Mustang from Down Under – 1:32 Tamiya P-51K

-51 MUSTANG BUILD 9 – P

Mustang From Down Under

Mark Casiglia builds the 1:32 Tamiya P-51K Mustang in RAAF service

hen I decided to tackle Tamiya’s 1:32 P-51D/K,

Wthe decision was mostly driven by my desire to seek shelter in the quality of a Tamiya kit! The first step, as with any new build, was to decide what scheme to present. Now, I have to admit, I put way more priority on choosing a subject that captures my eye and imagination than on subjects that perhaps have more historical or deeper significance. Also, I always try to steer towards something from my little corner of the world. In the past, other Tamiya 1:32 kits I’ve done in a local scheme have been an RAAF Spitfire VIII and a RNZAF F4U-1A Corsair. The modelling world doesn’t see too many of these variants so it’s also nice to build something that isn’t generally seen. With this in mind, I searched around and found a decal set for an RAAF P-51K, showing a mid-blue tail and red propeller framing an all-over camouflage pattern. Apart from looking interesting as presented, I also relished the idea of a Mustang without the typical

North American P-51D/K Mustang

MANUFACTURER: TAMIYA SCALE: 1:32 KIT T YPE: PL ASTIC INJEC TION MOULDED KIT NUMBER: 60323

bare metal and invasion stripes. Although lacking in some of the striking nose art of these variants, I saw this one as something refreshingly different, with the iconic Southern Cross depicted on the tail. The subject of my build, serial number KH677, which was original coded CV-P until 11th December 1944. The aircraft was part of the RAAF’s No.3 Squadron, stationed in Fano, Italy. Unfortunately, the aircraft was lost as No.3 Squadron’s last fatality of the War, on 11th April 1945.

The process began with construction of both the engine and cockpit assemblies, which join together as a single unit for insertion into the fuselage. Not enough can ever be said for the quality of detail that these Tamiya kits provide. Whilst there is room for aftermarket, there’s really no need. Once again Tamiya uses a very sensible approach with engineering and making sure everything fits together flawlessly. The cockpit dials are the typical reverse decal laid over the clear dials, inserted into the instrument panel. A great system which allows detail to come through neatly and authentically. The harnesses come as etched parts, and once formed and painted they come across as quite authentic. One change I decided to make was to replace the kit’s seat cushion with one I made up with light-cured dental composite resin filling material. You can use epoxy, but being a dentist by trade, I found this easier to access and more familiar to use! Making my own cushion resulted in something more realistic. The engine and cockpit went together perfectly. All of the surfaces, including the inner fuselage, were primed with black Stynylrez and painted using Tamiya Acrylics thinned with Tamiya X-20A. I used the instruction’s suggested paint mix for the interior green, the colour of which is always in contention. It looked a little bright at first, but after a weathering wash with Tamiya’s brown panel line wash, it was dulled down nicely to what I saw as a realistic shade. Paint chipping around the cockpit was done after painting and clear coating, using Tamiya X-11 enamel. I like using enamel for post-painted chipping because it can be easily removed with odourless solvents if not happy, or the effect can be softened up by using less solvent. Dry brushing was done with my new favourite method, using oil paint on a very dry brush. In most cases, especially around the engine, silver oil paint works best, but the colour can be changed around according to whatever is being dry-brushed. The advantage, as with the chipping, is that odourless solvents can again be used to reduce the effect if you find you’ve overdone it. The only care that needs to be

Cockpit, engine and fusealge parts ready for assembly….

…and here you can see the parts in-situ

taken is to give a light clear coat between chipping and dry brushing, to prevent the solvents from removing the previous steps.

The next step saw the fuselage buttoned up around the cockpit and engine assembly. The fit again was flawless of course, and once the final elements around the engine and cowling framework were complete, it was time to add the tail stabilisers and wing assemblies. Once again, Tamiya uses etched parts skillfully to allow movement of flaps and flight control surfaces. The system of rods and hooks is simple and most importantly, works well. At this stage, for ease of painting, I deviated from the order of construction suggested by the instructions, which will have the windscreen and canopy towards the end of the build. I added those components at this stage and tacked the movable canopy down with a little Mr Masking Sol Neo. It provides great adhesion yet is able to be removed later when needed. I used the same method to anchor down the removable cowling covers to keep them firmly in place for the painting process. Whilst working on the main body of the model, I constructed and painted the spinner and propeller, the landing gear, gear bay doors and bombs. I used a combination of Tamiya and Mr Hobby acrylic paints according to what I needed and what I had on hand. Metallic surfaces were painted with Vallejo Metal Color, which gives a great finish free of visible metallic particles. Tamiya provides the ability to convert this plane from parked to in-flight mode, however, I chose to show the landing gear into position and the gear bay cover that would normally be placed for in-flight made an excellent mask for painting. Also, because there is more than one propeller variant, I was able to use the spare spinner

Masking off the canopy

-51 MUSTANG BUILD 9 – P The smaller parts ready to be fixed

After a base coat…..

…I began masking off the camouflage using Tamiya tape to define the curves…..

…then filling in with masking tape…..

Appling the roundels using Montex Masks

…to get the look I was after

hub to help hold the cowling covers firmly in place for painting, again using Mr Masking Sol to keep everything in place. The painting procedure followed my usual method of black primer and mottled sequential paint layers. With the entire plan covered in black primer, I started by tracing out the camouflage pattern with light pencil lines and I then laid down the Olive Drab. Next, I carefully outlined the camouflage edges with Tamiya vinyl tape which work well for all but the tightest of curves. Once I masked the gaps between the vinyl tape, I proceeded to lay down the Sea Grey. I then maskedoff the entire upper surface to prepare for painting the undersides of the model in Light Grey. To complete the main paintwork, the tail was painted in a Medium Blue and the sky band was painted Sky Blue. I then clear-coated the entire model with Alclad Aqua Gloss.

Next came the decals. Interesting. I took a gamble with Novascale and lost, so I decided to find a way to paint as many as I could. So, I rummaged through my ‘spares-box’ and found some unused Montex masks with the exact roundels I needed in the exact size. I decided to paint the roundels and use decals for the serial numbers, codes and the southern cross insignia. The painted roundels turned out well but only served to make the decals look poor! The serial numbers and codes were small enough not to matter, but the CV-<> codes just looked drab, so I masked around the edge of each letter, section by section, carefully scraping the decal away and painting until each letter was complete. The result was much better and whilst the process was a little painstaking, the result was worthwhile. I then used Tamiya’s decals for stencils and minor decals. Of course, these decals were very thick as expected and I used several clear coats around the individual decals in an effort to disguise the thickness. The next step was to manually apply all the chips. Once again, I used

BUILD 9 – P-51 MUSTANG

Tamiya X-11 enamel and odourless thinners to control and modify the result. I varied the amount of chipping according to location and tried to keep it subtle since this aircraft didn’t have a long working life. Once this was complete, I applied another coat of Aqua Gloss before an overall highly diluted wash of oil paint was applied. In this case, I opted for quite a dark mixture of Black and Burnt Umber. This was wiped away with absorbent kitchen towels followed by an old cotton rag, revealing the crisp panel lines I was after. Once this was fully set, I used a mix of White and transparent oil paint to reproduce paint fading on the upper facing surfaces. I then used various oil paints to reproduce exhaust stains, oil streaks, dirt streaks and gun stains. Again, once fully set, I sealed all the oils in with another clear coat. Finally, using an Artool stencil, I sprayed a very thin mix of Tamiya Buff acrylic to further mimic fading and dust on all the upward facing surfaces.

The final steps involved assembly of small breakable parts which were held aside for the end. A final clear coat of Testor’s Dullcote was applied, before masks were removed from the canopy, windshield and navigation lights. The clear parts were then cleaned up and polished again to remove any oil wash which may have crept through. An antenna was rigged from the tail, through a hole made in the canopy and onto the back of the pilot’s headrest. With a final minor retouch of chips with a Prismacolour silver pencil, I took the model off the bench and onto the shelf!