Cheers Rowan,

well, the Airfix has been postponed twice already (first 1st then 16th and now 29th September) who knows if and when it will finally come out (is Hornby still in trouble or alredy belly up??).

I already thought about looking for my Monogram kit and copiying those, but I would need to buy RTV silicone and resin which is pretty expensive for just a few copies (I will probably not get it done in one try)

As I wrote: at the moment I am not sure this project will proceed soon

all the best

Steffen

Steffen,
You're a braver man then I as the expression goes. If it were me, I'd opt to take my losses and wait for the Airfix kit. And yes I know that you're only under taking this build for comparison's sake, but still one has to question if at this point it's worth all the effort

Joel

Hi Steffen

You can pick up the classic old Monogram kit so cheaply, it'd be a very cost-effective source of replacement parts.

All the best

Rowan

Hi again and thanks for still being with me!

Today I had a look at my small stash and found the old Monogram box. On closer inspection I bought a started kit back then and this made the decision to rob the elevators from the kit easier ... otoh I would not have build it anyway.

So rescribing, sanding, cutting et voila:



Just some rivets to add on the fins and a bit of primer on the elevators.

The elevators also do not match the drawings perfectly, but the shape looks o.k. or even good (compared to the other options) it also has a better thickness with a cross section that almost looks like an aerofoil... imagine that.

BTW I also got my paint for this kit. Hannants gives XA 1002 and XA1114 as DuPont eqivalents in their new Xtradecals Stearman decal set, so I bought a few bottles of these.

all the best

Steffen

Hi Steffen

Over 50 years old and a better shape than the new kit - so much for "progress"...

It's good to see you've got past the stumbling block. It'll be interesting to see your Bronco and Airfix kits together (Have faith - Airfix's version will appear - they've got masses of releases hitting the shelves just now, it's just a shame the P-40 got delayed. Of course, it could be they saw the Bronco kit and decided there was no need to hurry because they knew they'd have plenty of guaranteed sales in the bag ... )

I'll dig out the LifeColor US export colours (reviewed HERE for my Airfix P-40.

All the best

Rowan

Hi again,

despite this is kind of PITA (and I do not mean the greek bread) I try to keep moving .. with the Airfix kit delayed again I won't get some motivation from that kit.

Rowan: Lifecolor paints have some nice shades but the get gooey when usind another thinner than their own and have some side effects on Klear and other paints so I only used thes for projects that are intended to lay around some time after painting.

Back to the kit: The elevators still needed some work in shape and still need some re-enforcment panels I decided to put on the rudder fins ...

Welllll, time for some more cutting as the base is a little too short for teh new rudder to fit so I cut the base of the kits rudder fin and added it to the Monogram, afterwards glued to the tail .. then of course I had to file this down to the thickness of the Monogram. Kind of boring and tediuos, so I only get one side done yet.



Done is relative as I am not sure if it is sanded down enough (I did not want to harm the scribed and riveted Monogram fin) .. will see after primer.

So I moved on to the forward end of the beast and built up the engine. This is a good fitting and busy looking subassembly. I wont show it so I'll just give it a final dark colour before mounting. But if you want to show the engine, the Bronco kit might be something for you ...




As you can see you have to add the intakes to the engine. But the fit is good and looks o.k. (here dryfitted)



all the best

Steffen

Steffen,
Now that's progress.

Since you added all the engine bay details (which look really quite good), then dry fitted the engine bay panels, are you planning on leaving them off, or gluing them on? They also don't exactly look like a snug fit, and one would assume that they were meant to be left off for display purposes.

Joel

Cheers Joel!

Well, I just built the stuff together to get the cowl fit and to show what is there. Everything will be closed. The fit is o.k. and no big deal.

The only thing that can ruin your day is the exhaust stubs as these have a bit of play in their slots and can influence the fit of the side panels.

all the best

Steffen

Hi Steffen

Good progress. That engine could look very tasty if you were going to display it (is it the best part of the kit?).

I haven't managed to find my Life Color paints yet (although I thought I'd unpacked all my paints, I reckon they might still be in the pile of boxes left from my move away from London years ago), so I may yet go for other alternatives. I use a variety of thinners with Life Color and find it among my favourite "pure" acrylics to work with (I don't count Tamiya and Gunze Sangyo - which I use with cellulose thinners). I get on well with Xtraclylix, so I may follow you there. I've not encountered any problems when using Klear with Life Color paints.

I think my guardian angel must be delaying the release of the Airfix kit to protect my wallet! Money's very tight at the moment, so the delay is a real help.

All the best

Rowan

Hi again,

yes probably the best part. As you can see I just slammed everything together and cleanup was minimal. If you put some effort into this it will surely look fine. Not sure about the panel overlapping the firewall though .. looks strange, but maybe the included ammo boxes would sit there.

Here is a pic of the 2nd rudder. As you can see I still need to finish the rudder and the fin base is just glued on and not filed which has to be done on the model as there is the rest of the base.



on the frontend i attached the side panels to the engine. These were painted black on the inside. Fit was o.k. but needed a little help. I stuck teh whole engine to the model for a testfit. Not glued yet as the cockpit has still to be finished (IP and Rudder controls plus ammo box with MG bodies)...



Paint: I mostly use Gunze and Tamiya with Gunze Levelling Thinner .. a great combination which leaves a very nice finish. I use AKAN, Xtracrylics, JPS, Lifecolor, Revell, Citadel, Alclad or Vallejo depending on what I need for a project. I also have some AK and Ammo of Mig sets that I still have to fully try out.. I expect these to work like Vallejo (though the AK thinner seems to work better).

all the best

Steffen

Here are the elevators half done.

No big deal but I am lacking motivation. Drawings were copied and glued to thin plastic card and cut out with scissors. Streaks are added from thin plastic stripes. Sanded down after glueing.



all the best

Steffen

Great build!! Thanks for sharing too!! I was looking into getting this kit, now I won't...

I was just wondering though, what are the drawings your are using to reference against?? If one could only get a hold of the same type of drawings for all the stuff one builds...

Cheers!!

Kagero Monograph 36 - Curtiss P-40 vol. I

Steffen,
The detailing with strips of sheet really is a major improvement to the Elevators.
Joel

Alrighty then... I'll have to look into publications like this. A few that I have looked at only had pictures, drawings are a whole other ballgame... Thanks!

Thanks Brrian and Joel!

Today I finished the other side. I need to prime this pieces to check the thickness of the sheet detail.

@Brian: drawings are only half the truth. I checked the shapes against some pictures and these drawings better matched the real shapes than the kit parts. So I started with the Monogram parts and the drawings for the correction. Also everyone has to decide for themselves if this is worth the extra work... in the end a model stays a model.

all the best

Steffen

Steffen

The kit looks like it has potential- the engine for example would look great displayed. Such a shame about the shortcomings of the kit. You are doing a great job.

Simon

Thank you Simon,

to be honest: I do not think this kit has potential. If it were in the 20 Euro range I would follow your argument about the engine, but it is more than twice that price here in Germany. Of course the Airfix still has to prove it is the better kit, but that should be easy.

To be fair I knew beforehand about many of the problems, so there is no-one to blame but me.

The elevators got some primer. there is still some work to be done, but it does not look bad (the hard shadows overexpose the effekt).



all the best

Steffen

Steffen,
The Elevators are a major improvement, and with a little more work, will be up to your standards.

Joel

Nice one Steffen

I know this build has had its share of frustrations, but there's a definite extra sense of satisfaction from scratchbuilding and improving over the kit parts. You'll be able to look on the finished model with justifiable pride.

All the best

Rowan

Well because of this post I have pre-ordered the new tooling from Airfix. Should get it next work... Looking forward to it!!

Hi Brian

Based on a quick look at the Airfix kit today, I don't think you'll be too disappointed.

It's sad when a build actually puts people off buying a kit - but I've got to admit this has confirmed my worst fears on Bronco's release. Full marks to Steffen for transforming it.

All the best

Rowan

Thanks Rowan for the teaser!! I build/have built mainly OOB. The model doesn't have to be 100% accurate but I do like it when it is more close than not...

Hats off to Steffen and all the rest of you who take modeling to a higher level!! In a word it is very inspiring!!

Thank you guys! Your input is much appreciated!!!

Brian: the main thing is the shallow cockpit. If you can live with that everything else is less important. Considering the Airfix P-40 10 Euro less in price and more accurate it is a good decision to buy that kit.

Personally I would not buy the Bronco kit again it is just too much work to get it half way right.... I am not claiming my alterations make it more accurate but just more pleasing to my eye.

all the best

Steffen

So here is the complete tail. Not spectacular, but I like it much better than the kit parts:



I also proceeded a bit with the instrument panel. The front is Aires PE, backside with instrument bumbs from teh kt. I also used teh kits rudder pedals but mounted them differently to get a proper sit for the deeper cockpit. The top braces were replaced with styrene strips and after painting the IP was mounted to the cockpit sidewalls. I still need to add the MG bodies befor I attach the engine:



all the best

Steffen