1/48 Brewster Buffalo Mk. 1
453
Squadron, Singapore
By Tony Mollica
The RAAF operated 2 squadrons of Brewster Buffalos in Singapore,
alongside a single squadron operated by the RNZAF. The two Australian
Squadrons, 21 and 453 lost many aircraft on the ground but acquitted
themselves well during air combat against a numerically and materially
superior enemy. The aircraft that is the subject of this article, TD-F,
was flown by F/O 'Mac' Read, who rammed an Oscar after expending all
of his ammunition, and was subsequently killed.
This is the first aircraft type used operationally by 453 Squadron, and
is also the first built in my ‘Aircraft of 453 Squadron’ theme.
There will also be a Spitfire Vb, Spitfire VII, Spitfire IX, Spitfire
XIV and Spitfire XVI to complete the theme.
The base kit for this conversion is the old Tamiya F2A-2 Buffalo in it's
1993 release which doesn't include the parts required to build a British
specification Mk 1 machine. A number of aftermarket products have been
used, as well as a significant amount of scratchbuilding, to convert
and superdetail this model.
Brand |
Product |
Tamiya |
Brewster F2A-2 Buffalo |
Eduard |
Etched Brass Detail Set |
Extratech |
Seatbelts and buckles |
Tamiya |
Supermarine Spitfire Mk Vb (1 part only)
|
Waldron |
Cockpit Placard Set |
Red Roo |
Buffalo Mk 1 Conversion set |
Aeromaster |
48-039 Brewster Buffalo Decal set |
Markings
It was painted according to profiles in the Red Roo book using colours
recommended in same. Refer to colours recommended on page 40-41 of
'Buffalo Down Under'. Note that Gary Byk proposes a number of possible
colour matches for the light grey undersurface colour. I too have selected
'light gray' FS36493 as a likely choice, based on his recommendation.
The following colours have been used:
Model Colour |
U.S. Colour Match |
Federal Standard Colour Approximation |
Model Paint Used |
Uppersurface Brown |
ANA 617 |
FS 30118 |
Xtracolor |
Uppersurface Green |
Medium Green 42 |
FS 34092 |
Humbrol |
Undersurface Light Grey |
Light Gray |
FS 36493 |
Humbrol |
Undersurface Black |
Not applicable |
Not required |
Humbrol |
Refer to the colour images adjacent to page 96 and the camouflage diagram
on page 90 of 'Buffalo Down Under' for details of the scheme shown.
Decals
Decals from Aeromaster sheet 48-039 for Brewster Buffalo were used. Note
that the only photo of this aircraft that I know of is the third aircraft
in line in the squadron line up in the top left corner of page 28 of
'Buffalo In Action'.
This model was built prior to the Red Roo decal for this aircraft being
released. A complete description of the work undertaken on this
model can be found in the ‘Hints and Tips’ section of the
Red Roo Models website.
Any comments please email me at t_mollica@hotmail.com |
