Does anyone have info on this kit. It caught my eye and I’d like to whip one up but I don’t know diddley about Testors Kits. They have a few other subjects I like too but I’ve learned more often than not you get what you pay for in this hobby and I needn’t say more.
Thanks Everybody,
Mahoney
If this is what I think it is, and not a new kit, I’ll show my age. This kit was originally one of a series of Hawk Golden Age of Aviation (exept I don’t think it was called the Golden Age yet in the '60s) air racers that included aforementioned Gee Bee, Mr. Mulligan and, and…help me out here guys. I remember building about four of these various kits and I loved them, but then I was only 8 or nine at the time. I also remember the stands were shaped like racing pylons and the planes could be displayed attached at the wingtip as though going around the pylon. I"ve seen the Gee Bee since Testors got the Hawk molds, and thought it had a pretty good outline. But very, very few parts. I built these around the time Hawk put out the double kit of the Bakka Bomb and V-1 Buzz Bomb. They had clear red plastic flames coming out the back and the stand bases were shaped like the rising sun and balkencruz, respectively.
Thanks sharkskin. It was only $7 so what the hell, I went ahead and put it in the cart. I’ve been looking for something outside of the 'ol warbirds for a change of pace.
I just bought a GeeBee kit to build for my wife. Looks like a pretty decent little kit, from my preliminary glances. I’ll get the specifics on it when I visit my garage in the morning and post them here for you then.
I built the Testor’s Gee Bee some years back. At that time the kit was void of decals or patterns for the red scallops on the wings, fuselage, and wheel pants. Laying out the scallops was challenging and fun. It has always been one of my wife’s favorites. In fact, she has a “wee” Gee Bee on her computer.
I believe the Testor’s racing series consisted of Mr. Mulligan, Curtiss float plane racer, Gee Bee, Laird Solution, and the Travel Air Mystery S.
The one I have I paid $2.99 for out of the bargain bin. It looks like it has all of the paint lines engraved on it, and there aren’t many parts/ detail. But like you said… it’s nice to have something different.
Mahoney,
Sorry it took me so long.
It’s a Williams Brothers kit in 1/32 scale.
http://www.williamsbrosinc.com/planes.html
It appears to be a well-detailed but simple kit. The only thing I don’t like about it so far (and I haven’t started work on it yet) is that it doesn’t come with decals or masks for the special paint job that is pictured on the box.
I wonder where I can find paint masks for this kit?
I usually build cars, but I think the GeeBees are the coolest planes that were built. I am in the process of drawing the paint masks in AutoCAD so I can print them on paper, trace it on bare metal foil to use as a mask. I think that I might make decals or trace the outlines on blue decal paper if I can find the right color blue.
I will post the results and if it is successful I will share the file.
None of them come with masks to paint the scallops. I have the Teastors/ Hawk kit that I started years ago. Iam still trying to build an interior for it. I also have both 1/32nd Williams Bros kit in my stash that I have yet to get to. They produced kit of both the “z” and the “R”. I just had to have both to build. Now if only the “R” were around in 1/48th.
Boy, that’s an exersize alright… That cockpit is SMALL in regards to veiwing area, lol…I’ve had the Testor’s/HAWK kit sitting around for about 14 years, along with the Travelair Mystery Ship… Just can’t get m’self going to build either one of 'em yet, but still want to…
Been thinking about doing the paint scheme of the Gee Bee replica used in the movie, “The Rocketeer”…
Mahoney, like you, I recently built the little, and I mean little, red and white Gee Bee. Like was said, the kit is very sparse on parts, but it fits nicely together. There are no templates for the red scalloped paint, but if you have access to a copy machine, you can play with the magnification and make templates from the paint guide on the instruction sheet. I think that there were raised markings for the decal locations. They could be easily sanded off, or really don’t show up that much if you are in it for a quick build. I did add in a little scratchbuild stuff in the cockpit, just because. So it really is a cute little distraction setting amongst the Corsairs and Mustangs. I was shocked at its size when I built it, I thought it was 1/72 when I opened the box. I swear the fuselage is not much bigger than “Fat Boy”, the atomic bomb from the Monogram B-29 kit. The real detail that I didn’t do was outlining all the scallops in a black pinstripe, and the wire cables attached from wing to fuselage. But it was a fun little build. I think I’ve got the Mystery Ship. I’ll have to add it to the collection sometime. Rick.
Note the kit number on the end panel… The last two digits are the price…
sigh