Revell Goes True (1/72) Scale!

Imagine it's the early 1960's. Plastic model building is really starting to take off, especially here in the States. All variety of plastic models are available; ships, cars, space, aircraft. The latter, model airplanes, were usually the most inexpensive of the lot, and many model builders got their start with them.
The US, though, was slow to jump on the scale bandwagon. While model cars were being turned out in scales that were either 1/24 or 1/25, it took longer for model companies to care about them. Well, perhaps that isn't quite true; Monogram and Hawk were certainly turning out kits in 1/72 and 1/48, especially the larger of those two scales, and Lindberg was producing a few kits in 1/64 as well.
It was the plastic powerhouse Revell of Venice, California that lagged a little behind. Keep in mind that by the early 1960's, both Frog and Airfix already had extensive lines in 1/72. Most of Revell's kits were "box-scale", designed to fit a box, not a regular scale. You had aircraft as large as 1/45 sharing a common box size that also held models down to 1/180. The scales were all over the place.
When Revell decided to go to a true scale, they chose 1/72 for their aircraft kits. By the mid-1960's, they had a large number of World War II fighters and bombers, behind only Airfix in their offerings.
But these weren't Airfix quality.
While they were fairly good at capturing the appearance of many of the aircraft, most of the kits lacked good detail. Some parts were just wrong (quite often the landing gear), while others were stretched (their Spitfire Mk. II's fuselage) or squashed (canopies on the Spitfire, P-47D and F4U-1D). Some kits were surprisingly good (their Wildcat and Hurricane), others not. The kits also felt thin and somewhat flimsy. This is something I always felt about Revell's kits from this era; the plastic parts always felt thin. As the dies aged, this thinness presented further problems, namely flash and quite often short-shot parts.
For us here in the States, though, the presence of scale kits meant that we could now build accurate collections. Want to see how small a Bf-109E was next to a B-17F? All you needed was the money for the kits. The American molded Revell kits were inexpensive to boot, always lower in cost than imports, so you could build a collection relatively inexpensively.
The photo I've posted is of three of the fighter aircraft in various boxing, from 1963 (the P-47D), 1974 (the F4U-1) to 1988 (the Spitfire). For many of us, this was the only way to have some of these models in our collection, so we learned to either live with the shortcomings or honed skills to correct them.
For the average builder today, these kits have long been supplanted; there is not a kit from this series that hasn't been replaced. Those of us who love nostalgia, however, look upon them with most assuredly rose coloured glasses.

My First Hurricane

It was back around January 1977. I had just had my heart broken when my crush Cindy Brookes abruptly exited my fourteen year old life (she changed schools), so therefore I sought solace in plastic.
The plastic I chose that week was the Airfix Series I Hurricane Mk. IV.
This kit is ancient, dating back to the late 1950's. Aside from the packaging, little had changed about the model in all that time. When I bought it, it was in the later blister pack, and was soon to be relegated to history (though I can't say for certain when Airfix discontinued the model; before 1980 seems the likeliest answer). The model went together with relatively great speed. It was poorly camouflaged, using Testors Dark Gray and Pactra Forest Green over Pactra Confederate Gray. It also didn't last long, being traded away shortly thereafter once I discovered that the MPC Hurricane Mk. II was the newer Airfix Mk. II.
I did manage to get the model back some years later and tried to convert it into the Iranian Air Force Hurricane trainer. Suffice to say, that too was a disaster.
There are a lot of problems with this kit, make no mistake. While it does capture the overall shape of the prototype fairly well, the landing gear covers are the wrong shape. The same could be said for the horizontal stabilizers, being a little awkward as well.


There is no interior. In fact, there isn't even a seat. The pilot is simply glued into place on pins.

However, this model represents an important step in the development of the close support aircraft and an important Hurricane variant.
Can it be salvaged?
Of course it can!
There are a few things that can be corrected right off. First is the interior... or lack thereof. Some plasticard (sheet styrene) and odd bits from the spares box could certainly be used. New landing gear could easily be assembled from steel wire, with new gear covers from more plasticard. The wheels, whilst not perfect, are adequate. The problems arise in reshaping the landing gear wells; they match the landing gear themselves. There will need to be quite a bit of reshaping needed.
Will the end result be worth it? It depends upon ones point of view. While there are certainly better models out there, the challenge of taking an old dog and teaching it new tricks has its own rewards. For me, that is what this hobby is all about.

Battle of Britain Indecision

Decisions, decisions.
One of the things I've set out to do this summer is to model the aircraft of the Battle of Britain, with a particular slant towards the RAF and their brave effort. To that end, I have managed to secure a few aircraft models, though, admittedly, I am top heavy with Spitfires (what can I say, I'm a Spitfirephile). Of the Luftwaffe aircraft, I only have three; the Airfix Ju-87B, the MPC/Airfix Ju-88A4 and a bagged Airfix Bf-109E.
Here's where the trouble occurs.
You see, the Bf-109E kit was purchased for $1 in a Heller T-28 box with parts from other Bf-109's, an F and a K. Nothing was guaranteed at the time of purchase, and let's face it, $1 is very little money even for a bag of parts. In the latest analysis of the box, here's what I have -

-a nearly complete Heller Bf-109F, sans canopy
-an Airfix Bf-109E... missing many parts
-the wheels and cannon from the old Airfix Bf-109G
-a single sprue of Bf-109K parts
-three Bf-109E canopies; two Hasegawa, one Airfix

It was the Bf-109E I really wanted to build first, since it was on strength with the Luftwaffe during the Battle of Britain. It is very far from complete (horizontal stabilizers, braces, landing gear covers, tailwheel, seat, scoops). I could use the Heller Bf-109F kit to complete the Airfix model, but some parts won't work right; besides, I don't want to wreck a classic model like that (anyway, one of those "E" canopies can easily be modified to work with the model).
I could scratchbuild the missing parts, or hit the spares box.
Or I could just wait and buy another model.
If the Airfix Bf-109E is to be written off, then what kit next? An early combatant, perhaps? That'd be one of my Hurricane Mk.I's.
I have two of the wonderful Airfix Hurricane Mk. I's, plus the older Mk. I/IIB kit (not as wonderful, but okay). One of the Airfix kits is actually the Heller issue and comes with markings for a ship from the 306th (Polish) Squadron during the Battle of Britain, but there are questions about the propeller used, and some minor details that need to be corrected (the anti-dazzle plates ahead of the cockpit). The right proper Airfix kit is for Robert Stanford Tuck's "DT-A" and appears to be close to 100% accurate; this will probably be the first of the Hurricanes built.
If I go that way.
Still, the challenge of scratchbuilding the missing pieces for the Bf-109E has a strange allure to it. Now, if I can just make up my mind.

The Gift of a Book

Today seems like a good day to write about memories. For a number of reasons, actually. If this were some point 33 or so years ago, my best friend and I would be celebrating his birthday. From those long ago teenage years, very little remains; a few photographs, two small paintings, a beloved wooden box. But I have memories, and I cherish them as if they were gold.
From a few years later, I do have a book, though perhaps not the original. This was an unexpected gift from my stepfather, my Dad. It isn't much, "Fighters of World War II" by Charles W. Cain and Mike Jerram. It's actually a compilation from the "Profiles" series of books, something many hobbyists and aircraft enthusiasts were fond of.
Dad was just returning from a trip to Connecticut, just prior to the beginning of my senior year at Sandalwood High School, I reckon August of 1980. It was really unexpected; he just walked up and handed it to me.
I loved it.
Between the covers were the basic histories of fifteen different aircraft, specific models and variants in fact. I had planned to build each and everyone of them in miniature, 1/48 scale.
I had to put it off, though, so I could salvage my sagging grades and graduate on time. I managed to build two of the aircraft by the end of 1982, more than two years later.
As much as I loved the book, I had to relinquish it. We needed to eat, I had racked up a huge dental bill and our lives were from paycheck to paycheck. Many of my books, including this one, were sold just so we could eat.
It was last year that I stumbled across this one at Chamblin's Bookmine here in Jacksonville. Incredibly, there is a chance that this one may indeed be my copy; there are erasure marks were I am certain I wrote my name way back in 1980.
Perhaps I am wrong.
I was certainly pleased to locate it again, even if it isn't the original. It is something I wished I never let go to begin with, but now that I have it again, I would certainly like another crack at those aircraft.
Thanks, Dad.

Classic Kit of the Day - My Very First

It was just over forty years ago that this obsession with model aircraft began. Sadly, I do not remember the specifics of when it was bought, but I do remember it was at a five-and-dime. Every time we went in there, I would wander back to the model section. Right next door was Art's Hobby Shop, and I was not allowed to go in there alone (Art's rules, and I can't blame him), and mother was not interested in going in there either. So it was the five-and-dime, and their selection of models.
To be honest, they actually had a pretty good selection. Three companies were stocked for certain; Frog, Hawk and Lindberg. There were only a few cars, and those were Lindberg, if I remember correctly. I really wanted one of those Frog kits, but for our family, they were a little pricey. We were struggling to make ends meet.
So my eyes always went to the lower shelves and the smaller Lindberg kits. They sold for $.29, and at that price I was sure I could get one. It took a number of attempts, but mother finally caved.
And I came home with the Lindberg "Strategic Strafer".

We will not go much into how the build went. I was a seven year old boy, so obviously there were flaws. The landing gear were messed up, the machine guns botched, but the rest of the model looked alright to my young eyes, even if the propeller couldn't spin. But it was my first model airplane, and I loved it.
The "Strategic Strafer" is actually a P-47D Thunderbolt in 1/81 scale, which is almost American HO scale (1/87 scale). It is a very simple model, dating possibly from the 1940's. It might not even be a Lindberg kit originally. There was another company at the time named Olan that turned out a few kits. Lindberg bought the line a few years later. This model has many of Olan's traits, in particular a complete lack of rivets. Lindberg would eventually make a right proper P-47B in 1/72, but this kit has some issues of its own and has a different "feel" than this older model.
It's not perfect, but is very representative of plastic model kits from that period. The wheel wells are filled in, and there is no cockpit. The pilot is simply a head on a deck (ARRRGGGHHH!). The engine can only be described as bas relief. But the landing gear covers are actually the right shape, and the wheels looks decent, though I question their accuracy.
In overall shape, the model captures the lines of the P-47D decently though not 100%. If built by a competent model builder it could be made into a nice desk model.
There are some things about this kit that I had forgotten about, though. One is that the propeller does not spin. The prop itself is a nice representation of a Hamilton thirteen foot model, though. With a little ingenuity, it could be made to spin.
The one thing this model did not have when it arrived was a canopy. The first P-47 that was modified to a bubble canopy was a P-47D-5. The engineers at Republic took the canopy from a Hawker Typhoon and fitted it to the modified Thunderbolt, which the company designated XP-47K. When it entered production, it would be renamed P-47D-25, and the new purpose built canopy was a little longer. To create a canopy for my model, I took the spare canopy from my old Airfix Typhoon and added it to the kit.
I'm really looking forward to this build. Sadly, this is actually my Father's Day gift, so for now I have to sneak the model back into the cabinet and pretend it never, ever left it.
Of course, Jamie will read this, so...

Lindberg Strategic Strafer P-47D

The Last of The Many; My Final Classic Airfix Spitfire Mk. IX Build

I'll just let the pictures do the talking...

Airfix 1/72 Spitfire IXc Classic Kit, Final Build

Classic Kit of the Day - The Hawk T-6 Texan

After my first few model airplanes (the Lindberg "Strategic Strafer" P-47, the Airfix Boulton Paul Defiant, and, I believe, the Airfix Fokker Triplane), my mother would allow me one kit per week. But, if I was clever, I could buy two lower cost models. The two companies whose kits were indeed cheap were Lindberg and Hawk. The Hawk T-6 (as well as its Navy version, the SNJ) were plentiful at the local Pic-n-Save Store, selling for half the 1/48 kits; around $.59. I actually bought the T-6 and SNJ on the same day.

Imagine my surprise when I discovered they were the same kit.
Well, not exactly the same. The T-6 was molded in silver, the SNJ in yellow, and they had different decals. But they were the same airplane. I believe I even swapped canopies to see if it could be done; of course it could!
The model has a history dating back to the 1940's, and indeed may have been derived from the recognition models Hawk was contracted to make for the war effort; many of its features are very similar. It has much in common with Hawk's SBD-5/A-24 as far as part breakdown is concerned. Incredibly, this kit, as well as their SBD and Corsair, is deficient in rivets. Normally, model builders complain about rivets, as they really shouldn't be so noticeable. However, the aircraft still had them, if subdued. The T-6/SNJ only has them on its wings.
As for the kit itself. Aside from being very simple, it really only represents a T-6, specifically a T-6G, a postwar variant. It lacks all of the changes necessary for it to be an SNJ, though the Navy did have a variant that was very similar, the SNJ-X-7X, which was not very common. When Testors acquired Hawk, they did produce a more accurate SNJ, though this model is long out of production.
My kit is a 1965 production run. The box is great; they don't make them like this anymore.


There is some writing on the box that indicates something of this models history.

"LAOS"? Was the original builder planning on making a model of one that served in the Laotian Air Force? Maybe one from the Vietnam conflict? Who can be sure.
There are just twenty one parts in this kit, not including decals. To Hawk's credit, the decals represent a real T-6G as it appeared in the late 1940's - early 1950's. While the decals are slightly yellowed, with a little work they should do. The fit of the parts is extremely good, and the panel lines are recessed (something not too common on kits from this period). The interior is very basic, no interior at all really. Also, the national markings are molded directly into the plastic. This was a real bear of a problem if you chose to use different markings. Back in 1977, my best friend Craig and I were running short on Japanese aircraft for our little "war games" (more like "arms race"). We took the same path that film makers took when they needed Japanese aircraft, we used Hawk's SNJ and T-6's, with spare decals or handpainted hinomaru. That was not enough to cover the markings, as you could still see the bars aside the hinomaru.

Later kits had instructions as we know them today, with illustrated step by step instructions.
These instructions have directions above them (I can't help but think about a recipe - "Take 1 cup of flour, 2/3 cup sugar, some butter...").
The rest of the kit is not bad. The canopy is of the large paned variety (per "The T-6 Modeling Page"), so it really is a better representation of an Air Force T-6G. The decals have a black antiglare panel, when in reality they were olive drab.
However, there is one thing that looks odd, and that's the crewmen. There are two, and, yes... uhm... they do look vaguely human, though the look as if they were in a "Star Trek" transporter accident. They are also oversized. Note - girlfriend's red hair for scale.

This model, while very much a collectors item, is destined to be built. The model had some damage to it already, the tailwheel was broken off. I re-attached it with CA glue for these images. I'll make some basic improvements, mainly a new interior. Otherwise, this classic kit is to be built and decorated as the plane it represents.
Should be great fun.