1/144 "Peaceliner" in progress

[Brian da Basher]

As some of you may know, I'm on vacation this week. Aside from carrying on the rich tradition of working during one of my days off, this is what I've been up to since Tuesday. I wanted to use my time off to embark on a project I might not have the time and patience for while I'm working. The main kit is the 1/144 Hobbycraft B-36B Peacemaker. I grafted on the nose from a Minicraft DC-6 and turned it into a low-wing airliner. You see her with the final primer coat on and all six of the props painted, ready for the dreaded white!

Brian da Basher

[Brian da Basher]

The main challenge so far was the DC-6 nose. It's about 2/16 of an inch narrower than the B-36 fuselage. I was able to widen the nose by creating a V shaped gap aft of the cockpit windows and filling it in with plastic. I gave it a low wing by cutting that section of the fuselage off and rotating it. I filled in the wing root gap (now on the bottom) with sheet plastic and putty, so it looks like a large cargo bay. Now that the bomb bay door piece had become the top of the fuselage, I had to fill that in with putty too (there's enough PSR on this thing to give you a twitch). I replaced the tail gun with the tip of a drop tank and made a fairing from putty to fill in the space aft of the rudder. I added half of another drop tank for the radar fairing under the forward fuselage.

Now I have a B-36 airliner with a DC-6 nose.

You're probably wondering, is he going to build a DC-6 with a B-36 nose someday?

You bet!

Brian da Basher

[Jschmus]

But, but, but... where are the spats?

Just kidding, Brian.  It looks great!  Plus, you now have a surplus of little gun turrets for future projects.

[Ed S]

Looks good so far.  You did a good job blending the two fuselages together.  But I only see the lower wing?

Ed

[Brian da Basher]

Looks good so far.  You did a good job blending the two fuselages together.  But I only see the lower wing?

Ed

A biplane B-36? Hmmmm.....

The gun turrets may get used on the DC-6 with a nose-job.

Brian da Basher

[ysi_maniac]

That is a great idea!

I am old enough to remember those BEAUTIFUL propliners like DC-6  and Constellation too

[jcf]

Brian, that is a marvelous concept.
Very nice.

Cheers, Jon

[ysi_maniac]

BTW, was there any atempt to make a liner version of B-36 ?

[tinlail]

I think a b-36 cockpit could make a cool observation dome (like trains have) on airliner.

[Ed S]

BTW, was there any atempt to make a liner version of B-36 ?

Convair proposed a model 37 airliner.  But it never went past the concept stage.  But there was a cargo version XC-99.  One was build and used by the USAF for a while.  It was a monster with a double deck interior.  It had two rows of windows along the side and would have carried a bunch of people a long way if sold to the airlines.

Ed

[deathjester]

you have practically made a Bristol Brabazon there!!
Very nice indeed.

[Sisko]

Awesome stuff Brian.

Nice concept brilliantly executed!

[kitnut617]

But there was a cargo version XC-99.  One was build and used by the USAF for a while.  It was a monster with a double deck interior.  It had two rows of windows along the side and would have carried a bunch of people a long way if sold to the airlines.

Ed

It still exists too, it's being totally restored (down in Arizona somewhere I think).  It was used to transport rush items like engines from the States to Hawaii.
I've got a 1/72 conversion of it in my stash, it's made by Gene Hooker in the States

[jcf]

BTW, was there any atempt to make a liner version of B-36 ?

As Ed mentioned there was the Model 37 project, in seaplane as well as landplane form.

(The drawings make evident the major error in the Hobbycraft B-36, its wings are upside down.)

Jon

[Just call me Ray]

  But there was a cargo version XC-99.  One was build and used by the USAF for a while.  It was a monster with a double deck interior.  It had two rows of windows along the side and would have carried a bunch of people a long way if sold to the airlines.

It was also not even half as great looking as the Peaceliner 

EDIT: The Model 37 also looks exactly like the XC-99, so I would presume the XC-99 was just a cargo version of the Model 37 from the get-go. It's also interesting that they flipped the engines around for the seaplane version - makes me wonder why.

SECOND EDIT: Actually, looking at the reduced diameter props, it makes me think it was done in consideration of water clearance issues during rotation.