Vichy French Hawk - 1/48th Hobbycraft Hawk 75 (P-36)

This 1/48th Hobbycraft Hawk 75 kit was originally released in 1992 as a P-36 "Pearl Harbour Defender" and then later in the "Hawk" variants representing several world nation markings. The kit is a good starting point for a Hawk 75 (or P-36) and with a bit of work can be a real gem for a bargain kit.

Notable Kit Features:

• Basic cockpit

• Finely engraved panel lines and surface details

• Basic engine with two cylinder rows

• Multi-part glass can be displayed open or closed

• Optional propeller hubs, exhausts and pitot tubes provided
  

Build Inspiration:

The Hawk aircraft was one of the few fighters available to the Allies in the early days of WWII. The aircraft served in many theaters, under various country's markings (British Commonwealth, China, Finland, France, United States to name a few) which is what makes it such a great aircraft type to model. In this case, I decided on a Vichy French Marking Hawk to cover this unusual chapter in my model aircraft collection.

Heads-Up Report:

• The fit of the kit is generally good with the exception of the tail wheel

• The engine sits too deep in the cowling, causing the prop to hit either the cowl or the machine guns

• Flash and ejector pin marks in some visible areas
  

Kit Additions / Modifications:

• Used 3rd party cockpit replacement

• Moved engine 2 mm forward in cowl to avoid propeller contact with cowl issue

• Cut out flaps and dropped them to add detail
  

Finishing:

I selected the markings of French Ace Camille Plubeau (14 Victories) in later war Vichy French markings (Red / Yellow cowl and tail). Paint finish was in the standard French camouflage using FS 35164 French Blue / FS 34127 French Green / FS 30045 French Brown over FS 36230 Gray. The paint was weathered using a salt method, however the paint went on a bit too wet causing salt stains in some areas (which ended up looking alright as it appeared to me as heavily weathered).

The After-Build Report:

The 1/48th Hobbycraft Hawk 75 kit is a decent budget model that builds up into a nice display aircraft. I was pleased with the end result and would recommend the kit to model makers of any skill. It is a simple build, if you want to leave it at that, or with some extra detailing, can be a great display model. I plan to build more of these Hawks, if I find one again as I would like one in Finnish markings. (This kit plastic has been more recently re-released under the Academy brand.)

Completed build #165 in August 2013 using the 1/48th scale Hobbycraft #1415 kit

Feel free to comment or ask any questions - Keep on building, gain experience, challenge yourself if you like, but try not to stress yourself out over the build - it is suppose to be an enjoyable hobby after all - Cheers