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Peter Ibes
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Corsair F4U-1D USS Cape Gloucester

July 11, 2019 · in Aviation · · 13 · 2.5K

Here are some images of my 1:72 F4U-1D , as it flew from the USS Cape Gloucester off Okinawa in 1945.

The kit, actually my first Tamiya ever, is a joy to build with great fit and all. However, it is too bad the flaps are only molded in the 'up' position, whereas all Corsairs on land or on deck had their flaps 'down'. I therefore cut them off and purchased the CMK set to address that. I further used an Eduard Zoom set for the cockpit and added ignition wires to the engine.

For your interest, I also added a photograph of the real thing that I found on the Internet, taken just before the white codes were changed to yellow.

I hope you like it.

Peter

Reader reactions:
14  Awesome

8 additional images. Click to enlarge.


13 responses

  1. That's a really cool scheme, and a nicely built Corsair. Would love to see more pics...

  2. Very nice model, the painting looks very good.

  3. Nice work on this.

    Actually, most Corsairs once landed have the flaps up. I say that as someone who has gone through a lot of Corsair pix choosing shots for publication (and who helped restore a 1:1 Corsair and read the manual). The only airplane that normally has the flaps down on the ground is the Merlin-powered P-51, due to the hydraulic system. For the Corsair, having the flaps down on the ground makes working on it difficult.

    Most of this "flaps down" business with models nowadays is due to an artistic decision made by Mr. Tamiya Sr., who "liked the look" 25 years ago - thus the Corsair has its flaps down as does the D.520, both of which normally had their flaps up on the ground, like most other airplanes.

  4. A great build and scheme! looks great.

  5. Good-lookin' build, sir...I like it.

  6. lovely Peter

  7. Thank you for your kind comments. I've added a few more images with a flight deck base.

    Tom, thank you for your feedback, I wasn't aware of that. But is does look good with flaps down :-).

    Peter

  8. Nice build Peter and a good choice of markings. Curious as to what brand paint and shade of blue you selected for that model?

    • Hi Jim,

      I used Tamiya AS-8 (spray can). You can either decant and use the paint with your airbrush, or directly from the can. The paint has a nice satin gloss to it, dries quickly and gives a good durable finish.

      By the way, the decals are from BarracudaCals.

      Peter

  9. I love Navy planes with some yellow markings rather than all white. Really makes the markings stand out. Super job!

  10. Really nice. I like the yellow markings...a nice change of pace!

  11. Outstanding! Nice to know about the flaps, too!

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