**** DONE: 1/48 Hawk H-81-A-2, AVG - Aircraft in Foreign Service WWII

Ad: This forum contains affiliate links to products on Amazon and eBay. More information in Terms and rules

T Bolt

Colonel
13,273
2,988
Mar 24, 2010
Chicago, Illinois
American Volunteer Group (Flying Tigers) 3rd Squadron (Hells Angels) White 68 Flown by Chuck Older, Rangoon Burma, 1941

User Name: T Bolt
Name: Glenn
Category: Advanced
Kit: Academy (ex Hobbycraft) Curtiss P-40C
Scale: 1/48th
Accessories: True Details resin wheels, Sky Models decals

I wanted to do a Flying Tigers 3rd squadron bird and with the Sky decal sheet I had a number of choices. It came down to R.T. Smith's 77 or Chuck Older's 68, but in the end I chose Older's mount because there is a plethora of photos of it out there, many of them color.

Charles H. Older was the third highest scoring AVG ace with 10.25 victories (Later increased to 18 when he returned to china later in the war with the 23rd FG) One very interesting fact I found out while researching was that after the war, having completed law school and becoming a lawyer, he was appointed as a Judge by then Governor of California Ronald Reagan, and was the judge that tried the Charles Manson mass murder case, sentencing Manson and his followers to death. This unfortunately didn't happen due to the California death penalty being overturned.

Here's a few pictures. That's actually R.T. Smith leaning on the wing in the third picture but it was too nice of a shot of #68 to pass up.

5.jpg
1.jpg
2.jpg
3.jpg
4.jpg
 
Last edited:
Looking forward to your build Glenn.
 
You know Paul, I have the decals for Tex Hill's mount on the Sky decal sheet, and another P-40C in the stash, so you never know.....

Here's the kit and the extra bits. The kit is based on the Hobbycraft P-39 kit. The first and second sprues are new for the P-40C while the third one still has a lot of the P-36 parts on it.

The decals are the kit supplied ones and the ones for this aircraft from the Sky sheet. I will probably be using a combination of both of them. Pictures of the starboard side of Olders bird show it had a Hells Angel there too so I will need the Academy one for that at least, even though the quality of it isn't nearly as good.

acc P-40C decal-.jpg
P1214151.JPG
PB140528.JPG
PB140529.JPG
PB140530.JPG
PB140531.JPG
Sky p-40 part 1 Decal-.jpg
 
Last edited:
I started in on it last night and got quite a bit done.

1) Did come modifications to the kit parts. The sides of the seat were thinned down, a fillet piece with lightening holes added to the corner between the seat bottom and back and grooves added to the back. Also added the armor plate to the rear bulkhead with brackets.
2) The same parts painted after the dark wash. The seat frame was also modified to look more like the real thing by adding the two bent braces at the top which were made from copper wire.
3) The seat painted and test fitted
4) Cockpit sides painted. The sill was way too thick so I thinned it down which tool off the canopy crank so I made another one from bits if plastic
5) The fuselage halves assembled.

PB150532.JPG
PB160534.JPG
PB160535.JPG
PB160536.JPG
PB160537.JPG
 
Last edited:
Just a quick update. I finished the control panel, but unfortunately wile adding the butts of the .50's to the part it mounts to, the part when flying and could not be found, so I'll have to attach the panel in some other way.

PB160538.JPG
 
Last edited:
We find why our brain is bugger than Homer Simpson's all to often eh?

Did new digital art for y6our arrows, and they are off to the printer mate.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back