Starfighter Decals 1/72 Boeing P-12E/F4B-3 Conversion
By Matt Bittner
Some people might not know that the Boeing F4B is the same aircraft as the United States Army Air Corp (USAAC) P-12. Sure, there were differences, but not many were exterior. It's also a little known fact that while the Matchbox P-12E is a decent kit in its own right, the Monogram has more finesse. So turning a Monogram F4B into a P-12E some people would rather do than build the Matchbox kit.
|
This conversion set from Starfighter Decals allows that conversion. It contains the forward part of the fin/rudder (the "fin", or vertical stabilizer) and two turtle decks, or roll over bars. The smaller one is for the F4B-3 and P-12E, while the larger of the two is meant for the P-12E that had the "Panama Kit" rollover bar.
For both conversions, it's always best to work from photographs. There were some F4B-3s that received the F4B-4 rollover bar, but kept the F4B-3 vertical stabilizer. Same with the P-12E. You'll need to model from photographs to be sure which rollover bar you'll need.
|
Another additional step to the P-12E conversion is a little more "advanced". The Monogram 1/72 F4B is just that - a US Navy F4B. That means it was outfitted with floatation bags within the undersurface of the top wing. Since the P-12 was USAAC and not USN, it never flew with these floatation bags so they must be removed. However, you'll have to figure out how to recreate the ribs-and-fabric surrounding the molded-on, flat, floatation bags. This is on advantage to the Matchbox P-12E kit.
All-in-all, though, this is a nice, and relatively easy conversion to back-date the Monogram 1/72 F4B-4. Couple it with Starfighter's F4B cockpit and photoetch rigging, and you'll have an awesome model of the Boeing F4B-4 (or P-12E). In addition, to be released later will be a set of decals for F4B-3s.
Thank you to Starfighter Decals for the review conversion set.