”Arne, if I were you I would test the flamethrower some other time.”

This article was originally published in IPMS Stockholm Magazine in February 2000.

by Frank Spahr

A Little History

SMS (His Majesty’s Ship) Zähringen belonged to the five-strong Wittelsbach class of the imperial German navy. Named after German noble houses, the Wittelsbachs were designed and built when Germany had not yet fully entered the naval arms race and were markedly inferior to their British contemporaries. They soon were considered outdated and fit not even for secondary roles. Their weak primary and strong secondary armament were fully against the trend towards the all-big-gun ship.

Hence she did not participate actively in World War I, being used as a training ship in port. After the war she belonged to the outdated units left to the new German navy, proving soon to be more of a liability than an asset and was stricken from the list. She escaped the scrapper’s torch and was converted to a radio-controlled target ship in 1927, without armament and most superstructure and with new machinery. In this role, she served for 17 years until sunk on 18 December 1944 by RAF bombers at Gdingen harbour, which is now Gdynia in Poland. Raised by the Germans, she was scuttled to block harbour entrance to Gdingen on 26 March, 1945. Her remains were broken up 1949-50.

I have always been fascinated by pre-dreadnought warships, and asked for a kit of the Wittelsbach class once too often, unaware that it was available as a resin kit already. Martin Kohring of modellversium.de has been so kind to procure the kit at a show for me, and there it was, my first resin kit to build.

Building Zähringen

I started cleanup of all the resin parts one afternoon, using various burs and discs in a Dremel, X-ACTO knife, wet sanding paper and a razor saw. I used a face mask. That process was completed in one afternoon, and I just noted the following issues:

One of the cranes wasn’t cast completely: I built a mould using resin wafer material around the defect and filled it with CA glue + filler powder. I could easily sand the part to shape afterwards. – One bridge wing was bent 180° and had to be sawed off and reattached correctly. – Several gun barrels and parts of the boat supports broke off and had to be replaced by hypodermic tube material and styrene, respectively. – The funnels had air bubbles that were filled with Mr Surfacer.

The kit instruction is a rather basic hand-drawn exploded view, but usable. I could quickly determine what went where. I also saw that some extra parts were present, especially boats, and you can always use boats.

I sanded the upper deck level as well as I could to achieve a good fit, and then started painting. had decided to paint all vertical surfaces in a light grey, using WEM’s RN 03. The wooden decks were painted in MM enamels, using various tan and wood shades. The upper decks were probably coated with linoleum, so they were painted WEM RN 24 Corticene. Masking was done using Tamiya tape.

Early on, I made the water base. I had figured out it would be best doing this with no fiddly stuff attached to the hull. After experimenting with silicone (in modelling!), I wanted to give plaster a try, so I used a picture frame, masked it with Tamiya tape and poured plaster into it. During setting, I placed the model and sculpted the waves and the wake using a wooden coffee stirrer and toothpicks. That took some time yet got ever better the more the plaster set. After setting, I did some more carving and sculpting using a dental sculpting instrument. My first attempt at painting the base using watercolours looked great but failed when I added Future – the watercolour chipped in a grand style. I then redid the paintjob using acrylics in green, white and blues from the hardware supermarket, and that went great. I tried to achieve a good shading and a lively result, as without silicone you haven’t got the illusion of depth. Then I added a lot of layers of Future and, after drying, dry-brushed the wave tops and the wake. I was pretty satisfied with the result.

Then I could start assembling. I glued the upper deck with CA, keeping it in place with clamps. Small gaps were filled with Mr Surfacer and painted over. At this point I also worked on the other subassemblies such as bridges, charthouse, funnels, military masts and boats. For detailing, I used WEM’s very helpful PE set for the German-built Russian cruiser Askold. Some additional railings were taken from WEM’s 1:700 railing set.

I modified the kit as follows:

The resin front bridge windows and all the windows of the rear bridge were sawed of and replaced by a piece of PE railing, partly filled with Mr Surfacer to achieve sharp rectangular windows – The small round deck on the charthouse was taken from the Askold set that contains three of them, already with inclined ladder – The splinter shield atop the charthouse was sawed off and replaced by PE railing, which was covered with white glue and painted grey to represent the canvas-covered original railing – Smaller gun barrels were replaced by hypodermic tubing, the smallest guns were replaced by PE items – Cast stairs, ladders and funnel caps were ground off and replaced by PE – Upper masts and yards were made from brass rod, the footropes again are Askold PE – All bulleyes were drilled out a bit – The lightening holes in the cranes were carefully drilled open, PE hooks and bracing were added – The boats received oars made from stretched brown sprue flattened at one end. The barge’s bulleyes were drilled through – I didn’t cover the stern walk, as pictures of ships at sea didn’t show it. Had I used, it, I would have made it from CA-infused paper.

Finally everything could be assembled, and I did my weathering. Having a rather new ship at peacetime service, I did just a restrained weathering, trying to work out the shapes and angles and to make the overall grey scheme a bit more lively. Deck panel lines were highlighted with pencil lead, and the ship was washed gently with black watercolour. I softened the result using a glass fibre pen. Rust was only used around the anchors. A heavier wash was used on the boats to accentuate the contrast between the thwarts and the area between them.

After attaching the railings I revisited the model and did some touch-ups. A final flat coat sealed the model.

My personal bugbear is rigging. I used black stretched sprue, glued with styrene cement and tautened with a heated dental waxing instrument. In spite of all caution, the masts turned out to be so bendable still that any slightest touch tore apart all previous lines. A situation that might have easily bordered to a tantrum. To me, doing such work is like shaving a balloon using a chainsaw. Hence I gave up at some point at about one third the original rigging. My deepest reverence to all those who can master that art.

In the meantime, rigging and modelling wizard Jim Baumann has given me the hint to use steel wire from wire brushes only, as it is so much more rigid than brass or ordinary steel wire, and I pass this hint to you.

Finally I took my pictures and thought about my conclusions from this project. I was surprised at how fast (a little under three weeks) I had completed the model, building a P-47 and completing a 1:400 battleship in between – and how relatively straightforward things had proceeded. I’ve lost my reservations towards resin now and I am looking forward to the next project.

If I consider the price of the kit, it’s pretty expensive, especially as it comes without PE or wire for the masts. And even more so, if you relate the price tag to the number of hours I spent building it (and was supposed to have fun with it – which I did). But let’s face the fact: Our hobby, when esoteric subjects in resin are considered, is the ultimate niche market, and I’d be surprised if the production run of such a kit were higher than a few hundred. And given the work it takes to make masters and mould the parts, especially in a country like mine, the price is appropriate.

Hence I’m glad I do have a nice model of one of the Kaiser’s ships of the line on my shelf now.

This article was originally published in IPMS stockholm Magazine in March 2006

How Good is Good Enough?

The P-40 was the last and best known of Curtiss Hawk series fighters initiated in the 1920s. It’s qualities were, and are, controversial.Criticised by many for poor manoeuvrability, low speed and rate of climb, it was on a verge of being obsolescent already before series production started. The inadequacies of the P-40 were widely publicised in the initial war years and even became the subject of a Congressional investigation.

Still, the P-40 was used successfully by many Air Forces during the war. One of the first customers was RAF, where the fighter named Kittyhawk distinguished itself in the African and Italian campaigns. It also did pretty well in USAAF service during the first year of Japanese advance in the Pacific, when little else (namely the P-39 Airacobra) was available in quantity. Popularised as the aircraft used by the Flying Tigers (American Volunteer Group) in China, it also helped to produce one of the first morale-boosting ‘success stories’ of the American Air Force in the war against Japan. It is with this unit that the P-40 achieved immortal fame.

Another large user of the P-40 was the Soviet VVS. Interestingly, although favoured by USSR pilots, Josef Stalin himself opted for Bell P-39 over P-40 as ”more suited for combat against German fighters.” On what grounds his opinion was based remains a mystery.

The P-40 had no serious vices and was a pleasant aircraft to fly. When flown by an experienced pilot was able to give a good account of itself in aerial combat. It’s indisputable advantage was also very tough construction, which made the aircraft capable of bringing it’s pilot home despite sometimes heavy damage.

Contrary to it’s opinion of a stop-gap measure, the production of P-40 continued long after more modern types were readily available. The total number of P-40 manufactured reached the third highest total for American World War II fighters, bettered only by the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt and the North American P-51 Mustang. These production numbers can be deemed the ultimate measure of the aircraft’s usefulness.

And besides, do you know any other aircraft that looked better with the sharkmouth?

Do you know any other aircraft that looked better with the sharkmouth? Often associated with American Volunteer Group (AVG) in China, this motive was actually ”discovered” by No. 112 RAF Squadron in North Africa, then adopted by AVG and many other air force units flying P-40s all over the world, including countries like Brazil!
Illustration (c) 1999 Thomas A. Tullis. Used with permission.

A Quick Guide to P-40 Variants

Unsurprisingly for the massive production of almost 14,000 aircraft, the P-40 went through many changes during it’s life. Little resemblance can be found between last production variants and the original concept. This guide is intended to help identifying the production versions and spot the major differences between them.

• XP-40 Prototype – The P-40s immediate ancestor was Curtiss P-36 (Model 75), a radial engine-powered fighter later flown by the French Air Force against Luftwaffe in 1940. The P-36 design was reworked to incorporate the liquid-cooled Allison V-1710 engine equipped with a supercharger, resulting in the XP-37. Thirteen YP-37 service-test aircraft were built, but major problems with the supercharger installation caused the development of the P-37 to be abandoned in favour of a less complex installation of the Allison V-1710 engine. Tenth production P-36A was converted to the new prototype. This project was given the designation Curtiss Model 75P, and the USAAC gave the project a new fighter designation, XP-40. The prototype first flew on October 14, 1938. It went through several modifications, several different positions and configurations of oil cooler had been tried affecting the aircraft’s silhouette.

To make a very long story short, here’s the list of major production variants:

• P-40 – the original production version to USAAC specification. The armament was limited to two 0.50″ machine guns located in the fuselage. The engine was V-1710-33. The first machine left the factory in May 1940. The model differed from the XP-40 prototype by having flush-riveted surface instead of drag-inducing conical rivets used in P-36. Following the new USAAC designation, Curtiss gave it’s new fighter the internal designation H-81 (Curtiss Hawk Model 81)

A first production version P-40 can be recognised by armament concentrated solely above the engine.
Wing-mounted guns would be introduced in all subsequent versions.

• H-81A – export version for the Armée de l’Air, of which 140 were ordered. The first production machine flew in June 1940, too late to enter the French service. The contract was overtaken by RAF after the fall of France.
• Tomahawk Mk. I – In the British service the ”French” aircraft were named Tomahawk Mk. I. The machines were identical to the P-40, except for the instruments and equipment. Even the armament was improved with four wing-mounded machine guns. The first Tomahawks reached England in September 1940.

This is Tomahawk Mk. I, modified to the RAF specification with four wing-mounted 0.303″ Brownings. Installation of British radio equipment resulted in a radio mast halfway down the rear fuselage.

• P-40B – differed from the P-40 by improved armament obtained by two extra 0.30″ machine guns in the wings. Heavier weight coupled with the same engine resulted in performance inferior to that of the P-40. Ca. 130 were produced, deliveries starting from March 1941.
•  Tomahawk Mk. IIA – was the export version of the P-40B for the RAF. The wing guns were replaced by two 0.303″ calibre Brownings, and British radio was installed. It also had armour protection for the pilot and first version of self-sealing fuel tanks. 110 were produced, 23 of which were sent to the Soviet Union.
•  P-40C – Delivered from April 1941, 193 were manufactured. Improved fuel system allowed for a drop fuel tank below the fuselage. Self-sealing tanks were introduced with this model, and the armament was yet increased to four 0.30″ wing-mounted machine guns and two 0.50″s in the fuselage. More gain in weight caused the performance to be even worse than that of P-40B.

P-40C displays it’s four-gun installation in the wing,which was a distinctive feature of this version.

• Tomahawk Mk. IIB – export equivalent of the P-40C. 930 were built. 100 of these planes were transferred to China for the ”Flying Tigers”, and 195 were sent to Russia. Mk. IIB was also extensively used by RAF and SAAF in Africa – as much as sixteen squadrons were equipped with the type. Armament was again increased to four (some sources state six) wing-mounted 0.303″ guns in addition to two 0.50″ guns in the fuselage. The US radio equipment was retained on this model.

This excellent period photograph shows a flight of ”Flying Tigers” Tomahawk Mk. IIBs in flight over China. Various sources refer to AVG machines as being P-40Bs or P-40Cs, but they were actually produced for British contract to Tomahawk Mk. IIB standard.
The first machine is flown by Charles Older, AVG. It appears to have only two wing machine guns mounted.

• P-40D – delivered from May 1941. The engine was finally upgraded to V-1710-39, which produced more power and had better high altitude performance. The engine was now 18 inches shorter, and the prop thrust line 8 inches higher. The airframe adaptation was therefore extensive, and prompted a new internal Curtiss designation of Model 87. The aircraft received an entirely new fuselage with shorter nose, enlarged chin intake and sleeker cross-section that we today associate with the P-40. The fuselage guns were deleted, four 0.50″ guns being installed in the wings. Armour protection was improved, and wing hardpoints introduced to carry bombs.
  Only 22 Ds were produced before the order was changed to accommodate six guns. Curtiss promptly responded to this request, but the modified aircraft received the designation P-40E.
•  P-40E – as stated above, it was identical to the D-version except for six wing-mounted machine guns.

The completely redesigned nose accommodating the Allison V-1710-39 can be seen in detail on this photo, which the author believes to show one of the AVG P-40Es. ”Flying Tigers” received their first Es in March 1942, after the lack of spare parts and combat attrition reduced the unit’s strength to only 20 flyable P-40Cs.

• Kittyhawk Mk. I – even the British recognised the new-generation P-40 as an entirely new aircraft, designating it Kittyhawk.

These early series P-40Fs show the airframe generally similar to that of P-40E with shot rear fuselage.

The first 20 were delivered to P-40D specifications, remaining ones being identical to P-40Es with exception of British equipment such as radio installation. The designation Kittyhawk Mk. IA was used for the latter to distinguish between these two variants. An aircraft of this batch, NZ3009, is a photographic subject of the In Detail article in this issue. Totally Britain received ca. 1500 Mk. Is.

The American designation P-40E-1 was adopted to identify the 1500 Kittyhawk Mk. IAs shipped to Britain early in the Lend-Lease program to distinguish their British equipment from those in the US service. Many were actually retained for US service, identifiable by their British-style camouflage.

• P-40F – In USAF service the type received the name Warhawk. The engine was exchanged once more, this time to he vastly superior Roll-Royce Merlin 28 (later Packard Merlin V-1650-1) with a single-stage supercharger built into the P-40D airframe . With the new engine the carburettor air intake on top of the cowling was removed.

The first 699 production aircraft were designated only P-40F, after which the subtype numbers were introduced to keep track of modification introduced directly in production. The ”dash numbers” were assigned according to the system: -1, -5, -10, -15, -20 and so on, with interval of 5. Thus the first P-40Fs were retroactively treated as P-40F-1, and subsequent modifications were designated P-40F-5, P-40F-10, P-40F-15, P-40F-20. Actually the official designations carried an additional suffix -CU indicating Curtiss production facilities, like P-40F-10-CU, but we’ll omit it here for clarity.

The P-40F-5 and later production models had the rear fuselage lengthened with over 2 feet to improve directional stability. Of note is that only fin and rudder were moved back, the horizontal tailplane remained in the same position.

113601 was the second production P-40F. The most prominent feature of the Merlin-powered Warhawkswas lack of carburettor air scoop on top of the cowling.

• Kittyhawk Mk. II – of over 1300 P-40Fs produced, 150 were supplied to Britain under Lend-Lease and designated Kittyhawk Mk. II, in common with the later P-40L model. The RAF didn’t actually use their Mk. IIs – 80 were returned to USAAF for Tunisian campaign, 100 went to Soviet Union, and a handful was handed over to Free French AF in Africa.

Seven of the RAF Kittyhawks Mk. II were handed over to the Free French Air Force in Africa. Almost all of these aircraft can be seen on the above photo. The aircraft are representative of the late P-40F production with lengthened fuselage.

•  P-40G – name given to 44 existing airframes retrofitted in summer 1941 with wings from Tomahawk Mk. IIA and consequently armed with only four small-calibre guns. Sixteen were shipped to Soviet Union, the rest being used in the US for training duties.
•  P-40H, P-40I, P-40J – designation never used. The P-40J was a projected P-40E with supercharger, but the idea was dropped at an early stage.
• P-40K – originally planned as final production variant. Although a P-40F proved a superior machine due to the installation of the Merlin engine, the Allison-powered versions were still produced because of the limited supply of the Merlins. The P-40K was powered by the new V-1710-73.

The first production machine rolled off in August 1942. Early production K models were similar in shape to P-40E, but the dorsal fin was added to improve the stability with the new engine. From the P-40K-10 series the problem was solved by adapting the long rear fuselage of the P-40F.

Early production P-40Ks featured a short fuselage of the P-40E with enlarged fin,which can be seen on the second aircraft.

Late series Ks looked much different. The P-40K-15 presented heredisplays a long style fuselage. The K-15 series carried special equipment for winter conditions.

• Kittyhawk Mk. III – the RAF equivalent of P-40K. 192 were received through Lend-Lease. Most of them were re-distributed to Commonwealth air forces.Name Kittyhawk Mk. III was also used for other P-40 variants – see below.

A row of British Kittyhawks Mk. III. The nearest aircraft is a machine from P-40K-1 series,which can be read from the partially obscured RAF serial FR3??.
An interesting detail is a non-standard camouflage pattern on the first aircraft’s nose.

• P-40L – this version was envisaged as a lightweight fighter. Based on P-40F-5, the weight was saved by reducing armament to four 0.50″ calibre guns, removing some armour and reducing fuel capacity. In the initial production batches, however, these changes were not performed, which makes it very hard to distinguish them from P-40F. From the P-40L-5 batch onwards the modifications were carried out. The performance improvement over the P-40F proved to be insignificant. Nevertheless 700 aircraft were built.
• Kittyhawk Mk. II / Mk. III (P-40L) – The British first received 100 P-40Ls which were marked Kittyhawk Mk. II with no distinction from the P-40F. The second batch of 160 aircraft of this version was for unknown reason designated Kittyhawk Mk. III, thus causing possible confusion with P-40Ks of the same Mark.
• P-40M – In 1943 the short supply of Merlin engines again forced Curtiss to re-introduce the Allison powerplant to production lines, resulting in the P-40M. The engine used was V-1710-18. The airframe was similar to P-40K-20, the visible difference being an introduction of a rectangular cooling panel in front of the exhaust stacks. Deliveries started in November 1942. This version was built exclusively for Lend-Lease ”export” and was used by RAF, SAAF, RAAF and RNZAF under the designation Kittyhawk Mk. III. Some machines, however found their way to US service in China and the Mediterranean.
• Kittyhawk Mk. III (P-40M) – Still more source of confusion is that the British term Mk III was also used for P-40Ms, indicating that RAF didn’t recognise the difference between the P-40M, K (which can be understood) and L (which is somewhat weird).

The P-40M introduced the rectangular cooling gill just in front of the exhaust stacks. This is one of the machines serving with 14th Air Force in China.

• P-40N – This last production version was also the most numerous. A total of 5220 machines were built. Powered by V-1710-81 (later -99 or -115), it featured several changes to reduce weight. These included new light alloy coolers and radiators, smaller and lighter main undercarriage wheels, and several structural changes. Armament was reduced to 4 machine guns.There were several differences between production batches,. These are described below.

• P-40N-1 was intended for high altitude combat. The weight-saving changes resulted in the fastest production version of the P-40. Four hundred were built.From P-40N-5 batch a new canopy was introduced with frameless sliding portion and a new transparent rear part to improve pilot’s field of view. The armament was yet again increased to six Brownings. Even external store capacity was increased.

  The P-40N-15 introduced minor internal changes as well as new landing lights.

  A revised instrument panel in the cockpit was installed starting from P-40N-25.

  The P-40N-26 was a conversion of P-40N-5 for reconnaissance duties with cameras installed in the fuselage.

  P-40N-35 introduced minor changes to the instrument panel and lighting.

  Finally, the P-40N-40 had flame-damping exhaust and some minor internal changes.

  There were more internal modifications made during the long production run of the version, but these are not mentioned here in detail. The production ended in November 1944 with P-40N-40.

  Main users of the ”N” Warhawk were Lend-Lease customers. Over 1000 machines were sent to Russia. 586 were ordered by the RAF, and designated Kittyhawk Mk. IV. The RAF diverted most of their machines to overseas service and to Soviet Union. Australia received 468 aircraft, 172 went to New Zealand. USAF used the type mostly for training.

  A few machines remaining in service after the war were re-designated ZF-40N in 1948.

• Kittyhawk Mk. IV – RAF designation of P-40N. Of 586 ordered 130 were later re-directed to Soviet Union.
• P-40Q – this was manufacturer’s last attempt to put life in an ageing design, and resulted only in a prototype. The P-40Q only partly resembled the previous versions, featuring major changes like the bubble canopy, clipped wings, cooler intake moved below the wing centerplane, a yet longer fuselage with completely re-designed nose and a four-blade propeller. Three XP-40Q prototypes were built and yes, the aircraft was much more capable than any of the previous versions, but still no match for the P-51 Mustang. The project was cancelled.
• P-40P – Planned Merlin-powered variant of the P-40N, which didn’t materialise due to shortage of engine supplies.
• P-40R – a batch of about 70 P-40Fs was converted to the Allison V-1710-81 engine in place of the Merlin. These machines were used in the US as advanced trainers, designated P-40R-1.
• Similarly converted aircraft of the P-40L version were called P-40R-2. The number of such conversions performed is not known, but there were more than 50.
• The same designation P-40R-1 was also given to a trainer conversion of P-40N-30, of which 70 were made.

Serial Numbers

The table below states production numbers for all (I hope) P-40s produced. This section is based on Joe Baugher’s excellent research published at his home page.

This article was originally published in IPMS Stockholm Magazine in September 1999.

The Curtiss P-40 is one of the best-known American fighters of World War II. Despite it’s fame, it was not one of the period’s best performers, outclassed in virtually every way by other fighters of its time.

Therefore, as more advanced aircraft became available to the Allies, the plane was relegated to ground support and other less vulnerable roles.

The full review of P-40 production variants and history can be found in the accompanying article Modeller’s Guide to Curtiss P-40 Variants published in this issue, so there’s no need to repeat it here. Instead, I’ll rather add some words about P-40s servicing with Royal New Zealand Air Force, one of which is a subject of this photographic essay.

P-40 in New Zealand

In total, the RNZAF operated 297 Curtiss P-40s of various models (K,L,M,N) between 1942 and 1946. The aircraft were assigned to Nos. 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20 Fighter Squadrons, and No. 2 and 4 Fighter Operational Training Units. No. 14 through 19 Squadrons flew the Curtiss fighters in the Pacific, carrying out offensive and defensive fighter operations, bomber escort, and dive-bombing duties. Combat record of these units includes 99 confirmed and 14 probable ‘kills’ of Japanese aircraft in the air. A total of twenty P-40s were lost in combat, and a further 152 in accidents.

From 1944, the P-40 began to be replaced in front line duties by Vought F4U-1 Corsair . The remainder were sold for scrap in 1948.

As many as six ex-RNZAF P-40s survive until this day. One of them, NZ3009 is a subject of this walkaround.

The NZ3009 is a P-40E-1 and carried the manufacturer’s serial number 19669, USAF serial 41-25158 and RAF serial ET 482. After the war it was first displayed at Museum Of Transport And Technology in Western Springs, Auckland. Recently it has been restored to flying condition, coming back to air in 1998.

Curtiss P-40E-1 in Detail

How it looks today.jpg (25389 bytes)

This is how NZ3009 looks today. This photograph was taken at its second public appearance in Ohakea, New Zealand.It is the only airworthy ex-RNZAF P-40E. Photo: Phillip Treweek

An interesting view of the same aircraft years ago at the Museum Of Transport And Technology. The entire nose up to the cockpit firewall is removed, together with wing undercarriage fairings. What’s left is a good view of the wing-to-fuselage attachment and wing incidence angle.

Of note is also wheel hub detail (most aircraft is service carried circular covers hiding the spokes) and overall arrangement of the undercarriage struts and actuators, exposed here. Photo: Phillip Treweek

Tail surfaces. This shot has been taken in January 1998 before final painting was done to the otherwise completely restored aircraft. Photo: Phillip Treweek

Starboard engine cover removed. This photo displays some detail of engine installation. Photo: Phillip Treweek

Not the best of exposures, but this photo shows the distinctive curvature of fighter’s massive spinner to advantage. Photo: Phillip Treweek

Head-on view of the massive chin intake shows three separate channels leading to separate circular coolers. Note the two vents in the upper corners of the intake. Photo: Phillip Treweek

Engine cooling flaps fully open, seen from the rear. Note the flap actuators. Photo: Phillip Treweek

A glimpse into the cockpit. As this is a flyable warbird, the cockpit features a number of modern additions like extra instrument panels and seat cushioning. Photo: Phillip Treweek

Instrument panel.jpg (24513 bytes)This instrument panel has been augmented with loads of modern equipment visible below the main panel. Photo: Phillip Treweek

Pilot’s seat and headrest. As mentioned before, the seat padding and harness are of modern standard, but the seat itself appears to be original. Photo: Phillip Treweek

Looking forward into the fuselage from the inspection hatch on the port side behind the cockpit. This photo is of another aircraft, a P-40M no. NZ31119 under restoration in New Zealand.

Note that the pilot’s seat is missing. Photo: Phillip Treweek

A glimpse from behind into the port wheel well shows the inner surface of undercarriage cover (visible to the left), main undercarriage leg mount and retracting mechanism – quite complex for it’s time. Photo: Phillip Treweek

There were actually two undercarriage covers, the inner one serving the leg support strut shown here.

Of note is also the smoothly faired-in ”knuckle” on the wing’s leading edge. Photo: Phillip Treweek

Front view of the starboard main undercarriage of another P-40E, NZ3039 displayed in Museum of Transport and Technology.

Photo: Phillip Treweek

Taking off!
Photo: Phillip Treweek

This article was originally published in IPMS Stockholm Magazine in September 1999.

Denna Citroen var med i tävlingen och den är nog mer korrekt i utförandet än mina äggmodeller även om den är knottrig.

Några pansarvagnar i Lego, visst ser man vad förebilderna är? Jag har faktiskt en gammal Legobil från 60-talet stående i bokhyllan bland plastmodellerna.

Här är resten av bilderna från Legoutställningen:

Björn Bäcklund

by Frank Spahr

Modelling has become tremendously sophisticated over the last years. Not only the after-market suppliers, but also the major companies themselves offer us kits in a previously never-dreamed-of quality, as well in terms of precision, fit and detail. Opening a detail set still makes me gasp at the precision of the delicate brass parts – some of them have taken permanent residence in my carpet meanwhile – or the sheer technical knowhow needed to model and cast resin parts in such a way as, say, in CMK´s Skyraider set waiting on my workbench.

Whether the aftermarket stuff is really useful with modern kits is another question. Brass parts are necessarily only two-dimensional, and with certain items that have a rounded form, the brass part may be finer than the kit part, yet lacking substance. The german FuBl 2 antenna, for instance, found under almost all german multi-engined planes, surely looks better when made from stretched sprue plus some fine wiring than from a photo-etched part. When it comes to cockpits, the dilemma grows worse. Do you prefer the kit cockpit plus some drybrushing, or rather upgrade it with an Eduard set with real holes for the dials plus a slide behind them, or would you rather advocate using a resin cockpit? Somehow, it´s like l´art pour l´art.

I would like to talk about rather different things. When I restarted modelling, I had most fun when I took some inexpensive kit in 1/72 and tried to make something of it for myself, using mostly sheet styrene and Zero.jpg (25114 bytes)stretched sprue as ”aftermarket” parts. It gives you some nice feeling for having achieved something from your own accord plus it lets you practice techniques you will need with more expensive stuff. The kits do not need so much shelf space. Last but not least, when you bugger it all, it won´t hurt you…

All the kits described below were priced under 10 DM when I bought them.

Revell A6M Zero

I started with Revell´s old 1/72 Zero. The mold should come from the early 60ies, or so I guess, it´s pocked with rivet heads, they skipped the entire interior, but all in all it somehow looks like a Zero.

I left the rivets where they were, glued the somewhat disfigured pilot into where the cockpit should be, but the kit gave me opportunities to:

• Thin out the propeller blades
• Fabricate an antenna from stretched sprue
• Make a pitot tube in the like manner
• Weather the exhaust tubes with a mixture of Revell rust and iron paint
• Try some exhaust staining with my then newly acquired airbrush plus pastel chalks
• Make wing guns from stretched sprue (today I would rather use sections of hypodermic needles)

All in all, I still like the Zero, and it has survived some ”cleansings” of my collection. My Hasegawa 1/32 A6M5 is still waiting to be built …

Revell Ki-84 Frank

Ki84-3a.jpg (23027 bytes)Next in line is Revell´s Ki-84 ”Frank” of equal vintage and quality. This time, I grew a bit more self-confident, so I ”scratch-built” some likeness of a cockpit from sheet and stretched styrene and cut open the canopy with a diamond disk so that you had something to look at. The canopy is of course too thick to allow a real look at the inside. By the way, although I´m a dentist and own a vacuform device, I haven´t that far found the right material for vacuforming canopies. So whoever has a tip for me, please let me know.

Moreover, I sanded away all the rivets from the plane´s upper surfaces. Alright, that sounds like not taking things too seriously, but I have to admit I somehow lost heart after some time. I quite liked the results then, but giving the current techniques of highlighting details and my matured look at things, I can´t suppress the feeling that such a surface tends to look somewhat dead. In this case, the camouflage turned things around a bit, since the plane is covered by quite a lot of dark speckles. Airbrushing them was quite demanding and showed me some things about my airbrush…

I used only the kit decals. Of course the squadron insignia didn´t fit, a thing which angered me, but seemingly not enough, since I let them where they were. I remedied that on my next kit, a Ki-61 Hien on which the markings were airbrushed.

Also a small remark about Aotake blue, the elusive metallic shade used on the inner surfaces of Japanese aircraft. My Ki-84 shows how I did it then. Nowadays I spray the wheel wells silver and cover with a very fine overspray of Tamiya´s Aotake. Add some washing and perhaps yet a bit more of silver, and voilà – see the results at the right. I hope it comes closer to the real thing.

Revell Curtiss Kittyhawk

Last in my Revell set of ”cheapies” is the classic Curtiss P-40. Although the P-40 will be eternally associated with the AVG or the ”Flying Tigers”. First, I rather did an interesting South African paint scheme, but I was somewhat afraid of how on earth to put that /&%§§% sharkmouth decal around the plane´s nose (I managed it sometime later with the old Monogram kit). I invested a lot more work into that kit, leafing through the squadron In Action book for the cockpit interior. I scratchbuilt it, the antenna and several other details such as the air intake and the fuel tank suspension.

Besides that, I drilled open the exhausts and the cowling flaps to give them some depth, an effect not visible in the pictures. In this kit, I first used Gunze Sangyo Mr.Metal chrome silver under the paint, so I could do some weathering with ”chipped-off” paint. I still like that model.

Italeri AU-1 Corsair

All in all, Italeri offers considerable quality for a very reasonable price. Not in each kit, but the recent ones – their old 1/72 Focke-Wulf Fw 190 D-9 was a diappointment for me.

My first Italeri model was this AU-1 Corsair, one of the final variants of this legendary and outright beautiful fighter plane. I was so delighted at how Humbrol Glossy Insignia Blue dried out, that I kept weathering to a minimum, just adding some exhaust staining plus exposing the silver paint at the seam lines and tread spots.

Another delight were the decals. They were so thin and fine that they snuggled into each fine detail without any silvering and without any decal softener. Fit was excellent, building went along without much fuss, all at 8,50 DM.

Italeri Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-8

Having built the Italeri Fw190 A-8, I couldn´t keep myself from some heavy weathering. The particular plane featured in the kit was used during the latter part of the war intercepting allied bombers. These fighters were not treated all too nicely.

Again, the decals were outstanding, leaving no rims or silvering even on a matt surface. Now I have learned to spray my models with gloss paint or coat them with clear gloss varnish before applying the decals. I didn´t do that on this model, but it worked out fine anyway.

This equally cheaply priced kit represents the 190´s rugged construction and typical shape very well. I just added the landing gear position indicator pins plus the FuG 25 IFF-antenna made from a single strand of copper wire wrapped around a toothpick

Airbrushing the model was a lot of fun. Although I have built two Hasegawa Fw190 As since, this kit at less than half the price doesn’t stand too bad. Of course, the Hasegawas have finer detail and more comprehensive decals, yet not necessarily better ones, since they´re very flimsy and vulnerable, Graf.jpg (17641 bytes)especially when building Oskar Graf´s plane with the red-and-white triangles all around the cowling – see the adjacent photo. This is my second kit since I King-Konged the first one …

Well, that’s for starters…

I hope I could show how I started improving without destroying too much. Nowadays, I have to admit succumbing ever more often to the lures of aftermarket dealers, having only today ordered the Aires D9-set …

But I´m still the same klutz, having only yesterday ruined the canopy of my Revell 1/48 Me 410. I masked the inside with Parafilm M, primed with Testors Magnesium and sprayed with RLM 02. On removing the Parafilm, I found that some of the very thin magnesium metalizer had seeped under it. Alright, no problem, take your Q-tips and Ivoclar resin polish and off you go, I thought. Bad idea. Nearly each part now revealed that it had had some microscopic cracks into which the metalizer had seeped. Finito. New canopy ordered (Thank you Heinz Dieken of Ikarus Mail order!)

Keep on klutzing!

This article was originally published in IPMS Stockholm Magazine in September 1999.

   ”I’m tired of this! Will he never learn to use proper glue?”

This article was originally published in IPMS Stockholm Magazine in March 2000.

 Känns bilen igen?

Modellen föreställer en rallybil från mitten av 60-talet. Eller kanske rättare, en OT-bil eftersom de flesta tävlingarna gick under benämningen OT (Orientering och Tillförlitlighet) på den tiden.

Utgångsmodellen är en Hellerbyggsats av en ’67 Gordini 1300. Att göra om den till den äldre versionen (med 1084 cc motor) innebar att jag fick lägga igen två hål i fronten, där den nyare modellen hade två extra strålkastare, och tillverka det frontemblem som fanns på ’65:an.

Recognize this car?

This is a rally car from the middle of the 1960-ies, or rather an OT-car since the competitions were called so then. (OT, Orientering och Tillförlitlighet, Navigation and Reliability)

The base is a Heller kit of a 1967 Gordini 1300. To backdate it to a 1965 with the smaller 1084 cc engine, I had to fill two holes in the front where the 67 had a pair of extra headlights, and then make the front badge of the 65.

Construction

I carried out a lot of work on the chassis and the suspension that are rather simplified in the kit. I also had to cut apart the chassis plate and add some plasticard to get it right.

Suspension parts from the scrap box completed the work after which I hid all of it under some scratch built protection plates.

  Om bygget

Jag lade ner rätt mycket jobb på chassit och hjulupphängningarna, som är ganska förenklade i byggsatsen. Jag fick skära upp bottenplattan och lägga i plasticard för att få den rätt och sedan plockade jag diverse bärarmar, stag och dylikt från reservdelsförrådet för att bygga upp det hela. Slutligen gömde jag resultatet under skratchbyggda skyddsplåtar.

Jag skar upp framdörrarna, och försåg dem med gångjärn, vilket var ett mistag för det går knappt att stänga dem nu. Jag la ner en hel del arbete på att detaljera motor och motorrum. Skratchbyggd avgassystem, luftfilter mm.

Även inredningen detaljerades med instrumentering, fotoetsad ratt, säkerhetsbälten mm. Även här fick reservdelsförrådet bistå med delar, t ex en skålad förarstol.

Utvändigt kompletterade jag med extraljus (från Tamiya’s Mini Cooper) och mer eller mindre skrachbyggda original plåtfälgar, byggsatsen har aluminiumfälgar. Pirellidäcken kommer från Fujimi och har ”skurits ner” till rätt bredd i svarven (och limmats ihop igen med solution).Vänster bakskärm bytte jag ut mot en formad aluminiumbit, som jag dessutom hamrade på för att illustrera en ”potatissäcksriktad” skärm. Tyvärr syns det inte om man inte granskar modellen på mycket nära håll.

Avslutningsvis lackerade jag med riktig billack i autentisk kulör. Gordinin fanns bara i denna blåa kulör.

  I opened up the front doors and added hinges, which proved to be a mistake since they are hardly possible to close now. I also added a scratch built exhaust system, intake filter and so on.

Also the interior got some extra detail with instrumentation, a photo-etched steering wheel, safety belts and so on. An appropriate racing seat came from the scrap box.

The exterior was detailed using extra headlights from the Tamiya Mini Cooper and some more or less scratch built sheet metal wheel rims to substitute the kit’s aluminium ones. The Pirelli tyres come from Fujimi and have been cut apart, their width reduced in the lathe and then they have been glued together again, using rubber solution. The left rear side of the body was remade using thin aluminium sheet to simulate a temporary repair job. The effect can however only be seen at a very short distance!

Finally, the model was painted using real car lacquer in the correct colour; the Gordini was only available in this blue shade. The white marking on the rear left door is a damage marking. It was commonly practiced during the sixties to render minus-points in the competitions for external damage.

Lessons learned

To sum it up, this is a kit where I put in a lot of work to detail things that can’t be seen, just to ruin it all by not succeeding with these door hinges!

  Den vita markeringen på vänster bakdörr är en skademarkering som användes på den här tiden då plåtskador föranledde till straffprickar.

Slutsatser

Sammanfattningsvis kan man väl säga att jag gjorde ett gott arbete med en massa detaljer som inte syns och förstörde helheten genom att misslyckas med dörrarna!

This article was  originally published in IPMS Stockholm Magazine in October 1999.

This page is a continuation of Camouflage and Markings of No. 74 Sqn RAF, Part 1. It covers post-war history and aircraft of this famous RAF unit.

The Jet Age

Gloster Meteor F. Mk. III
74 Squadron, Royal Air Force
Colerne, Wiltshire, June 1945

74 Squadron was re-equipped as the RAF’s third Meteor squadron in June 1945 at Colerne in Wiltshire and formed the first all jet fighter wing along with 616 and 504 Squadrons. As you can see the camouflage and markings are nearly the same as the wartime ones – Ocean Grey/Dark Green upper surfaces, Medium Sea Grey undersurfaces, 18 inch Sky fuselage band, and six inch leading edge to the outer wing panels. Obviously there was no Sky spinner on a jet! The two differences from wartime Fighter Command practice were the addition of underwing serial numbers and the reintroduction of the narrow white stripe in the upper wing roundels.

The Mk.III Meteors were retained until March 1948, re-equipment with F.4′s commencing in December 1947.

Gloster Meteor F. Mk. 4
74 Squadron, Royal Air Force
Horsham St. Faith, Norfolk, 1949

The F.4 Meteor was operated by the Squadron from December 1947 to October 1950. This shows the period when Fighter Command aircraft reverted to all silver finish, which lasted from the late 1940′s to c.1954 – a relatively short time. At first, as with this aircraft, the wartime style of roundels and fin flash were retained, only being replaced with the post-war style divided into three equal lots of one third in the much brighter shades of red and blue around 1949/50. Code letters were still retained at this time, the pre-war style of coloured markings only gradually reappearing at different times on different squadrons during the early 50′s; indeed 74 Squadron continued with code letters for a time even when they first got the Mk.8 Meteors in October 1950.

The major differences between the Mk.3 and Mk.4 Meteors were, of course, the much larger engine nacelles and the clipped wings of the 4. 74 spent all of their time with Mk.4′s at Horsham St. Faith, where they had moved to in August 1946 with the Mk.3′s (they spent a brief period at Lubeck, Germany, in July/August 1947).

Gloster Meteor F. Mk. 8
74 Squadron, Royal Air Force
Horsham St. Faith, Norfolk, 1954

This Meteor 8 shows the return of the Tiger stripe markings on 74 Squadron’s a/c. When first received in October 1950 code letters were still in use as they had been on the F.4′s, and the 8′s were also ‘silver’ all over, the correct official name for the colour was High Speed Silver which was actually a 50/50 mixture of aluminium and clear (transparent) cellulose dope paints. Post-war RAF silver aircraft were all painted with this finish and not in natural metal with the one exception of the Lightning. The best way I found to reproduce this finish on models is to airbrush firstly with aluminium paint and then with a coat of gloss varnish over the top. Anyway to get back to the Meteor 8′s, the Tiger markings were introduced while the a/c were still in the silver colour, with black individual letters on the fins. These aircraft had the earlier type of cockpit canopy with the metal rear end. As I mentioned before, camouflage was reintroduced on the upper surfaces from around 1954, consisting of Dark Green and Dark Sea Grey; the undersurfaces remained in silver.

The profile shows a later style of all clear cockpit canopy, and the full set of under wing and under fuselage fuel drop-tanks, with their prominent safety and trestle markings and stripes on them.

Hawker Hunter F. Mk. 4
74 Squadron, Royal Air Force
Horsham St. Faith, Norfolk, 1957

In March 1957 74 Squadron was re-equipped with the beautiful Hunter Mk.4. As you can see, the basic camouflage is the same as for the Meteor 8. In fact the only change to the colours was the movement of the Squadron marking to the nose (something which was done by many Hunter units) with the Tiger’s Head badge in the centre.

The only other things worthy of mention for modellers are to note the various whip aerials (on top of the wings, two side-by-side on top of the fuselage, and one below the nose); and also the gun gas ejector chutes above the cartridge link collectors (Sabrinas) on the nose. There was a problem with the very early Hunters in that these gases used to collect inside the nose when the guns were fired, and on one occasion the front of the nose actually exploded and blew off on a test flight; the pilot was fortunately able to make it back to base and land safely. Incidentally for anyone who does not know it, the link collectors were universally nicknamed Sabrinas in the RAF because at that time there was a well-known TV blonde bombshell called Sabrina who had a very large bust measurement!

Hawker Hunter F. 6
74 Squadron, Royal Air Force
Coltishall, Norfolk, May 1960

74′s re-equipment with Hunter F.6′s started in November 1957, though the F.4′s remained until January 1958; even so the 4′s only lasted for somewhat less than a year. The colour scheme remains the same on the F.6. I have drawn one with the four drop tanks that this mark could carry (the Mk.4 could only carry the two inboard ones).

Modellers should also note that some Hunter drop tanks had fins while others did not. Note that this a/c has the blast deflector plates on the gun muzzles and also the whip aerials are painted yellow to prevent accidents. The Mk.6 also has the more powerful Avon engine with enlarged jet pipe of course, and also the saw-tooth wing leading edge.

74 Squadron moved to Coltishall on 8 June 1959, preparatory for it’s re-equipment with the Lightning in June 1960.

English Electric Lightning F.1
74 Squadron, Royal Air Force
Coltishall, Norfolk, September 1960
Pilot: Sqn Ldr John F.G. Howe

74 Sqn became the RAF’s first Mach 2 fighter squadron in June 1960 when it received Lightning F.1′s at Coltishall. It was to be the only front-line unit to operate the Mk.1, which it did until April 1964. I have drawn the colour scheme as they first appeared, namely just plain natural metal overall with tiger stripe on the nose and badge on the white disc on the fin. This one also has the Squadron Commander’s pennant below the cockpit screen, together with his name and that of the Crew Chief (hence ‘C.T.’ Rye for Chief Tech.). The Squadron was designated as the official RAF aerobatic team The Tigers to replace the all blue Hunters of 92 Sqn The Blue Diamonds.

The markings soon became more colourful: firstly the entire fins and rudders were painted black (retaining the badge on the white disc); and this black painting was soon extended to cover the whole spine up to the cockpit canopy – as can be seen on the F.3 version immediately below.

Squadron Leader Howe was a South African, the first of his nationality to command 74 since the famous ”Sailor” Malan way back in 1940-41 on Spitfires.

English Electric Lightning F.3
74 Squadron, Royal Air Force
Leuchars, Fife, 1964

Here’s the F.3 Lightning I mentioned. 74 Squadron re-equipped with this mark in April 1964, having moved to Leuchars in Scotland (near to St Andrews and its famous golf course for those interested in these things) on 2 March 1964. The Squadron continued with the same colour scheme as finally used on the Mk.1′s, only slightly altered to fit the shape of the different fin. Also some of the various warning and stencil markings were different. This style of very colourful markings on the fins and fuselage spines was popular on the Lightning squadrons at this time for only a few years before Fighter Command banned them all. This ban, however, only applied to those based in the UK so, as you will see from the next profile of the Mk.6, 74 Squadron were able to get away with reinstating their black fins on the later Mk.6′s after they moved to Singapore in June 1967.

The F.3 remained with the Squadron until January 1967, re-equipment with the 6′s commencing in November 1966.

BAC Lightning F.6
74 Squadron, Royal Air Force
Tengah, Singapore, 1971

Here’s the F.6 Lightning, with the black fin. As stated above, the Squadron received these originally at Leuchars from November 1966 and Moved to Tengah in June 1967. Their last task with the Lightnings was to fly them to Akrotiri in Cyprus to replace the F.3′s of 56 Squadron, 74 Squadron being disbanded at the same time, August 1971. Note that only the fins were black on the 6′s and the fin flash is back to the original style; also the white disc with tiger head is a bit smaller than on the previous F.3′s.

74 Squadron was not reformed again until October 1984, when it received the ex-US Navy/Marines F-4J’s that were purchased for the RAF for UK air defence to replace the Phantoms of 23 Squadron that had been sent to the Falkland Islands after the war with Argentina.

McDonnel Phantom F-4J(UK)
74 Squadron, Royal Air Force
Wattisham, Suffolk, 1989

74 Squadron was reformed with the 2nd-hand ex-USN/USMC Phantom F-4J(UK) in October 1984. At first all but the Squadron Commander’s aircraft had just grey fins but fairly soon they all acquired black ones as shown. As you can see the Tiger Head appears both on the fin and the nose.

As regards the camouflage colours, these aircraft were slightly different in shades of grey from normal RAF colours since they were repainted as part of their refurbishment in the USA, using the nearest equivalent FS595a shades. So, the undersurfaces were FS 36440; upper surfaces of fuselage and outer wing panels Flint Grey FS 36314; and upper surfaces of inner wing panels FS 36270. A few of the F-4J’s were repainted shortly before retirement with the normal RAF greys but not many. In service the American paints tended to change colour quite a lot, one which I saw about 1989 having gone a very greenish shade!

In early 1991 74 gave up the F-4J and shared Phantom FGR.2′s with 56 Squadron, its sister Squadron at Wattisham, but this only lasted until 1st October 1992 when 74 became a Reserve Squadron flying Hawks with 4 Flying Training School.

Hawker Siddeley Hawk T.1
74 (Reserve) Squadron, 4 Flying Training School, Royal Air Force
Valley, Anglesey, October 1992

This is the last of the 74 Squadron a/c. On 1st October 1992 74 became 74 (Reserve) Squadron of 4 Flying Training School. This particular Hawk T.1 was painted specially for display purposes. It was actually repainted like this in September before 74 officially reformed. The Squadron still flies its Hawks from Valley, and all black has, of course, since become the official colouring of all RAF training aircraft. However this one pre-dates that era and hence the roundels are not outlined in white; also the Squadron markings on this particular one only were much more profuse and larger than the usual, in particular the huge Tiger on the fin and the number 74.

So that’s it for the history in profile form of Tiger Squadron RAF. I hope you enjoyed it…

Rick Kent is a modeller, IPMS:er and a productive aviation artist. His speciality are computer-generated aircraft profiles.

This article was originally published in IPMS Stockholm Magazine in November 1999.

Söndag morgon.  Hotellfrukost är bra eftersom man kan äta sig mätt så man klarar sig fram till lunchen som lätt blir sen vid sådana här tillfällen.

Kai, Olle och jag bestämde oss för att promenera till mässan så efter att ha checkat ut och slängt in väskan i bilen tog vi först en vända i närheten av hotellet eftersom inget hade öppnat än.

Vi tittade in i järnvägsstationen på ett stort modell-lok samt en modelljärnväg som gjorde reklam för järnvägsmuseet. Det var lite kyligt på morgonen så vi hittade en loppmarknad vid ett kafé där vi värmde oss med en kaffe.

Lite bilder från stan.

Vi hade beslutat oss för att vara lite kulturella så vi gick till Nationalmuseum när det öppnade.

Där var det en specialutställning med gamla kartor vilket är ganska fascinerande.  Om Lilla Fridolf möts av denna klocka ute i hallen när han ramlar in sent på nattkröken förstår han nog vad timmen är slagen.

Hittade detta i modellväg på museet.

När vi var klara med museet hade det blivit soligt och varmt.

Vi gick mot mässan via Kuivalainens butik.

Olle och jag lyckades hålla oss från frestelserna där men Kai var vekare till sinnet. Vi beslutade oss för att äta lunch på det första stället vi hittade. Det visade sig vara en liten pizzabutik med några bord. Där kom Kai i samspråk med en äldre farbror som blev intresserad av modellerna. Han hade varit i flygvapnet och byggt modeller som ung. Trots att jag inte förstår finska kunde jag uppfatta Messerschmitt, Spitfire, Airfix och Revell i samtalet. Mätta fortsatte vi fram till mässan.

Lite mer bilder från stan.

Vi hittade miniatyrbadrum som man fick rösta på .

Sedan var det dags att packa ihop och åka ner till båten.

Måndag morgon var vi hemma och kunde lämna båten.

Bild och text Björn Bäcklund som hittade denna nalle vid Nationalmuseum.