Ghibli: Pig Fight over the Adriatic (Savoia S.21 x Curtiss R3C-0)

This might look like the end... but it's a beginning. I could just repaint these two and call it a day... but what's the fun in that? 

Let's break it on down... strip the paint, and we'll need a brand new wing/tail. 

There... that should work. 

The underside also needs to be extended... first, let's glue on some plastic rod. 

Then file/sand to match the shape. The shadows are a bit more pronounced on the white extensions, but it looks pretty close to me. 

We also need to move the cockpit back, so a bit of plastic tube provides the fuselage cover. Hated to cover up the little chair, but there was no way to remove it without destroying it, and once we stick a pig in there... no one will know the difference! 

The Curtiss doesn't need as much work, but I do want to thin the struts a bit... they're HUGE! 

The engine also needs some modifications... 

Engine modified... cockpit moved... new wings... new tail... this is coming together! 

Drilled some holes for the engine... 

And it needs some adjustment, but the proof of concept seems to be there. 

It's a bit loose, but good enough for now. 

Now to get started on the R3C... needs a bit of work. 

First I thinned down the massive leg struts and then added some wire as the cross pieces. 

Lots of sanding and I can reassemble the fuselage. 

A couple of small additions to be made. 

I believe that’s it for scratchbuilt parts. Let’s get some paint on them and see where we’re at. 

A bit of white paint to start... oh, look! All the mistakes! 

Before we get too far into the painting though, let's try a bit of proof-of-concept for the blower. 

To get the wind to blow in the right direction though, we need a scoop... and a hole! 

All sealed up...now to test it... 

The prop is spinning. success! 

A bit of silicone mixed with clear blue/green Tamiya acrylic paint, some aluminium foil and a bit of cotton... 

Yeah... now I can see it. 

Masking... Round 1 

Masking... Round 2 

Wooohhh... NOW they look familiar! 

With the decals on, they look even better. I can’t believe the white masking actually worked. 

Pilots, props painted... clouds fluffed... we're just in need of a bit of fire and we're all set!