…is a photo of the fruit of my humble labors. This is a Hobbycraft 1/48 P-26A, quite weary, based in the Phillipines at the time of Pearl Harbor. Note the hastily brushed out insignia on the starboard wing.
TOM
Great looking aeroplane! I really like the painted out roundel and the rigging. The Peashooter has always been up there as one of my favorites.
Was #3049 a real plane, or is it a fictional rendition of what a plane would have gone through at that time?
Very nice build I do like what you did on right wing with brush out. I’m looking to do that on few of mind models.
Gumiflex
Nice work, Tom!
It’s a pleasure to finally see some of your work!
Very cool pea shooter…how 'bout some more shots of this bird?
Steve
Tom,
It looks great!! The rigging is nice and the painted out roundel is a nice touch.
Keep up the good work!!
Can’t wait to see other examples of your handiwork. To paraphrase a great journalist “She is BEEYOUTEEFUL”. [8D][:D]
Kurt
Mucker, you would have to ask. This is probably the first time as an adult that I built a kit OOB without having any reference shot of the actual aircraft. However, it is very much a representation of how these “peace-weary” Peashooters looked when they were bombed to death in the Philippines, or left for the invading Japanese. Since other a/c on the decal sheet (an extrememly nice set of markings for a Hobbycraft kit) DID appear in my references, I assume 3049 was real. What is probably not accurate on my plane is the bathing beauty applied to both sides. Art this elaborate usually was only rendered once per plane.
And thanks, guys, for the encouragement. I’ve been nervous about showing my work after giving so much advice for so long with no photos to show I know anything about what I’m talking about. I’m just finishing an Eduard 1/48 Nieuport 11 in Russian markings and it has showed me just how much more I have to learn before I can achieve the level of above-average. Here’s another photo of the P-26, also shot by my friend Bud (know around here as “wibhi2”):
One more thing: A great big thank you to all of you who were so encouraging when I first tried this the other day. Finally, Wibhi2 had to come over to my place and hold my hand (well, not literally) to get me through the process, but I did the second one myself, so maybe I can post a few from now on.
TOM
Another great photo, Tom. It shows the forward section to really good advantage. Very impressive. Did the “artwork” come with the kit or is it aftermarket?
Nice looking build Tom. Glad you figured out how to post pics. Looking forward to more.
Regards, Rick
Nice work Tom, glad to see pics of some of your builds.
Thad
very nice p-26! Always nice to see this plane done up, especially in some different paint scheme than the bright blue/yellow ones. I have the same kit waiting to be built, what did you think of the kit?
Hey, now that don’t look too bad, guy…
Fade to Black…
Someone did a good job on the weathering;
WEATHERING = [tup]
rigging = [tup]
paint chips = [tup]
missing insignia on starboard wing = [tup]
The entire model = [^][^][^][^][^][^][^][^][^][?] (9 out of 10)
Tom,
That is cool! An excellent build, and well worth the wait.
Now that you’ve got it down, I hope to see some more of your work.
Take care,
Mark
Subfixer: The decals came with the kit. It was the first Hobbycraft Canada kit I’d ever built using the kit decals. They were outstanding, and there are marking in this kit for about a dozen machines, I think, most of them Philippino or Latin American.
Waikong: The fit was good all around, no filling. Of course, the P-26 us just a fun little plane to model. It’s a very simple machine and that translates to a simple model. Even the rigging is beginner stuff. Having said that, I once owned the Academy kit, and it was more detailed, especially the engine, though remember much of it is covered up on the Peashooter. And this one had those typical Hobbycraft painting instructions, which is to say they were a) vague b) not there or c) just plain wrong. Just about any P-26 you model will have an aluminum painted or clear-coated natural metal interior with black instrument panels (there are two small ones).
And again, thanks to everyone for the encouragement. I have a couple more that were shot but I’ll wait a day or so for the next one so as not to hog up to much of the site. BTW, has anyone else noticed just how nicely this thing hides the bad modeling technique and unfixed mistakes?
TOM
Nice job, Tom !
I’ve heard that the P-26 is perhaps Hobbycraft’s best kit. Yours seems to bear this out. Great work !
Pix, coming from you, well, now my head is too fat for my hat. Especially written atop that stunning beauty of a Blitz I’ve followed so carefully throughout its construction.
TOM
Great looking build, sharkskin.[^] Very realistic weathering and rigging. Thanks for sahring the pics.
Great looking Peashooter. Nice work on the rigging, too.