The X-15 is one of those aircraft that needs no introduction. Over the course of 199 flights, it set numerous records and conducted a wide array of experiments and research. It made its first powered flight in September 1959, and in October 1967, X-15A-2 # 56-6671 achieved a top speed of 4,250 mph.

I've long wanted to build a model of the "early" X-15, AC# 56-6670. The plastic kits out there are either A) too pricey or B) of the X-15A-2. So since I've started working in card instead of plastic, I found this kit on the website of Fiddlers Green and decided to build it.

I made several modifications, however. For one thing, the kit comes with the panel lines in white, which look WAY too stark against the black body of the aircraft. So after printing out the sheets -- and before cutting out the pieces -- I took a straight edge and a black marker and covered all the white lines. Once that was dry, I replaced the lines with rows of little silver dots from a small gel roller ball pen, again using a straight edge to make sure the rivet lines were straight.

I deviated from the kit instructions in that I removed the tabs from the chines, but added tabs to the side of the piece that makes up the cylindrical part of the fuselage. I scratchbuilt the skids in the stowed position, and also scratchbuilt the various dumps, jettison plumbing, antennas and probes.

Image: Heading for space