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hsr

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Everything posted by hsr

  1. If you look closely you can see that decal is also a little misaligned. That is much to fine a detail for me to fix so I am going to have to live with it Thanks
  2. That's because the model companies try to ignore them Thanks
  3. Finished! More pictures in the RFI Thanks all for watching
  4. There is a WIP for this build at As you might be aware there is no kit in 1/72 scale of the Cessna T-37 Tweet trainer. There is a Hasegawa kit that calls itself a T-37B but, in reality it is just a rebox of their A-37A with a set of T-37 decals and a bunch of suggestions of things to cut off or fill in, none of which will give you an accurate T-37. There was also a T-37 kit/conversion from the now defunct Kiwi Models but I could not find any pictures, reviews or builds of it. So in order to build a T-37 you must start with an A-37 kit. When Cessna upgraded their docile jet primary jet trainer into a potent light attack aircraft they made many modifications: They replaced the 1025 lbf thrust J69 engines with the larger 2850 lbf thrust J85 ones. This required them to enlarge the wing root engine nacelles, giving them a much squarer appearance with larger intakes and exhausts. They removed the intake splitters Added wing tip tanks Added wing hard points. Added a bunch of antennas and other bumps to the fuselage. There were other internal changes but these don't impact the appearance, or are easily fixed. One way to fix the wing root is to remove the lower wing root and to build up the correct profile with putty or epoxy. I decided to take the opposite approach. I first removed the part of the upper wings where the exhaust of the J85's are exposed and cut 2 pieces of pieced of .062 styrene tube to represent the smaller J69 exhausts. I then filled the lower wing root with epoxy putty and embedded the tube into that I then assembled the wing to the fuselage and started to sand away until I got an approximation of the T-37 wing root. removing most of the plastic and sanding into the putty Giving me the profile I wanted Next I worked on adding the intake splitters. I have .015 x .250 styrene strips that I doubled up to .-30 and also added to their width (I didn't have wider .015 strips). I then sanded them into an approximation of the correct shape using a razer saw I cut slots into the front of the intakes and inserted my splitters The next major issue was the wing tips. The wingspan of the T-37 is 33' 9" (I calculate this to be 10.28 meters but Wikipedia says 12.58). I used my 1/72 ruler to measure the wingspan of the Academy kit without the tip tanks to be 32'7". So I made some .08x.08 strips and added them to the wing tips. After all that here is my build compared to the Hasegawa "T-37" kits Front view with the Hasegawa kit on the right. One last touch was to add the engine front hub cap (there is probably a technical term for this but it eludes me) by using the similar part of a propeller (another technical term) Once that was all done it was just a typical build. I also used Pavla T-37 ejection seats and the Print Scale Cessna A/T-37 Dragonfly 72-111 decal sheet. One of the decal options is serial number 58-7982 that it shows in an all gray (FS36622) finish with black intakes. This same aircraft is shown in the centerfold of the Squadron "A-37/T-37 Dragonfly In Action" book in all white with black intakes and wing tips. The same aircraft also shown in the Schiffer "Training the Right Stuff" book with white intakes and black wing and stabilizer tips. In none of these publications is a picture of the actual aircraft shown, nor can I find one anywhere on the internet (I did find some pictures of 68-7982 in the white and blue colors). Since there was no consensus I decided to go with all white without the black trim. The Pavla seats were very nice and fit well. For once the Print Scale decals were a pleasure to use; they did not try to roll up into a ball and where movable once applied. The only exception was the black tail flash that didn't come anywhere near fitting and need to be touched up. So if I haven't lost you here is the final results Next up is the KP Piper Super Cub. Enjoy
  5. In the '50s the U.S. Air Force purchased 242 Piper PA-18 Super Cubs as primary (screening) trainers. They were painted yellow with minimal markings. Their civilian registration numbers all ended in "T" so they were referred to as Tango Cubs. Does anyone know what the interior colors were? I have the KP L-21 kit that I would like to build and the instruction call out interior green for the floors but are silent on the rest of the interior. Also the size of the tail surfaces were increased. Anyone know by how much? Thanks Howard
  6. Decals applied: The decals were mostly from the Print Scale Cessna A/T-37 Dragonfly 72-111 decal sheet, with the exception of the yellow strips at the filler caps and the ejection seat triangles. For once the Print Scale decals were a pleasure to use; they did not try to roll up into a ball and where movable once applied. The only exception was the black tail flash that didn't come anywhere near fitting. That will need to be touched up before the final finish coat goes on tomorrow.
  7. It is pretty dirty. Maybe it is the end of the day after heavy use.
  8. Just when I was beginning to think this would never get done, all painting and construction, (except for the wheels and a couple of antennas that will go on last), is done. Tomorrow it will get a coat of gloss, Tuesday will be decals and Wednesday a coat of semi-gloss and done.
  9. I have done some preliminary painting. I decided to wimp out and not do the natural aluminum finish and instead go with the all white scheme; I have the Print Scale Cessnae A/T-37 Dragonfly 72-111 decal sheet. One of the options is serial number 58-7982 that it shows in an all gray (FS36622) finish with black intakes. This same aircraft is shown in the centerfold of the Squadron "A-37/T-37 Dragonfly In Action" book in all white with black intakes and wing tips. Finally it is also shown in the Schiffer "Training the Right Stuff" book with white intakes and black wing and stabilizer tips. In none of these publications is a picture of the actual aircraft nor can I find one anywhere on the internet (I did find some pictures of 68-7982 in the white and blue colors). I did find this photo albeit of a different aircraft that has white intakes and wing tips. Also note the natural metal gear and gear door insides. So unless I can find a picture of the actual aircraft I am going to go with that.
  10. For the white paint scheme, according to this picture It looks like the landing gear and the inside of the gear doors are bare aluminum, Are the inside of the wheel wells also bare or are they white? Also it looks like the inside of the intakes are black(?).
  11. So I was ready to start finish painting today but then I realized that this antenna mount Is an A-37 feature, not a T-37 one. I looked through a bunch of pictures and could not find a single T-37 that had it. Strangely the Hasegawa instructions do not say to remove it. I could of just chosen to ignore it but I have come this far I decided to remove it and that set me back a day. Tomorrow I will spray the exhausts and then Saturday the main exterior color. I am still leaning towards a natural metal finish but, the all white scheme is also a strong contender.
  12. Sort of like Unicraft That would have been my plan too. Thanks
  13. Just a quick update. I am leaning towards a natural metal finish so, I am just doing cycles of; priming, fixing any issues, repeat. I won't bore you with pictures that all look the same.
  14. @Tailspin Turtle I have your Training the Right Stuff book and it looks to me like I have 4 main choices for finish; all natural metak, natural metal with orange highlights, all white or white and blue. If you were just going to do one of those which would be the most representative of the T-37 service life? If that makes sense.
  15. FYI I have started my attempt at a build and am doing a WIP at
  16. I was also just inspired to add the engine front hub cap (there is probably a technical term for this but it eludes me) by using the similar part of a propeller (another technical term)
  17. So I spent the last couple of days getting it to the point that where I figured it was time to do the cockpit and get that buttoned up. I made 2 upgrades to the Academy kit. First I got some Pavla ejection seats to improve on the kit ones Second was using the instrument panel decal from the Hasegawa kit. A little hard to see here So I painted up the seats and the kit sticks and installed them Then I masked the canopy and glued those 2 pieces on The fit of the canopy parts was pretty good and will only need a little blending in. I got the intakes and exhausts as good as I think I can so I am going to declare victory on them. Tomorrow will just be blending in the canopy, some finish sanding and polishing, I hope.
  18. As my last step yesterday I slathered all the seams with Mr. Surfacer 500 and left it to dry overnight. Then today I spent the afternoon sanding and filling and sanding some more. Then I gave it a coat of primer to see how I was doing The right side of the bottom doesn't look too bad The left side, not so much The intakes are better, but still need some more work The same with the exhausts Overall I am happy with the progress. Tomorrow more filling and sanding
  19. They are pretty primitive with no turbine face of exhaust. Just open holes. The landing gear it pretty primitive too.
  20. That is helpful, especially for figuring out what to remove. Good luck with yours
  21. BTW I found this film on YouTube It has footage of the T-37 in natural metal finish which is how I hope to finish mine. It refers to the T-37 as "a machine designed to turn fuel into noise"
  22. Just as a warning in advance this thread could crash and burn at any moment when I screw something up beyond repair but, for now here goes. As many of you might be aware there are no kits in 1/72 scale of the Cessna T-37 Tweet trainer. There is a Hasegawa kit that calls itself a T-37B but, in reality it is just a rebox of their A-37A with a set of T-37 decals and a bunch of suggestions of things to cut off or fill in, none of which will give you an accurate T-37. There was also a T-37 kit/conversion from the now defunct Kiwi Models but I could not find any pictures, reviews or builds of it. When Cessna upgraded their docile jet primary jet trainer into a potent light attack aircraft they made many modifications. The most important, visually, of these is; they replaced the 1025 lbf thrust J69 engine with the larger 2850 lbf thrust J85 ones. This required them to enlarge the wing root engine nacelles, mostly on the underside, and give them a much squarer appearance. They also; removed the intake splitters enlarging the intakes, added wing tip tanks and wing hard points. There were other changes but these don't impact the appearance, or are easily fixed. These 2 pictures, curtesy of @CarLos show the wing roots of the T-37 While these show the A-37 At the suggestion of @Trenton guy I am starting with the Academy A-37B kit. One way to fix the wing root is to remove the lower wing root and to build up the correct profile with putty or epoxy. I decided to take the opposite approach. I first removed the part of the upper wings where the exhaust of the J85's are exposed and cut 2 pieces of pieced of .062 styrene tube. I then filled the lower wing root with epoxy putty and embedded the tube into that I next assembled the wing to the fuselage and started to sand away until I got an approximation of the T-37 wing root. removing most of the plastic and sanding into the putty Next I worked on adding the intake splitters. I have .015 x .250 styrene strips that I doubled up to .030 and also added to their width. I then sanded them into an approximation of the correct shape next with a razer saw I cut slots into the front of the intakes and inserted my splitters The last major issue was the wing tips. The wingspan of the T-37 is 33' 9" (I calculate this to be 10.28 meters but Wikipedia says 12.58). I measured the wingspan of the Academy kit without the tip tanks to be 32'7" with my 1/72 ruler so I made some .08x.08 strips and added them to the wing tips. Clearly all of this is going to require a lot of filling and sanding, but that is for tomorrow. In the mean time here is my build so far in comparison to the Hasegawa kits: Front view with the Hasegawa kit on the right. That left intake is going to need some work. Until tomorrow.
  23. There is a bow in the door so the door can close the door and it goes over the collective. It seemed a little odd to me. I was going to use the doors but they were a bit too small for the opening so I left them off. This is the last helicopter in my pile for now. But who knows what will strike my interest. Thanks
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