1/48 Northrop Grumman E-2D "Delta One"

This week’s update on the E-2D conversion covers more differences between the E-2C 2000 to the E-2D.  After I assembled the fuselage and added weights to keep the nose down, I detailed the nose gear bay with the photo etch details. Moving forward I had to modify the top scoop. It has a second smaller scoop for the RPCS on top of it. I used some styrene sheets to rough it in and then some putty to blend it to the scoop. I used some spare photo etch pieces to fill in the brass coolers. I then attached the upper center section of the main wings. As you can see the fit is not very good. There are huge gaps at both ends. This required a lot of putty to fill them in. Once filled and sanded I attached the upper scoop.

The next major difference is the cable trough on the fuselage. The “D” does not have one. So the trough was cut out and a piece of sheet styrene was formed and glued in. The entire section was covered with a thin coating of putty. I then sanded it to shape and scribed in the panel lines.

On the rear of the fuselage is another fairing for the PTS and the fairing and head for the EMIRS. I added the photo etch details to the tailhook bay and now I am starting to scratchbuild the fairings.

You can see all the details and photos from the start on my blog at https://davidsscalemodels.com/build-log/1-48-northrop-grumman-e-2d-conversion/

Weekly update on the conversion to the E-2D is going good. The photos may be a little off. I had the memory card for the camera go bad. So I lost a bunch of photos. I was able to recover some and the areas I lost I took the "after" photos. Anyhow, this week I was able to build up the engines and main gear.  Once detailed and assembled I had to scratch build the EMIRS and PTS faring that are on the bottom aft of the fuselage. I built them out of sheet styrene. For the EMIRS I layered 3 sheets then coated with a layer of putty. Once dry I sanded it to shape it. I cut a section out of the fuselage and made the EMIRS head out of some pieces out of my spare parts bin. Next I started adding details to the fuselage and installed the nose gear.

I mounted the tail assembly and placed the saucer assembly on the top so to make sure the model would sit on the tricycle landing gear. I had added weight to the nose prior to putting the fuselage together but it was not enough. I added 2 more weights just behind the cockpit and it now sits normally.

I masked off and painted the windscreen assembly. Found out there is another section with a huge gap. This was shimmed and then putty was applied. After more sanding and shaping I added in the panel lines. Aircraft Delta One also had a pitot tube mount near the starboard wing tip. I found a brass pin and had to add a styrene rod to make it the correct length. I have most of the aircraft base coated now. Working on the finer painted details now then will need to finish making the decals and put them on.

 

Check out the photos and details from the start at https://davidsscalemodels.com/build-log/1-48-northrop-grumman-e-2d-conversion/

Moving forward on the E-2D conversion, I have finally finished the fuselage modifications. The fuselage was wet sanded and contoured to match the fuselage without the cable trough. The pylon and saucer were painted and clear coated with gloss. I then started the painting the rest of the aircraft. Paint scheme is overall light ghost gray with international orange highlights. The propellers were then assembled, painted, decaled and sealed with a matte finish. The main landing gear doors were painted and decaled as well. I am now working on making the custom decals to represent the “Delta One” aircraft.

 

See all the details and photos from the start at https://davidsscalemodels.com/build-log/1-48-northrop-grumman-e-2d-conversion/

I am getting closer to finishing the E-2C 2000 conversion to the E-2D. Using some high resolution photos I was able to make a decal set for the aircraft. After doing some detail painting and adding decals from the kit I added the custom decals. After the decals were applied I let the Microsol do its job. The kit decals worked great. Only issue is that the kit decals for the walkways were a little larger/longer than the spaces they go on the aircraft. The worst area was the walkways between the tails. I ended up cutting out a section in the middle of each decal so that the edges would line up correctly.  The entire aircraft was then sprayed with a gloss coat to seal the decals. Next is the final assembly adding the pylon and saucer, the cable rigging, and the clear parts (wingtip lights, fuselage lights, and cockpit windows. Should have it completed next week.

 

More photos in my build log at https://davidsscalemodels.com/build-log/1-48-northrop-grumman-e-2d-conversion/

The conversion from the 1/48 Kinetic E-2C 2000 to the Northrop Grumman E-2D “Delta One” aircraft is now complete. I can also reveal that this was made for a wonderful lady who has worked many years on the E-2 aircraft program. The model has been mounted in to a custom made display case made by Grandpa’s Cabinets.

 If you want to protect your model and display it in a case, I highly recommend them. They provided the case for my 1/350 USS Carl Vinson and for this model. Their website is

 http://www.grandpascabinets.com/