Here is the first P-40 I've build. I had started an AMT P-40N some time ago, but that one ended up FUBAR.

As with last month's build, this kit went together well. I had read enough on the web to know to be careful with the fuselage inserts, which all of the Hasegawa P-40 kits have. I didn't have too much trouble, although next time I might attach the inserts to their respective fuselage halves before putting the halves together. I also had trouble with the canopy, which I always seem to do. The middle section - which I put on last - did not fit well. As a matter of fact, when I was taking the photos below, the middle section came loose, and I had to reattach it.

The cockpit was painted with the Tamiya mix for US Interior Green. I painted the area beneath the rear canopy section with the cockpit color, as the instructions called out for. I'm not 100% sure this is historically correct. I used Badger Stynylrez Gray Primer. This is a water based primer, that you spray without thinning. It went on pretty well, but it turned out to be very close to the Tamiya XF-53 Neutral Grey that I used on the underside. It was very difficult to see where I had sprayed the Neutral Grey and where I had not. The top was Tamiya XF-51 Khaki Drab, which I prefer to Tamiya's Olive Drab for aircraft. However, it came out darker than I expected, perhaps due to the primer.

I wasn't sure if the plane depicted had the Medium Green splotches that many P-40's had, so they were painted after the rest of the camouflage. I used Model Master Acryl Euro I Dark Green (FS34092). The color was what I wanted, but masking the scallops was a pain. Next time I will paint the Medium Green first, then paint the rest of the camouflage.

I used decals from Techmod 48054. I had originally intended to use them on the AMT kit. Because I did not check the decal sheet closely until I was halfway through the kit, I did not notice that the real plane did not have a mast, but did have the circular antenna. I followed the kit instructions, which used the mast and not the circular antenna. Also, some profiles of this plane I have seen on the web show the tip of the spinner in white.

I searched the web for tips on using Techmod decals, and found this page that suggested using plain water, without any decal setting solution, so that is what I did. I did not have any trouble placing the decals (from what I have read, that is a common problem with Techmod decals), but they didn't stick that well. I half expect them to come off at some point. Because I thought I might have trouble with the decals, I painted the stripes on the tail. I used Tamiya XF-18 Medium Blue, which is both too dark and too gray. It should match the blue on the national insignia.

Page last updated June 15, 2023.