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My 1/72 scale aircraft

Up next will be a TBD-1 Devastator in the yellow scheme from the Lexington carrier.

I found a kit on EBay that included the aftermarket decals, and an aftermarket cockpit for the Airfix kit. This should be a nice upgrade to the standard kit. So that motivated my purchase! ;)
To be honest, I would prefer a resin upgrade over the PE upgrade for the cockpit.
Soon I will start on the cockpit assembly and the painting of the 3 crew members.

See ya next time…
 
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Update on the TBD-1 Devastator…

Work has begun on the PE cockpit upgrade. This is miniature sheet metal work! ROTF
I also cleaned up the crew members for paint. There were seams and other things that needed to be addressed. But I like the detail on them. So I will be using them.

I test fit a crew member in one of the PE seats. Just right! But no seat belts can be used, so it’s a trade off.
The instrument panel will require some scratch modifications due to no backing, just holes where the gauges are. And there is no panel for the bombadier. So I have to research that and scratch build one.


Anyway, it’s starting to take shape.

I have to say, the Flyhawk kit of the Dauntless has excellent cockpit detail that is on par with a 1/48 kit. However a lot of the detail gets lost once the airplane is finished.

I like this kit so much I would build it again!

See ya next time…
 
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Dean62 said:
Update on the TBD-1 Devastator…

Work has begun on the PE cockpit upgrade. This is miniature sheet metal work! ROTF
I also cleaned up the crew members for paint. There were seams and other things that needed to be addressed. But I like the detail on them. So I will be using them.
View attachment 571121
I test fit a crew member in one of the PE seats. Just right! But no seat belts can be used, so it’s a trade off.
The instrument panel will require some scratch modifications due to no backing, just holes where the gauges are. And there is no panel for the bombadier. So I have to research that and scratch build one.

View attachment 571122
Anyway, it’s starting to take shape.

I have to say, the Flyhawk kit of the Dauntless has excellent cockpit detail that is on par with a 1/48 kit. However a lot of the detail gets lost once the airplane is finished.
View attachment 571123
I like this kit so much I would build it again!

See ya next time…
Click to expand...
For the backing of the holes in the PE instrument panel, can you use the original and sand off all the detail so yo9u just have the shape? Is there a decal for the instrument panel that you can put on the backer so you get the dial faces through the holes?
Just some thoughts. :)
 
Corsair said:
For the backing of the holes in the PE instrument panel, can you use the original and sand off all the detail so yo9u just have the shape? Is there a decal for the instrument panel that you can put on the backer so you get the dial faces through the holes?
Just some thoughts. :)
Click to expand...
There is no decal. But I have some leftover decals from other kits, because I would rather paint the instrument panel if it has good detail. So I can use some of those gauges and glue behind the panel. Will have to cut out individual gauges…yikes.
 
Corsair said:
The instrument panel looks wonderful !
Amazing for such a small scale !
What are they, the largest is 1/8"?
Click to expand...
Thanks, I am not real happy with it, but I am not going to obsess with it either, because you won’t be able to see it that well once the airplane is finished. The largest gauge is 3/32” and the others are much smaller.
One of the best WW2 I have seen at 1/72 scale was the instrument panel for the P-39Q Airacobra by Arma Hobby. I really liked that kit!
And the Flyhawk gets second best for the SBD-3 Dauntless. ;)
My fighter jets all have excellent detail in the cockpit and on the instrument panels.
The worst is the WW1 airplanes as the instrumentation was minimal.
 
TBD-1 Devastator Update…still chipping away at tasks to get it ready for painting the fuselage and wings…

The motor sub assembly was done. Not much detail, but it will look convincing once assembled.


The motor and nose was assembled and the rear wings and elevators.


Then I started gluing together wing halves. Next I will trim off all of the sprue tabs and clean up the edges with a sanding file. Then they will be glued to one another with the wings unfolded. They are separate to allow the option to have them folded.
Then I can glue on the main wings and do all of the final putty and prep work for paint.
Things will happen fast after that!

See ya next time…
 
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RDN1954 said:
Wing skins (partially) made from corrugated sheet? Once a distinct design feature for the Ju52.
Again an interesting model.
Click to expand...
Yes, definitely interesting. It entered service in 1937 as a Navy torpedo bomber. It was considered a cutting edge aircraft at the time. But by 1942 when it saw action after Pearl Harbor at the Battle of the Coral Sea, it was already becoming obsolete. It sank ships in that battle (Coral Sea), but suffered large casualties at the battle of Midway, and was replaced by the Grumman Avenger afterwards. The biggest problem was the low speed and low approach in a straight line to drop the torpedoes, which made them sitting ducks for the Zeros and anti aircraft guns. If I remember correctly the maximum speed to drop the torpedoes was around 115 mph at around 120 ft altitude. So part of their demise was the torpedoes and their performance.
 
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