106 MODEL AVIATION
I OFTEN RECEIVE requests from
modelers who can’t find information about a
certain aircraft or plans and documentation.
Many times they don’t know where to look,
other times they don’t have the time, and
there are various other reasons.
But fear not! In this issue I am going to
take you as far as I can on an odyssey of the
who, what, when, and where to find scale
documentation for anything from a Fun Scale
model that needs one photo to a World
Championships Scale model that needs 10
pages of documentation.
Where do you start? There are almost as
many avenues to go down as there are pages
in this magazine. Modelers who are looking
for a color scheme on a World War I or
World War II model have many resources
from which to choose. The same goes for the
Golden Age of Aviation, which generally
refers to the years between the two world
wars.
One of the best sources for a completely
documented aircraft is your local airport or an
airport that is within an hour or two by car.
Another great source is what I call
“cooperative museums”; these will let you
take close-up photos and cockpit shots for the
purpose of building a Scale model.
Some museums won’t allow you to take
pictures, but if you talk to the museum
manager, he or she will usually try to work
something out. Contact the facility well in
advance of your visit; don’t try it the day of
the visit and expect results.
Also, if you go to a museum, Thursdays
and Fridays are not good for photo shoots.
Stan Alexander, 3709 Valley Ridge Dr., Nashville TN 37211; E-mail: [email protected]
RADIO CONTROL SCALE
British Columbia resident Bill Pottage and his 1/5-scale Fairchild 24K.
Alfonso Calero designed and built his 1/4-
Russell Kuhn is looking for documentation on the Curtiss Robin. scale Demoiselle, shown on a flyby.
Those are usually field-trip days for regional
schools. I’ve run into this problem at the US
Air Force Museum in Dayton, Ohio.
Some modelers prefer to build models of
aircraft that actually flew and fought in the
war, whatever war that might be. They will
say, “The color scheme you see at most
museums and the gloss isn’t a real color
scheme that was used.”
Most of the time this argument won’t “fly”
and is from a modeler who doesn’t want to
have his model’s color scheme and markings
truly judged. If you are building a model of an
airplane you’ve documented, and that model
is a Corsair that has a gloss color scheme,
applying one to it is correct.
If you find an aircraft you want to build,
you should probably take at least two rolls of
film, or 48 shots, using an eight-point walk
around the aircraft, shooting the entire
airframe from both sides, both ends, and the
four quarter perspectives.
Use the next several photos to document
the landing gear, cowlings, engine, propeller,
windshield, and other details such as all of the
markings. You won’t use anywhere near all of
these pictures in your documentation, but
these are “building photos.” If you go to any
contest with a model and have only one photo
Scale modelers are constantly looking for documentation. Steve Ashby (Indianapolis
IN) photographs the cockpit of a Fokker Dr.I replica.
Tadeusz Januszewski’s Mitsubishi A5M
Claude, available from Squadron Mail
Order.
of the subject, you cannot expect to receive
high static scores unless you’re flying in Fun
Scale.
Another argument is that there is only one
photo of a particular aircraft. That may be
true, but surely there are other color schemes
of that aircraft or type of which several photos
or a photo pack is available. It just takes a
little work.
Several companies have made it their
business to provide modelers with good photo
packs and even three-views for model
construction. The latest addition to this
service includes digital photos for the
documentation packet. Some companies
include 35mm photos or have other articles
available.
Several businesses consist of Scale
modelers and understand the reasons for
having more photos than you actually need
for documentation in competition. These
companies include what you want and a little
more. It’s nice to get the complete packet on a
given aircraft.
Airborne Media has taken the art of
providing documentation to a new level. It sells
Aero-Pacs that include a disc with aircraft
specifications, a three-view drawing (possible
exploded view), and a complete walk-around
of the airplane.
Let’s say you want to build a WACO
YMF-5 or a P-51D Mustang. The photo packs
are out there and they are great to work with.
Airborne Media is sticking to the standards, or
more common aircraft now, but there will be
new releases in the future.
The P-51D Aero-Pac includes the threeview,
as they all do, pictures of the traditional
eight-point walk-around, 34 exterior photos
showing things such as rivet detail, and cockpit
and instrument-panel photos. Also supplied are
eight factory drawings showing construction
details.
Aero-Pacs are available for different
aircraft, including aerobatic types you see at
Scale fly-ins. The current selection is limited
but growing and features the A6M2 Zero, Patty
Wagstaff’s Extra 300S, the Cessna 182, Matt
Chapman’s CAP 231EX, the Piper J-3 Cub,
and the WACO YMF-5. Each package is
$15.95 plus $5 postage. Contact Airborne
Media for more information.
The most comprehensive catalog of fullscale
aviation photos and documentation is
Bob’s Aircraft Documentation, which sells for
$10. Bob Banka has thousands of Foto Paaks
available, and the catalog is considered a
reference for all aircraft documentation—fullscale
or model.
Bob has started publishing his catalog
biennially, so when you order yours this year,
hang on to it! He sells documentation packets
for or photos of airplanes, helicopters, bombs,
engines, etc.
I have mentioned other documentation
sources in this column, but there are a few from
the Internet too. Have you tried a search using
the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
“N” number of the aircraft for which you are
looking? It’s simple.
I selected two aircraft in the office that I
have a photo of and used their N numbers to
conduct a search. The first airplane I selected
was Howard’s Pete 1930s racer with the
number NR56Y.
I went to http://162.58.35.241/
acdatabase/NNumSQL.asp and searched for
56Y. In roughly two seconds that brought up
the FAA Registry for N-number inquiry
results. The aircraft is Serial Number 1, the
owner’s name is Kim A. Kovach, the model
replica is the Howard Ike, and the aircraft is a
fixed-wing, single-engine type. Also listed is
the owner’s address with street, city, and zip
code.
Next I looked up N2496A. I typed in
2496A for the search, and up popped Keith C.
Sibille’s name as the owner. The aircraft is a
Piper PA-18, the year of manufacture was
1952, and it is powered by a Lycoming 0-290
Series engine. Keith’s address is also listed.
Around Scale: Some of you out there have
been busy! Bill Pottage of British Columbia
built a beautiful Fairchild 24K from an Ikon
N’wst kit. The 1/5-scale model is powered by a
Saito 120 four-stroke engine with a 16 x 6
propeller. It weighs 16 pounds and is covered
with 21st Century Fabric. The full-scale
aircraft has been at Oshkosh, Wisconsin,
several times.
Alfonso Calero of Port Saint Lucie,
Florida, has designed and built a 1/4-scale
Demoiselle. The original ultralight aircraft has
a wingspan of 84 inches and is powered by an
Enya 91FS engine. The covering is from
Coverite.
Alfonso handmade the wheels and tires.
He purchased the materials at Wal-Mart, using
blanks for the wheels and 90-pound steel
fishing-line leaders. If you want to build the
model, Alfonso says to be sure you use hard
wood for the fuselage construction, including
all of the sticks. Nice job!
Russell Kuhn is seeking documentation for
the Curtiss Robin that is shown. The company
that owns the rights to the historical
information about the full-scale aircraft won’t
release any of it. If you have any information
for Russell, write to him at 8217 W. 300 S.,
Columbus IN 47201.
Bookshelf: Mitsubishi A5M Claude (series
No. 6107) was written by Polish author
Tadeusz Januszewski and published by
Mushroom Model Publications. This softcover
book (ISBN 83-917178-0-1) is packed
with information about an aircraft type we
don’t see modeled too often, even though
there are plans available for it.
This volume includes scale views and
color plates for the side and top, and it features
several variants of the aircraft—many more
than I realized. The different types include the
A5M1, the A5M2, the inline A5M3, the
A5M4, and the A5M4-K (two-seat trainer). It
also includes 27 pages of color plates, some of
which include the top view of the aircraft.
The book contains the A5M’s operational
history. It was the first low-wing, carrier-borne
fighter in the Japanese arsenal. The type
originally incorporated gull wings similar to
the Corsair’s, but it didn’t use retracts. If
you’re looking for something different, model
the A5M. You won’t find another one at the
local field!
Mitsubishi A5M Claude is $17.96 plus
shipping. It is available from Squadron Mail
Order, 1115 Crowley Dr., Carrollton TX
75011. You can order by telephone at (972)
242-8663 or at www.squadron.com.
Fair skies and tailwinds. MA
Sources:
Airborne Media
7414 Burton Dr.
Liberty Township OH 45044
(888) 829-4060
www.airbornemedia.com
Bob’s Aircraft Documentation
3114 Yukon Ave.
Costa Mesa CA 92626
(714) 979-8058
Fax: (714) 979-7279
www.bobsairdoc.com
Ikon N’wst
3012 N. Altamont
Spokane WA 99207
(800) 717-4508
www.ikonnwst.com
Edition: Model Aviation - 2005/06
Page Numbers: 106,107,108,109
Edition: Model Aviation - 2005/06
Page Numbers: 106,107,108,109
106 MODEL AVIATION
I OFTEN RECEIVE requests from
modelers who can’t find information about a
certain aircraft or plans and documentation.
Many times they don’t know where to look,
other times they don’t have the time, and
there are various other reasons.
But fear not! In this issue I am going to
take you as far as I can on an odyssey of the
who, what, when, and where to find scale
documentation for anything from a Fun Scale
model that needs one photo to a World
Championships Scale model that needs 10
pages of documentation.
Where do you start? There are almost as
many avenues to go down as there are pages
in this magazine. Modelers who are looking
for a color scheme on a World War I or
World War II model have many resources
from which to choose. The same goes for the
Golden Age of Aviation, which generally
refers to the years between the two world
wars.
One of the best sources for a completely
documented aircraft is your local airport or an
airport that is within an hour or two by car.
Another great source is what I call
“cooperative museums”; these will let you
take close-up photos and cockpit shots for the
purpose of building a Scale model.
Some museums won’t allow you to take
pictures, but if you talk to the museum
manager, he or she will usually try to work
something out. Contact the facility well in
advance of your visit; don’t try it the day of
the visit and expect results.
Also, if you go to a museum, Thursdays
and Fridays are not good for photo shoots.
Stan Alexander, 3709 Valley Ridge Dr., Nashville TN 37211; E-mail: [email protected]
RADIO CONTROL SCALE
British Columbia resident Bill Pottage and his 1/5-scale Fairchild 24K.
Alfonso Calero designed and built his 1/4-
Russell Kuhn is looking for documentation on the Curtiss Robin. scale Demoiselle, shown on a flyby.
Those are usually field-trip days for regional
schools. I’ve run into this problem at the US
Air Force Museum in Dayton, Ohio.
Some modelers prefer to build models of
aircraft that actually flew and fought in the
war, whatever war that might be. They will
say, “The color scheme you see at most
museums and the gloss isn’t a real color
scheme that was used.”
Most of the time this argument won’t “fly”
and is from a modeler who doesn’t want to
have his model’s color scheme and markings
truly judged. If you are building a model of an
airplane you’ve documented, and that model
is a Corsair that has a gloss color scheme,
applying one to it is correct.
If you find an aircraft you want to build,
you should probably take at least two rolls of
film, or 48 shots, using an eight-point walk
around the aircraft, shooting the entire
airframe from both sides, both ends, and the
four quarter perspectives.
Use the next several photos to document
the landing gear, cowlings, engine, propeller,
windshield, and other details such as all of the
markings. You won’t use anywhere near all of
these pictures in your documentation, but
these are “building photos.” If you go to any
contest with a model and have only one photo
Scale modelers are constantly looking for documentation. Steve Ashby (Indianapolis
IN) photographs the cockpit of a Fokker Dr.I replica.
Tadeusz Januszewski’s Mitsubishi A5M
Claude, available from Squadron Mail
Order.
of the subject, you cannot expect to receive
high static scores unless you’re flying in Fun
Scale.
Another argument is that there is only one
photo of a particular aircraft. That may be
true, but surely there are other color schemes
of that aircraft or type of which several photos
or a photo pack is available. It just takes a
little work.
Several companies have made it their
business to provide modelers with good photo
packs and even three-views for model
construction. The latest addition to this
service includes digital photos for the
documentation packet. Some companies
include 35mm photos or have other articles
available.
Several businesses consist of Scale
modelers and understand the reasons for
having more photos than you actually need
for documentation in competition. These
companies include what you want and a little
more. It’s nice to get the complete packet on a
given aircraft.
Airborne Media has taken the art of
providing documentation to a new level. It sells
Aero-Pacs that include a disc with aircraft
specifications, a three-view drawing (possible
exploded view), and a complete walk-around
of the airplane.
Let’s say you want to build a WACO
YMF-5 or a P-51D Mustang. The photo packs
are out there and they are great to work with.
Airborne Media is sticking to the standards, or
more common aircraft now, but there will be
new releases in the future.
The P-51D Aero-Pac includes the threeview,
as they all do, pictures of the traditional
eight-point walk-around, 34 exterior photos
showing things such as rivet detail, and cockpit
and instrument-panel photos. Also supplied are
eight factory drawings showing construction
details.
Aero-Pacs are available for different
aircraft, including aerobatic types you see at
Scale fly-ins. The current selection is limited
but growing and features the A6M2 Zero, Patty
Wagstaff’s Extra 300S, the Cessna 182, Matt
Chapman’s CAP 231EX, the Piper J-3 Cub,
and the WACO YMF-5. Each package is
$15.95 plus $5 postage. Contact Airborne
Media for more information.
The most comprehensive catalog of fullscale
aviation photos and documentation is
Bob’s Aircraft Documentation, which sells for
$10. Bob Banka has thousands of Foto Paaks
available, and the catalog is considered a
reference for all aircraft documentation—fullscale
or model.
Bob has started publishing his catalog
biennially, so when you order yours this year,
hang on to it! He sells documentation packets
for or photos of airplanes, helicopters, bombs,
engines, etc.
I have mentioned other documentation
sources in this column, but there are a few from
the Internet too. Have you tried a search using
the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
“N” number of the aircraft for which you are
looking? It’s simple.
I selected two aircraft in the office that I
have a photo of and used their N numbers to
conduct a search. The first airplane I selected
was Howard’s Pete 1930s racer with the
number NR56Y.
I went to http://162.58.35.241/
acdatabase/NNumSQL.asp and searched for
56Y. In roughly two seconds that brought up
the FAA Registry for N-number inquiry
results. The aircraft is Serial Number 1, the
owner’s name is Kim A. Kovach, the model
replica is the Howard Ike, and the aircraft is a
fixed-wing, single-engine type. Also listed is
the owner’s address with street, city, and zip
code.
Next I looked up N2496A. I typed in
2496A for the search, and up popped Keith C.
Sibille’s name as the owner. The aircraft is a
Piper PA-18, the year of manufacture was
1952, and it is powered by a Lycoming 0-290
Series engine. Keith’s address is also listed.
Around Scale: Some of you out there have
been busy! Bill Pottage of British Columbia
built a beautiful Fairchild 24K from an Ikon
N’wst kit. The 1/5-scale model is powered by a
Saito 120 four-stroke engine with a 16 x 6
propeller. It weighs 16 pounds and is covered
with 21st Century Fabric. The full-scale
aircraft has been at Oshkosh, Wisconsin,
several times.
Alfonso Calero of Port Saint Lucie,
Florida, has designed and built a 1/4-scale
Demoiselle. The original ultralight aircraft has
a wingspan of 84 inches and is powered by an
Enya 91FS engine. The covering is from
Coverite.
Alfonso handmade the wheels and tires.
He purchased the materials at Wal-Mart, using
blanks for the wheels and 90-pound steel
fishing-line leaders. If you want to build the
model, Alfonso says to be sure you use hard
wood for the fuselage construction, including
all of the sticks. Nice job!
Russell Kuhn is seeking documentation for
the Curtiss Robin that is shown. The company
that owns the rights to the historical
information about the full-scale aircraft won’t
release any of it. If you have any information
for Russell, write to him at 8217 W. 300 S.,
Columbus IN 47201.
Bookshelf: Mitsubishi A5M Claude (series
No. 6107) was written by Polish author
Tadeusz Januszewski and published by
Mushroom Model Publications. This softcover
book (ISBN 83-917178-0-1) is packed
with information about an aircraft type we
don’t see modeled too often, even though
there are plans available for it.
This volume includes scale views and
color plates for the side and top, and it features
several variants of the aircraft—many more
than I realized. The different types include the
A5M1, the A5M2, the inline A5M3, the
A5M4, and the A5M4-K (two-seat trainer). It
also includes 27 pages of color plates, some of
which include the top view of the aircraft.
The book contains the A5M’s operational
history. It was the first low-wing, carrier-borne
fighter in the Japanese arsenal. The type
originally incorporated gull wings similar to
the Corsair’s, but it didn’t use retracts. If
you’re looking for something different, model
the A5M. You won’t find another one at the
local field!
Mitsubishi A5M Claude is $17.96 plus
shipping. It is available from Squadron Mail
Order, 1115 Crowley Dr., Carrollton TX
75011. You can order by telephone at (972)
242-8663 or at www.squadron.com.
Fair skies and tailwinds. MA
Sources:
Airborne Media
7414 Burton Dr.
Liberty Township OH 45044
(888) 829-4060
www.airbornemedia.com
Bob’s Aircraft Documentation
3114 Yukon Ave.
Costa Mesa CA 92626
(714) 979-8058
Fax: (714) 979-7279
www.bobsairdoc.com
Ikon N’wst
3012 N. Altamont
Spokane WA 99207
(800) 717-4508
www.ikonnwst.com
Edition: Model Aviation - 2005/06
Page Numbers: 106,107,108,109
106 MODEL AVIATION
I OFTEN RECEIVE requests from
modelers who can’t find information about a
certain aircraft or plans and documentation.
Many times they don’t know where to look,
other times they don’t have the time, and
there are various other reasons.
But fear not! In this issue I am going to
take you as far as I can on an odyssey of the
who, what, when, and where to find scale
documentation for anything from a Fun Scale
model that needs one photo to a World
Championships Scale model that needs 10
pages of documentation.
Where do you start? There are almost as
many avenues to go down as there are pages
in this magazine. Modelers who are looking
for a color scheme on a World War I or
World War II model have many resources
from which to choose. The same goes for the
Golden Age of Aviation, which generally
refers to the years between the two world
wars.
One of the best sources for a completely
documented aircraft is your local airport or an
airport that is within an hour or two by car.
Another great source is what I call
“cooperative museums”; these will let you
take close-up photos and cockpit shots for the
purpose of building a Scale model.
Some museums won’t allow you to take
pictures, but if you talk to the museum
manager, he or she will usually try to work
something out. Contact the facility well in
advance of your visit; don’t try it the day of
the visit and expect results.
Also, if you go to a museum, Thursdays
and Fridays are not good for photo shoots.
Stan Alexander, 3709 Valley Ridge Dr., Nashville TN 37211; E-mail: [email protected]
RADIO CONTROL SCALE
British Columbia resident Bill Pottage and his 1/5-scale Fairchild 24K.
Alfonso Calero designed and built his 1/4-
Russell Kuhn is looking for documentation on the Curtiss Robin. scale Demoiselle, shown on a flyby.
Those are usually field-trip days for regional
schools. I’ve run into this problem at the US
Air Force Museum in Dayton, Ohio.
Some modelers prefer to build models of
aircraft that actually flew and fought in the
war, whatever war that might be. They will
say, “The color scheme you see at most
museums and the gloss isn’t a real color
scheme that was used.”
Most of the time this argument won’t “fly”
and is from a modeler who doesn’t want to
have his model’s color scheme and markings
truly judged. If you are building a model of an
airplane you’ve documented, and that model
is a Corsair that has a gloss color scheme,
applying one to it is correct.
If you find an aircraft you want to build,
you should probably take at least two rolls of
film, or 48 shots, using an eight-point walk
around the aircraft, shooting the entire
airframe from both sides, both ends, and the
four quarter perspectives.
Use the next several photos to document
the landing gear, cowlings, engine, propeller,
windshield, and other details such as all of the
markings. You won’t use anywhere near all of
these pictures in your documentation, but
these are “building photos.” If you go to any
contest with a model and have only one photo
Scale modelers are constantly looking for documentation. Steve Ashby (Indianapolis
IN) photographs the cockpit of a Fokker Dr.I replica.
Tadeusz Januszewski’s Mitsubishi A5M
Claude, available from Squadron Mail
Order.
of the subject, you cannot expect to receive
high static scores unless you’re flying in Fun
Scale.
Another argument is that there is only one
photo of a particular aircraft. That may be
true, but surely there are other color schemes
of that aircraft or type of which several photos
or a photo pack is available. It just takes a
little work.
Several companies have made it their
business to provide modelers with good photo
packs and even three-views for model
construction. The latest addition to this
service includes digital photos for the
documentation packet. Some companies
include 35mm photos or have other articles
available.
Several businesses consist of Scale
modelers and understand the reasons for
having more photos than you actually need
for documentation in competition. These
companies include what you want and a little
more. It’s nice to get the complete packet on a
given aircraft.
Airborne Media has taken the art of
providing documentation to a new level. It sells
Aero-Pacs that include a disc with aircraft
specifications, a three-view drawing (possible
exploded view), and a complete walk-around
of the airplane.
Let’s say you want to build a WACO
YMF-5 or a P-51D Mustang. The photo packs
are out there and they are great to work with.
Airborne Media is sticking to the standards, or
more common aircraft now, but there will be
new releases in the future.
The P-51D Aero-Pac includes the threeview,
as they all do, pictures of the traditional
eight-point walk-around, 34 exterior photos
showing things such as rivet detail, and cockpit
and instrument-panel photos. Also supplied are
eight factory drawings showing construction
details.
Aero-Pacs are available for different
aircraft, including aerobatic types you see at
Scale fly-ins. The current selection is limited
but growing and features the A6M2 Zero, Patty
Wagstaff’s Extra 300S, the Cessna 182, Matt
Chapman’s CAP 231EX, the Piper J-3 Cub,
and the WACO YMF-5. Each package is
$15.95 plus $5 postage. Contact Airborne
Media for more information.
The most comprehensive catalog of fullscale
aviation photos and documentation is
Bob’s Aircraft Documentation, which sells for
$10. Bob Banka has thousands of Foto Paaks
available, and the catalog is considered a
reference for all aircraft documentation—fullscale
or model.
Bob has started publishing his catalog
biennially, so when you order yours this year,
hang on to it! He sells documentation packets
for or photos of airplanes, helicopters, bombs,
engines, etc.
I have mentioned other documentation
sources in this column, but there are a few from
the Internet too. Have you tried a search using
the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
“N” number of the aircraft for which you are
looking? It’s simple.
I selected two aircraft in the office that I
have a photo of and used their N numbers to
conduct a search. The first airplane I selected
was Howard’s Pete 1930s racer with the
number NR56Y.
I went to http://162.58.35.241/
acdatabase/NNumSQL.asp and searched for
56Y. In roughly two seconds that brought up
the FAA Registry for N-number inquiry
results. The aircraft is Serial Number 1, the
owner’s name is Kim A. Kovach, the model
replica is the Howard Ike, and the aircraft is a
fixed-wing, single-engine type. Also listed is
the owner’s address with street, city, and zip
code.
Next I looked up N2496A. I typed in
2496A for the search, and up popped Keith C.
Sibille’s name as the owner. The aircraft is a
Piper PA-18, the year of manufacture was
1952, and it is powered by a Lycoming 0-290
Series engine. Keith’s address is also listed.
Around Scale: Some of you out there have
been busy! Bill Pottage of British Columbia
built a beautiful Fairchild 24K from an Ikon
N’wst kit. The 1/5-scale model is powered by a
Saito 120 four-stroke engine with a 16 x 6
propeller. It weighs 16 pounds and is covered
with 21st Century Fabric. The full-scale
aircraft has been at Oshkosh, Wisconsin,
several times.
Alfonso Calero of Port Saint Lucie,
Florida, has designed and built a 1/4-scale
Demoiselle. The original ultralight aircraft has
a wingspan of 84 inches and is powered by an
Enya 91FS engine. The covering is from
Coverite.
Alfonso handmade the wheels and tires.
He purchased the materials at Wal-Mart, using
blanks for the wheels and 90-pound steel
fishing-line leaders. If you want to build the
model, Alfonso says to be sure you use hard
wood for the fuselage construction, including
all of the sticks. Nice job!
Russell Kuhn is seeking documentation for
the Curtiss Robin that is shown. The company
that owns the rights to the historical
information about the full-scale aircraft won’t
release any of it. If you have any information
for Russell, write to him at 8217 W. 300 S.,
Columbus IN 47201.
Bookshelf: Mitsubishi A5M Claude (series
No. 6107) was written by Polish author
Tadeusz Januszewski and published by
Mushroom Model Publications. This softcover
book (ISBN 83-917178-0-1) is packed
with information about an aircraft type we
don’t see modeled too often, even though
there are plans available for it.
This volume includes scale views and
color plates for the side and top, and it features
several variants of the aircraft—many more
than I realized. The different types include the
A5M1, the A5M2, the inline A5M3, the
A5M4, and the A5M4-K (two-seat trainer). It
also includes 27 pages of color plates, some of
which include the top view of the aircraft.
The book contains the A5M’s operational
history. It was the first low-wing, carrier-borne
fighter in the Japanese arsenal. The type
originally incorporated gull wings similar to
the Corsair’s, but it didn’t use retracts. If
you’re looking for something different, model
the A5M. You won’t find another one at the
local field!
Mitsubishi A5M Claude is $17.96 plus
shipping. It is available from Squadron Mail
Order, 1115 Crowley Dr., Carrollton TX
75011. You can order by telephone at (972)
242-8663 or at www.squadron.com.
Fair skies and tailwinds. MA
Sources:
Airborne Media
7414 Burton Dr.
Liberty Township OH 45044
(888) 829-4060
www.airbornemedia.com
Bob’s Aircraft Documentation
3114 Yukon Ave.
Costa Mesa CA 92626
(714) 979-8058
Fax: (714) 979-7279
www.bobsairdoc.com
Ikon N’wst
3012 N. Altamont
Spokane WA 99207
(800) 717-4508
www.ikonnwst.com
Edition: Model Aviation - 2005/06
Page Numbers: 106,107,108,109
106 MODEL AVIATION
I OFTEN RECEIVE requests from
modelers who can’t find information about a
certain aircraft or plans and documentation.
Many times they don’t know where to look,
other times they don’t have the time, and
there are various other reasons.
But fear not! In this issue I am going to
take you as far as I can on an odyssey of the
who, what, when, and where to find scale
documentation for anything from a Fun Scale
model that needs one photo to a World
Championships Scale model that needs 10
pages of documentation.
Where do you start? There are almost as
many avenues to go down as there are pages
in this magazine. Modelers who are looking
for a color scheme on a World War I or
World War II model have many resources
from which to choose. The same goes for the
Golden Age of Aviation, which generally
refers to the years between the two world
wars.
One of the best sources for a completely
documented aircraft is your local airport or an
airport that is within an hour or two by car.
Another great source is what I call
“cooperative museums”; these will let you
take close-up photos and cockpit shots for the
purpose of building a Scale model.
Some museums won’t allow you to take
pictures, but if you talk to the museum
manager, he or she will usually try to work
something out. Contact the facility well in
advance of your visit; don’t try it the day of
the visit and expect results.
Also, if you go to a museum, Thursdays
and Fridays are not good for photo shoots.
Stan Alexander, 3709 Valley Ridge Dr., Nashville TN 37211; E-mail: [email protected]
RADIO CONTROL SCALE
British Columbia resident Bill Pottage and his 1/5-scale Fairchild 24K.
Alfonso Calero designed and built his 1/4-
Russell Kuhn is looking for documentation on the Curtiss Robin. scale Demoiselle, shown on a flyby.
Those are usually field-trip days for regional
schools. I’ve run into this problem at the US
Air Force Museum in Dayton, Ohio.
Some modelers prefer to build models of
aircraft that actually flew and fought in the
war, whatever war that might be. They will
say, “The color scheme you see at most
museums and the gloss isn’t a real color
scheme that was used.”
Most of the time this argument won’t “fly”
and is from a modeler who doesn’t want to
have his model’s color scheme and markings
truly judged. If you are building a model of an
airplane you’ve documented, and that model
is a Corsair that has a gloss color scheme,
applying one to it is correct.
If you find an aircraft you want to build,
you should probably take at least two rolls of
film, or 48 shots, using an eight-point walk
around the aircraft, shooting the entire
airframe from both sides, both ends, and the
four quarter perspectives.
Use the next several photos to document
the landing gear, cowlings, engine, propeller,
windshield, and other details such as all of the
markings. You won’t use anywhere near all of
these pictures in your documentation, but
these are “building photos.” If you go to any
contest with a model and have only one photo
Scale modelers are constantly looking for documentation. Steve Ashby (Indianapolis
IN) photographs the cockpit of a Fokker Dr.I replica.
Tadeusz Januszewski’s Mitsubishi A5M
Claude, available from Squadron Mail
Order.
of the subject, you cannot expect to receive
high static scores unless you’re flying in Fun
Scale.
Another argument is that there is only one
photo of a particular aircraft. That may be
true, but surely there are other color schemes
of that aircraft or type of which several photos
or a photo pack is available. It just takes a
little work.
Several companies have made it their
business to provide modelers with good photo
packs and even three-views for model
construction. The latest addition to this
service includes digital photos for the
documentation packet. Some companies
include 35mm photos or have other articles
available.
Several businesses consist of Scale
modelers and understand the reasons for
having more photos than you actually need
for documentation in competition. These
companies include what you want and a little
more. It’s nice to get the complete packet on a
given aircraft.
Airborne Media has taken the art of
providing documentation to a new level. It sells
Aero-Pacs that include a disc with aircraft
specifications, a three-view drawing (possible
exploded view), and a complete walk-around
of the airplane.
Let’s say you want to build a WACO
YMF-5 or a P-51D Mustang. The photo packs
are out there and they are great to work with.
Airborne Media is sticking to the standards, or
more common aircraft now, but there will be
new releases in the future.
The P-51D Aero-Pac includes the threeview,
as they all do, pictures of the traditional
eight-point walk-around, 34 exterior photos
showing things such as rivet detail, and cockpit
and instrument-panel photos. Also supplied are
eight factory drawings showing construction
details.
Aero-Pacs are available for different
aircraft, including aerobatic types you see at
Scale fly-ins. The current selection is limited
but growing and features the A6M2 Zero, Patty
Wagstaff’s Extra 300S, the Cessna 182, Matt
Chapman’s CAP 231EX, the Piper J-3 Cub,
and the WACO YMF-5. Each package is
$15.95 plus $5 postage. Contact Airborne
Media for more information.
The most comprehensive catalog of fullscale
aviation photos and documentation is
Bob’s Aircraft Documentation, which sells for
$10. Bob Banka has thousands of Foto Paaks
available, and the catalog is considered a
reference for all aircraft documentation—fullscale
or model.
Bob has started publishing his catalog
biennially, so when you order yours this year,
hang on to it! He sells documentation packets
for or photos of airplanes, helicopters, bombs,
engines, etc.
I have mentioned other documentation
sources in this column, but there are a few from
the Internet too. Have you tried a search using
the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
“N” number of the aircraft for which you are
looking? It’s simple.
I selected two aircraft in the office that I
have a photo of and used their N numbers to
conduct a search. The first airplane I selected
was Howard’s Pete 1930s racer with the
number NR56Y.
I went to http://162.58.35.241/
acdatabase/NNumSQL.asp and searched for
56Y. In roughly two seconds that brought up
the FAA Registry for N-number inquiry
results. The aircraft is Serial Number 1, the
owner’s name is Kim A. Kovach, the model
replica is the Howard Ike, and the aircraft is a
fixed-wing, single-engine type. Also listed is
the owner’s address with street, city, and zip
code.
Next I looked up N2496A. I typed in
2496A for the search, and up popped Keith C.
Sibille’s name as the owner. The aircraft is a
Piper PA-18, the year of manufacture was
1952, and it is powered by a Lycoming 0-290
Series engine. Keith’s address is also listed.
Around Scale: Some of you out there have
been busy! Bill Pottage of British Columbia
built a beautiful Fairchild 24K from an Ikon
N’wst kit. The 1/5-scale model is powered by a
Saito 120 four-stroke engine with a 16 x 6
propeller. It weighs 16 pounds and is covered
with 21st Century Fabric. The full-scale
aircraft has been at Oshkosh, Wisconsin,
several times.
Alfonso Calero of Port Saint Lucie,
Florida, has designed and built a 1/4-scale
Demoiselle. The original ultralight aircraft has
a wingspan of 84 inches and is powered by an
Enya 91FS engine. The covering is from
Coverite.
Alfonso handmade the wheels and tires.
He purchased the materials at Wal-Mart, using
blanks for the wheels and 90-pound steel
fishing-line leaders. If you want to build the
model, Alfonso says to be sure you use hard
wood for the fuselage construction, including
all of the sticks. Nice job!
Russell Kuhn is seeking documentation for
the Curtiss Robin that is shown. The company
that owns the rights to the historical
information about the full-scale aircraft won’t
release any of it. If you have any information
for Russell, write to him at 8217 W. 300 S.,
Columbus IN 47201.
Bookshelf: Mitsubishi A5M Claude (series
No. 6107) was written by Polish author
Tadeusz Januszewski and published by
Mushroom Model Publications. This softcover
book (ISBN 83-917178-0-1) is packed
with information about an aircraft type we
don’t see modeled too often, even though
there are plans available for it.
This volume includes scale views and
color plates for the side and top, and it features
several variants of the aircraft—many more
than I realized. The different types include the
A5M1, the A5M2, the inline A5M3, the
A5M4, and the A5M4-K (two-seat trainer). It
also includes 27 pages of color plates, some of
which include the top view of the aircraft.
The book contains the A5M’s operational
history. It was the first low-wing, carrier-borne
fighter in the Japanese arsenal. The type
originally incorporated gull wings similar to
the Corsair’s, but it didn’t use retracts. If
you’re looking for something different, model
the A5M. You won’t find another one at the
local field!
Mitsubishi A5M Claude is $17.96 plus
shipping. It is available from Squadron Mail
Order, 1115 Crowley Dr., Carrollton TX
75011. You can order by telephone at (972)
242-8663 or at www.squadron.com.
Fair skies and tailwinds. MA
Sources:
Airborne Media
7414 Burton Dr.
Liberty Township OH 45044
(888) 829-4060
www.airbornemedia.com
Bob’s Aircraft Documentation
3114 Yukon Ave.
Costa Mesa CA 92626
(714) 979-8058
Fax: (714) 979-7279
www.bobsairdoc.com
Ikon N’wst
3012 N. Altamont
Spokane WA 99207
(800) 717-4508
www.ikonnwst.com