RE: SHOW YOUR DETAILED ARF WARBIRDS
Hangar 9 Corsair ARF:
1) removed all of original covering, recovered outer wings and tail surfaces with CoveRite flat gray covering, 'glassed fuselage and wing center section with 1/2 oz/ sq yd 'glass cloth/ MiniWax water based varnish (multiple layers on forward fuselage and wing center section), then painted with custom Behr (from Lowes) exterior semi-gloss house paints, used Top Flite 'red box' Corsair decals and some custom decals. I created the Jolly Rogers emblems with Testors decal paper and my printer.
2) Installed Top Flite Corsair cowl, after adding (notching) cowl flap lines and mounting straps. Hangar 9 cowl is oversize/ not scale. Top Flite one looks MUCH better.
3) rounded the forward most part of the fuselage, so that the scale look AND good motor cooling can be achieved. See where the cowl flaps end and the fuselage begins.
4) Installed Top Flite Corsair canopy (more scale authentic than the H-9 version for an F4U-1A)
5) Installed fake exhaust stacks made from painted plastic tubing.
6) Installed fake machine gun openings in wings (fabricated by me from Mattle Vaccu-Form)
7) cut out notch in tail underside to simulate where the arrester hook shows (on carrier based Corsair). Since this is a land based one, the 'tailhook' has been removed.
8) painted the AXI 4130/16 (electric motor) same color as dummy radial, so that the motor blends in and actually appears to be the engine case of the dummy radial.
9) Installed flexible plastic antenna mast, AND routed receiver antenna wire in scale location (exits just aft of cockpit, goes to top of rudder).
10) almost forgot: I modified wing center section so that is (A) shorter/ closer to true 1/8 scale, AND (B) it does not have the 'step' where it exits the fuselage. Gives it a MUCH more natural Corsair look.
I COULD have done something with the wing root oil coolers, but I wanted to leave a subtle clue or 2 that this is actually a Hangar 9 Corsair.
The scheme is that of U.S. Navy ace Lt Streig, from VF-17/ Jolly Rogers Squadron.
This plane is now ready to enter it's 4th flying season, but it has sustained a few bruises and rashes. I am considering re-finishing it as an F4U-1 ('birdcage canopy'): what do you think? Leave as is and do the birdcage on a later Corsair, or re-do this one?