1/24 to 1/25 parts

[Hamar]

I wanted to kit bash and build my own Bellytank lakester, I found a pair of droop tanks from a 1/24th scale WWII fighter and I had planned on using the front suspension and engine from a 1/25th scale street rod kit. However, when I get the parts side by side, the tanks look way too big. I didnt think there was that much difference between the two scales...Suggestions or Ideas?

[Art Anderson]

I think you're "comparing apples to oranges" here. For starters, the difference between 1/24 and 1/25 scales is approximately 4%, not all that much, unless one compares like parts in each scale one to the other. Aircraft drop tanks do tend to be large--for example, the most popular drop tank for a "belly tank" streamliner was a 500-gallon unit, used as a "ferry" tank on planes such as the P-38 Lightning and B-17 Flying Fortresses to give them the range to fly non-stop across the Atlantic from Newfoundland Canada to the UK in WW-II.

Even the drop tanks used on early jet fighters are quite large, albeit not as "fat" as most WW-II auxiliary fuel tanks.

Art

[Casey]

Check out the tanks Early Years Resin offers, Hal: http://earlyyearsresin.webs.com/lsrparts.htm

They might even be able to provide you with exact measurements, too.

[Ace-Garageguy]

The hot-rod 'standard' drop tank for building a "lakester" was and is the 316 gallon unit from the P-38. It is about 13' long, with about a 36" diameter at the fattest part.

In 1/25 scale, that would be actual measurements of approximately 6.24 inches long, and 1.44 inches in diameter.

EDIT EDIT EDIT:

Actual FULL SCALE measurements:

P-38 Belly Tank
WW II Drop Tank Shell Top and Bottom with Horizontal Flange.......1/25 scale is 153/25= 6.12
153" long X 36.5" wide ( incluling flange ) .............................1/25 scale is 36.5/25= 1.46
WW II Drop Tank Shells extended 20"
173" long X 40" wide ( including Flange )

Edited March 5, 2014 by Ace-Garageguy