P-40 Twin

[Husky]

Some pictures of the 1/72nd and 1/48th versions together. And lastly the magazine that started it all which has been up in my attic all these years.

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Very Nice

 

[T Bolt]

Thanks!
I think this one has satisfied my scratch-building itch for a while

 

[SaparotRob]

It's finally done and its been a long time coming from when I first started thinking about this project .
In the November 1995 issue of Scale Modeler Magazine there was an article about a conversion like this and I started thing about doing it myself. Jump ahead five or six years when I acquired the two Heller kits to do it. Those kits sat in my stash waiting, being pulled down and looked at from time to time as I thought about starting the project, until I finally did in September 2013. By that time I had decided to it in 1/48th scale instead of the 1/72nd scale of the Heller kits, but thought it would be a good idea to start with the Heller kits to make sure I could do it before I went and cut up two I/48 AMT kits. The 1/72nd version took me six months to complete and I decided to take a break before starting the 1/48th version.
That break turned into five years when a little over a year ago I started cutting up the AMT kits.

Well here it is, 25 years from conception to finished model. That has got to be some king of record!

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We finally get to see what the front of that airplane looks like. Very impressive work.

 

[T Bolt]

Just a thought................

I started with a P-47N which has a greater wingspan, then added an additional 1/2 fuselage width to each wing.
The landing gear is taller of course and I figure there's plenty of room for the turbos in those big nacelles even with the gear leg. Guns would be 6 .50s and 2 cannon in the nose.

Now as far as building it, it would make the P-40 look simple. I can't just mount the nacelles on the existing wing like I did with the P-40 because I have to increase the wing span, which also causes problems with the plan of the trailing edge. And I don't have a clue what I could use to build the nacelles or the gun nose out of.

Well, its something to think about anyway.

 

[fubar57]

I support this

 

[SaparotRob]

Way Cool!

 

[MIflyer]

Stick the wings off an F7F on it. Either that or use the nacelles off a B-25 and be satisfied with two R-2600 for powerplants, which sounds a bit more reasonable.

I plan to use an engine nacelle off an AMT 1/48 F7F to make the forward cowling for an XP-72. I am trying to decide whether to use a Hawk 1/48 P-47D or a Monogram 1/48 P-47N. According to Warren Bodie, the production P-72 likely would have used a P-47N airframe, which sounds logical.

As for the twin P-40, two V-1710's would have been outrageous and unworkable. Maybe twin V-770's would have fit. Or maybe something more exotic? See below.

 

[MIflyer]

Or better yet, maybe Curtiss could be inspired by Bell's somewhat similar idea?

 

[tomo pauk]

I can't just mount the nacelles on the existing wing like I did with the P-40 because I have to increase the wing span, which also causes problems with the plan of the trailing edge. And I don't have a clue what I could use to build the nacelles or the gun nose out of.

Nose of the F4U-4, with it's 'beard' intake?
Gun nose - from a B-25 gunship?

 

[SaparotRob]

B-24 nose for the guns?

 

[Greg Boeser]

The one with the turret?

 

[SaparotRob]

The early model. Just for the shape in profile of the B-24's nose and the one in T Bolt's illustration. That's as close as I can get. Tomo's mention of the B-25 nose got me thinking about it. I'm new at this.

 

[MIflyer]

You can buy an Accurate Miniatures 1/48 B-25G gun nose with 75MM gun on ebay for about $4. Actually, I think a Mosquito FBVI gun nose would be better.

I saw in a modeling magazine many years ago where someone scratchbuilt a P-40 twin. Laudable efffort, but he did a terrible job on the nose.

 

[javlin]

Either that or use the nacelles off a B-25 and be satisfied with two R-2600 for powerplants, which sounds a bit more reasonable.

I think that would make more sense Glenn.

 

[T Bolt]

Whatever I did for the nacelles it would have to fit P-47 cowls. I want it to keep that distinctive Thunderbolt look from the front.
I kind of like the idea of B-24 nose. I may have one from an old Revell 1/72nd Liberator in my spares box and if the size was reasonable I could use bits of left over P-40 fuselage to connect it to the P-47 fuselage,. A lot of CA, filing and paint and I'd have a gun nose.

 

[Greg Boeser]

OK, but it deserves its own thread once you commence.

 

[GrauGeist]

The C-46 had similar nacelles for it's R-2800 engines.

 

[Ivan1GFP]

A couple questions about the twin Thunderbolt:
1. Where are the pivot points for the main gear and how do the fairings work to blend into the nacelles?
2. Where are the turbos?

 

[GrauGeist]

2. Where are the turbos?

They could be mounted much like the P-61C, which had the same engine and turbo supercharger (x2): in the upper nacelle with inlets and ancillaries in the wing.

 

[T Bolt]

Tubro is would be in the nacelles similar to the B-29 but only one turbo per engine.
The pivot for the landing gear would be in the structure of the wing but would extend through the nacelle with a 4 section gear well cover. 1 part covering the lower wheel hinged to the wing root like the original. A second section covering the upper wheel would be a shorter version of the original attached to the gear leg.
The 3rd and 4th sections would be a hinged clamshell covering the gear leg opening in the nacelle