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1/32nd Trumpeter P-40F Warhawk, 57th FG, USAAF, N.Africa 1943


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Hiya Folks,

                 I`ve been ticking along in the background with this one as I have a soft spot for the Merlin engined P-40F, especially those flown by the USAAF in the Mediterranean Theatre and this is the Trumpeter 1/32nd P40-F Warhawk which I bought when it was first released. The later long tailed variant had more interesting colour schemes but as this was the short tailed variant it limited things slightly, plus there were hardly any aftermarket decals available which suit this variant and the kit decal options were not all that accurate either, nor were the unit details recorded on the instructions either. I did toy with the kit decal option for the 66th FS `The Extermintors' of the 57th FG, coded 7-8 and wearing the squadrons fighting cock insignia but compared to photos of the real thing the numbers were too small, the fuselage star ws too small too and the kit decal had a yellow outline which the star on the real aircraft did not!  In the end I opted for DK Decals set 32008 which has excellent options for  a USAAF, French AF and RAAF option, all North African based and one USAAF aircraft of the 18th FG based at Guadalcanal.  I went for the option flown by Capt. R. Whittaker of the 65th FS, 57th FG USAAF which was attached to the Desert Air Force during its battles against Rommel during 1942-43 and wearing the characteristic  Desert Pink and Neutral Grey scheme. For this I used some old Aeromaster acrylics and as usual the model was brush painted.  The kit was pretty easy to build and had quite a few etched parts included for the pilots harness and wing stringers in the flap area amongst others, the tyres are also moulded in rubber, so some may opt for resin alternatives. 

 

Here is the real aircraft;

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Capt Whittaker,.... note how the canopy frame lines have not been repainted with Desert Pink too;

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The DK Decals instructions;

DK32008-P-40-F-Warhawk-Kittyhawk-Mk-IIA-

 

And here is the model;

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Cheers

           Tony

Edited by tonyot
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27 minutes ago, Wulfman said:

A lovely build, great modelling !

 

Wulfman

Thanks Wulfman,.... glad you like it mate

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15 minutes ago, 72modeler said:

She's a beaut, Tony! You nailed the colors. :like:

Mike

Thanks Mike,..... very nice of you to sy so bud as USAAF colours are a bit out of my comfort one!

16 minutes ago, Jeff G said:

Not a common scheme for a P-40, the colours look spot on.

Thanks Jeff,..... I like to surprise people!

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14 minutes ago, Swifty said:

Brilliant job, thanks for sharing.

Thanks Swifty,.... glad you like it and cheers for saying so.... much appreciated mate.

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5 hours ago, chrispisme said:

Nicely done!

Thanks mate,..... glad you like it.

4 hours ago, Epeeman said:

Good work as always, Tony -

 

Great looking model P40

 

Regards

 

Dave

Thanks Dave,...... nice of you to say so mate,..... cheers. 

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33 minutes ago, mick b said:

Blimey Tony, I don’t know how you do it? Just banged out a couple of Sunderlands and now this beauty! Great stuff!

 

Mike

Cheers Mick,..... I just have a lot on mate,..... and I`ve not finished the silver Sunderland yet,... been filling and sanding the wing today after the joint failed! 

 

31 minutes ago, RMCS said:

Stunning 

Cheers mate,.... glad you like it. 

 

5 minutes ago, SAT69 said:

Great model of a classic warplane! She looks battle tested!

Thanks bud,.... the Western Desert wasn`t the most forgiving environment,..... I used a lot of reference photos to try and get it as right as I could. 

 

Cheers

         Tony

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14 minutes ago, Buzby061 said:

Cracking build & nicely finished. Quite fancy the French scheme myself. 
 

Peteb

Thanks mate,..... yeah I like the French one and the Aussie one too,....... I did a French one in 1/72nd  while ago.

 

So I`m on the lookout for a couple of cheap kits as the Trumpy one was quite expensive to be fair.

 

Cheers

          Tony

 

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If I were building another I would get after market exhausts as the kit ones for the rounded type were not good,...... although the flared exhausts do seem OK! 

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6 hours ago, stevej60 said:

Quality modelling as we've come to expect Tony,particularly like the paint finish.

Thanks Steve,..... very nice and kind of you to say so mate, cheers. 

 

6 hours ago, Alan P said:

Superb build yet again, Tony. Great attention to detail and a beautiful painted finish.

 

Excellent!

 

Alan

Thanks Alan,... as above it is very nice and kind of you to say so,.... and it is very much appreciated

 

Cheers

           Tony

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