Pitot Tube
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The SBD pitot tube, which goes under the left wingtip, was pretty simple to build. I decided I wanted to make it removable so it wouldn't get snapped off in transport or storage. To do this, I started by drilling a hole and burying the inside yellow portion of a Sullivan nyrod about an inch into the end of a hardwood block. I also buried a 2-56 rod into a wooden dowel rod. I then screwed the dowl & 2-56 piece into the end of the hardwood block to make sure it would mount straight.
 Next, I cut the profile of the pitot base mount out of the hardwood block, carving and sanding it down to the final shape. A small piece of 1/32 aircraft ply was added as a mounting plate. The dowel was then shaped and the small "barb" was added to the end. The base mount was then epoxied in place on the left wing, and the tube was screwed onto it.
The final result was a nice, sturdy wooden pitot tube that could be mounted when flying/showing, and removed when taking it home.
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Belly Pan and Centerline Bomb Rack
| The belly pan of the SBD has quite a bit of interesting detail to it, considering it was the primary weapons delivery platform for this plane. It could carry up to a 1600lb bomb, but they pretty much always carried the 1000lb bomb on it. The main body of the belly pan had already been built out of balsa onto the wing and glassed over earlier.
Now, to add more details, I began cutting sections of Plastistruct white styrene plastic into the appropriate panels. I cut out the areas for the scale mechanisms and will paint them out with flat black later. I added other miscellaneous details made from a variety of styrene stock, like U-rod, L-rod, etc.. There is a window here where the pilot could look through the floor of the cockpit to see the bomb release. I fabricated this out of balsa and styrene and added a clear styrene window with frame.
Lastly I cut out recessions for the spent ammo shell shutes and lined them with styrene, painting them in with flat black.
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Outboard Wing Bomb Racks
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The Dauntless also had two more bomb racks, one on each outboard wing section. These could carry additional ordinance, up to 325lb bombs on each wing.
I fabricated these almost entirely out of styrene, with some balsa inside for support. They were primered, rivets added and glued to the wing with medium CA glue. There are some other very delicate details on these racks that I chose not to add, since they would just get broken off in no time. I think these look pretty sweet the way they are though.
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"More Wing Lights"
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