Curtiss A-25 (Shrike) Restoration

My A-25 that I'm currently working on was in good shape when I bought it. The tires are in excellent condition and absolutely no breaks or scratches in the plastic. One thing I found interesting is that even though the main operational feature on this model is the bomb drop, it still has the provisions for the pilot "bail-out" feature, so I would think that with a new parachute and a fourth line a kid (or the kid in us) can have some extra fun. Oddly enough, I found one half of the pilot under the bottom liner along with an extra glow head, and the other half was rattling around in the cowling around the engine. It was easily removed after disassembly of the fuselage. The other thing I noticed is the unusual plastic bellcrank assembly. Putting this thing back together will just merely require the growing of a third arm and hand. No problem. The screws are pretty much the same as the T-28, and also with the same tightness. I did the same procedure as before and took my time and got them all out with no damage. Cleaned everything up in warm soap and water and all the residue came off. I used alcohol on the stubborn stuff.





I decided to repaint the lettering on the wing because of some worn areas, especially the tail end of the "S". Once again I used Scotch Painter's Tape and it didn't let me down. Masking it off took just this side of forever to do but my time doesn't cost anything. I used Model Masters Insignia Yellow and after it dried overnight I followed up with a clear coat of K&B Superpoxy. You can see in the second photo the work involved in just stripping off the masking after painting. I touched up the fuse numbers by hand afterwards.