Jim Sullivan GB: 1/48 Otaki F6F-3 Hellcat
Jim Sullivan's “F6F Hellcat in Action” Squadron book features a Don Greer profile of Hellcat F6F-3 “white 13” of VF-16 that flew from the USS Lexington CV-16 in December of 1943. I chose to model this particular aircraft for the JS group build based on that drawing.
The Story:
Several pilots were assigned to “White 13” but on Dec 4th, Ensign Ed “Wendy” Wendorf was in the driver's seat on his very first mission to strafe the Roi Airfield on Kwajelein Atoll. After shooting down four enemy aircraft, his Hellcat was badly mauled by Japanese anti-aircraft fire in the attack. Wounded above one eye with dripping blood obscuring his vision, Wendorf managed to limp back to the Lexington. Wendorf's plane had no functioning radio, flaps, brakes or tail hook, yet he manage to survive a successful crash landing on the deck with minimal damage. Navy crews counted 220 bullet holes. Just a few hours later after Wendy's crash landing, the Lexington was hit by a Japanese torpedo and started taking on water down below. Fortunately a friend rescued him from the flooding sick bay. “White 13” was repaired and returned to the air.
So did Wendorf who returned to duty in the Pacific serving another seven months. He shot down 2 more Japanese aircraft qualifying him as an “ace” with six confirmed victories. Upon returning to the U.S., he taught at the Navy's aviation school in Pensacola for 24 years and later moved to the West Coast for General Dynamics managing logistics for their Cruise Missile program. After retirement he was a well loved docent at the USS Midway Museum in San Diego. Cmdr. Wendorf passed at age 90 in 2013.
The Kit:
Otaki airplanes are simple but well molded models that are acceptably accurate considering they date back to the mid -1970's. This kit is an Otaki reissue from 1980. Detail is quite good with recessed lines, a minimum of parts, and easy to construct with great fit and hardly any flash. Otaki appears to have used a very early production Hellcat from the first batch of 272 as their source for thIs tooling. There are a small number of accuracy issues that can be easily fixed. With additional detailing one can build this into a really good looking early or late production Hellcat F6F-3. Otaki invites plenty of opportunity to jump down the rabbit hole if you want to go there. I had to toss the kit decals as they were absolutely shot due to aging. The instructions are in Japanese, but no matter. Otaki kits are perfect for both beginners and rivet counting “ex-spurts” and can be easily found cheap online and from model show vendors which is how I got mine 15 or so years ago.
The Build:
I'll start with the cockpit which is totally void of any detail whatsoever and needs a lot of love even though you won't be able to see much of it once the front office is closed up. The overly thick Otaki canopy is one piece so I recommend using a Squadron/Falcon vac canopy if you want to show it open. I chose not to but gussied the cockpit up with an Utracast seat and instrument decal gauges by Mike Grant.
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- 1. Mike Grant decals
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- 1. Ultracast resin seat
If you go decided to go down the rabbit hole and improve the kit's accuracy, you will need to do some updating which is all explained in my build thread:
https://imodeler.com/groups/jim-sullivan-memorial-group-build/forum/topic/ill-go-with-otakis-f6f-3-hellcat/
Extras:
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- 1. brake lines added
- 2. drilled out gear
Aside from a little scratch building and bits from the spares box, I used Ultracast wheels and decals from Techmod, Eduard, Mike Grant and Aeroscale.
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- 1. drilled out tail wheel gear
Fine black EZ Line was used for the antenna after a nasty debacle trying other products and dealing with broken antenna masts. I mixed my own paint colors using Tamiya acrylics for the plane and Vallejo Air for tires plus silver and aluminum.
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- 1. wheel chocks included in kit
Conclusion:
Otaki kits are worth searching out. Give one a try.
A tip of the hat to Louis Gardner who provided plenty of valuable references and organized the Jim Sullivan Group Build. Jim was a longtime fellow iModeler and aviation author who is sorely missed.
Thanks for looking.
Note:Be sure check out fellow iModeler Spiros' superb build posted here on iModeler and over at MM of the same “White 13” that was maintained and occasionally piloted by Arthur Payne Whiteway.
https://modelingmadness.com/review/allies/us/usn/fighters/penf6f.htm
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- 1. metal gun barrows
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- 1. scratch buit exhausts. Otherwise there is a noticeable void.
Heck of a Hellcat, Eric - and it's the oldie Otaki kit with some great looking additions.
I heard a lot of good things about that old gem.
Great way to commemorate Jim Sullivan's work.
Thank you George. I hear Otaki Corsair kits are good too.
Nice build Eric. Otaki kits were always fun. I built the same kit in high school circa 1979. Small note- the chocks need a quarter turn so one block is in front of the tire, and one is behind the tire.
Whoops! Funny how photos expose the mistakes. Thanks for pointing this out, Jim@angus64
Great finish to a great build, Eric. I enjoyed watching start to finish.
Gracias, Gary @gwskat.
Nice work and a great result, @eb801. That kit was ahead of its time.
I totally agree TC @tcinla and intend to pick up a few more. I saw a pile of Otaki kits at a recent Santa Rosa show. A few "younger" attendees were looking at them an commenting they had never heard of or seen Otaki models before. I told one guy to buy a couple and he wouldn't be disappointed and he did.
Amazing result, my friend Eric! The Otaki Hellcat never looked better and I wish my Hellcat looked like yours! An amazing build thread, too, a great write up and a superb tribute to our Jim.
Congratulations!
I think we both had a good time researching and building our Cats, Spiros.
@eb801 - Fantastic work Eric! All of the detailing you did is really nice, the weathering is incredible. The red outline around the star and bar really makes it stand out. The writeup and review are also quite well done. Very nice!
Glad you liked it Brian @brithebuilder. Appreciate your comments.
Truly amazing how this Hellcat turned out, Eric @eb801
All your extras do add a lot to this kit.
A very valuable contribution to Jim's tribute.
Why thank you John @johnb. I see Jim’s name in so many of my reference books and I can tell he was a major collector of Hellcat/Corsair photos.
HOORAY. Wonderful build and finish. Work added to complete it all well-done. Background story a fine addition to your post.
thanks Bob @bails. It was an enjoyable build.
Well done. I've never built an Otaki kit so a much need to add this to the bucket list
You should look for Otaki kits next time go to model show, George @blackadder57. I saw a pile of them at the last one I attended in the $10-15 range earlier this summer. I have read that Otaki's F4U-1A still holds up as a decent kit.
A great-looking Hellcat - the added touches are very nice - bring the old kit "up to spec."
Thanks Greg @gkittinger. But it isn't 1/72.
Proof once again those older kits are still worth building! Nicely done!
Yes, indeed, Rob @robertandy. Thanks for the compliment.
What a great looking Hellcat, Eric (@eb801). I remember when Otaki kits first came out we all thought they were the next big step in modeling. They are really elderly, but your modeling magic has made it in to a winner. Well done.
Thank George @gblair. Next time I see a vendor selling some Otaki kits, I am going to grab a few.
Eric Berg (@eb801)
First off, thank you for your continued support with our Jim Sullivan group build. I'm sure Jim would be proud to see what you did here. I'd happily display your Hellcat in one of my display cases ! It really looks incredible, and the little extras you did along the way make it stand out among the "Hellcat" crowd.
I'm also very impressed with your self mixed colors. I have seen an actual WW2 color chip standards book for the various ANA colors that were used by the US, and watched as my friends restored a beautiful full scale 1 to 1 size Hellcat back to airworthy status.
From what I have seen of the real aircraft first hand, your model looks spot on, an accurate miniature of the real thing.
I had the opportunity to meet a man named Arthur Payne Whiteway, who actually flew this very plane you built a model of on numerous occasions. He was actually assigned to this particular Hellcat on paper for what he called administrative purposes. He said he was responsible to see the maintenance was being performed on this particular Hellcat, that it was regularly cleaned and serviceable. However he also said that they flew whatever aircraft was available at the time in his unit, VF-16.
I believe this picture I found in the Steve Ginter book on the F6F Hellcat is also of the same plane.
Second, I sincerely appreciate your kind words. I also feel like the group members who have commented and occasionally gave advice during your build, and all of the others, have helped to make the JS group as good as it is today.
My very first Otaki kit was one of their 1/48 scale Ki-44's. I built it in February of 1978, and still have it to this very day. They were way ahead of their time. I had the little poster that came in the original box taped to my bedroom wall as a kid too. Those were the days... and these kits are still good ones.
Two thumbs up ! I'll be clicking on a few of the various "like" buttons before I leave. I'm looking forward to seeing your Corsair H-100 hitting the headlines too. If It looks half as nice as this F6F, you will have a winner on your hands.
Some years ago I built this plane as a tribute to Payne Whiteway. I used the Hasegawa kit.
Here's a link to it.
If adding this link is a problem, please let me know and I'll remove this ASAP. It tells a little more about the story behind the men who flew this plane.
Take care.
No problem with that link, Louis @lgardner. I always appreciate the information you come up with and I always learn something valuable. This is good group. Glad you started it.
Eric Berg (@eb801)
Thanks buddy. Likewise, I appreciate your info as well, and agree it has been a good group.
A perfect Hellcat, Eric.
That's quite a compliment, George @chinesegeorge. Thanks!
The high level of detail makes it such a beautiful model. Great effort.
Thanks John @jdtruby. I would build another Otaki it in minute. Just have to find another kit.
Really nice work on a fine older kit, Eric. Great paintwork, decaling and subtle weathering. Otaki got this one right in most important respects I love the Hellcat but prefer the larger scales. Trumpeter's was a bit of a flub in 1/32 but I was overjoyed when I acquired the Airfix 1/24th scale version. I will do the cat mouth version of the F-6F-5 on one day soon.
Otaki's Hellcat does the job but it is someone basic but for what it is, it's hard to beat, Colin @coling. I have heard good things about that Airfix 1/24 Cat but I don't have the room for larger scales. I hope you do a WIP report when you start yours.
Very well done, from an old classic. I remember when these Otaki kits started showing up at the local hobby store. I really liked the engraved panel lines and the quality of fit, but thought that Monogram offered more detail in a similar number of parts. You have really shown just how good these old kits can look with a little TLC and talent.
Absolutely Walt @luftwaffe-birdman. Otaki is hard to beat for the price and easy build. Yet there are plenty of modelers out there unfamiliar with this brand who look at them on vendor's tables and just keep going. Otaki stopped producing models in 1986.
Thanks for the compliment.
Beautifully done, those old kits do hold up. Excellent narrative as well.
Thanks Rob @roofrat. I liked that vintage stake truck model you built and posted a couple of weeks ago too!
Excellent and beautiful work Eric, this is a great looking Hellcat! I have built 5 Otaki kits back in the later 70's into the 80's and really enjoyed them very much. Except for my two P-40 builds, they built up nicely and were pretty accurate. The extra work that you put into yours made a decent kit into a great build.
Thanks Bob @v1pro. Did you ever build an Otaki F4U? I want to try that.
I have never built the Corsair but seen it built many times. It does built up nicely.
I have built Otaki's Spitfire, P-47D, Ki-84 and P-40E. The P-40 took a lot of work to correct some issues but I still enjoyed the build. The Ki-84 was a simple out of the box build. Back in the 80's many of our club members would build the Otaki kits. The most popular ones that I remember were the Corsair, Hellcat, Bf-109, FW-190 and P-47.
Thanks. I will keep my eyes peeled for some Otaki models.
Beautiful work Eric!
Thanks, Ken @kenk. Waiting to see your next car model.
Eric @eb801, I just came across this one and you've done a wonderful job on the Hellcat! 👍 The paint looks great to me and your add-ons add a lot; I 'm diggin' those exhaust pipes peeping out! 😄