Jump to content

Fiat G 50 Freccia***FINISHED***


Recommended Posts

Hi Guys,

 

According to some pics the cowling should be "square" with the fuselage, but other views suggest a slight nose up alignment, which would fit with the geometry of the wings. Looks like it was slightly tail up in flight, but as I mentioned previously it was nowhere near as pronounced as on the Whitley, which was I gather designed originally without flaps and needed a pronounced angle of attack on the wings to reduce take-off and landing runs. That in turn resulted in an engine thrust line quite a bit above the norm. The irony is of course that the Whitley design later had flaps added but it was presumably too much trouble to modify the wing!

 

I have ended up fitting the cowling parallel to the wing - may be a little more angled that it should be, but a darned sight less than if I had not modified it. I will show a pic once the yellow paint is on - only had 3 coats so far. Don't you just love white, yellow and red paint - not! Sky is not much better.

 

Looks like the MC 200 also had a slightly angled cowling as well.

 

Pete

Edited by PeterB
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Concentrating on my Spitfire/Seafire builds as there is only just over a week to go, but still doing a little on this.

DSC03203-crop

Not too much more to do.

 

Pete

Edited by PeterB
  • Like 9
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Very inspiring looking at these Italian builds, trying to resist the temptation to rummage in the stash for something simular as I have too many started uncompleted builds on the go already.

Just read a book on Mediterranean Beaufort and Beaufighters, so perhaps a Cant 501, no must resist !

 

Cheers Pat

Link to comment
Share on other sites

32 minutes ago, modelling minion said:

Resistance is futile!

Just give in and get started on the Cant, saves a lot of wasted time and delusions of being in control of your modelling impulses.

That is so true it's actually a bit scary !

  • Haha 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

12 hours ago, JOCKNEY said:

Mediterranean Beaufort and Beaufighters,

Was that "Armed Rovers" Pat? Worth Getting? I might need a visit to Book Depository or try & find a 2nd hand one online.

Steve.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, stevehnz said:

Was that "Armed Rovers" Pat? Worth Getting? I might need a visit to Book Depository or try & find a 2nd hand one online.

Steve.

It was indeed, yes i really enjoyed it.

 

One of the things i learned was that the old Arado 196 was used as a fighter to escort ships, and even more amazing it was very successful in taking on the beaufighters, shooting them down on a regular basis  !

 

Apologies for the subject drift Pete

 

cheers Pat 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

15 minutes ago, JOCKNEY said:

It was indeed, yes i really enjoyed it.

 

One of the things i learned was that the old Arado 196 was used as a fighter to escort ships, and even more amazing it was very successful in taking on the beaufighters, shooting them down on a regular basis  !

 

Apologies for the subject drift Pete

 

cheers Pat 

I'm just far enough into that to be over the moon that Airfix are releasing the new Beaufort kit.

 

Back on topic, the G.50 is looking worlds better than mine ever did. That toned down mottling works really well.  The CR.42 is looking good too. I still have the one I built <mumble> years ago, but at this remove I have no idea whose kit it was or what paints I used. 

 

Andy

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

No problem with thread drift guys, I do it all the time to everybody else! As I have said many times I never went to a modelling club, but I imagine a good GB like this probably has the same atmosphere - exchange of views and experiences covering many things, not all of which are modelling related (food, pets etc). In other words what our Irish friends possibly refer to as a  good "craic" or as we Northeners say "crack".

 

With the Spit/Seafire GB extended a week I can relax a little so the G50 and MC200 may move a bit faster in spite of the decorating - fortunately that is 80% finished.

 

AFAIK Andy, the Revell CR 42 was the only one in 1/72 for many years, being released in I think 1965. I suspect the Matchbox version released in about 1999 was a reboxing, and other kits started to arrive after 2000, according to Scalemates.

 

Cheers

 

Pete

Edited by PeterB
  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Bit more progress.

DSC03209-crop

The kit decs work fine, but the white is rather too transparent so I will have to touch up the tail cross and the fuselage band with paint. I have used AM decs for the single axe on the blue circle on the nose as the Airfix colours were all wrong - the shaft was red! I will also redo the House of Savoia crest and use AM decs for the fasces on the upper wing.

 

Pete

  • Like 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Touched up and the rest of the decs on.

DSC03213-crop

Airfix had the coat of arms on the cross in just black and white whilst in reality it was red, yellow, white and blue, On my MC 200 it is in the middle of the cross but some, as in the case of this G 50 had it at the top. Italian Squadron markings are a bit like those of the wartime RAF - Squadron number instead of a code, followed by the number of the individual plane rather than a letter, seperated by a "dash" in most cases, though some had a yellow and black design of some sort on a shield in between (see my post of the decal instruction sheet on page 1 of this thread). In some cases they were the same layout on both sides as here, whilst in others they were reversed on the starboard side so that the aircraft number was on the white band on both sides as on my MC 200. Airfix did the aircraft number in black, which I suppose some were, but the vast majority seem to have been in red so I knocked up some red "3"'s in the rather distinctive Italian style. I have to say this does not look too bad, and is certainly an improvement on the one I did build as a kid!

 

So just the guns, undercarriage and prop to go on, together with the pitot tubes which I have yet to make. I will have to check to see if it had a small radio mast on the "hump" just behind the cockpit - at the start of the war very few Italian fighters seem to have had radios fitted, but that changed later. This kit is as of late 1940 so perhaps no radio then. I will then give it a finishing coat of varnish before adding the windscreen.

 

Cheers

 

Pete

Edited by PeterB
  • Like 9
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am ready to put the undercarriage etc on the G 50 but in the meantime I have got the top wing back on the CR 42.

DSC03230-crop

Bit of touching up to do and a quick spray of matt varnish. Then just the windscreen to fit and it will be done. Looks a lot better than it did when first I built it. - only taken 2 years! When I started I thought the Colourcoats Giallo Mimetico 3 was far too yellow, but having toned it down a little with a thin wash of GM4 I think it looks right. Still think the underside Grigio Mimetico is a touch dark but I can live with it. Not too bad for a 50+ year old kit.

 

Pete

Edited by PeterB
  • Like 7
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...