Grumman F3F-2

History

With production beginning in 1937, The Grumman F3F-2 and its variant F3F-3 were the last biplane fighters to enter service with the US Navy and US Marine Corps. Maximum speed was 256 MPH and service ceiling was 32,400 feet. Armament consisted of one .50 caliber and one .30 caliber machine gun mounted in the nose, firing through the propeller arc. The F3F-2 could also carry two 110-pound bombs on underwing racks.

In October, 1941, VMF-2 (USMC) turned in their F3F-2s, becoming the last naval aviation fighter squadron to operate biplane fighters. The F3F-2s were reassigned to the Navy's Training Command, where the last of them was retired in 1943. No F3F-2 aircraft survived WWII although one was later salvaged from the Pacific Ocean off San Diego.

The Kit

Our F3F-2 kit was designed by Jeff O'Brien (aka Phreakish) and reported on-line at Ezone. This kit is intended for the experienced modeler who's successfully assembled four or five balsa kits.

Specifications:

• Span: 32"
• Area: 260 sq. in.
• Weight: 14 - 20 oz
• Power: Himax 2015-5400 with 6.6:1 gearbox
• Controls: ailerons, elevator, throttle (rudder optional)

Kit Includes:

• Full size plans
• Instruction manual
• Laser-cut parts from contest balsa and lite ply
• Full-color water-slide decal markings for two different aircraft:
  • US Marines 2-MF-16 as flown and ditched off San Diego by Lt. Robert Galer in August 1940
  • US Navy 6-F-4 as featured in the 1940 Errol Flynn movie "Dive Bomber"
• Vacuum formed cowl
• Vacuum formed canopy with framing molded in

This kit is a "short kit"; it comes without hardware so you can use what you've got, and you'll need to provide balsa sheet and strip stock. We use and recommend Doculam for covering our models.

We include comprehensive decals and paint and markings guides so that you can re-create one of these two historic aircraft:

Download the illustrated construction manual.

Please note that the kit does not include landing gear.

Flight Report

To order this kit, please go to the Kits page.

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