RNZAF/TAF Mustang Quartet

[Mumbles]

First entry for me in this GB, a quartet of RNZAF Mustangs. Why four? In the 1950's the Territorial Air Force (roughly equivalent to the US National Guard) in NZ (which no longer exists) operated the P-51, some of which were supplied to the RNZAF toward the end of WWII to replace the Corsairs which had served the RNZAF well in the Pacific. The Territorial Mustangs (sometimes colloquially referred to as "Taftangs" were operated by four squadrons that were regionally based in NZ. To reflect that the provincial colours of each province were adopted for the chequerboardss either side of the roundel. I felt like doing one of each, hence building four Mustangs at once. While at first deceptively simple, there were also minor variations in the colour schemes, so the markings won't be the only point of difference.

The Airfix F-51 is perfect for the project, having both the right uncuffed propellor and rocket pylons that the RNZAF machines featured. One RNZAF Mustang operated with the cuffed prop, and that's also depicted on the Ventura decal sheet I'm using.

Here is the start with some pre-painting underway:

Progress as it happens :)/>/>

Edited July 3, 2014 by Mumbles

[Trojan Thunder]

I'll be interested to see the different SQN markings when you are done

[Litvyak]

Watching with interest! I've got a TAF Mustang planned, too.

[Mumbles]

Finally an update!

The build is well underway now and after a slow start will hopefully be progressing quicker now. Why the slow start? The thing about building four Mustangs at once is that everything needs to be done four times, which seems obvious, but only really becomes apparent when you are putting the 3rd and 4th interiors together. Fortunately you can use the first as a pattern aircraft, so the other three go a lot faster.

First thing to be done was drill out the holes in the wings for the rocket rails and pylon (and drilling a wing too far for the one which won't be using them, so now I have to fill some holes I just made. . . ), then put the wings together.

These fit a little too well, and need some fettling. They also need shims toward the tip to stop the ailerons standing too proud:

At least one of the wings was a little warped toward the tip too.

Four instrument panels almost ready to go in:

Three of the interiors. These were also slightly warp prone, which made shoehorning them into the fuselage and closing it up a little tricky. I had it mastered by the fourth one though :). Seatbelts from tape are the only thing I am adding to these guys detail wise.

And the production line ready for cleaning up. The wing to fuselage is also a tight fit, so needs some fettling to keep the wing dihedral intact.

[Trojan Thunder]

Thanks for the update Sam, Panels and cockpits look good.

I recall seeing a restored RNZAF 50th Anniversary Airshow back in the mid 80s, have a picture of it somewhere taken at Ohakea I think.

I assume all will have a bare metal finish. What paint are you planning on using for that?

[Mumbles]

Thanks for the update Sam, Panels and cockpits look good.

Cheers

I recall seeing a restored RNZAF 50th Anniversary Airshow back in the mid 80s, have a picture of it somewhere taken at Ohakea I think.

Most likely this one as it was the only Mustang active in NZ at the time. ZK-TAF arrived in 1984 and has been active here ever since. It's in RNZAF markings but it's actually an ex Indonesian airframe with a few differences to the RNZAF machines (most obviously the cuffed prop). Only two RNZAF Mustangs are still flying, neither in NZ and neither in NZ colours.

I assume all will have a bare metal finish. What paint are you planning on using for that?

Initially they had the factory finish of combination bare metal fuselage and painted wings, but over the course of their service they acquired an all over "High Speed Silver" finish, as seen on ZK-TAF above, so I will be doing a mixture. I'm planning on using AS-12 spray for the paint/HSS, and Rub and Buff for any bare metal. The aircraft were also kept very tidy, so there will be little if any weathering required.

Edited March 7, 2014 by Mumbles

[Mumbles]

Slow but steady. Have four props ready, and fettled each wing to a fuselage. I had a heap of trouble getting these wings to fit, but others have mentioned how good the fit is so I figure I just didn't get the fuselages right. The wings have also have the appropriate seams puttied to replicate the puttying on the real thing, and I'm about to move on to the enthusiasm crushing task of sanding and filling ready for painting.

Also if anyone has ever wondered how the wing area of a WWII fighter compares to a 5th Gen fighter, here is one of the wings on a YF-23 half I just happen to have lying around :)

[Mumbles]

All the Taftangs have now had their wings sanded and filled and attached, tailplanes added (and rudder for NZ2413 as it's the only one that's going to be overall HSS), fuselages filled and sanded, and are ready for painting. Suddenly this project is looking ambitious:

In addition to the filling and sanding the rocket rails stubs were added, thoughtfully supplied by Airfix attached to the rockets themselves in the F-51 boxing. Unfortunately RNZAF Mustangs seldom if ever carried said rockets, so 36 cuts later. . . Upside, I've now got 18 spare rockets lying around :)/>/>

Plus another 12 scratchbuilt for the P-51 boxing that didn't have them, after deciding they probably should be fitted rather than pretending I didn't notice.

They don't look too bad if you don't look too close. Cutting 12 of the things in two sizes absolutely identical is trickier than it sounds, although I got better at it as I did more.

Now onto painting them.

Edited March 26, 2014 by Mumbles

[Mumbles]

It was all going so well. And then this happened:

The roundel centres went on and did not move. At all. The error may have been mine in not letting the underlying decal dry completely before applying the centre, but the inability to adjust the roundel centres to the correct position, and the fact I had been putting some serious hours in on this project to try and get them to a show on the weekend has led me to take a frustration break on the TAFtangs. That and one of the undercarriage doors pinging off the workbench and promptly turning invisible, despite me seeing and hearing roughly where it landed. It is sitting somewhere withing a 2 foot radius of where I am typing now. Somewhere.

Before that significant progress had been made. All four were undercoated in black:

Before being coated in gloss aluminium and masked up for application of Rub n Buff to the natural metal areas:

That turned out reasonably well:

And areas of my workbench started to resemble a NAA parts yard:

Progress to be resumed at some point, maybe soon once I've figured this decal issue out. And found the missing door.

[masterqq]

Looking good Sam, I'm sure you can fix the decal issue, and it is a much batter kit than my old Hase....looking with interest..

[lodni_k]

Lookin' good!

[stevehnz]

Sorry if I'm preaching to the converted but for decals I use a puddle of 50/50 solution of Klear & water to bed them. The water stops it drying to fast & allows a good working/positioning time. I use a stiffish ( cheap synthetic) #2 brush to chase them around, its good for lifting under the edge & flowing some more solution in if need be. Once they're into place, a cotton bud rolled over the decal pushes out excess solution & then the Klear does it thing & sucks the decal down into the detail. I'm guessing they're Venrura decals your're using, they can be brutes as being so thin they tend to suck onto the model very firmly. My method stops that happening. Suspect I'm teaching my gran to suck eggs though. ;)

Steve.

[lodni_k]

Actually, that's a great idea Steve!

[Mumbles]

Thanks everyone, all advice and comments gratefully received. Yes Steve the decals are Ventura, which I have never had issues with previously. I have started working on these again, but am getting some more assembly done before I revisit the decals. In the meantime I managed to somehow (despite checking and rechecking) install three sets of wheels off-handed, meaning the flats are in the wrong place and need rectifying.

The missing main gear door still hasn't turned up, and my local stockist of Citadel Chaos black has been closed the last four times I have visited. Per ardua ad astra or something!

Edited April 27, 2014 by Mumbles

[VG 33]

Hi

This is a very interesting subject and working on plenty of the same aircraft is a good way to decrease the stash.

Patrick

[lodni_k]

Looking forward to more pics! I'm a sucker for Mustangs in other that AAF/USAF markings! ;-)

[Mumbles]

Rumours of this projects demise have been somewhat exaggerated :) . It's been on the back burner for a while, but the missing parts have been found, and the imminent end of the GB is as good an excuse as any to get on with it and finish the GB within a GB.

Before going back to the decals again I thought it would be good for morale to get some assembly done, so three of the Taftangs have had the undercarriage added, and radiator flap. The propellors have also been prepped, and the exhausts are almost ready to go on as well. Still to do are finishing the decals, preparing the canopies, and any final weathering (minimal), plus final assembly of fragile bits.

Edited June 23, 2014 by Mumbles

[Mumbles]

The second decal attempt went a lot better than the first, thanks in part to the excellent advice given above! Cheers

Another session tonight will see the decals all done, then it's on finals.

[Mumbles]

These are pretty much done except now I'm having photobucket issues and can't upload any pics. Gah!

[Mumbles]

Final workbench pics and DONE!

NZ2413 1 Squadron (Auckland)

NZ2419 2 Squadron (Wellington)

NZ2427 3 Squadron (Canterbury)

NZ2426 4 Squadron (Otago)

Edited July 3, 2014 by Mumbles

[stevehnz]

Those looks stunning, well done with them. The decals really do look painted on. :)

Steve.

Edited July 3, 2014 by stevehnz

[Mumbles]

Those looks stunning, well done with them. The decals really do look painted on. :)/>

Steve.

Thanks Steve. They are a little too thin at times, but once on they look the business!

I actually ran out of Ventura 36" roundels, so on the undersides of two of them are 36" roundels from the Airfix Vampire T.11 I did last year, and a Heller Javelin leftover sheet I've had since the 1980's :)

I also ran out of fin flashes, which is why the one on '13 is undersized.