Top Flite TOPA0140 - Manual (Page 55)

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3. Make the antenna mast from a piece of
leftover 1/16" [1.6mm] plywood sandwiched
between two pieces of leftover 1/16" [1.6mm]
balsa. Sand to an airfoil shape, then paint or cover
to match the rest of your model.
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4. Cut a notch in the top of the fuselage where
shown on the plan to insert the antenna. Like the
guns, you can permanently glue the antenna mast
in place or just leave it removable for transporting
your model.
WHEEL COVERS
The wheel covers shown on the model on the
cover of the box are intended for display, but could
be left in place for flying if you enlarge the opening
in the bottom of the wing to accommodate the
covers when the wheels are retracted. Use the
template provided on the plan to cut them from
1/8" [3.2mm] plywood. To fit the wheel covers to
your landing gear struts you will need two landing
gear straps (GPMQ4254) and four 4-40 x 1/4"
[6.4mm] screws. Paint or cover the wheel covers
to match your trim scheme, then mount them to
your landing gear with the straps and screws.
RADIATORS
Place the finished radiators on the bottom of your
wing and position them so they will not interfere
with the flaps or landing gear. Trace their outline
onto the wing with a felt tip pen. Use a small pin to
poke holes through the covering inside the lines
and wipe away residual ink with a cloth dampened
with alcohol. Glue the radiators in place with thin or
medium CA.
MACHINE GUN COVERS
Position the finished machine gun blisters on the
wing where shown on the plan. The same as you did
the radiators, trace their outline onto the wing with a
felt tip pen and poke holes in the covering inside the
outline with a pin. Wipe away the ink with a cloth
dampened with alcohol, then glue the machine gun
covers in place with thin or medium CA.
PANEL LINES
No warbird is complete without panel lines. Panel
lines really
finish the job and set your model apart
from others (besides, they tend to distract the eye
from any building imperfections and uneven
surfaces—not that your model has any!). Study
the photos and documentation you have gathered
and decide which panel lines to add. There are
two methods for adding panel lines. The first is to
use a Top Flite Panel Line Pen (TOPQ2510) with
a flexible straightedge. Apply a few strips of
masking tape to the back of your straightedge
about 1/8" [3mm] from the edge to raise it off the
surface so the ink won’t
bleed underneath. Place
the straightedge directly on your model and use it
as a guide to mark your panel lines. Use the Top
Flite Scale Template (TOPR2187) for rivets,
hatches, fuel caps and other details. Some
cleaners will remove the ink lines, so test your
cleaner on the ink before you spray it on your
model. We sealed our panel lines by spraying our
entire model with a coat of LustreKote flat clear.
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