TMF Quarterly - Tulsa Modelers Forum
TMF Quarterly - Tulsa Modelers Forum
TMF Quarterly - Tulsa Modelers Forum
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The Official Publication of the <strong>Tulsa</strong> Modeler’s <strong>Forum</strong> July-September 2012 Volume 1 Issue 3<br />
Modeling History<br />
MACH Buster!<br />
Building Revell’s 1/32 Scale X-1 as NACA’s X-1 #2<br />
“USS Batfish”<br />
Photos of a World War II Submarine located in<br />
Muskogee, OK!<br />
Contest Gallery<br />
The <strong>Tulsa</strong> Model Show and SoonerCon
When you’re ready to take your aviation art seriously...<br />
“LOW LEVEL HELL”<br />
OH-6A Cayuse- C TROOP 16 th CAV - “electric olive II” – SIGNED BY ROD WILLIS – LIMITED TO 10 PRINTS<br />
OH-6A Cayuse- C TROOP 16 th CAV - “MISS CLAWD IV” – SIGNED BY HUGH MILLS – LIMITED TO 10 PRINTS<br />
“Our Aviation Art Takes Flight!”<br />
Digital Color Aircraft Profiles and Pen & Ink Artwork<br />
Air Wing Graphics prints available at The Hussar!<br />
See these and more at: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/arthur-eggers.html<br />
All artwork © Air Wing Graphics/Art Eggers
<strong>Tulsa</strong> Modeler’s <strong>Forum</strong><br />
The <strong>Tulsa</strong> Modeler’s <strong>Forum</strong> meets from 7-9pm<br />
on the first Tuesday of every month at<br />
HobbyTown USA located at 71 st & Memorial.<br />
<strong>Tulsa</strong> Modeler’s <strong>Forum</strong> <strong>Quarterly</strong> is the quarterly<br />
publication of the <strong>Tulsa</strong> <strong>Modelers</strong> <strong>Forum</strong>. This is a<br />
digital only publication. No part of this<br />
publication maybe reproduced without the<br />
express permission of the <strong>Tulsa</strong> Modeler’s<br />
<strong>Forum</strong>.<br />
Advertising: If you are interested in advertising in<br />
the <strong>TMF</strong> <strong>Quarterly</strong>, please contact us at<br />
tulsaipms@cox.net<br />
Subscription Rates: Membership in the <strong>Tulsa</strong><br />
<strong>Modelers</strong> <strong>Forum</strong> is $12.00 per year for adults (18<br />
or older) and $6.00 for juniors (17 and younger).<br />
Cover Photo: Steve Eggers’ 1/32 scale Bell<br />
Aircraft X-1, supersonic research aircraft by<br />
Revell.<br />
3<br />
Features<br />
9 MachBuster<br />
Building Revell’s 1/32 scale X-1 as NACA’s X-1 #2 research aircraft<br />
16 The <strong>Tulsa</strong> Show<br />
HMSNEO host’s their annual event!<br />
18 SoonerCon<br />
IPMS Metro/OKC host’s their annual event!<br />
23 1/1 Scale – USS Batfish<br />
World War II Submarine in Muskogee, OK!
Editor’s Page<br />
The Topic for this Quarter:<br />
“Modeling history”<br />
When I decided to take up scale modeling as my<br />
hobby, 26 years ago, I remember going to my first few model<br />
meetings in Amarillo, Texas and seeing a bumper sticker<br />
that had artwork of a hand with an F-15 flying out of it. The<br />
text read something like, “Scale Modeling…Holding History<br />
in Your Hands.” This got me thinking. I looked at the models<br />
in my display case and I realized how much history I have<br />
portrayed in that case. Every model in my display case has a<br />
story, whether it is a history on a model and the markings it<br />
is displayed in or even a personal history of what it took to<br />
build and finish that model.<br />
Think about the amount of time you spend<br />
researching a particular subject. I’m sure that it’s in the tens,<br />
maybe even into the hundreds, of hours. The amount of<br />
research that goes into these subjects could almost classify<br />
a person as an amateur historian in your particular area of<br />
interest. In my case, my area of interest is USAF aircraft<br />
1947 to Present, experimental, R&D, 1950-1960’s aircraft,<br />
Rotary Wing and Science Fiction.<br />
With my most recent completion, Revell’s Bell X-1, I<br />
spent many hours researching photos from the Dryden web<br />
site. I scoured through web articles on building the Revell kit.<br />
I dug out old books that I had on the subject of research and<br />
developmental aircraft. I even called NASA for references. I<br />
went so far as to search for the proper technique of spraying<br />
and polishing white lacquer paint. I learned/rediscovered<br />
many things with this build, such as:<br />
History<br />
X-1, 46-063, the number two aircraft of the<br />
X-1 series, was the first X-1 to fly.<br />
4<br />
Technique<br />
6063 was turned over to the NACA on 25<br />
September 1947<br />
10 March 1948 – NACA pilot Herb Hoover<br />
became the first civilian to break the sound<br />
barrier @ Mach 1.065. (You never read<br />
about that in the aviation history books.)<br />
6063 was grounded on 23 Oct 1951 due to<br />
possible nitrogen sphere fatigue.<br />
6063 was remanufactured as the X-1E and<br />
continued to fly in the X-1E configuration<br />
until 1958.<br />
The X-1 cockpit area is hard to mask over<br />
with all the stuff in there. Why did I put all<br />
that stuff in the cockpit?<br />
I hate white paint.<br />
Wait 12 hours for the paint to cure, and then<br />
wet sand with 2000 grit.<br />
Reapply paint; wait for the paint to cure and<br />
then polish.<br />
When polishing, be sure to keep polishing<br />
compound on the pad and don’t let it dry out.<br />
When decaling, use distilled water. Tap<br />
water has “stuff” in it that will ruin the finish<br />
on your models years later.<br />
So, the next time you look at your model display;<br />
don’t look at them like a bunch of models sitting on a<br />
shelf, think of them as history in miniature, each one<br />
with their own unique story.<br />
- Steve Eggers<br />
Editor
NEW<br />
1/72 scale Bell X-1E Decals only $10.00<br />
1/48 scale Bell X-1E Decals only $12.50<br />
ISS Exploded View Photo in 13” X 19” Graphic Format $16.50<br />
Two Die-Cut Circle Images for “When Worlds Collide! $12.50<br />
Adams<br />
“Vanguard At Cape Canaveral “ $16.00<br />
“Thor At White Sands” $12.00<br />
Airfix<br />
1/125 Ariane 5 Decals with Helios 2B Logo $10.00<br />
1/96 Ariane 5 Decals with Helios 2B Logo $16.50<br />
AMT<br />
Man In Space Decals 1/200 $12.50<br />
Aurora<br />
1/144 Space Shuttle Orion 2001 Decals (Also fits Airfix) $7.00<br />
1/72 Aurora Lunar Probe Digital Decals (# 385) $16.50<br />
1/48 Ryan X-13 Vertijet Decal $16.50<br />
1/48 Bomarc with & without Launcher decals $12.50<br />
1/48 Regulus - ll Missile Now available $16.50<br />
1/48 Mace Decals $16.50<br />
Hawk<br />
Tactical Guided Missile # 554 Corporal Missile $12.50<br />
3 Rocket Power Guided Missiles Decals $10.00<br />
3 Rocket Power Guided Missiles Replacement Mat (2-sided) $10.00 OOP<br />
“ Project Vanguard Satellite” Decals kit # 515 $12.50<br />
Atlas Manned Orbiting Lab Kit *551 New Lettering & Artwork $16.50<br />
Heller<br />
1/125 ISS Station and Panels $16.50<br />
1/72 TWA markings for Connie –1 ½ pages $12.50<br />
Lindberg<br />
Mars Probe Space Transport $16.00<br />
Space Shuttle Tile Decal (underside of shuttle only) for The 1/200 $10.00<br />
U.S. Moon Ship No.1003 Digital Decals. $12.50<br />
Flying Saucer Decal - From Another World ! $5.00<br />
1/48 Convair XFY-1 VTO POGO Decals (Also fits Aurora 1/48 POGO) $12.00<br />
Mach2<br />
1/72 Seadart Set $14.00<br />
Monogram<br />
# 6061 Apollo Spacecraft 1/32 scale Decals $14.00<br />
PD-40 U.S. Missile set decals for this classic kit at 1/128 scale – 2 sheets $30.00<br />
PD-40 U.S. Missile set Mat for the Display stand. $16.50 OOP<br />
Rascal Missile PD-42 Decals $16.50<br />
1/96 Monogram TV Orbiter $12.50<br />
PA-56 “Air Power” Decals Famed aircraft set !! $30.00<br />
Original artwork for PA-29 Blue Angels decals ! $16.50<br />
Strombecker<br />
Moonliner Decals with correct color Red (also fits Glencoe kit) $10.00<br />
What’s New<br />
Rockets, Missiles, Spacecraft and Aircraft Decals for New & Classic Kits<br />
Prices are constantly changing in mail service and on some of my list prices.<br />
Please email me first prior to paying so I can give you an accurate amount for shipping.<br />
By Ed Bisconti Current as of: 5/29/2012<br />
If you want to see what a particular decal below looks like then send me your email.<br />
You can reach me at scifi77@aol.com<br />
5<br />
D-32“Space Station” decals - Includes red and black S-1 decal (fits Glencoe) $10.00<br />
D-26 Man in Space D-26 RX- 1 (also fits Glencoe kit ) $16.50<br />
Manned Nuclear Interplanetary Vehicle $16.50<br />
RM-1 Original “Man In Space Series” $10.00<br />
Satellite Launcher D-35 Replaces Paper Insert $16.00<br />
Sea Dart U.S. Navy Decals $16.00<br />
Pan Am Decals for the TWA Moonliner kit (Fits Glencoe) $7.00<br />
Revell<br />
1/110 scale “Everything is Go” #1833 Decal Set $16.50<br />
1/40 Nike Hercules Decals $16.50.<br />
Convair Atlas Digital Decals – 1822 $20.00<br />
H-248 United DC-8 Jet Mainliner Decals $16.50<br />
H-1825 Moon Ship $12.00<br />
H-1805 Space Station $30.00<br />
H-1800 XSL-01 Manned Space Ship Decals $16.00<br />
8639 Thor & Jupiter Set $16.50<br />
H-1823 Thor & Thor Able Missile $14.00<br />
H-1824 Jupiter with truck & trailer $14.00<br />
Convair Space Shuttlecraft Digital Decals # 1828 $8.00<br />
Helios H-1851 $14.00<br />
Helios H-1829 Decal Set $14.00<br />
Old B-24 Decals $12.00<br />
17 Missile Decal set with new lettering $12.50<br />
1/96 Saturn V Digital Decal Set $16.50<br />
1/144 TWA markings Constellation aircraft models. (Fits Minicraft) $8.00<br />
1/144 Revell ISS Solar Panels (Need kit to measure scale)<br />
ISS Update for the Revell 1/144 International Space Station $16.50<br />
1/32 BELL X-1 Digital TEXT Lettering Decals* The Clearest Letters Ever seen. $14.00<br />
SkunkModels<br />
RQ- 4B UAV NASA version Redesigned $16.50<br />
Tuskegee Airman Lee Anchor Honored on RQ-4B UAV Global Hawk Aircraft No.<br />
512010 $12.50<br />
1/48 TM-76 Mace Missile & Trailer Decals (Fits Resin kits,Topping and can be used<br />
on Hawk kit. (Renwal Style) Currently back in Production.) $12.00<br />
1/200 Space Shuttle Tiles $12.50<br />
1/32 Apollo Spacecraft Kit 6061 Now $10.00<br />
Digital 1:72 Monogram Revell Space Shuttle Decals $14.00<br />
1/72 Space Orbiter Update Decal $12.00<br />
1/144 Space Orbiter Update Decal $10.00<br />
SPACE SHUTTLE TILE SETS<br />
Revell 1/72 Space Shuttle Tiles $46.00<br />
Available nowhere else not even on the internet. U.S. plus Priority mail postage<br />
and insurance By postal area per USPS now.<br />
International Priority Rates Apply. Canada can get 1st class rates or Priority mail.<br />
International rates quoted for postage by country.<br />
1/144 Shuttle Decal Set $20 plus postage<br />
1/288 Shuttle Decal Set $8 plus postage<br />
1/72 Space Orbiter Update Decal $12.50<br />
1/144 Space Orbiter Update Decal $10.00<br />
PDF format 1/72 Digital Decal Atlantis Cockpit Panels for your Space Shuttle 10.00<br />
1/144 Launch Tower & Space Shuttle Decals $12.50<br />
1/100 Tamiya Space Orbiter Update Decal $12.50<br />
1/100 Tamiya Space Orbiter Standard Decal Set $8.00<br />
New in 2009 Monogram PS193 1/144 Apollo Saturn Decals with Flags $12.50
AIRCRAFT, X-15 & Misc.<br />
1/48 X-15 The Definitive Historical Set Decals $30.00<br />
The Never before seen ( I drew these decals via computer ) Ventral tail markings<br />
of 10 X-15's The never issued Little Joe ll Dice insiginia for the nose area of the<br />
aircraft and much more! I have created special artwork that you will find nowhere<br />
else for any 1/48 X-15 !! Includes White X-15A2 Version (Red Decals) in 1:48 Scale<br />
Copyright 2006 -2007<br />
Comprehensive 1/32 X-15 Digital Decal set for 2010 - 2 ½ sheets of decals. For the<br />
Special Hobby 1/32 X-15 kits. $40.00 On Sale for $30.<br />
1/72 X-15 Decals same as above with X-15A2 White version red decals ! $12.50<br />
1/48 &1/72 X-15 Instrument Panel Decals only (either Set) Special Order ! $9.00<br />
OOP<br />
1/144 X-15 Set Complete. World’s smallest set $5.00<br />
1/48 F/A 18-C Hornet Operation Iraqi Freedom Decals. $14.00<br />
ARMOR<br />
Renwal Armor - Military Decals<br />
Renwal Big Shot Decals 2 Versions $10.00<br />
Atomic Cannon Decals 1/32 scale $20.00<br />
Walker Bulldog Tank $16.00<br />
Renwal Ontos decals $10.00<br />
Renwal Wrecker 1/32 U.S. Army Truck $12.00<br />
New-Re-mastered Renwal / Revell Nike Missile decals $12.00<br />
Renwal / Revell 1/32 Hawk Guided Missile System decals $12.00<br />
Renwal MACE Tera-Cruzer Decal set also fits Revell Kit. $16.50<br />
1:32 Revell / Renwal MACE TM-76 Missile Decals $16.50<br />
M4A3 US Marine "BEELZABUB" At Iwo Jima 1/35 Tank Decals $12.50<br />
NASA RESCUE M113*DECAL*By Mike Del Vecchio @ 1/35 Scale $14.50<br />
Aug. 2011 RESCUE M113*DECAL*By Mike Del Vecchio @ 1/72 Scale $10.00<br />
MACE TAC for Revell Mace and Teracruzer $14.00<br />
Air Support for Ground Troops and ARMOR<br />
Monogram “Phantom Huey” 1:24 Decal set 2 Decals $20.00<br />
Monogram “Phantom Huey” 1:35 Decal set 2 Decals $12.50<br />
Monogram “Phantom Huey” 1:48 Decal set 2 Decals $12.50<br />
What’s New<br />
6<br />
Monogram “Tour of Duty” 1:24 Decal set 2 Decals $16.50<br />
Monogram “Tour of Duty” 1:35 Decal set 2 Decals $14.00<br />
Monogram “Tour of Duty” 1:48 Decal set 2 Decals $12.00<br />
Monogram “Razor Backs” 1:24 Decal set 2 Decals $16.50<br />
Monogram “Razor Backs” 1:48 Decal set 2 Decals $12.50<br />
Monogram “Razor Backs” 1:72 Decal set 2 Decals $10.00<br />
Monogram “Nevada Dice” 1:24 Decal set 2 Decals $16.50<br />
Monogram “Nevada Dice” 1:35 Decal set 2 Decals $12.50<br />
Missiles, CDs & MISC.<br />
Nike Missile CD’s Vol - l & Vol – ll By Military Historian Ed Bisconti $20.00<br />
Plastic Rockets, Missiles & Spacecraft Vol - l CD's $20.00<br />
Plastic Rockets, Missiles & Spacecraft Vol - ll CD's $20.00<br />
INCLUDES AUTHOR'S EXCLUSIVE GUS "GRISSOM 8MM FILM" - Report Plus Decals<br />
The Renwal Armor Recon Report”Ontos” By Ed Bisconti $15.00<br />
“New” 1/48 NASA Decal Logos, also fits 1/72, 1/44 and 1/96 scale rockets , aircraft,<br />
spacecraft and missiles $10 for per decal sheet 5 ½ X 8 ½ Flags<br />
1/48 U.S. flags 50 star $5.00 on white paper. New digital Images for U.S. aircraft.<br />
1/48 U.S. flags 50 star slanted $5.00 on white paper. New digital Images for U.S<br />
Aircraft OOP<br />
1/48 U.S. flags 48 star $5.00 on white paper. New digital Images for U.S. aircraft<br />
OOP<br />
More Rockets, Missiles & Spacecraft<br />
2008 Monogram US & USSR Missiles Kit # 6019 Decals $12.00<br />
2010 Update to 5904 above and 6019 and Revell kits ! $12.50<br />
2008 Monogram 36 Missiles 6055 $14.50<br />
2008 Historically accurate Aurora Astronaut lll New NASA emblem artwork. $6.00<br />
1/48 RENWAL / Palmer Vanguard Decal set $16.50.<br />
MONOGRAM PD-43 U.S. MISSILE Arsenal Set $20.00<br />
MONOGRAM PD-40 U.S. MISSILE MAT 4 Your Base $16.50<br />
Revell Tactical Missile Set No. H-812 and H-547 for $15.00
NEWSLETTERS WORK WHEN THE MEMBERS CONTRIBUTE!<br />
7
History<br />
26 May 1950 – NACA pilot John Griffith breaks Mach 1.2<br />
Modeling history:<br />
Building Revell’s 1/32 Scale Bell X-1 as a NACA Research Aircraft<br />
On 16 March 1945, the United States Army Air Forces' Flight<br />
Test Division and the National Advisory Committee for<br />
Aeronautics (NACA) contracted Bell Aircraft to build three X-<br />
1 aircraft to obtain flight data on conditions in the transonic<br />
speed range.<br />
The X-1 was in principle a "bullet with wings", its shape<br />
closely resembled the Browning .50-caliber (12.7 mm)<br />
machine gun bullet that was known to be stable in<br />
supersonic flight. The pattern shape was followed to the<br />
point of seating the pilot behind a sloped, framed window<br />
inside a confined cockpit in the nose, with no ejection seat.<br />
After the aircraft ran into compressibility problems in 1947, it<br />
was modified to feature a variable-incidence tail plane<br />
(Flying Tail).<br />
Bell Aircraft Chief Test Pilot, Jack Woolams became the first<br />
to fly the X-1, in a glide flight over Pinecastle Army Airfield, in<br />
by Steve Eggers<br />
9<br />
Florida, on 25 January 1946. Woolams would complete nine<br />
additional glide flights over Pinecastle before March 1946,<br />
when the #1 aircraft was returned to Bell for modifications in<br />
anticipation of the powered flight tests, planned for Muroc<br />
Army Air Field in California. Later, Chalmers "Slick" Goodlin<br />
would become the primary Bell Aircraft test pilot of X-1-1<br />
(serial 46-062). He made 26 successful flights in both of the<br />
X-1 aircraft from September 1946 until June 1947.<br />
The Army Air Force was unhappy with the cautious pace of<br />
flight envelope expansion and Bell Aircraft's flight test<br />
contract for aircraft #46-062 was terminated and was taken<br />
over by the Army Air Force Flight Test Division on 24 June<br />
after months of negotiation. Flight tests of the X-1-2 (serial<br />
46-063) would be conducted by NACA to provide design<br />
data for later production high-performance aircraft.
Movie Myths<br />
I’ve always known that the 1983 movie “The Right Stuff” is<br />
not the most historically accurate movie. I would like to point<br />
out some of the misconceptions about the quest to break the<br />
sound barrier and a few other glaring errors in the movie.<br />
Myth: In the opening scene of the movie, a test pilot is<br />
standing next to the X-1 and gives thumbs up to all his fellow<br />
test pilots. The B-29 takes off and the X-1, call sign Whiskey<br />
Kilo 28, is carried aloft. The X-1 is dropped and starts its<br />
pursuit of Mach 1. The aircraft starts buffeting wildly, the pilot<br />
loses control and the X-1 barrels into the ground killing the<br />
pilot.<br />
Fact: That never happened! No X-1 was ever lost in an air<br />
mishap. There were three XS-1 aircraft built, X-1 #1 (6062),<br />
X-1 #2 (6063) and X-1 #3 (6064). While 6062 and 6063<br />
experienced their own series of nose strut failures, only the<br />
#3 aircraft was lost. 6064 exploded while under the EB-50<br />
carrier aircraft during taxi. This was due a failure of the<br />
Ulmer leather gaskets installed in the nitrogen pressurization<br />
system. NACA pilot Joe Cannon was severely burned and<br />
almost lost his life. The EB-50 and X-1 #3 were a total loss.<br />
It wasn’t until the explosion of the X-1D and the X-2 while<br />
slung under their EB-50 carrier aircraft that the cause of X-1<br />
#3 explosion was determined.<br />
X-1 #1 (6062) is on display at the National Air and Space<br />
Museum, Washington DC and X-1 #2 (6063) (X-1E<br />
configuration) is on display in front of the Dryden Research<br />
Center, Edwards AFB.<br />
Myth: While sitting at Pancho’s, Bell Aircraft Test Pilot “Slick”<br />
Goodlin states that he can break the sound barrier for<br />
$150,000. The Air Force brass and Bell Aircraft management<br />
balk at the idea, Yeager, “a real stick and rudder man”, is<br />
suggested as the guy who can do it. An Air Force Major<br />
walks over to Yeager and makes the suggestion. Yeager<br />
replies that he thinks the sound barrier doesn’t exist. The<br />
brass thinks this is an attempt for Yeager to bribe them.<br />
Yeager replies that the Air Force pays him enough. The next<br />
day, 14 October 1947, Yeager heads out to the flightline,<br />
hops in a B-29, squeezes into the X-1 and as they say “the<br />
rest is history.”<br />
10<br />
Fact: NOT EVEN CLOSE! In the beginning, Bell Aircraft<br />
handled envelope expansion, The Air Force got tired of<br />
waiting on Bell so they took over the program. The Air Force<br />
would push the envelope a little further with each test flight.<br />
The quest to reach Mach 1 was very structured. Everything<br />
culminated on 14 October 1947. That was the day scheduled<br />
to achieve Mach 1. Although the dialog between Ridley and<br />
Yeager about the Mach meter going all “screwy” is accurate.<br />
Myth: In the movie, depicted sometime in the early 1960’s,<br />
Yeager has a conversation with Jack Ridley about breaking<br />
the altitude record, in a later scene Yeager, standing in a<br />
high altitude flight suit, he and Ridley walk out to the NF-104<br />
and Yeager “steals” the NF-104. Later the aircraft<br />
experiences a loss of control, Yeager ejects and the aircraft<br />
plummets to the ground. Ridley and another airman go out to<br />
the crash site, they see Yeager walking and they pick him<br />
up.<br />
Fact: That entire scene, minus the crash, never took<br />
place. It’s impossible! Jack Ridley was killed in 1957 at<br />
age 42 while flying as a passenger in a C-47 when it crashed<br />
into a snow-covered mountainside northeast of Tokyo.<br />
Furthermore, Yeager never “stole” the NF-104. He was<br />
scheduled to fly the aircraft that day.<br />
One last thing: Gus Grissom was not a bumbling idiot as<br />
portrayed in the movie. He was exonerated from the incident<br />
with the “Liberty Bell 7”. It was indeed an unexplained<br />
“glitch”. The other Mercury 7 astronauts who saw the movie<br />
were not happy with the way Grissom was portrayed and<br />
they went further to explain that he was quite the opposite<br />
from the movie character and was very intelligent and a<br />
highly skilled pilot / astronaut.<br />
In conclusion, while “The Right Stuff” is an entertaining<br />
movie with cool scenes of supersonic airplanes and the first<br />
missions into space, it is important to remember, it’s<br />
Hollywood. When Tom Wolfe, the author of the book,<br />
previewed the movie, he absolutely hated it. He even went<br />
so far as to try to have the movie pulled. The studio told him:<br />
“We had to squeeze 20 years into 2 hours, enjoy your<br />
money”. Moving on…
Kit Impressions<br />
The Revell kit is listed as a Skill Level 2 with an overall<br />
length of 12-3/4", a wingspan: 10-5/8", with a total of 50<br />
parts. The kit is molded in light gray, a big improvement over<br />
the original orange mold from years past. The kit features<br />
fine raised panel lines, a fully detailed cockpit with an<br />
optional pilot figure, a full rocket engine (that you can’t see<br />
when the fuselage is closed), an optional position cockpit<br />
door and water slide decals.<br />
The Build<br />
I decided early that this build was not going to be<br />
“Glamorous Glennis”. It seems everybody builds the record<br />
breaking aircraft. I already built this version using Eduard’s<br />
excellent 1/48 scale kit. With that in mind, my options were<br />
limited to aircraft 6063 in either the early overall orange paint<br />
scheme or the later NACA white aircraft. The overall white<br />
appealed to me. I don’t recall ever seeing one of these built<br />
in person and the aircraft is colorful with the yellow and black<br />
NACA tail band and the stars and bars.<br />
I also wanted to pose this model in flight. When I worked at<br />
Bell Helicopter, our HR director had a nice 1/32 scale desk<br />
model of “Glamorous Glennis” sitting at the corner of his<br />
desk. It always caught my eye when I was called to his<br />
office. With that said, that was my inspiration for putting this<br />
model in flight. I normally like using clear acrylic rod, but until<br />
recently, I have used square Evergreen tube in the aircraft<br />
and a brass square rod on the base. This allows the aircraft<br />
to be posed and then it is held into position without it<br />
swiveling around and having to glue it in place.<br />
Fuselage and Cockpit<br />
This build, like most aircraft builds, start out with assembling<br />
the cockpit. Assembly is straight forward to no major issues<br />
were encounter. I painted the cockpit parts, sidewalls and<br />
the rocket motor area Model Master Green Zinc Chromate<br />
11<br />
prior to assembly. The back of<br />
the instruments were drilled out<br />
and wire super glued into each<br />
instrument. The instrument panel<br />
was painted Model Master<br />
Interior Black. The details on the<br />
instruments were picked out<br />
using a silver PrismaColor<br />
pencil. The instruments were<br />
then sealed with a drop of Future on each instrument face.<br />
The control yoke was also painted Interior Black.<br />
Since this is an in-flight display, the next step was the pilot<br />
figure. The pilot is broken down into an unusual left and right<br />
head half, front and back torso and legs and left and right<br />
arm. I assembled the head and the body. I placed the arms<br />
into the position and noticed immediately that the opening<br />
between the left and right arms was too narrow for the<br />
control yoke. I super glued the back side of the shoulders in<br />
place on each arm, using the yoke as a guide for the correct<br />
distance. I filled the front shoulder gap using 3M Blue Acryl<br />
putty.<br />
The kit instructions show the pilot in a khaki color flight suit. I<br />
opted to paint the pilot in the standard sage color flight suit.<br />
The helmet was painted Model Master Leather and the<br />
goggles where painted flat black with gunmetal lenses. I also<br />
decided on flat black flight gloves and flat black flight boots. I<br />
painted the oxygen mask Interior Black with gray pastel post<br />
shading to lighted it up a bit. I post shaded the pilot using an<br />
array of pastels and then sprayed with Testors Dullcoat to<br />
seal everything. After drying, I coated the goggle lenses with<br />
Future.<br />
I now needed to decide where I was going to place my<br />
square Evergreen tubing. I wanted the aircraft in a climbing,<br />
banking pose. I cut a square in the center of the bottom<br />
spine (for the lack of a better term) and positioned it<br />
accordingly. I reinforced the upper part of the tube by gluing<br />
pieces of styrene, boxing it in, to give it added support and<br />
prevent the tube from coming loose.
Rocket Motor<br />
The rocket motor is made up of three parts left and right half<br />
and the exhaust section. Assembly of this was very easy, but<br />
I wanted something a little more. I decided to add four pieces<br />
of aluminum tubing to the exhaust section. After drying, I<br />
sprayed the entire motor gunmetal. I wasn’t too worried<br />
about the overall results since it wasn’t going to be seen<br />
anyway. I was only concerned about the nozzle section.<br />
There are two alignment pins on the motor that attach to the<br />
left side of the fuselage. One of the pins was way too long.<br />
This was one of those easy trim to fit situations. There is a<br />
sizable gap between the fuselage halves and the exhaust<br />
section. I guess I could have used styrene and gone along<br />
the outside of the nozzle piece, but I decided not to bother<br />
with it.<br />
Closing up the Fuselage<br />
I didn’t have any difficulty closing up the fuselage. Although<br />
on side of the vertical tail was warped. (This would come<br />
back to haunt me later.) I sanded the seams and filled any<br />
gaps with 3M Blue Acryl spot glazing putty dried overnight. I<br />
have discovered with Blue Acryl, it is a minimum of three<br />
filling jobs to get the gap adequately filled. I like using this<br />
because it doesn’t shrink too much and it can be scribed.<br />
There were a few sink marks on the fuselage these were<br />
filled at this time as well.<br />
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On the aft fuselage, X-1-2 had two inlet scoops not found on<br />
X-1-1. Revell didn’t do their research when they decided to<br />
include 46-063 markings on the decal sheet. These were<br />
easily robbed from a Panda 1/35 UH-1N kit. The UH-1N<br />
doesn’t use these scoops on the roof. So, it worked out quite<br />
well for the X-1 kit.<br />
Landing Gear Doors<br />
I figured out real quick that Revell never intended for the<br />
landing gear doors to be in the closed positions. The doors<br />
are undersized and require shims to be put in so they could<br />
be closed. The shims were put in raised and sanded flush.<br />
Most of the filling and sanding was done on the gear doors.<br />
Winging It<br />
The wings of the X-1 are completely straight and parallel<br />
with ground with no droop. Care needs to be taken when<br />
attaching the wings to the fuselage. The locator tabs on the<br />
wings are an upper and lower tab. The tabs need to be in<br />
the proper place to ensure the wings are straight and level.<br />
Final Assembly<br />
After everything was closed up and put together, I attached<br />
the horizontals to the tail and it was very crooked! So, I<br />
popped the seam and twisted the fuselage to correct the<br />
warp. I guess they pulled the parts out of the molds a little<br />
too early on this run of the kit. With that fixed, it was time<br />
start filling and sanding and get prepped for paint.
Decals and Markings<br />
The kit instructions give you four aircraft options, although<br />
you can do other versions not listed on the instruction sheet<br />
with the decals are provided (noted by “*”).<br />
46-062 – Prior to the record breaking flight – “Bell Aircraft” logo in four<br />
locations, Early Stars and Bars<br />
46-062 – “Glamorous Glennis” – Record Breaking flight<br />
46-062 – Interim Air Force scheme with white upper and lower spine as<br />
seen in the movie “Jet Pilot” (6062 Last Flight)<br />
46-063 – Delivery scheme, Overall Orange with “Bell Aircraft” logo in four<br />
locations, Early Stars and Bars.<br />
46-063* – Overall white, black walkways – Large Stars and Bars on wings<br />
and fuselage. (To do this scheme, the early NACA shield is missing from the<br />
kit decal sheet, it is available on aftermarket sheets)<br />
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46-063 – Overall White with black walkways (inboard wing) – NACA tail<br />
band<br />
46-063* – Overall White, no walkways – NACA on wings, NACA tail band,<br />
X’s on sides of fuselage<br />
46-063* – Overall White, Natural metal wings, X’s on sides of fuselage –<br />
small Stars and Bars on aft fuselage, NACA tail band<br />
There are many variations to 46-063. I found many different<br />
marking variations when it was in NACA service prior to the<br />
X-1E conversion. Check your references when building<br />
6063. In my opinion, there’s probably no wrong way to build<br />
it with all the different variations it had throughout its career<br />
in the original X-1 configuration.<br />
The biggest omission, in my opinion, on the decal sheet is all<br />
the stencil data. This can be remedied with an aftermarket<br />
decal sheet, more on this later.
Painting and Markings<br />
NACA operated X-1s were painted over all Gloss White. The<br />
NACA discovered that the aircraft were easier to track when<br />
painted white, instead of the overall Reefer Orange or<br />
natural metal when operated by the USAF Flight Test<br />
Division.<br />
I painted my X-1 using the Model Master Two Part Lacquer<br />
System out of the spray can. What I like about this paint is<br />
that it dries FAST! I found the best way to spray ANY paint<br />
out of the can is to heat it up. To do so, here is what I do, fill<br />
up the kitchen/bathroom sink with very hot water. (DON’T<br />
STICK THE PAINT CAN IN THE MICROWAVE TO HEAT IT<br />
UP!) I sprayed the first coat and let it cure overnight. The<br />
next day I wet sanded the entire model with 2000 grit sand<br />
paper. I heated up the can of paint in hot water and applied a<br />
second coat of the gloss white lacquer. I let the second coat<br />
cure for about six hours.<br />
I then used Turtle Wax Polishing Compound to buff the paint<br />
to a high shine! I did this off and on over the course of a day.<br />
When I was finished polishing the model, I washed the<br />
model to remove any residual compound.<br />
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I painted the area around the rocket motor at the aft fuselage<br />
Floquil Old Silver. I like using Old Silver because it dries<br />
hard and can be masked. It’s not shiny silver, but nice dull<br />
silver. The instrumentation boom was painted Old Silver as<br />
well.<br />
The canopy was painstakingly masked and painted Model<br />
Master Flat black.<br />
Since I had decided to do my X-1 in a NACA scheme, I had<br />
four different markings to choose from. Three out of the four<br />
of these can be done with the kit decal sheet. When X-1-2<br />
was turned over to NACA, it carried the NACA shield on the<br />
tail instead of the familiar black and yellow tail band I wanted<br />
mine to have as many markings as possible. I went with The<br />
Stars and Bars on the wings and fuselage, NACA text on the<br />
wings, the photo identification “Xs” on the side of the<br />
fuselage and the NACA tail band.
Stencil Data<br />
After the model was complete, the kit didn’t looked finished<br />
to me. I checked my references and noticed that the X-1 had<br />
data stencil located all over the fuselage for access and<br />
servicing. I found a great 1/32 X-1 data sheet offered by Ed<br />
Bisconti. This decal sheet is printed on clear decal film and<br />
the text is well printed and is readable! I contacted Ed and<br />
requested his decal sheet. Ed was very generous and sent<br />
me a review sample at no cost in exchange for advertising<br />
and the use my model to promote his work!<br />
This gave the model a truly finished off look! To me, it now<br />
looked like an airplane and not a toy of an X-1.<br />
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Final Thoughts<br />
I wanted to do a project like this for some time. I finished it<br />
off in the look I was going for, which is a nice clean desk<br />
model of an NACA flown Bell X-1. Construction of this kit<br />
isn’t hard. It does have its little quirks, but what model kit<br />
doesn’t. I would recommend this kit to anyone interested in<br />
building the X-1. It is a good size, construction is very<br />
straight forward and there are no surprises. The only con to<br />
this kit, is that it was pulled from the mold a little too soon<br />
and the vertical was a little warped, other than that, a great<br />
kit overall.<br />
Definitely Recommended!
HMSNEO - The <strong>Tulsa</strong> Model Show – 2 June 2012<br />
The Historical Miniatures Society of Northeastern Oklahoma sponsored the 2012 <strong>Tulsa</strong> Model Show. There was<br />
excellent work by all who entered the contest. Photos by Steve Eggers<br />
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The <strong>Tulsa</strong> Model Show – 2 June 2012<br />
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SoonerCon – 16 June 2012<br />
IPMS Metro and the AMPS sponsored the 2012 SoonerCon. This year, as in previous years, welcomed all scale<br />
modelers from Texas, Arkansas and the Oklahoma area. There was excellent work by all who entered the contest.<br />
Photos by Steve Eggers<br />
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SoonerCon – 16 June 2012<br />
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SoonerCon – 16 June 2012<br />
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SoonerCon – 16 June 2012<br />
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SoonerCon – 16 June 2012<br />
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1/1 Scale – USS Batfish<br />
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1/1 Scale – USS Batfish<br />
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Paul T – Hobbycraft P-40B<br />
Member Gallery<br />
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<strong>TMF</strong> <strong>Quarterly</strong> PERIODICAL<br />
<strong>Tulsa</strong>, OK<br />
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