FAA Corsair Decals

[ajaycad]

Currently building a FAA Corsair from 1841 Sqdn British Pacific Fleet. KD658 is my subject with the fuselage code number 115. I purchased the Eagle Cals set and altered some of the decals to replicate "115" however disaster struck and I mashed one of the "5" decals. I'm loathed to have to buy another set at £20 just for one decal.

 

I've trawled the interweb trying to find the correct 1/32 scale decals for the code numbers on the fuselage side forwards of the roundels. The numbers are either 18" or 24". Xtradecal  produce a 1/48 set, but not 1/32.

 

I also have a set of Xtradecals RAF/RN code letters and number with a "5" in the correct font, however they are too small for the fuselage codes and are 4" or 8" for the aircraft serial number aft of the fuselage roundel

 

Anyone know of any that are available - wet or dry decals, masks, I dont mind which.

 

Thanks

[85sqn]

Hiya,

 

can I recommend Maketar masks? They are customizable to any size and cost something like a pound per numeral. They do FAA/RAF font and I use them all the time now for FAA stuff. Takes about 10 days in the post.

 

best regards

 

Nick

[ajaycad]

Thanks Nick.......I took a look at their custom masks, but the RAF Insignia masks do not have the numeral "5" in the correct shape. I think I'm going to have to bite the bullet and buy another eaglecals set

 

 

 

[stevehnz]

The last boxing of the fairly awful Airfix Corsair has decals for 115,X as did the much earlier Frog kit, either would be OK, old Frog decals generally work just fine & I'd be surprised if you couldn't scare some up from the good folk on BM. The Airfix kit decals were good too being Cartograph ones afaik.

Steve.

Edited May 22, 2018 by stevehnz

[Troy Smith]

58 minutes ago, ajaycad said:

.I took a look at their custom masks, but the RAF Insignia masks do not have the numeral "5" in the correct shape.

 

as they are custom masks, ask if they can make that one,  if you have a pic, you can make a graphic, that can be used in the cutter software.

 

alternately, if you are prepared to work with a mask, make one,  draw it on masking tape,  and then cut it out.   That's basically 'free'

see here for one method

https://www.agapemodels.com/2013/02/15/techniques-making-negative-masks/

 

as with any new technique, try on scrap,  and if it works you have just learned how to make your own masks  

 

 

 

 

[85sqn]

3 hours ago, ajaycad said:

Thanks Nick.......I took a look at their custom masks, but the RAF Insignia masks do not have the numeral "5" in the correct shape. I think I'm going to have to bite the bullet and buy another eaglecals set

 

 

 

Thats assuming that all 5's on 1841 were painted identically to 1842 and away from the standard format. The difference is that lean on the vertical strake. This is the only photo I have seen purportedly of KD658: http://www.vintagewings.ca/VintageNews/Stories/tabid/116/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/147/The-royal-treatment--Our-Corsair-gets-her-colours.aspx

Scroll down- hard to tell. 

 

Theres a nice article btw in this months Britain at War magazine on Hammy.

 

Atb

 

Nick

 

 

[72modeler]

ajay,

 

Try contacting Kenny at his website- link below. He can do any scale and any font, and his vinyl stencils are reusable. I have used his codes/serials stencils and national insignia   stencils and they work great and are not expensive. Send him a PM with what you need and I'm pretty sure he can fix you up. (I don't get anything in return for endorsing his products- just glad to help a fellow modeler...you might tell him Mike from Alamo Squadron in San Antonio said hello!) Other BM'ers have been pleased with his stencils, as well. You can send him a scan of the font style or the photo to show him what you need. Hope this helps- that's going to be a pretty Corsair!

Mike

 

http://www.gatorsmask.com/

[ajaycad]

Nick,

There is a picture on that site of 115 parked in front of the island immediately after a kamikaze attack. It looks to me like the vertical bar on the "5" is indeed vertical rather than canted to the side....in which case I can use Maketer or Gatorsmasks numerals.

.

Also, thanks Mike for the info on gatorsmask...

[iang]

The photo of the Corsair on forward outrigger after the KK attack on 4.5.45 is KD336 116/X, not  115/X.

 

During Iceberg, (KD399?) 115/X  was flown-off to Speaker 10.5.45 contaminated with sea water. Its replacement was either KD351, KD505, KD281, JT459, JT483, KD291,or KD463. Whichever of those it was, it survived the hangar fire on 18.5.45 (given Gray's status, it is unlikely to be either of the JTxxx serialed Corsairs). During Operations off Japan, the serial of 115/X is unknown, but probably the replacement for KD399 (it was not KD658).

 

It is also possible that KD399 has been mis-identified. The 1842 Fair Flying Log confirms that 119/X and 115/X (and 133/X) landed on Victorious after  the KK 4.5.45 attack and not 116/X as Harrison’s Combat Report indicates. Indeed, 116/X is pictured on the outrigger at 11.45, just after KK attack, so there is no doubt that Harrison's Combat Report is in error. These three Formidable Corsairs were flown by Victorious 1834 Sq pilots and s/d  a Myrt at 17.15 on 4.5.45. In their Combat Reports S/Lt Pocock gives 119/X as ‘633’ and S/Lt Harrison gives 116/X as ‘632’. These are likely radio call signs and not serial numbers. 141/X (sic - probably 133/X) was flown by S/Lt Marsh (no serial listed).  They were then flown back to Formidable early on 5.5.45 by 1842 pilots, who were vectored to intercept a Zeke, which was shot down by Stirling (119/X), Ewins (115/X) and  Clarke (133/X)  as indicated by 1842 Flying Log. In his combat report, Stirling gives  KD399 as the ID for his Corsair (119/X),  but Clarke just gives 'Corsair IV', rather than 133/X.  Indeed, the fog of war is pretty thick here, as the 1842 Fair Flying Log, which is a highly detailed document, makes no mention of 141/X landing on Victorious, or flying between the 2/5/45 and 9/5/45, so I think it likely that the record of 141/X by Marsh is incorrect (he was a 1834 Squadron pilot flying a Corsair from a different squadron from a different ship, after all). According to this document, after the KK attack, Clarke, Stirling and Ewins landed on Victorious, in 133/X, 119/X and 115/X respectively, while Stradwick, Cartledge, Webb, Howes, and Moores all landed on Indomitable.

 

Thus the entry in Sturtivant's FAA Aircraft may be wrong for KD399 (identified as 115/X). Moreover, Sturtivant assigns 119/X as JT633 and 116/X as JT632, both of which are highly dubious. The 1841 Diary gives an account of the kill, also indicating that Stirling not Clarke or Ewins was flying Gray’s Corsair  (assumed to be 115/X). Stirling’s own account written long after the event also states that he was flying Gray’s Corsair. All of this makes sense if Gray's usual Corsair was KD399: 119/X at this point.

Edited May 23, 2018 by iang

[ajaycad]

Thanks Ian......all my research pointed to KD658 115X being the aircraft Gray flew on August 9th. This is the subject I'm trying to replicate hence the need for the "5" numerals for the fuselage side. Is it known which aircraft or likely aircraft he flew that day ?

[iang]

KD658 was definitely not 115/X.  Gray was not flying 115/X as it is recorded as being on USS Shangri-La CV-38 just before Gray took off.  Most secondary accounts indicate that he was flying KD658 on the 9th August  (code not known), but even that is in doubt. There is one Admiralty document that links KD658 to Gray on 9th, but there is another that links it to 1841 Squadron Canadian pilot Lt Anderson, who crashed into the round-down of Formidable and was killed, also on 9th August. Through a process of elimination and triangulation from every available primary source available to me, I'm pretty confident I know the code applied to KD658, but in short, all of the Corsairs on Formidable coded 115/X are open to some doubt, for both Operation Iceberg and Operations off Japan.  

 

It is possible that 115/X was photographed on Shangri-La, and that might reveal the serial. 

Edited May 23, 2018 by iang

[paj66]

There is some amazing knowledge being shared here with regards 1842 ops so I wonder if someone could advise me please?

My brother in laws father flew with 1842 in this late period of the war and I would like to make a model of the aircraft he flew the most. Are there any combat reports showing this information? His surname was Ewins.

Many thanks.

[iang]

S/Lt Ewins flying record, Operation Iceberg and Operations off Japan

 

Those marked with * indicate as 1841 Squadron. Whether he was loaned to 1841 temporarily, I don't know.

 

2.4.45             134/X                     mock suicide bombing

10.4.45           130/X                      mock fighter Interceptions

16.4.45           134/X                     Target CAP Ishigaki Strike C

17.4.45            134/X                     Target CAP Ishigaki Strike C

20.4.45           134/X                      Fleet CAP Iceberg VI

20.4.45           134/X                      Target CAP Ishigaki 2x500lb

2.5.45             134/X                       Middle Cover for Strike

4.5.45             135/X*                     Target CAP, landed “Victorious”

5.5.45             115/X*                      From “Victorious”

9.5.45             118/X*                      Fleet CAP

12.5.45           124/X*                      Fleet CAP

16.5.45           121/X*                      Fleet CAP

21.6.45           135/X                       mock section Attack

30.6.45           130/X                      ADDL

1.7.45              123/X*                     Kamikaze run

17.7.45            118/X                       Airfields Honushu Island

24.7.45           122/X                       Fleet CAP

25.7.45           140/X                       Fleet CAP

28.7.45           126/X                       Ramrod

30.7.45           119/X                        Leader Escort

9.8.45             122/X                       AGL Escort

10.8.45            146/X                       Fleet CAP

 

 

134/X  was his usual aircraft during Operation Iceberg. This was KD655 and was salted in the hangar fire and did not fly again during Iceberg.

During Operations off Japan, he seems not to have been allocated a usual aircraft. The only one he flew twice was 122/X, which was KD889. During Operations off Japan, it was common for pilots from one Corsair squadron on Formidable to fly aircraft from the other squadron

 

 

Edited December 3, 2019 by iang

[paj66]

Amazing! Thank you so much! 

The aircraft that got salted stalled on take off after overhaul so that was that. He was most upset because his crew had just painted a snowgoose on the side of it (his favourite bird from a Dunkirk story about a snow goose leading the little ships home!) and fitted new machine guns prior to the hangar fire. 

On balance I think I’ll build 134 - thanks again!

[iang]

What I'd give for a photograph of that snowgoose on 134/X!

[paj66]

Ha ha yes indeed! We are going through his personal docs just on the off chance.