Cessna 150L

[bar side]

I had a taster flight out of Duxford a while back with Classic Wings.  The aircraft was a Cessna 150L Aerobat.  When I got back I had a quick look and found a Bandai kit in 1/48 - my usual scale.  So as a change from the usual military jets I would have a go at painting it to look a bit like G-BCDY.  This is how she turned out

 

 

 

 

This was the kit

 

 

The faired over wheels had to be fixed.  The wheels in the kit are only half moulded so whole new wheels needed.  The colours are not quite right.  The blue is too dark.  I had to loose some of the engine detail to stuff in enough lead for her to not tail sit.  I should have used some fine 1mm tape for the lining but just tried cutting some.  And the serial number is in the wrong font and too big.  8mm high letter when I think 6mm would have been better.  But she will do to remind me of my first time on the controls!

 

Thanks for looking 

 

[Robin-42]

Thanks for posting. She looks great. The 150 never gets the respect it deserves. It quietly chugs along, allowing simple affordable flying. (Affordable being a relative term of course.) I had quite a few hours in them back in the day, being trained and training people in them later. No matter who you were with, you were going to get a cuddle-there was nowhere else to go! It would suffer a multitude of indignities from students, and generally emerge unscathed. Pro tip, always know where the ailerons are during a walk around. More than one pilot has collected a diamond pattern across their forehead.😁

[Mark V]

That looks great. I, too, had several hours in 150s and 172s. I have read that this kit, like the other 1/48th civilian light aircraft kits (Minicraft?) were difficult. Yours looks great! Thank you for posting it.  

[Maginot]

Good work. It's not often I see a type I've actually flown presented in these pages.

[bar side]

3 hours ago, Mark V said:

That looks great. I, too, had several hours in 150s and 172s. I have read that this kit, like the other 1/48th civilian light aircraft kits (Minicraft?) were difficult. Yours looks great! Thank you for posting it.  

Thanks! Kits is generally ok but tiny compared to most others.  There isn’t much space ahead of the centre of gravity to stuff nose weight but they do provide a pole to fit below the rear fuselage to keep it level (I didn’t want that!). Most joins have no locating pins & the body to engine cowl fit needs some filling & sanding.  Not sure how accurate the kit is either but the result was ok.

Edited July 2, 2022 by bar side

[noelh]

8 hours ago, Robin-42 said:

Thanks for posting. She looks great. The 150 never gets the respect it deserves. It quietly chugs along, allowing simple affordable flying. (Affordable being a relative term of course.) I had quite a few hours in them back in the day, being trained and training people in them later. No matter who you were with, you were going to get a cuddle-there was nowhere else to go! It would suffer a multitude of indignities from students, and generally emerge unscathed. Pro tip, always know where the ailerons are during a walk around. More than one pilot has collected a diamond pattern across their forehead.😁

I am that pilot 🤣. Also I  cracked my Ray Bans walking into the  trailing edge.🤕. I spent quite a few hours using and abusing 150s. They take a lot of punishment.

 

The model is very nicely built and certainly captured the essence of the C150. As for accuracy well there were as many variants of the 150/152 as there are of Sherman tanks. It's  very difficult to find two the same. That particular 150L was built in France and is a Reims Cessna. Some of them used  Rolls Royce built Continental engines.

 

Great  job on it.

 

 

 

Edited July 2, 2022 by noelh

[bar side]

Cheers guys - thanks for the kind comments.  This is the real one at Duxford before my flight

 

 

I spaced the nose chequers to far apart & started them too far back but I can live with it.  The instrument panel turned out quite well although you will never see it!

 

 

And this is inside the engine bay with the main engine parts & lots of lead solder

 

 

 

[Unfinished project]

Looks great, even in 1/48 it can’t be an easy build and painting experience. the Cessna 150 is the aircraft I had my first pleasure/flying lesson at Tayside Aviation many moons ago

[Robin-42]

I was wondering how you got enough weight in the nose. Now I know!

[Scooby]

12 hours ago, Robin-42 said:

Thanks for posting. She looks great. The 150 never gets the respect it deserves. It quietly chugs along, allowing simple affordable flying. (Affordable being a relative term of course.) I had quite a few hours in them back in the day, being trained and training people in them later. No matter who you were with, you were going to get a cuddle-there was nowhere else to go! It would suffer a multitude of indignities from students, and generally emerge unscathed. Pro tip, always know where the ailerons are during a walk around. More than one pilot has collected a diamond pattern across their forehead.😁

Try walking into a Herc blade, the aircraft doesn’t budge. You only do that once. The tip of it just caught the top of my scalp. Or cutting your scalp on a Hornet gear door, they even give us a cranial to wear.

 

Agree, the 150 doesn’t get enough love. I nearly bought a chrome polished 140 at one time, still kicking myself for not buying that classic.

 

Nice build by the original poster.

[Scooby]

3 hours ago, bar side said:

Cheers guys - thanks for the kind comments.  This is the real one at Duxford before my flight

 

 

I spaced the nose chequers to far apart & started them too far back but I can live with it.  The instrument panel turned out quite well although you will never see it!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nice build, she is a beauty. I have at least a 100 hours in 150s, despite serving 25 years in RCAF flying squadrons with fancy aircraft, I have a fondness for the 150.

 

My son leaves on his power flying scholarship tomorrow with the Royal Canadian Air Cadets. Lucky guy, he gets to learn on the giant 172.

[bar side]

1 hour ago, Scooby said:

Try walking into a Herc blade, the aircraft doesn’t budge. You only do that once. The tip of it just caught the top of my scalp. Or cutting your scalp on a Hornet gear door, they even give us a cranial to wear.

 

Agree, the 150 doesn’t get enough love. I nearly bought a chrome polished 140 at one time, still kicking myself for not buying that classic.

 

Nice build by the original poster.

I could pose that! I have a 1/48 Herc with motorised props.  Bit bigger than a 150.  I did think about putting a motor in the 150 but I had nowhere to put the battery & it would have cut down my nose weight space

 

[noelh]

7 hours ago, Scooby said:

Try walking into a Herc blade, the aircraft doesn’t budge. You only do that once. .

One moment that still  gives  me the shivers. Two aeroplanes, we were landing at  another  airfield. I shut down and headed directly for the other aircraft taxying in to talk to the boss. Realised I was walking directly into a turning prop. The sick feeling I felt as I dodged it, even now as I say it.😣

Edited July 2, 2022 by noelh