Tamiya 1:48 - F4U-1A (FAA version)

[shortCummins]

After seeing a few of examples of a FAA Corsair I thought I’d like to have a go myself.
Jaime Pastor Pueyo’s ‘Pacific Pirate’
http://www.modelersite.com/Dic2010/Theb ... II_Eng.htm
MagpieII’s ‘Bent Wing fatherless person from Connecticut’ (Fleet Air Arm SIG)
viewtopic.php?f=591&t=21948
Bruce Salmon’s RNZ Air Force F4U-1A
http://hyperscale.com/2007/features/f4u1anzbs_1.htm

I’ll be using the Montex super mask set K48330 and I’ll be attempting sea grey and olive drab camo’ scheme of an aircraft from 1834 Squadron Royal Navy HMS Victorious October 1944


I’ve got the Eduard PE set 48381 which I’ll use to detail various parts of the aircraft.



Also I have some fantastic resin from Ultracast, I first saw this resin seat when Stokesy44 used it for his excellent F4U Corsair build last year
viewtopic.php?f=34&t=17384&p=214181&hil ... st#p214181


I’ve since found out that Ultracast make a specific seat/harness for British Corsairs, maybe next time?

Quickboost make a resin replacement engine, I couldn’t resist…

They also make replacement undercarriage covers


The Eduard PE has a unpainted instrument panel that I intend to use, if I’m not happy with the result I’ll be getting one of these as an alternate IP, I used a Yahu IP for a Spitfire build earlier in the year, they really are a worthwhile addition.


I plan to add rivet detail, the Tamiya kit has some, not enough for me, but I’ll probably go overboard , I used this site to find ‘blueprints’ to work from for the rivet placement http://www.airwar.ru/other/draw/

There are a number of differences to the FAA version (some of which I’m going to ignore) these are what I could find…

13’ - 4” narrow chord prop.
No port wing landing light.
Upper starboard wing light.
Sutton harness.
No lower fuselage window.
Long tail wheel strut.
Rear fuselage scoops with vent on lower rear fuselage.
Clip outer panel wing tips 8” each side.
Cockpit has British equipment (radios, flare gun, oxygen system).
No switch box on starboard instrument cowl.
Diamond pattern tire/wheel set.


until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[ManuDellaValle]

You're going the whole hog here.....hope to see more soon!
Cheers
manu

[shortCummins]

You're going the whole hog here.....hope to see more soon!
Cheers
manu

thanks Manu
I'm looking forward to adding all the details that no-one else will see I really enjoy this sort of thing

rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

As ‘normal’ the build begins with the cockpit.
Moulded detail scraped off and lots of knobs and switches enhanced with the Eduard PE set…


the foot pedals look good

the seat bracket will be mostly hidden?

foot rest supports are very nice

some side-wall detail

I’ve tried to represent a British radio but I couldn’t find any photos so I used PE radio relay and power distributor cover from the Airscale cockpit detail set PE48 DET, along with some red copper wire, unused pieces from previous kits and some round styrene as my interpretation.


Next will be a coat of Ultimate black primer and then detailing the interior.

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

I used Ultimate black primer on the PE instrument panel

… and the rest of the cockpit and interior





I then gave a base coat of Tamiya XF-71 cockpit green, for the cockpit area and XF-4 yellow green to represent zinc chromate for other internal areas. You’ll have noticed that I’ve painted over the floor window, the British versions didn’t have this window




details were then picked out using black, white, red, green and yellow
This is my version of the British radio cluster


The forward bulk-head, I’ve left the IP area Ultimate black, the Eduard PE instrument panel(s) will be added after the detail painting is completed

In all of the colour photos I’ve seen the headrest is black, I originally thought it would be red-brown

detail painting really brings the switches to life





I need to finish detail painting on the resin seat and then I’ll start adding some wear n tear (dry brushing) and an oil wash.

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

Adding the Eduard PE instrument panel(s) to the front bulkhead, I’ve also added some PE placards that were left over from a previous build. Everything has been given a dark brown Tamiya panel liner ‘wash’ and dry brushed with dull aluminium and dark grey.



the resin seat has been detail painted and weathered


the cockpit sub-assemblies joined together


the cockpit side walls and rear landing gear well have also been weathered


the cockpit sub-assembly dry fitted


the cockpit floor has also been weathered




Now I can join the fuselage halves and move on the building the engine.

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[Twokidsnosleep]

Oh wow, what a great cockpit
This is going to be a fine build for sure


aren't you putting it in the FAA group build, currently running???

[shortCummins]

Oh wow, what a great cockpit
This is going to be a fine build for sure


aren't you putting it in the FAA group build, currently running???

thanks Twokids

no I'm not entering the FAA group build, I don't think I'll be finished in time and besides MagpieII has already entered his excellent build of the same aircraft

rgds
John(shortCummins)

[Technophobe]

Liking what I see so I'm in for the long haul

[Twokidsnosleep]

Oh wow, what a great cockpit
This is going to be a fine build for sure


aren't you putting it in the FAA group build, currently running???

thanks Twokids

no I'm not entering the FAA group build, I don't think I'll be finished in time and besides MagpieII has already entered his excellent build of the same aircraft

rgds
John(shortCummins)

Well I will still certainly follow along with your great build
My FAASea King is probably going to be late anyhow at the rate I am going

[shortCummins]

I’ve been working on the fabulous Quickboost resin engine.
After removing the moulding block first job was to add the push-rods, made from thin styrene rod, and drill the holes for the ignition leads

the ignition leads are made from 0.2mm insulated copper wire

Everything was given an coat of Ultimate black primer and after a few hours I sprayed vallejo acrylic metal color 77.717 dull aluminium

The gearbox cover was brush painted with Alkan FS:35237 medium grey/blue, the ignition wires were painted with a mix of Tamiya XF-64 red brown (40%) and X-6 orange (60%). The cylinder’s were given a dark brown Tamiya panel line wash, the gearbox was ‘streaked’ with AK’s aircraft engine oil.


I wanted to use the ‘open cooling flaps’ on the engine however I’d seen, on a 1:32 kit I believe, activation wires and fixings, I thought I’d have a go at scratch building them. To start I dabbed dots of micro kristal klear, let them dry and then added more on top to build them up

Next I made the activation wire/ring by using a small plastic shot-glass as a former and twisted the ends to keep the circle

This wire ring was then glued to each of the kristal klear ‘fixings’ and cut at the top opening

Ultimate black primer was used, followed by Tamiya XF-4 yellow green, the activation wire detailed with vallejo dull aluminium and then Tamiya dark brown panel liner ‘wash’. The panel liner was painted on and then "removed" with a q-tip moistened with odourless thinners.

The inside of the engine cowl was then painted and weathered, Ultimate primer, XF-4 and Tamiya dark brown panel liner wash

The propeller was also painted with Ultimate black primer, the tips were painted with Alkan RLM:04 yellow and the hub vallejo dull aluminium



The propellor needs some wear and tear, and I’m not sure what to do with the prop hub dome, I may well paint it either red or black rather than leave it aluminium.
Next up is the wing roots, and then I’ll start on the riveting

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

Wing roots, started by adding PE from the Eduard set

everything coated in Ultimate black primer

Tamiya XF-4 yellow green

The PE plumbing detailed with vallejo dull aluminium

Tamiya dark brown panel liner used as a wash

More PE added to the intakes

…and everything joined together.
I’ve sprayed the inside of the front opening yellow green as this is part of the airframe/engine compartment rather than the cockpit?

the window currently shows the Ultimate black primer as the British version of the F4U didn’t have this window

the PE grills and intakes




Riveting next, I’m off to print out the blueprints from http://www.airwar.ru/other/draw/

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

When I joined the two halves of the fuselage together there were some minor steps/gaps, I’m sure it was “operator error” rather than kit parts that don’t fit, anyhow the steps were sanded and the gaps filled with ‘spru-glue’ so whilst I’ma waiting for this to fully cure I’ve decided to weather the propellor.
This is the prop’ base painted in Ultimate black primer, vallejo dull aluminium prop hub/dome and Alkan RLM:04 for the tips…

I’m assuming that being a carrier based aircraft spares would be at a premium and therefore the whole aircraft would be “well worn”.
First up was a very diluted Tamiya XF-24 dark grey, 90% thinner 10% paint, brushed in the direction of the air-flow

A prismacolor silver pencil was used to ‘chip’ the edges of the prop

The photo doesn’t really show it but I dotted mid-brown oil paint along the leading edge of each blade and used a blush moistened with odourless turpentine to drag the oils in the direction of the airflow

I mentioned previously that I didn’t really want the prop hub dome aluminium, it would appear that most were either unpainted or black however, I did find some references that showed then as ‘sky’, so thats the colour I used Alkan BS:210 sky type ’S’

Everything was given a coat of aqua gloss and the decals applied, I’ve no idea if these would have been on combat aircraft, but I like the look of them



So now that the spru-glue has cured I can do some minor re-scribing and get down to the riveting

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

After some minor re-scribing it was time to start the riveting.
Here are a couple of ‘close-ups’ from the blueprints downloaded from http://www.airwar.ru/other/draw/


To help transcribe the rivet placement I used my callipers and marked the start and end position of each line of rivets and then used my ‘Rosie-the-Riveter’ tool to mark the lines of rivets

here you can see the before and after, riveted wing on the bottom


rear stabilisers

wing roots, top…

…and underside

I’ve also decided to try and position the rudder at a slight angle to give a bit more interest, so this entailed removing it and filling the resulting gaps with squadron green putty. I’ve also given the rivets a slight rub down and therefore some are highlighted against the Ultimate black primer that I used to check the fuselage seams.




Next will be joining the wing roots and engine/cowling to the fuselage in preparation for painting

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

I thought I’d document how I clipped the Corsair’s wings…
Fist off I used some Demo tape as a guid and used a razor saw to remove the wing tips

Squadron green putts was used both to fill the gap and create a slightly rounded effect

both wings ‘clipped’

Next I cut out the wing tip lights

To create the light covers I used one of Ultimate’s ‘chain-saw’ grade sanding sticks to give me a flat edge on some transparent sprue

This sprue was then roughly cut to size and glued in place

These were then sanded to shape and finally polished with various grades of Ultimate sanders



until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

Time for paint, after some preparation…
Wings, flaps, rear stabilisers, rudder replaced and engine cowling attached, notice the rudder is positioned slightly to one side. Engine, wheel bays, cockpit and anti-collision lights masked


According to my research there should be a rear air intake on the underside however, I couldn’t find any photos showing it and this photo doesn't show it clearly, if at all…

… so I’m not going to add one, the underside window shows the Ultimate black primer, its not a mask, as the British versions didn’t have the window, only the American versions had it and often they were ‘modified’ with aluminium ‘in the field’

Montex masks used for the canopy


more PE

this is a comparison of the kit parts (bottom) against the Quickboost resin undercarriage covers


First I sprayed the canopy Tamiya XF-71 cockpit green


Then everything got a coat of Ultimate black primer





I’ll leave the primer to fully cure, overnight, then I can make a start on the underside (sky) and top camo (sea grey and olive drab)

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

Once the primer had cured, I left it overnight, I started by adding some Tamiya XF-4 yellow green, this colour may be seen when I start the weathering as I plan to lightly sand the paint to imitate wear and tear



I’m a convert to “black-basing”, the subtlety of the ‘finished’ paintwork is quite a revelation, if your looking for a good “how-to” and “why-to” check out Mat McDoogal’s series here…


For the ‘marble-coat’ I tried using different colours, red-brown and kaki as well as Alkan sky


The ‘final’ coat was a heavily thinned coat of Alkan sky, 80% thinner 20%paint. This photo doesn't really show the subtile tonal shifts, thats my fault with the camera rather than the black-basing process


I’m not sure what, if any, difference using the different colours has made however once again it may show when I start the weathering process.

Next up is the top camo (sea grey and olive drab), once again I’ll be black-basing

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[RossiM1]

Stunning work John love the details you added to the engine and the cooling flaps are pure genius

[shortCummins]

Stunning work John love the details you added to the engine and the cooling flaps are pure genius

thanks Gary, I really enjoy adding these details even if no one will ever see them, I know they are there

rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

Now that the “sky” underside has dried, I masked that off and then started the top camo’.
The top camo’ is sea grey and olive drab


I started off free-hand black basing the Tamiya XF-62 olive drab


The ‘marble-base’ was given a highly thinned ‘blend-coat’ of the XF-62, approx. 80% Ultimate thinner 20% paint



When the olive drab dried, I left it for a couple of hours, I made some thin white-tac worms to be used as a ‘soft-edge’ demarkation between the grey and green. I used electrical tape to mask the rest of the olive drab to prevent overspray.
First off marbling base, Alkan BS:640 dark sea grey…


Then a blend coat of thinned 80% - 20%
WORD OF WARNING - don’t use electrical tape as a mask, this happens…




Next, after I’ve fixed the XF-62, shouldn’t be too much of a hassle (famous last words!?) I’ll be breaking out the Montex masks and painting the roundels and other markings

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[Twokidsnosleep]

She is coming along nicely John, the belly paint is fabulous
We are in the FAA deadline battle together my friend

[shortCummins]

She is coming along nicely John, the belly paint is fabulous
We are in the FAA deadline battle together my friend

ha ha Scott, I've got no chance of finishing before the deadline, but yours is looking good

[shortCummins]

I’ve fixed the XF-62 olive drab that pealed off and masked for the roundels and other markings
To start I sprayed Tamiya XF-2 flats white as a base for the roundels and tail markings



what doesn’t show is my thumb-print in the middle of one of the wing top roundels, I had to wait for this to cure before I could gently sand it and go over it again with the white.

After the white had dried I masked for the blue, I used model air 71.087 steel blue as a base



I though the grey was a little too monotone, I’m guessing I was either too liberal with the blend-coat or I’d not thinned it enough so I lightly faded some of the grey panels.
Next I masked for the identification markings and gave them a coat of Alkan sky


Now the markings have been painted I’ll move on the weathering, and general wear and tear

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

NOT a happy bunny!!! because photobucket want $399 a year to allow me to display photos on this site , so I'll have to have a look for an alternative

I'll update this build log when I find something to "host" my photos

[shortCummins]

I've signed up to UltraIMG

see if these work...

http://ultraimg.com/images/2017/06/30/G1ba.png

http://ultraimg.com/images/2017/06/30/G1Q3.jpg

[shortCummins]

First off I masked and sprayed the walkways Tamiya XF-69 NATO black


I wanted to define the material sections of the ailerons and rudder so I cut some Tamiya tape into thin strips and masked the areas to be painted


...and then gave them a coat of thinned 60% thinner - 40% Tamiya X-19 smoke




I masked the muzzle protecters and then brush painted Alkan red and the ‘sponge chipped’ Tamiya XF-16 flat aluminium




I’ve given everything a coat of Alclad aqua gloss in preparation for adding the chipping, additional weathering and the few decals needed.

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

I started by hand painting Tamiya XF-4 yellow green to represent pint that had been worn away




Then I painted Tamiya XF-16 flat aluminium within the XF-4 to represent paint that had worn through to the airframe




I was unconvinced with effect so I ‘toned them down’ by dry brushing green and grey



Still not too happy with the effect, I’m hoping that I can blend it in when I add the rest of the weathering.

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

Trying a slightly different tack, I wasn’t happy with the results of the ‘chipping’ so I’ve decoded to try and make he aircraft dirty rather than knackered, my reasoning being that it was aircraft carrier based and would have been reasonably well looked after but probably not kept ‘spick and span’ as conditions on a war theatre carrier wouldn’t have allowed too much time for non-essential maintenance?
To start I used a dot-filter, random white, black, dark brown, brown, green and blue dots of oil paint, from a cheap set from the pound shop, were placed all over the top of the aircraft and then blended using a odourless turpentine moistened brush.


The engine cowling, wings and rudder were brushed in the direction of the airflow whilst the fuselage was brushed top to bottom.
I also dotted black and dark brown spots near the wing root and used a nearly dry brush to ‘pound’ and blend the oil paint to give the illusion of collected dirt and grime.




I let the oil ‘grime’ cure overnight and then used Tamiya panel line accent color dark brown





Next up will be “spills and leaks”

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

Spills and leaks were created using mig PLW green brown A.MIG-1612, AK aircraft engine oil and kerosene.
Fuel stains, first PLW green brown and then kerosene




The underside stains are a mixture of engine oil and PLW green brown



Engine oil applied with a brush

…and then “feathered” with a odourless thinner moistened brush



Everything will get a coat of matt varnish and then a light “dusting” of pigments

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

I’ve been working on exhaust staining. Rather than just using Tamiya X-19 smoke, I’ve never really been convinced it looks like exhaust stains, I’d been searching for an alternative and came across a couple of different methods…
First off I used a heavily diluted, 80% thinner - 20% paint, of Tamiya XF-59 dessert yellow to represent the outer stain…


Then, diluted to the same ratio, mr hobby H72 dark earth on the “inside” of the yellow stain…


And finally Tamiya X-19 smoke in the middle of the dark earth…


I think this graduated scheme represents the exhaust stains more realistically rather than just X-19

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

I’ve been working on the landing gear, I’ll be using PE from the Eduard set and also resin wheels from Ultracast.
I first started on the rear wheel and hook…
PE added




Then the main landing gear needed some of the moulding removing to be replaced by the PE, left part unaltered

PE added

I then scratch built some springs, I wound some thin copper wire around a pin to make some springs

these were then added to the landing gear

Everything was then painted with Ultimate black primer

b
rear wheel and hook


The resin wheels were also given a coat of Ultimate primer



I’ll let the primer fully cure and then start painting the landing gear

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

After the Ultimate black primer dried I masked the arrestor hook with thin strips of Tamiya tape…

and sprayed it with Tamiya XF-16 flat aluminium


The wheels were given the same treatment using the montex masks


The rubber was painted with Akan new rubber and the diamond tread was then dry-brushed with Tamiya XF-24 dark grey


I decided to make the final arrestor hook hoop red, I thought it might add a little bit of interest


Whilst I had the red open I painted the spinner red, I’d previously painted it “sky” but I didn’t really like it…

…so red it became


The PE brake lines were painted black


I gave everything a coat of aqua gloss and then I used dark brown panel line wash to bring out the detail




The landing gear doors were weathered with dots of oil paint



Getting very close to the end now, I just need to add the landing gear, windscreen, canopy, ariel and antenna wire and were done!

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[Twokidsnosleep]

I am still here watching
Fantastic detailing!!

[shortCummins]

I am still here watching
Fantastic detailing!!

thanks Scott

"life" keeps on getting in the way for bench-time but hopefully I should get this finished over the next few days

rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

Landing gear and wheels attached…





Once the landing gear had been attached I added the final bits and pieces
Gun sights…


windscreen, attached with micro Kristal Klear white glue…


canopy…


ariel and antennas, the “wire” is EZ line fixed in place with CA (super) glue and I’ve made a tension spring from thin wire wrapped around a pin, the insulators are blobs of white glue that will be painted when they’ve cured…



and finally the propellor



Now I just need to touch up some of the paintwork and an hour or so of reasonable weather so that I can take the reveal photos

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[shortCummins]

Well the sun came out, it was a bit windy but I didn’t think that would make much of a difference, how wrong can you be…



Luckily I have some glue, you can see the reveal photos here…
viewtopic.php?f=45&t=22917

until next time
as always, any suggestions, criticisms or comments will be gratefully received.
rgds
John(shortCummins)

[Elve1984]

Great build John, shame half of your photo's isn't visable anymore.

[shortCummins]

Great build John, shame half of your photo's isn't visable anymore.

I'm working on that, I'm thinking about putting a build log up on youtube, it'll be the photos and text from here but at least anyone can see them. I've just got to work out how best to do it, currently I'm thinking of using iMovie (I use a mac) so I think it should be reasonably straight forward to publish a slide show?

rgds
John(shortCummins)

[Elve1984]

Great build John, shame half of your photo's isn't visable anymore.

I'm working on that, I'm thinking about putting a build log up on youtube, it'll be the photos and text from here but at least anyone can see them. I've just got to work out how best to do it, currently I'm thinking of using iMovie (I use a mac) so I think it should be reasonably straight forward to publish a slide show?

rgds
John(shortCummins)

I dont know how that works with a Mac, never used one. I moved most of my pics to Flickr, it has the same function as Photobucket but still free. only had to change all the links in my threads.

I have to say i prefer reading a build review on the forum with pics over watching a movie with pics. I personaly think you get more interaction true the forum then over a YouTube movie. but thats my 50 cents.

[shortCummins]

Great build John, shame half of your photo's isn't visable anymore.

I'm working on that, I'm thinking about putting a build log up on youtube, it'll be the photos and text from here but at least anyone can see them. I've just got to work out how best to do it, currently I'm thinking of using iMovie (I use a mac) so I think it should be reasonably straight forward to publish a slide show?

rgds
John(shortCummins)

I dont know how that works with a Mac, never used one. I moved most of my pics to Flickr, it has the same function as Photobucket but still free. only had to change all the links in my threads.

I have to say i prefer reading a build review on the forum with pics over watching a movie with pics. I personaly think you get more interaction true the forum then over a YouTube movie. but thats my 50 cents.

good point, I only plan to the youtube thing for retrospective builds, its too much hassle to re-upload to flickr (this time) and then edit previous threads, I don't have the time and what happens if flickr pull the same stunt as photobucket? once bitten and all that

I've used flickr for the photos you can see on this build and I'll use it for future builds, perhaps with a youtube build log as well, I'll see how much effort it takes, i don't want to spend more time at the computer rather than at the bench

[Elve1984]

good point, I only plan to the youtube thing for retrospective builds, its too much hassle to re-upload to flickr (this time) and then edit previous threads, I don't have the time and what happens if flickr pull the same stunt as photobucket? once bitten and all that

I know what ya mean. guess thats the risk of using a free photo hosting party. You could always hire your own webspace and use that to host your pictures. But that costs money.

[shortCummins]

YouTube videos...

[youtube]tp1zSTB0Y8s[/youtube] [youtube]pYWh2_sP8bI[/youtube]

[youtube]zYS6lbLmOZI[/youtube] [youtube]3Jy130kA6Hg[/youtube]

rgds
John(shortCummins)