AIRCRAFT - Multi-Engine
DOUGLAS DC-3 - Eastern Airline DC-3 N15567 in 1:90 scale was built from a 2005 Revell reissue (upper image below) of a Monogram kit originally released in 1955 (lower image). The kit was built 'stock' with the exception of the spinning props made from .010" clear styrene. The model was painted with Tamiya "Bare Metal Silver".
FORD TRI-MOTOR - This model was built from a 2012 reissue of a very old Monogram kit. It is in the unusual scale of 1:77. Details added include exhaust systems for the two outboard engines, external control cables and the representation of spinning props. The plane is lettered for an early airline that later became TWA. The model is displayed on a simple stand using a circular wood base with a representation of rugged terrain. The plane can be removed from the base.
BOEING 314 "DIXIE CLIPPER" - This Boeing 314 named "Dixie Clipper" was one Pan Am's famous trans-ocean passenger airliners of the 1940s.. These massive multi-deck planes took 18 hours to travel from San Francisco to Honolulu. The model is built from a 1988 AirFix kit and is 1:144 scale. The orange on the top of the wings was to aid in spotting if the plane landed in the ocean.
The period Pan Am poster (right) was modified by superimposing an image of the model over the original illustration of a generic clipper. A photo of the ocean is on the base of the homemade model display stand (left).
LOCKHEED Super G CONSTELLATION - This classic triple-tailed airplane was built from a 1975 Monogram kit. The USAF C-121C version is 1:144 scale and is painted in the livery of the Military Air Transport Service where many of these planes served for years. These planes are most well-known when painted in the spectacular red and white TWA scheme.
NORTH AMERICAN B-25 MITCHEL - This classic twin-engine bomber was built from a 1:48 Revell kit. Very few modifications were made. The model has a complete interior (right) which, of course, no one can see after the plane is assembled! I used a commercially available paint mask for the nose and cockpit canopy. The plane is lightly weathered with pastel chalks and Tamiya Panel Accent wash.
GRUMMAN ALBATROSS- This model was built by combing parts from two Revell 1:72 kits. Most of the parts are from a kit with a copyright date on the instructions of 1957. The decals are from a 1999 re-issue. The yellow wing tips and pontoons are painted while the fuselage and roof striping are decals. The survivor in the raft was included in the kit.
I recall the original box art (left) from my childhood although I never built this kit. On the right is new box art I designed using the photograph above, a sunset scene from the internet and Photoshop's 'posterizing' effect.
GRUMMAN F7 TIGERCAT - This hot-rod of an airplane was nearly the size of a B-25 but agile as many single engine fighters. Built at the end of the war, the type saw little WWII action. This 1:48 scale model was built from an AMT/ERTL kit.
LOCKHEED P-38 LIGHTENING - This is another older build from a 1:32 scale Revell kit. It was built straight from the box with few exceptions, one being the use of Micro Tape to form the framing of the canopy elements. Weathering was done with pastels. The nose of the plane was heavily weighted an it sits properly on the nose wheel.
CONSOLIDATED PBY-5a - CATALINA - One of the most successful "flying boats" of WWII, the Catalina was used for both anti-submarine duty, conventional bombing and even at-sea rescue work. This model was built from a 1969 Revell PBY-5a Black Cat kit. Aftermarket decals and 3D printed torpedoes were added as were the two depth charges from another kit. The pontoons were modeled in the lowered position but, of course, would have normally been retracted in flight. Can you find the enemy submarine lurking just below the surface in the image above left?
NORTHROP F-89J SCORPION - This distinctive plane was the US first twin-engined jet fighter and the only one to ever carry an air-to-air nuclear rocket of which only one was ever test fired. The model is fitted with two black auxiliary fuel tanks and four conventional air-to-air rockets. The model was built from a 1991 Revell kit with decals from a couple of sources. Two aftermarket crew figures were placed in the cockpit. The tail and wingtip tanks are painted Tamiya Bright Orange and the body of the plane is Tamiya Light Grey primer overcoated with Glosscote for decals, then returned to matte finish with Dullcote.
LOCKHEED L-1079 SUPER G CONSTELLATION - Perhaps the most beautiful piston airliner ever built, this 1:120 scale model was built from a 1975 vintage Revell kit. The tooling is from 1956! The kit was built as presented in the kit except for the spinning props which are made from .010 clear styrene. An interesting feature of this kit is that the windows are part of the decals.
