P-51D INSTRUMENT PANEL CRITIQUE

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Thanks and yes it can get very expensive. Just saw a television show that said you could buy a post war surplus P-51 Mustang full of all fluids and ready to fly for $600.00! Spent a lot more than that just on my instrument panel. Lets stop recreating these planes, put our minds together and invent a time machine, might be easier.
 
Hello,
I would like to build a P-51D instrument panel as well. Could you please offer some suggestions/recommnedations in getting started? How would I go about acquiring the items? Any input would be greatly appreciated! Thanks.
 
This is a pretty old thread, and I think this panel has even popped up on eBay, but I am working on a 1:1 P-40E Panel, and I have so far 3 instruments for it, scouting for more. This is really cool, and I would like to ask a few questions if that's ok. Where did you source your instruments, as there are some that are quite hard to come by, and when they do, they turn up at astounding prices. My sources seem to show the instruments behind the panel with the rim of the instrument poking through the hole, whereas on this, they are all screwed to the front, is this a difference between the aircraft? Cheers mate. MA101
 
CONNOCHR hasn't been around here for quite some time, but maybe I can help. I've completed a P-47 panel, and am working on the surrounding cockpit (although it's been a while since I've worked on it) http://www.ww2aircraft.net/forum/start-finish-builds/t-bolts-1-1-p-47-cockpit-24005.html and I've collected most of the instruments for a P-40E panel.http://www.ww2aircraft.net/forum/start-finish-builds/1-1-scale-p-40-control-panel-project-28824.html I bought most of the instruments on eBay. Most were pretty reasonable, but some were pricey. It was just a matter of taking time to find the deals. The stuff for the P-47 took me well over a year to collect. The clocks seem to be the most expensive, although I got a non-working "parts" clock for the P-40 panel pretty cheap. As far as which side of the panel to mount the instruments, I'm not sure, but I got the impression that the aircraft came from the factory with the instruments mounted behind the panel, and as time went by and the instruments were serviced, they were re-installed from the front of the panel, which would be much easier with a panel already installed in an aircraft. I modeled my P-47 panel off the P-47D-30 at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. It has some rear mounted, and some front mounted. I plan to do The P-40 panel all rear mounted. Something to consider when making this choice is how good the cutting out of the holes for the instruments goes when making your panel. If the circles aren't cut perfect it will show if the instruments are mounted from the back. Mounting them on the front can hide a lot of mistakes.
 
Great. NOW I see his panel. I've been working (& posting) on my Guillow's 1:15th scale model of a P-51D for the past two years & the cockpit interior for the past several months. It would've been nice to see it six months ago. I just finished the interior, instruments & all. Oh well, it looks good to me. Keep up the good work. No radium issues in my model.
 
im not a 100% but did the later P51Ds have a 0 to 100 Manifold pressure gauges ???
im actually chasing one for my replica panel.
kind regards and best luck
 
CONN:
Firstly, I wish to thank Terry (Airframe) got noting the yellow line on the instrument panel was in fact tape.
 

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Hello! I am sad to see the recent inactivity on this thread, but I hope to respark it with my own attempts at making a historical 1:1 scale dashboard for the P51D. (Yes, I know the radiation concerns, I have things that are much more radioactive than these dials). I have already bought a compass gauge, although surprisingly, it is quite weak in terms of radioactivity. According to online sources the government had a decontamination program running in the 1960s and 1970s for WW2 aircraft dials due to tightening of NRC regulations, but i just wanted to know ya'lls opinion on it. By the way, any advice or pointers to where I can get more materials? Thanks.
 
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