Hey fellow modelers! I just bought Italeri’s C-47 Skytrain in 1/72, model number 127. Now, I wish to build it as a Delta Airlines DC-3.
How much modification and what kind will have to be done? I hope everyone who reads this post can give me the best answers they can as what I will need to do.
Also, what about finding some decals? Or, does anyone make stencils so I can airbrush the makings?
Thank You in advance for helping me with this very, very special project, for a special person!
Don’t know about decals (Braile-scale’s not my thing), but basically a C-47 is a (gutted) DC-3 with a cargo door added… If it builds like the 1/48 Monogram C-47, with a one-piece cargo door, I’d just
(1) remove the cargo-door hinges,
(2) glue it in place on the fuselage,
(3) then fill in the cargo-door’s outlines (while leaving the rear entry door untouched) and
(4) sand smooth…
If the door’s molded in place, then skip step two…
And make sure you don’t show paratroopers jumping out.
Eric
Thanks Hammer, will do! LOL, Eric! No paratroopers! Promise!
So, any idea where to start for decals? Or even stencils?
I’d go ask in the Commercial Airliners and Civilian Aircraft forum here…
Hans’ excellent advice on the cargo door was the most obvious feature, but you don’t get off quite that easily. There wasn’t a single, unchanged DC-3 configuration to start with, and the glut of C-47s converted back to civil models after the war added to the confusion. It’s important to check photos of the DC-3 you’re trying to reproduce.
Among the things you may need to add/remove/change are the exhaust configuration, tail cone, astrogator dome (common to C-47s, missing on most civil models), and the numbers and layout of cabin windows. You will most likely have to add or change positions of aerial masts and antennas as well, since these changed constantly even on the same airline’s birds. Also, check the tail beacon—most a/c had one, but some didn’t.
As to decals, here’s one possibility:
Thanks for the info Greg… But I was just saying what I’d do, lol… The astrodome is something I forgot about too… Some cutting, filling, and sanding involved there as well, lol… I’d skip redoing windows though…
I completely agree about the windows. On the 1/144 TAA DC-3 I posted recently, I didn’t bother to change the windows on the model—I just added another window decal on each side, to match.
Cheers