Help from a Wildcat expert

[wingman68]

I am playing around with the idea for my Pacific diarama, I am thinking about scratch building in timber,fibreglass and plywood the cock pit section of a Wildcat, set against the Carrier conning tower that will be painted on my garage wall, then I can plonk my Pilot Dummy in it with all his gear and display my other odds and sodds around it, building it I think will fairly straight forward but I would need some basic dimensions or even a good drawing of the front bulkhead, screen and canopy, seat design and the rear bulkhead immediately behind the seat, and also a real good shot of a cockpit, it wont be 100 percent accurate its just I think it would look great and add to the collection something that is different, any Cat experts among us?

[tar00]

Here are a couple cockpit photos. Scroll down to F4F

 

http://uscockpits.com/F-L.html

 

Not the greatest but hopefully a help

[Bluehawk]

Here are a couple cockpit photos. Scroll down to F4F

 

http://uscockpits.com/F-L.html

 

Not the greatest but hopefully a help

The one on the left... but, I'm no expert.

 

If it were me, I'd ask the Museum of Naval Aviation for guidance to the cockpit specs, drawings, and/or photos.

 

Link:

http://homepage.mac.com/hiwaybk/Panama_Cit...otoAlbum14.html

[The Meatcan]

this sounds like it could very cool! I will definitely be looking forward to seeing the finished product. Good luck!

[R Leonard]

go here

 

http://warbirdinformationexchange.org/phpB...p=229387#229387

 

a lot of pages of photos, and not just F4F's to wade through, but I'm fairly certain you will find what you are looking for.

 

Also look here

http://www.ww2aircraft.net/forum/other-mec...book-14560.html

 

and scroll down to the PDF link in the 4th message for an FM-2 manual

 

I have an original Pilots Handbook for the F4F-4, but it is essentially a small 5"x8" mimeographed loose leaf type notebook that I am hesitant to take apart these days, however, I once made some copies - - - see attachments. Somewhere around here I may have some color shots of an F4F cockpit, but the caveat would be that they are of a cockpit that has been re-painted post war. As I recall, according to my, then still living, expert, they looked like a little too much of the puky zinc chromate. I've a couple of F4F-4 side panels (those funny six sided panels just forward of the cockpit for access to the back of the instrument panel off the -4 my father flew out of Guadalcanal) and the interior color is clearly a nice dark bronze-green.

 

 

 

 

and inside and outside of actual F4F-4 panels:

 

 

Regards,

 

Rich

[wingman68]

Thanks for those pics RAL, there a big help, this project isnt going to be anywhere near accurate to any great degree, its just show I can show off my Pilot Kit in a different manner, I kinda like the idea and dont think it will be difficult to do, anyone know where I canlay my mits on some instruments to suit the F4F expired are fine, am doing my drawing now of how it will go together, keep you all updated on how it travels.

[Bluehawk]

Thanks for those pics RAL, there a big help, this project isnt going to be anywhere near accurate to any great degree, its just show I can show off my Pilot Kit in a different manner, I kinda like the idea and dont think it will be difficult to do, anyone know where I canlay my mits on some instruments to suit the F4F expired are fine, am doing my drawing now of how it will go together, keep you all updated on how it travels.

If all you want is instruments to approximate the appearance of an analog cockpit panel, then access to any federal government surplus will provide almost everything you need... if you are anywhere near Los Alamos, there used to be a guy out there who had THE biggest what-not technology military surplus I ever saw in my life.

------------------------------------------

 

Oops... I see you are in Australia! I am guessing you have "federal surplus" there too?

[wingman68]

If all you want is instruments to approximate the appearance of an analog cockpit panel, then access to any federal government surplus will provide almost everything you need... if you are anywhere near Los Alamos, there used to be a guy out there who had THE biggest what-not technology military surplus I ever saw in my life.

------------------------------------------

 

Oops... I see you are in Australia! I am guessing you have "federal surplus" there too?

Well, while the US Government had the good sense to store aircraft for many years in the graveyard over in the US our so called Government of the time thought all these old Spitfires and Mustangs and other WW2 aircraft are no good to us now, plus with the US lend Lease agreement which basically said if we dont get it back you must destroy it, very little remained here, so any instruments I get will come from the US, I could get the odd one here if i looked hard enough but would be fleeced of my money real quick, mention aircraft here and the price automatically doubles and triples and then add the phone number to it, you guys are lucky in the US, I hope you realise just how lucky you are.

[Bluehawk]

Well, while the US Government had the good sense to store aircraft for many years in the graveyard over in the US our so called Government of the time thought all these old Spitfires and Mustangs and other WW2 aircraft are no good to us now, plus with the US lend Lease agreement which basically said if we dont get it back you must destroy it, very little remained here, so any instruments I get will come from the US, I could get the odd one here if i looked hard enough but would be fleeced of my money real quick, mention aircraft here and the price automatically doubles and triples and then add the phone number to it, you guys are lucky in the US, I hope you realise just how lucky you are.

If you want actual instruments (out of date, and non-functional though they may be > therefore cheap), then I would be willing to do some research here to help you find them at reasonable prices. I have no idea at this minute how that will work out, but I'd sure be willing to give it a try.

 

Is that what you want?