The Little World

I have two painful confessions to make in regard to the Boeing P-26 peashooter fighter plane.

The first was in 1961 when I was in the 9th grade. I formed a friendship with a kid in my grade at school who was also an enthusiastic model airplane builder. He introduced me to matte paints – probably Humbrol tinlets used to paint Aurora WWI famous Fighters. His models looked so much more realistic than mine that I was an instant convert to the finish.

In the course of time we traded models with each other; I gave up something ( can’t remember what ) and got a finished example of an Aurora P26 Peashooter – complete with blue and yellow paint scheme – in return. It was a fair trade but the old devil of dissatisfaction reared up. I had not contributed to the building of the model and needed to make my mark on it somehow.

So I found a picture of a Japanese  Mitsubishi ” Claude ” and over painted the poor old Boeing to look like it. Airplane enthusiasts may wince now.

The second sad admission came from the early 2000 period when Hyland’s Bookshop was up Little Collins Street in Melbourne. I went up to the second floor shop and bought a whole swag of books…and there was a Schiffer volume on the P-26 on the table. I did not buy it, telling myself that I would pick it up next time I was in the town. Of course it has never been seen since…

So I’ve approached the little Revell 1:72 kit that Paul had in his stash with some interest, and not a little trepidation. The rigging is daunting and the level of detail somewhat crude. The decals are 51 years old and of a complexity that would be hard to deal with if they were fresh. And the chin of the little fighter was warped.

The basic kit shows the 1971 age and New Zealand heritage. There are enough rivets to make a cruiser. The pilot is undersized and sad. There is no windscreen. Yet the makings are there and I am determined to redeem myself in some wise, if only for self-esteem.