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L-4 Cub – European Cubs in Post-War Service (SH48222) 1:48 Special Hobby The Piper Cub was a light aircraft developed before WWII with production continuing throughout WWII and into the late 40s. In military service as a communications, reconnaissance, or spotter aircraft, it was known as the L-4 Grasshopper, and 20,000 plus were built due to its success in various roles, including trainer and glider tug. It was powered by a flat-4 engine, and despite the limited power it was agile in the air, with docile handling characteristics and a very low stall speed, which made take-off and landing a simple process, and let the aircraft use strips that were far too short for other types. After the war, many of the former military aircraft were re-purposed for civilian use, or sold to other nations in similar roles. Due to the simple nature of the type, maintenance was straight-forward and cost-effective, leading to many airframes surviving to the present day in private hands. The Kit This is a reboxing of Special Hobby’s 2022 new tool that we somehow missed until now, so it’s our first look at the plastic, although we have reviewed the 3D printed engine upgrade set, which truly is a sight to behold. The kit arrives in a modest top-opening box, and inside are two full-size sprues in grey styrene, a clear sprue, a small fret of Photo-Etch (PE), a casting block with four parts, a tiny slip of over-printed clear acetate, the A5 instruction booklet in colour, and the decals in a separate resealable bag. Detail is good, although there are some ejector-pin marks here and there by necessity, and some of them might need dealing with during assembly and painting. Construction begins predictably with the cockpit, starting on a floor part that is detailed with rudder pedals, fire extinguisher and other small parts, plus the linked control columns, the four-part seat for the pilot, with a choice of two types of rear seat installed later. The Continental motor is started by gluing the top and bottom halves together, with optional heat shielding over the piston banks, and a central air intake system underneath. This is slipped through the piston slots in the starboard fuselage half, which has the cowling details adjusted for one of the decal options on both sides. The firewall with moulded-in tank separates the engine from the cockpit, and after gluing the floor into the bottom, a sloped rear bulkhead is placed on ledges. A choice of two additional intake parts is inserted under the motor, created by removing the tip for one decal option. Whilst closing the fuselage, two rods are inserted low on the firewall, linked diagonally to the sidewalls, then your choice of rear seats, one option that is similar to the pilot’s seat but with a single mounting frame, the other a single cushion with PE belts and no back. For three of the decal schemes there is an additional grating inserted and glued to the front bulkhead, and a tonneau cover is spread over the rear cockpit area. The instrument panel is created by adding a curved insert across the front of the opening, to which a choice of printed acetate film or a decal is applied, adding a PE surround over the top. At the front of the tonneau, one option has a PE belt strung across from one sidewall to the other. The Cub’s extensive glazing is next, with a choice of closed or open starboard side panels, which is accomplished by using one of two parts supplied on the clear sprue. The port side is always closed, and is first to be placed in position, linked to the opposite side by an asymmetrical framework over the heads of the crew that holds the tops of the windows at the correct width. There are details moulded into the insides of the glazing parts, so masking inside and painting them will increase the realism appreciably. Special Hobby have a set of masks to help in this regard. The clear roof is applied over the top, and in front of that the lengthy spar and an inverted V-frame is added that is covered by the crystal-clear curved windscreen. Once the glue and paint are dry on the canopy, the wing halves are joined over the spars, taking care to smooth down the ejector-pin marks that are present on the centre surface of each part, just in case they clash. A few seconds with a motor tool or coarse sanding stick should see them gone, as you don’t need to be too careful. The single-thickness elevators are slotted into the tail, then it’s a case of adding all the detail, starting with the landing gear struts under the fuselage. The engine is also detailed with resin exhausts and intake filter, plus a small “pot” on the top of the cowling. The wings are supported by a V-shaped strut between the fuselage and outer wing, with an additional stay around half-way, and some tiny PE actuators fitted to the ailerons. You will need to find some 0.3mm wire or thread to replicate the aileron control wires that run down the front support and pop out again to mate with the PE actuators added earlier. This is replicated on both wings of course. The tail wheel is fixed to the moulded-in strut under the tail, and there are twin control wires added to the elevators, with the control wires replicated top and bottom, and two more to control the tail-wheel itself for ground-handling. More short wires are added on the topside of the ailerons, and the two-part balloon-like tyres are slipped over the axles on the gear legs. If you have elected for an open cockpit, the open window is fixed almost flush with the lower wing and held in place by a PE stay, while the lower trapezoid cockpit door is folded down with a PE handle and retaining clip glued to the bottom edge. It isn’t mentioned, but we assume that if you close the window you should glue the door in the closed position earlier in the build. There is a short antenna inserted into a hole in the roof, which has a wire strung between it and the top of the fin, then the two-bladed prop is slipped over the shaft at the front of the engine, with a shallow spinner included for one of the decal options. Markings There are a healthy four decal options included on the sheet, and if you’ve been staring at grey jets a lot recently, you might want your sunglasses, as some of them are a bit colourful. From the box you can build one of the following: L-4J Grasshopper OK-YFJ c/n:12830 ex-USAAF 44-80534, owned by J Zítka, Rtyně v Podkrkonoši, Czechoslovakia, 1947 L-4H Grasshopper HB-OUD c/n:11854 ex-USAAF 44-79558, private owner in Bern, Switzerland, 2004 L-4H Grasshopper G-AIIH c/n:11945 ex-USAAF 44-79649 private owner, Great Britain, 1993 L-4H Grasshopper SP-AML ex-USAAF 44-79884, Warsaw Aero Club, Poland, 1949 The decals appear to be printed by Eduard and are in good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. I mention Eduard because from 2021, the carrier film on their decals can be coaxed away from the printed part of the decal after they have been applied, effectively rendering them carrier film free, making the completed decals much thinner and more realistic, and obviating the need to apply successive coats of clear varnish to hide the edges of the carrier film. It’s a great step further in realism from my point of view, and saves a good quantity of precious modelling time into the bargain. Conclusion I wasn’t all that interested in this aircraft until I saw the 3D printed engine set that we reviewed recently, and now I’m all over it. It’s an acknowledged fact that I’m fickle, but it’s a really nice kit of a surprisingly common and persistent aircraft that will appeal to civilian aircraft modellers as well as some of the many pilots that earned their wings flying in one. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
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Hi there fellow modellers. Does anybody knows about any 1/72 kits of smaller civil twin engine prop airplanes like the Cessna 402, 414 or 421, or the Piper Aerostar? It semes as there is not many kits out there. I can only find some very limited edition resin kits. any suggestions?
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Hi, this is definitely out of my comfort zone: I built some resin and vacuform kits over the years but never tackled a 3D printed full kit. I will try to stay inside the due date but I cannot guarantee being a late entry. My goal would be to build a Piper Dakota in Chilean AF colors, but as you can see in this other thread, the details of the intended color scheme are still a bit blurry! Thanks for looking!
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J-3 Cub Inside/Outside Masks (M48015) 1:48 Special Hobby We’ve just completed our review of the latest boxing of this light-weight spotter/reconnaissance aircraft that served during WWII and beyond, with a healthy number still flying today. You can see our review here, and if you check the aftermarket section, you’ll also see some detail upgrades such as the awesome 3D printed engine here. Supplied on a sheet of yellow kabuki tape with a pre-weeded perimeter, these pre-cut masks supply you with a full set of masks for the canopy both inside and out, the clarity of which will be important due to the large expanses down the sides of the aircraft. In addition, you get a set of hub/tyre masks for the wheels and the roof light between the wings, allowing you to cut the demarcation perfectly with little effort. Since using this innovative masking style on a recent build of an F4F-3 Wildcat, I have become a huge fan of inside/outside masks, and will search out a set for any of my future builds thanks to the realism, crispness and extra detail they bring to the canopy area. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
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J-3 Cub Goes to War (SH48220) 1{48 Special Hobby The Piper J-3 Cub was a light aircraft developed before WWII with production continuing throughout WWII and into the late 40s. In military service as a communications, reconnaissance, or spotter aircraft, it was known as the L-4 Grasshopper, and 20,000 plus were built due to its success in various roles, including trainer and glider tug. It was powered by a flat-4 engine, and despite the limited power it was agile in the air, with docile handling characteristics and a very low stall speed, which made take-off and landing a simple process, and let the aircraft use strips that were far too short for other types. After the war, many of the former military aircraft were re-purposed for civilian use, or sold to other nations in similar roles, while production of new build airframes was recommenced for those that don’t like cheap second-hand Cubs with one “careful” owner. Due to the simple nature of the type, maintenance was straight-forward and cost-effective thanks in part to the extensive spares library to accommodate the large number of examples built, leading to many airframes surviving to the present day in private hands. The Kit This is a reboxing of Special Hobby’s 2022 new tool of the type, which has been released in a few boxings already. The kit arrives in a modest-sized top-opening box, and inside are two full-size sprues in grey styrene, a clear sprue, a small fret of Photo-Etch (PE), a single 3D printed resin part in its own Ziploc bag, a tiny slip of over-printed clear acetate, the A5 instruction booklet in colour, and the decals in a resealable bag. Detail is good, although there are some ejector-pin marks here and there by necessity, and some of them might need dealing with during assembly and painting. Construction begins predictably with the cockpit, starting on a floor part that is detailed with rudder pedals, fire extinguisher and other small parts, plus the linked control columns, the four-part seat for the pilot, with a rear seat installed later. The Continental motor is begun by gluing the top and bottom halves together, with heat shielding over the piston banks, and a central air intake system underneath. This is slipped through the piston slots in the starboard fuselage half. The firewall with moulded-in tank separates the engine from the cockpit, and after gluing the floor into the bottom of the starboard fuselage, a sloped rear bulkhead is placed on ledges. Whilst closing the fuselage, two rods are inserted low on the firewall, linked diagonally to the sidewalls, then the rear seat that is similar to the pilot’s seat but with a single mounting frame, adding a tonneau cover spread over the rear cockpit area. The instrument panel is created by adding a curved coaming insert across the front of the cockpit, to which a choice of printed acetate film or a decal is applied, adding a PE surround over the top. The Cub’s extensive glazing is next, with a choice of closed or open starboard side panels, which is accomplished by using one of two parts supplied on the clear sprue. The port side is fixed closed, and is first to be placed in position, linked to the opposite side by a solid rear that holds the tops of the windows at the correct width. There are details moulded into the insides of the glazing parts, so masking inside and painting them will increase the realism appreciably, and Special Hobby have a set of masks to help in this regard. The clear roof is applied over the top, and in front of that the lengthy spar and a pair of inverted V-frames added then covered by the crystal-clear curved windscreen. Once the glue and paint are dry on the canopy, the wing halves are joined over the spars, taking care to smooth down the ejector-pin marks that are present on the inside surface of each part, just in case they clash. A few seconds with a motor tool, nippers or coarse sanding stick should see them gone, as you don’t need to be too careful. The single-thickness elevators are slotted into the tail, then it’s a case of adding all the detail, starting with the landing gear struts under the fuselage. The engine is also detailed with a new resin part under the chin, plus a small light “pot” on the top of the cowling. The wings are supported by a V-shaped strut between the fuselage and outer wing, with an additional supporting stay around half-way, and some tiny PE actuators fitted to the ailerons nearby. You will need to find some 0.3mm wire or thread to replicate the aileron control wires that run down the front support and pop out again to mate with the PE actuators added earlier. This is replicated on both wings of course, and their routes are marked on the instructions in red. The tail wheel is fixed to the moulded-in strut under the tail, and there are twin control wires added to the elevators, with the control wires replicated top and bottom, and two more to control the tail-wheel itself for ground-handling, again all these are marked in red. More short wires are added on the topside of the ailerons, and the two-part balloon-like tyres are slipped over the axles on the gear legs. If you have elected for an open cockpit, the open window is fixed almost horizontal, flush with the lower wing and held in place by a PE stay, while the lower trapezoid cockpit door is folded down with a PE handle and retaining clip glued to the bottom edge. It isn’t mentioned, but we assume that if you close the window you should glue the door in the closed position earlier in the build. Finally, the two-bladed prop is slipped over the drive-shaft at the front of the engine, without a spinner. Markings There are three decal options included on the sheet, and if you’ve been staring at grey jets a lot recently, the olive drab and yellow paint schemes might make a welcome change. From the box you can build one of the following: J-3 Cub/O-59A, 42-7827 No.24 J-3C-65 loaned to military during 1941 J-3C-65 n/c 7132, NC38601, Manufactured in 1941, Midwest Airfield, Fort Worth, Texas, 1040s The decals appear to be printed using the same digital processes as Eduard are now using, and have good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut loosely around the printed areas. I mention Eduard because from 2021, the carrier film on their decals can be coaxed away from the printed part of the decal after they have been applied, effectively rendering them carrier film free, making the completed decals much thinner and more realistic, and obviating the need to apply successive coats of clear varnish to hide the edges of the carrier film. It’s a great step further in realism from my point of view, and saves a good quantity of precious modelling time into the bargain. Conclusion I wasn’t all that interested in this aircraft until I saw the 3D printed engine set that we reviewed recently, and now I’m very interested in building a military example. It’s an acknowledged fact that I’m fickle, but it’s a really nice kit of a surprisingly common and persistent aircraft that will also appeal to civilian aircraft modellers as well as some of the many pilots that earned their wings flying in one. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
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L-4 Grasshopper Engine (P48002) (Continental O-170-3) 1:48 Special Hobby 2022 saw the release of a brand-new tooling of this lightweight aircraft, the militarised variant of the Piper J-3 Cub, and not too long later, up pops this gorgeous 3D printed engine and cowling for it, offering significantly higher levels of detail than can be achieved with injection moulded styrene. As usual with their resin sets, it arrives in the familiar clear vacformed box, with the resin parts safely inside, and the instructions sandwiched between the header card at the rear. Due to the delicate detail of the parts, they are cocooned in a hollow foam square, with another sheet behind it to protect it during shipping and storage. There are ostensibly two parts on separate printing bases within the box, but the cowling actually consists of four parts on one compact base. The outer cowling splits in two as you remove it from the base, and inside are another two parts that are used as heat deflectors over the two banks of pistons of the flat-4 Continental engine, and using two colour diagrams inside the instructions, you can connect up the cylinders with wire from your own stocks, which pass through the heat deflectors, and locate at the rear of the engine. To add it to your model, you simply remove the front of the fuselage as per the two diagrams marked in red, insert the engine’s backplate in the opening, and reuse the small square kit part underneath. After adding the heat panels and wiring up the motor, the two-part cowling can be fitted over the engine, or left off for a maintenance diorama or similar. You might notice a few layer lines on the sides of the cowling parts, but these are so small as to be nigh-on invisible to the naked eye, and will disappear under primer and paint. Conclusion The detail on the engine, especially as it is a single tiny part, is stunning, and the finesse of the cowlings is equally impressive, adding so much detail to your model that it looks like you could turn the prop, start it up and fly away… providing you were an inch tall. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
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Stransky Kits is working on a 1/144th family of Piper L-4 Grasshopper Source: https://fr-fr.facebook.com/stransky.kits/posts/1019222051560279 V.P.
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Sports Plane (03835) 1:32 Carrera Revell The Piper PA-18 Super Cub was developed after WWII as a single-engined civilian aircraft, or “sports Plane” as it is sometimes referred to, especially on the front of model boxes. It was a development of the Cub line of aircraft, but was substantially different in that it was more powerful and a more “professional” type of aircraft, having flaps, twin fuel-tanks and a 150hp Lycoming engine as standard, although over the intervening years many have been re-engined with other power-plants, some more powerful, some not. Over 10,000 have been made, and they have seen use all over the world, with a particular following amongst bush pilots, who value its slow-speed handling, incredibly short take-off run and its simple mechanical make-up that makes it relatively easy to repair due to its tubular framework with doped canvas outer skin, and readily available spares. As well as the civilian operators, a number of military users have had them on charge over the years, with various designations beginning with L-18. The Civilian variant usually stuck with PA-18 and used various numbers in relation to the engine fitted at the factory, but as already mentioned there have been many alternatives used over the years. One inventive individual even converted the type to a biplane in order to improve its high-altitude handling so that it could be better used in extremely isolated mountainous regions. The Kit This is a re-release of the 2007 tooling from Revell as a special “Builder’s Choice” boxing, and it has been tricked out in a handsome set of German decals, including the colours of the modern German flag on the tailfin. It arrives in a shallow end-opening box with a painting of the aircraft in flight on the front, and inside are nine sprues of various sizes in white styrene, two in clear that were still tenuously linked together in my box, the instruction booklet and the decal sheet in between the safety sheet, which seems to have been printed on glossy paper this time. It’s a nicely detailed kit in this scale, although it does have a few features of its era, such as the occasional sink mark and ejector-pin here and there, but it’s nothing to be overly concerned about unless you have a low panic threshold. Construction begins with the cockpit in a move that won’t surprise many modellers. The floor is quite substantially curved, as it follows the line of the fuselage underside, which it follows once completed. The two sidewalls have curved lower edges too as you’d expect, and each one has a short painting guide, which also points out some decals that are applied at the same time. The floor has a few ejector-pin marks to be hidden away before it is detailed with a number of controls, including the linked control columns, with the two seats and their moulded-in seatbelts added to raised parts of the floor. The belts are well-moulded, and are individually arranged on the seats, so should look good under some carefully-applied paint. The fuselage halves are then shown for painting of their interior, with a black lip around the edges of the windows at the rear. The cockpit is built up in a basket-like shape starting with the cockpit sides, with two rectangular frames tying the sides together along with a rear bulkhead, then the cockpit floor is placed inside and joined by the rear parcel shelf and the two-part structure that forms the head-liner over the shelf. Bracing rods are added across the roof and in a V-shape down the windscreen, locking into the two-part instrument panel, which has a decal for its dials. A brief interlude has you making the clear centre-panel of the upper wing spar by slipping two aerofoil-shapes over the fully clear part without glue, then setting it aside while you close up the fuselage around the cockpit, adding rear quarterlights from the inside as you go, and closing over the front with a firewall aft of the engine bay. With the glue cured on the fuselage, the upper centre wing is installed along with the rest of the glazing, with a curved windscreen and optional straight side windows, where your choice of glue will be important so you don’t fog the wide expanses of clear styrene. A section of the cockpit floor is added below, and the N-shaped engine mounts are glued to the firewall, with two scrap diagrams showing their orientation once installed. The Lycoming engine is a flat-four, with all cylinders depicted along with the various rods, housings and a long drive-shaft passing through it. Plenty of piping is woven around the block for air and exhaust pathways, with a final diagram showing the completed unit before it is bracketed by two L-shaped panels that have the cylinder head tops moulded into them. The engine fits neatly to the mounts, and the panelling is added around it, taking care to ensure that the circular drive-shaft opening in the front cowling is centred on the shaft itself. There’s another scrap diagram to assist you with the final arrangement here too. The wings are straight with round tips, and each one has a separate aileron and flap added as the top and bottom halves are joined, with small lollipop tip-lights also fitted into channels as you go. The port wing has a landing light cut from the leading edge that is fitted with a contoured clear part and a representation of the twin lenses within the wing. The completed wings slide onto the clear centre wing section, which has a vertical spar along its length to counter the brittle nature of thin clear styrene that we all know and loathe. There is a slot within the wing for the two to mate, and it would be an idea to consider using epoxy resin to glue the wings with, as it definitely won’t create any bloom in the clear part, which could conceivably creep into the centre section that we wish to remain clear. Each wing has a V-shaped support with another inverted trestle-shaped added at approximately half way. All the attachment points are already laid out on the wing and elsewhere, and there is just a short length of wire needed to link the ailerons to the controls within the wing. Wire, cord or stretched sprue would do the trick here. The landing gear is fixed, and is mounted on a tubular frame with aerodynamic fairings and fabric between the triangular interstices, and the latter is where you’ll find a few ejector-pin marks to fill. These and the extended X-shaped axles are fitted into sockets under the fuselage, then the wheels are made up. There are two sets of wheels of two parts each, so choose the correct type, which have circumferential tread on each half thanks to some stepping of the mould surface. They have their hubs added-in, with brake detail on the inner surface, to be slotted over the axles once complete. Oddly, a pair of small holes are filled in the rear of the fuselage, appearing to be somewhat out of sequence, but in fact it is the opening shot of the tail construction. The rudder is separate and has a pair of small clear lights fitted, one each top and rear, then it is glued to the fin along with the elevators, which need another few short lengths of control lines adding, as per the drawings. The elevators are moulded as one piece per side, and fit to the fuselage sides on three pins each, in much the same manner as the real ones. The tail wheel is a short, sprung strut with a diminutive wheel on a two-part yoke, which fits into a slot in the underside of the tail. To finish off the build, the starboard side of the cockpit has its clamshell door added in either open or closed positions, with the glazed half having sliding windows moulded-in, and a handle fixed to the long edge of the trapezoid lower door. The engine cowlings can also be fitted open or closed, but the two-bladed prop and spinner are generally required for flying. A pair of short antennae made from stretched sprue are applied to the upper wing over the cockpit, with some brief instructions showing you how to stretch your own sprue if you’re unsure. Markings There is only one set of markings in this special boxing, and it’s for an attractive silver-doped airframe with a black nose and wing leading edges and a white lightning flash down the sides, with a colourful German flag on the tail fin. The tail code is kind of appropriate too. From the box you can build this airframe: Decals are by Cartograf, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion After dealing with a few ejector-pin marks here and there, the model should build up relatively swiftly into a classic of a design that’s wearing some handsome markings. Highly recommended. Currently, Revell are unable to ship to the UK from their online shop due to recent changes in import regulations, but there are many shops stocking their products where you can pick up the kits either in the flesh or online. Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit or
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AirCast Resin has released 1/72nd Piper Tomahawk resin kits Sources: https://www.facebook.com/AirCastResin/posts/334481367446136 https://www.facebook.com/AirCastResin/posts/384750345752571 https://www.facebook.com/pg/AirCastResin/photos/?tab=album&album_id=334481307446142 - ref. ACR72006 - Piper Tomahawk - ref. ACR72007 - Piper Tomahawk ref. ACR72008 - Piper Tomahawk V.P.
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In 1984, I was assigned to the 6512th Test Sq at Edwards, also referred to as Test Ops. Test Ops provided most of the test support functions at Edwards: safety chase, photo chase, and conducted what one would call “cats ‘n’ dogs” test programs – test programs too small to warrant a dedicated Combined Test Force. I guess you could call this one of the dogs… I don’t remember all of the details (I suppose I could Google it), but apparently political pressure forced an evaluation of the turbine powered version of the P-51 Mustang. To be fair, it kind of looked like a Mustang, but beyond that it was pretty much an all new aircraft. It started with proposals from Cavalier Corp for a counter-insurgency (COIN) platform and garnered political support as an adjunct to the A-10. Cavalier eventually folded but the concept wouldn’t go away and, somehow, Piper was left holding the bag with the model PA-48 Enforcer. A Test Ops pilot and his trusty engineer (me - a test pilot once quipped at me "Engineers are great, everybody should have one!") were sent to the Piper facility at Lakeland Florida to evaluate Piper's Enforcer test program prior to the aircraft coming out to Edwards for evaluation. Without further comment, this is some of what we saw… Ship #1, N481PE Ship #2, N482PE In the Edwards boneyard in 1990 Thanks for looking Sven
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Piper L-4J Grasshopper, pics thanks to Mike.
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Hi all, I acquired recently one specimen of these. It seems to be a reasonably good kit, with lots of potencial for conversion, but I also read some bad things about it although not indicating the potencial problems. Is there anybody out there with informed opinions on the subject? Thanks, Carlos
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Aeo Modell has released a revised edition of its 1/72nd resin Navajo kit, the Piper PA-31P -ref. 737011 Source: http://www.aviationmegastore.com/piper-pa31p-pressurised-navajo-revised-kit-03-737011-aero-modell-4027378737112-scale-modelling/product/?shopid=LH355797e0b84d6433581ac936d6&action=prodinfo&parent_id=212&art=117778 V.P.
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Hello everyone, I have this buddy with a connection [by some lengths] to this aircraft: The challenge is to find a 72nd scale kit and build it as such. We know of a Gremlin Models release from some time ago but haven't come much further trying to locate one. Are there any other kits out there of the PA-42, whatever the scale and medium? Any input would be much appreciated. Cheers, Niki
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I started this some 25 years ago as 16YO glued the wings together and for some odd reason, cant remember why, hacked off the nose forward of the windscreen and that was as far as it went. Its been sitting in my parents garden shed ever since. Seeing Tripods Warrior has given me some inspiration. http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234936765-fun-with-cherokees/ Now work has restarted the dust, dead spiders n eggs have been cleaned off and its going to become a Cherokee 140, this one to be precise:- Stephen Powney/www.abpic.co.uk I owned a share in it over 10 years ago to hours build and clocked up over 100 hours in it, Built in 1968 and great fun to fly, cheap too I think I managed to get the hourly cost down to £25 if I flew it very carefully at min drag speed around 70kts clean and leaned the mixture, great for loitering around South Lancashire & Winter Hill on a sunny weekday evening after work, clocking them hours up towards a commercial licence. For a conversion to from Arrow to Cherokee I think I need to make or mod the following. New nose - scratch built New spinner - scratch built (prop blades from kit, might need to shorten them though) Shorter wings Shorter stabilator Block up the rear windows new undercarriage & spats - scratch built (kit wheels) Remove the dorsal fin from the tail Wings & stabilator was shortened, Airfix have made this easy to cut in the right place from the surface detail just remove the bit between the ailerons and wing tip fairing, similar for the stabilator remove the bit between the anti-servo tab and the tip fairing. a new nose is to be built, must have had a premonition of this when I hacked off the old one all those years ago. I started by drawing out the new shape cowl in 1:24 scale from photos and drawings the scanning it and rescaling to 1:72 then printing several copies onto a sticker that was placed on 2 laminated sheets off 1mm plasticard. The holes for the 3 air intakes were cut out first by drilling small holes then fileing the rest to shape, this I had some trouble with as even my needle files were too big and needed a re think. Just when I was on the verge of considering crash moulding the basic shape out of thinner plastic, I was in Affinity Models in Stoke, and hey presto micro needle files £8 for a set of 10!. So yesterday was spent making the cowl. With the holes cut out the main shape was cut, filed and sanded from the sheet. A 4mm disc was cut from 0.5mm card for the crank wheel with the starter motor pin from 0.5mm plastic rod. the whole thing was laminated onto another piece of 0.5mm card and the baffles fitted in the engine cooling holes. The landing light was made by thinning off the end of a length of tube with a file and sand paper then fitting into it piece of rod with the end smoothed off and rounded, then cut to the appropriate length (0.5mm) and fitted in the air filter recess. Might need to do a little repair on the crank wheel The undercarriage bays were filled in by thin layers of filler leaving each one to set before the next. The rear windows were also filled in, The windows were cut from the main 3 window transparency part and used as a backing for the filler. The storey so far :- Thanks for looking Mark