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 Hi All
First off some history:-
In February 1938 the U.S. Navy Bureau of Aeronautics published two requests for proposal for twin-engined and single-engined fighters. For the single-engined fighter the Navy requested the maximum obtainable speed, and a stalling speed not higher than 70 miles per hour (110 km/h). A range of 1,000 miles (1,600 km) was specified.[12] The fighter had to carry four guns, or three with increased ammunition. Provision had to be made for anti-aircraft bombs to be carried in the wing. These small bombs would, according to thinking in the 1930s, be dropped on enemy aircraft formations.
In June 1938, the U.S. Navy signed a contract with Vought for a prototype bearing the factory designation V-166B,[13] the XF4U-1, BuNo 1443. The Corsair design team was headed up by Rex Beisel. After mock-up inspection in February 1939, construction of the XF4U-1 powered by an XR-2800-4 prototype of the Pratt & Whitney Double Wasp twin-row, 18-cylinder radial engine, rated at 1,805 hp (1,346 kW) went ahead quickly, as the very first airframe ever designed from the start to have a Double Wasp engine fitted for flight.[14] When the prototype was completed it had the biggest and most powerful engine, largest propeller and probably the largest wing on any naval fighter to date.[15] The first flight of the XF4U-1 was made on 29 May 1940, with Lyman A. Bullard, Jr. at the controls. The maiden flight proceeded normally until a hurried landing was made when the elevator trim tabs failed because of flutter.[16][17]
On 1 October 1940, the XF4U-1 became the first single-engine U.S. fighter to fly faster than 400 mph (640 km/h) by setting an average ground speed of 405 miles per hour (652 km/h) during a northeastwards flight from Stratford to Hartford.[18] The USAAC's twin-engine Lockheed P-38 Lightning had flown over 400 mph in January–February 1939.[19] The XF4U-1 also had an excellent rate of climb but testing revealed that some requirements would have to be rewritten. In full-power dive tests, speeds of up to 550 miles per hour (890 km/h) were achieved but not without damage to the control surfaces and access panels and, in one case, an engine failure.[20] The spin recovery standards also had to be relaxed as recovery from the required two-turn spin proved impossible without resorting to an anti-spin chute.[19] The problems clearly meant delays in getting the design into production.
Reports coming back from the war in Europe indicated that an armament of two .30 in (7.62 mm) synchronized engine cowling-mount machine guns, and two .50 in (12.7 mm) machine guns (one in each outer wing panel) was insufficient. The U.S. Navy's November 1940 production proposals specified heavier armament.[21] The increased armament consisted of three .50 caliber machine guns mounted in each wing panel. This improvement greatly increased the ability of the Corsair to effectively shoot down enemy aircraft.
Formal U.S. Navy acceptance trials for the XF4U-1 began in February 1941. The Navy entered into a letter of intent on 3 March 1941, received Vought's production proposal on 2 April and awarded Vought a contract for 584 F4U-1 fighters, which were given the name "Corsair" — inherited from the firm's late-1920s Vought O2U naval biplane scout which first bore the name — on 30 June of the same year. The first production F4U-1 performed its initial flight a year later, on 24 June 1942.[22][23] It was a remarkable achievement for Vought; compared to land-based counterparts, carrier aircraft are "overbuilt" and heavier, to withstand the extreme stress of deck landings.
The first operational aircraft was the F4U-1 or 'birdcage version' as it was called and 2469 were built. Next came the 1A version of which 3861 were built and more than any other version produced and hence my choice to build this version and not the birdcage. The corsairs last recorded fight was in 1969 during the football war between Honduras and El Salvador where three El Salvador aircraft were destroyed by one pilot bringing to an end the long career of this famous fighter and the last recorded kill by a prop driven aircraft.
The kit is supplied in tamiya's usual box with some nice artwork on the front this kit is also the export version with the clear cowl parts. Inside it is packed with sprue's all without flash and highly detailed. As mentioned above this is the export version but Tamiya provide both the clear cowl parts and the grey plastic equivalent parts in the box. The front tyres are supplied in rubber with some very nice tread patterns along with a small amount of etch. The main build manual is a hefty tome of 56 pages and has the option to build the kit with wings extended or folded and a stand if you wish to depict the aircraft in flight mode with undercarriage up. along with the manual is a large fold out color 3 view to aid in painting and a 12 page detail booklet showing the engine detail ect. The Decals provided give a choice of three versions and Tamiya also supply canopy masks to aid in painting it. The kit also includes two figures on standing and a sitting one to go into the cockpit.
There is a wealth of aftermarket stuff out there for this kit so I got the Big Ed set of etch and the now hard to find bronze leg set from G-Factor Models. There are plenty of alternative decal sets out there to recreate many different aircraft along with pictures and history's if you care to search. There is also an excellent set of 14 films on U-Tube giving a build and weathering tutorial for the Birdcage but equally useful for any build of this aircraft.
In conclusion another excellent offering from Tamiya that will give many hours of pleasure building this Iconic aircraft another one for the stash.
Andy arpurchase attached the following image(s): Current builds:-C57,Zero, Lamborghini Countach, Caldercraft HMS Agamemnon,Robi,R2-D2, MFH Cobra .
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 Rank: Pro Groups: Joined: 24/08/2009 Posts: 48,827 Points: -13,348
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Tamiya seem to be really going to town on content and ref info, the aftermarket U/C looks the business
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 Rank: Super-Elite       Groups: Registered
Joined: 27/01/2014 Posts: 5,060 Points: 14,980
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That's a superb looking kit with lots if of great looking references, should build into a nice model. I also really love the look of the aftermarket undercarriage 
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 Rank: Elite  Groups: Registered
Joined: 14/10/2014 Posts: 1,715 Points: 5,087 Location: Leicester england uk
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Hi great quality kit there look forward to the build on this one. Cheers mick. Builds hms victory, suzuki gsx 1300 R hayabusa, honda C B 750, lamborghini countach L P 500 S, tamiya 1/16 rc full option tiger 1 tank,
built, Mclaren M P 4 - 23. Occre london tram,
Stash.airfix 1/24 mosquito. Diag Virginia schooner, tamiya 1/6 honda 750, tamiya 1/35 famo, tamiya 1/35 flak 88.
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Thanks for looking in everyone and your comments. These 1/32 kits from Tamiya just get better and better. The undercarriage set although a beggar to track down was worth it for the extra detail in the casting. Current builds:-C57,Zero, Lamborghini Countach, Caldercraft HMS Agamemnon,Robi,R2-D2, MFH Cobra .
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Tamiya seem to be upping their game, cracking looking kit and some really nice upgrades!
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Rank: Pro Groups: Joined: 24/08/2009 Posts: 48,827 Points: -13,348
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Some very good and interesting information on that site Tom Current builds:-C57,Zero, Lamborghini Countach, Caldercraft HMS Agamemnon,Robi,R2-D2, MFH Cobra .
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Hi All We all know about the Corsair but did you know they were developing the 'Super Corsair ' at the end of the war. The F2G-1 and F2G-2 were significantly different aircraft, fitted with the Pratt & Whitney R-4360 Wasp Major 4-row 28-cylinder "corncob" radial engine and teardrop (bubble) canopy. The difference between the -1 and -2 variants was that the -1 featured a manual folding wing and 14 ft (4.3 m) propellers, while the F2G-2 aircraft had hydraulic operated folding wings, 13 ft (4.0 m) propellers and carrier arresting hooks for carrier use. As World War II was drawing to a close, development problems emerged that led to the abandonment of further work on the F2G series. While only 10 were built, several F2Gs went on to racing success after the war, winning the Thompson trophy races in 1947 and 1949. I bet that beast was seriously fast. Andy Current builds:-C57,Zero, Lamborghini Countach, Caldercraft HMS Agamemnon,Robi,R2-D2, MFH Cobra .
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Rank: Pro Groups: Joined: 24/08/2009 Posts: 48,827 Points: -13,348
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Link to the 1947 Super Corsair that won the Thompson trophy:- https://en.m.wikipedia.o...iki/Goodyear_F2G_CorsairCurrent builds:-C57,Zero, Lamborghini Countach, Caldercraft HMS Agamemnon,Robi,R2-D2, MFH Cobra .
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Rank: Pro Groups: Joined: 24/08/2009 Posts: 48,827 Points: -13,348
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Have you seen the Eduard Brassin 1/32 P&W R-2800 engine for the Corsair?
http://aeroscale.kitmake...ic_id=223008&page=1
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Now thats a beast of an engine and some cool work being done on her Current builds:-C57,Zero, Lamborghini Countach, Caldercraft HMS Agamemnon,Robi,R2-D2, MFH Cobra .
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Hi All Invested in some oils for the weathering after the required clear coat, these may confuse as the colors are not what they seem but after the correct application all will be revealed. May even do a tutorial on using oils. The oils that will be used are as follows:- Abteilung Faded navy blue Faded grey Engine grease BlacK Grey highlight Washes Concreate Andy Current builds:-C57,Zero, Lamborghini Countach, Caldercraft HMS Agamemnon,Robi,R2-D2, MFH Cobra .
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Rank: Pro Groups: Joined: 24/08/2009 Posts: 48,827 Points: -13,348
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A nice kit which should build into a very nice model Andy. I'll look forward to watching the build and your use of the oil paints. 
Kev 
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Thanks for looking in and your comments Current builds:-C57,Zero, Lamborghini Countach, Caldercraft HMS Agamemnon,Robi,R2-D2, MFH Cobra .
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