This is the story of a modeling mistake that I turned into a very rare model, perhaps one of the least known versions of the P-38 Lightning, the Pathfinder Radar. Very few of these were converted in the field, and they participated in the final stages of the war in Europe, in such an irregular state that none ever saw service in a regular combat unit.
One of the strangest P-38s was the F-5G of the Costa Rican Air Force, one of only two aircraft operated by that service. I intended to assemble it to expand my collection of Latin American aircraft. To do so, I was going to use one of my incomplete models, the kind I used in my shop for spare parts for my customers. It was very incomplete.
Construction began, and the first thing was to see what I was missing. The most important parts were a complete boom, the canopy, the cockpit, propellers, and a lot more.
I assembled the main parts; the first piece to replace was the boom, which I built with a core of strips of branches. I achieved the shape by sculpting it with epoxy clay, as well as the nose.
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| Here's where the mistake happened: I put the windows up, the Costa Rican had them down. |
Once built and left to dry, I applied a coat of paint to detect gaps.
The construction of the front of the engine
Now for the badges, step by step, from the guide
And I'll finish with the propeller and the minor details
The final details and it's ready.
