500 series P-40 Static Build

[lmsjim]

HI Guys,
I am new to this board plus this is the first stick model I have built since I was a kid. I was never very good at it then and remembering only completing maybe two models out of a large number I started. First I want to state that this will be a display or static model only. I am not interested in trying to make it fly. Therefore weight is not an issue. I also decided to make back date the kit to one of the original AVG Flying Tiger P-40S which means it should be a P-40B or more correctly a Tomahawk MKIIB since the original 100 were from a British order. The biggest difference and most notable was that these were equipped with two 50. caliber machineguns in the nose and four .30 caliber machineguns in the wings. The one thing that would be too difficult to change is the nose which was very different on the early P-40s. This kit seems to be closer to a P-40E.


Kit which I know all of you already have seen before

I did some research before beginning on various forums about tricks to this kit. One that really impressed me was one guy added extra stringers to make the model fuller. I decided to try this. I started by cutting out all the fuselage pieces. I then cut out a number of extra notches on the forms so I could add extra stringers. Roughly doubling the number that the kit calls for.

I then pinned down the pieces and glued them together. After I had assembled the basic pieces I added stringers. I did pay attention to problem area I read about on the kit and that was the nose cowling did not fit unless the nose is a little smaller in diameter so I sanded it down before adding stringers and deepened the notches as needed.


Fuselage with extra stringers

I then sanded down the stringers on the body to prepare for covering.
The tail pieces were next. I just followed directions and had no problems here. Again they were sanded down and all edges rounded off. I scanned in all the card pieces and printed them out on cardstock. I glued the first two behind the cockpit.


Tail pieces

Still considering how to detail the cockpit and some other areas.

Jim

[lmsjim]

Contuing with the build

The wing was last of the big pieces. Again I followed the directions and built it without any changes except I did add an extra stringer on the bottom of the wing.

Wing done

I went ahead and covered the tails to see if I could do it to my satisfaction. I followed the directions from a DVD I got from Dumas. I covered using a glue stick and thinned white glue. Once it was stretch with a spray of 50/50 water, alcohol I sprayed them with Valspar Clear sealer gloss. I gave them three coats which seemed to be enough.


Tail pieces covered

Although the P-40 is actually a 1/28 scale despite what Quillow's website says I picked up a cheap 1/32 Revell model of a P-40, which I plan to use for parts. The kit was already started and missing some things so I got if for almost nothing. Time will tell if this will work.

I decided to scratch build wheel wells which there was no provision for in the kit. I scanned in the location of the wheel well outlines and cut them down to fit into the space required. Using these as templates I cut out two thin pieces of sheet basswood so the wheel wells and the piece fit tight into the wing. I then glued these two panels in. I made the wheel well details by taking the center piece I had cut out and added thin strips of basswood. The sides were made from card stock. These were then glued in.


Using plans for wheel well location





Thanks
Jim

[sawingman]

Enjoying your custom build and explanation of the mods you're making.

[Wildpig]

HI Guys,
..... this is the first stick model I have built since I was a kid. I was never very good at it then ...

Jim

You must have learned something along the way: very nice model. Your covering job looks great, so far. Wingtips can be a problem to cover. Nice touch with the "corrugations" or channels in the wheel wells.

[lmsjim]

Thanks guys always helps to get encouragement.

I made some progress this weekend.

I wanted to add wing machineguns. As mentioned before I am backdating this model to a P-40 B/C or MK IIB so I only needed two long barrel .30 caliber in each wing instead of the 3 x .50s. I made these out of brass tubing. I made two blocks of wood to give some support in the wings. I also made two gun mounts for the nose. Additionally I made two round knobs for the landing gears, which again are not furnished in the kit. I took a round wooden dowel and sanded the end round then cut it off and shaped it to fit the wings.

Now that the wings were finished I covered them using the same method I had used on the tail. I debated when to cut the holes for the wheel wells and finally decided to wait till I had sprayed them with three coats of clear gloss. I then cut them out and this seemed to work fine.







I now turned my attention to the cockpit. After receiving the Revell kit I and did some test fitting and I cut out the lower main support in the cockpit area and shaved off the side pieces to make enough room for the fittings. This was easy since I had added extra stringers I had no worries about the strength. I also lined the front and back with card stock to give a more finished look. These pieces were given several coats of sanding sealer and lightly sanded.


I then took the side pieces from the Revell kit and glued them to pieces of sheet styrene cut to shape. I cut the floor board down to fit and glued the seat mounting pieces on and the stick.


I sprayed the pieces for the cockpit and the interior also with Tamiya cockpit green. I did some detail painting on them then glued them into the fuselage.



Thanks

Jim

[Pauli72]

It's really nice to see the fusion of fine scale plastic modeling, and Guillow's balsa modeling. Very cool!

Excellent work with the build log, and photos as well. Keep up the great work.

[lmsjim]

Made good progress on the smaller items

The Revell kit’s instrument panel was not great and did not even have decals. I had found an inexpensive photoetch set from CMK and used it along with the Revell panel. The problem was the CMK panel was too small but the Revell one was winder so I sanded off the top dials and added the gun sight and sprayed it black. I then painted the lower panel and glued the photoetch set from the CMK to the top. I also used an Eduard photoetch set for the seatbelts.


Seatbelts added and completed instrument panel.

I had hoped to use the Revell kit propeller but it was hopelessly out of scale so I made my own using basswood and the kit supplied spinner. The spinner had two raised ridges on it for the flying model version of the propeller so I sanded these down to smooth it out. I then carved the three wood blades and gave them several coats of sanding sealer.



Propeller pieces and final assembly

I also used the landing gears from the Revell kit. I did extend the struts since they were a little short. I sprayed the tires with dark gray and the struts with Alclad dark aluminum. This included the tail wheel which I made a pocket for in the fuselage. I also used the engine exhaust stacks from the Revell kit. I cut out a slot in the cowling and fuselage and added stringers to give them small pockets so I could glued them in after the model was painted. I sprayed them with Alclad engine exhaust.


Landing gears and exhaust painted

Last was the canopy which was masked using Tamiya yellow masking tape. I then sprayed it with first cockpit green then black so the bars would not be transparent. I then painted them with the same colors to match the camouflage pattern on the fuselage. After looking at how well the cockpit interior came out I decided to open the canopy. Not an easy task but I took a chance and cut it into two pieces and painted the ends to match.


Ready for painting

I am going to cover the fuselage and start the final assembly today.

Thanks
Jim

[lmsjim]

I covered the fuselage without any problems. I then glued the cowling on and the two nose machineguns. The model was then assembled and I added the fairings around the wings.






Now it is pretty much ready for painting which should go pretty fast I hope.

Thanks
Jim

[lmsjim]

Finally completed her.

I first sprayed the whole model with primer to check for small holes. I then sprayed the upper surfaces with Tamiya flat earth. I realized after doing this I needed to add a red band around the fuselage just in front of the tail so I sprayed the area with first white then red paint then masked it off. I then sprayed the camouflage pattern on using Tamiya deep green. The undersides were sprayed with Tamiya sky gray.



Painting completed

Once I was happy with the paint job I sprayed the whole model with a number of coats of Future floor wax to give it a smooth surface for the decals.

Future coat on

I used the Revell kit decals for the sharks mouth because it was for the P-40E nose since the other decal sheets were for the P-40B and would not fit. Otherwise I primarily used the Kits World decal sheet for Charles Older who had ten victories and was assigned to the 3rd Squadron hence the red band around the tail. After the decals were dry I sprayed them with a coat of Future to seal them in. I then over sprayed it with Clear flat acrylic to dull it down some.

I finished by gluing on the landing gears, Adding the antenna wire and canopy. The landing gear doors were made from thin basswood since the kit pieces were too thick.

completed model







Hope you enjoyed the build as much as I did. I am going to do a similar build with the Hurricane Mk I.

Thanks
Jim

[sawingman]

I really enjoyed following along on your build. You did a super job. The paint scheme looks great. I like your idea of using the brass tubing for the wing machine guns. Did you use 3/32” diameter tube? If this is your first stick model in many years I’m looking forward to your future builds!

[Xanadu]

Looks awesome!

[lmsjim]

Thanks guys for the kind words. Yes I used 3/32" brass tubing. I did enlarge the ends with a small file.

Jim

[Pauli72]

It was really nice to see your fusion of both balsa building, and plastic modeling techniques. I think your P-40 looked awsome! You should send your build pictures and log to Fine Scale Modeler Magazine. I subscribed for years to this magazine, but last year cancelled because there is almost never any models that are balsa.

Excellent job bud!
Looking forward to your next build log.
Pauli

[Arlo DiPasquale]

I think I can safely say that thats the most detail I've ever seen on a 500 series kit. The covering job is stunning, especially if thats the first stick and tissue model you've built in years. Can't wait to see more!!

[lmsjim]

Thanks again for the kind words. Was not sure how this approach of merging plastic and stick and paper would be received. Pauli, actually I have had a couple of articles in Fine Scale years ago when I was building just armor. Even got on a cover with an SA-6. Not sure how they would react to this. Unfortunately my friend Terry Thompson has since moved on to the Model Railroad magazine.

I have already started the Hurricane. Will be posting the build on it probably tomorrow.

Jim