Curtis R3C-2 Racer - WIP                              

A new project begins for the construction of the famous Curtis Racer hydroplane with which Leutenant James H. Doolittle (who later became even more famous, as General of the Air Force, for the raid on Tokyo in the Second World War) won the Schneider Cup held in Baltimore in 1925.

Brief historical and technical notes.

The Curtiss R3C-2 at the time was the evolutionary result of a series of landing gear biplanes designed by Curtiss Aroplane & Motor Co. starting from 1923. The project was born in 1925 at the request of the United States Navy for the production of similar aircraft from destined for the race for the Pulitzer Trophy; race established to test the latest developments in aircraft and engines for hunting and pursuit.

while maintaining the same valid construction schemes as the previous models, this aircraft introduced notable innovations and engineering improvements compared to the previous ones: new section of the wing, greater efficiency of the propeller, greater extension of the radiators made with brass plates with a thickness of just over millimeter (.004") and positioned on the wing surfaces.

The Curtiss R 3 C - 1 Racer (with land landing gear) took 1st and 2nd place in the Pulitzer race in 1925 and thus established itself as an aircraft superior to all others in that year. It was therefore decided to convert it into a hydroplane by replacing the undercarriage with boots and ready to participate in the Schneider Cup in October of that same year.

In 1925 the competition was held in Baltimore, as it had previously been won by the United States of America and the R3c-2 Racer piloted by Doolittle won the coveted trophy for the second time by establishing an average speed on three passes of 374, 28 km/h.

The span of this small aircraft was 6.71 m. (22 ft) for the upper wings and 6.1 m (20 ft). for the lower ones and a length of 6 m (approximately 20 ft). The engine was a 610 hp Curtiss V-1400 type, an improvement on the Curtis D-12 engine.

An example of the plane is currently preserved at the National Air & Space Museum.

The kit is an old edition from the US company Hawk Plastic Models, in the "strange" American 1/4" scale (1 to a quarter of an inch), which, having done the necessary calculations, corresponds approximately to our 1:48 scale The kit is very sparse and apart from the pilot, without any further frills: it will be fun trying to add some details and details!