# Scratch building missing engine parts for Wright R-1820 Cyclone



## Silver wings1 (Jul 17, 2017)

From my previous post on a missing part I ended up buying an Aires Wright R-1820 Cyclone engine for the Accurate miniatures SBD-1 but after 3 hours work I discovered that it was built for the B-17 and was not compatible with the SBD-1, not even having all the parts that the kit engine had. Part H14 was missing on my model which was crucial for being able to install the propeller so I decided to scratch build it. Fortunately I was able to download a picture of the actual engine from the Internet and had a picture of the missing part from the kit sent to me by Wurger.
I Had to do some serious thinking for several days and finally came up with an answer. I cut out 2 circular bases. from .025 plastic card. to match the bottom part of the shaft and drilled an opening to accommodate the lowest section of it. It was then sanded down to fit the widest height of the shaft at the bottom level. Then I cut a circular piece of .010 card and drilled out a hole to accommodate the next level of the shaft. This would act as a stop for the shaft preventing it from moving up when the propeller is spun .Unfortunately I forgot the capillary action of plastic glue and had the shaft on when I glued them together. However I discovered it fast enough to remove it but I still had to sand the shaft when dry and clear the holes. I then added another .025 piece glued everything together without the shaft and shaped it to match. You will note in the picture that the shaft is askew. This happened when I took it out of the box to photograph it since the whole thing is still not glued down to the engine. When I glue it down Gator glue will be used, hopefully without locking in the shaft.. I still need to make a pipe running down from the bottom and a square thing-a-ma-jig at the 2 o'clock position. Does anyone know the name of these parts and their purpose. The propeller can now spin WOW!.

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## Robert Porter (Jul 18, 2017)

Nice!


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## Wurger (Jul 18, 2017)

Yep.


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## Wayne Little (Jul 18, 2017)




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## fubar57 (Jul 19, 2017)

Nicely done


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## Silver wings1 (Jul 21, 2017)

Unfortunately the engine Quickboost 48 070 for the SBD-3 is no longer available anywhere. I accidently broke off the shaft of the kit engine I was working on and it disappeared into oblivion. It was working beautifully. I could replace it and add the other parts but I think that the Aires engine I bought could be used. The back part could be left off and the attachment part from the kit engine glued to the Aires engine, or else a similar part could be made.. I think that I will just make a similar part first to see if that works so the don't ruin the kit engine completely. Boy!. This has become a mind boggling project that I would just as well scrap and go on to another project. Talk about a curse.
As a matter of fact I gust bought the Eduard F6F-3 with all the extra parts, a beautiful engine, Big Ed photo etch and others. This could keep me busy for a long time. Then again the Revell PT17 wit Caracal RCAF decals came in today.


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## Wurger (Jul 21, 2017)

So ... you may use the one for the Hasegawa kit. There can be some of working on its fitting to your mode but it is better than nothing, IMHO. Have you asked these guys of the UMM-USA about the set?

UMM-USA

UMM-USA


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## Silver wings1 (Jul 21, 2017)

Yes I talked to them, they showed it as being in stock but tried to order tr. Anyway they are refunding my money. Meanwhile I am tired of scratch building everything and put the kit aside. I was able to find an original AC SBD-2 at Sprue brothers and ordered it, difference is minor. The SBD-2 had increased fuel capacity and different armament. Still had no self sealing tanks. Even though I've bought an F6F-3 and a PT17. I am bound and determined to build an SBD from the box. Strange I built most of these models in the 70's, in fact I have a box of details and sprues stored in a Monogram 1/48 TBD-1 which sits in my shed. I don't think I could go bach to producing a model weekly ad finitum, In those days I only used Floquil paints which gave you all the mixtures for each country. Life was so simple than Today. I have all Vallejo, Model Master,, Humbrol, and Gunze Sangyo, how could I forget all of Tamiya acrylics and really have no idea what to do with them , when you do use them it is in tiny amounts and the shelf life on these is limited. Floquil has no shelf life limit. If I was smart I would go back to using Floquil , I also have all of Scale Coat paints.. Big deal you have to wait a week for them to dry but the paints are permanent on the model, although they can be stripped with a product I have called Chameleon which works like a charm.
Cheers,

Alec


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## Wurger (Jul 21, 2017)

I see.


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## Silver wings1 (Jul 22, 2017)

Now that all that rambling is behind me, and I hope that I haven't irritated anyone with it, I have returned to repairing the damaged shaft.. I removed the part I built from the engine and will proceed to repair the shaft. As an aside that part was glued with acrylic gator glue and surprised me with it's holding power, however it came off cleanly by cutting all around with a scalpel.. I am glad that I ordered the SBD-2 because it will give me a better perspective of how the missing part was made, so I can duplicate it.
By the way, I determined that the Aires engine could be reconfigured to fit the SBD-1. The rear section could be left off and the back of the engine would require making an attachment to accommodate the connection to the cowling. However. it still needs additional parts made to match the engine for the SBD-1 . A thought but not at this time. I would rather rebuild the one that is being worked on now.

Cheers,


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## Silver wings1 (Jul 22, 2017)

Update to shaft repair. I didn't have the right size plastic rod so I cut off a piece of sprue and twirled it between my fingers , filing and sanding until it got to the proper size and attached it to the broken shaft.


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## fubar57 (Jul 22, 2017)

Always good to step back and pause for reflection instead of reaching for the 88mm Flak-hammer Alec. I have a few....10...20...30 kits where I've hit a stumbling block and placed on the shelf of doom. Every now and then I'll take one down, fiddle around a bit and then replace it to the shelf though I have crossed 3 off the list by completing them. One thing I've learned about modelling.....carry on or move on, plastic isn't worth the stress. Looking forward the the end result either way you go

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## Wurger (Jul 22, 2017)

Glad you fixed that..


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## Silver wings1 (Jul 22, 2017)

Thank you for your kind comments. The other problem with this kit is the design to fit the wings to the fuselage. a large gap is left on both sides and the rear ends by the ailerons requiring lots of putty to fill the gaps and gluing and clamping by the ailerons. Frankly I also have several kits put aside, but mostly I got tired of working on them. A Zukai mura P-51 with all the extra details, a Tamiya Spitfire with over 160 hours of work. both in 1/32 scale. Many more for one reason or another. At this point I like working on 1/48 kits. I was involved in building Wingnut wings kits of WWl but moved on to 1/48. I sure have a lot of those in the stash. .Basically I enjoy working on the intricate details of a kit and some time don't even care if it gets finished.


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## Silver wings1 (Jul 24, 2017)

When I was finish sanding the completed shaft it separated at the glue joint. For some reason the plastic cement didn't work, so I drilled out a .016 hole on each piece, inserted a .015 brass wire and glued them together with cyanoacrylate . It worked like a charm with the shaft rotating nicely. Now , since I got involved in this I am thinking of detailing the engine further.. Making a magneto and tubing of course but also adding NBW's around the crank case and distributer housing area, inter ear drain pipes between the cylinders and other details around the engine.


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## Wurger (Jul 24, 2017)




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## Silver wings1 (Jul 24, 2017)

I bit the bullet and drilled out holes around the perimeter of the crank case/ and inserted nut bolt washers from Grandt Line" 0" scale #8. The wings to fuselage gaps were puttied and sanded . If anyone minds these updates and does not want to see them, please let me know and I will desist. As you can see I suffer with AMS ( Advanced modelers syndrome.) Every kit gets the most detailed treatment and then some, but I don't mind.as building dozens of kits now is not of interest even though I have them and still buying more...

Cheers!


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## Robert Porter (Jul 25, 2017)

Mind? Heck no, it is what we are members for! Keep em coming!


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## Wurger (Jul 25, 2017)

Yep.. also a couple of shots of the progress would be nice to see here.


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## Silver wings1 (Jul 28, 2017)

The Accurate miniatures SBD-2 arrived today and I'll tell it is an exact duplicate of the SBD-1. The instructions by Academy were reworked but put into a fold out instead of the book type from AC. I also received the SBD Dauntless in Detail and Scale and found a good picture of the Wright R 1820 Cyclone . The kit engine has only the front part and I am very displeased with the H14 part' it resembles nothing of the actual engine part.. The Quickboost. engine is also falling short of the actual engine since it seems they duplicated the kit engine with just the front of it. The Aires engine on the other hand does justice to the proper copy and has the back of the engine included. This is what I am going to build and forget about the partial copies. It will require reconfiguring the cowling of course. I don't know what to do with the SBD-2 at this point but I'm sure I will figure it out. Since I got involved with this old kit I , in my usual way want to build the various variants. That said I am trying to locate an SBD-5 From Eduard, which is a rebox of the AC with extra details and have already ordered the Wright R 1820-60 1200 HP for it from Ultracast. Meanwhile I have a hankering for a jet which I've never considered before and have one coming from Zukiea Mura in 1/48.
I can't leave this planet. I have too much to do LOL


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## Wurger (Jul 28, 2017)

Here is a link to a site where you may find a couple of shots of the SBD-1 engine. IMHO it can come in handy as the front part is quite nice seen ....

SBD-1 Dauntless

SBD-1 Dauntless


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## Silver wings1 (Jul 28, 2017)

Thank you Wurger. It is very nice of you to lead me there. I was very surprised when I saw the engine how the model of it in the kit doesn't come close. The protrusions on the H14 piece are odd. Comparing the photo of the picture I have of an R 1820 G (1200 HP) it has the same parts and configuration., so I will build them.
I started work on the Aires engine model, attached the 9 cylinders and said to myself, unless it will be displayed in the open instead of being buried in a cowling, what is the purpose. I then started by cutting out .030 x .080 pieces and gluing them together to copy the parts on the H 14 piece until I saw the pictures you posted. Thank you. When I get them built and attached, a picture will be posted. As for the Aires model it will be built and placed on a wooden platform that I'll make and display with 2 mechanics working on it.


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## Wurger (Jul 28, 2017)

Sounds good.


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## Silver wings1 (Jul 29, 2017)

Well !, no matter how I try this kit engine is really a piece of work. If you recall in a previous post I beefed up the shaft with a brass wire, but it still doesn't do any good I cut the shaft to size today and started sanding the end to round it , lo and behold it separated at the same place in spite of the wire acc'd to it. The larger end of the shaft had a hollow center and the acc didn't hold the plastic alone .This thing is a disaster from day one and I don't know why I persist in trying to fix it. The kit engine is crude anyway and I would be better off building the Aires one or even getting one that was designed for the Hasegawa. In spite of all this I am bound and determined to complete this bloody engine which I probably wouldn't put in the cowling anyway and build the Aires one that looks much better . I have never let any kit beat me and this one is not going to do it. With that said I am going to scratch build a new shaft from leftover sprue.
What a nut LOL

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## Silver wings1 (Aug 1, 2017)

Ok, ready to roll. The engine is complete except for painting. I made the suction tube from .062 aluminum wire and the magneto from Evergreen stock HO 6"x 12"


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## Wurger (Aug 1, 2017)

Well done.


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## Robert Porter (Aug 1, 2017)

Nicely done!


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## Silver wings1 (Aug 8, 2017)

The engine is painted and installed into the cowling which is installed on the aircraft. The flattened wheels are painted on the sprues . Scale Aircraft conversions metal landing gear is installed along with the wheel covers, however in following the instructions I found it impossible to install part # D118, a tiny piece of plastic .015. measuring about 3/16 long. The better method would have been to attach it to the wheel covers then after the landing gear was installed it could just be glued to the gear. I left it off. I'm using only 2 100 lb. bombs because being an early aircraft during the depression with money constraints prevented the 1000 lb bombs to be used for practice. I put them together but will attach them after painting, however the trapeze and the racks were installed. The fun part with the screw up is next. I attached one flap actuator to the left side, glued it in and decided that it didn't look right so I ripped it off which destroyed it, so I opted to use closed flaps which were installed. I went to Ebay and bought another Accurate Miniatures SBD-1 for 20 bucks which I'll build with fully open flaps. I also bought an Accurate Miniatures SBD-5 for $39.00 and a Vector R 1820 -60 engine for it from Ultracast models . In addition I already bought an Academy SBD-2. They changed the instruction procedure. A couple of the changes are improved, like installing part #D118 like I mentioned and installing the pilot's map table when doing the cockpit instead of waiting to step 13, where it would have been impossible to do. I already foresaw that and installed it earlier. I am not pleased with their instructions which are not as precise as Accurate Miniatures did, but they use only diagrams. This this is going to cause many problems to anyone building their kit. Fortunately The SBD-2 is identical to the SBD-1 except for a smaller carburetor scoop on top of the fuselage and larger fuel tanks which are unseen anyway , so the Accurate Miniature instructions for The SBD-1 can be used.
Until next time,

Cheers.


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## Wurger (Aug 8, 2017)

Sounds good.


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## fubar57 (Aug 9, 2017)

Congrats on the engine


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## Silver wings1 (Aug 10, 2017)

Progress report:
I masked the cockpit and landing gear for painting, decided not to use a primer and painted the entire aircraft with Tamiya TS-17 Aluminum in a spray can. The closest match to the actual aircraft paint. It covered the raw plastic well but where there was some paint leaked out from painting the interior cowling where it didn't ,but that is because i used a light spray. As expected the sanding at the wing roots was very legible. after drying for 3 days, i will sand these areas down and repaint the aircraft Meanwhile I decided to deal with the canopy frame painting. I tried painting the frames by hand but the Testors aluminum didn't cover too well . and covered more than the frames. I removed the paint with Turpenoid but it left some scratches which i will deal with Novus 3-2-1. I have been working with WW1 aircraft for some time and never had to worry about canopy frames. When I came across this I was really ready to scrap the whole thing, Instead I walked away from the whole thing for a while. When I came back I decided to make individual masking for each panel using Tamiya tape. I tried a couple and it was OK, but very slow, Of course is another method going to be any faster. I decided that I am no longer in a time sensitive build and have all the time at my command now, so I covered the entire canopy with masking tape, then with a mechanical pencil I ruled out the sections at the frames and with a sharp, new scalpel cut along the lines. It worked beautifully. Slow but who cares, I will never be able to build all or even some of the models I've acquired and still keep buying My main problem right now is to try to stay with a build I started instead of starting another. It doesn't always work, but at age 87 I am very lucky to be able to build anything. I hope all of you can reach this unbelievable age and and still be able to have all your faculties and be able to enjoy your hobby, whatever it is. Meanwhile my family is falling apart with their health. My youngest son spent 80 days in a hospital, 2 weeks of which were in a coma with being kept alive on a heart and lung machine and dialyses treatments. He lost his left leg and is looking to a long road to recovery. All this from an infection from a scratch. However the good part is that he survived . along with another patient for the same infection, but several others died. My next oldest daughter is undergoing therapy for a stroke and is also facing a long road to recovery. I cannot understand why me who has not seen a doctor for over 43 years is still wandering around. Not in the best shape as I was when younger but I fight it and put up with it. I thank God for each day that I am able to do what I want, eat what I want and work on my models.
I'll keep buying more as I see the ones that interest me.
Sorry for this big tirade, but put up with me. I hope I have helped some others with my procedures.
I love being here at this forum with all you wonderful people.

Cheers


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## Robert Porter (Aug 10, 2017)

So sorry to hear of your family health issues. That is always a real trial to deal with and of course the worry about them can be all consuming. My best wishes to you and your family for a speedy recovery and return to good health. Thank you for your contributions here, and I am glad you find some comfort in our mutual hobby especially with time pressures removed! Go at your own pace and enjoy what you do!


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## Silver wings1 (Aug 10, 2017)

Robert Porter said:


> So sorry to hear of your family health issues. That is always a real trial to deal with and of course the worry about them can be all consuming. My best wishes to you and your family for a speedy recovery and return to good health. Thank you for your contributions here, and I am glad you find some comfort in our mutual hobby especially with time pressures removed! Go at your own pace and enjoy what you do!


Thank you, I really appreciate it


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## Wurger (Aug 11, 2017)

With Robert here. Smiles for all of you there.


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## Silver wings1 (Aug 11, 2017)

Boy I sure got hooked on Accurate Miniatures SBD's. I just bought another one, an SBD-4 Dauntless RNZAF This now gives me another SBD-1, an Academy SBD-2, an Accurate Miniatures SBD-4 and an SBD-5. . I was intimidated by having to make masks for the canopy of the current SBD-1 I am building, but once I got into it , it sure is therapeutic and enjoyable. So far I have over 62 hours in this build , but 10 of them was for scratch building parts for the engine. Here is the program that I have set up for myself, but this does not guarantee that I will follow it as I am very subject to change. Build another SBD-1, an SBD-2, an SBD-4 and an SBD-5. Finish the Trumpeter BF 109E-3, then build the Zoukei Mura F-4S 1/48. I think that this would keep me busy and interested for some time to come. Usually I get about 2-4 hours a day and a night. Will I make a hundred years old. I really wouldn't care one way or another as long as I still have my health and faculties. My wonderful Bichon Frieze dog is over 16 years old, has no eyes and is a wonderful companion helping to keep me sane. I will be devastated when he goes. If I do reach 100 I'll say the same thing George Bernes said I will sing at the Palladium in London since I was a big band singer in the 40's and 50's with Television , radio, night clubs and all at the time.

Cheers thumbleft:


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## Airframes (Aug 11, 2017)

I hope your son and daughter recover quickly and fully - keep on hanging in there !


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## Silver wings1 (Aug 12, 2017)

Airframes said:


> I hope your son and daughter recover quickly and fully - keep on hanging in there !


Thank you Airframes


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## Silver wings1 (Aug 20, 2017)

Got an original Accurate Miniatures SBD-5, another SBD-1, an SBD-4 is on the way from Canada for an RNZAF scheme. The Current build of the SBD-1 is almost complete with over 70 hours of building time. I am very displeased with the many problems I've had with this kit, missing parts, lost parts, poor fitting . I am seriously thinking of dropping the project and even though I bought 4 other SBD kits I may just buy a Trumpeter 1/32 SBD-3 for which I have found many good reports . The 4 SBD kits I did buy will probably take up at least a year of building time, probably more judging by the current build with problems. All that is left to do on this is masking and painting the wings and adding the final details. I'll try to stay with it but I am really fed up with the huge amount of time it takes to correct all the problems. In addition the Trumpeter Me BF 109E-3 is almost complete ,and painted for an Armenian squadron, with over 100 hours of work on it. I will post pictures shortly if I don't trash both or at the least put away for a time. I changed my mind about buying a 1/32 scale SBD-3 for now, instead I woke up at 1:00 AM, couldn't sleep so I masked the the SBD-1 in preparation of painting the wings chrome yellow later in the day. When it dries I will post a picture of the progress at this point. When this kit is finished I'll start on the SBD-2 and continue on with the planned builds.


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## Wurger (Aug 21, 2017)




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## Robert Porter (Aug 21, 2017)




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## Silver wings1 (Aug 25, 2017)

I have been trying to download pictures from my camera to the computer but keep getting a message that a connection cannot be established . I suspect that the problem could be the cable so i'll see if I could get it checked out and replace it. Meanwhile if anyone has any idea on how to solve this problem, please let me know. I ran into this same issue the last time I tried to load the pictures into the computer but it suddenly started to work, but not this time.


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## Wurger (Aug 25, 2017)

What kind of the camera do you use,? A digital one with a SD memo card? And what computer do you have, a laptop?


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## Silver wings1 (Aug 25, 2017)

I went to Best Buy and bought a new cable and batteries. I noticed that the batteries in the camera are still good after 6 years. I installed the new cable to no affect. Guess what , I finally decided to call tech support ( the camera is a Canon Power shot A1200.) He walked me through the new procedure. Amazing! no charge even for a 6 year old camera. He explained that with updates from Microsoft sometimes the settings are changed without your knowledge. Now I have the new method of downloading from camera to computer. If I had to talk to Microsoft for help they would want at least $200.00 to help. At least I have a backup cable and plenty of batteries LOL. Anyway I hope the pictures download.


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## Silver wings1 (Aug 25, 2017)

I bought Yellow wings decals but there are several coloured bars to attach to the fuselage, no directions on how or what, besides i don't intend to try to attach long decals to rounded surfaces, instead I will paint them when ready.

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## Robert Porter (Aug 25, 2017)

Looking great!


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## Wurger (Aug 26, 2017)

Yep..


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## Airframes (Aug 26, 2017)

Glad you got the camera problem sorted, and the model is looking good.


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## Silver wings1 (Sep 19, 2017)

Well I finally got the 1/48 Accurate Miniatures Douglas SBD-1 finished and I am happy with it . It wasn't easy sticking with it but even though I put it aside several times I kept coming back to it. Now , after 91 hours it is done. Note the antenna wire in stretch silver , not black EZ line. Next I am either building another SBD-1 or an Academy SBD-2. I don't like the Academy instructions so will consult the Accurate miniatures ones as I go along.


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## Wurger (Sep 19, 2017)

Well done.


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## Airframes (Sep 19, 2017)

Nice !


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## Robert Porter (Sep 19, 2017)

Looks great! Wonderful paint job as well!


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