The Swedish Curtiss Hawk 75 - A Wrenching Tale in 1/72 Scale

[Brian da Basher]

While the Swedish J-9 is perhaps the most well known Seversky export of the P-35 family



far less known is an export version of the Curtiss P-36/Hawk 75 that the Svenska Flygvapnet designated J-13.



The Swedes were glad to get the Severskys but sought better performance and decided the Curtiss fighter would help them get there.



However, they appreciated the complexity and limited visibility of the Seversky canopy which they considered an engineering marvel, so they asked the Curtiss Co. to modify their Hawks accordingly.





With war in Europe looming, Curtiss was overwhelmed and initially declined the Swedish order but when it was negotiated down to a service-test batch of only five aircraft, they agreed to ship Hawk 75 components along with Seversky forward canopy sections to Sweden.



The agreement was reached so quickly that it's possible the shrewd Swedes offered Curtiss executives a juicy incentive.



The Hawk 75 parts and Seversky canopies were imported by the Flykea company of Stockholm who then collated them into kits for assembly.



Unfortunately only one Flykea Hawk ever took to the skies. This was because a critical assembly tool went missing just after roll-out.



By the time the prodigal allen wrench was found, the U.S. had put an arms embargo in place and no more Curtiss Hawks could be imported, regardless how rosy the flight tests were.





The four unbuilt Hawk kits were used as parts to keep the first one flying as a test bed until 1943 when it was lost in a poker game to a farmer named Kjöllerström who used two fuselages as chicken coops and sold the rest as scrap.



So little documentary evidence survives of this once proud aircraft that most historians think the Swedish J-13 Flykea Hawk was just pieced together by a disjointed mind.



Brian da Basher

[Brian da Basher]

This all began with a vintage 1/72 Revell Curtiss Hawk 75A. Your box art may vary.





What's inside the box is pretty basic and hardly varies except for decal options and the plastic being either white or the somewhat hard to find olive drab:



This kit builds up a treat and the one trouble spot is the cowling but a firm hand (and a good clamp) brings it all together.



There's no in-progress shots because the only mods were mistaking the pitot tube for an antenna, adding a pointy spinner on the prop, and swapping out the kit canopy for parts from a Special Hobby P-35. The Seversky canopy fits almost like it belongs there and while the change is subtle, it's certainly got that 1930's style.



The model was painted by hand with the old hairy stick and acrylics, Model Masters Primer Gray mostly.



The canopy was tinted on the outside with Model Masters Insignia Blue and given a top coat of Liquitex acrylic gloss medium.



The cowling and spinner were painted with Model Masters Feldgrau. Model Masters Aluminum was used on the prop itself and the engine was finished in some no-name cheap metallic craft-store acrylic.



The guns were done with Model Masters Gunmetal and the tires were painted with Model Masters Interior Black. A custom mix was used on the exhausts.



Decals came from various sources. The roundels were from a Roundels of the World sheet (thanks a million, Jeff!). The rudder markings were swiped from an Airfix Avro 504 and the codes & placards are leftovers from a Monogram P-36 sheet.



Of the commercially available Curtiss P-36/Hawk 75 kits in 1/72 scale, most favor either the Monogram or the Revell version. While I usually prefer the Monogram kit, one nice thing about the Revell offering is that it's designed to be built either gear up or down so that means you don't need to find thinner wheels to finish it as "in flight".



Here's a couple of "money shots" with a U.S. penny for scale:





I had a lot of fun building this model which took the better part of a week.



I hope you enjoyed the Swedish Flykea Hawk and reading a little more overlooked aircraft history that may make you wonder what might have been but for want of a wrench.



Brian da Basher

[finsrin]

How the heck did you dig up another backwater P-36/Hawk 75 bit of history ?
Yes,,, back then was a time ripe for small escapades like this to take place.  Urgent minimally documented efforts like this are your forte to dig up from under high profile main event history writings and films. 
Swedish color scheme worked well on Hawk 75.  Another fine job.  Much appreciated.

[Tophe]

Good!
Your coloured canopy looks like my models, but your ones are far better. I am not jealous, I just clap my hands

[Kelmola]

Nice. So subtly whiffed that at a first glance you would not see anything out of place!

[apophenia]

Love your rationale for the Seversky canopy 

[andonio64]

What a lovely piece (and story !) added to you great collection, Brian!

Antonio

[pigflyer]

MiLord Da Basher, yet another scoop for aviation history.  Your history detective work is matched only by your skills with glue, knife, plastic and paint.

Praise MiLord Da Basher.