old stuff

[rjccjr]

Hi All;

Here's a really odd model just out of storage. Sometime during the early 1980s a friend and I happened to visit a guy who made short run commercial models and this was acquired. It is a 1/72 scale test shot of an air force T-29 navigation trainer used between 1955 and 1976. It is made of a buff colored high density styro-foam. There was very little detail and few parts. This looked a lot more like a model in a travel company window, than the sort of model we are used to.

Photo 1 shows the top. It was painted with Floquil chrome silver and white. The white has yellowed with age into a sort of cream color. You can see assorted dings and dents in the test shot. Some of the decals came with the model and some came from the spares box. The propellers were cast white metal. Photo 2r is a frontal shot. All of the windows are decals and some have chipped over the years. One of the soft metal landing gear struts has buckled. They did not adhere very well to the styrofoam, even though it is dense and quite heavy. Photo 3r is taken a little further away. The control surfaces are fairly deep trenches and there are no blade antennae protruding from the upper fuselage. Many T-29s had a large radome under the forward fuselage. Photo 4r is a rear shot. You can see that the exhaust stacks are very crude. The last photo gives a good impression of the nacelles, which were pretty smooth on the real machine., although some panel detail was visible.

The only other models of the T-29 produced by regular companies were an Execuform kit in 1/72 scale, which is a real challenge to build and a Hawk kit in box size scale, possibly 1/144th. It was later re-released by Testors.

During my late teens, there was occasion to make several flights to and from New York to Boston. There was an assortment of old aircraft used. One flight was in a Lockheed Constellation, another on a Martin 4-0-4, but most on the Convair. One Thanksgiving eve, on a stormy night flight to Boston I can remember spending two hours going up and down on a half hour flight in a Convair 240. Longest roller coaster ride ever. Ergo the nostalgic attachment to the T-29.

Regards rjccjr

[Don Boose]

A very interesting model. It still look beautiful, aged white paint notwithstanding.

Don

[rjccjr]

Hi All;

Here is a little LS kit #A252 of a Kawanishi K5Y2 willow in 1/72 scale just out of storage. Most of the time you see them painted orange as trainers. Some aircraft were wheeled and some were float planes. This one is a spotter aircraft from the battleship Fuso in 1934, the year it was first introduced into service. The model was built during the late 1970s, straight out of the box with no attempt to clean it up.

Photo 1r is from the top rear, showing a plain silver paint scheme. It was just a quick build, even the seams weren't filled. The kit is well designed for its time, if somewhat crude by modern standards. Photo 2r is a frontal shot showing a well detailed engine. The parts alignment and fit is quite good and assembly easy. Photo 3r is a side view. The flat black paint on the engine cowl is a bit chipped. The decals have held up very well and there is no yellowing with age. Photo 4r is a bottom view. You can see several heat sinks in the casting, particularly on the float bottoms. Photo 5r is from the front. The heat sink problem would be taken care of with a little filler. The last Photo is a top shot. showing a not very attentive build. This would be a pretty attractive little model, had I taken more time and attention to the build.

Regards, rjccjr

[Don Boose]

Beautiful model of the K5Y in the markings of the Kasumigaura Naval Air Group.

I certainly enjoy seeing your old models. You certainly produced a lot of very high quality models over the years.

Don

[rjccjr]

Hi All;

Back in 1988 in a swap package from Poland, this 1/48 scale OEZ Mig-21MF/bis/SMT arrived along with a Sukhoi SU-22. Both kits were new releases at the time. Later on another Mig-21 showed up when someone sold off a collection. This update will focus on the first Mig-21. There were Mig-21 kits galore in many scales all over the market, but not so many MF versions at the time.

Photo 1r shows the kit in East German markings, just out off the shelf. It had not been dusted or cleaned off since it was built, but it was pretty much intact. Photo 2r is a side view. The model is rather grimy, but perhaps it will clean up well, with a little attention. The model had been attached to an old piece of low density styro-foam for ease of handling. Sort of an effort to protect against Godzilla syndrome. Photo 3r is a frontal view. The alignment is fairly good. You can plainly see that the quality of detail is poor, especially the landing gear.

Although the kit came with all manner of weaponry, only the center line drop tank was used on this model. This is the configuration that you will see in most photographs of the aircraft. The reason is that the internal fuel tanks were located in front of the center of gravity. As fuel was consumed the aircraft became unstable, therefore difficult if not impossible to fly. Loading it like a Christmas tree with weaponry is highly unrealistic, as well as not particularly esthetic.

Photo 4r shows the cockpit area. The detail is crude and the canopy rather cloudy. The cockpit glass was cloudy and poorly molded when the kit was new. Photo 5r was an attempt to show the underside of the model without removing it from the base. A small flashlight was aligned with the camera, like detectives with their guns in crime movies, to get a clear picture of the underside. It worked pretty well. The crudity of the parts fit and detail is very evident. Photo 6r was an attempt to get some of the detail inside the engine exhaust. There was some, but the accuracy is doubtful.

Photo 7r shows the model after it was cleaned up. The model actually looks pretty good, if you disregard the poor canopy fit. Photo 8r shows that the fuselage seams were cleaned up, filled, sanded clean and stayed that way since 1988. The paint job and decals are fine, but a problem with the overspray is evident. This is an example of why it isn't a good idea to overspray a model during high humidity. Notice the spots that look like paint chipping on the wings. That's uneven drying of "Dullcoat." Photo 9r shows an experimental attempt to reduce the finish problem. A cotton swab was soaked in raw mineral spirits and vigorously scrubbed the affected areas. Remember the paint has hardened for more than thirty five years. The effect was a reduction of the spots, but not a complete clearing. Perhaps several more tries would make the areas presentable. Uh Uh. Not gonna happen. I'll settle for the weathering effect.

The other Mig-21 is still on the shelf and the Sukhoi is in storage. We shall see about those.

Regards, rjccjr

[rjccjr]

Hi All;

Here is the same kit as last week, only more attention has been paid to the build and it is a different version. The kit came with the FM version spine molded on. Parts for the spine of the bis and SMT were included. This is the SMT version. Actually, there are other difference in the three versions, but that can get really complicated and doesn't matter here.

The Photo 1r shows the top of the model before cleaning. The canopy is better fitted and a bit clearer than the earlier model and the paint job is not affected by poor application of the dull finish. Photo 2r shows the starboard side. The model has been cleaned up and the decals have held up very well for color and adhesion. Photo 3r is from the rear. Notice the thickness of the trailing edges. If it was built today that issue would have been addressed.

Photo 4r shows the nose area. The canopy, though fitted well, is still thick and crudely molded. Photo 5r shows the other side of the nose. The panel lines and rivets are heavy handed. The aircraft number is sitting tight even in the area of the panel line. Photo 6r shows the underneath of the aircraft. It had been on a base, but that had been discarded some time ago. Clearly, the parts fit leaves a lot to be desired. Photo 7r shows both Mig-21s. The SMT has a full length pitot boom. The FM had snapped off years ago. Despite the inaccuracies, they make a colorful and handsome pair.

The plus side of this kit, is the dimensions are generally accurate and the price is fairly low, especially low, if found at a vendors table during a contest. The minus side is that you would be better off with a more modern kit if you are looking for accuracy of any of the three variants.

Regards, rjccjr

[rjccjr]

Hi All;

Here is a KoPro 1/48 scale Sukhoi SM-22M3, just out of storage and pretty dusty. OEZ, the company that produced the Mig-21s, evolved into KoPro before this kit was produced. It arrived in a kit swap in the late 1980s, probably 1987. The castings, instructions and box were typical of OEZ, but this model is a little better detailed and the glass parts clearer and more evenly cast. The insignia is that of Libya during the late 1980s consisting of green discs on the fuselage and wings, with a green rectangle on the fin.

The SU-22 series of aircraft was an export version of the Soviet SU-17, which was a swing wing version of the SU-7. It was used as a ground attack aircraft as opposed to a fighter. The 3M version can be recognized from the 4M by not having an air scoop on the front of the rudder.

Photo 1r shows the port side with the wings swept for high speed flight. Notice the bulbous shape of the after fuselage. Are rule maybe. Photo 2r is a too dark shot of the other side. Just discernable under the aft fuselage is a plastic rod to keep the nose wheel down. With a heavily weighted nose, it would sit properly if the wings were not swept back. Once they were swept, no amount of cusswords could convince it to sit properly. Photo 3r is a closer view of the front. Notice the heavy handed panel detail and the poor fit of the swing wing area. Photo 4r shows the after fuselage. The sleeve for the swing wing is simply too thick and not worth the work involved to try to fix. Photo 5r is a bottom view with the wings in forward position. Notice the steel plate to protect the fuselage from the muzzle blast of the 30mm cannon. The angled plastic peg to keep it from tail sitting is clearly evident. The main wheel and its cover are somewhere at the bottom of the storage box. There was a large bulge at the bottom of the nose area of the Libyan machines. It wasn't always present on machines exported to other countries. The last photo shows the bottom with the wings swept aft. You can get a good idea of how much effect that it had on the center of gravity.

Admittedly, the build did not get as much attention as it should have. Back then it was built for the curiosity value as opposed to the elegance of aircraft design. It did hold up pretty well for nearly forty years and is quite reparable, if cleaned up and, of course, the trouble was taken to fish around in the box for the missing parts. Oh well, at least it got to see the light of day for a while.

Regards, rjccjr

[Red Lever]

Impressive group of models. It is good to pull them off the shelves once in a while, if for no other reason because it is fun to reminisce.

[rjccjr]

Hi All;

Here is something different. My friend Paul never knew what to expect when pen pal swap packages arrived. One of them contained two discs loaded with photos, drawings and diagrams of aircraft, mostly of world war two vintage. There were a few jets and several US aircraft in Soviet markings. Here are some samples. Since these discs arrived in the mid 1980s, I have no idea of the sources. Not being conversant in either Polish or Russian there is no way of identifying them.

Photos 1r and 2r are of an aircraft that I have never seen before, or even heard of, but it sure is an interesting machine. Photo 3r is a page from an extensive article about the Yermolaev Yer-2, a Soviet long range heavy bomber used from 1940 to sometime in the 1950s. Actually obtained a 1/72 scale model of that one. Notice the gull wing and lop sided canopy. Photo 4r is the cover sheet of an extensive article about the P5, a general utility aircraft, which could have wheels or floats. The drawings are exquisite.
Photo 5r is an example from the article.

In photo 6r we are back in familiar territory. It' one page of an article about Russian aces. It's rare to see coverage of Russian P-39 aces. Interesting to note that the P-39 was used as a fighter, not a ground attack aircraft. It could take on Messerschmitts and Focke Wulfs very successfully.

Photos 7r and 8r are a real find. These machines were flown by Russian aces during the Korean war. It is interesting that the machines did not have national markings on the top of the wings. At least in the article there are a few lines in English to identify the pilots.

There are close to 200 images on these discs. Many of the aircraft, I can recognize, but more are completely unfamiliar. It is going to take a long time to deal with the rest of the contents.

Regards, rjccjr