One more before I take a holiday break.
This is the Bristol Belmont MK.I, a dedicated high altitude meteorological aircraft. It is based on the Bristol 138 but this version is powered by PW-R2800 known for its fuel economy and good for high altitude performance.
A 2nd seat was installed for the meteorologist. External scoops were added to collect air samples.
The donors were:
Frog Bristol 138
Monogram F8F for the nose and engine
Revell P-47D for the propeller
Academy Tempest for wheels and gear
Trumpeter H-5 for the rear cockpit glazing
Other scraps from spares bin
Dirty little secret: I had another engine in mind but I messed up the cuts so badly, I could not install it. So I scrambled to find a substitute and good fortune looked upon me and I found F8F front end fit almost seamlessly. I added sheet bulkheads to both the 138 and the F8F to get a large surface area for mounting the F8F cowling.