Cheers Guys
Pic 1
I concentrated on the cockpit area this week end. The first decision was not to go with the photo etch that I had bought for the task. I had a good look at the plastic and the Hasegawa is very good. So good I think that only some belts will be necessary. To start, I had sprayed the IP white.
Pic 2
Here I have coat ed the panel in flat black, and picked out the instrument dials and pointers by scratching through to the white underneath. REd was used for the mag switch and warning lights. The gun charging switches where pained silver with red tips. When this was done I added a drop of clear gloss to the instrument faces.
Pic 3
I carried on with the rest of the interior, which was painted interior green and then I detailed the switch boxes, throttle and other items. Followed up by a wash of black and then burnt sienna. A bit more dry brushing went on after this photo.
Pic 4
Did the same with the other interior areas on the fuselage that would show.
Pic 5
Call me crazy, but I bought these placard decals a while back, and it was time to put them to use.
Pic 6 7
Placards added to the side walls in places. These correspond to reference pic I have. I also placed a couple on the lower Instrument Panel.
Pic 8
Here, I've started assembly of the cockpit tub, and added some aluminium chipping and scrapes to the seat frame and floor.
Pic 9
Seat added
Pic 10
Seat belts added and the floor made a bit more 'muddy'. The P-40e's delivered to Australia only had a lap belt, and not the full harness, so these were swapped out for the British style Sutton Harness, which I've added instead on the American style. These planes got awfully dirty, so I have no hesitation in added dirt, wear and tear.
Pic 11
Cockpit tub completed, nearly. I need to add the gunsight and the sun shield, but I'll do that after installation.
Pic 12
While I was at it, I added a wash to the gear bays. I think this area should be a whole lot worse, so I may do more. There is some belief that mud accumulated in the gear bays of one Aussie P-40 operating from Milne Bay led to it's crash while attacking the Japanese invasion force.
Well, that's the end of that update. I've moved ahead in other areas, so it won't be too long before the next.
Cheers for now.
Peter