Xtrakit 1/72nd Canberra PR.9 Completed page 2

That's an interesting aircraft. Strange place for the second seat.

Ye i thought that. I had thought the nav's position was behind the pilot and he climb in through the pit. It was only when i looked at the instructions that i noticed he was in the front. And then i looked at some photo's and realised how he got in, by opening the nose. Also a bit strange to have the pilot over to one side.

The USAF bought the aircraft and a US version was built by Martin aircraft. The B-57 as it was called had a different cockpit. 

seasick

The USAF bought the aircraft and a US version was built by Martin aircraft. The B-57 as it was called had a different cockpit. 

 

I think the B-57 was based on the initial version of the Canberra which had the same canopy and cockpit as the 57. The new canopy and offset pit was only introduced with the B(I).8 i believe.

Bish

I had thought the nav's position was behind the pilot and he climb in through the pit.

This is true for earlier versions. The bomb aimer & navigator's seats were in a  compartment behind the pilot. Even in the original "goldfish bowl" versions, the pilot's seat was offset to the left.  

PS: The B-57A retained the "goldfish bowl" canopy. The elogated "fighter style" tandem canopy was introduced with the B-57B

Thanks for the info Phil, much appreciated.

Been plugging away at the Canberra and am rather enjoying this. Its needed quite a bit of work with every major part needing sanding before fitting and then filling and sanding after. My testors silver enamel pen has had a really good outing on this build, certainly proved its worth. Before adding the wing the main wheel wells were fitted to the side of the fuselage.

But before the wings could be fitted, the mateing edge had to be thinned to fit in a slight gap above the wheel wells. In hindsite, both wings should have been thinned before they were put together as the fit over the wells was very tigt, i was surprised the seams did not burst.

But with a bit of encouragment they did go on. And after the horizontal tail, the front and rear of the engines, canopy and the few small portrusions were fitted. O, and not forgetting the clear piece which includes the camera window, and its all ready to hit the paint booth.

All being well, i will get her primed and painted over the weekend and can star the decals Mon/Tues.

Thanks for looking, all comments welcome.

An amazing start as always Bish.  You do some really high quality builds.  I'll be following this build for sure!

Toshi

Thanks Toshi.

Thanks Johnny. Just got the painting stared today with the underside and tail.

Hey Bish, I just checked in on your Canberra project and it's looking good. They were present as the B-57 version in the '50s and one would occasionally buzz our home town. Ever since that  experience as a kid, I've followed the progression of the long lived design. A few years ago I did see several versions at the USAF museum. There's a B-57 on-a-stick at a Kansas Air Force base that is a beauty and lit at night. You are getting me enthused! lol! It's a model that I've always considered building.

So carry on and I'll be watching!

Max 

Thanks Max, glad its got you interested. Italeri are to re-release there 72nd B-57B next month if that takes your fancy. There don't seem to be that many kits out there of the subject.

Ah, a bit of digging through my files and I did come up a few examples on of which also shows my A-37 at the USAF museum. 

Anyway, a classic aircraft, even NASA has a high altitude research WB-57. Quite an evolution from the original.

Good choice, still watching.

Max

 What a place!

Looking good Bish,

Those cockpits look very cramped.  (I thought economy class was bad)

A friend of mine in the local modeling club recently built a Canberra.  He told me that in his research he found that the little windows on either side of the navigator compartment were affectionately referred to as day/night indicators, as this was just about the only thing that they were good for.

Looking forward to seeing more of this one.

Chris

Chris, ye, it does look cramped in there. The cockpit looks more like somthing you would see in a WW2 singleengine fighter. And i can see what he means about those windows.

Thanks for looking in, should have more soon.

Max,what a place indeed. I thought the USAF museum at Duxford was packed. Thanks for posting those.

While we're talking Canberras, I just saw on the news this morning that two NASA WB-57s will study the August 21 total eclipse that will cross the United States coast to coast. 

Max

Its nice to see they are still being put to good use. I know its not front line service like the B-52, but nearly 70 years old and still going strong.

After a couple of days i got the canberra all painted up. The grey tail is not normal for this type, from what i can tell it was only on this aircraft with its special markings. I used Xtracolr as usual, so no need for a gloss coat.

The nose did not come out to well. I have had to sand that down and have just re-pained so will leave that until tomorrow.

But for now, i can start on the decals. And there are enough to keep me busy with loads of stencils.

Hodakamax

Ah, a bit of digging through my files and I did come up a few examples on of which also shows my A-37 at the USAF museum. 

Anyway, a classic aircraft, even NASA has a high altitude research WB-57. Quite an evolution from the original.

Good choice, still watching.

Max

 What a place!

 

PQ, huh?  Unless they just repainted any old B-57, my Dad may have flown that bird when he was in Viet Nam! 

My Dad was one of the pilots involved in certification/verification of the B-57, and became quite fond of those.  He flew them a lot.  Nice plane.  And even the tandem cockpit arrangement had a fair amount of space. 

Gene Beaird,
Pearland, Texas

CrashTestDummy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PQ, huh?  Unless they just repainted any old B-57, my Dad may have flown that bird when he was in Viet Nam! 

My Dad was one of the pilots involved in certification/verification of the B-57, and became quite fond of those.  He flew them a lot.  Nice plane.  And even the tandem cockpit arrangement had a fair amount of space. 

Gene Beaird,
Pearland, Texas

 

Gene, there's probably more info on that individual aircraft at the USAF Museum website.

And while we are waiting for Bish's next report, here's NASAs WB-57s. The Canberra has quite the history and lifetime. A classic for sure!

Max

Nice photo Max. And am i right in that it will be 2 of those used in August during the eclipse.

Bish, I pulled that off Space.com and there was an article about it.

Now all this talk has me looking at Canberras and which one to build. The B-57 is the one I saw as a kid but the NASA one looks cool. Like I need another project at this moment in time! LOL!

Thanks for reminding about Canberras!

Max

Anytime Has their ever been a kit of the NASA aircraft, looking at those, it would need a bit of a conversion.

A bit more trivia while waiting for your decal report. This WB-57 was pulled from storage for 41 years in 2013 by NASA and refurbished for use bringing the number to three for NASA.

I was Googling to find the length of a B-57 as I'm trying to decide to go with 1/48 or 1/72 and saw this. I still haven't decided on which but I thought I'd better report on the longevity of the design!

And no, I can't find a WB-57 model.

Max

Bish, what happened to the nose?  Overspray?  Thank you in advance.

Toshi

Toshi

Bish, what happened to the nose?  Overspray?  Thank you in advance.

Toshi

 

Probably sprayed to heavy. I used white tac to mask, as i did on the rest, but it only happened here. So i can only think i put to much paint on which built up along the edge of the mask. I have used the same masking method for ages but this is the first time its happened.

Nice photo and info Max. I hope to not keep you to long, i have not touched the decals in a couple of days,partly due to masking and painting the fuel filer points.

If it helps, my 72nd canberra, minus the nose, is 26cm long with a 28 1/2cm wing span. Or, if you prefer it in old money, 10 1/4 x 11 1/4 inch's.

Ah, thanks Bish for the dimensions. That would make the 1/48 version about 16+'' long, about the size of the 1/48 F-14 Tomcat and would fit in my 1/48 collection. I'll at least start the search, I'm several models behind and getting slower! LOL!

Max

Ye, the 2 are very close in size, just cm's between them in both directions. Just checked hannants and the only kit in that scale is an Airfix B(i).6/B.20. But i am sure there must have been a 48th B-57 at some point.

Hope you can find one and look forward to seeing you build it.

Edit: Airfix did a B-57B in 2009 which came from their new 2008 B 2 kit. Seems to be OOP but you migt be able to find one.

https://www.scalemates.com/kits/135948-airfix-a10104-martin-b-57b-canberra