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As Boeing began to produce larger aircraft, it became obvious the company might cease fighter designs. The Navy found it useful to look at Curtiss again. The Army had equipped squadrons with Curtiss’ outstanding Hawk P1, which the Navy evaluated as the F6C-1. Eventually the Navy decided to exclusively use radial engines, which led to the F7C series and later, the F11C series of aircraft. Curtiss converted the F11C into the BFC series of outstanding fighter-bombers.
The ultimate development of this series of Curtiss Hawks is the Hawk III, an export version of the BF2C-1. An unusual side effect of using a wooden wing structure for the Hawk III rather than the metal structure it replaced was the elimination of a resonant vibration, which rendered the Navy’s version unstable at higher speeds. This made the Hawk III a better aircraft, and an all-around good performer.
Curtiss continued to produce their Hawk line of fighters, the Hawk III would lead to the Hawk 75/P-36 and later, the famous P-40 series of fighters. This is an influential series of fighters, and shows the typical Curtiss attention to ruggedness, dependability and maneuverability.
One of the first items of note you’ll find upon opening the box is the resin engine. The 700hp Wright-Cyclone R-1820-04 is cast with separate gearbox, cylinders and exhaust pipes. One spare cylinder has been included, very considerate of CA. Not so considerate is the lack of inscribed labels for the 9 exhaust pipes. I just had to take educated guesses for each one. I also had a picture of the engine in Jane’s Aircraft of WWII book, which helps a lot. The spinner is also cast in resin. You’ll also notice suitably subdued fabric and framing details on the wings and fuselage.
I started by preparing the major fuselage and wing components. The upper wing assembly is straightforward, and fit together pretty well. I noticed slight differences between upper and lower halves, but these were merely sanded out. No filler was needed.
The exhaust pipes are even more difficult. They extend just past the cowling, and it is very hard to figure out which tube corresponds to each number. Remember, the pipes bend to either side of the fuselage, away from the windscreen and centerline.
I painted the engine cylinders Testors Model Master (TMM) Aluminum and the gearbox is painted Testors Acryl (TA) Gunship Grey. The assembly was weathered with GS smoke, which is more grey than Tamiya’s smoke. I lightly dry-brushed the engine with appropriate shades to complete the engine. It’s a nice looking rendition, I think. The cowl and engine are not attached to the model until after painting.
To portray the training version of the Hawk III delete the armament, including the fuselage bulges, parts 25 and 26. The Chinese Hawks also had a different landing gear, which will require you cut a notch out of the fuselage just forward of the tailfin.
I used Methyl Ethyl Ketone (in a well-ventilated area) applied with a capillary tube to glue the fuselage halves together, followed by the ventral fillets. The fit was fairly good, with a step gap atop the fuselage forward of the cockpit and a step between the two ventral fillets, which I didn’t catch in dryfitting, or I would have inserted styrene shims. The engine firewall is the last fuselage part to be attached.
I glued the lower wings in place starting with superglue, then applying MEK. Small gaps needed filling, barely notable on one wing. At this point, I attempted to do a bit of dryfitting for the N-struts and became a little confused, as it seemed the interior cabane struts didn’t quite fit. I decided, after looking at photographs, that the N-struts were probably correct, and attached them to the lower wings with superglue. While the glue was still pliable, I attached the upper wing to the indicated attachment points. This meant the
The tailplanes do not benefit from any guiding pins, so be careful while attaching them. Their support struts run from the edge of the trimmed fuselage to mid-plane. The elevator actuating struts in the kit are a bit short, and I broke one while sanding it, so I had to replace them with a bit of rod.
The tail wheel is a white metal part which, must be wedged in place. Drilling a hole
The pictures I have of Chinese trainers lack drop tanks. They also lack the circular venturi generator, which allowed drop tanks to be carried. That’s unfortunate, because it is an interesting feature.
I primed the model with GS Flat white, corrected various problems, re-primed and coated the model with GS Olive Drab Green. I then painted the upper surfaces with Aeromaster’s Faded Olive Drab to simulate sun bleaching. This makes a good combination, which I’ve used in the past to differentiate panel lines and control surfaces. The tires are painted Polyscale Grimy Black, an effective rubber color.
I glued the propeller blades on the resin spinner, painted the tips GS Gloss Yellow 4, masked the tips and painted the entire assembly GS Gloss Black (my favorite black) . After a spray of GS Flat Clear I handbrushed the spinner TMM Aluminum and overcoated the spinner with GS Smoke Grey. This was attached later.
Decals were applied at this time. The 88s are from an Aeromaster F7 Tigercat Nightfighter sheet, they are standard 60 degree numbers. I remove all adhesive from decals in water, and apply them over a drop of the diluted Future mix on the model. After pressing the decal in place and making sure
Drybrushing and pastels were used for weathering, including a healthy dose of browns to simulate the dust from gravel taxiways.
For the first time I tried a method recommended by a friend, music wire. I bought two sections of K&S wire, the smallest diameter available. It looks about right for a guitar E-string, which can also be used if stretched straight. The K&S wire is cheap enough and straight. I simply measured the required lengths, cut the wires and installed them with superglue. The Hawks had double parallel riggings on the wings, with weight rods to prevent flutter. I placed two precut wires on a length of 3M’s Post-It Note tape and glued the weight 1 inch from one end. This small weight kept the pieces relatively well aligned, though I should have left a thin section of tape
I must say I am very satisfied with the wire method and have thanked my friend. In fact, I may dust off some biplane kits and add some WW1 kits to my hangar. The entire process of rigging the Hawk took me about 3 hours, far less time than monofilament line or stretched sprue would have taken.
The last stages of the Hawk assembly involve installing the engine, cowl and propeller. The cowl fits tightly over the engine, without glue.
I also made a base to show off the aircraft. This is a sheet of Plastruct Cobblestone coated with Minwax Cherry woodstain. Once dry, I sanded the surface with 600 grit black sandpaper to allow the base color show through. I then sprayed it with TMM Dullcoat Lacquer and adorned it with diluted ink and Tamiya Clear Smoke oil stains. This will be a generic gravel display stand for shows. No radial engine aircraft is complete without oil stains, after all.
This is definitely not a kit for beginners. However, if you are familiar with Classic Airframes’ kits or other limited-run manufacturers and are undaunted by biplanes, you will definitely like this kit. It is an important member of the Curtiss Hawk lineage, a direct ancestor of the Hawk 75/ P36 series, and grandfather of the P-40 Warhawk series. It is also eye-catching in no small part with its landing gear.
Again, I find myself criticizing the instructions in this kit. Though definitely better than some Eastern European limited-run kit instructions, I feel Classic Airframes
As Boeing began to produce larger aircraft, it became obvious the company might cease fighter designs. The Navy found it useful to look at Curtiss again. The Army had equipped squadrons with Curtiss’ outstanding Hawk P1, which the Navy evaluated as the F6C-1. Eventually the Navy decided to exclusively use radial engines, which led to the F7C series and later, the F11C series of aircraft. Curtiss converted the F11C into the BFC series of outstanding fighter-bombers.
The ultimate development of this series of Curtiss Hawks is the Hawk III, an export version of the BF2C-1. An unusual side effect of using a wooden wing structure for the Hawk III rather than the metal structure it replaced was the elimination of a resonant vibration, which rendered the Navy’s version unstable at higher speeds. This made the Hawk III a better aircraft, and an all-around good performer.
Curtiss continued to produce their Hawk line of fighters, the Hawk III would lead to the Hawk 75/P-36 and later, the famous P-40 series of fighters. This is an influential series of fighters, and shows the typical Curtiss attention to ruggedness, dependability and maneuverability.
One of the first items of note you’ll find upon opening the box is the resin engine. The 700hp Wright-Cyclone R-1820-04 is cast with separate gearbox, cylinders and exhaust pipes. One spare cylinder has been included, very considerate of CA. Not so considerate is the lack of inscribed labels for the 9 exhaust pipes. I just had to take educated guesses for each one. I also had a picture of the engine in Jane’s Aircraft of WWII book, which helps a lot. The spinner is also cast in resin. You’ll also notice suitably subdued fabric and framing details on the wings and fuselage.
I started by preparing the major fuselage and wing components. The upper wing assembly is straightforward, and fit together pretty well. I noticed slight differences between upper and lower halves, but these were merely sanded out. No filler was needed.
The exhaust pipes are even more difficult. They extend just past the cowling, and it is very hard to figure out which tube corresponds to each number. Remember, the pipes bend to either side of the fuselage, away from the windscreen and centerline.
I painted the engine cylinders Testors Model Master (TMM) Aluminum and the gearbox is painted Testors Acryl (TA) Gunship Grey. The assembly was weathered with GS smoke, which is more grey than Tamiya’s smoke. I lightly dry-brushed the engine with appropriate shades to complete the engine. It’s a nice looking rendition, I think. The cowl and engine are not attached to the model until after painting.
To portray the training version of the Hawk III delete the armament, including the fuselage bulges, parts 25 and 26. The Chinese Hawks also had a different landing gear, which will require you cut a notch out of the fuselage just forward of the tailfin.
I used Methyl Ethyl Ketone (in a well-ventilated area) applied with a capillary tube to glue the fuselage halves together, followed by the ventral fillets. The fit was fairly good, with a step gap atop the fuselage forward of the cockpit and a step between the two ventral fillets, which I didn’t catch in dryfitting, or I would have inserted styrene shims. The engine firewall is the last fuselage part to be attached.
I glued the lower wings in place starting with superglue, then applying MEK. Small gaps needed filling, barely notable on one wing. At this point, I attempted to do a bit of dryfitting for the N-struts and became a little confused, as it seemed the interior cabane struts didn’t quite fit. I decided, after looking at photographs, that the N-struts were probably correct, and attached them to the lower wings with superglue. While the glue was still pliable, I attached the upper wing to the indicated attachment points. This meant the
The tailplanes do not benefit from any guiding pins, so be careful while attaching them. Their support struts run from the edge of the trimmed fuselage to mid-plane. The elevator actuating struts in the kit are a bit short, and I broke one while sanding it, so I had to replace them with a bit of rod.
The tail wheel is a white metal part which, must be wedged in place. Drilling a hole
The pictures I have of Chinese trainers lack drop tanks. They also lack the circular venturi generator, which allowed drop tanks to be carried. That’s unfortunate, because it is an interesting feature.
I primed the model with GS Flat white, corrected various problems, re-primed and coated the model with GS Olive Drab Green. I then painted the upper surfaces with Aeromaster’s Faded Olive Drab to simulate sun bleaching. This makes a good combination, which I’ve used in the past to differentiate panel lines and control surfaces. The tires are painted Polyscale Grimy Black, an effective rubber color.
I glued the propeller blades on the resin spinner, painted the tips GS Gloss Yellow 4, masked the tips and painted the entire assembly GS Gloss Black (my favorite black) . After a spray of GS Flat Clear I handbrushed the spinner TMM Aluminum and overcoated the spinner with GS Smoke Grey. This was attached later.
Decals were applied at this time. The 88s are from an Aeromaster F7 Tigercat Nightfighter sheet, they are standard 60 degree numbers. I remove all adhesive from decals in water, and apply them over a drop of the diluted Future mix on the model. After pressing the decal in place and making sure
Drybrushing and pastels were used for weathering, including a healthy dose of browns to simulate the dust from gravel taxiways.
For the first time I tried a method recommended by a friend, music wire. I bought two sections of K&S wire, the smallest diameter available. It looks about right for a guitar E-string, which can also be used if stretched straight. The K&S wire is cheap enough and straight. I simply measured the required lengths, cut the wires and installed them with superglue. The Hawks had double parallel riggings on the wings, with weight rods to prevent flutter. I placed two precut wires on a length of 3M’s Post-It Note tape and glued the weight 1 inch from one end. This small weight kept the pieces relatively well aligned, though I should have left a thin section of tape
I must say I am very satisfied with the wire method and have thanked my friend. In fact, I may dust off some biplane kits and add some WW1 kits to my hangar. The entire process of rigging the Hawk took me about 3 hours, far less time than monofilament line or stretched sprue would have taken.
The last stages of the Hawk assembly involve installing the engine, cowl and propeller. The cowl fits tightly over the engine, without glue.
I also made a base to show off the aircraft. This is a sheet of Plastruct Cobblestone coated with Minwax Cherry woodstain. Once dry, I sanded the surface with 600 grit black sandpaper to allow the base color show through. I then sprayed it with TMM Dullcoat Lacquer and adorned it with diluted ink and Tamiya Clear Smoke oil stains. This will be a generic gravel display stand for shows. No radial engine aircraft is complete without oil stains, after all.
This is definitely not a kit for beginners. However, if you are familiar with Classic Airframes’ kits or other limited-run manufacturers and are undaunted by biplanes, you will definitely like this kit. It is an important member of the Curtiss Hawk lineage, a direct ancestor of the Hawk 75/ P36 series, and grandfather of the P-40 Warhawk series. It is also eye-catching in no small part with its landing gear.
Again, I find myself criticizing the instructions in this kit. Though definitely better than some Eastern European limited-run kit instructions, I feel Classic Airframes
