**** DONE: Curtiss P-40M-5 Kittyhawk III, ‘Wairarapa Wildcat’, C’wealth GB

[Wayne Little]

Ok....time to get my @ss in to line...for this new GB

UserName / Name : Wayne Little
Category : Non Competing – Judge
Kit : Hasegawa 1/32 Kittyhawk III
Accessories : Etch Seatbelts and….We'll see ?

This model will represent the well known aircraft of F/O Geoffrey.B.Fisken from the 14th Squadron RNZAF, as it looked during July 1943 when operating from Kukum Field, Guadalcanal.

Rather than say too much or not enough...go here for some info on this pilot...gf

 

[T Bolt]

Looks like some stiff composition for my Eduard kit. Where is that smiley face with the sweat breaking out on it's forehead?

 

[rochie]

good luck Glenn !!!!!!!?
i'm sure you'll go easy on him Wayne, cant wait for this one

 

[imalko]

Looking forward to your work on this one Wayne. Good choice.

 

[Crimea_River]

Looking forward to this one Wayne.

 

[Wurger]

Me too...

 

[Airframes]

I smell another masterpiece on the horizon - or is it that composition of Glenn's?!

 

[Vic Balshaw]

Nice one Wayne, I'll be watching with bated breath

 

[Wayne Little]

Thanks fellas.....started cutting stuff off the sprues....and test fitting some parts....pics soon.

Curtiss Cockpit Green.....seems to have some variation in its basic colour...towards a medium to dark green rather than the 'yellow green' zinc chromate colour...??

 

[rochie]

this is from Squadron/Signal walk around No8 P-40 Warhawk.
any help Wayne ?

 

[Wayne Little]

Thanks Karl, got that and as you can see 2 differing colours! leaning more towards the shade on the right...

 

[T Bolt]

I have a lot of cockpit pics of the P-40 as I was originally going to do my 1:1 cockpit as one. I think the color of the pic on the left seems to be much more common. If you need any detail pics I'll post them.

 

[Night Fighter Nut]

Thanks Karl, got that and as you can see 2 differing colours! leaning more towards the shade on the right...

I agree Wayne, for some reason most of us would shy away from the green chromate... Just doesn't look right... I'm sure the pilots weren't into puke green either.

 

[Airframes]

Somewhere in between is about right. The pic on the left shows a fairly close representation on the control column, whilst that on the left, allowing for the shadow and slight under exposure, shows more towards the overall appearance. I've checked some transparencies of the P40 which used to be at Duxford in the mid 1980s, and it looks like a sort of Olive Green with a hint of blue, giving that brighter tone seen on the control column. All of this had a slight sheen, not quite semi gloss, but slightly less than semi matt, if that makes sense?!
The seat, BTW, was matt Olive Drab, as seen in the pic on the right.

 

[Wayne Little]

Thanks fellas, yeah post some pics please Glenn !

First bits prepared!

 

[JP Vieira]

Looking forward to see it finished

 

[P40NUT]

Me too! Great choice.

 

[T Bolt]

Here's what I have Wayne, collected off the internet over the last three years or so.

If you're going to detail the N3c gunsight I have the real thing minus the reflector head, and can dig it out and take some pictures.

 

[Crimea_River]

From Camouflage Markings: Interior Colours of US Aircraft, 1941-45 (Part II)

Unlike some other manufacturers (like Boeing), Curtiss painted their aircraft directly at the factory.

The cockpit of the P-40 was Curtiss Cockpit Green, which was the Berry Brothers' (a local paint vendor) approximation of Interior Green. Reportedly it was a little browner than Interior Green.

The scalloped cutouts inside the fuselage windows aft of the cockpits on P-40D to M models were usually painted the same as the camouflage colour. As the rear windows could be easily detached for re-painting, most field repaints were also performed this way. Earlier P-36 Hawk production practice and some photos of the early P-40D and Es indicate that Curtiss could initially have used a different colour for the cutouts. It could have been the same as the cockpit colour, but the author was not able to find any positive confirmation of this.

The wheel wells had canvas covers similar to that on the Bf 109E. These were in drab canvas colour with brass zips and fasteners.

 

[Vic Balshaw]

Now there's a stack of stuff for you to mull over Wayne.

Brilliant stuff Glenn, think I'll have to dump this onto my hard drive just in case.