A couple of Dewoitines D520 in 1/72 and 55 years between them

[JWM]

Hi

The very last two models which I did in 2020 are two Dewoitnes D 520.  One is a OOB (except decals) from a Hasegawa kit, the second one has a complex history and is very important as a foundation myth (or foundation stone) of my modelling in some way - this is a Frog kit glued (but not painted) by my Father when he returned from a scholarship on Manchester University in 1961. In his youth (1950s) he was constructing some airplane or train engines large scale models out of the scratch  and also paper airplane models.  As a young astronomer preparing his PhD from a country behind iron curtain he got the scholarship for 3 months at the University  of Manchester to verify his calculations using computer. Those days there was no computer at all in Poland. When he was on site he found out, that the scholarship is in fact founded by NATO, so was terrified to keep it in the deepest secret, to avoid being accused for espionage after return... He told this to us few years ago only. The reason of getting this scholarship was that his PhD was about the mass distribution on Moon (so called mascons, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mass_concentration_(astronomy) ) which results in a kind of oscillations of Moon, and those movements allows to do some mathematical calculations to get their distribution. Those objects could be dangerous for low-level orbiting over Moon, therefore the knowledge on them was so important at this time. An the observations of those oscillations were done 50 years earlier, in beginning of  XX century by professor T.Banachiewicz, Polish astronomer  (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tadeusz_Banachiewicz), when he worked in Kazan, Russia, before revolution. And this was the best (longest and most precise) set of data before the satellites era.  Father got this set of data from Banachiewicz to work on this for his PhD, so to do those calculations.  When Father was in UK he discovered model shops and whole world of modelling, not present in communist Polns these years, so he bought some of them like Airfix Caravelle, Comet and Vanguard in 1/144, Queen Elisabeth in 1/600 and in 1/72 F4U1D Corsair by Revell and  Dewoitine 520 from Frog. In subsequent five years he did them for his children, so for me and my older Brother ( @KRK4m ). Two in 1/72 models were unpainted, since he bought only basic colors like white, black, red, brown - which enabled finishing the others. 

Here is a bit nostalgic photo from that era (~1963-4) of us posing with Caravelle and Comet (that is me):

 

Then, within few years some  models appeared in Poland, Father was introducing us to this hobby and within few years we started to do models by ourselves. I painted Dewoitine (ugh...- without thinner with glossy paints) and Brother did the same to Corsair, then after some time I repainted it already with mat colors and then (still some 45 year ago) third time. So it had a really thick cover of paints.  Many times  the prop and the legs were broken, since we were playing some children games with them before. All the time they were  glued back so surprisingly the model survived 55 year with only Pitot tube lost. Some time ago I immersed it in NaOH solution for couple of weeks a removed all paint. 

 

The canopy looks terrible it was even a bit opaque due to glue, but I polished it and cover with gloss varnish. I have made some small fixes (like filling holes in cooler and main wheel bay), I shorted the u/c legs to match that of Hasegawa kit and painted. I used the decals from the ancient Esci set (for individual machine, the roundels are by Techmod), it presents machine No 105 from 2 Ecadrille of GC I/3 during 1940 defense of France:

 

In parallel I completed the Hasegawa kit, also using mix of decals - main part come from box, but the Squadron emblem comes from the same Esci set. 

This is machine No 49 from Vichy AF, 2 Escadrille of GC II/6 based in Thies , Senegal in August 1941

 

 

An both together

 

 

Comments welcome. Welcome also to my yearbook, the year score is 24 new plus two restored.

 

Have a happy whole New, the 2021 year, back in normal free of epidemic fears and fully in health!

Regards

Jerzy-Wojtek

 

[HOUSTON]

HAPPY HOLIDAYS and a Very Happier New Year. 

 

Your story is lovely .

And your models are  most IMPRESSIVE  and quite RESPLENDENT. 

 

 

   

[jean]

Hi Jerzy-Wojtek,

 

I always delight in looking at models of D520, in my mind the most beautiful plane of the 1940s.

The ancient one has been really well restored, and the Hasegawa one looks great in striped pajamas. By the way, what kit was the one you built as a toddler?!

Great show and congrats for bringing a derelict piece of plastic back to a vibrant life!

All the best to you and family for 2021.

Ciao

 

JR

[junglierating]

Fabulous story....maybe there is a book in it🤔and what a positive way to end 2020.

 

szczęśliwego Nowego Roku....hope thats correct 😀

[noelh]

Great models and story . Hard to believe one is so old. I remember seeing a Frog Dewotine 520 in the local shop but alas the pocket money ran out. It's an elegant little aeroplane. 

 

As for your Dad, very interesting. It looks like an almighty security slip to offer a NATO funded scholarship to a man from a Warsaw Pact country. Amusing in retrospect. Not so amusing at the time. 

 

Poland too in modeling terms is now up there with the best. Things have turned around certainly. 

Edited December 30, 2020 by noelh

[swralph]

Very nice.😀

[JWM]

1 hour ago, jean said:

By the way, what kit was the one you built as a toddler?!

I am not sure what was the first one, I am remember that we were constructing Polish mainly Ruch kits like P 11c, Karaś, Mig 15 - SZD Jakółka (glider), TS 11 Iskra, SR 53 (copy of Airfx kit)  as well as VEB Plasticart models and mine early of them were Mil 1 (that one was for sure very early), Boeing 727 and  Il 18, later An 12, Tu 134 and An 24. All for sure below age of 10. First western was Airfix old mould of Spitfire Mk IX (JE-J) - and I was perhaps  about 9 years old. And that one I was already painting. Very early, about 10 years old  I was trying conversions - P 11 into P24, correction of shapes of Ruch Karas, correction of An-2 by VEB Plasticard and even conversion of P11 into IAR 80.... There were very poor works but I was gathering experience on them. First conversion which I did still in elementary school and I have on my shelf is P24 made of Revel P11c.  I have to de dust it before making photo...

Regards

J-W

 

[S. Uehlinger]

Hi Jerzy-Wojtek,

 

Thanks for sharing and your Great Story!   I can see why your Dad would want to hide the NATO connection for about 50 years!   As my wife was born in the former Soviet Union (Moldova), I understand what life was like in the old Bloc.

 

The models are Fantastic!  I also have a weakness for the D.520, and have 2 Frog kits and several of the HobbyBoss kits.    The latter are quite cheap - the major difference between the 2 kits is that the wings are narrower and longer on the Hobbyboss kit.     I like the Frog kit because the shorter wingspan allows the completed model to be put in a standard 1/72 Trumpeter display case - an impossibility with any WW2 German, British or American fighter.....

 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

[TheyJammedKenny!]

Jerzy-Wojtek: Wonderful story and great models, too!  The D520 is really an elegant machine.  I had no idea you and @KRK4m were related, or that your father had accomplished so much!  Did you and your brother both end up working at the local museum?  Best wishes to you this season!  Alex

[JWM]

2 hours ago, TheyJammedKenny! said:

Jerzy-Wojtek: Wonderful story and great models, too!  The D520 is really an elegant machine.  I had no idea you and @KRK4m were related, or that your father had accomplished so much!  Did you and your brother both end up working at the local museum?  Best wishes to you this season!  Alex

Alex,

Only Michael was working for many years in museum, for some year he was even an acting head of it. My profession is closer to that of our Dad, I am a nuclear physicist, and I work in this field, so airplanes are just a hobby for me.,,

 

4 hours ago, S. Uehlinger said:

Thanks for sharing and your Great Story!   I can see why your Dad would want to hide the NATO connection for about 50 years!   As my wife was born in the former Soviet Union (Moldova), I understand what life was like in the old Bloc.

 

BTW - I know someone from Moldova who works now in US (at NIST - not very far from Pennsylvania) is the Moldavian minority in that area large? Anyway nice to hear that you know how it was...

 

All the best for New Year!

Jerzy-Wojtek

 

 

[S. Uehlinger]

The Philadelphia area has quite a few Romanian-Americans, we have found.   We have quite a few friends in that community, although Moldovans are a bit scarer on the ground.    My wife is thus the equivalent of a Canadian with a bunch of Americans. ...there are some cultural differences.     Having been born in Soviet Union, my wife has native Romanian and near fluent Russian - amongst Romanians, finding Russian speakers are rare.    I speak Russian (having learned it in Foreign Ministry) , but only understand Romanian.     When we were dating, when I was working at the US Embassy Moldova, we used to communicate in a combination of English and Russian.    I also learned Estonian at one point, believe it or not...a language spoken by only about 3 million people....

[JWM]

 

On 12/30/2020 at 2:36 PM, HOUSTON said:

HAPPY HOLIDAYS and a Very Happier New Year. 

 

Your story is lovely .

And your models are  most IMPRESSIVE  and quite RESPLENDENT. 

Houston, many thanks for such nice comment!

 

On 12/30/2020 at 2:36 PM, jean said:

I always delight in looking at models of D520, in my mind the most beautiful plane of the 1940s.

The ancient one has been really well restored, and the Hasegawa one looks great in striped pajamas. By the way, what kit was the one you built as a toddler?!

Great show and congrats for bringing a derelict piece of plastic back to a vibrant life!

All the best to you and family for 2021.

Ciao

 

JR

Jean,

In addition to fast reply before I would like to thanks for wishes and please accept my best wishes to you  and your family. The D-520 was very special, its development stopped due to what happened in history at the moment like Spitfire would be known only from Mk I and Mk II, I want to say that she had  similar potential and perhaps could end with Griffon size engine.... But it never happened. 

I realized that on my shelves, among some 430 models there are still about 60 of them which I did during my school days (so remained with me ~ 1/3 out of about 180 which I did before 1978) ... 

 

On 12/30/2020 at 2:40 PM, junglierating said:

Fabulous story....maybe there is a book in it🤔and what a positive way to end 2020.

 

szczęśliwego Nowego Roku....hope thats correct 😀

Thank you! Indeed, my Dad actually wrote about the story of his scholarship in one of his articles on history of Krakow astronomy...Your Polish is perfect!

 

On 12/30/2020 at 2:55 PM, noelh said:

Great models and story . Hard to believe one is so old. I remember seeing a Frog Dewotine 520 in the local shop but alas the pocket money ran out. It's an elegant little aeroplane. 

 

As for your Dad, very interesting. It looks like an almighty security slip to offer a NATO funded scholarship to a man from a Warsaw Pact country. Amusing in retrospect. Not so amusing at the time. 

 

Poland too in modeling terms is now up there with the best. Things have turned around certainly. 

 

Thank you! This was a bit horror in those times and now it is a nice story...

I am also very pleased now that due to efforts of many Polish modelers (now the leading position have Arma Hobby and IBG, but before it also Choroszy, Karaya, Lukegrph, Ardpol , Broplan etc. ....) Poland became important place on a model world, I was jealous sorry for achievements of our Czech brothers in this field in last 25 years... Also Ukraine and Russia made great progress here in last decade. 

On 12/30/2020 at 3:35 PM, swralph said:

Very nice.😀

Thank you!

 

Regards

Jerzy-Wojtek

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Sky Keg]

What an outstanding posting Jerzy!!!  All the best to you and your family and here`s wishing you a very prosperous 2021 New Year.  

 

Mike

[junglierating]

Your Polish is perfect  😆😆😆😆

 

That book sounds interesting 🤔

[JWM]

On 1/1/2021 at 12:05 PM, Sky Keg said:

What an outstanding posting Jerzy!!!  All the best to you and your family and here`s wishing you a very prosperous 2021 New Year.  

 

Mike

Mike, many thanks! I appreciete very much and all the best to you and your family as well!

 

On 1/1/2021 at 12:20 PM, junglierating said:

Your Polish is perfect  😆😆😆😆

 

That book sounds interesting 🤔

Thank you!

 

Regards

Jerzy-Wojtek

 

 

[Natter]

Super Dewoitines.  The Frog D.520 was one of the first models I built (with a bit of help from my Dad!) back in '69 or '70 when I was about five.  Tube glue, no paint, decals onto plastic.  Like your own, fond memories.

[Gary Brantley]

Thanks Jerzy-Wojtek for that great story behind these models! 🍻  It was fascinating for me to read about your father's experiences in the UK in the early 1960s.   As I was reading, I was trying to imagine how excited and also anxious your father must've been, and what an amazing journey for a young Pole of his time.   Thanks for giving us a peek at life behind that Iron Curtain in those days.   That model has taken quite a journey of its own through the years!   I think it's so wonderful that it's still here, and that your family has preserved such incredible family history.   Please take a bow Jerzy-Wojtek for the models and the inspiration!!