Mike Gawell

So what do you do when the local museum calls, and says they need a couple models for the new blockbuster movie of the summer, and they want YOU to do it? Well after I finished saying yes, and then panicking, I set out to determine what was the best and fastest way to accomplish the mission.

If the movie is Pearl Harbor, and you have already completed 3/5ths of the task, it is not so bad, and that is exactly how it was.

Here I already completed an A6M2 Zero, a D3A Val, and B5N2 Kate, so all I had to do was complete a P-36, and a P-40B.

Fortunately I just happened to have a couple Hobbycraft kits in the closet, so I just KEW I could respond. Little did I know, although I should have since these were the earlier offerings of the kits, and I had read the reviews…

The P-36 kit is a decent enough kit. HC1546 "Pearl Harbor Hawk" is one of about 4 kits under the P-36 banner, and rather successfully captures the various itinerations of the P-36.

The P-36 was originally conceived as a response to a 1934 US Army requirement for a monoplane that could break 200 miles an hour, and would be powered by a 900 hp Wright engine. The prototype flew on 15 May 1935, but lost out to the Seversky P-35. (It DOES make one wonder doesn't it?) As a consolation prize, a contract was awarded for 3 copies to be known as the Y1P-36.

The test results from the pilots were so favorable that in 1937 a production contract was let for a total of 178 P-36 A and C versions in total excluding exports. In the export version a Cyclone engine was substituted and was sold to China, the Netherlands, Thailand, and Argentina. The Hawk 75 export also had fixed undercarriage.

A version with a Twin Wasp engine was sold to the RAF, and to the French (some to the Netherlands)

The P-36 only fought one action for the United States Army, and that was at Pearl Harbor.

The Hobbycraft kit is decently molded in standard gray color, and includes enough features to build either the P-36 A or C version. Decals are included for both the action at Pearl Harbor or a Brazilian copy of the aircraft.

The Directions are simple line drawings with exploded views. The problem I have with their directions are that they usually tell the builder only half the story. Sure you get the options, but the directions do not elaborate upon which model had which feature, and the builder is left on his or her own to determine that via further research. For this model I relied upon the generous assistance of David Aiken for the P-36 type at Pearl, and color verification. I also used Burt Kinzy's P-40 Vol. 1 as a reference for details to be included in the kit.

The building began with the cockpit area of course, and there was little to find in the way of difficulty. I chose to paint my interior in a dull aluminum since there seemed to be little verification of the cockpit colors changing after the initial build. Besides it was nice to do a aircraft in something other than Interior Green/Zinc chromate, etc… the six pieces went together well. And the diagram provides for the correct angle to be achieved. Be careful when installing the instrument panel, and the gunsite. I had a bit of a problem getting mine to fit when mating the fuselage. The body went together without any noticeable hang-ups, and I was rather impressed with the lack of a huge wing root gap. In fact by this point I was even thinking that the company had a rather undeserved reputation for lousy kits.

When I got to the Cowling, the problems started. First the engine was too large to fit with in the cowling, and I ended up sanding and filing the cylinder heads down to make then fit. Then, it was time to install the prop. Much to my chagrin, the shaft was at least a quarter inch too short!!! Back to the references to see what I could do. The problem was that in it's present position it would not fit, and at best, it would bind with the .50 cal MGs on the cowling. Hawagawa to the rescue!!! I took some of the spare O-rings from the Val kit (poetic justice?) and used then to fashion a shim in order to locate the prop out to the correct distance. I was going to open the engine air intake flaps, but all the photos I could find of the P-36 in flight showed it closed, so I left that part off. The tail wheel was another portion that I departed from reality. The included piece is tolerable if you want it to be sitting on the ground, but since I was modeling it in flight, I decided to model it with a fixed tail wheel.

The mail landing gear is again sufficient if you want to do an OOB with gear down. The gear up option is just not possible without some real contortions, and more than a few choice bit of "blue language". In order to accomplish this task I had to perform some surgery on the kit parts. I put pieces B-6 in as the fit in a closed position, then chose to cut pieces B-7/8 to fit and follow the contours of the gear bay. The wheels fit well with in the gear bay, and the depth is sufficient. Pieces B-4/5 were then fit, and placed to most accurately portray the gear in the up position. A bit of putty, and glue completed the look and made then look as it they were supposed to be only two rather than the three pieces the gear doors had become. In order to achieve a perfect fit, I would have had to make my own gear doors, and drill out the access holes on the gear. The struts were all not used, and no need since they were hidden completely in the closed position.

The decals went on well, and snuggled down well responding well to Micro Sol. Again I was surprised after having done Hobby craft kits before that the decals were all but impervious to softening agents.  I chose to model Lt. Harry Brown's P-36 that he used to shoot down 2 B5N2 Kates on december 7th, 1941.   The only "complaint" I would register is that I believe the letters for US ARMY should probably be in insignia blue rather than black, and the tail coding may be black rather than white, but that is debatable. I attached invisible thread for antenna wire running from the wing tips to the tail plane, and kept weathering to a minimum since I suspect that the P-36s were in pretty good care up till the time of the attack. I used a Aeromaster Olive drab 41 over Neutral Gray weathered and faded to simulate the hot Hawaiian sun. All panel lines were preshaded, and then I used Winsor and Newton Oils (raw Umber) and terpenoid to bring out the details with a fine wash that was almost immediately wiped off.. It leaves the aircraft in a used, but maintained look.

So will I build another one? Most likely, I really would like to do a C model in Finnish markings or French Markings at some point, but not until I feel some need for a challenge, and a modeling stress.

Kit and materials provided by my wallet, and giving up a portion of my time in the spring sun.