Academy Chance-Vought SB2U-3 Vindicator (1/48)

[NMS Models]

This is the latest build I finished, just a couple days before signing up. The Vindicator was an American inter-war carrier-based dive-bomber and one of the first monoplanes to enter military service for the country. As such, you can see a lot of older design trends based off of biplanes in the design, such as the fabric tail-boom, the whole engine being self-contained in the front cowling, and the full set of flight controls in the rear cockpit, thus allowing the plane to be flown from the backseat (for pilots used to biplanes who preferred flying from there, and as a backup in case the pilot was lost/incapacitated).

 

The kit was from Academy, with original molding by Accurate Miniatures.

 

The plane next to a reference photo (my plane is US Navy operated, whereas the plane in the picture was US Marine Corps operated, per the paint schemes).

 

Zooming out a bit for a better view of the overall aircraft. Constant combat drilling leading up to the Battle of Midway has taken its toll, and the plane is fairly dirty. The front canopy was glued open as it would not sit very well in the closed position.

 

Rear profile, we can see the scratch-marks around the often-used panels. All the rear canopy pieces are glued in the closed position, as trying to fit all of them underneath the central canopy piece to have them open is a disaster waiting to happen with the OOB parts. I'd need to vacuum-form the canopy to do that properly. Also by my references, the solid portion of the rear canopy went between either a full metal plate covering or having the inside covered with the windows still there (I put it down to earlier models being converted). I opted for the latter option since it looks more interesting, but the former can be done by sanding off the canopy window frames in that area.

 

The plane was equipped with a Pratt & Whitney R1530 Twin Wasp radial engine. with a two-blade Hamilton Standard propeller. The engine cylinder banks in the kit were good, but then they went and ruined the whole thing with one of the worst attempts at injection-molding ignition wires I've seen in a long time. Needless to say, I discarded all that and scratch-built all the finer details inside the engine (connecting rods and ignition wires). It was well worth the effort. The propeller does not spin because I was dumb and forgot to install the spinner inside the engine, so I had to glue it.

 

From cockpit with instrument panel (photo-etch upgrade from Eduard). The shape of the instrument panel was actually a pretty major inaccuracy in the kit; OOB it had indented side frames leading up to the top, whereas on the real plane they were straight. I used Milliput to correct the shape. This made fitting it a major pain, but I eventually found a home for it, and thankfully left myself just enough room to fit the tubular bomb sight.

 

 

Back cockpit, with navigation antenna, seatbelts, and rear machine gun visible.

 

 

Underneath the plane. we can see the salty tropical air has not been kind to this bird.

 

Getting in closer for a better view of the landing gear assembly (they rotated 90 degrees and retracted into the round divots behind them), as well as the oil and dirt stains on the bottom. I like the way the wear turned out on the bomb, as well.

 

And last but not least a group-shot of the Vindicator with a bunch of her friends from Midway. I've got a Buffalo, a Wildcat, and a Devastator. The Dauntless is in my build queue, but I'm waiting for more materials for it, as I am doing it in 1/32 scale.

 

That's all for now. Hope you enjoyed the photos, and I'll see you soon in the WIP forums for my next build!

[Pete in a shed]

Great looking Vindicator. I like the simple colour scheme with that very small side roundal. Well done with the  weathering and the extra detailing, it really looks the part.

Pete

[Snafu35]

Hello NMS,

 

This is another fine construction of an underrated aircraft. Congrats!
I had read that the ACCURATE MINIATURE model had an erroneous reproduction of the roof space between the two crew compartments, a detail that the HiPM brand has done a better job of understanding, however the assembly is more...sporty?

 

And you have a nice collection on the Midway theme. You built these models to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the battle?

 

Regards,

Eric-Snafu35

[NMS Models]

4 hours ago, Snafu35 said:

Hello NMS,

 

This is another fine construction of an underrated aircraft. Congrats!
I had read that the ACCURATE MINIATURE model had an erroneous reproduction of the roof space between the two crew compartments, a detail that the HiPM brand has done a better job of understanding, however the assembly is more...sporty?

 

And you have a nice collection on the Midway theme. You built these models to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the battle?

 

Regards,

Eric-Snafu35

 

That is related to the issue of the window frames I was talking about, but the more research I did the muddier things got. You can see in the photos here that the frames for the windows are clearly visible in that covered section, so ultimately it was a toss-up for me as to which style to use. I ultimately opted for the one depicted in the photos I linked.

 

What is confusing is that the instructions for the kit are... not good to put it kindly. And one of the problems is that the aircraft pictures in the painting guide do not match the parts they gave you, again because of that roof section they molded into the clear plastic. It did take a while for me to figure out how I was going to handle it, but after scouring reference photos I decided that having the window frames there would ultimately be okay (plus I was opening the canopy so that bit would be covered). Definitely a discussion could be had over which way is more authentic, I'm sure. 😛

Edited July 15, 2022 by NMS Models

[Pete Robin]

Very nice, well weathered and presented.

Regards

Pete

[Pantherhawk27263]

Very nicely done!

[providence]

Nice collection !

[opus999]

Beautiful work an a plane we don't see a lot of around here!