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TheRealMrEd

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  1. For my first completion of the New Year, may I present my rendition of the Anigrand 1/72 scale resin XP-60. While Anigrand provides the simple necessities for the XP-60C and E variants, sadly, they did not offer items to build the XP-60A, B, or D versions, all of which I think are more unusual. Due to the simplicity of the various parts, sparse cockpit, etc., I elected to sort of "take a break" and build it as the XP-60C, which at least adds to my collection of "Double Twister" propeller-driven models! The XP-60 series derived from the proposed Curtis XP-53, all of which is explained quite well elsewhere on-line, so I will just say that it is simply another example of Curtis aircraft trying to extend the P-40 series into infinity, mostly efforts that failed due to poor or late engines, war-time production needs of P-47's (sub-contracted), or just design passing them by. In this case, their under-belly scoop and laminar wings had more drag than did the P-51's, and so forth. Here is the box: and without fanfare, a few pictures: I was originally going to do a build thread, but a resin fighter is a resin fighter, more or less, the world 'round, so I didn't. Didn't seem to be much to show to add to the modeling world's collective knowledge. I'm just posting these for the historical value, and because it's sort of an odd critter. Thanks for looking, Ed
  2. Thanks folks, I do like unusual subjects as well as the NMF planes as well. I'm running out conversion subject matter, so the near future will probably be mostly resin or vacuform stuff, with some "collection fillers" thrown in. Ed
  3. Hi George!

     

    I'm glad the dogs won, and that our less-than-first-string players got in some early work for next year!😉

     

    That being said, the real thing that most people who don't follow the SEC don't understand is that every SEC vs SEC game is a "bowl" game in the competition sense.  Despite their records, no SEC team can be counted out.  Therefore, those games are great practice for playing other conferences, not to mention the fact that SEC recruiting is top notch, often resulting in 5-star recruits entering the transfer portal, because they can't get close to making the first string in the SEC. such as Justin Fields leaving Georgia for Ohio, where he started immediately.

     

    I am 78 years old, and over my life, I have seen various conferences rule for a while.  Born an Iowa fan (I was born in the University hospital on campus), I was happy to watch the Big 10 rule.  Other years, I watched as the Pacific teams ran things, then the Big 12, and even the ACC got in with Clemson there for a minute.  Cheer up!  After Texas and Oklahoma leave for the SEC, TCU may very well become the top Frog in Texas, although I would still be rooting for Texas Tech, as it was my step-father's hometown, and I spent many of my formative years there.

     

    I wish you and the Frogs well, just not any time soon!

     

    Your friendly rival,

     

    Ed

  4. Great work on all, Steve. Sorry I wasn't up to following along as much last year! Maybe I'll do better this year... Ed
  5. Not so many this year as last, but some that I really wanted in the collection, For those interested, the build threads offer detailed instruction about how the models were built, so that others could, if desired, build these often rare models themselves. When needed, artwork is provided for your use. The artwork part also applies to some RFI's, which are only photos of the completed model, due to reasons of simplicity, sameness, or just that documenting their build would probably not add to the general pool of knowledge. First up, the YP-80A, one of those that flew in Italy in 1945, , a modification of the 1/72 Sword P-80 A/B kit, which is only really accurate out of the box for the "B" version: Build Thread Here Next an F-8E Crusader build of the 1/72 Academy kit: Build Thread Here Next up, a modification of the 1/72 Scale Trumpeter F-100C kit into an North American F-100A Short-Tail, built for the Century Series Group Build here on Britmodeler: Build Thread Here Followed by my personal favorite, The XP-38 kitbash, using the RS Models P 322 1 Lightning and an old MPC P-38F kit, both, of course, in God's Own Scale -- 1/72: Build Thread Here Next, Anigrand's 1/72 resin model of the XP-49, a larger cousin of the P-38: RFI Here And then, RS Models plastic 1/72 XP-79B model. They also made a resin version earlier, which may be a little more detailed and I also have in the stash, but I was feeling lazy!: However, the plastic did require some modification and tricky building, as referenced in the build thread: Build Thread Here After which the Italeri/Hi-Tech models F4U-7 offerings, built as the prototype XFU-6/XAU-1 Corsair, all of which is explained in the RFI, along with needed art work: RFI Here And last, the 1/72 Revell F4U-4 Corsair, using the Hobby Boss kit decals of the same variant: RFI Here As I've said above, not as many, but some I've been wanting to add to the collection. Thanks for looking. Ed
  6. Especially liked the China Lake F-18 -- very colorful! Ed
  7. Well done. I think that the Hobby Boss kits are, for the most part, well designed and pretty accurate (P-38L being a slight exception!). You have done a fine job with great painting skill! Ed
  8. I spent my formative years in Lubbock, hence the Red Raiders reference. It will be good to hear the lamentations of the HornedFrog women and children! Best of luck, NEXT YEAR!😉 Thanks for the kind comments about the model, however... Ed, former Texican
  9. Thanks everyone, for the kind comments! Wishing you all..... Happy New Year! Ed
  10. I could possibly see it, if you were referring to the Red Raiders!😁 Remember, the eyes of Texas are upon you, but here, we just sic the dawgs... Ed
  11. Wanted to sneak this one in before the end of the year, but watching the US College Football Playoffs won out instead. --GO DAWGS-- So, here is my last build of 2022, just designed to be an easy-to-do low stress build, and probably the last F4U variant I'll ever build. I started off with the Hobby Boss 1/72 F4U-4 offering, which is an extremely good-looking kit, and it had the markings I wanted the VMF-323 "Death Rattlers" who fought in both WW II and Korea. Then I remembered that I had the Revell F4U-4 kit in the stash, so I decided to check it out. Better cockpit detail and the choice of open or closed cowl flaps made the choice for me, and I decided to build the Revell kit, using the Hobby Boss kit decals. Nothing special here, except the use of tiny silver decal strips to mimic the duct tape gun hole coverings, which were little "X's", rather than the more usual horizontal tape strips. The other interesting thing was replicating the rather unusual red on the cowl. I was initially considering Testor's Mandarin Red, but then it dawned on me, why not do it the way they originally did it, a coat of thinned Insignia Red atop the already Deep Sea Blue painted cowl, and it hit the nail on the head, according to a few color photos I've found. Alclad II grey primer worked out perfectly for the cowl flaps. Salt technique was used on the wing walkway area, over bare metal and then also over primer color. The pics don't show these birds as badly weathered, so I didn't bother. Without further ado, the pics: This was my final build for 2022. Thanks for looking. See you next year... oh wait!, it IS Next year, so I'll see you later... Ed
  12. With reference to my F4H-1 Phantom Kit-bash linked above, I should point out that the DB conversion set was never used. It was only used to see how they did it, and to reference the needed markings. All of the F4H-1 model as built used only modified parts of the Hasegawa F-4B kit, and custom decals. I used the Hasegawa kit as it included all the various vertical stab ends, fuselage rear end, short burner cans, blanked out catapult launch hooks, etc. needed for the earliest versions. I repeat, this conversion was entirely built from parts in the Hasegawa kit -- no resin, PE or other aftermarket parts. All I have to say that if I could build it, then any reasonably experienced modeler could build it the same way, and save a small fortune. I do not know if any of the 1/48 scale kits contain all the needed detail parts, but they could be modified/scratched as needed. All you gotta do is want one bad enough... Ed
  13. Sorry guys, all the detail stuff was already shown, over on the F4U-5N build. For this XAU-1, this is all you're gonna get! However, I hope you can add yur own to the collection. All of the mods needed can be done by any fairly skilled modeler, starting with the Italeri kit, or possibly the Revell F4U-4 kit. Fill the chin intake, lower the side outlets a bit if using the Revell kit.. etc. However, and detail questions gladly answered. Ed
  14. Hello again. Lately, I've working on some bucket list type projects, some perhaps more interesting than others. This time, I was looking to build a Vought AU-1 Corsair, as it is one of the last two Corsair types that I plan on building, to complete my own collection. As the actual build is mechanically almost exactly the same as my earlier F4U-5N detailed build, I will forgo repeating all the details, and give you a link to that build, instead: F4U-5N Last Propeller USN ACE? There are a few detail differences between that build and this, and I will try to provide a little information in that regard also, but because of the above-mentioned "duplication" of work, this won't really be a "build thread", but more of an "information thread". And, while there will be a few photos of the finished model, this also more than a real "RFI thread" -- maybe we need a new category...🙂 Briefly, the AU-1 was based on a desire by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marines for a better ground attack aircraft, since during the Korean War, we discovered that prop aircraft were better suited for this role than the then current crop of jets. The Navy started out by taking a Vought F4U-5N, BuNo 124665 and creating what would originally be designated as the XF4U-6, which featured among other things, a new engine, removing the high-altitude supercharger, and adding more armor and armament. At that time, the Navy became enamored with the "Attack" designation, and soon, the effort was renamed the "A" (for attack) "U" (for Vought) with "1" as the model number, and of course, since it was a prototype, we have to have an "X", hence "XAU-1". I don't know whether there were many other differences between this prototype and the later AU-1 models, but a lot more useful information can be found on the internet, if you are interested, starting HERE I started with the old tried and true Italeri F4U-7 kit, which has the parts for the AU-1 as well. Despite the fact that it's nose cowl/engine area has been criticized, it is workable: However, it was because of this criticism, that a firm called Hi-Tech made a nice conversion set, which adds a boat-load of detail: As I was not originally going to do any thread on this kit (after all, it's basically a basic AU-1), after finding photos of the XAU-1 prototype, I decided to back-track and post this. That explains why the bucket seat, cowl flaps, and trim tab actuator rods are all cut out of the PE fret shown! Anyway, more detail on the included items are shown below: Top-to-bottom, left-to-right, these items are (top row): wing flaps, underbelly weapons pylons; (second row): vac canopy, metal "paddle-style" prop blades, resin cockpit, and F4U-7 style cowl, which needs to have the lower chin inlet filled and sanded down for the AU-1 variant (basically and F4U-4 cowl without the chin scoop). Next row, the rudder, 10 new wing pylons, the tail-wheel well, and thick/thin tires -- as always, the Navy craft of the era used thin tires for carrier use, thicker tires for land use. Since the AU-1 was used on land (I think the tail hooks were also omitted), the thicker ones are needed here. Lastly, the detailed PE fret, sans the afore-mentioned items. A lot of detail is included for the landing gear, all of which is a bear to figure out (see F4U-5N build, linked above). One last thing here, these Hi-Tech kits are scarce as hen's teeth, and getting more so. If you are a 1/72 scale Corsair fan and one of these goes by, grab it! I've owned three, built two, and the last one I found on-line was a painful $42.00 US. It is worth every penny! Of course, all these problems would vanish, if anyone made a stat-of-the-art new kit, but I'm afraid they are going to F4 and F-15 us to death instead -- all of which is good, but, hey, kit makers, spread the love! Now, I guess it's time to show you what the real thing looks like: Under the horizontal stabilizer in the last pic above, it appears that they just left the original F4U-5N, and NAVY marking alone, so that's what I did, using the kit decals, and modifying them with needed tiny white numbers from a Gold Medal Models 1/350 WW2 USN Aircraft Markings Sheet (Korean War, 1947 to present) sheet. As far as I know, they still make this sheet and are available on-line or by direct mail, Gold Medal Models, PO Box 670, Lopez, WA 98261,USA. At least, I hope they still make them, as they are the perfect size, thickness and font for 1/72 USN blue aircraft. Thank you, ship modelers everywhere! Perhaps I should note that I jumped on this particular scheme, because 1) I needed an AU-1, and 2), it's a prototype -- a two-for-one opportunity! One last thing before showing the finished product. The "TEXT" and "XAU-1" were hand-painted, and vary from standard USN stencil specs, especially the "E", "S", and "U". I'll let you figure out how they vary, but they do. So, I had to load up the USN Stencil font into my ancient version of Photoshop, and make the needed modifications by hand, a pixel at a time. Then, I had to reverse the colors to end up with white letters, and massage the blue background color to match as closely as I could the True North Gloss Sea Blue that I used on the model. After a few tries, trying to compare to color on a computer screen to the painted color, I decided "close enough" and quit there. As with my XB-40 build decals a new years back, I had to slightly feather the edge of the decal after they were applied on the model, with a slight over-paint of the decal edges, which also hides the white edge of the decal paper. I only have access to an Epson Ink-Jet printer, so that's the way it goes. To rant just a bit more -- IF ANY PRINTER MANFACTURER would just give us an inexpensive modern version of the Alps printer, all would be well. In any event, for your edification, as well as possible use, here are my versions, which are free to use for anyone, for any non-commercial use. First, one you can play with, if needed, and second, the actual 1/72 scale image I used: Even though the bottom image seems large for 1/72, it is a 350 DPI, rather than the usual 72 DPI used to display on computer screens (I think). In my case, the dark blue background was still a shade lighter than the paint on the model. See if you can tell the difference, after my touch-ups, on the real models below: Because my home-made decals are painted on "thickish" white decal paper alone, they appear a little darker than the white of the star. I could have backet them up by applying white deal paper first, and then my actual decal over the top. I did not do so, because that would have made the decals even more thick, so I considered this the lesser of two evils. Or, I could just blame it on the guy who painter the real aircraft, and say he used cheap paint... Anyway, that's what the model looks like. Not perfect, but as always, much better than the "one I had before", and I'm glad to add it to the collection. Perhaps I should have titled it "And Now For Something Only Slightly Different"? Thanks for looking, Ed
  15. Hello again. I got really busy the last couple of days, and neglected to take a couple of pictures, mostly about removing the excess polishing stuff that had seeped into the minuscule cracks of the windscreen. This consisted of mainly drilling about a 2.5mm hole in the underside of the fuselage, just back of where the pilot's hip pad was located, and then using a syringe to shoot in a liquid to swish around, allowing any debris to settle further back in the cockpit, where it couldn't be seen. In this case, there was a slight conundrum, in that for these purposes, I normally use alcohol, because it evaporates faster. In this case, since I had glued the canopy/windscreen halves together and to the fuselage with G-S cement (which is soluble with alcohol), so that was a non-starter. Instead, I used water, which I was afraid of because I had not top-sealed the Mike Grant instrument dial decals, and was worried the water would wash those off. I doubt that it really mattered, because you really can't see anything behind the rather "thick-ish" clear parts anyway, despite polishing, clear coats, etc. Anyway, all that was left was adding the rest of the miscellaneous parts, which I did. I will just post of the final pics here, as I'm not sure that otherwise, this would be much of an ending to a build thread! The rest of the bottom parts: Above right, the rest of the decals and the antenna mask. And that's that. For a simple and tiny model, it had it's share of "gotchas"! See you next time, Ed
  16. Hello again. Scott Van Aken, in his build/review of this kit (linked in first post, above), made a good case for the color of the XP-79B to have been painted in a light grey, something like that of the P-80A's. I can't argue with his logic, but as other sources claim that it was painted white, like other early X-planes, I decided to go that direction, but to paint it a different shade of white, which could also account for the tonal variations in photos, between the aircraft color and the Insignia White (FS 37875 or 17875) of the US star markings. I chose Alclad II Primer White, which will be over-coated with a slight gloss when done, Anyway, after painting the aircraft, it was time to handle the landing gear, which is enigmatic. First off, the front landing gear pair. To begin, the front gear legs are not vertical, fore-and-aft, as they must align with the cutouts in the fuselage: They also splay out a bit when viewed from the front: So far, so good. But now comes the first enigma, the fact that the front landing gear doors in the kit are molded in one piece each, and if you choose not to model the aircraft in a flying position, you have to cut them into the three pieces that they need to be. Markings are indicated on the doors, but that significance is not pointed in the instruction, nor is how they mount made clear. First, a sort of scary front view of the real thing: Above left, two of the gear door pieces labeled "B" and "C" mount to the inside of the wheel leg -- and part "C" is supposed to fit into the vertical grooves in the kit fuselage sides, canted inward, while part "B" attached to the end of that door, but hinges inward to attach to the gear leg, as shown in the photo of the real thing. One thing I can't figure out is what covers the grooves in the fuselage when the gear is retracted. Maybe spring-loaded doors that pop out flush to the fuselage. I haven't been able to figure it out, so far. But, if you choose to model this kit in an in-flight configuration, you'll have to fill these yourself, as no doors for this are provided in the kit. Above right, the separation line between doors "A" and "B" are shown clearly, you have to look on the outside of the doors to find the line where "B" and "C" are separated (below): Above left, the arrow point to the line to cut, while the sort of squiggly line point to about where the "C" door needed to be shortened (it also needs to be sanded to a more slender shape to fit the fuselage grooves)> But, all these sizes you'll have to figure out by trial-and-error. Above right, the small arrow on the left shows the two doors "B" and "C" in their proper relationship, and the part "C" arrow shows where the cut-out door "C" must be installed in the lower wing. Also, the larger, squarish main gear door is also flush with the wing, when retracted. A smarter man than I would have attached all the various doors, wheels up or wheels down, before assembly and painting the wing halves. I shall try to remember to edit that part of this thread to convey that warning! Below, a picture trying to help convey all this info, but probably just over-cluttered! Above left, the "X" 's show where the large main gear outer doors must be installed, and the "X"'s on the front gear wheels show where the "C" doors must be installed. The little line shows where the "B" doors must span the gear leg and the previously-installed part "A" gear doors. One side is already installed. Above right the "C" doors are shown installed. Some more paint work will be required, which would not have been necessary, had I figured all this out, sooner! Above left, main gear outer doors installed. Above right, we're getting there. Stay tuned, Ed
  17. DC-2 would be accurate. That being said, way back in 1973, before we had the internet to find out such details, I built this kit with DC-3 wings and it came out great. Mostly depends -- do you want dead accurate or would you just like a nice B-18 model in the case? Enjoy the build in either case, as it will certainly look better than the one you had before... Ed
  18. Yup, all later models, including the YP-38's turned outward from the top. Ed
  19. In the end, I don't know that it's a very scale-like appearance, but I just wanted to give it a shot. Next up, the canopy goes on. As you can see below, not a great fit: Above right, the canopy has been glued into place with G-S cement, trying to get the best fit possible on the top side. There is a larger gap at the bottom. All the gaps were filled with additional G-S cement, and when dry, that was smoothed with 91% rubbing alcohol on a cloth, which was wrapped around a stiff round stick, to smooth it out a bit. Next the canopy was sanded smooth with 1500 - 12000 grit sanding film, and then everything was polished. Here is where I ran into trouble. Apparently there were tiny gaps in the join of the two halves of the canopy, both top and bottom, and polishing cream worked its way into the canopy. I have one trick that I will try to clear this up, but a little later on. Also the two fins on the upper body have been added. Below, the lower body fins have been added: Short lengths of split plastic straw have been temporarily stuck into the tailpipes to mask that area, held in place with tiny drops of white glue, which will be soaked off with water, when the painting is done. Below, the canopy has been masked with Parafilm "M", and trimmed to size: Above right, pieces of a sticky-backed hobby foam are cut to shape and used to mask the major wheel well openings; the smaller ones will be touched up later. And, she's ready for the paint shop. Back later. Ed
  20. Next up, the major addition to the model that I wanted to try and add, the instrument gauge backs and some wiring. I'm not going to try to replicate everything, as I'm not sure even these will be seen when done, but for me, it's one of those learning things -- can I or can't I do it -- and get them to fit? The gauges: My attempt: Above left, I re-installed the now-lengthened instrument "panel" (more like a strip, really!), which now sits a little more forward in the cockpit than originally. I added some short lengths of plastic rod (stretched sprue would also do), with holes drilled out for .010 lead wire (available from your fly-tying supplies stockist. This has the advantage of being fairly small and very flexible without breaking. These are glued onto the back side of the I.P.. Above right, the wires are gently bent back into the cockpit area -- not exactly correct, but a compromise on where anything would fit in this tiny area! They are routed, 3 to a side (trying to keep them from crossing each other), and secured in the back with a drop of CA adhesive. They will be trimmed at the "X" 's when dry. Not that they are along the cockpit sides, NOT under the edges. Next, although they can barely been seen, Mike Grant Instrument gauge decals have been added, to the I.P. and right side panel: Above right, Mike Grant switch panels have been added. Again, not as many as real life, but just to add some detail. Well, I made it this far -- more later. ***EDIT*** AT THIS TIME, I JOINED THE WING HALVES. I FOUND OUT LATER THAT I NEEDED TO ADD VARIOUS LANDING GEAR DOOR TO THE LOWER WING FIRST. THIS IS EXPLAINED LATER IN THE BUILD THREAD !!! Ed
  21. Oops -- moderator, please move this thread to WIP ... Sorry about that! Ed
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