Pearl Harbor GB: Curtiss P-40B Warhawk – Airfix 1/48
A happy New Year to all my fellow modelers!
This evening (almost midnight), I'd like to share with you my most recent build (and last of 2021 by a hair), which is of course the Airfix P-40B. This kit needs nothing said of it, and I thoroughly enjoyed the build, which I started on the day after Christmas. The kit is essentially out-of-the-box, with the exception of Eduard belts, and decals for the 14th Pursuit Squadron bird (for something just a little different), which was also stationed at Wheeler Field in Hawaii in 1941, along with the 15th PS birds so seldom done. Unofficially, this build was part of the 80th Anniversary of Pearl Harbor Group Build.
The kit went together with out hitch, though some fitment was a bit testy, and some putty was used at most seems (diluted PPP). For paint, I used Vallejo Nuetral Gray, and MMP paints for the first time, mixing a bit of OD and RAF Dark Green for a fresher shade. The MMP paints are about as fragile as Vallejo, but they seemed to lay down more smoothly, with perhaps more even pigmentation saturation. No preshading was done, but some post shading was done with thinned OD. Final coat was a diluted Matte coat over Tamiya X-35.
This one will be brief, as other commitments need attention. I hope you enjoy, and I apologize for the photos if they appear grainy. They were extremely under-exposed, so some integrity was lost with bringing back the correct exposure and colors. I assure you, they are very close to the in-person shades.
Great Looking build! I love the early P-40's and from the looks of it the Airfix kit builds up really nicely. Great work and excellent results. Happy New Year.
Walt, thank you! Yes indeed, little effort goes a long way. I particularly like the early P-40's as well.. The first model airplane I even built myself was Monogram P-40B. Cheers!
A spectacular result, Andrew!
Love the painting.
Happy new year!
Thank you Spiros... we're still waiting to see your 1/32 P-40... ๐
Ah, don't you know this kit is fatally flawed because the "nun's hat" is wrong? As the World's best Modelers at the World's Finest Site - they'll tell you.
Of course, the world's best modelers at the world's finest sit are here, and I am sure we all approve of your excellent work, Andrew. ๐
Happy 2022 - drink to the curse of "living in interesting times."
Awwhh shoot, Tom @tcinla... Guess that I shoulda pitched this thing in the trash before I even started, ya' know, given the inaccuracies and all... Thanks for the heads up on such a fatal flaw. /sarcasm.
I'm glad you like it! I think the kit builds up great, and looks even better... so i'm quite contented that the nit-pickers out there can happily marinate in their spite and resolve over not building such a great and cost effective kit... If those said people even actually build anything... rubs chin
Cheers!
Great looking Warhawk, Andrew @pb_legend
The OD looks beautiful.
Happy New Year
Thanks John!
Looks great to me !
Cheers Jay!
@pb_legend, that is a fine looking model Andrew! Very nice work there! ?
and @tcinla, Tom, I really like your toast; yes indeed, "the curse of living in interesting times". Tighten your belt, we're in for a bumpy ride ahead. Come on 2022! ?
@garybrantley, To better days ahead! Thanks!
@pb_legend, Yes sir, I'll drink to that! ?
Well in this case the "nun's hat" is the fatal attraction. So much of this modeling stuff can be academic and esoteric that it poisons the well. The reality, Andrew this build turned out great and the cockpit and the close attention payed to the nose . . . the model stands out in my mind as being top notched and brings out the best in this kit.
Two thumbs up.
Thanks for your carefully minded complements, as always Stephen,@stephen-w-towle. I had never even heard of this "nuns hat" before Tom had mentioned it, so I was happily ignorant to this "fact". Gladly, I build models for the enjoyment of the build mostly, and (in this case especially) the joy of having "what looks like x subject" on the shelf. In this way, things like that don't really bother me, as it sucks too much fun out of the hobby.
The cockpit was fun to build up, and I really enjoyed that... however, getting the nose and signature cowling fitment quarks ironed out was crucial for me, as the nose of the early Warhawks are what really draw me in.
Cheers!
Great job on this Fatally Flawed kit. Nicely captures that prewar blah look that USAAC planes had.
I guess I'll have to toss my two Fatally Flawed kits in the trash. Since the Worlds best modellers on the worlds best modelling site say so.
Rob, thanks! It's definitely a drab scheme (pun intended..?) ๐
Great P-40B. Very Smart build, and great painting. Did you have any problems with Vallejo paints? I'm glad, that you enjoy our Pearl Harbor GB:-)
Lis @lis, thanks! You P-40s of late were decidedly a part of my decision to build my P-40B, then your GB made me consider that there was no better a time than now to do it. I wish I would have taken the time to do a WIP, but once it got rolling, I just couldn't stop. I spent one night cutting most parts of sprues, and laying out a construction and painting plan. The next night I told my wife I was going to go spray some primer, and 4 hours later the cockpit was primed, painted and detailed. The next morning I joined the fuselage, had all the control surfaces on, and was puttying... Like I said, this one went together quickly! ๐
To answer your question about the Vallejo paints, I typically use Vallejo or [now discontinued] Model Masters paint, since I have the widest range of colors from these types. The Vallejo Model Air paints are not bad, but they are just a bit frail. The best way to describe them might be "soft", which is not atypical for acrylic paints, especially those that are water-based. On the opposite side of the same/similar spectrum, Tamiya acrylic paints set up to be much more durable. For this reason, on airframes I now only spray the water based acrylics over Mr Surfacer primer, let dry thoroughly, then cover with Tamiya X-22 at the earlier possible time, mainly to prevent handling damage, since the softer paints can be rubbed thin very easily.
Beyond that Vallejo Model Air paints usual have great pigmentation, and generally spray well out of the bottle if needed. I've also used their Model Color line, which is exclusively for brush painting. This line thins great with water (still dries and levels well) and maintains a good pigment saturation when thinned, which helps for more even coating when brushing.
I hope that helps!
Yes! Thank You!
About Tamiya paints. Few time ago I used Tamiya, but surface after Tamiya Paint wasn't enaught smooth. Do did you have this problem? Vallejo had some shades of RAF colour that another brands don't have. But during my P-40 N build I found that Duck Egg Blue is in Mr Brand, but under FS number. I will test this paint today!
Beautiful build. I'm gonna look up your in progress thread. I've got one warming up in the to-do pile and will be finished as one just after coming off the production line
George, @blackadder57, unfortunately I didn't take the time to do a WIP thread, but I'd be more than happy to throw some notes your way if you need to. In general just take your time to test fit some of the more engineered assembly steps/pieces, and you should be fine. In the case of the landing gear housing "nose cone" I cut off the alignment pin, and done of the substrate that it was supposed to mount to, in favor of better overall fit,
which is odd because the edges of the pieces matched up well once the alignment means were removed. Your skills will prevail. ๐ Thanks for the compliment, can't wait to see your "naked" Warhawk.
Here is a resource I came across (Lis shared it previously) that you may have, otherwise you may find it highly interesting (links to further albums at the bottom of this page):
https://inchhighguy.wordpress.com/2021/09/22/curtiss-wright-p-40-warhawk-production-color-photographs-part-i/
@pb_legend - What the heck is a "nun's hat'? I thought this Airfix kit is pretty darned good and saw nothing wrong with it. In fact I think it's one of their better kits. I really enjoyed everything about it when I built mine. Yours certainly looks top notch and a fitting end to 2021! Congrats!
Let's hope this year won't be so wacked out, so... Happy New Year!
Eric @eb801, to be honest, I really dont know. I really dont care enough to find out, after a quick search didn't yield much detail. As my first Airfix kit, I agree that the kit was enjoyable. I have a few Airfix P-51s yet to build (who can pass up such value) and I'm curious to see how well they turn out. Thanks for the compliments and cheers to a new and improved year!
I have built a couple of recent Airfix Mustangs. Although not as detailed or fit perfect as Eduard's offerings, they build up very nicely and are really a good value like you said. You can buy two for the price of one Eduard pony. They just need a few aftermarket bits. I personally think the tires are awful.
I've somehow obtained 3 of them, so... Noted! ๐
@eb801, here's a bit of discussion regarding that "nun's hat", including a drawing. hth. gb
https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/hyperscale/attn-nun-s-hat-debaters-p-40-pics-from-palm-spring-t493902.html
Nice work Andrew. I built the same kit as a RAF machine a few years ago and had a vice less build. It's a nice palate cleanser. Well done.
@mickdrover, your RAF build is terrific looking, as is typical with everything you share. A palate cleanser is one way of putting it, after some Hobbycraft kits of a much older vintage... This kit has given me a second wind to pull out some old Monogram kits from the shelf of doom... Thanks!
It looks great, and your photographs show it off to perfection.i
George, thanks! I use the standard Windows editing tools for lighting and color adjustments, since my lighting setup causes differences in raw photos depending on angle. The tools work well, and all photos get what I feel is necessary.
Well done Andrew, nuns hat be damn. She looks good to me and who doesn't like P-40's, I've only built 18 of them, so many different schemes from so many different countries. Still haven't tackled that Airfix P-40 kit so I must add her to my 2022 list. Nice job.
@Tom-bebout, thanks! You will have to get one of these Airfix kits, it may become your new favorite. You can often find them for only 20-25 USD.
Such a beautiful build! I love it, very inspiring as i have this kit in my stash, too.
Very nice! Those early birds seem so plain compared to once they got all marked up with shark teeth and camo schemes, but show the classic lines of the Warhawk so well.