox one could form the basis of a model; get the brass pipe, plastic card and yoghurt pots out:

Classic Blue Peter territory :D

 

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Well Tony, a little 'sno-drift':

 

Its currently 'Scorchio' here in S.E. Queensland (by way of a change) and the local Pom would sell a kidney to be somewhere like Northern Norway or Nova Scotia for a week or ten.

 

Bearing that in mind, and that I may be losing (yet more!) of my mind;

 

This clip is, to me, quite surreal. It made me think; "Opening credits to Postman Pat In Colorado".

 

 

I want one. I'll drive across the Western Desert in it :) .

 

In present company, I'm sure I'm not alone in adoring this picture. 

 

Snow tracks

 

Diorama....:Tasty:

 

The Shining is one of the best films in the omniverse. :) . Now I'm going to have to buy one of those little Matchbox Snow Cats for another diorama idea!

 

Snow tracks

 

I couldn't help thinking Dick's tracked vehicle in The Shining was different. It is. Googling led me to the 'Thiokoll Spryte".

 

Sounds like a bladder infection, but it's actually one of these:

 

Snow tracks

 

 

I can see I may have wandered off topic, into the tundra. Tundra rocks. :) .

 

I'll try quietly to steer us back OT:

 

http://p2vneptune.com/v07d.shtml

 

All best regards

TonyT :cold: 

 

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Don:D Those are splendid photos by the way sir - were you flying in the Neptune pictured?

 

No, unfortunately I couldn't get a flight while I was there. I was there for a USN school and even though we trained on older equipment (as in the P-2 and S-2), by then the Active Duty VP Fleet was all P-3s. Regretfully, I never got the opportunity to fly in a P-2.

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20 hours ago, TonyTiger66 said:

In present company, I'm sure I'm not alone in adoring this picture. 

Is that for real Tony?!!!!! Oh wait. It is a diorama. ...I remember having an encyclopaedia for Christmas in the early 70s with a painting of one of those in and staring at it for hours.

 

Thiokol? Thought the name was familiar - I believe they also built the SRBs for the Space Shuttle and were partly culpable for the Challenger disaster, due (ironically) to the effects of cold weather...

 

 

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Even more incredibly that diorama Sno-Cat is a paper model!  It's a free download here, http://www.forumsforums.com/3_9/showthread.php?t=2679

Just as incredible the real subject Sno-Cat was recovered by the team back filling with snow and using planking, had it gone on under its own power it could have dropped into the crevasse.

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