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A-36, Condor 1/72 -- Challenge accepted!


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A-36A | 1/72 | Condor

524th Fighter Bomber Squadron, 27th Fighter Bomber Group, Sicily 1943

 

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Finished this on 3/28/2021.  As 1/72 modelers know, there is no good A-36 (or any P-51A, really) out there.  This Condor kit was rated as "adequate" in contemporary reviews.  I went into it knowing it wouldn't be easy and it did not disappoint!  It fought me every step of the way.  Early on I abandoned sandpaper and went to using a file because I had to remove so much plastic to even get it to fit correctly, much less to look close to correct!  There was a lot of scratchbuilding, raiding the spares box and even some aftermarket parts involved.

 

There was some early concern about the shape of the fuselage, but after a careful comparison with some good side photos, it turns out that Condor's fuselage shape is very, very close!  Everything forward of the exhaust stacks had to be reworked:  I had to sand the underside of the fuselage to get the right shape, make an extension to the intake on top of the nose and sand the spinner so that it wasn't so bulbous.  The Condor kit doesn't have the "wing kink", but the leading edge at the wing roots was thick enough that I was able to sand a reasonable impression of the wing kink using reference photos.  All the details are in my WIP thread.

 

Finishing: Scratch built cockpit, seams filled with CA, spare Hasagawa P-40 bombs.

Paint: Mr Color C12 Olive Drab top / Mr. Color C306 Gray bottom / Hataka insignia yellow stripes

Aftermarket: SBS P-51 wheels

 

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The kit bombs were a very strange shape and not very detailed, so I used some Hasegawa P-40 bombs I had in the spares box.  That meant I had to scratch build some sway braces.  Turned out fairly well.

 

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There was really no cockpit to speak of, so I had to scratch build it:

 

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I'm very happy with how this turned out and I'm pretty gratified I was able to make it look decent given how poor fitting the kit was and how inaccurate it was.  I'm still hoping someone (Arma????) will do a decent P-51A/A-36  in 1/72 though!

 

I hope you like it.  Questions, comments and constructive criticism always welcome.

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It's a beautiful model and an excellent outcome after all the problems it threw at you! You should be rightly proud of your A-36, and I would say it would be very difficult to find a better one in this or any scale!

Superb!

 

Cheers,

Mark

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I have the same feeling about the Mustang (the plane) and the Mustang (the car): the first ones are the prettiest! :thumbsup:

The Allison engined Mustangs just looks lighter and more agile - I know the D version was a superior plane, but still...! :winkgrin:

Your model really captures the feeling of the early P-51! Well done! :goodjob:

 

Cheers :bye:

Hans J

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7 hours ago, Corsairfoxfouruncle said:

Well done on this Pony. :clap2: ... The Allison Mustang/Apache remains one of my longest waiting 🦄 build. Ive only ever seen two kits in person and didn't have the $ when I did see them. 

Thanks Dennis!  I hope a decent one comes your way one of these days!  

 

7 hours ago, 2996 Victor said:

It's a beautiful model and an excellent outcome after all the problems it threw at you! You should be rightly proud of your A-36, and I would say it would be very difficult to find a better one in this or any scale!

Superb!

 

Cheers,

Mark

Gosh... Thanks Mark!  It was an interesting challenge! :) 

 

6 hours ago, HansReggelsen said:

I have the same feeling about the Mustang (the plane) and the Mustang (the car): the first ones are the prettiest!

I agree! :D 

 

6 hours ago, HansReggelsen said:

Your model really captures the feeling of the early P-51! Well done! 

Thank you!

 

5 hours ago, Ventsislav Gramatski said:

Lovely model! I have next to no knowledge on the Allison-engined Mustangs but the effort put into this (I followed the WIP thread) really show through.

 

The subdued weathering you do looks great, I always struggle not to overdo that (and usually fail).

Nice to have you along!  I'm glad the weathering looks appropriate... it took me a long time to learn not to overdo it too! :D 

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Fantastic work! Wasn‘t it much more satisfying than a simple OOB build of a perfect kit? Such is a real modeller‘s job, and it came out very well.

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10 hours ago, Toryu said:

Fantastic work! Wasn‘t it much more satisfying than a simple OOB build of a perfect kit? Such is a real modeller‘s job, and it came out very well.

Oh, yes!  I had quite a feeling of accomplishment after finishing this kit!

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5 hours ago, Wulfman said:

Excellent job on a very basic kit, great modelling ! I gave up on mine.

 

Wulfman

Thanks!  If I've started this even 5 years ago I might have set it aside by the time I got to the wings.  Of course, having people watching is a great motivator! :laugh:

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Excellent work on difficult kit. I did this one in 2008 having started it in 2006. I remember it to be challenging but it turned ok, for me anyway. Your’s looks much nicer though.

 

Cheers, Allan 

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Not exactly my modelling subject, but exactly the kind of modelling that I like. And I for certain do acknowledge the excellent result despite the hard fight it had given you.

Edited by Patrik
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I've neglected to compliment your achievement here in the RFI!  Well done, amigo mio.  😎

 

(Have you seen this Arma Hobby?  Opus did the needful.  A short-run kit of a neglected topic hath been completed and publickly displayed, in accordance with the ancient lore!  I bid thee fulfill the law, and tool up some new Allison Mustang kits!  Go on, now-- be smart about it, I've cash in hand....)

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On 4/4/2021 at 4:13 AM, almac said:

Excellent work on difficult kit. I did this one in 2008 having started it in 2006. I remember it to be challenging but it turned ok, for me anyway. Your’s looks much nicer though.

 

Cheers, Allan 

Thank you! It wasn't the worst modelling experience, but it was one of the more challenging!

 

On 4/4/2021 at 12:51 PM, Patrik said:

Not exactly my modelling subject, but exactly the kind of modelling that I like. And I for certain do acknowledge the excellent result despite the hard fight it had given you.

Thanks! In the end it was worth it... ;) 

 

21 hours ago, kapam said:

Wonderful job.

Not built an Allison-engine variant myself, but I agree with @HansReggelsen, it is a fine-looking plane!

Thanks!  I like these early Mustangs... a little skinny looking, but also nimble looking too!

 

19 hours ago, Jackson Duvalier said:

I've neglected to compliment your achievement here in the RFI!  Well done, amigo mio.  😎

 

(Have you seen this Arma Hobby?  Opus did the needful.  A short-run kit of a neglected topic hath been completed and publickly displayed, in accordance with the ancient lore!  I bid thee fulfill the law, and tool up some new Allison Mustang kits!  Go on, now-- be smart about it, I've cash in hand....)

:D any day now... Arma will make an announcement any day now... .right?  RIGHT???

 

Thanks Jackson!  As always it was fun to have you along for good advice, or at least some helpful observations!

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