1/48 Hobby Craft P-26 Peashooter
Well, sports fans. I've finally finished my 1/48 Hobby Craft Boeing P-26 Peashooter. I built it as gift for my wife Kathy and jokingly call it the “Fabergé Easter Egg of Fighter Planes. The late 1930's and the run up to WWII truly produced some very colorful designs. This particular aircraft was assigned to the 73rd Pursuit Squadron “Golden Bears”, 17th Pursuit Group, March Field, CA in the late 1930's.
All in all, this was a fun build and went together well with almost NO filler needed. I was very careful pre-fitting the parts, however, because there were very many “fiddly bits” and clearances were tight. Additional detail was provided by Eduard PE for the engine and cockpit and rigging was E Zrigging by Mark's Models and Toys (made that chore a lot easier). Paints were Vallejo Air (Yellow RLM 4 and Fire Red) and Tamiya XF-81 Dark Green 2 (RAF). Lastly, the decals were by Yellow Wings(48-072) and were VERY nice to work with. There were options for the 34th “Thunderbirds” and 95th ‘Kicking Mules Pursuit squadrons as well.
Lastly, special thanks to Tom Cleaver for help on color details and various insights I gleaned from his P-26 build/reviews of other model websites.
What's with all the colour on iModeler all of a sudden. We're supposed to be a dour lot; 50 shades of grey and all that. A lot of the 'between wars' birds were bright, cheerful, and colourful. Now, does Tamiya do actual colours?
Can I ask how long she took you to build?
David, I most likely could have done it quicker but I took about two months to do it. I work pretty slow and when I reach a tough spot I tend to stop and “think” it out.
David, that's the reason Golden Age stuff is a draw, If'n you're used to shades of gray, it's a revelation, They all look like they should be in an amusement park, going around in a circle. Imagine a whole squadron of these, in formation, flying along. Quite a sight!
I think I need to get myself into some of that colour thing. It's quite the thing and looks as though it could catch on...
Tom, I really like this one... A bright little bird indeed... The mirror base for photos is a nice touch. Two thumbs up Sir !
I like the mirror so you can see the bottom without picking it up. That way I don’t drop it...not good.
Oh sooo nice Tom. You really packed in a lot of fine detail. I wonder in real life how many pounds of paint these pursuit planes carried?.A fine job on one of the most colorful aircraft ever.
California Steve
Great Job, Tom...love it !
Steve, they were originally OD/Yellow wings and horizontal stabs. The blue fuselage came after, and was an overpaint(?). I wondered if they stripped them down, before the repaint, or not. Late in their careers, some got painted aluminum, to show their obsolete status. Reputedly, those at Pearl Harbor being used as proficiency aircraft, hacks, and lead in trainers for the P-36 and P-40, were overpainted OD and (supposedly) black for night fighters after Dec. 7th. This last I find hard to believe. Imagine stalking an Emily at night in a P-26 over Oahu. Sounds like G-8 and his battle aces.
This is one of the Hobby Craft jewels along with their F-86 in 1/72nd.
Tom, the finish is excellent and the rigging with the different colors is out standing. I believe Planes of Fame has an example that they can fly and several replica's have been built. Its one of those planes on the bucket list to see. Two thumbs up on this one.
Beautiful, Tom ... simply beautiful! Ya dun reel gud! LoL!
These "yellow wings" era planes had - in my most humble opinion (IMHO) - real class. They certainly were an eye-full. What came later were sleeker, faster, more deadly, and lately - stealthy, but these "golden oldies" were just plain cool!
Outstanding, my friend! Bravo!
Cool is the word, I hope your wife was happy with her Faberge gift, just as well it's not made of chocolate!
Hello Tom,
Master modeler. That is my verdict.
Appreciated the extra information in writing.
Regards, Dirk / The Netherlands.
Nice work!
Man Tom that is one pretty airplane. Glad you finished her and sent some pics our way. Have one in the stash but that paint job scares me off.
Careful masking helps with the paint job. The decals, a lot of micro solar, and patience rake care or the rest.
Autocorrect and fat fingers got me...a lot of Micro Sol and patience take care of the rest
Tom, a real stunner! Excellent work all the way around - detail, rigging, etc. Beautiful model.
Tom, always love the classics, Well done !
is WOW ok? Peashooter is on my top ten favorite aircraft list and yours is JFB (just f-ing Brilliant)!
Awesome Job on this warbird!