This
is my 1/48 scale F3F-2 from Accurate Miniatures. I visit this site daily
and am just amazed at the quality of the kits that are on here, and I hope that
this one is up to that level. This kit was relatively easy to build, with
no putty needed on it. This is my first attempt at a bi- plane, so that is
why there are no rigging wires on it, because I could not get the photo-etch to
work right. I liked building this kit, with the paint job on it; it just
jumps out at you.
As
this was the last American bi- plane in service, I felt like I should build this
colorful little kit to help remember the pilots by. This was a pretty
amazing plane for its time. With its huge Wright Cyclone engine, in 1942,
stripped of armament, this little plane could out- dash a P-51 Mustang.
This was a plane that was used to train many of our pilots, and they said that
it was a dream to fly. Even though this plane was being retired, there
were reports of these planes on the ground at Ewa Field on the morning of
December 7, 1941. With the retirement of these planes, the Navy ended a
very colorful era of its history.
I
painted this model using Model Master Non- Buffing Aluminum Metallizer for the
fuselage, Buffing Aluminum for the lower wing and the bottom half of the top
wing, Model Master Chrome Yellow for the top of the top wing, and Model Master
Guards Red Enamel for the wing chevron, cowling band, and the belly band.
This model represents the No. 1 squadron leader of VMF-1, Bureau Number 1009.
You can choose whichever artwork you want on the tail, and I chose the eagle
because it looked cool. The bombs were made by mixing the Chrome Yellow
and Olive Drab together to make the “Mustard” color. This is my first
submission, and I hope it will not be my last.
Matt
Click on
images below to see larger images
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