Wings of Intent: Modified Testors 1/72 Ryan NYP

(The completed model is here:)
http://wingsofintent.blogspot.com/2013/01/modified-172-testors-ryan-nyp-completed.html

After much debate, it is still undetermined when the first 1/72 kit of the Ryan NYP was issued. Although the later incarnations are known, in the form of kits from Frog, Hawk, Airlines, Novo, and the like, the first fossil kits clearly show up in the Cambrian strata, together with trilobites and algae, before even the most primitive dinosaur dared to show its ugly snout. Some scholars go as far as placing them as contemporaries of the first stromatolites. We may never know; but what we do know is that they survived the cataclysmic extinction events that wiped out other kits. We know that in our times, the kit re-popped under the Testors brand.

I hear you, in all those eons the kit did NOT evolve: the same recessed engraved lettering, the same chunky engine, the same strange prop blades, the recessed ribbing on all surfaces, the even more mysterious interior filled with the horror of nothingness...

BUT, is there any other, more evolved 1/72 kit specimen around? Nope. There is no other contemporary kit in the market of one of the most iconic planes of all times. The scholars found out that most of the kit manufacturers are too busy churning out infinite versions of the same warplanes. Talk about dinosaurs...

The kit: you will need only your fingers to count the kit’s parts. Scale-Master decals are included, as well as a clear base, which is something like your appendix, still there after all those millennia, just in case, but of no real use. Attached to the clear base, by the way, are the not-so-transparent transparencies. The word “HAWK” in tiny font can still be seen under the base.
One of the photos shows an obscure statement engraved inside the fuselage sides: "Made in USA". Archeologists and paleontologists are still debating about what that could possibly mean.

So, what do you do with your Testors kit? Well, it is long list. First, forget about that tail skid and the anemometer post protruding from the fuselage halves, they will be inexorably obliterated anyway during construction when you try to smooth the fuselage joint. Second, get out the putty and cover that hideous, unsightly recessed lettering –and the ejector pin marks under the wing since you are at it-. Third, get another, better engine, chop the cylinders and replace the kit’s ones.

Fourth, figure a way to produce a credible fuselage and flying surfaces ribbing. You may replace the sort of chunky tail feathers if you feel like. Fifth: hey, scratch some interior. Not much can be seen of it, but you can cut and pose the door open to help with that. Do not fill the recessed lines on the nose when you deal with the lettering there, those are panel lines and are sort of OK.

And, did you know that a second machine (Ryan NYP-2) was built and sold to Japan? Aha. It was registered J-BACC and went through a few color changes. There, another option for your frozen-in-time, primeval Testors kit.

Now, a confession. Long, long time ago when I was young-er, naive and inexperienced, I built the thing, out of the box, in all its tragic crudity. I know. I will post some photos of it, as penance for my modeling sins.

By the way, for filling the lettering all over the model I used Tamiya white putty by suggestion of my son, himself an extremely accomplished modeler. Forget Squadron and 3M, the Tamiya putty is great. I do not particularly like their paints, so I was reluctant to buy the putty, but my son’s advice was good, and so is the product.
So as said before the stringers and ribbing effects were dealt with, a nice interior fabricated for it to show through the open door and windows, and a few external details prepared for later addition. The engine was replaced by an Aeroclub white metal item and the kit's "engine" reworked and used as a master for a vacuformed part . Holes were drilled for the control cables, fuselage handles and stab struts (all missing in the kit). Other details that may be added are the fairings of the wheel hubs, the carburetor intake, a better representation of the anemometer, control horns and cables, the periscope, etc. Different shades of metal paint were used, and a combination of home-made and the kit's decals applied. Beware -to add insult to injury- that the kit's decals' instructions have the position of the rudder ones (3 and 4) reversed. Besides the other mentioned details, the kit is missing a diagonal brace strut that bridges the rear leg attachment of the LG to the fuselage and the top of the suspension mechanism.
So, can you build a decent, accurate replica from this kit? only if you commit a great deal of time to research and fabrication.
Can a 10 year old have fun with this simple kit without any kind of accuracy concerns? you betcha.
But if you are a serious modeler, you know what you are up for. I would not hesitate to scratch-build this one, since the time involved should be actually less than the time I employed here in accurization and detailing. As long as the results are good, then is all fun.

Sanding of the putty-filled areas

Door cut out and "stringers" added, together with some ribs

More ribbings

Yet more ribbing

and yet...even more ribbing

The first coat of primer and subsequent sanding to soften the ribbing (the procedure will be repeated a few times until a convincing, realistic surface is obtained):

An obscure statement engraved inside the fuselage sides: "Made in USA". Archeologists and paleontologists are still debating what that could possibly mean.