1/72 Curtiss Xp-36c Prototype

[Brian da Basher]

In late 1937 the Curtiss Aero Co. was working on furthering development of their P-36 Hawk fighter. Numerous designs were considered but only a few made it to the prototype stage. One of them was the aerodynamically enhanced and turbo-supercharged XP-36C. The Curtiss Co. armed the XP-36C prototype with four wing-mounted 20 m.m. cannon and two cowl-mounted .30 caliber machine guns synchronized to fire through the propellor arc. They also added a turbo-supercharger which dramatically increased high altitude performance and speed. The addition of a streamlined propellor and spinner were other improvements. The U.S. Army Air Force ordered a test squadron of XP-36Cs which were delivered in mid-1938. This test squadron served a valuable role in acting as an aggressor force in training crews of the new high-altitude B-17 bomber. The example shown here was part of that test squadron and is shown wearing the markings of Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker's SPAD XIII in celebration of the 20th anniversary of his taking command of the 94th Pursuit Squadron in 1918. This XP-36C spent much of late 1938 and 1939 on the air show circuit where it delighted crowds and served as a useful recruiting tool in the months before W.W. II. The XP-36Cs briefly served as replacements for the decimated U.S. Army pursuit squadrons in Hawaii following the attack on Pearl Harbor and were quietly retired soon afterwards. One was re-painted in Capt. Rickenbacker's markings and is preserved in the U.S. Air Force Museum in Dayton, Ohio.

1st of 6 pics.

Brian da Basher

[Brian da Basher]

The basis for this project was a 1/72 Academy P-40B. Some of you may remember this kit as the one I swiped the engine from for my P-38XL Brute. What can you do with an engine-less P-40? Well, if you love the P-36 as much as I do, the answer is simple.

2nd of 6 pics.

Brian da Basher

[Brian da Basher]

Only slight modifiactions were necessary to turn my engine-less P-40 into a P-36. First I grafted on a radial engine from my spares box(es) left over from an ancient B-10. I had to add the cowl guns which are a very noticeable feature of the P-36. Using my trusty Craftsman™ rotary tool, I was able to scratch the guns and fairings from leftover sprue with no problem. I also swiped the prop and spinner from my Airfix Hurricane as I thought the prop and spinner made this look a little more whiff-like. There was a ventral fairing between the wings left from the P-40 and I was tempted to do some major kit surgery to remove it, but opted instead to leave it be and add a bit of styrene to turn it into a turbo-supercharger intake, which this shot highlights nicely.

3rd of 6 pics.

Brian da Basher

[Jeffry Fontaine]

Brian san,

A very convincing modification of the basic P-40 using that B-10 engine.  Looking good.  

[Brian da Basher]

The entire project was brush-painted by hand using acrylics. Model Masters Steel was used for most of the paint job and the canopy framing. Polly Scale Red was used on the cowling, propellor hub and port wing stripe and tail stripes. Testor's White was also used for the tail stripes and Polly Scale Blue was used for the vertical rudder stripe. Tamiya Gunmetal was used on the engine and guns and Windsor-Newton Mars Black was used for the anti-glare panel, wing walks and tires. The propellor stripes were also hand-painted using the above-mentioned Red, White and Blue.

4th of 6 pics.

Brian da Basher

[Brian da Basher]

I swiped Capt. Rickenbacker's personal markings from the 1/72 Revell SPAD XIII. The star-and-meatball U.S.A.A.F. insignia were from a sheet by Eagle Strike and the tail codes were a mix of decals from my collection of spares. Here's a shot that shows off the wing markings. I used Tamiya tape (thanks, Baz!) to get that nice edge on the wing stripe.

5th of 6 pics.

Brian da Basher

[Brian da Basher]

I had a real blast on this model, even if it took a little longer than I would've liked. Hand-painting those inter-war rudder stripes is good practice for some of my futue builds. Still, I feel the need to do one more project which will hopefully be more of a "slammer" before I tackle my Secret Santa GB project. I've always loved those colorful inter-war U.S. aircraft and the P-36 is one of my all-time favorites. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed bringing it to you.

Last of 6 pics.

Brian da Basher

[cthulhu77]

 Absolutely Beautiful !!!!!  Great build, and worth the time!

           Greg

[Maverick]

Sweet Build BdB!

Really looks the part, quite the pugnacious fighter that the P-36 looked and always most excellent to see 94th Sqn markings on a fighter, gotta love the 'Hat in the Ring'.

Regards,

Mav

[Rafael]

WOW, Brian!!!

I really like this bird!!!, nice build!!    

Rafa

[Howard of Effingham]

wot no spats?, BdB!  

lovely stuff!

trevor

[John Howling Mouse]

Very confused over here (what else is new?).  For the longest time, until I actually read your modifications description, I thought you had simply affixed a different cowl and prop spinner to a P-36 model----it is really that convincing as a P-36.

Very, very nicely done (and now added to my "BdaB's Models" file folder on the ol' hard drive, Mr. Basher).

And I can imagine a second one with spats, too----can you?

1000% coolness factor...

   

[Brian da Basher]

<snip>

And I can imagine a second one with spats, too----can you?

<snip>

I'm headed back to the LHS this afternoon to see if they have another one of these $5 P-40s in stock for this very purpose. I'm thinking along the lines of the Hawk 75 export version, but perhaps with the Allison inline engine.

I'm really glad you guys like this build. Your comments encourage me to no end!

Brian da Basher

[K5054NZ]

                       

Cheers,

Zac

PS - That spinner is freakin' killer! Yeah bro! - ZY

[Shasper]

Whot, no spats?!

Shas B)