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Saturday 3 October 2015

Hot Wheels Mad Propz

I was walking around a local branch of Tesco's recently ... and saw that they were selling various Mattel Hot Wheels vehicles for £1.00. One particularly caught my eye ... an aircraft called 'Mad Propz'. It was so cheap that I could not resist the temptation to buy it ... so I did!


When I got home and opened the packaging I was struck by something ... the design seemed vaguely familiar. I did a bit of online research, and according to a Hot Wheels collector's website, the model's designer was inspired by the design of the Curtiss P-40. My first thought was 'No way!'; if the design takes any inspiration at all it is from the fuselage of P-51 Mustang and the wings of the Supermarine Spitfire).


Some days later I happened to be looking through a reference book about Russian fighter aircraft and saw an aircraft design that was quite similar to 'Mad Propz' ... a Bisnovat SK-2.


The SK-2 (Skorostnii Krylo – high speed wing) was a fighter aircraft designed by Matus Bisnovat's Design Bureau, and was a development of his earlier SK-1 design. The prototype was flown in October 1940 by G M Shiyanov, but the aircraft was not put into production.

The SK-2's characteristics were:
  • Crew: 1
  • Length: 8.28 m (27 ft 2 in)
  • Wingspan: 7.3 m (23 ft 11.5 in)
  • Empty weight: 1,850 kg (4,078 lb)
  • Gross weight: 2,300 kg (5,071 lb)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Klimov M-105 (VK-105) producing 1,050 hp
  • Maximum speed: 660 km/h (413 mph)
  • Rate of climb: 19.23 m/s (3785.6 ft/min)
  • Armament: 2 × 12.7mm BS machine guns mounted above the engine.
It strikes me that this model aircraft could – after a simple paint job – take its place in the ranks of a 1940s era imagi-nation's air force ... and may well do so in the near future!

Note: None of Matus Bisnovat's aircraft designs went beyond the prototype stage, but he was subsequently heavily involved in rocket-propelled aircraft design, and oversaw the development of the R-40 (NATO designation: AA-6 Acrid), R-60 (NATO designation AA-8 Aphid), and R-73 (NATO designation AA-11 Archer) air-to-air missiles.

10 comments:

  1. Excellent - does the portable war game have rules for planes?

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  2. They just cry out to be put into sky blue, tractor green and black " Fruit Loop " camo ,Bob.

    Regards, Chris

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  3. I would have liked to place something like that aircraft in my Kiivar Air Force as an interceptor... When I looked at it I thought it might have been based loosely on a MiG3.

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  4. Very pleased that someone else also enjoys the little treats from the bargain Shops. I too have had some good luck BOB...A Toy Helicopter for $3 that will do for my 1966 VIETNAM Project - the whole project is now possible as I now have a pretty near scale 28mm Helicopter. Yip-Yeah!!!. Cannot wait to paint up the Toy. All the best. KEV.

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  5. Cant wait to see it in it's new colours?

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  6. Chris Kemp (Chris),

    The prototype is going to be painted in a simple dark green colour, but any 'production' machines may well appear in something a little more warlike.

    All the best,

    Bob

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  7. Archduke Piccolo,

    Why don't you add one to your air force. At the price this one was on sale for, I would have bought several ... if the shop had had them!

    All the best,

    Bob

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  8. K.C.Robertson (Kev),

    There are lots of toys that are suitable for wargaming ... just as long as one isn't too fussy about total accuracy. I used to be ... but now I am not; as a result I have less stress, more money, and am even more attractive to women. (The last is a lie ... but it sounds good!)

    Good luck with your project.

    All the best,

    Bob

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  9. Mike Saunders,

    Hopefully by now, you have!

    All the best,

    Bob

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