SPA Modeler

Looking good...

The next big task before me is to wire the wheel wells but I have some reference materials on the way that I'd like to look at before going any further there. So I thought I'd jump over and look at the drop tank. I'm going to be using the 200 gallon flat tank under the fuselage. Trumpeter's rendition is pretty simple and I thought it would be nice to add some details.


So I revised the attachment points as rings and added a port for the fuel/air connections to the fuselage.


I fashioned a new pylon from sheet plastic to work with the ring attachments. I'll cut off the way bars and replace them with brass tubing and punched discs


Finally, I removed the fuel fill port and put on a new one made from a punched ring of sheet plastic and filler cap part from the Tamiya P-51D/K kit, which has FOUR of these caps. Most of these details will be difficult to see once the tank is hung on the pylon.


I've glued the engine firewall into the front opening of the fuselage. I should've done this before I worked on the fuselage seams since this adds rigidity and strength to the fuselage. There is a big, nasty fingerprint where there was a big overrun of Tamiya Extra Thin. Best thing to do is to leave it alone and fix it after it has completely dried.

A fingerprint? OMG! He is mortal!

brilliant job on that tank! That will really make this pop!

LOL! I hate it when I get fingers touching a pool of thin liquid glue on the fuselage or whatnot. Looking good!

Duke Maddog wrote: ↑Sat Dec 31, 2022 1:16 pm A fingerprint? OMG! He is mortal!

brilliant job on that tank! That will really make this pop!

Yes Mark, he is one of us and merely human

John, looks like getting close to painting you Jug.

In my display case that's not a fingerprint that's my branding.

tempestjohnny wrote: ↑Sat Dec 31, 2022 2:32 pm In my display case that's not a fingerprint that's my branding.

Yeah, go and tell that your kids. "It's not an iPhone, it's a plastic model, dad!"

Looking good!

Superb work as ever John!

Thanks everyone! Gotta be careful with that Tamiya Extra Thin. It usually happens to me when I inadvertently and unknowingly touch a part of the model with the stem of the glue brush.

The engine firewall has been glued into place so the magnet connection between the engine and the fuselage is final.



All of the careful pre-fitting has spared me from any nasty surprises... everything fits very nicely!



Some more views of the cockpit...





I'm still working on the fuselage bottom. I've filled in that horizontal slot and added drain cocks. The anti-sway bars have been cut from the mounted center racks and I'm in the process of gap-filling there.



The rudder has been glued into place. Trumpeter provides for movable control surfaces including the rudder but I've elected to lock them in position instead. The mounting ring for the horizontal stabilizer was fashioned from brass sheet and relocated to a position that allowed a better fit.


The panels over the gun stations have been glue onto the upper wings.


The flip-side of these upper wings hold the wheel well details and I'll be looking into that soon.