1/72 Pavla Boeing 281 export version of P-26A. Nankin/Shanghai 1937

[Tommy Liu]

1/72 Pavla Boeing 281 Peashooter is done!!!! The Rigging is the hardest part as the 0.01 mm Ammo rigging is very vulnerable. The interior is the aftermarket PE accessories by Brengun. Had a lot of sanding and gap-filling work to do, although only a few parts were included in this kit. 

 

Boeing 281 is the export version of P-26A. The only difference is that model 281 does not have a radio which is fatal to pilots' communication during the fighting. 

 

Canton warlord purchased these 10 planes during the 1930s but eventually were received by the Chinese Central government due to rebellion in Canton. Planes come with light grey so the warlord called this unit the White Eagle Squadron. 

 

Boeing 281 was the best plane the Chinese government equipped during the beginning of the Sino-Japanese War. They were even better than Hawk III and Fiat CR.32. Thus, they were used to protect the capital city Nankin. Furthermore, they were used to escort He-111A0 and Martin B-10 bombers to attack IJN headquarters during the battle of Shanghai in 1937.

 

 

These two historical Pictures below were taken by Norbert Poncetti. Quoted from "Boeing Model 281 — Chinese Peashooters" https://sinorecords.org/boeing-281/

 

Reference 

 

Leo Guo (2020) "Boeing Model 281 — Chinese Peashooters", Sino s Records, https://sinorecords.org/boeing-281/

 

 

 

 

(Norbert Poncetti) Leo Guo (2020) "Boeing Model 281 — Chinese Peashooters"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Norbert Poncetti)  Leo Guo (2020) "Boeing Model 281 — Chinese Peashooters"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 19 by Tommy Liu

[TonyW]

That cockpit looks incredible.

 

Having a couple of old Revell builds here makes me appreciate the amount of work and detailing you have put into this build. It also makes me wonder how you did it, the plane is tiny in 1.72!

[Tommy Liu]

@TonyW Thank you Tony! 
 

This kit was very hard to work with as a lot of gap filling required. Also needed to rescribe the panel lines. Moreover, the interior was a nightmare as the PE parts are very tiny so hard to bend and glue them.

[Toryu]

Great work, Tommy! Surprising result for such a small model.

[Armorrich]

Beautiful, intricate work. I wish there was a updated kit of this little aircraft. Thanks for the history lesson also!! Very well done. 

 

Cheers...Rich 

[Tommy Liu]

@Toryu Thank you! 

[Tommy Liu]

@Armorrich Thank you! And I’m glad you are interested to know this history. 

[georgeusa]

That is one great looking Peashooter.  Just an awful lot of detail packed into a very small kit.  Well done.  Thanks for sharing.

[Pete in a shed]

Very skilful work considering the diminutive size of the Peashooter in 1/72 and it looks great in the Chinese colour scheme. A nice change from the blue/green and yellow its usually seen in.

Pete

[Tommy Liu]

@Pete in a shed Thank you! This scheme is very rare in China as only warlord had it. The central gov’s scheme was dark green and olive drab. 

@georgeusa Thank you! Packing all details on a 1/72 aircraft wasn’t easy. I’m glad you like it. 
 

cheers 

[Ed Russell]

A really nice precise job of making a somewhat difficult kit. Great references and back story.

The cockpit, engine and rigging detail is excellent.

Note that the pcture of the real one does not have those black lines painted on the fuselage.

[Tommy Liu]

@Ed Russell Thank you for your comment. 
 

These black lines were my mistakes as I did too much panel line wash on them.

 

However, they do actually exist on the fuselage.
 

Because planes from history pics are all new assembled, the stains on panel lines wouldn’t be very obvious. Also, these panel lines were not clear due to poor quality of photos. 

[Ed Russell]

6 hours ago, Tommy Liu said:

they do actually exist on the fuselage.

Not really - look at these pictures which can be enlarged to 5-10x size of the model.

https://airandspace.si.edu/collection-media/NASM-A19730273000-NASM2019-00988

https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/Museum-Exhibits/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/198089/boeing-p-26a/

Not a black line to be seen!

If it were my model I would put a grey wash over them, covering about 95% of their intensity.

However I don't want to detract from the excellent construction job you have done. I like it a lot!