A Feline Tub, A Tall Tale That Might Be True, Photo Phantoms, and A Turkey or Two,

That Tango Cougar

Way back in the 1950s, back when the Navy was getting into jets in a Big Way, it became evident that a swept-wing jet trainer might be useful for getting aspiring young aviators up to speed (no pun intended, mostly) on the then-new types entering service. Grumman had already begun delivering F9F-6 fighters to the Fleet and their handling characteristics, particularly around the boat, were a far cry from the relatively benign straight-winged types most naval aviators were accustomed to. That in turn led to the requirement for a trainer variant of the Cougar, which resulted in the modification of the F9F-8 fighter into the F9F-8T two-seater. Let's start the day with a few photos of that then-revolutionary trainer.

Where it all began.  BuNo 141667 was the prototype for the F9F-8T and proved the concept was viable. She's shown here on an early test flight, all shiny in natural metal. The airplane looked a little goofy with that big humped-up canopy, but it was a shape that would indure in TraCom for years to come. Grumman History Center Neg Unknown

It didn't take long for 141667 to get a coat of sorely-needed paint. The grey and white Navy tactical scheme of the 50s through early 80s called for all control surfaces to be painted white, as shown to advantage here. Part of the Cougar's roll control was provided by spoilers, and the horizontal stab was of the all-flying variety, which caused it to be painted entirely white both above and below. Of particular interest is the blast shield for the aft seat, visible beneath the canopy.  Grumman History Office 56552

A different, and somewhat colder, day in the test regime. 667 is shown here on approach to the Grumman facility at Bethpage with everything hanging and the canopy racked open, providing us with an excellent shot of that blast shield. That's snow down there; bet that was one cold final!  Grumman History Office 56333

Time for some new clothes! In this shot 667 has acquired some orange trim and a candy stripe on her test boom. The F9F-8T retained a pair of 20mm cannon and the ability to carry ordnance beneath the wings, as illustrated here by a quartet of AIM-9B Sidewinders. Those cannon and hardpoints allowed the Cougar to go to war in the 1960s, serving as a Fast FAC for the Marines. Grumman History Office 57534

Here's that "new" scheme again, this time on 142438. Most of the airframe is now white, with black anti-skid walkways, red-orange trim, and Corrogard leading edges; that Corrogard treatment is nicely defined here.  142438 was the second production F9F-8T  Grumman History Office Neg Unknown

141667 was used for weapons trials, among other evalulations, and she's shown here dumping fuel on one of those flights. The test boom has been replaced by the Cougar's standard IFR probe and she looks like a production aircraft. Grumman History Office 57545

This is yet another shot of 667, but taken when she was still configured with the test boom. The missile rails are shown to advantage and we get a good look at the gun ports and speed brakes too. The F9F Cougars weren't the best fighters out there (none of the early Navy jets were, with the possible exception of the FJ series) but they trained thousands of naval aviators in their day. Not too shabby...  Grumman History Center 57536  

Say goodbye to the folks, 667! This literal parting shot gives us an excellent view of the paint demarcation and those speed boards. Fly Navy!  Grumman History Office 57542

The Flapping Takeoff

If you meet enough military aviators you'll hear your share of there-I-was stories, some of which probably contain some element of truth. One of my friends in the small Texas town I call home is a former Naval Aviator, an IP with TraCom for the better part of his mid-60s flying career. He swears this is true.

It seems that our Intrepid Young Instructor was taking a student on his first cross country and was returning to NAS Corpus Christi via the Southern route and, is as well-known, the F9F-8T didn't have much in the way of legs, causing several refueling stops to be added to the flight plan. One of those stops was Davis Monthan AFB, a facility with sufficient runway length to accomodate even the most ground-bound of Republic's I'm-Not-Leaving-This-Runway fighters. That runway length, coupled to the natural proclivity of all Naval aviators to stick it to the Air Force whenever such an opportunity presented itself, led to a practical joke of legendary proportions.

Our aforementioned Intrepid Young Instructor and his student and recovered at DM with no problems and topped off the tanks, preparing for the next leg of the flight back to Texas, when an idea was born. Our IYI suspected that the tower at Davis Monthan didn't deal with all that many Navy airplanes; it was entirely possible back in those days for a Navy pilot to talk to an Air Force tower and use terminology that was foreign to said Tower. Our IP saw Opportunity looming, and there's no doubt in my mind that there was a big old pie-eating grin under the oxygen mask as the Cougar lined up on the active that day:

"Tower, this is Navy Two-Niner requesting takeoff from runway fill-in-the-blank".

"Roger, Navy Two-Niner. You're cleared for takeoff."

"Ah, roger, Tower. Permission to do a flapping takeoff, over?"

There can be no doubt the poor airman in the tower had not the slightest idea what a flapping takeoff might be, but no blue-suiter wants to come across as uninormed, particularly where the Navy might be involved, so permission was given:

"Roger, Navy Two-Niner. Proceed with flapping takeoff."

The grin in the front seat of the Cougar's cockpit got bigger as the throttle was advanced to allow a moderate taxi speed (remember that runway length; it's important to the story!) and a mischievious hand reached for the wing-fold control. The wings were cycled three, four, then five times, then locked down as the throttle was pushed forward for launch. We can only imagine what it must have looked like from the tower; it was, by Jingo, a flapping takeoff!

We can only hope it was true...

Some Photo Rhinos

The mighty F-4 Phantom served the Air Forces of the world for years, and in pretty much every role one could possibly imagine. The fighter that was purpose-designed for the defense of the Fleet proved to be much more capable than that, and its speed made it a natural for the photo recon role. Here are a couple of examples of the F-4 in that guise.

A whole phlock of photo Phantoms! (I'm sorry; it was in me and it had to come out!) This shot was taken at Kadena AB, Okinawa, during the late 1970s and shows a lineup of 18th TFW RF-4Cs in the squadron area. That fence doesn't add a whole lot of ambiance to the picture, but it's what we've got!  John Kerr Collection

The 67th TRW was stationed at now-defunct Bergstrom AFB for a number of years. RF-4C 66-474 was being prepped for public display at the BAFB airshow on 7 August 1988 when this picture was taken; 474 was ostensibly the wing commander's aircraft and is so marked beneath the tail codes. The paintwork is typical 1980s USAF Shades of Gray, while all three 67th TRW squadron colors are displayed on the fin tip. She was a pretty airplane.  Friddell

In 1988 the 16th TRS/363rd TRW sent a section of their RF-4Cs to participate in RAM 88. No serial number was evident on the exterior of the aircraft; the legend "16th TRS AMU" sits on the vertical stab in the place it should be, while her fuselage data block had been painted over. She was another grey-on-grey bird, with a really tasty cheat line on the nose. Beauty!  Friddell

Remember the Turkey?

There was a time, and it wasn't all that long ago, when the Grumman F-14 was the best fighter in the world. Time, technology, and an ever-increasing maintenance burden on an aging fleet of aircraft eventually did the Tomcat in, but the airplane was a Class Act from start to finish. We don't do much with the F-14 around here, but these photos make me wonder why that is. Maybe we'll have to do something about it. Meanwhile:

The 70s Navy was a colorful Navy. Here's a deck shot from the Saratoga, date unknown, showing her tactical types to advantage. That's a VF-11 Red Rippers F-14A closest to the camera; looks like we're getting ready for a launch cycle.  Rudy Bejar

A better view of the flight deck, this time showing an example from each of Sara's F-14 squadrons, VF-2 and VF-31. The pre-TPS "Easter Egg" markings are well-depicted here. I don't think the ship is rolling that badly given the sea state, but you never know...  Rudy Bejar 

Coming aboard! A Fighting Thirty-One  F-14 recovers aboard the Saratoga in this dramatic photo. The weapons sleds are carrying a pair of AIM-54 Phoenix missiles, and the fin of an AIM-7 Sparrow is visible on the far side of the aircraft. That, plus the gas bags, implies that this aircraft is returning from a CAP sortie. Rudy Bejar

A few calm moments before things start to get Really Busy. 102 was assigned to VF-21 when this photo was taken aboard the Connie in 1984 and provides the modeler with a great idea for a diorama. Gotta love the cheat line on that anti-glare panel!  Rick Morgan

Taxiing to the cat and ready to rumble. 210 is another VF-21 Tomcat and is caught moving away from the pack in this July 1985 shot. She's configured for CAP and pretty much loaded for bear as she leads out a second F-14, this time from VF-154. The boat is CV-64 Constellation.  Rick Morgan  

And here's a shot of one of Fighting One-Fifty-Four's F-14s, also on the Connie in July of '85. Note the VFA-25 F-18A taxiing forward. Although this photo shows an apparently calm deck, it's bustling with activity; note that every Deck Division hand near 102 has his eyes on the aircraft. There's a reason for that...  Rick Morgan

By the 1980s the Tomcat was a regular part of the Reserve component. This F-14A TARPS (159591) was photographed at Last Chance during RAM 88. She's from VF-302 and is about to spend her day whizzing low above the South Texas countryside.  Friddell

Majesty. An unknown Navy photographer captured this formation from VF-142 during the mid-80s. Other than that I know nothing about the photograph, but it's really pretty and sometimes that's enough.  Friddell Collection

The Relief Tube

When last we met a reader had asked a question regarding roll control on the S2F. Here are some comments regarding that topic from Tommy Thomason:

The S2F roll control consisted of 1) circular arc spoilers in the outboard wing panel located ahead of the flap and 2) small "feel" ailerons out at the wing tips. The spoilers extended upward only, with a maximum extension equal to 8.6% of the wing chord. I haven't found any pictures yet that depict them up but I vaguely remember seeing a bit of extension with the wings folded. I think the system is similar to the one on the P-61.

Tommy kept looking, and sent us a couple of photographs showing those spoilers in the deployed condition:

Tommy stresses that this photo is most likely on the prototype, but it gives us a pretty good idea of how the spoilers looked. Thomason Collection

A second view of the prototype installation.  Thomason Collection

This just might be the Money Shot; it depicts an extended spoiler on the port wing of an early S2F-1. Thomason Collection

Here's how they looked when the wings were folded. This is a production S-2E on the boat.  Thomason Collection

A detail shot of the extended spoiler on that S-2E. A final comment from Tommy:  A note on the picture with the wings vertical and both spoilers extended. As a result of the kinematics of the mechanical control system, both ailerons are deflected "up" at that point, which means that the spoilers on both wings extend, since they come out only when "their" aileron is up (wing to go down). Normally, only one side is extended since only one aileron is up at any time in flight. Pictures of that are pretty rare.
Thomason collection

And regarding the new Kinetic kit:  I made offers to help to two different contact points at the company. Got no response. As far as I can tell from pictures of the sprues, there are a few S2F-1 details on the S-2E parts. Nothing major but typical of the difficulty of properly segregating the different configurations of an aircraft that was upgraded over time. Definitely something to remember if you build that kit! Thanks, Tommy!

Contributor/reader Doug Siegfried, who has more than a few hours in the "Stoof", added these comments:

Hi Phil:  Nice coverage of my favorite airplane the S-2. A correction on the air to air shot that I took. We were flying off USS Kitty Hawk CV-63. The Princeton at the time was razor blades. Also, both pilots in the burning S-2 survived the ditching. It was fortunate that both pilots were instructors - one was an instructor under training. Helps to have two pros handle an emergency such as this one.

And a pilot's perspective on flying the S2F:  In the S2F, C-1 and E-1 you had to use a little muscle to make turns. Once you got used to the controls it was no problem. The S2F-3 (D,E and G) had very easy control and you had to be careful to not over control. You never, never thought about spinning the S-2 or all its variants. Grumman did it once and it did some very strange things so there were no spin recovery methods in the NATOPS. You just did not get into unusual attitudes in the S-2. You could do great angle of bank turns at altitude or down low to the water with no problem. We did have one guy in my first squadron that tried a barrel roll in the S2 and it lost several thousand feet before he got it back to normal flight. He had to wring out his flight suit after that and did not recommend anyone every try it. The most serious emergency in the S-2 was fire in flight - leave it or ditch now. It was great plane to fly and do what it was designed for which was ASW work. Looking forward to the new S-2 model. Cheers, Doug

This issue of Replica in Scale is respectfully dedicated to the memory of Frank Garcia, who loved Naval aviation.

And that's what I know for now. Be good to your neighbor and we'll meet again soon.
phil

Requiem for a Friend, Another Couple of FJ Photos, The Continuing Saga of the Stoof, Eduard's Fw-190 Family, and Another Big Spitty

An Overdue Tribute to a Departed Friend

Frank Garcia was a long-time aviation entusisast, a plastic modeler, and a friend. You've seen some of his photography in these pages, taken back in the early 60s when he was a V1 guy on the "Shang" and the "FDR". He loved airplanes and he loved plastic modeling but, most of all, he loved naval aviation.

Among other talents, Frank was one of the fastest modelers I've ever known, being able to crank out a finished 1/72nd scale Name That Airplane over a weekend, starting from the time he took the plastic wrapping off the box until the time the completed model went on the shelf. He wasn't turning out bad models either; a great many of them placed in local contests Way Back When. He pioneered a couple of techniques I still use and, most importantly, he shared with others. Some modelers like to keep things a secret because they think that doing such a thing gives them an edge. Frank thought that sharing what he knew helped everybody have more fun with the hobby and because of that philosophy he never got whizzed off when a model didn't work out. He'd just put it away and start something else.

We shared a lot of miles chasing airplanes together back in the 80s, driving all over Texas, Nikons in hand, searching out military airplanes wherever we could find them. We got sunburned, rained on, snowed on, hailed on, and, on more than one occasion, disappointed when we got to where we were going when it turned out that the airplane we were chasing wasn't there after all. He never complained or criticised (a talent I've often wished I had for myself) but just grinned and kept on going.

Frank died of a massive heart attack back in the mid-1980s. He was a young man, still in his 40s, and his passing was a shock to everyone who knew him. Everyone who knew him respected him, and everyone missed him. His wife and children kept going and eventually moved on with life, but things just weren't the same with Frank gone.

Fast-forward to right-now-this-minute, which is a Friday down here in Sunny South Texas. Tomorrow's the day San Antonio's IPMS chapter has their annual contest ("Model Fiesta" is what they call it) and, unless they've changed things, one of the trophies they'll award will be The Frank Garcia Award, given for best US Navy airplane model. A couple of us decided way back when Frank passed that such a thing would be a fitting tribute, and successive generations of Alamo Squadron members have apparently agreed with the concept. It won't bring Frank back, but it's definitely The Right Thing to Do. Meanwhile, I try to use Frank's notion of Not Getting Overly Excited every time I pick up an X-Acto knife. It's not a bad legacy, I think.

Ever wonder who Alamo Squadron's Frank Garcia Award was named after? Here's your answer. The date is 22 March, 1981, and Frank, his son Frankie, and I are on the ramp at Laughlin AFB shooting the late arrivals before the everything opens up to the public at that year's air show. Frank had fun that day, but then Frank always had fun, and it generally rubbed off on those around him. That's a pretty good legacy, I think. Vaya con Dios, Amigo!

Just When You Thought We Were Done With The FJ

It's easy to develop a fondness for certain things, and airplanes are no exception. One of my special interests has always been the North American FJ series of fighters, mainly because we've never had a decent 1/48th scale plastic kit of an FJ-2 or -3, although the Czechs did a viable FJ-1 a while back, and we now have a buildable FJ-4 from China. The FJ-2 and -3 remain elusive, and it just shouldn't be so!

In the beginning there was the FJ-1. It's a goofy looking airplane, and it's performance is laughable by today's standards, but it was a Really Big Deal when it was first introduced into service. Everybody knew it was just a step along the road, but it got the ball rolling. Fighting Fifty-One got to introduce the type into service as illustrated by this gorgeous example. Squint just a little bit and you can see the F-86/FJ-3 in that airplane.  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

You might well ask yourself "Self; how do they practice for carrier landings before they go to the boat?". The answer is simple. You get yourself an LSO, a runway, an airplane, and a lawn chair. Then you practice. This Fighting Sixty-Two FJ-3 is coming aboard at an un-named naval air station during the mid-1950s prior to deployment. Don't you wish you could've been that photographer?!  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

Here's why you practice. This VF-62 FJ-3's in the groove coming aboard the Bennington during pre-cruise workup. This is how it looks when you do it right.  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

Gettin' ready for the boogie. The aircraft are, once again from VF-62, and this time they're playing for real on the boat. Pretty airplane, huh?  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

Even More Stoofs

We're now officially in the Home Stretch in terms of our ongoing coverage of the Grumman S2F, but we're not done yet. Here's another collection of photography to amaze and astound:

One of the primary users of the "Stoof" family was TraCom, who operated the type as a multi-engine trainer for a number of years. This example from VT-28 typifies the breed as far as Training Command was concerned; a pretty scheme but one that's seldom modeled. Pity.  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

 We all have a Bad Day at the Office from time to time, but I'm guessing none of our Bad Days can rival the one these guys are having! A VT-27 TS-2A flies past the boat with the Number 1 engine ablaze and falling apart some time in 1964. The NATOPs says it's time to Get Out of There Right Now when this sort of thing is going on, but those guys are way to low to do anything but ditch.  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

Remember back there where I said the airplane was coming apart? The engine's feathered and the nacelle is literally coming to pieces, with chunks falling into the sea. The ultimate outcome of this is not known, at least to this publication, but it looks pretty bad. Sure hope those guys got out of there ok. Nobody ever said military aviation was safe... Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

Sometimes it isn't fire that gets you; the boat's a dangerous place in the best of circumstances. This VS-30 S2F-1 was in the process of trapping aboard the Antietam when Things Went Seriously Wrong; she's caught a wire but things aren't looking particularly good at the moment. As far as we know the injuries were confined to Personal Pride, but it was a pretty scary day for all concerned, we suspect.  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

The Mighty Stoof was a versatile airframe and had quite a career as a utility type and COD. 136546 is a US-2B assigned to NAS Miramar; the tail markings are particularly noteworthy. When the S-2 left the NAV she did it with dignity!  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

Here's what the "Stoof" looked like as a COD. This beautifully-maintained C-1A is off the Constellation, date unknown, and typifies the pride the COD guys took in their airplanes. The logo on the nacelle says it all.  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

VS-82's squadron markings were simple but effective as demonstrated by 151671, an S-2E shown taxiing at Davis Monthan in 1974. I think I read someplace that Kinetics was about to release a 1/48th scale kit of the "Stoof"; I can't wait to see it!  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

One could ask if you've ever seen a shark-mouthed S-2 before, but we all know you have because we ran a black and white photo of one a few issues back. Here's another photo for you, and it really shows that marking to advantage, as well as a considerable amount of detail of interest to modelers. Jean, this one's for you!  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

We can't run a photo essay without an air-to-air, can we? This section of Princeton-based S-2Gs were photographed doing a little form in 1975. The S-2 family was liberally covered with lumps and bumps from the very beginning, making it an ideal source of subject matter for modelers. Wonder why we had to wait so long for a 1/48th scale kit?  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

The "Stoof" was a great airplane, but nothing lasts forever. Here's our official Parting Shot depicting a VS-37 S-2G in formation with its replacement, the Lockheed S-3A, this example being from VS-21. The S-3 was (and is) a more capable platform than it's sometimes given credit for, and it's even got a neat nickname in the Fleet ("Hoover"), but at the end of the day it still ain't a "Stoof", is it? Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

And that's pretty much it for our coverage of the S-2F family, at least for now. We're still looking for sea stories and photography, however, so if you've got anything you'd like to share we'd love to hear from you. That address once again is replicainscale@yahoo.com .

Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wulf?

Eduard, that consistently amazing company from the Czech Republic, has been issuing a seemingly unending procession of model airplane kits that could only be considered superior by most any standards. They do manage to drop the occasional clanger, as our Former Empire friends are wont to say, but all in all their kits are right up there with the best available.

One of those recent offerings in the Right-Up-There-With-the-Best Available category would be their family of Fw190 variants. They've pretty much covered them all, from the -5 to the -8, with a D and an F thrown in for good measure, and they're all pretty good kits, albeit with a reputation for difficulty of assembly. Your Humble Servant (me) pondered that reputation for a while and decided to go off and build an Eduard Focke Wulf for himself because, simply put, if I can't mess it up nobody can. It was a test of sorts.

Anyway, the model is under construction but not yet photographed, and I'm not correcting the accuracy issues so well-documented by others; the whole purpose of this set of paragraphs is to provide all of you who might want to build one of the short-nosed kits for yourselves the Official Key to the Highway so you can avoid the frustration that's allegedly built into those plastic pieces.

The complaints that I've seen all concern themselves with problematical fit, and the internet is filled with stories of angst and passion written by folks who have struggled with the beast and had to clamp, fill, and sand in order to get said pieces together. Here's what you can do to avoid that particular passion play:

First, there's the wing spar, which is p/n I-16 in the A-8 iteration of the kit. That spar butts up against a little triangular piece (K-20), and you need to install the triangular piece first, then the spar. Make sure, and I mean absolutely certain, that said spar is perpendicular to the wing. Lock it in and let it set up before messing with the model any further. Once that's done, you've ensured that all those wheel well ribs, as well as the wheel well itself, will fit with absolutely no drama and no need for subsequent surgery.

The other Major Bugaboo with the kit is a direct result of the relationship between the cowl gun components and Everything Else, and the proper fitment of same will absolutely make or break the building of the model. Take a look at the kit's instructions when you're assembling the cowl gun deck; the ammunition feed trays/spent cartridge case ejection chutes (parts H-20 and H-21) fit to the front of the bulkhead that's numbered I-4. The rest of the cowl gun installation is built on that, and the whole component section fits into the fuselage in front of the completed cockpit. Install the cockpit first, being careful to align the decking behind the seat with the cutout in the fuselage and also using the mounting tabs inside the fus. If the cockpit is in the right place the cowl gun assembly will go where it's supposed to, mating up with its alignment tabs too. Those subassemblies have to fit the fuselage correctly; if they don't, you'd may as well give up and go do something else unless, of course, you enjoy suffering.

Once you've addressed those two issues you can assemble the completed fuselage to the lower wing, making certain that the two "prongs" that are the spent-cartridge case chutes straddle part number J-18 and align with the appropriate openings in the lower wing. Thanks to proper alignment of the cockpit and gun bay that was a snap-fit on my model so I presume it will be the same on yours too; just be gentle when you do the snapping and all will be well.

If you've done those basic things the cockpit and gun bay details will fit properly without spreading the fuselage in the process, the inboard cannon bays (parts I-14 and I-15) will fit into the wing and alongside the fuselage without any trimming, and the wing assembly will align perfectly with the fus. The only Tough Thing yet to do is install the exhaust pipes (which Eduard supplies a jig for) and carefully fit the power egg into the fuselage.

So, who's afraid of The Big Bad Wulf? Not me, by Jingo! That said, I'm one of those folks who think the kit is somewhat over-engineered and not for those modelers who's skill sets are, shall we say, of a lesser order, so you new guys might want to build a couple of other kits before you tackle any of these. Then again, how else do we learn?

No matter how you feel about the kit, it's perfectly buildable (as is everything this modeler has ever touched that had the name "Eduard" on the box). You just need to give it the respect it deserves while you're sticking things together. Patience is a virtue!

That Spitfire Train Just Keeps On Rollin'

And we're ding-danged glad of it. We are, of course, talking about Tamiya's remarkable series of 1/32nd scale Supermarine Spitfire kits. They first started the ball rolling with a Mk IXc, then a Mk VIII, and now a Mk XVIe, all of which are the definitive kits of there type, and all of which should be in your local hobby shop or favorite mail order house any day now. Through the kindness of Rudy Kline at King's Hobby Shop in Austin we were able to take a look at the trees comprising the parts unique to that new Mk XVIe and were/are suitably impressed.

Here's the biggest change to the kit to allow construction as a Mk XVI. The detail on those parts is absolutely gorgeous, and everything is there to allow us to build the ultimate Merlin-powered Spitty.

Here's the cockpit detail on the inside of those fuselage halves. Everything is on a par with the contents of the Mk IX and Mk VIII kits. For once, the term "museum-quality" isn't being abused!

My lighting makes the transparencies hard to see but you get the idea, right? That canopy has a slight bulge to it, just like the production canopy on the real thing. There's a tiny, almost invisible seam to contend with on the outside of the canopy in consequence, but a variation of that seam is on the canopies on the other two Tamiya Spits as well; it takes about ten minutes to polish it out. It's a small price to pay for that sort of out-of-the-box accuracy.

And finally, here are the parts required to update the gun bay covers, cannon, and landing gear legs. Tamiya didn't miss anything as near as we can tell---their "Spitfire" family just gets better from kit to kit!

We mentioned it before, I think, but the addition of the parts required to make a bubble-canopied Spitfire, plus the parts design of everything else, should enable Tamiya (if we're lucky) or the aftermarket industry to offer up virtually every Merlin-engined Spit ever made from the Mk Vb onwards. Your editor has never been all that much of a Spitfire fan but these kits define the current state of the art and are an absolute joy to build. I'm looking forward to the next member of this growing family (and praying it's a Mk Vc!).

The Relief Tube

First, a comment or two from Rick Morgan regarding the "Stoof":

The STOOF: The ultimate “pokata-pokata” machine. Two T-28s flying formation with a Dempsey Dumpster (or garbage truck, depending on the source). When I was a Midshipman at Corpus for training in 1976 I had a Marine Captain yelling at us, trying to impress upon us what junk the Navy flew- he used the TS-2As on the ramp there as evidence. Neat aircraft- I have about 1.0 hours in them.

There were only four TF-1Qs modified (EC-1A post 1962); In effect these birds were fore-runners to FEWSG, providing fleet EW training from the beach. Two went to each coast. VAW/VAAW/VAQ-33 had 136785, 136788.  The AirPac birds (136783, 136787) started at VAAW-35 (code VV), the North Island based, AD-flying, night attack outfit, moved to VAW-11 (code RR ) , which flew WFs, AD-5Ws and AD-5Qs out of North island.  In 1960 they moved to Alameda-based VAW-13 (VR) which kept them in service into the late ‘60s.  VA-122 picked up 136787 late it its life and, I suspect, used it as a hack and not for its EW abilities (something I’m trying to get confirmation on).  All four were converted back to standard C-1 configuration by the early 1970s;  136787 was lost in a mishap as a COD at Souda Bay Crete in April 1982.  Rick

Thanks as always, Rick and, while we're on the subject, reader Dave Southam is working with the CollectAire kit of the S2F and has a question for us:

I’ve been following your site for a couple of months now and I really like the depth you go to in covering a specific aircraft. I have grown tired of the model sites where the discussion reverts to Bf-109s within three lines.

Do you have any info on the Roll Controls of the Stoof? I have put off building the Collectaire Willy Fudd for lack of a clear direction regarding flight controls.  Cheers, Dave

Thanks for the kind words, Dave. As for roll control on the S-2, I don't have the answer! Rick/Tommy/Doug, do either of you have any insight regarding the topic? (Or anyone else, for that matter. The address is replicainscale@yahoo.com if you can help out or have any "Stoof" photos or information you'd like to share with us.)

Reader and long-time friend John Kerr ("Maddog" to those who know him) never ceases to amaze when it comes to digging things up. He's been doing it for years, first with slides and prints and now, in this Age of Electronic Miracles, on the internet. He recently sent a link to an artist's site that you might enjoy---it's military aviation and it's seriously neat. If you're interested in such things check out http://www.flygirlpainter.com/ . She's doing some spectacular work on Navy aircraft, among other things.

Jim Sullivan sent along a site as well. This one seems to be a virtual Home for Wayward Reciprocating Transports and is well worth a look. The IP address is htp://www.michaelprophet.com/News_articles/Skytrucks.html . There's some pretty cool Old Iron in there. Thanks Jim!

And finally, I've been doing another friend a disservice, even though it was entirely unintentional. Tommy Thomason runs at least two blog sites that I'm aware of, and I'd messed up the link to one of them in our "Links" section (the site is "Tailhook Topics"), which resulted in one of those Screen-of-Death "you can't get there from here" pages. That's since been fixed, and apologies both to Tommy and to any of you who tried to get to his site from that link!

That's about it for this week. Be good to your neighbor and we'll meet again soon.
phil

Not All Stoofs Chased Submarines, The Spit is Done, A Little More From Post-War Japan, and A Modeler's Bomb Load

Before We Get Started

Let's say hi to all the new folks who've started following Replica. Welcome aboard, everybody; we hope you enjoy what we're doing here and will continue to visit us. One thing you might want to note (and I know at least a few folks are wondering because I get e-mails saying they do): Apparently a lot, maybe even most, of the other blogs out there allow comments through the "comments" part of their blog's software. As previously mentioned (but a long time ago) we've never done that; guess we're just old-fashioned! Still, the comments and corrections are very important to us, which is why we encourage you to write directly to replicainscale@yahoo.com rather than using the "post a comment feature". We respond to everything except spam, and generally publish the comments in The Relief Tube, so we're definitely paying attention to what you have to say. We don't give out addresses or names, or anything like that, in case you were wondering/worrying about it. It's just easier, us being old-fashioned and all, to deal with things directly. And with that out of the way, let's move right on to, you guessed it; more "Stoofs"!

A Pretty Useful Little Airplane

We generally think of the S2F as a submarine chaser, even though we all know there were dedicated versions built specifically for COD and early warning duties. In today's thrilling installment of our S2F series we're going to look at "Stoofs" that served in roles that might best be categorized as None of the Above.

If the active-duty Navy flies a particular type of airplane, it's a fair bet that the Reserves will operate the type as well. Here's a prime example of that; an S2F-2 from NAS Alameda. Somehow the "Stoof" just doesn't look right in day-glo, does it?  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

And here's a view of 133261, another S2F-2 from Alameda. She's well-used but equally well-maintained, a hallmark of the Reserves. Airplanes rarely get as messy as some modelers like to portray them---less is more when you're weathering, ya'll!  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

Here's something you don't see every day. This "Stoof" is assigned to VA-122, the A-7 Corsair RAG, but she's not an S2F; she's an EC-1A, a rarity in the S-2 community. Comments are encouraged. Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried.

And a pair of EC-1As from VAW-33. This would be an ideal time for Rick Morgan to jump in and provide us with some information on the type and its use in the EW community, since VAW/VAQ-33 is a heritage sort of thing for him. How 'bout it, Rick?  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

The utility squadrons used the "Stoof" too. Here's a fine example of a US-2C serving with VC-1. That airframe has seen better days, but the squadron badge on the nacelle looks pretty nice all the same; I'm particularly interested in the way the Engine Grey faded on that airframe! The utility squadrons were definitely among the unsung operators of the S-2.  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

VC-5 was another operator of the US-2C. Here's 133347 doing what the utility squadrons do best. Of particular interest is the presentation of the BuNo on the mlg door---you just don't see that every day. The Utility "Stoofs" would make into a really colorful model, I think.  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

The US military had quite an infatuation with the Skyhook concept during the 1960s. This photo shows a NATC "Stoof" rigged out for that mission. We're all familiar with the system's operational use on the C-130, and we ran a couple of shots of a similarly-equipped C-123 here a few issues back, but who would've thought you'd ever see the installation on an S-2!  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

And the Skyhook in action---that must have been quite a ride! The test subject (the very brave test subject) is in process of being winched into the hatch that lives in the space formerly occupied by the ventral radome. What a way to make a living, huh?  Sure wish we had a closeup of the art on the side of that nacelle!  Tailhook Association via Doug Siegfried

When next we meet we'll take a look at some S2F photos that have thus-far escaped classification in our ongoing essay. Stay tuned!

Another Big Airplane, or Where Am I Going to Put These Things When They're Done?

Which is a non-too-clever way of saying that the 1/32nd scale Tamiya Spitfire Mk VIII project is complete. The model is a snap to build and I think it looks pretty good when it's finished. Anybody want to see some pictures?

Let's start with a view of the entire model. We've all seen/read/been-exposed-to the hype on all the internet modeling sites, but for once a model so-described actually deserves all those accolades, and more. So far we've seen a Mk IXc, a Mk VIII, and a Mk XVI off the basic molds, and the way Tamiya's designed the kit would make it a relatively simple thing to make the rest of the Merlin-engined family from the Mk V onward. We (that's Journalese for "me") weren't too crazy about the kit decals, but everything else is pretty darned good, kit photo-etch included. Oh yeah, that blivet off the port wing is one of the two optional aux tanks provided by the kit; the other one is on the model. You'll have quite a few extra parts hanging around when you're done with this one!

Here's the other side, and you still get to see that extra tank as a bonus! It (the tank) is jacked up like that because of the mounting pins---it's a simple matter to remove the 30-gallon tank that's on the airplane right now and replace it with the bigger one(45-gal? 60?) shown, or remove it entirely. The Mk VIII was a relatively late addition to the RAAF's fighter force; the model represents A58-526 of 79 Sqdn as seen at Morotai during 1945. By that time the squadron was performing long-range mud moving for the Allies and the aux tanks were a necessity for most missions. The airplane is weathered, but not as heavily as it could be except for the exhaust stains which are extremely prominent in the surviving photos of UP-L.  The kit includes those ubiquitous metal hinges to allow the control surfaces to deflect but I don't like that sort of thing and locked the ailerons, elevators, and rudder in place. I also closed up the cowling---that beautifully-done Merlin 61 is in there but I didn't care for the fit of the cowling pieces, magnets or no magnets, and locked down the cowling too. You pays your money, you takes your choice...

The width of those white ID stripes on the leading edge of the wings seemed to vary a lot from airplane to airplane; those on 526 were relatively narrow and were done with a thinly-sprayed dirty white, which let quite a bit of the underlying camouflage show through. The same technique was used on the spinner, while the prop blades were painted with a faded flat black. (The real props were "plastic" on this airplane, so there's no metal showing through this time, just a highly-weathered finish!) Those exhaust stacks are separate, all twelve of them, so you'll need to be careful with their alignment and no; you can't ask me how I know that! In one of the model's rare failings, Tamiya provides a port for the gun camera at the base of the starboard wing root, but there's nothing in there. I added a camera from plastic tube, but it sticks out a little further than it should because I decided to do it after the wing was buttoned up; that really should have been done while everything was in pieces---live and learn! The sharp-eyed among you will note the complete lack of an antenna wire on the model; the Mk VIII retained the mast but didn't use an external aerial for the radio.

The lighting's a little goofy here, but I wanted to show you that aux tank and the bomb racks and bombs, all of which are included with the kit. Given 79 Sqdn's mission at the time the bombs make an excellent addition to the model, and they're detailed enough that all you need to add are the arming wires! One thing about those bombs, though; Tamiya provides both nose and tail fuses in photoetch and tells you to use both, but it would be relatively rare to find both of those fuses on a weapon at the same time. It's far more likely that you'd find either the nose fuse in place or the one at the back, but the type of fusing would have been entirely dependent upon the mission being flown. I opted for the nose fuses because they're easily seen and were probably the ones most often used. They add to the model, don't they?

This shot shows us the fuse again, and also the nose art, which came from the excellent decal sheet found in Kagero's "Top Colors 18",  Supermarine Spitfire Mk VIII  , Lublin, 2010. Those decals performed flawlessly and were among the best I've ever used, the set providing the nose art, fuselage codes, and serial numbers shown here as well as markings for an additional ten or so Australian Mk VIIIs. You can see the arming wire on the bomb to advantage in this photo, as well as the photo-etched propeller for arming the bomb's fuse. That bomb rack is a thing of beauty too, easy to assemble and absolutely fool-proof, always a Good Thing where I'm involved! Those wing roundels are from the 1/32nd scale Victory Productions sheet and worked a whole lot better than the kit decals did (stiff as a board, they were!). Fin flashes, and that little white stickie on the front of the aux tank, came from the kit but everything else was sourced from aftermarket. I usually blame myself when decals don't work, but the kit decals were really special. Fortunately, there's a fair aftermarket for Mk VIII stickies these days...

This photo gives us a better idea of the actual colors on the model, and shows off a little bit of the cockpit to boot. The kit's cockpit is excellent as-is, but Eduard's cockpit set for this model helps things more than you would imagine and I definitely recommend using one on your model. (Conversely, the kit's Sutton harness works just fine; no point buying more aftermarket for that area and Eduard doesn't provide a harness with their interior set---go figure!) All the paint was Testor ModelMaster enamel, with weathering done with pastels or a combination of airbrushing and pastels, that last technique being used for the exhaust stains. Note that there's no lettering inside the cockpit door of this airplane; some Australian Spitfires had it there, but a whole bunch don't, so I left it off. You might also want to be aware that the crowbar molded inside that door isn't usually red on real wartime airplanes---that's an affectation of  the contemporary Warbird scene and modelers who want a little extra color in the cockpit. The crowbar was generally grey-green on wartime Spitties.

It's deja-vu all over again, as Yogi Berra used to say! The kit could actually stand a little more in the way of detailing, and I really really really wish Tamiya would stop using those gimmicky rubber tires on their premium kits, but this thing sure looks like a Spitfire when it's done. Total build time was about two weeks, but I didn't superdetail anything---that particular activity would have extended the time it took to finish the kit by a considerable margin. My personal preference is to inactivate all the working features, but that's just me. This is easily the best kit I've worked with during the past couple of years, and it's raised the bar substantially for models in this scale.

And that's it for the Spit. (That sounds odd, doesn't it?) You really have to wonder what Tamiya's going to do next. It'll be tough to top this one!

A Few More From Long Ago and Far Away

It's no secret that I've got a thing for the post-War US Air Force in the Far East. The whole concept is pretty neat, I think, particularly since some of those airplanes carried their wartime markings into the late 1940s. Dave Menard has provided a few more shots for us to drool over; let's take a look!

The 3rd BW (previously 3rd Attack) got A-26s late in the war, and took them to Japan when they were assigned occupation duty. These A-26s are carrying pre-USAF stars and bars, which places them at either Atsugi, Yokota, or Johnson, but I have no idea where this photo was taken (or when). The aircraft are all carrying either names or nose art, but are too distant from the camera to make out what any of it might be. So near and yet so far...  Menard Collection

What a neat lineup of Invaders! The OD over grey scheme lasted quite a while after war's end, both in the Far East and in Europe. Check out the noses on those B-model A-26s; both 6-gun and 8-gun variations are depicted in this photo; take your pick! Anybody got a time machine?  Menard Collection

Look at the Big, Black Airplane ya'll! Northrop's P-61 stayed in the Far East for several years both as a night fighter and, in guise of its cousin, the F-15 Reporter, in the photo recon role. By the time of the Korean Unpleasantness they'd been replaced by F-82s, probably a Good Thing for all concerned. It's possible, although I'm not at all certain, that this bird is from the 547th FS; if any of our readers can clarify that point I'd be grateful. The address is, as always, replicainscale@yahoo.com .  Menard Collection

They're most likely P-51Ds, and they're in Japan post-1947. Past that, I just don't know, but it's a neat ramp all the same. The Mustang nearest the camera appears to have a white stripe under the wing, and check out that OD and grey C-46 at the end of the line. Menard Collection

44-73812 is a P-51D-25-NA, and she's on the ramp somewhere in Japan. The tail striping on the Mustang at far right suggests the 35th FW, but I'm not at all certain of that. Still, 812 is carrying a name ("Dee") on the nose and is well worth modeling.  Menard Collection

And finally, some Mustangs from the 35th, probably at Yokota post-1947. 44-73641 is another P-51D-25 and, I think, is featured on a couple of old MicroScale decal sheets. "Tornado" is painted on her nose, and that red cheat line, along with the pre-War AAF rudder stripes, really sets her apart. The Mustang to her right wears command stripes and we can make out part of a name ("Mother..."). If only the photographer had been shooting from a slightly different angle that day!  Menard Collection

We're starting to go somewhere with our post-War 5th AF project, I think. If any of you have anything else from that era (I'm particularly looking for 475th FG P-38s in Korea post-War) please let me know. We'd love to run them! As always, the address is replicainscale@yahoo.com .

I Suppose You Could Do It, But Why Would You Want To?

Republic's F-105 was designed and built as a tactical strike fighter, and was configured from the very beginning to carry an internal bomb load. Changing times and a rapidly evolving world stage called for a change of plans, and the type spent most of its days hauling externally-mounted iron bombs to targets in Southeast Asia instead of streaking across Eastern Europe at the speed of light. Somewhere in the evolution Republic needed to figure out what sort of bomb load the Thunderchief was capable of carrying...

Boy, is that a bunch of bombs or what? 61-0095 was built as an F-105D-15-RE and is seen here during armament tests, most likely at Eglin, in the early 60s. That load of Mk 82s looks really impressive, but carrying that many bombs would've given the airplane a totally useless radius of action. 0095 saw duty with the 421st TFS in SEA and was lost on 24 March, 1966, during a strike up North.   Republic B-11019

An early bird; 58-1173 was an F-105D-5-RE and is shown here carrying a full load of M117s en route to the range. Once again, radius of action would have been a major issue with this bomb load---she would've made quite an impression, but she wouldn't have gotten very far from home. 1173 was one of the lucky "Thuds", surviving the war to be surplused out to MASDC in 1981. A few survived...   Republic B-11353

The Relief Tube

It's a Slow Day correction-wise, but we've got a kudo from a reader that I'd like to share:

Hi Phillip,
I was an avid modeler....a long, long time ago. I had all the Replica in Scales and most of the Aerophille, and found them to be the BEST reference information available....I ebayed them 5 years ago and with them most of my model airplane collection....built & unbuilt. I have donated most of my built models to a local CAP Hq. My IPMS # was 1273. Anyway I still do research on the 7th & 40th squadrons whenever I get an itch to read about airplanes. I am mostly about hot rods now.... http://wherewereyouin62.blogspot.com/  I am so glad I found your blog....it will provide me with much reading and oggeling of pictures....chuck shotwell

Thanks Chuck, and please feel free to share any photography you might come up with on the 7th and 40th! Meanwhile, do any of our readers enjoy hot rods? If so, please check out the blog site Chuck linked to above; there's some really neat stuff there if you happen to be a gearhead. (I just finished restoring an old 1/25th scale '32 Ford roadster for Jenny's bookshelf, so Chuck's site was a real treat for me!)

While we're in that vein, I don't know how many of you go to the "Links" part of this site. There wasn't one for a really long time, you know, because I was far too computer-challenged to figure out the incredibly simple and intuitive software that allowed me to add such things to Replica. You might want to try them out if you haven't before; there are some neat sites out there and I think you'll enjoy them.

Meanwhile, that's what I know for this week. Be good to your neighbor and we'll meet again soon.
phil