Wings of Intent

(Photos from SDASM)

Dekno Models continues to provide joy for the civil modelers, this time with a variation of their beautiful Curtiss Robin kit. Through a series of releases Dekno is covering the variants of this iconic plane (B, C and J). Having built one of them (a B variant) already...

https://wingsofintent.blogspot.com/2025/01/dekno-models-curtiss-robin-b-172nd.html

...I couldn’t resist this second one, “Wrong Way" Corrigan "Sunshine", a Whirlwind-powered version. The necessary changes for this particular plane are reflected on this new kit which includes the long-distance fuel tank, the change in position of the pilot, a small window-cum-access panel on the roof and other details. Most modelers already know about this plane that crossed the Atlantic “by mistake”, an event which tends to reaffirm that in some occasions is better to ask for forgiveness than permission. As the plane has plenty of coverage on the Net, I will refer you to that source.

As is now the norm with Dekno, the main parts are molded in resin and the smaller bits and accessories are 3D-printed. The quality of both is very good, and the level of detail will satisfy even a picky modeler. Instructions are clear and a nice sheet from Arctic Decals and a set of their beautiful paper masks for the windows and wheels completes the package. All is packed in re-sealable bags and protected by a sturdy box.

Preparing the parts for assembly is a simple task, but care is needed especially handling the very small parts, carefully detaching them from their printing cradles and cleaning them up. Many of these smaller parts can be left in their printing bases until after painting and when they are needed for assembly (i.e. doors, main struts, wheels, tailskid, landing gear legs, aileron and elevator linkages, etc.). Their printing pedestals are clearly marked indicating what goes where.

The flying surfaces are correctly treated and show pleasant, to-scale detail. As the fuselage window frames are also to-scale, care is needed as not to break them, especially when installing the transparencies that shouldn’t be forced in, but adjusted to fit nicely. The engine and related parts are beautifully printed.

Read the instructions, as they have useful advise.

There are some similarities between Lindbergh's plane and flight and Corrigan's. But Lindbergh had an expensive, specially designed plane and plenty backing, while Corrigan was a loner without any support but with a lot of cojones, not to mention that "Lindy" was a white-washed nassi staunch sympathizer (yes, lower case and misspelled as this ass....s deserve), so my respect goes undoubtedly to Corrigan who first flew across the continent from California to New York and later to Ireland.

Contents once unpacked:

Nicely printed parts:

Good instructions:

Here a minor glitch corrected in green:

Don't miss that little part (printed together with the seat):

This is how this window/sliding panel (for which you will have to file one fuselage side) looked. Other smallish details can be seen that the modeler may add:

A nice wash:

And letting the parts dry:

The transparencies:

Nicely detailed parts:

Realistic and detailed surfaces:

For those who favor a simple modeling life regarding finishes, this is an ideal model, as it is almost all aluminium color (in shades). Only the interior requires another color and of course some details. Here I already applied a gloss black base for the alu color, and a beige base for the interior. Notice, as I mentioned in the introduction, that most small parts are still attached to their 3D-printed pedestals:

You may muse over some contemporary accounts:

A PDF on Corrigan:

https://nyirishhistory.us/wp-content/uploads/NYIHR_V32_05-Wrong-Way-Corrigan-and-the-New-York-Irish.pdf

The surface directly at the back of the pilot should be painted metal, as it was the oil tank:

Or you can fabricate a front (like a bulkhead) to cover the seam at the fuselage halves:

Its cap can be seen in the photo:

The tank behind the pilot:

The windows are individually adjusted:

More or less in position, but not glued yet:

The space for the little window is cut. The kit has a recess inside the fuselage, but it's located on the other fuselage side and should not be taken as a guide:

The part is glued in:

Notice that this particular plane did not have the normal window on top of the cabin. This needs to be filled-in (using the kit's transparency or a piece of styrene) and sanded flush:

The acrylic floor polish bath of the transparencies is done while they are still on their pouring blocks, carefully wiping out the excess with a moist tissue putting it in contact with the edges. This draws away the surplus liquid by capillarity :

Several hues of metal paint are used:

The inst. panel and the prop are given its decals. As explained in the instructions you have to cut and then trim each subject, as the carrier covers the whole sheet. Wheel hubs masked and seat dressed:

Some details you may like to add if you feel like:

Plus nav lights on wing tips and fin tip.

The two doors (the front one was apparently kept shut and didn't have a handle outside) and the four main nose components -minus prop. The shield at the center of the exhaust ring should be painted aluminium. Tere are a couple of small parts that go under the nose:

The engine, because of the shape of the cutouts on the fairings, sort of rotates as it goes in. The parts are keyed but I obtained a better snug fit by sanding down the tab at the back of the engine:

For the engine to go comfortably in all the way you may need to nick the five parts of the fairing that interfere with the pushrods (not the intakes). The little green dots tell you what you have to remove:

Otherwise you may break the pushrods:

This simple operation will allow the engine to go all the way in, and the front part of the fairing will make good contact with the aft part of it. Watch out because the front and aft parts of the fairing are keyed by two very little pips:

Inserting the windows into the door frames can produce a breakage if you are not careful. I didn't have that problem fortunately, but if you did, here is a simple solution, cutting new doors from clear sheet and masking them both sides before painting the interior and exterior colors. Then you can add the details (strap, handle, etc, but only to the aft door, remember):

As mentioned, another benefit of painting some of the parts while still in their printing pedestals is that they are clearly marked with their final positions on the model:

The windows are sealed from inside by wicking acrylic floor polish around their edges. Less messy but much weaker than cyano glue, so care will be needed while masking them before painting as not to push them in. Stretching a bit of "metallic" sprue a few structural members that are seen from outside are added. These need to be thin as not to interfere with the width of the long-distance tank, and need to stop short at the base to make room for the cockpit floor:

To make the nav. lights (of course you don't need to do this, the kit is beautiful enough as it is) you may sand the tip of a styrene rod of small diameter to a teardrop, then cut the section:

These are painted, and later on a small blob of Cristal Clear or any "window-maker" is added to the front, mixed with a smidgen of green and red acrylic in case of the ones for the wingtips. Make more than you need to discard the ones that don't come up nice:

These are they positions:

If you like to add a stem to them for safety (I will just glue them on) you should drill the "light casing" while still on the rod, but not all the way through:

The add a piece of thin metal wire with superglue:

But also pay attention to president stupid and his cohort or utterly inept and fanatic morons as they try to destroy the country, including the lied-to people that voted for them.

An example of what you would obtain:

Photos show the extended engine commands, so a PE spare was added, as well as an instrument seen in photos to the left of the pilot. The famous compass that "misguided" Corrigan is seen in the photo below, so a compass is fabricated to be added to the cockpit. None of this is really needed as the kit has already a well-detailed interior, but I felt like adding some salt and pepper:

The instrument panel and rudder pedals are glued to the tank. The compass is ready to be added:

The tank has a notch that should coincide with the semi-circular relief on the floor:

You can see that I added a little pedestal for the home-made compass as per photo, and moved the joystick a bit back, drilling a new hole for it:

Sub-assembly inside the fuselage side. It's a snug but comfortable fit:

Dry-fit of the other fuselage side. The floor had to be sanded just a smidgen on the sides to allow a good fit:

Fuselage sides glued together. I used superglue this time, but 5 min epoxy -used sparingly- also works and I have used it before, as it fills the seam better, allows for small adjustments and the excess is easily removed later:

Holes for the tail rigging wires are drilled on fin and stab using a fine drill bit. the holes in the stab are aligned with the front strut:

The teardrop cases for the nav lights are painted:

Then gripped with reverse tweezers:

And then the clear -for the fin- or color blobs are added to form the lenses. I always make more than I need to discard bad ones or use the leftovers at another time: