F4U-1D Corsair

by Ciro C. de Albuquerque

Tamiya's 1/48 scale F4U-1D Corsair is available online from Squadron.com

This is my Tamyia F4U-1D Corsair in 1/48 scale. The cockpit was enhanced by adding Eduard's PE set and bits from Aires Corsair cockpit set. Copper wire was used for the brake lines and to further detail the wingfold mechanism. Eduard's PE parts were also used to add life to the engine, tailplane and actuators.

Painting was undertaken with automotive paints. I go about painting starting with a coat of primer, followed by some pre-shading (black in this case) and finally working with the model's appropriate color. I usually use heavily thinned paint so that I can control the covering, leaving some areas with less paint, thus giving a worn look without having to come later with a lighter tone of the basic color. Seems to be working fine.

I used Yellowhammer's VBF-83 Corsairs' decals. I depicted an aircraft aboard the USS Essex, after the US Navy assigned G-symbols for its carrier groups on July 1945, Essex being assigned the letter F and substituting the more known geometric symbols. Wash was next, followed by scratches using a fine brush and silver paint.

Before attaching the wings, I glued the antenna wires, made of nylon stockings. Pictures were taken by fellow modeler Claudio Santos Machado.

All in all, a fun project out of a great kit!

Click the thumbnails below to view larger images:

Model and Text Copyright © 2001 by Ciro Albuquerque
Images Copyright © 2001 by Claudio Santos Machado
Page Created 2 December, 2001
Last Updated 01 December, 2001

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