Kitty Hawk Texan

[ScottsGT]

So far this is all I’ve got to show!  I did hit the cockpit build hard yesterday and I’ll follow up with pics a little later. 

[ScottsGT]

Here’s  where I’m at.  Cockpit cage all painted and Quinta Studio interior being applied.  This build has two firsts for me.

My first Kitty Hawk and my first Quinta Studio aftermarket.  So far, I like both.    I have read in the past about how soft the plastic is with the KH kits.  I have to agree.  But at least it’s not brittle!  All the detail seems great, no excessive flash needing to be cleaned up and parts are fitting pretty good.   I did have to open the pin alignment holes on the radial halves and it only fits one way!  Got to make sure the two parts are clocked correctly. 
 

[Peterpools]

Scott

Nice start and looking good. I am becoming a Quinta Studio Fan Boy - just awesome stuff.

 

[ScottsGT]

Well, done for the day.  The Quinta cockpit kit requires a modification of the kit parts.  Not sure why? Was KH wrong with their design? 

That’s stock with the detail removed.  Below is the mod 

 

All the fiddly parts minus the second fire extinguisher I found after I thought I was done. 

I played around with assembling the cage.  It’s like putting together a Jinga game starting at the top.  Well, weekend starts as soon as momma walks in the door and I have already been ordered to open the wine bottle and get ready to go for a float in the lake.  Won’t be back at the bench probably until Wednesday when she goes back to work since we have company coming. 

[Peterpools]

Scott

I would be on the Quinta side of the fence being correct as their cockpit sets seem to be right on the money. 

Front office details look mighty good.

 

[Martinnfb]

https://www.cybermodeler.com/aircraft/t-6/t-6_pit.shtml

[HubertB]

I have written it many times already, but, OOB, KH’s Texan is good only to represent « Deb », the warbird on the box cover.

« Deb » itself, like so many warbirds is hodgepodge of versions, and not representative, or only vaguely, of any specific T-6 version. 
The KH kit is not bad,  although with some inaccuracies, that most people can live with. The only glaring one is the wheelbase, too narrow by a few mm, but that is easy to correct by removing the MLG gluing recess in the wings, and the moving them outboard.

Keep going, Scott 

Hubert

[ScottsGT]

Yea Hubert, I’ve read about the hodgepodge issue.  But like you mentioned, I one that can easily live with it.  I did finally find the write up Mike West did on moving the LG outward and it shall be done! 
 

I’m seriously thinking my second kit will be covered in aluminum foil  

[KevinM]

She's looking thus far Scott and I am with Peter Quinta is the ....best game in town methinks.

[JohnB]

I too am a fan of the Quinta stuff. Looks great, easy to use!

[ScottsGT]

Got some bench time in today.  Well, almost all day.  🙃

 

And the gear location correction!

 

 

[ScottsGT]

And from the “You ain’t gonna believe this ****” files…

two female locate pins. Well, pin holes. 

I made one out of plastic stock.

[Peterpools]

Scott, nice progress on the 'office area and cockpit cage' - the kit details do look good and nicely detailed. Yup, surely a new way of creating locating pins. 

 

[DocRob]

Texan interior is looking great Scott. I'm buckled in for your WIP, as I have one of these in stash along with an Eduard big set. I will build mine as a Portuguese bird with decals from Zotz. Good to learn of the merits and shortcomings of the kit through your build.

Cheers Rob 

[Clunkmeister]

Hey Scott, this is looking GREAT!    I’ve built numerous KH kits, including a couple T-6s as well, and the biggest thing to watch is part numbering.  Often times the left and right sides will be reversed. Certainly not unique to KH (Dragon Bf-110?), but just pay attention.

The locator pins on KH are ALWAYS suspect, so unless you know 100% for sure, Ignore them.

I found it was easiest to assemble the cockpit framing before painting, but you nailed it!

Cowls on these can be a mumbler’s delight. 🤯😬🤬. Go slow. There is ALOT of questionable engineering around their radial engine mounts and the cowls. 
 

As far as the T-6 itself goes, they’re like early Mustangs and 57 Chevys: they’re so popular and there are so many out there, and many more being rebuilt almost daily from literal piles of junkyard scrap on the shop floor, that finding an actual correct original is almost impossible, and it pretty much takes a pedigree to prove it’s original.  I’d say 90% of flying T-6s out there have been rebuilt at least once in their lives, so pretty much anything goes on these.  References are your friend if you are looking for authenticity to a specific prototype. 

[HubertB]

25 minutes ago, Clunkmeister said:

Hey Scott, this is looking GREAT!    I’ve built numerous KH kits, including a couple T-6s as well, and the biggest thing to watch is part numbering.  Often times the left and right sides will be reversed. Certainly not unique to KH (Dragon Bf-110?), but just pay attention.

The locator pins on KH are ALWAYS suspect, so unless you know 100% for sure, Ignore them.

I found it was easiest to assemble the cockpit framing before painting, but you nailed it!

Cowls on these can be a mumbler’s delight. 🤯😬🤬. Go slow. There is ALOT of questionable engineering around their radial engine mounts and the cowls. 
 

As far as the T-6 itself goes, they’re like early Mustangs and 57 Chevys: they’re so popular and there are so many out there, and many more being rebuilt almost daily from literally piles of junkyard scrap, that finding an actual correct original is almost impossible, and it pretty much takes a pedigree to prove it’s original.  I’d say 90% of flying T-6s out there have been rebuilt at least once in their lives, so pretty much anything goes on these.  References are your friend if you are looking for authenticity to a specific prototype. 

Actually, all « Gs » were officially rebuilt from earlier marks/airframes … And that was official, not warbird DYI …

Hubert

[ScottsGT]

Yea, about that cowl….

It went together yesterday as well.  And it took almost all day to do it.  If others can design 1 piece cowls like the Trumpeter Corsair, why couldn’t KH?

[Clunkmeister]

14 hours ago, HubertB said:

Actually, all « Gs » were officially rebuilt from earlier marks/airframes … And that was official, not warbird DYI …

Hubert

And then there is the Harvard series built at Noorduyn and then CCF. The late Harvard lVs in particular, are an almost new design in many ways.  P-51 tailwheel, completely modernized interiors, cockpit heating, etc, etc,etc 

[Clunkmeister]

13 hours ago, ScottsGT said:

Yea, about that cowl….

It went together yesterday as well.  And it took almost all day to do it.  If others can design 1 piece cowls like the Trumpeter Corsair, why couldn’t KH?

No kidding. If there ever was a group of kits where the Chinese manufacturer snatched away and tossed away the the greatness built in by the designers and researchers, it is Kitty Hawk.  Their closest to perfection in the props was the T-6 and T-28, but they still got shoved down by the Chinese.

Even Floyd Werner and his team of researchers could only do so much for Kitty Hawk.  Their Sikorsky S-60 series and Little Birds are absolutely the best helicopter kits ever produced by anyone, anywhere, but the overseas production idiots still screwed the instructions and decals. Those Helicopters, Floyd Werner, and Glen Coleman should have secured the future of that company. But instead they just prolonged the inevitable. I mean, a 1/48 UH-1D?  Really?  Sigh…..
 Now, ICM is gonna take the spot that should have been Kitty Hawks. 

[ScottsGT]

Well another Derp moment for me.   I started trying to align the cowl onto the built fuselage and the blocks would not line up with the notches in the back of the cowl.  I was asking myself could KH have gotten this way off? 

Fortunaly for me, I numbered the parts on the back side with a pencil when I removed each one and cleaned it up.  
 

And then I proceeded to build it backwards. 🤪  Yea, I cut new notches and I’m going to have to fudge this one .

 

[ScottsGT]

And here’s progress from the past couple of days.  One thing I did was to go back and read every build on this kit I could find .  I found a few with some bad fitting fuselage parts so I did a dry fit with just the two main cockpit bulkheads before I assembled the cockpit cage  

I got some pretty good alignments with just putting a few touches of the file on the edges of the bulkheads.  Once I got the cockpit cage done, I glued it in place and noticed it is very easy to get it slightly cocked at an angle. Had to soften the glue a little and move it slightly.  I also made the decision to ditch all the engine mount details that are hidden anyway and simply glue the firewall into place after everything dried.  
 

[ScottsGT]

Two areas I had some difficulties with were the top of the fuselage where it sits on the dash panel.  I really had to file the top down and open up the area on the bottom it the top where it meets the dash.   I glued one side down, let it sit overnight and came back the next morning and pulled the other side down using a miniature industrial wood working clamp.  Seems to have done the trick.  Once that was dry, the engine firewall went into place.  That took some work to get it to sit flat.  And to walk around the edge with a file, and had to smooth out the inside of the fuselage opening since there are three glue joints that will fight you if not perfectly smooth. 

 

The other area was the back of the fuselage.  I guess someone wanted to design this with a removable hatch so you could see the equipment behind the cockpit I refused to build in. Unfortunately, that hatch is made slightly too small.  Once again the miniature industrial wood working clamp came in handy.  Glued one side, let it dry overnight. Came back next morning and hit the other side and clamped in place.  A little filler was required.  Maybe more. I’ll know after shooting on some primer. 
EDIT: My next Texan build I’m going to try adding some Evergreen stock to the bottom of this panel to see if it fits better.  Yea, I have another kit in the stash.   

[ScottsGT]

Here’s where I stopped for lunch and to update this thread. 

[DocRob]

Nice progress Scott, it starts to look like a Texan and the kit seems to be decent at least.

Cheers Rob

[Peterpools]

Scott, some mighty nice progress on the Texan and you are handling the KH fit issues one after another, like a hot knife through butter.

Just seems that a majority of manufacturer's run into fit issues when the decision is made to use removable panels - almost never fit. I rarely leave them open and as with the case with the Texan, need to spend lots of time correcting the fit. Why in the world can't they just mold it closed and leave cut lines on the inside for those that want the panels open?