WIP; F4U-4

Hey Plastic Teen!  It's really looking good so far!!  Don't worry about the pilots legs, there were a couple of pilots in WWII who were amputees ;-)  Seriously, I don't think anyone will ever know, and sometimes you just have to do, what you have to do.  Welcome to the hobby.  As far as the clear plastic...  Go get you some Tester's Window Maker/Glue.  The stuff normally works wonders.  It'll go on kind of cloud, but will dry clear.  Even if you have a gap when you put a window in, you can take your time and fill it in with this stuff.  Talk to your dad about it.  It may be worth a shot.  Even if after you've fixed the crack, you can dry brush "battle damage" or "oil streaks" or "bird poop" to help disguises it.  Remember, most airplanes, especially those that have been flown for any length of time and even more especially those that have been flown in battle, are dirty...  As a modeler, this can be to your advantage, or sometimes a curse.  So have fun with it, and when you run into a problem don't be afraid to ask and don't be afraid to think outside of the box for a solution!  Raymond

Thank you very much Raymond I will talk to my dad about  the testers window maker/glue and I should be posting more about my model and the problems it has and be asking question on how to fix it. It's a pretty cheap model and the pieces of the model don't fit probably and have a a lot of edge so it's really going to test my skill,time,and patients to make it look good. But as I said I'll talk to my dad about the testers window maker/glue and try it out.

Plastic teen

Ps thanks for the tip Raymond

Welcome to the forum! You've done a great job on the cockpit!

Speaking of amputee pilots, I and a painting of a British pilot in his Spitfire. His nickname was "Tin Legs". As far as the story goes, he could take more G's than a guy with legs due to the blood not rushing into his lower extremities.

I don't know the whole story, but I thought it was interesting.

His name was Douglas Bader, one if not thee most famous British fighter pilots ever.

PlasticTeen, sorry to here about the canopy, everybody does that sort of thing now and then. Maybe a good opportunity to try a aftermarket vacuum formed replacement?

Off to a fine start there!  Glad you are enjoying the hobby.

Mike

Douglas Bader... one of Britain's famous Spitfire pilots during the Battle of Britain indeed. Of course let's not for forget Johnny Johnson and his beer barrels under the wings. LOL!

Yeah, P.T... sounds like you're going to get plenty of time with filler and fine grit sand paper.  You've got to be careful though or you really scratch up the surface.  Just buff it out with some ultra fine grit and watch the panel lines.  Get your dad to help.  The P-40 I did was kind of a pain in the can, but I took my time with it and it turned out pretty good.  I did some experimenting with it because the kit was so cheap.  Some of the mods worked out real well.  Some of the experiments, such as the smoke trails of the cannons... not so much.  That's part of the hobby.  That's part of life.  We learn best by making mistakes and learning from them...  Keep up the good work!!!  Raymond

PT, nice to see you here on your own account. !!!

You did a fine job on the first two that your dad posted here. Your cockpit above looks great.

PS, I like your forum nickname. Might remind us old guys we are talking to somebody under 50. (or 75, or 90, or.......)

After many years in this hobby, I have finally got to the point that whatever will not be seen when the model is completed, will not be built (unless it is a structural support part.)  This goes for things like pilots' legs, the toilet in the aft compartment of the B-25, etc.  And why bother painting internal details that will never be seen, either?

Anyhow, welcome, and enjoy a great hobby!

Welcome Plastic Teen.  I wish more teens had constructive hobbies, such as ours.  This is rare these days.   We will be glad to help you as you go.  We all started somewhere.  So far, that looks great.  Reference the damaged part, Revell is good about replacing parts.  Check this out here...

http://www.revell.com/support/

Joe

How did amputees control the rudder ? Just curious

I believe they used their prosthetics,  but don't know for sure.

Here's the ugly seam line I'll have to fill

And here's the problem with the canopy

Filling the seam is one thing but that canopy fit is really bad. Wow.

Mike

Two ideas: Work with your Dad on this one, use heat to bend a piece of sprue to shape and file and sand

to fit. The other would be to cut plastic sheet and glue to fit. Hope this helps.

Jeff