Squadron (Eduard) F6F-5 Hellcat

[keavdog]

I was told that the Squadron kit was the Eduard Kit. Regardless - really nice kit and probably one the kits where I made the most mistakes in a long time. So... given my issues I decided to try a Flory wash for the fist time since these late war birds are so monochromatic. Anyhow here she is, warts and all - I need to lay off the cabernet when modeling...lol

This is Ens. Robert E. Murray's mount from VF-29 off the USS Cabot - 10.3 kills

All mucked up with Flory Gray wash



And the final bird. I think I still have a few clear parts to add but here she is after the wash



I bumped the left aeleron decal when it was soaking in microsol... grrrr



For the prop - I primed in white, sprayed the yellow, masked and sprayed the gloss black







Not sure the Flory gray was the right choice, but these late war birds were so clean it's tough to do any weathering

[LyleW]

Great aircraft! Looks good to me!

[Stikpusher]

Looks very sharp! But I wouldn’t say that the late war birds were so clean. During the combat periods of 1945 such as the Tokyo raids, battle of Okinawa, or the summer carrier sweeps against Japan, they saw pretty intensive action and did not have much time for clean up. Especially during the first two periods. Exhaust staining over the dark color took on a unique look, salt spray build up, some sun fading. And of course, if their shooting, there’s gonna be gun smoke stains off the .50s.

[jkim]

Looks great! The Eduard Hellcats are very nice!

[mostrich]

I know next to nothing about Hellcats but I know that I see a great model here. Such a bulky pig of war.

[Duke Maddog]

Brilliant work on that Hellcat! I like the wash effect. You did a sensational job!

[Floki]

Very nice build! Like Carlos said these did take a beating but nothing wrong with showing a cleaner one.

[Norman]

Nice build, I like the navy blue color and the Hellcat. I hope I have time to finish my Hellcat in the future. The kits waiting at the shelf of doom since one year.

[keavdog]

Do you guys have a pic of a beat up late war Hellcat? I couldn't find any weathered birds and as a matter of fact, I found an article that said that this particular paint was resistant to weather and sun.

[Stikpusher]

Light exhaust, but good soot staining behind guns



More beat up on rear fuselage



Good exhaust staining on wing and fuselage



Postwar, but excellent color reference



and McCampbell’s famous mount... certainly a busy aircraft during the Okinawa campaign