This will be the thread, now that I've started to restore them (see below), for all things related to rebuilding and/or re-using parts from the above lot of ancient but (originally) very well-finished aircraft, given to me in the various states of disrepair seen, by my friend Phil Carter.
Most if not all are of aircraft types involved, to one degree or another, in naval-related activities - and so posts on their exploits, and the restorations/builds meant to depict them, will be appended as "replies", below. I hope you enjoy this as much as I have been, lately!
Cheers,
-Matty
Whirlwind HURRICANE restoration: 12/15/11
Posted by Matty on December 18, 2011, 14:02:09, in reply to "Phil's BoneYard Planes Bonanza" Message modified by board administrator December 18, 2011, 14:28:23
Phil's Hawker HURRICANE Land-Based Fighter, Defense of Rangoon, Burma, February 1942
Click on Image for FULL RES Monogram 1:48 by Matt and Phil Carter restored/detailed by Matt Stein
Restoration of this model, originally built over 30 years ago, was basically identical to that done on Phil's P-40b, already described. In addition, the above full view was the last my camera would take, before its focusing mechanism failed, restricting all subsequent pics (below) to macro (closeup) mode. So - pending acquisition of a new/fixed camera - I'll just describe the unique features/additions highlighted in each of the following:
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Like many of the decals on Phil's P-40, all the originals here (top-left and bottom) remained in great shape, after having been very well-applied to begin with. I added the prominent nose art (top-right) of the pilot's girlfriend "Snooks" (totally fictitious - actually using the portrait of Marge Bong from the P-38 of her husband, renowned US ace Ira Bong), and adjacent kill flags, all from my decal spares box.
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One de-riguer improvement was to drill out (and then attempt to better paint) the exhaust stacks. My finish on them really turned out more evocative of oxidized copper, rather than steel IMHO - however I left them because I liked the look very much.
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Hurricanes flew alongside the Flying Tigers in the defense of Rangoon, over Tavoy, over the mouth of the Salween River and other areas around the Gulf of Martaban generally from January of 1942, in strikes against Japanese amphibious assault- and naval air forces, among others. To depict a "tropicalized" Hurricane, I transferred the Vokes air-filter chin scoop - or at least (in keeping with the straight restoration theme) Monogram's somewhat innaccurately-shaped rendition of one - directly from Phil's second Hurricane, with only repainting to color-match to this model (bottom).
A 100% new addition was the reflector "gunsight" (top) - complete guesswork, and ending up far more visible behind the windshield than anticipated - hewed from a clear-styrene scrap.
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By far the largest modification was enhancement of the otherwise featureless wing leading edges with landing lights and twelve machine guns, accurate for the Maylaya/Burma Hurricanes. Made from nested plastic dowels, the MGs are overscale - probably by 25-50% - but do produce the effect intended. The "lamps" inside the landing light fixtures are actually dishes from Matt Stein Models' 550-scale Mk37 gun directors, though visibility suffers due to ill-fitting plastic lenses - the only major delay in this work, and best I could come up with, from my current bag of tricks - however these can be replaced as soon as I can find better-suited parts.
This was a very gratifying restoration, and looks very compatible - very good, IMHO alongside Phil's restored P-40b, which I am eager show as soon as a new/fixed camera will permit.
Cheers,
-Matty
SAVE That TIGER(s)!
Posted by Matty on December 3, 2011, 19:36:56, in reply to "Phil's BoneYard Planes Bonanza" Message modified by board administrator December 4, 2011, 11:33:34
Phil's Monogram 48-scale P-40b "TigerShark" was received in the condition typical of most of his batch of models:
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Although at first looking busted to pieces (left), a closer look revealed most parts simply detached cleanly, the glue apparently just crumbling to dust over the last 40 years. Remaining decals and the paint job - both expertly applied, originally - likewise showed 4 decades'-worth of drying-out, though the paint remained secure, as did decals for one wing roundel, fuselage caudal (yellow) stripe and shark's-mouth (top-right). Note no filling or correction of parts-misfit, as clearly visible under the shark's-mouth decal (top-right), was originally done. However, with such nice surviving paint and substantial decals, above, I resolved not to do any joint-puttying/correction, nor the (major) repainting that would entail. At the same time, decal aircraft numbers, fuselage art and underwing roundels all appeared to have long gone, with the portside-top roundel even now coming off. Thus, saving this roundel assumed equal priority with the obvious Job One: securing the entire wing-root joint system, the most critical to have failed.
Both of which were done with extensive use of "white" glues:
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Starting with the roundel restoration, I was able to both clean and begin reviving the decal film by brushing on "halfway"-thinned Elmer's glue (left): thicker than "milky", but not so thick that you would call it "syrupy". This was miraculous for the purpose - and also laid well into the wing-root (far left) - however the dry paint- and plastic just sucked it all up, so I then graduated to using WeldBond - a water-soluble aliphatic resin (basically a "super"-white glue), again about "halfway"-thinned - which would seal better. The combination of the two was pretty well miraculous for all the decals (center), but especially for the damaged roundel (center-bottom), whose chipped "white" areas - yellowed from age and additionally translucent over the yellowish (brown) camo - were then perfectly color-matched by a mix of Testors Flat White (1285) with a touch of (Testors) ModelMaster Afrika Mustard (FS30266) (center, middle-left).
The WeldBond also filled the wing root joints (right) even better than Elmers, but the insatiably parched paint continued to suck it all in (upper-middle) - until finally I simply sprayed the entire model with it (lower-middle), which naturally feathered out the wing-root fillet even more (bottom). After allowing to dry overnight, I repeated the overspray, leaving both paint and decals looking 1000% happier. Finally, just as for a "normal" model aircraft, I sprayed it overall with Future wax, preparatory to adding-back the decals that had gone missing.
It was somewhere around this point that I also took in hand for restoration another of Phil's planes - a natural companion for this Tiger:
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Of the two Monogram 1/48 Hawker Hurricanes (left) which Phil gave to me, one (foreground) had been painted in exactly the same topside camouflage as Phil's P-40b Flying Tiger - alongside which such Hurricanes had operated, in Burma during 1942. Although this Hurricane's entire wing-root attachment had failed, again it was a completely clean separation - very easily restored, exactly as above - with all its decals surviving, in just excellent shape (right, top and middle).
It was also at about this point that I "crossed the line" (you KNEW I would ) between straight restoration and adding/correcting details. I pried off the canopy (top), to install a scratchbuilt pilot's seat (not shown) which had been missing, and also a quick-and-dirty semblance of a reflector gunsight (see below). Likewise, some fuselage artwork (bottom) came from my decal spares: the (fictional) pilot's girlfriend, "Snooks" (the picture actually USAAF P-38 pilot Ira Bong's portrait of his wife, "Marge"), plus two kill flags.
Likewise, the P-40 got more than just the missing decals replaced:
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Note how well the yellow caudal stripe (left, top) - a decal of the original build - looks, after the WeldBond-Future treatment. My own spare Monogram P-40 decals, only 20 years old had long ago begun chipping and peeling, so could only provide a pair of Flying Tigers (top-right and inset) and underwing roundels (not shown). Other spares provided the seven kill flags, aircraft number, and "Hell's Angel" nose art - meant to go over lighter background, but particularly appropriate as there really was a Flying Tigers "Hell's Angels" group - and anyway less obtrusive than the typical, big naked chick (which, believe me, I've got lots of those, too ).
Of course, I had repaired the broken propeller blade and re-attached the landing gear, anchoring each with a thin steel peg, but then went on to drill out exhaust stacks (left and center) - a tremendous improvement over the original "Lincoln Log" modlings (center at bottom) - and likewise for the machine-guns (center, top and middle). With paintbrush out to touch these up, I took a few quick dabs and strokes in the monochrome green cockpit - and, by some miracle - in seconds drybrushed the best instrument panel (left, at bottom) yet! The Hurricane (right) likewise got hollowed-out exhaust and restored landing gear brace (right, top-left), scratch-bashed from spares. But also - to depict a Burma contemporary of the Tigers - I added transferred the Stokes tropical air-filter scoop from Phil's other Hurricane, painting it to match (pretty well) with a mix of (Testors) ModelMaster Grabber Green (1970_3658-z) and again the Flat White and Afrika Mustard.
That COULD have been the end of the added work - but it wasn't:
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In addition to adding the rough gunsight (left, upper), I felt compelled to endow Revell's featureless wing leading edges with the 12 MGs and landing lights (left, lower) accurate for this bird - clear plastic windows for the latter coming from (among several sizes of) corrugations in a deli muffin container (right). Still being worked (and although the gunports are oversized) these features will look much better when complete.
The P-40 is now completely finished:
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Final pics of the Hurricane - and a whole lot more, of both planes - coming soon.
This has been a helluva lot of fun - and I expect will be even more so, to present to Phil and/or his son, Matt!
With building recently stifled lately by intense heat and sudden a/c problems, as well as lots of other little "emergencies", I received a bunch of boneyard planes from my friend Phil (no, not our friend Phil Fuss, but another, older "Phil", who along with his wife Sue have become good friends of mine locally:
Note S-37 (litterally) pushed to background - meanwhile this bunch look pretty beat up, don't they? These are all something like 30 years old - dating from when Phil built them with his son (also named "Matt") - and of great sentimental value to Phil, who saved practically every part coming off of them all these decades, - so I'm flattered he wanted to entrust them to me. Including a whole bag of said parts - here inventoried and piled in front of each build - which comprise most if not everything required, in most cases, to completely reconstruct them.
Per the above numbers, we have:
1- Monogram 1/48 Hurricanes (x2)
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Haven't seen this mold since I was 8! Today, I'd build one as a (British) Merchant Fleet Catapult-Aircraft carrying Merchantman (CAM) ship - and the second, I'd build as an RAF-Burma defender, circa early 1942 - or possibly one of the planes flown successfully onto HMS Glorious, from Norway, before she was sunk. Between these two, they're missing only one landing gear, and a tail stabilizer - both easy replaced via resin casting - plus one prop blade broken off, a little more challenging.
2- Monogram 1/48 Dauntless
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This mold is all here - with notable exception of any trace(s) of the canopy - probably easily obtained - but I already have one built, with no current plan(s) to do another.
3- A 32-scale (even 25-scale?) Hurricane - not familiar with mold - completely missing prop, spinner and main landing gear - in any case, too large-scale for me, plus two other Hurricanes available.
4- Monogram 1/48 Devastator
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Have both built- (wartime) and unbuilt examples of this one - could rebuild it in pre-war colors - anyway, it's actually all there, except for last (of 5) canopy part(s).
5- Monogram 1/48 Tomahawk
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My favorite of the bunch - another one I had when I was 8 - paint job very well done and decals in good shape (center) - could hardly do better myself, today - though underside color looks yellowed/darkened from the years. Everything is there - though one prop blade broken - and will try to restore as-is, possibly with repainted undersides, drilled-out engine inlets and wing-root seams (carefully!) filled. Also have an unbuilt kit (right) - contender for (one of) George S. Welch's Tomahawks which shot down several Vals in defense of Pearl Harbor.
6- Monogram 1/48 Mohawk
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My 2nd-favorite of the bunch - this time because I never built it before. Unpalatable "day-glow" green camo, plus French markings, demand repainting - required anyway, as I would redo as Lewis M. Sanders' USAAC 46th Pursuit Squadron plane which was first (possibly second) allied plane to make a kill - against a Zero, no less - defending Wheeler Field, Pearl Harbor, 12/7/41. Major problem: right wing warped (center, at bottom) - possibly reparable or otherwise can make casting(s) of nearly identical Tomahawk wing(s).
Mustang not currently "on the radar" for anything naval-related - also 3 of 4 prop blades broken, entire canopy and one stabilizer missing - this one may go into the parts box. Little Mohawk, on other hand, is complete - could be redone as Dutch Java-defender.
So - there's a bunch of early-war build ideas, most of which Phil would probably appreciate - and probably also his son, Matt, as well!