realworkingsailor

Very nicely done BE! Looks great!
 
Andy

Aaaand . . . done. I will post the Big Reveal tomorrow. Time for bed now!
 

 
And one more shot of the one-time adversaries together.
 

 
G'nite!

I’ve seen a build video on YouTube of this kit. Interesting project!
 
 
Andy

Very nicely done BE! Looks great!
 
Andy

A bit more fun for everyone:
 
 
Andy

Welcome! Glad to have you along for the journey!
 
Andy

@Egilman Your insights and knowledge are most welcome! 
@Dave_E @Canute Welcome! I knew there were P-40 fans around here somewhere!
 
Welcome aboard everyone! I'm glad to see such interest in this build. 
 
For the next part, I thought we'd have a quick look at some of the extras I picked up to help with my build.
 
First up are a couple of CMK resin bits to add a little more detail to the cockpit. Starting with the cockpit sidewalls (and control stick):
 

 
While the kit supplied parts are very good, the resin parts are just that little bit better. The moulded details are crisper and clearer. This is likely due to the inherent limitations of injection moulded styrene. CMK and Special Hobby being the same company, these parts should be a drop in fit, no hacking or sanding needed. 
 
The next bit of resin is a replacement seat:
 

 
In this case it is representative of the seats used in the RAF Kittyhawks. Again, the kit supplies an appropriately shaped seat, but the resin one just features some finely moulded details not found on the basic part. The kit seat lacks the ridges and grooves on the seat sides and back, and the resin seat is just that much thiner and more "metal" like. It also includes the RAF style "Sutton" seatbelt harness moulded in (the kit only has decals for the American style seatbelts)
 
To finish of the cockpit, I've bought a Yahu Models pre-painted PE instrument panel:
 

 
I've used their instrument panels on my Beaufighter and Typhoon builds last year, and they're a great (and fairly inexpensive) addition to any cockpit. If you couldn't tell by now, I'm planning on displaying my model with the canopy open to show off all this great detail. Hopefully some of it will be seen!
 
Moving on to the outside, I'm not planning on doing any reworking of the exterior details, although it's worth noting, if you have a bit of a masochistic streak, CMK offers a litany of resin detail upgrades. Everything from the armament to the correct type of wheels can be found. Even a detailed engine bay complete with the correct Allison V1710 engine.
 
For my model I picked up a set of decals from DKDecals. This was a pricey set (it cost as much as the SH kit!), but there are over 20 different marking options, and unlike Xtradecal, the set should be good for supplying the markings for more than just one!
 

 
The decal set includes markings for a wide array of Kittyhawks used by the RAF, RAAF, and SAAF (as noted clearly on the instruction sheet above). Options for most, if not all, the later P40 variants used are covered.
 

 
It's a long list! In my case, the set includes both squadron code options (GA Q and GA ?) for the plane I wish to build, but doesn't include the correct serial number. From what I understand the GA ? code moved to whatever airplane Billy Drake was flying, and it's possible that FR213 was carrying  different code letters at the time of its crash in late 1943. As I have done in the past, I can easily re-create the correct serial number with some blank decal paper and my laser printer, so there's no problem there. I am planning on painting the plane as it would have appeared earlier in '43, in the RAF desert scheme.
 

 
Getting back to the decals themselves, they appear to be of a very high quality. The registration looks spot on, and the colour separation is sharp and well defined. The decal film looks fairly thin, so with any luck the markings should settle easily onto the surface of the model. My only qualm about the DK set, is they only show the left side of the airplane, along with a smaller view of the upper side to guide decal placement. It would be nice to see both left and right along with another small view of the underside, in order to confirm accurate decal placement (this is particularly important when dealing with nose art, which, for obvious reasons, didn't follow "official" doctrine!). I should also add, they've done a great job with the "shark mouth" decals! If you look closely, each of the five versions differs slightly from the other, so there's no do-overs! Hopefully I don't mess that part up!
 
Finally, the last little extra is a set of masks from SH:
 

 
 
Not much to note about the mask set, other than it was slightly cheaper than the Eduard set.
 
So this brings the introduction to its conclusion. I am looking forward to starting this build, although when that time comes depends on the weather, and how productive I am with the outdoor chores!
 
Thanks to everyone who's joining me on this build and thanks for all the kind comments, likes, and insightful information!
 
Andy

I think the P-40s reputation took its biggest hit in the immediate postwar era. Looking back now, while it didn’t have the high altitude performance (which only mattered in NW Europe, one theatre out of how many..), it was at least equal to its contemporaries when played to its strengths, and in some cases better. 
 
With the A6M2, it was a matter of keeping the speed up. At high speed, the P40 could out turn the Zero due to the structural strength of the P40, but if the pilot let the speed drop, the Zero regained the advantage.
 
Rex’s Hangar did a great pair of videos about the P40. As he puts it, a high speed, low altitude sledgehammer of a plane!
 
 

For those following at home, my hobby time has been a little curtailed as of late last winter. Other projects took priority and time at the bench has been limited. I'm not yet ready to get back to it, since the weather continues to slowly improve, and the outdoor projects are stacking up, but I thought I would at least start a topic as a placeholder for when I get back into model building.
 
This particular project has come about as a result of another project I've been working on over the winter (and will be working on for a long time yet). It began with a google query made on the spur of the moment, and has since snowballed from there. To provide a little clarity, my great uncle was an officer in the 2nd Medium Regiment, Royal Canadian Artillery, during the second world war. He served in the Italian campaign as well as the final liberation of the Netherlands. He never spoke much of his experiences when he was alive, and even my uncles and aunt don't really know what he did during the war either. Just for a laugh, I decided to see if  the regimental war diary was available online. Well, I had great success there and I have discovered some amazing stories. Cross referencing the war diary with some history books, I've been able to put things in their proper context, and I'm endeavouring to create a more readable history to share with the rest of the family.
 
Anyway, getting more to the project at hand.
 
My great uncle and his regiment arrived in Sicily in early November 1943. As part of the wheeling and dealing that saw the Canadian forces in Italy brought up to Corps strength, they arrived without any of their heavy equipment (no transport, no guns, just the packs on their backs). They remained in Sicily until the end of the year, before moving to the mainland in January '44. While the regiment's time in Sicily was largely uneventful, one particular occurrence caught my eye.
 
On the evening of the 21st of November, a plane was seen to crash near one of the regiment's battery HQs:
 

 
My uncle was assigned to "Q" battery, so I'm certain he was well aware, if not involved in, the aftermath of the event. The war diary recorded few details concerning the plane that crashed, including the type and the serial number. This provided a great jumping off point and I was able to find some interesting information, and a bit of a mystery.
 
Researching the serial number, I found an online compilation of aircraft flown by the somewhat legendary 112 Squadron RAF. FR213, 42-45817 was delivered to the squadron as in July 1942, and assigned the code letters GA Q. It occasionally wore the code GA ? when used by squadron leader Billy Drake. The record I found doesn't note much else about the plane, other than it was a short tailed P-40K-5. The fate of the plane is recoded as "unknown".  
 
From my research, 112 squadron was based at a place recorded as "Mileni" towards the end of October 1943, and didn't move again until early '44. Although I can't locate the exact location, I think it was in the Foggia area. This brings up the first of many questions. If FR213 was still assigned to 112 Squadron, what was it doing in Sicily while the squadron was near Foggia (on the Adriatic side of Italy)? Secondly, it seems to have been quite an old plane by WW2 standards, almost 18 months, to still be in (front line?) operation, especially for the rough service conditions it would have experienced in the North African desert, maybe it's a good testament to the durability of the P-40 (its sister plane FR215 was struck off charge in April 1944, and some others made it until 1945!!).  The third mystery is who this American pilot may be. Nothing else is noted, so was the plane returned to the USAAF (which should have been recored somewhere)? If so when?
 
These questions aside, the thought of modelling FR213 (or at least, a version of FR213) proved to be very tempting. I will continue in part II with a description of the kit as well as some of the extras I've bought to go along with it.
 

 
Andy
 
 

For now I'm calling Walker tank #1 complete.  I decided to hold off on weathering and/or camouflage until I decide on how I want to display it and the Walker tank #2 kit build is completed. But both will have to wait a while until after I deal with a medical issue that just cropped up unexpectedly. 
 
Note to Moderators: This build log is NOT FINISHED YET, only part 1 of 2 is finished.  And there is a possibility of a diorama to be added to this build thread.  
 
The Walker tank model #1:
 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.cnn.com/cnn/2024/04/23/business/baltimore-bridge-collapse-lawsuit-hnk-intl
 
And there come the lawsuits.... As if they could have handled it any different.
Can't quite blame the city for it, but on the other hand, these are the risks of maritime transportation. If you're not prepared to accept it, better to close your port then. 
In general some of the most outdated maritime infrastructure can be found in US, time for them to get moving on this. Also the reason the largest containerships nowadays can't even call any port in US. Their closed market, including in dredging, creates a huge disadvantage compared to the rest of the world.

Welcome! Glad to have you along for the journey!
 
Andy

A bit more fun for everyone:
 
 
Andy

I have at last got around to taking the completion photo’s which will form part of the Photo build record book that I’m currently putting together.

4395
4361A

4392

4364

4365

4391

4390

4396

4369

4405

4395

2161A

2145a

4397

2162a

2164a

4380

4379

4388

4494a
I am currently faffing around with a clinker built 18’ cutter, and ‘Indy’ is yet to be enclosed in her case, so the story has not quite ended.
 
Then there’s the 26’ Launch, still on my mind.
 
Cheers,
 
B.E.
 

Thanks James! Don’t worry, you only missed the trailers, the main feature hasn’t yet begun!
 
I got everything from Hannants, they have a pretty good selection of aftermarket bits.
 
Andy

A bit more fun for everyone:
 
 
Andy

Welcome! Glad to have you along for the journey!
 
Andy

Thanks James! Don’t worry, you only missed the trailers, the main feature hasn’t yet begun!
 
I got everything from Hannants, they have a pretty good selection of aftermarket bits.
 
Andy

If you just want to replace the IP, try Yahu models. Here’s an example from a Canadian retailer:
 
https://thunderbirdmodels.com/en/132-aircraft-accessories/446-yma3210-yahu-models-132-mosquito-nf-iifb-vi-instrument-panel.html
 
They’re relatively inexpensive, and ready to use.
 
Andy

I'll take a better look at their site. Thanks Andy

A bit more fun for everyone:
 
 
Andy

A bit more fun for everyone:
 
 
Andy

Welcome! Glad to have you along for the journey!
 
Andy

Thanks James! Don’t worry, you only missed the trailers, the main feature hasn’t yet begun!
 
I got everything from Hannants, they have a pretty good selection of aftermarket bits.
 
Andy

A bit more fun for everyone:
 
 
Andy