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1/48 Monogram B-29 as RAF Washington B.1 *Finished!*


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Whut a shame 'bout the Squadron vac-form canopy replacement not fittin.'

I've been givin' thought to the possibility of gettin' the vac-form canopy as well in order to replace the kit one. Isn't there any way to make it fit...?

I have a confession to make... I found the instructions for the canopy and it recommends cutting out the entire upper forward section for complete replacement by the vacform part. I'm sure it would have fitted fine if I'd done that!

Thanks for the support so far!

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Had another go at this today (Bank Holiday!)

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Sorry for blurry pic, but it's supposed to show the turrets fitted.

Also at the back:

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I fitted the bubble windows from the kit to act as masks (I'll replace them with the vacform versions after painting). The only parts I need to mask for painting now are the wheelwells and bomb bays. I intend to use foam pads.

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Rear turret also fitted, masked with blutac. Needs a bit of tidying up to eliminate the lip.

Meanwhile, back with the engines:

This is the front view of the wing. It shows the engines are mounted perpendicular to the ground, allowing for the wing dihedral.

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Here's a pic of an aircraft in flight:

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Photo © Bill Crump via Thinglink.com

It shows the engines are mounted perpendicular to the wing dihedral, which means they should appear to be slightly "cocked" when on the ground. The kit gives enough jiggle room to be able to replicate this, as long as I can line up the oval shapes without too much of a step.

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To be honest, it didn't turn out great, so I had to do a bit of remedial work:

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Adding these wedges and sanding back gives me the seamless lower join I was looking for. But now the engines are mounted accurately.

Started adding PE to the wings - the camera doesn't want to focus in macro mode today!

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I'm going to do the wings and fuselage separately, then glue it all together. Otherwise it's just too unwieldy to work on such tight angles.

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And this is why! What a monster.

Hope the build progress is helpful so far, and not just a load of boring bits.

Cheers,

Al

Edited by Alan P
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Fantastic work Al and a good save on the glazing. I personally really like these old Mono monstergrams they can form the basis of some really great project as you're showing here. I hate to think how much a 'state of the art' version would now cost, four times as much and half the fun.....

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Lovely work Alan would like a bash at one of these but don't think I would have the space unless ( the ceiling :hmmm: or the wall !! ) in the man cave.

The build progress is certainly helpful to anyone wanting to do this MK of a B-29 or any B-29 for that matter would be useful to me if I do decide to get one.

Keep up the good work.

Guy

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Thanks a gain to Simon, Bob and Guy for the encouraging words!

On 03/05/2016 at 10:34 AM, general melchett said:

I personally really like these old Mono monstergrams they can form the basis of some really great project as you're showing here. I hate to think how much a 'state of the art' version would now cost, four times as much and half the fun.....

If there were an HK Models version.... £250 ono? But exactly as you said, not as much fun! I'm doing the big XB-70 next, even more fun with an oldie but goodie.

The build soldiers on...

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Rear turret tidied up - I used CA glue and accelerator for the gaps and sanded back. Actually looks better than the photo. (Yeah, they always say that!)

Did a bit of late night modelling last night, as the shed was actually still warm at 10pm!

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Adding PE to the wings and engines. The real faff was sanding and shaping the scratchbuilt exhaust pipes to fit the doctored Eduard PE grilles. I still need to fabricate some thin metal sheet to partly cover the exhausts, as they clearly emerge from an aluminium cover rather than the body of the engine nacelle.

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Photo © Discovery Channel via YouTube

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About halfway through the lower engines. The 'C'-shapes are frames for small venturi vents.

This is tedious, but at least it feels like I'm getting somewhere with it!

Al

Edited by Alan P
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Had a go at the skin around the exhausts:

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Just noticed I need to stick some of those strips down again properly!

It's not perfect but it's as close as I'm going to take it.

Al

Edited by Alan P
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This is shaping up to be one of those "Historic" builds. I cannot begin to tell you how pleased I am to see this kit (B-29) get the treatment that it deserves. The 29 is such a significant aircraft. Thanks again for permitting all of us to be "Along for the ride". Bob H.

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Hello,Alan - Here's a masterclass in what can be done with this mighty 'Monogram'.I really like the B-29 and this is going to be a majestic looking build.Fine work indeed. ;) All the best,Paul.

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  • 2 weeks later...

hanks Paul and Bob for your kind comments, again!

This is slowly ongoing - all PE work finished, apart from antennae:

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It barely fits in my workspace now, have to be very careful handling it

 

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For reference there's a Tamiya paint pot by the nose, and the aircraft in the background is a same scale MiG-29.

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Surprisingly few seams to clean up, and the angles are all pretty good. Had to shim the starboard stab as it was drooping slightly. Fixed the wing seams with CA glue and accelerator. Just needs rescribing, and then I'll prep the surface for primer.

If I'm honest, this is starting to get a bit boring, I need to get on to the paint stage before I shelve it somewhere. Plenty more models to make!

Al

Edited by Alan P
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This is really coming along well indeed,........I might just put mine back in the box for now because how can I follow this?

Tony

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Have you worked out how and where you're going to display this one Al? It's practically a walkaround in it's own right :)

Lovely piece of work from both a distance and in close-up.

Tony

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Hello,Alan - You're making a superb job of this big but beautiful beastie.The photo-etch work looks splendid.I know this will be a stunner when she's finished.Keep up the excellent work,good sir!! ;) All the very best,Paul.

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Thanks guys, very much :blush:

This is really coming along well indeed,........I might just put mine back in the box for now because how can I follow this?

Tony

Of course not! the world needs more of these built up to encourage the large shelf market!

Nice work Al, she is definitely a big beast.

Yep - a bit too big really.

Have you worked out how and where you're going to display this one Al?

Thanks Tony, a friend of mine is going to keep it for now, he already has a cabinet built to size for his own one.

Hello,Alan - You're making a superb job of this big but beautiful beastie. The photo-etch work looks splendid.I know this will be a stunner when she's finished.Keep up the excellent work,good sir!! ;) All the very best,Paul.

That etch is really adding a great touch to the model

Thanks very much chaps, it was a lot of repetitive work (especially the tiny tabs on the upper wing) but I agree!

Do love a B-29, 48th is the perfect scale for one too.

Thanks Radleigh, I think it's a bit too big. The Lancaster and B-17 look very good in this scale, but this is just a step too far in my opinion.

Really appreciate the encouragement and kind words. Hopefully you will have more to look at in the next week or so...

Alan

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Mostly finishing the bodywork prep for primer today, didn't quite make it before close of business!

While the airframe was drying from its final washdown, I started on some of the extra bits.

Eduard Brassin wheels - really nice pieces.

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Look at those treads. Cool.

Also got started on the props - these are resin Hamilton Standard props by True Details.

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Another builder (fu manchu) said he used these and they were badly warped. I seem to have got away with it, only one slightly bent blade from what I can see.

The nose masked ready for paint (at last)

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I used Eduard masks, a lot easier than cutting them myself from Tamiya tape

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Ready for paint.

Al

Edited by Alan P
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Looks nice Alan the PE really makes a difference it does look a bit large with the wings on , looking forward to seeing the paint going on hope you have plenty!

Good work.

Guy

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