Republic XF-12 Rainbow

[Stargazer]

Only one word comes to mind: STUPENDOUS!!! I quickly saved these onto my hard disk because I'm sure a moderator will ask you to resize them. Thank you so much for sharing!

 

[Steve Pace]

Let me add WOW!

 

[Mark Nankivil]

Welcome aboard and thanks for some great images/drawings. I saw your model featured in the latest issue of Flying Models - sure looks nice!

Enjoy the Day! Mark

 

[RyanC]

Great pictures and nice model! I assume it's prop-electric; due to lack of exhausts?

 

[zbrubaker]

Thanks for the nice comments guys. Yes, it is electric (no ugly exhaust hanging out!). I have more detailing to do, but it's a good start.

I was suprised by how big the pictures showed up in the thread. I will resize if asked. I'd hate to do that though and lose the resolution. Hopefully a buddy of mine will be able to get more from the Republic archive at the cradle of avaition museum.

 

[OM]

I quickly saved these onto my hard disk because I'm sure a moderator will ask you to resize them.

...I was under the impression the BB code automatically sized images down to thumbnails.

 

[Stargazer]

...I was under the impression the BB code automatically sized images down to thumbnails.

If you attach the picture, yes! But if you include them as part of your post in the form of an image (hosted elsewhere) then they just appear in whatever size they have...

 

[Bill S]

Ryan great information, thanks for sharing it!
Maybe we will cross paths someday.

zbrubaker great model, does it fly as good as it looks?

 

[OM]

...I was under the impression the BB code automatically sized images down to thumbnails.

If you attach the picture, yes!

...Then he simply needs to edit the post, remove the pictures, and then attach them. No editing necessary.

 

[Matej]

Everything about attaching was said here: http://www.secretprojects.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,2185.0.html If not everything and you have additional questions, please ask there. Note the maximal filesize 768 kB for each single picture.

 

[Tuomasn]

Everything about attaching was said here: http://www.secretprojects.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,2185.0.html If not everything and you have additional questions, please ask there. Note the maximal filesize 768 kB for each single picture.

...Then he simply needs to edit the post, remove the pictures, and then attach them. No editing necessary.

Which he cannot do as he only has three posts (unless that has been changed).

 

[verner]

Exactly how many posts do you need to attach an image?

 

[overscan (PaulMM)]

Its now 2 posts.

 

[zbrubaker]

Ryan great information, thanks for sharing it!
Maybe we will cross paths someday.

zbrubaker great model, does it fly as good as it looks?

Yes it does! I can only imagine how nicely the full size Rainbow must have flown.

 

[flying-finn]

Greetings and thanks to all of you, dear fans of the beautiful XF-12 Rainbow!

I'm a new member of this forum, but i know about it nearly a year or two.
Looking at all pics, posted here, i understand that there is almost nothing, that i can add here.
Maybe the only thing, that i can offer, is the full David Donald's article from the Wing of Fame issue.
Justo Miranda posted a pics from it here.

Now i'm starting my active life at this forum, so it would take a little time for posting here my stuff.
Hope, this article will be useful here.

P.S. Sorry for my English, it's not my native ;-)

 

[overscan (PaulMM)]

Welcome! Please note forum rules however - posting whole articles is not allowed.

 

[flying-finn]

Thank you! And for warning too...
I must guess, that many people here have a whole articles on different topics and that there is something strange, that they are not posting them!

But anyway, its very nice to be among all of you!

 

[flying-finn]

Among all stuff about XF-12, posted here, there are no good drawings of it.
As i read somewhere, there is an article by Mike Machat, "Somewhere, Under a Rainbow" printed in the Wings Volume 24, No. 2, April 1994. They say, that Mike Machat makes a drawings for his article. Can anybody help to find out them?
Many thanks in advance!

With hope...

 

[flying-finn]

Who knows, what was the original colour scheme of the XF-12? What was the colour of the title "Rainbow" at the nose?

 

[Stargazer]

If we are to trust this original advertisement from that era (and I think it's as good a source as can be), the logo was definitely blue.

 

[Mark Nankivil]

Nice Stargazer - I happen to have that ad framed and hanging in my archive room (wife calls it the junk collection!).

Here's a 3 view I have of the Rainbow - Ryan's 3 view earlier in this thread is the best I have seen/found/could hope for.

Enjoy the Day! Mark

 

[Jemiba]

Details from an article from InterAvia, October 1946 :

 

[Skyraider3D]

Post like these are why I get more and more addicted to this forum I absolutely love the sleek lines of the Rainbow and for many years have unsuccessfully tried to find some decent stuff on it. Finally... absolutely wonderful material! Thanks so much for sharing.
I just have to build this one in 3D now. I hope to find the time!


PS. A long time ago I made this 3D/photo comp with the Rainbow for a what-if story by John Baxter: http://digitalaviationart.com/skyraider3d/mep1091a_3.htm

 

[Skyraider3D]

*cough*

Don't do anything about that cold please! You cough up some amazing stuff. Where did you find this, if I may ask? It's fantastic!

 

[Justo Miranda]

Post like these are why I get more and more addicted to this forum I absolutely love the sleek lines of the Rainbow and for many years have unsuccessfully tried to find some decent stuff on it. Finally... absolutely wonderful material! Thanks so much for sharing.
I just have to build this one in 3D now. I hope to find the time!


PS. A long time ago I made this 3D/photo comp with the Rainbow for a what-if story by John Baxter: http://digitalaviationart.com/skyraider3d/mep1091a_3.htm

Additional info

 

[Justo Miranda]

From http://www.clubhyper.com/forums/plasticpixframe.htm

 

[Justo Miranda]

From
http://www.anigrand.com/AA4012_XF-12.htm


In 1943, the USAAF had an urgent need to fly photo-reconnaissance missions over the Pacific Theater to identify Japanese positions and movements. However, the airfields were far too distant for the medium-range planes to make the round trip. The request for a new long-range, high altitude reconn. plane capable of the long-endurance missions was issued. In 1944, Republic responded to USAAF by proposing to modify its experimental civilian RC-2 transport to the specifications. The proposal was accepted and was received an order for two prototypes which designated XF-12. While the Rainbow was under development, the USAAF converted several B-29 bombers into recon aircraft, reclassifying them as F-13. Even after the war, Republic continued to develop the Rainbow, changing its designation from the XF-12 ("F" stood for "Foto") to the XR-12 ("R" for "Reconnaissance"). The first XR-12 made its maiden flight in 1947. Its performance was up to expectations, making it the fastest four piston-engines aircraft at the time. Development of the two prototypes continued until 1948 when the USAF canceled the program, choosing the newer RB-29 and RB-50 instead.
Type:
Purpose:
Span:
Length:
Height:
Engine:
Max.speed:
Crew:
Armament: long-range photo-reconnaissance aircraft
Originally to envision as a civilian airliner, and modified to meet military's photo-reconnaissance airplane requirement
129ft.2in.
93ft.10in.
28ft.9in.
4x Pratt & Whitney R-4360-31 radials
460 mph
7
None

 

[Stargazer]

Truly outstanding work, Ronnie! I hadn't seen that gallery before but it's a pure delight!
Shame one can't zoom in a bit in the pictures, but I guess you try to protect your copyrights, which is understandable.
The Rainbow is one of my all-time favorite aircraft, so please let us know if/when you do a 3D of it, okay?

 

[Skyraider3D]

Thanks very much! Indeed I keep the images small, as too often I've seen them reproduced in East European and especially Asian magazines and even books, without my permission and often without credit too. But bigger ones of more recent works can be found on http://skyraider3d.cgsociety.org/gallery/
And of course you could get a some really big ones for on your wall at http://www.digitalaviationart.com/
I'll let you know if I ever manage to find time to make the Rainbow. I hope I do, it's not a complex aircraft to make in 3D. I've often considered making it before, but I never had sufficient references then to do it justice. Now I do, thanks to you guys!

 

[joncarrfarrelly]

Jennings Heilig has done a number of 'What-If?' profiles of the Rainbow in airline livery and service dress.

More on the following page, scroll down about half way.
http://www.madoc.us/profiles.html

p.s. Yes, mods I realize its speculative art, however it does fit with the airliner proposals.

 

[Steve Pace]

Jennings Heilig has done a number of 'What-If?' profiles of the Rainbow in airline livery and service dress.

More on the following page, scroll down about half way.
http://www.madoc.us/profiles.html

p.s. Yes, mods I realize its speculative art, however it does fit with the airliner proposals.

Ask him to do NAA B-70 and F-108 in SAC and ARDC...

 

[flying-finn]

Hello, dear fans!!
LIFE photo archive hosted by Google give us some nice photos which were made from the XF-12 Rainbow:

LIFE_images

 

[OM]

Jennings Heilig has done a number of 'What-If?' profiles of the Rainbow in airline livery and service dress.

...What? No Air Force One or Chagall livery? For shame, sir!

 

[Stargazer]

An Air Force One Rainbow? WOW!!!!!!!!

Such a brilliant idea! I think I will have a go at it in my regular What-if gallery (the address of which is in my signature, in case you never visited...).

 

[flying-finn]

Dear RyanCrierie, Stargazer2006, XB-70 Guy, Justo Miranda and others!

It is very interesting to me to know a little bit more about sad final of the first XF-12 Rainbow prototype. May be there are some photos, illustrating the Rainbow at the Aberdeen Proving Ground??

Many thanks in advance!

 

[Piorun]

I'm new here and this is my first post. On February 25, 1947, American Overseas Airways announced that an AOA Rainbow set the commercial speed record between Meeks Field, Iceland and LaGuardia Airport, New York with an average speed of 453 miles per hour for the 2,212 miles using combined conventional and jet engines. They reported that the plane carried 29 passengers under Captain Robert Siegwald. Flight time was 4 hours and 53 minutes. This is from the February 26, 1947 New York Times and shows that contemporary documents are not always right. AOA and American had both planned on acquiring Rainbows, but that never happened.
-John Emery
Cedar Hill, Texas

 

[overscan (PaulMM)]

Stitched from 2 photos posted at Warbirds Information Exchange.

 

[flying-finn]

Thanks, overscan!
Good quality!

Piorun, here are the records of the XF-12 Rainbow, that i know:

"...In May 1946 the XF-12 Rainbow set a new cross country speed record for multi engined aircrafts on a flight from Wright Field, Ohio to New York. On the 576 miles it averaged 426 mph which was 51 mph faster than the previous record set by a Lockheed Constellation."

"...The XF-12 demonstrated its capabilities on “Operation Birds Eye” on Sept. 1, 1948. The second prototype departed the Air Force Flight Test Center at Muroc, Calif., climbed to 40,000 feet cruising altitude and headed eastward toward New York, photographing its entire flight path over the U.S. The result was a continuous 325 foot-long strip of film composed of 390 individual photos covering a 490-mile-wide field of view. The aircraft landed in Long Island, N.Y., completing a six hour, 55 minute flight and averaging 361 mph."

 

[OM]

An Air Force One Rainbow? WOW!!!!!!!!

Such a brilliant idea! I think I will have a go at it in my regular What-if gallery (the address of which is in my signature, in case you never visited...).

...One of my art renderings is of the Orion III decked out as Air Force One, and I've had this notion of converting a Flying Wing with such markings.

 

[Sundog]

An Air Force One Rainbow? WOW!!!!!!!!

Such a brilliant idea! I think I will have a go at it in my regular What-if gallery (the address of which is in my signature, in case you never visited...).

...One of my art renderings is of the Orion III decked out as Air Force One, and I've had this notion of converting a Flying Wing with such markings.

Are you using the airliner version of the flying wing for it? It would be cool to see it with that cockpit from the airliner variant and the "glass" deck tail.

I have a pretty good drawing of the XF-12 that I had scanned to disk, but I can't find the disk and the HD I had it on crashed about six months ago and I haven't been able to get the special "reader" from my IT friend to read it and get that info off...grrr. I always thought the Rainbow was one of the most beautiful piston engined designs ever built. It's too bad we can't find more info on it as I've had problems finding good cockpit photos as well.