Hi Time II - P-51 Mustang racer conversion - Airfix 1/72nd.

 

The sphinx is a symbol of...sorry, what were we at? Ah!:(

(The completed model is here:

https://wingsofintent.blogspot.com/2023/08/hi-time-ii-mustang-reno-racer-academy.html

Let's see...Mustang blah-blah-blah, conversion blah, racer, blah.

Zebra!

Airfix kit: looks nice, rather soft plastic (I thought the landing gear legs could be a concern, they are not), mild interior detail but sufficient for general purposes, most likely aimed to general modeling population (nothing wrong with that), some minimum flash, one critical part marred during molding and rendered broken and incomplete (radiator air intake lip), poorly molded mast antenna, clever but simple and mostly effective engineering. And since I am by no means a Mustang connoisseur, or even remotely close, so I will leave it at that regarding accuracy, etc.

How to make a racer from this kit: chop wing and stab tips at the right places, restore Hörner-ish wingtip shape, delete any military equipment (boom-boom parts, radios, seat armor, fill bonga-bonga chutes, etc.) get the right prop, drink a nice G&T or Laphroaig. Ah! let's not forget the decal sheet, this time from Draw Decals (Set 72s-P51-135). I also have the Red Pegasus #49 Zebra set, although past disintegrating experiences relegate it to last resource cannibalization -only if necessary. 

A note: the decals' instructions state that the back of the prop blades were metal color, but photos show that they had on the back the same color as the front, minus the white tip.

Did I say... Zebra!?

Any mistakes committed during the building of this model shall be attributed to David the Tall and his Chili Conga Band. In case of surplus, related, derived or incidental blame of any kind, it shall be equally distributed among Mr. Christos P. of Atlantis and Herr Prof. Sönke S. of Volkania. The smallest amount of blame, actually a smidgen, a minute speck, a volatile quantum, will be attributed to Michael D. 

The sprues:

Ill-formed and broken part:

The radios have to go:

Gone and replacement part:

Attempt at repairing the darn radiator air intake lip, we'll see:

Some parts. The kit provides two sets of flaps, leveled and down:

A small group being prepared for the airbrush, the chutes being puttied:

The seat (quite basic and simplified) has the armor bit chopped off:

Foreground kit prop, background prop from Twin Mustang, a rather old and now completely outclassed kit:

Pew-pew protrusions deleted:

 Base colors, and the intestines of the Aztek airbrush. I have bought in the last 25 years or so about six of them, and some time ago the makers took the money and run, in spite of false promises of a "Life" warranty. Don't you love corporations, they just adore to screw their own loyal customers:

And as soon as you start to paint, you are confronted with Airfix's inexplicable, short-sighted, and frankly stupid practices, the first of which is giving the colors in the numbers of their own range, cryptically, not the actual colors, and not even their numbers "translated" to their own range name somewhere in the instructions. As if modelers will feel compelled to buy their stuff, and not use what they have at hand, prefer, or can get in their area. Way to go, marketing idiot that thought of this strategy! As you apply the instrument panel decal you also notice how inadequately thick the decals are, how much excessive carrier they have around, how reluctant they are to stay put. No parts' map, thank you very much. I don't need one, but many modelers may.

Now I respect and support Airfix's efforts to stay current, stay afloat, and remain relevant in a small and competitive market, heaven knows how many dozens upon dozens of Airfix kits I have built in my life, but that is the very reason why they shouldn't commit silly mistakes.

Choppy-choppy. The wing is reduced to its racing span. The horizontal tail was already chopped to size too:

The control column went to the great beyond, never to be found again. A new one is easily made:

The interior is completed OOB, only seat belts added. The fit is good:

The fuselage will close, after some little prodding. An interior that fits without shaving! An industry achievement!

A bit of filler on the fuselage seams. The antenna seen in photos under the wing is fabricated from filed metal and glued in place:

The wing is glued. It interlocks perfectly with the fuselage:

Rudder, stabs and flaps added. Excellent fit. The "flaps down" parts were used (the flaps are just plugged in, as they have to be removed to paint their bare metal leading edge plus the white before actually gluing them):

You may notice that in spite of the several modifications needed for this conversion, the build advances at quite a fast pace, thanks to the good fit, logical steps, and the avoidance of over-engineering. The only nitpicking I have is the small vent ahead of the big radiator air discharge flap on the belly. As you join the fuselage, you will have a seam line there that is not very easy to disguise. A small plug-in separate part could have been a cleaner solution. Of the rest I have no complaints.  

And after just a few hours of modeling, the first coat of primer is airbrushed:

White airbrushed (black for the exhausts as a base for burnt metal):

The individual colors of the blades are now one by one being painted, masking in turn the rest of the prop, the whole will take six airbrushing sessions. As explained, the Draw Decals instructions state the the back of the blades were natural metal color, but photos show the same color as in the front:

The rest is ready to go, but I am waiting for the cockpit masks I ordered (the kit has none), to do a cleaner job:

Maybe I could start with the decaling as it is.

The Draw Decals set is behaving nicely, the sections make sense, the images are very sharp and in register, and follow the kit's contours quite well. It's a labor of patience, and cutting the subjects properly is part of the secret. The carrier is inconspicuous and will tolerate to a certain extend pushing and tugging a bit to place the images in the proper place. A wet surface helps:

Since this requires attention, patience and good light, I will continue tomorrow.

Well, it's after midnight, so it is technically "tomorrow":

Now seriously, will continue in the morning.

Second prop blade color is painted:

Decaling is mostly done, only a couple sections for the canopy are left. The walkways and fuel caps (present in the aftermarket decal sheet drawings but absent from the sheet) are added too. I reiterate how nice this Draw Decals sheet is in all regards:

Almost there. Landing gear and flaps are on, only one blade remains to be painted. Canopy masks should arrive today:

The carnival prop:

The model is now complete:

But the photo session will have to wait as we have now (gasp!) rain in California in August! (and wildfires in Hawai'i!):

(The completed model is here:

https://wingsofintent.blogspot.com/2023/08/hi-time-ii-mustang-reno-racer-academy.html

Hughes H-1 racer (short and long wing) CMR 1/72nd resin double kit

 

(Photos from the SDASM photostream)

 (The completed models are here:

Short wing:

https://wingsofintent.blogspot.com/2023/08/hughes-h-1-1935-speed-record-breaker.html

Long wing:

https://wingsofintent.blogspot.com/2023/08/hughes-h-1-1937-intercontinental-record.html

What could anybody say about Howard Hughes, especially when one is not Howard Hughes. It's likely we all have heard about him, the good and the bad. I think that a mix of those would do as an approximation to the truth. Putting the persona aside, there is no doubt that he left a powerful and deep imprint in many aspects of aviation and in any case I tend to like him better than the shady weasel that was Juan Trippe. I respect Hughes also because he was a pilot, and a good one, besides having chutzpah. Now, I could also make a long list of reasons for me to call him other things, much less flattering. Be that as it may... he conquered many records and won many trophies, among them, in 1935 and 1937, the world air speed record and a "transcontinental" speed record (in fact a Los Angeles-New Jersey flight across the US) with the planes represented here, the short-wing and long-wing Hughes H-1, respectively (they are, actually, one and the same plane, now in the NASM). The engine used was a supped-up Pratt & Whitney Twin Wasp Junior.

CMR has produced some time ago this nice double kit in resin (again, this was one plane, so a "side by side" posing would be strange). I owe the pleasure of this build to friend and fellow modeler Andrew Nickeas, who gifted me this kit, so thanks Andrew! The kit is somewhat less precise and detailed (to my eyes) than the CMR's Boeing Model 40 I built relatively recently and than their Sikorsky S.39 and S.38, that I have also built. It feels comfortably above a, let's say, Planet kit, but not among CMR's bests. Nonetheless, there is interior detail -to some extent, and the engine has separate exhausts and the cowl-to-engine fastening frame is there too. The engine, that some reviewers at the time of its release defined as "well detailed", today we would call it fair, having been superseded by much better detailed aftermarket offerings. Again, to some extent, the landing gear has some detail. The decals look ok, final judgment at the moment of their application.

No parts came broke, which is almost a miracle with this type of kit's bagging, but there are a number of pinholes (not too many) which is common in this older generation resin kits, but unfortunately all four prop blades were affected at the tips, with some little crumbling. Some recesses (like parts of the landing gear wells) had to be cleaned up of resin blobs an excrescences, no big deal. Wherever thin webs were present they were cleaned up uneventfully. In removing the parts from their castings again nothing broke, but extricating some of them required care and patience. Three of the four fuselage halves came bananized, and went to the Turkish Baths/Sauna to be put straight. No photoetched fret or masks are provided, but you get two sets of canopy spares, something always much welcome. Be sure to inspect and match the parts that correspond to the two versions before starting to build. Speaking of CMR, their civil Short S.23 is something I would have liked to build, but the price range is above what I spend in a kit (not that it isn't worth it).

The instructions consist of several sheets with a number of photos to show the detail in the original plane. The photos are not printed at the best quality or size, but give a good idea, a better idea will be had after an Internet search as there are many photos online of the plane at the NASM and contemporary photos. The assembly drawings are comfortably big (a first ever!) and generally clear, with a couple spots with the usual vagueness. The vacuformed transparencies (as said, with a spare each) are not the clearest I have seen, but are usable after a bath in clear acrylic. The models can be built OOB to good effect, but also little improvements could be made here and there. The surfaces in the original were absolutely smooth, as flush riveting was used and the wood wings were covered in plywood. The control surfaces on the other hand were fabric-covered and doped, which resulted in a less reflective/whitish aluminium hue than the rest of the metallic structure.

Contents:

All is separated in pouches, but the small parts as usual crammed together. Nothing was broken, which is a first for me with this type of somewhat older resin kits:

A clear view of the parts as they come:

The wings are perhaps the parts that will require more effort and care to separate from their casting blocks:

Watch out, as the legs' doors are super thin and some of the webbing to be removed looks like a part of them:

Parts removed from their casting blocks and cleaned up. If you do this, you have to be absolutely sure of not losing the small parts. Some modelers prefer to paint the smaller parts still attached:

Now a good lukewarm soapy water wash, rinse, and let to dry alone (watch out for the small parts):

The props depict the original one in general shape and detail (which is something to say, as a number of kits don't even bother), but lack finesse. I think I will make new ones, also considering the pinholes and small crumbling they suffered:

Some base colors are airbrushed:

One thing is becoming clear: unless you represent the engine uncovered or partially uncovered (as done in a beautiful rendition of this kit by Piotr Dmitruk), the mass of intake and exhaust pipes provided are most likely a waste of time as they are not seen at all, and the fit of all those parts may present issues when trying to lodge the whole lot into the aft part of the cowl. Much better to install short sections of metal tube between the cowl and the nose once everything is in place. The kit's fuselage nose, by the way, needs a few exhausts pipes of its own, which are missing. 

The kit's props are given the bolts on the hub visible in photos (here applied as long stems, then trimmed back once set) and a "nut" at the end of the axle:

But that is only illustrative of a possible improvement, since as mentioned before I am making my own props too (two with a big hub for these models and other two with smaller hubs for other models:

Engines are painted, instrument panels are given aftermarket decal instruments:

Pages from Popular Mechanics:

Both wings are drilled for the Pitot position:

The transparencies as explained are not the clearest:

Bear in mind two things: the windshield -that is, the forward section of the canopy- slid forward on three narrow rails. The rest of the clear covering consisted of two sections, parted in the middle at the apex, that slid into "pouches" at the sides of the cockpit. This considered, the fore section should not be "blended" with the fuselage as we normally do, but rest on it (not too proud, though, and for this some careful sanding from inside of the contact area on the windshield may be necessary).

Painting continues, again with base colors. In the background one of the canopies that was trimmed and given an acrylic bath. I may separate the windshield as most models that appear online has done, which seems like the most practical approach. The thickness of the "lip" of the windshield that goes over the fuselage will be a delicate point, as was foreseen. The props, according to photos, have two thirds of the back of the blades in anti-glare black. The front of the cowl "birdcage" is not a comfortable fit over the engine gearbox, and may brake if forced over it too much. It's of course a bit overscale, but a nice detail. Replace it with thin wire? food for thought:

By the way, I just realized that the counterweights on the kit's prop are on the opposite side of where they should be. They can be easily removed, new discs punched and located in their proper positions:

The photo and the primer revealed pitted surfaces that have to be corrected:

With all the interior ready to go in, guess what? It was found that neither instrument panel nor cockpit pan would fit. There are so many new mistakes to be made, why 99% of kit manufacturers make this one, over, and over and over again? And we are not talking here about a swift pass with the sanding stick, but to shave several millimeters from already painted and detailed parts! Well, as they say: Frustration is the Mother of...who frigging cares! Make it right, please, not in your manufacturer's minds, but on the real parts! Do you realize that the fuselage sides have thickness, don't you?

More painting:

My props are ready and have the HS logos applied. The kit props need yet further reworking as explained. The two fuselages are closed, with some effort it must me said. Work to fill the blemishes on the LG legs continues (third pass). The wheels are ready and have received photoetched metal hubs to match photos.

We Volga-on:

The kit's two props have their counterweights removed; new ones are made and placed on the right position:

The fit of both sets of wings to their respective fuselages needed careful adjustment, removing material hare and there to get things more or less in place. Epoxy is the way to go here. The stabilizers will need metal pining, as they have no locating devices. Once again I am surprised by the vague and imprecise fit that doesn't resemble at all other good CMR kits:

The engine will have to be sanded around to go deeper into the aft cowl section. And here is how to tackle a surprise before it becomes a surprise: the aft cylindrical "stalk" of the engine (that is supposed to be glued to the fuselage front, iiac), needs shortening until the cowl "mounts" a bit onto the fuselage (there is a line), so position of the engine inside the cowl and distance to the fuselage are of course interdependent, and should be set correctly. Otherwise, once again, when all is beautifully assembled and painted...it won't fit. So that was your warning:

All the seams will require puttying and sanding

Pinning the horizontal tail:

Tail on in the short wing model:

And here is the horizontal tail for the long wing model, with "differential" hinge line:

The other side is much better... so you know which one to put facing upwards:

Both tails on. The roots, molded on the fuselage, were narrower in chord than the stabs. I had to first sand them making the contact area more flat, taking a smidgen off the material for the sizes to match:

A coat of primer reveals some blemishes that need correction. The kit's props are finally completed after reworking them, but I will use as explained the ones I made. The LG legs are ready for paint, and the ancillary elements of the landing gear completed, as well as the front of the cowls:

A couple of things regarding the kit´s cockpit opening. As you can see below, the kit got the "cut" all the way around. Those flanges protruding in the photo and sketch are, as it was mentioned before, the canopy sides that slide into a pouch on the fuselage sides. Another small alteration should be done if using the full canopy, namely add a frame (actually two narrow ones in contact) as the sides meet on the top. If only using the windshield, it is seen in photos sliding forward (it did that on three very thin furrows), so bear in mind that. The fit is not good, and some carving is needed:

(Photo NASM)

The kit doesn't represent the leather guards at the front of the opening or the side pads. These could be modeled from Milliput or similar.

After consider different painting strategies, I opted to paint the whole models gloss blue, then mask the wings, and apply the metal color as I usually do -over a gloss black base, but blue in this case. A few hues of blue were considered, and finally Model Masters Ford and GM Engine Blue was used, I believe to good effect. The paint is actually darker than the sample chips you see online, which is good, as it matches photos of the plane in the Smithsonian well:

With the noses the procedure was -as explained- to coordinate the length of the engine "stalk" in its back -which gives the distance to the firewall- and the depth it will go into the aft section of the cowl, pressed in, if you will, by the fore section of the cowl that cages the engine front. Once all is measured and dry-fitted, the engine is trapped between the two pars of the cowl as these are glued together. Then a mask is applied to the "open" area of the front, and the back is filled with damp paper towel pieces. The cowl is given a gloss base in preparation for the metal color. The blue outside of the legs has been masked and the metal color applied to the lowest section. One windshield has been masked and painted as a trial:

More convoluted masking ensues, to be able to paint the tail control surfaces a duller white aluminium dope top match photos:

Once this is done, and although the light at the end of the tunnel seems close, there is a long list of to-dos yet to be dealt with. A thin area at front section of the fuselage has to be painted a darker metal color. Then adding the landing gear, Pitot, rudder counterweight, missing coaming and padding to the cockpit front, add the missing exhaust stacks to the right side on the nose, the windshield, decals, a wire antenna to the transcontinental plane, painting the wheel wells wood and metal, etc.:

Now that darker metal area at the front is done:

Engine and cowl are glued. The three exhaust stacks that come from inside the nose are added. Wheel bays painted:

The LG legs receive some rivets as they are very prominent in photos, as well as the brake lines. Fuel and oil caps are printed as decals. I wasn't very happy with the trials of the windshield, a bit thick in the lip (I tried to sand it down but it doesn't really follow the fuselage curvature tightly, so I made others from clear plastic. There is no magic solution here as the "lip" doesn't blend with the fuselage as usual, being as explained above a separate part that slides forth and back. The frame at the bottom takes the shape of little triangles that follow a different curvature over the fuselage. So I will use whatever I can make fit best:

LG main parts on:

The pair of LG struts on each model were too long to be inserted in position, and had to be trimmed back.

Rudder counterweight, coaming and pads on, as well as the Pitot. The short wing version had a forked probe, while the long wing had a plain tube:

Remember when I said that the decals looked ok? Well, I retract my hasty words, they are crap:

The yellow registrations not only fall apart, but the ink is translucent, and the hue of the yellow instead of being solid and bright is a muddy ocher. Nothing like completing the build and having your work ruined by crappy decals. There is a signature on the sheet that reads "Stanislav Mach", perhaps the decal maker.

After much prodding trying to get the pieces together, I ended up having to remove the low-quality and inaccurate color decals and commissioning a replacement set from a reputable decal-maker. Sigh...

So here they are, completed but waiting for the (good) wing registrations:

The Artic Decals replacements providing accuracy, solid color and right hue arrived, and they are applied:

(The completed models are here:

Short wing:

https://wingsofintent.blogspot.com/2023/08/hughes-h-1-1935-speed-record-breaker.html

Long wing:

https://wingsofintent.blogspot.com/2023/08/hughes-h-1-1937-intercontinental-record.html