USAAF P-40E Warhawk 1/32 Hasegawa

[Wentworth]

This is my first entry to a group build but as I had just picked up the kit on eBay and intended to build it straight-away it seemed logical to join the build. The kit is the Hasegawa 1/32 P-40E Warhawk and at this point in time I'm not sure what markings I'm aiming for. The kit provides a Dark Earth/Dark Green P-40E 'Texas Longhorn' in New Guinea in 1942 and a China based aircraft in similar markings. I've got some old Superscale decals on order for Texas Longhorn and I'll have a look at those before choosing the final scheme.

 

Anyway, here's the kit:

 

 

With it I also got the new Eduard Look set with an instrument panel and seatbelts. I haven't used one of these before but they look great.

 

 

There'll be some more resin and brass before we start building along with the inevitable mask set.

[TEMPESTMK5]

Good afternonn Wentworth

 Welcome aboard and have fun with your build

All the best

Patrice

[trickyrich]

oooo I'm going to have to watch this one!!  

 

I'm really interested to see how this one builds up, I have the Eduard boxing of the "N" model and it is a truly beautiful model to build. So I suspect the majority of the parts are the same for this one so you're going to really like this build. The Zoom IP is a must as well, gee it's nice.

 

It really would take much (other than actually being able to find one!!!) for me to build another of these, maybe an earlier RAAF K model?

[Wentworth]

OK, I've been spending money. I ordered a few things from Hannants to go with the kit.

 

 

That's going to add a level of detail but also some complexity to the model. The Master detail set looks really nice but I'm not quite sure how those cannons will fit without creating some big holes in the wings first. We'll have to cross that bridge when we get to it.

[Wentworth]

There's also a question in my mind around the colour scheme. The Hasegawa kit instructions suggest that the aircraft would have an under-surface which is light grey (FS36395) mixed with some blue and then two colours on the top, Dark Green and Dark Earth.

 

The instructions for the Superscale instructions decals I purchased for the same aircraft suggest Medium Green and Sand over Azure Blue. Having done a bit of research I think that Hasegawa got it right. I think that this aircraft was originally built for the RAF and hence would have been in Battle of Britain colours of Dark Earth and Dark Green over Sky (type S). I've purchased the Vallejo paint pack for the scheme so that should be winging its way to me shortly.

 

 

In the meantime I'm finishing up the 1/48 Airfix Lightning and a Hasegawa P-40 egg model. Pictures of that to follow.

[Troy Smith]

2 minutes ago, Wentworth said:

I think that this aircraft was originally built for the RAF and hence would have been in Battle of Britain colours of Dark Earth and Dark Green over Sky (type S).

US DuPont equivalents, very close but quite the same as the MAP colours.

A good chap for this is @LDSModeller  who has/had access to a RNZAF P-40E that had some of the original colours. He shpould be able to add more on this.

 

The Superscale are likely to be older, and use incorrect paint call outs.   And there are plenty of folks, usually American, who swear blind that AVG P-40's are light grey underneath,  without wondering why aircraft built for the British (pre Lend Lease) were not painted the way the British specified...

 

2 minutes ago, Wentworth said:

I've purchased the Vallejo paint pack for the scheme so that should be winging its way to me shortly.

Vallejo are not always to be trusted on their colours matches,  be interested to see how they appear.  Which set BTW?

 

cheers

T

[trickyrich]

Oooo look at all those lovely extras!!!

 

A man after my own heart......what's a build without heaps of extra goodies!!! 

[LDSModeller]

9 hours ago, Troy Smith said:

US DuPont equivalents, very close but quite the same as the MAP colours.

A good chap for this is @LDSModeller  who has/had access to a RNZAF P-40E that had some of the original colours. He shpould be able to add more on this.

 

The Superscale are likely to be older, and use incorrect paint call outs.   And there are plenty of folks, usually American, who swear blind that AVG P-40's are light grey underneath,  without wondering why aircraft built for the British (pre Lend Lease) were not painted the way the British specified...

 

9 hours ago, Wentworth said:

There's also a question in my mind around the colour scheme. The Hasegawa kit instructions suggest that the aircraft would have an under-surface which is light grey (FS36395) mixed with some blue and then two colours on the top, Dark Green and Dark Earth.

 

The instructions for the Superscale instructions decals I purchased for the same aircraft suggest Medium Green and Sand over Azure Blue. Having done a bit of research I think that Hasegawa got it right. I think that this aircraft was originally built for the RAF and hence would have been in Battle of Britain colours of Dark Earth and Dark Green over Sky (type S). I've purchased the Vallejo paint pack for the scheme so that should be winging its way to me shortly.

Unfortunately over the years some myths have been promulgated by misinterpreted

photos/information, and as Troy says there are folks in a certain geographical location

who swear the bottoms colours of either British Purchased/Lend Lease aircraft are light grey.

 

You are correct that "Texas Longhorn" ET601 is an Airframe built for British orders.

Some of these aircraft were held back for USAAF use, the RNZAF inherited some from

the USAAF 68FG in Tonga October 1942.

USAAF P40E-1 in RNZAF Use

 

This one shows what is to be ET449 with USAAF 68FG prior to hand over to RNZAF

ET449

 

One ex USAAF P40E-1 NZ3094 (ET433) as in below survived the war, and was returned to New Zealand

NZ3094 (ET433)

 

On return to New Zealand the Tongan P40E-1's were noted to be in Dark earth/dark Green/Sky (Duck Egg Blue)

albeit somewhat weathered (as recorded by RNZAF)

NZ3094 survived the required scrapping by Lend Lease, and was held in a warehouse indoors away from the weather.

I was privileged to see some photos (more modern colour), and the airframe was still in it's original colours, the lower wing still

in Duck Egg Blue. The interesting thing is the cockpit was painted in a Blue/Green colour, not US Interior Green

The other interesting thing is that Texas Longhorn ET601comes from the same production batch as a number of RNZAF

P40E-1's delivered to the RNZAF in New Zealand early/mid 1942 (Serial range ET604-610)

If you check out my entry into this P40 GB, you can see some P40E-1 Swatches form my Collection of an RNZAF P40E-1

The lower colour is a very Pale Blue with a Greenish tinge - nothing Grey about it

RNZAF P40E-1 Build

 

Sorry for the long winded reply - hope it helps - Vellejo do have a Duck Egg Blue which may be of help to you?

 

Regards

 

Alan

 

[Troy Smith]

1 hour ago, LDSModeller said:

Vellejo do have a Duck Egg Blue which may be of help to you?

 

problem with Vallejo paints is they end up using names that are nothing like what we would consider a match.

I've got a few i brush out and checked aginst the RAF Museum MAP paint chips.

 

Vallejo 70.885 Pastel Green is matched to  FS 34424, which is used for  US ANA 610 and it's a little greyer and less green than the RAF Museum chip Sky chip , shown here. 

direct but diffuse light (light cloud)

50620685 by losethekibble, on Flickr

shot in non direct natural light

50620693 by losethekibble, on Flickr

 

On 20/08/2019 at 05:04, LDSModeller said:

Hi Dennis,

 

NZ3008 HQ-B and furthest P40 HQ-A - NZ3007 "Magnolia Mufflewort"are in

RAF Temperate Land Scheme, albeit in US Manufactured colours.

RNZAF Museum records the top colours as

DuPont Dark Earth 71-009

DuPont  Green 71-013

Lower colour DuPont Sky

Roundels in DuPont Insignia Colours

I have some swatches with the DuPont colours taken off NZ3031

a 15 Squadron P40E-1

 

 

 

[gingerbob]

On 8/31/2019 at 7:37 PM, Troy Smith said:

and it's a little greyer and less green than the RAF Museum chip Sky chip

 

Sounds like a perfect candidate for a Curtiss-painted P-40 bottom!   (I started that as a facetious comment, not subscribing to the "they were light grey" school, but if the US paint wasn't QUITE British Sky maybe it is worth considering?)

 

One question- the Brassin wheels on lower left- are they right?  On casual glance they look like they might be P-40N wheels.

 

bob

[Wentworth]

On 9/3/2019 at 10:06 AM, gingerbob said:

One question- the Brassin wheels on lower left- are they right?  On casual glance they look like they might be P-40N wheels.

Hi Bob

 

I think Eduard originally issued them at the same time as their P-40N kit - but looking at the Detail & Scale book on the P-40 it says that the undercarriage remained unchanged throughout the production of the aircraft. Looking at photos I can't see a difference between P-40N wheels and those for a P-40E but happy to learn if there's a difference.

 

Alastair

Have also fought with Photobox - so hopefully the photos above should be de-restricted soon.

 

Alastair

[Troy Smith]

10 minutes ago, Wentworth said:

Looking at photos I can't see a difference between P-40N wheels and those for a P-40E but happy to learn if there's a difference.

the P-40N used the same or similar wheels to the P-51,(though the pic below look more like ones from a F6F or F4U)  which had the 8 spoke hub and were smaller and lighter. 

 

 

This is mentioned in P-40 references, like the "In Action" book as well.

HTH

 

[Wentworth]

The debate about colours and markings is interesting. If you look at the Detail & Scale book on the P-40 volume 2 there are three colour photos of P-40Es in RAF style markings on page 36. Two of these are in USAAF markings, and one is AK571 as delivered to the RAF. In the photos the underside appears to be a very pale, slightly glossy grey without much of a blue tone to it.

 

I also discovered that I had a copy of the Scale Aircraft Modelling Combat Colours 3 book on the P-36/P-40. On page 24 there is a side profile of Texas Longhorn which has dark earth / dark green upper surfaces and pale blue under-surfaces which it describes as Light Blue 27.

 

I think my conclusion is that I'm going with the Vallejo Dark Earth and Dark Green (from this set: https://www.everythingairbrush.com/model-air-paint-set-raf-colors-special-battle-of-britain.html) along with the duck egg blue - but I'm going to paint over a white primer to keep it very pale if I can.

 

Alastair

[Wentworth]

4 minutes ago, Troy Smith said:

the P-40N used the same or similar wheels to the P-51,(though the pic below look more like ones from a F6F or F4U)  which had the 8 spoke hub and were smaller and lighter. 

 

 

This is mentioned in P-40 references, like the "In Action" book as well.

HTH

 

Thanks Troy - That's useful

[Wentworth]

Well time seems to fly and two months of the build time have gone. Its been a busy time as well so I've had less building time than I would have expected. However, the cockpit is done and the main airframe is together with most of the gaps done and treated. There are a few bits to still attend to, but we're getting there.

 

 

I've had a few problems with the after-market additions I had planned. I decided against the Master gun barrels to save time - but have just drilled out the barrels instead. I was also planning to use the Brassin exhaust stubs - but realised too late that they were supposed to be inserted before the fuselage halves went together.

 

 

There's been quite a bit of filling so far - with some more to do around the gun inserts and the wing to fuselage joint.

 

[Wentworth]

It all seems to be coming together now. The main colours are on - following a weekend of intensive air-brushing. I managed to spray nice thin layers of the colours so I've got good tonal variation over the white primer and pre-shading so hopefully this this going to look OK. I will confess that the more colours in the camouflage the harder it is to do nice thin coats - when you're trying to spray around sausages of white tack and masking its not so easy.

 

    

 

It's strange how you only notice the stray masking tape when you take a photo!

 

[CliffB]

Very nice indeed - the paintwork is looking very effective.

[Wentworth]

With the trip to Telford over and done its all starting to come together. I sprayed a lightened mix of the RAF Dark Green on the wings and upper fuselage to give greater depth to the colours and provide some variation. It was then on with the gloss coat and the decals. 

 

 

The decals are a mix of Superscale and Hasegawa. I started off using the Superscale sheet but the 'Texas Longhorn' artwork for the nose is far too big. It couldn't be fitted in the right place and almost wrapped onto the wing. The prop is just push fitted on for now.

 

There's still a long way to go with this, so the list inludes flat coat, under carriage, weathering and then fitting the final parts. Its a lot of bits left to apply.

[Wentworth]

Sorry guys I'm out. In an effort to get it finished this morning I've snapped the undercarriage leg and the retraction mechanism - which is at the point of the break has disappeared. The model has gone in the bin.

[GREG DESTEC]

Sorry to hear that 😣

 

Your P-40 was looking really good.

 

Cheers Greg