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Finally completed what began as a fall project of building a pair of 727s; it stretched into winter, and just now finished in spring. This was a first for me…building two models at once. Proved to be quite a challenge that was not only time consuming, but pushed the limits on space! My workbench just isn’t large enough for more than one-at-a-time, so new rule…just one…finish it…start another. No more “two-fers.” Here’s some history and photos posed in the bright sun and “in the hangar.”
First is the somewhat historic Northwest Airlines 727-51 (-100) that became infamous during the only unsolved incident in aviation history…the D.B.Cooper hijacking on 24 November 1971. After jumping from the deployed rear air stairs of the airplane, Cooper was never seen or heard from again. Only remnants of the $200,000USD was ever recovered, found by a small boy buried in a river bank nearly completely deteriorated, but still clear enough to read the traceable serial numbers as the bills from the ransom. The incident led to a new mandated installation of the “Cooper Device,” a small vane that attaches to the rear fuselage, activated by airflow from the slipstream preventing the rear air stairs from being deployed in flight.
The Airfix 727-100 that is represented here is completed in the original livery as she was delivered in 1965. During the years leading up to the hijacking in 1971, she went through the paint shop at least twice as Northwest changed and updated the livery. She was sold to Piedmont Airlines in 1978; then 1982 she went to United Technologies Flight Dynamics testing navigational equipment. In 1984 she was sold to Key Airlines for which she operated daily charter flights from Nellis Air Force Base to Tonapah Test Range, northwest of Las Vegas. She was retired and stored in Greenwood, Mississippi in 1985 then finally scrapped in 1996.
The Minicraft 727-200 is of N272US, an airplane that really has no “distinct” or famous career. She served at Northwest first following her delivery in 1969. She was leased to Pan Am in 1988, returned to Northwest in 1989, then retired and stored in 2007 at Smyrna, Tennessee, where she still stands on her own gear as a parted out hull to this day.
Both 727s were primed with Tamiya gray primer, painted with Tamiya TS-26 white and Alclad black base and polished airframe aluminum. Tamiya XF-8 dark blue was used for the cheat line on the -100, and Tamiya TS-49 bright red was used for both tails. Corogard on both models is an airbrushed mixture of Testors Modelmaster Metalizer Non Buffing aluminum and Testors Modelmaster Flat Light Ghost Gray. Wings, wing fairings, and horizontal stabilizers were airbrushed with MRP Boeing gray. Livery decals on the -100 are from Microscale; on the -200 are from Draw and 26. Windows on both are from Authentic Airliners with details from Nazca. Nose gear on the -100 is from Authentic Airliners, while the main gear is SAC metal struts, Authentic Airliners wheels, and scratch made doors. Nose gear on the -200 is from the kit; main gear are modified from the Airfix kit, with Brengun wheels and scratch made doors. Both airplanes received a brushed on clear coat of Future to finish.
Hope you enjoy!
Paul
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I was privileged to enjoy the build process. Impeccable work as always, Paul.
Now, to convert you to a multi-project at a time guy.
Alan Aronoff
Where there's a will, there's a relative.Those are fantastic. Love Northwest. My Dad flew DC-4,6, Stratocruisers, and Electras for them
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Waow, the finish on both is absolutely superb :GG and those Authentic Airliners realistic windows really add the touch.
I have a soft spot the the shorty 727 and those really nice Microscale decal sheets, many great memories.
Did you have any build issues with the Minicraft 727 ? Is it more MC 757 or MC DC-4 in terms of fit and moulding quality ?
Again, well done on these 2 beauties !
Cheers,
StefanFantastic work! Thanks for the details on the components you used.
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Very nicely done, Paul.
The old color schemes are so much more fun to do than the new bland ones that exist today.Jerry
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Well done on the pair, Paul! Did you get any economies of scale doing the two-fer? I’ve debated it on and off, but wonder if it’ll actually materially improve throughput…
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Looking good! I personally prefer the Airfix-100 to the Revell effort. Too bad they messed up the nose when they altered the mold to make a -200.
Best regards…Duncan
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radioguy :
I was privileged to enjoy the build process. Impeccable work as always, Paul.
Now, to convert you to a multi-project at a time guy.
Thank you, Al. Always good to have you nearby while I’m at the workbench.
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RB211-524 :
Waow, the finish on both is absolutely superb :GG and those Authentic Airliners realistic windows really add the touch.I have a soft spot the the shorty 727 and those really nice Microscale decal sheets, many great memories.
Did you have any build issues with the Minicraft 727 ? Is it more MC 757 or MC DC-4 in terms of fit and moulding quality ?
Again, well done on these 2 beauties !
Thank you for the kind words! And yes, I would agree that the AA windows add such a wonderful realism. Like you, I too have a soft spot for the 727…and the Microscale decals are (were) most excellent with lots of choices.
Issues with the Minicraft 727…in a word, yes. It has good fitting parts, but the main issues for me were in the engine inlets (too small; required extensive sanding to open them up), and the main landing gear…they were just plain wrong. I had to elongate the main gear wells, and modify the Airfix gear to use them on the MC project. The kit gear are too tall, and don’t have the angles that the original Boeing gear had. Molding quality was pretty good…good plastic…but way too thick in the wings. In the end, it’s a pretty good kit, and it does resemble a 727…I was happy with the end result.
Paul
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That’s stunning paint work Paul and great photos. I also really liked the classy shade of red that Northwest used.
Back in the late 80s / early 90s I flew NW from both Prestwick and Glasgow airports to Boston a few times, although the livery was different by then. I think the red ran across the full length of the fuselage top if I remember correctly.
I was interested to learn that you chose to hand paint the final Future coat.
I’ve been airbrushing it neat although which seems to work fairly well, although I find a tad it more difficult to fully clean my brush afterwards as it’s really sticky stuff.
Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone …
tomcat72 – A soft, wide brush is the tool to use. Future levels very well,
so if applied correctly, you won’t notice any brush marks. Rinse the brush
in hot running water after use. After drying, the bristled may tend to harden.
Simply break that up by running your fingers through the bristles…good as new!
Be careful not to overdue the application as you may encounter dripping marks.
Alan Aronoff
Where there's a will, there's a relative.Many thanks radioguy.
I knew that if expert modellers like Paul used a hand brush it must self level very well but wondered airbrushing it not considered the best approach to applying Future.
Until now I’ve tended to use my airbrush with Future since it’s quicker however, as the fine mist it produces tends to drift beyond the model and onto undesirable places, I’ll try it with a hand brush on my next model which will avoid that problem.
Sorry, in my last message I actually meant that it’s slightly more difficult to clean my airbrush after using Future due to its tackiness. Good to know it doesn’t petrify regular brushes permanently however!
Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone …
I have always thinned Future 50/50 with denatured alcohol and spray at about 15 psi. This allows for very thin coats, and the alcohol cleans the airbrush, paint brushes, and any other tools you use with Future with no trouble at all.
Gene
MOB
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Thank you, Tomcat! Appreciate the kind words. Future has to be THE easiest clear coat available. Yes, I used a wider brush to hand “paint” it on the models. Actually, I have a dedicated brush set aside just for Future use. Cleaning is a breeze…no thinning with anything, just clean it with hot water, allow to dry, then “fluff” the bristles a little. I have airbrushed the Future onto a model or two…works beautifully. Thinning a little makes it less tacky in the airbrush. It is also easy to clean the airbrush with hot water. Brushing leaves no waste…and beware…be careful…use sparingly, and watch carefully for pooling.
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To clarify a bit, Future is simply a clear acrylic. If necessary, it can be thinned with anything you’d
use on acrylic paints (though I haven’t tried lacquer thinner). Water and alcohol are typical. But if
it’s fresh in the bottle, there should be no need to thin it. As Paul does, I also use a dedicated brush.
Alan Aronoff
Where there's a will, there's a relative.Thanks again all. I’ll try hand brushing but will also experiment with thinning it for airbrushing. I used it neat until now based on advice from a YouTube video and gradually became better at avoiding pooling but it’s time to experiment a little to see what works best.
Circling back to the original topic (apologies Paul), I remembered that on my last NW flight from GLA to LGA in July 94, I’d purchased a snap-fit model of the plane I was on – a 747-400 and I managed to locate in a room that vaguely resembles the warehouse at the end of Raiders of the Lost Arc. This is my first attempt at inserting an image into a thread so hope this works:
Also, I just happened to peruse eBay this morning and, by pure chance, the very same model is for sale for $14.99 and it’s by New Ray, which I wouldn’t have remembered – model #20365.
I really like this livery and it’s given me an idea for another project – I’d like to build this in 144 if I can find all the correct parts however I’ll possibly open a new thread for this at a later time rather than encroach more on this one.
Thanks for the inspiration Paul!
Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone …
Love this! Here’s a Revell 747-400 that I built up a few years ago…before I discovered the Authentic Airliners realistic windows. Love the old “bowling shoe” livery on the 747s…lots of color!
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Absolutely gorgeous Paul!
You may already know this however I’ve been doing a little research and discovered that the tail no on my model – N661US – actually belongs to the first production 747-400 and was one of 10 delivered to NWA, the initial customer. It was also initially used by Boeing for flight testing before being delivered to NW in Dec 89.
That same plane was involved in a famous incident in 2002 wrt NW Flight 85 from Detroit to Tokyo, which had a rudder failure forcing it to land at Anchorage, obviously following some very skilled flying. Following the Delta acquisition, in became Delta ship 6301 and, due to its interesting history, it’s now on display at the Delta museum in Atlanta.
This triggered my urge to build this plane. Russell at AHS has the Draw decals for the bowling shoe livery and I just need to find a kit. I’d honestly be happy if I could make it a tenth as good as your work of art above!
Funny how one thing leads to another.
Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone …
Paul, did you build your Revell 747 OOTB and are those P&W engines?
Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone …
radioguy :
tomcat72 – A soft, wide brush is the tool to use. Future levels very well,
so if applied correctly, you won’t notice any brush marks. Rinse the brush
in hot running water after use. After drying, the bristled may tend to harden.
Simply break that up by running your fingers through the bristles…good as new!
Be careful not to overdue the application as you may encounter dripping marks.I’ll have to give this approach a whirl, in the past I’ve used foam brushes with mixed results, and airbrushing is hit or miss on a good day.
The NW Bowling Shoe 747 looks pretty cool, well done on that build.
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tomcat72 :
Paul, did you build your Revell 747 OOTB and are those P&W engines?For the most part, yes, the 747 was OOB, with a few additions and mods. I used the Braz P&W resin engines, Draw, Flight Designs, & Aerocolours decals, and Extra Tech photo etched details.
Paul
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I’ll have to give this approach a whirl, in the past I’ve used foam brushes with mixed results, and airbrushing is hit or miss on a good day.
The NW Bowling Shoe 747 looks pretty cool, well done on that build.
Yeah, the bristled brush dedicated ONLY to Future application is the way to go…and applied sparingly and carefully so as not to “pool.”
And thank you for the kind words! Enjoyed this build quite a bit!
Paul
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Beautiful models. I too built a Cooper 727 using the Revell kit and Microscale decals. Beautiful build of 744 N661US as well. The real plane is a MUST see at the Delta Museum. I do chuckle because it is a Delta 747 and it’s not a Delta 747. Similar to my friend who flew on the last United 737 flight prior to the Continental merger where the airline acquired 737’s yet again.
Ken
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Yes, that Delta museum is now on my bucket list along with Dayton and Pima.
The reason I asked about the engines on Paul’s 747 is to confirm whether the Revell kit would at least have the correct engines. I’m surprised to discover that 144 747-400s are extremely difficult to find anywhere and the only one I’ve so far seen is the Revell kit with the Iron Maiden decals (not a fan), although it’s pretty expensive. Maybe it’s because of all those IM fans buying up this kit in their thousands, although I can’t quite picture that.
Anyway, back on subject – as long as this release of the Revell kit has the same parts, I may go for it but would like to confirm the correct engines.
The following site states that NW -400s used PW4062 engines, although I’ve been unable to confirm whether they may also have used GE or RR engines on some planes, but happy to go with PW if that’s what comes with the Revell kit:
https://www.vnorthwest.com/index.php/fleettour/typeinfo?id=13
There are a couple of Hasegawa 200 kits around but I’d prefer to stick with 144 for all my airliners.
Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone …
I apologize.. I was NOT clear when answering about building the kit OOB…the actual Revell kit I used for the 747 build did NOT come with the P&W engines; I ordered the resin engines from Braz. The kit was the old British Airways Landor livery which included ONLY the RR engines, which would have been incorrect for the Northwest completion. To my knowledge, none of the Revell kits come with P&W engines, except the new release of the -100. All of the -400 kits include only one set of either the GE or RR engines.
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Thanks again Paul.
If I decide to persevere in finding a not-too-expensive 144 kit, I’ll look to buy Braz or Druz parts although, from a quick look on eBay, they’re pretty expensive but I guess that’s the nature of this specialised game. The only Revell kit I can find for sale is @$105!
Based on price and availability, the Hasegawa 200 kits are starting to look good and I could get one of those + the decal set for way less than the price of a 144 kit alone. Also, one of the Hasegawas comes with NW decals, although not the bowling shoe livery, which hopefully means they have PW engines?
If so, that would cut the overall cost substantially even if I have to compromise on the scale.
I’ve just seen photos on the Cafe of a couple of nice Hasegawa builds.
Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone …
Based on price and availability, the Hasegawa 200 kits are starting to look good and I could get one of those + the decal set for way less than the price of a 144 kit alone. Also, one of the Hasegawas comes with NW decals, although not the bowling shoe livery, which hopefully means they have PW engines?
If so, that would cut the overall cost substantially even if I have to compromise on the scale.
I’ve just seen photos on the Cafe of a couple of nice Hasegawa builds.
Yes, you could save some money in downsizing to 1/200 scale. it’s personal preference, I suppose. Not sure as to whether the Hasagawa kits come with the P&W engines. I would think that the Hasagawa kits would be pretty accurate in the correct type of engines supplied; they are pretty good about that assurance.
Here in the Cafe, look for any Hasagawa kits finished by Billy Wilt. He specializes in that particular line, and does a fantastic job building them up very nicely. For detail, look at Brad Shinn’s work on the 1/200 scale 747s…there are a few…and they are examples of an engineer/artist at work.
Paul
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Decision made, the Hasegawa’s on order from eBay for $35 and the bowling shoe decals from AHS.
There’s also a set of 200 scale PW engines from Contrails available if I need them.
I had a look at some of the Hasegawa models in the gallery and they’re all excellent. Should make a nice model!
Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone …
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