There are some projects you just can’t do. Sober.
In a nice sense of continuity, I have done a couple of articles recently that sort of dovetailed into this one. First, I wrote about wanting “The Warbird” — a prop-driven attack plane in the spirit of the Skyraider or Tucano to rain hell on the bad guys. Not long after, I picked up a Peterkin “SF-16 Strike Eagle” — a 1990s revision of the Cherilea jet, rare but not particularly exceptional vehicle. Other than both being about airplane vehicles, these two pieces didn’t have much connection.
Until the drinking started.
Last Sunday, I got home from work in the afternoon. With the place to myself, and nothing needing to be done, I decided to do something that I rarely get to do — relax. I’m not much of a drinker, and I’m even less of a social drinker, so my idea of a good time is a glass of Booker’s and a war documentary on TV. After step “A,” I was wandering around my toy room, and started looking at the SF-16 on the bench. It hadn’t found a shelf yet, and I had intended to work on it. But looking at it at that moment, I realized it was kind of ugly. The cockpit was too far back for most all jet fighters. The swing-wing was cool, but wasted on this made-up plane. The body was too smooth, hell, it would probably look better as a prop plane.
So, a chaser beer later, I decided I was going to do that. I needed a straighter wing, and the only one I could think of was a BBI A-10 Warthog that I picked up at Ross a while back. It was a stubby little thing, but it had a good wing area, and the landing gear were built in. I “removed” the wings from the A-10. With a saws-all. I don’t recommend alcohol and power tools. Next, I take the skill saw to the nose, something I would have balked at otherwise. I went through some of my RC parts, found a P-51D nose section, found that it fit perfectly, and screwed it into place. I did some fitting, bolted the wings on (apparently I don’t use glue when I’m buzzed.) Satisfied for the moment, I left it on the bench, and went about my relaxing.
When I got up the next morning, remembered what I had started, the panic kicked in. Did I really just destroy that SF-16? What did I do??
I do good, actually. I do good. I’m pretty certain I didn’t do any measuring, but the wings and the nose line up pretty well. And they were secured on the body tightly. And since it was committed at this point anyway, I decided to stick with it. After some sanding of the rough spots, I went digging for a more squared tailfin, and found it on a cheap C-130 toy at a Family Dollar store. I borrow a prop spinner from a G.I. Joe vehicle and mount a 4-bladed prop to the nose.
By Wednesday, the SF-16 is definitely on the path to a warbird. But which one? I’m still thinking more like a Skyraider. But for that, the nose really doesn’t work. The P-51 nose has that smooth Merlin in-line, not the big radial engine of the ‘Raider. I headed to the hobby shop that night, looking for a possible new nose/engine cowl. It didn’t pan out; everything was too big for the body, and not nearly as flush as the one I had. But, I did get a spinner for the prop, and came across an air scoop. It was starting to feel like this thing wanted to be a Mustang.
But the Mustang is one of the most iconic planes of all time! The SF-16’s generic body only resembles the P-51 in the basest of shapes. a nose and an air scoop do not a Mustang make.
I throw some primer on it Thursday. Maybe a flat gray, or a green will bring it in line more with the Super Tucano, since the ‘Raider concept was out. The flat gray really didn’t do it any favors. What about a metallic? I used a Krylon Aluminum I’ve used on other projects, just as a test, and damn, it looked good. And again, it’s a Mustang finish.
And here’s the thing about the Mustang: it does have a serious attack airplane pedigree. Before it was paired with its legendary Merlin engine, it had a lower altitude Allison one. Used as the A-36, it was originally an attacker and dive bomber. Then, after the war, it was pressed back into service in Korea for close air support- the jets of the day lacked the durability and fuel capacity to loiter over the battlefield. In this role, the now decade-old Mustang was no longer the Queen of the Skies she was in Europe and the Pacific. She was outclassed by newer and faster. But she still did the job. Losses were heavy, but performance was admirable. After Korea, that close-air support role continued for smaller air forces for decades. There was even a brief comeback as a Mustang descendant, the PA-48 Enforcer, challenged the A-10 for the job with the USAF in the 1970s. And there were many Mustangs built in between, including the race circuit monster known as “Precious Metal” — one of the fastest propeller planes ever made.
And with a squint, I could see the “Precious Metal” in this plane’s lines. And it drifted into the “What-if” territory- what if there had been a couple further developments of the Mustang into a fighter-bomber — and yeah, it made sense. I kept that bare-metal finish, and added the anti-glare black on the nose, and tail and wing-tips. But since this is clearly no WW2 Mustang, 1950s-era vintage livery, similar to the ones the F-51 Mustangs wore in Korea.
In another homage to it’s roots, I opted for four cannon barrels in the wing, rather than the six .50-cal machine guns. This would be like the four Hispano 20mm cannon the original ground fighters used, and they packed a serious punch. The A-10 came with its own ordinance, which gave it four pylons for bombs, and two inner ones that made good drop tank points.
On last Sunday, I finally gave it a cockpit. Using some old 21st century parts- perfect for an older plane- really add some period-accurate realism. I used a Corbeau race bucket, but added some padding to get a more vintage look. There is a lot of room in the cockpit, maybe even enough to put a second seat, if that back deck were removed. And maybe I will, after another couple drinks.
But within a week, what could have been an alcohol-fueled disaster became the closest thing I have to a 1:12 WW2 fighter plane, and close to that “demanded vehicle” I made months ago. And so, a strange confluence of liquid courage and a build that seemed to have a mind of its own has given me something I’m really proud of — a warbird basically built out of spare parts. Drink responsibly, people. Interesting things can happen. Any projects of your own narrowly avert disaster? Fill me in on the comments.
