Ol' Scrapiron

It has been nine months to the day since I conceded that the B-25 project had ground to a halt. I guess I made that official this evening as I boxed up the various sub assemblies and reluctantly relegated the Mitchell to the "Shelf of Doom" Maybe one of the group builds (KUTA?) will see this project rise from the ashes, but no time soon I'm afraid. Sigh. On the bright side, the workbench got a little cleaning and maybe another group build will stoke the fire again. We'll see!

Good tutorials. Thanks for sharing the links.

Oooooh, so shiny. Really shows off the yellow and green. In the text, they mention a couple crews that flew her. Given a little time I can come up with all crews (and crew members) that flew her on each specific mission if anyone really wants to get technical with a build of that Century Ship from the 447th. There were several planes from Rattlesden that hit the 100-mission mark. A bunch of heroes there and all over England at the time!

I lost motivation in the Mediterranean build simply because it strayed from the "Single Topic" part of the group build. It was nice seeing a diverse variety armor and cars and ships and planes -- but nothing like the amount of combined research and learning progress when everyone was building essentially the same subject! I learned more about Lancasters in a couple months by watching other solutions to Lanc challenges than I could have hoped. The previous B-17 GB was also amazing that there were such creative techniques that actually applied to each other's projects. My vote would be to keep it "Single Topic" ... maybe make them a little shorter ... and string them one after the other. If you absolutely need to be wider spread, do something like an 8thAF GB parts A, B and C. Go for these clumps: 8thAF heavies (B-17/B-24) followed by 8thAF single seat fighters (Mustang/Thunderbolt/Lightning,etc.) followed by 8th AF Mediums (A-20/B-26/B-25, etc.) 2 months each, 6 months total, everyone working on similar projects and sharing ideas/advice... Could let the groups overlap a bit since the heavies might warrant more time so the "Little Friends" builds start before the Heavy's deadline. Just my take on what has been so nice about taking part in the STGBs. ------------------------- Edit: with some more thought, I like the "clump" idea best as the B-17s and B-24 projects would have a lot in common, as would fighters and mediums... Instead of STGB "Single Topic Group Build" go for a DCRGB "Damn Closely Related Group Build"

That is a hard YES for me... I'll build three if it helps bring the project count over the threshold (more if needed!) This may help support my answer...

Before you tear out the structure for the ball turret just to have it attached for display like the real turret often is, consider that there is something fascinating about the turret being just the ball as you have it now. It definitely catches my eye being solo like you have it now. If you are going to construct a support frame like the blue one under Champaign Lady, maybe just stretch the vertical dimensions so the plane sits higher off the surface and display the ball turret in the space directly below where it would be mounted in the plane so that the view can easily see the relation of the turret and the support structure inside the plane. I worry that if you remove the support it will make the fuselage artificially seem "open and spacious" instead of capturing the cramped situation in that area. I look forward to planning a trip to California to see it in person once it is safely on display at the craftsmanship museum. We might be able to plan a future 447th BG reunion in that area. Maybe you should plan to bring it in person to eliminate the problem of having "someone else" to the final assembly and also get a chance to visit Fuddy Duddy just a few miles down the road from the museum. I wouldn't be surprised if the Lyon Foundation couldn't be convinced to fly up for a PR opportunity when your project is there. I'm sure whatever you decide to do will be amazing.

I hope that Phoenix does rise eventually. It looks like you took care of that serious wing warping. For inspiration, here is the one I saw at the Planes of Fame museum in Chino You could probably go heavy on the putty and justify that with capturing the "texture" of the real deal. Finish it up when you get the chance.

Nice project Pat. Jean, lovely vintage photos and it is a shame what time can do to these treasured prints. I hop you do not mind that I took a stab at bringing some of the old life back into the ones you posted. No altering, no resizing, no "fixing" -- just boosting some of the levels and contrast to see more of the original. - - - Ooops. I had to upload to get a hyperlink for the shots and it looks like my site did scale down the images in the process. Hope these look a little closer to your memory of that experience.

WOW! great job making the paper shapes come together into the compound curves so nicely.

That resemblance leaped out at me right away. I will have to do a bit more reading on this plane and share with some of my B-17 circle. I certainly look forward to seeing your progress on this project.

I've had the opportunity to shoot a few of those in various markings. Hope these might be of some help either as reference or as simple inspiration. 1974 Nanchang CJ-6A #2951240 HFF, Paine Field - ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Nanchang CJ-6A #4532014 Paine Field ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1973 Nanchang CJ-6A #2432061 HFF, Paine Field / Olympic Flight Museum - - ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1975 Nanchang CJ-6A #1832035 HFF, Paine Field / Olympic Flight Museum - - - Hopefully these will be helpful

I also saw that in York a couple years ago. Sorry for the poor quality of this pic. The tragedy of that visit is that I was so excited by the impressive display that I failed to notice my camera had mysteriously switched from shooting RAW images to low-resolution jpgs. I'm almost in tears that I'll probably never get the chance to re-visit England to see these again and the vast majority of my photos are essentially rubbish compared to what I expected to have. I look forward to seeing this build.

I have photographed many Texan/Harvard/SNJ aircraft and will share some of my shots here --- hopefully something will be an inspiration for the nice projects I see underway. Please note: these are from museums and air shows so use your own judgement as far as reference. *************************************************************************** AT-6D 88-18053 “Playtime” Was also registered as TG-6 42-86272 HFF, Paine Field - - - *************************************************************************** AT-16 Harvard IIB Noorduyn built lend-lease Harvards IWM Duxford - *************************************************************************** AT-6G Texan 49-3402 (marked as SNJ) Palm Springs Air Museum - - *************************************************************************** SNJ-4 88-10185 McChord AFB & Paine Field - - - *************************************************************************** T-6J Harvard II 51-17110 Imperial War Museum, Duxford - *************************************************************************** SNJ-4 88-13627 (possibly) March AFB - *************************************************************************** SNJ-4 88-13466 Evergreen Aviation Museum - *************************************************************************** SNJ-5 90608 Planes of Fame, Chino - *************************************************************************** AT-6D Texan IWM Duxford - *************************************************************************** AT-6G Texan 49-3330 HFF, Paine Field - *************************************************************************** SNJ-5 90790 Planes of Fame, Chino - *************************************************************************** 1960 SNJ-5 Texan #88-15173 Sometimes listed as AT-6D 51985 Paine Field - - *************************************************************************** AT-6D 88-15762 (as an SNJ-5) Yanks Air Museum, Chino - *************************************************************************** SNJ-6 121-43077 “Any Time” Detroit 2010 - - *************************************************************************** Harvard MK IV #CCF4-124 Olympic Flight Museum - *************************************************************************** AT-6A 88-9421 “Checkers” Paine Field - *************************************************************************** T-6G Texan 168-430 Erickson Collection, Madras - *************************************************************************** AT-6F 44-81753 Museum of Flight’s Restoration Hangar - *************************************************************************** T-6 Harvard Mk.4 #CCF4-116 HFF, Paine Field - - *************************************************************************** AT-6C 88-13587 McChord AFB & Paine Field - - *************************************************************************** AT-6B Texan 41-17246 Pima Air Museum - - *************************************************************************** Again, enjoy these for reference or inspiration

Well folks, I definitely have made some progress on the Mitchell, but I'm embarrassed to admit that even with the extended deadline this one just slipped away on me. I will finish it up soon and post some pics here in the coming days, but wrapping it up by tomorrow would take a miracle. 😩😩😩😩

Hmmmmmmmmmmm... I think I might be a go for a B-17 in this... maybe LUCKY STEHLEY BOY -- but TUXEDO TOMIE would work as well. Are there dates for this? (I followed the link to VPP's tag, so I haven't read the full details yet.)

On her feet (sort of) Glued the wheels on and gave it a day+ to really cure. I'm steering away from adding enough weight to keep it from tail dragging -- it is definitely a heavy model already. There might somehow be extra pounds from the scratchbuilding. Here she is with a battery holding her hind end aloft. She looks pretty sorry at this stage -- it is soooooo much more interesting on the inside. At the very least, some progress is being made. The kit comes with a ladder that cheats gravity and I think that will be my answer to keeping the nose gear down. In case I don't get to post tomorrow: Happy New Year everyone.

It's been more than a month... Hard to believe it has been more than a month between sessions at the model bench. Back in late November I resigned to the fact it was time to close the fuselage. I took some shots to preserve the state of the build before sealing it up forever. A couple pieces decided to attempt escape (they were rounded up thankfully!) so I set everything down for a quick break. Thanksgiving rolled by... Christmas rolled by... wow. Last night I dusted the pieces off and (gulp!!!) applied the glue. It is drying at the moment, but I thought I would share the last pics taken before the halves went together. Note that I had to use a food container to prop it up so the fragile waist guns wouldn't break off (like the trailing antenna did) - - - - - - The trailing antenna broke off but I have it ready to be installed in the final stages. - As the weeks went by I watched so many amazing builds cross the finish line into the Gallery. During that time I've been working on my art business and produced a few beautiful projects while the model sat unloved just a few feet away. Next update should include photos of the B-25 standing on its own wheels. Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and survived Boxing Day.

That spinner attachment set up does look unusual. Looking at your earlier sprues shot I see the spinner is in two pieces (base + forward spinner) ... How does the base piece go on over the "disks" in the built-in shaft? Odd.

Up-Loads of "fun" ... but no progress So I thought I had beat the system. Rather than using a photo-hosting service (like Photobucket, etc.) I have always just used a sub-folder on my own business website to store the images. It takes up some server storage, which I am fine with, but the real downside was that when I migrated my site to a new server all the links in my previous builds suddenly wrecked and the dreaded "broken link" icon appeared instead of all those wonderful WIP shots of my B-17. I figured a better workaround would be to quickly make a facebook page (FREE) used only for dumping my pics into albums for each build. Quick, easy, (did I mention FREE?) and all I needed to do was copy the hyperlink and paste it into the britmodeller posts. Easy-peasy. Discovered tonight that the early pics in this thread were broken. Turns out those facebook links are temporary and "expire" after a month. Spent tonight uploading all the photos into my new large server (which I should have just done in the first place) and then going through the entire thread and replacing the old images with the correct permanent ones. I should be able to get some bench time in tomorrow. In the meantime, here's a shot I took of one of our local Mitchells (B-25J 44-30254) during one of the FHC's Free Fly Days. Unfortunately, there's some rumors going round hinting the family of Paul Allen may be closing the FHC for good. I'm not in the know, but just that possibility makes my heart ache.

Tale of the Trail-ing antenna One of the oft-overlooked parts of the B-25 and other bombers is the trailing antenna. On the B-25J this stuck out the lower left fuselage in the waist area. You can see the "avacado on a stick" in my shot of B-25J Mitchell 44-30254 flying at Paine Field during an event hosted by the Flying Heritage Collection. Looking through my shots of all the B-25s I have photographed at air shows and museums, that Mitchell looks to be the only one that has the antenna installed (but I am shocked at how many times I neglected to shoot that area when I had the chance) Fortunately, this is the same equipment as the B-17 used, and I have taken shots of that. Here is the motor and equipment inside B-17F 42-29782 Boeing Bee and what was outside Also visible through the plexi area on B-17G 44-83735 Mary Alice at the IWM Duxford before the fuselage was sealed up and repainted and on B-17G 44-83684 Picadilly Lilly II at the Planes of Fame Museum --------------------------------- Aaaaaaand, I'm back. Sorry about that.... I just spent 45 minutes lost in my old photographs. Miss the days when I could go to a museum. Sigh. Now to the model. Here's what I found online for the B-25 equipment (from the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum's website) I started off with building the cable retraction motor. At 1/48 it is pretty tiny, the whole thing fits easily on an Xacto blade The motor is a snipped sprue runner and a couple bits of Evergreen plastic, all resting on a bent piece of soda can for a mounting bracket. The pulley is simply a looped wire glued behind the motor. I used a rounded nub of a sprue end to make the wood ball and added some stretched sprue for the rod. A drop of Elmer's glue was dried on the end to represent the "avacado" lead weight - Here it is painted - And back inside for the painted motor and rod It looks fine except it really should be located over about where the forwardmost seat is. No big deal, right? As long as no one ever sees the inside and outside at the same time It's like looking at it refracted through water. By the way, one of the bombs dropped off the model while I was shooting these shots. Glad the 1000-pounder hadn't been armed yet or it could have been quite messy.

Waist guns mounted Knowing what passes for "fit" with the little windows around the nose of the Monogram B-17, I really like the way theB-25J is set up nicely to have the waist windows securely added from the outside. However, because I wanted to have the guns supported by a pair of belts I needed to get the plexi and the guns attached while the fuselage was still open. The belts/straps are just stretched sprue. I decided to give up on the idea of portraying the whole pulley system along the roof. The B-17 had four control wires running along each side of the spine... The B-25 must also have control wires somewhere (upper or lower???) but I'm going to admit I don't really care right now. Anyway, here are the guns now attached to the fuselage (which makes setting the project on the workbench nearly impossible!) Right side... (with the strike camera that almost got left out) - and the left side - and from the outside (ignore the rough paint for now) - - I don't think I mentioned the flooring I added to the tail section so there won't be a seam along that tiny space visible later on (the tail plane covers almost all that space) Still inching closer to time to close it up. More and more I am starting to break off bits of my work just by holding the fuselage halves as I work. Can't grip it or set it down -- yikes! That's all for now.

No time to Waist With the time to close up the fuselage nearing I took a last look at the instructions to ensure nothing important got forgotten. What I discovered was that the fuselage was to be closed at the end of step 2 in the instructions ... and the waist guns/windows installed in step 4. I'm glad I looked because I want to depict the support cables (elastic straps) that run from the gun to pulleys on the ceiling and that certainly needs to be done before closing the fuselage. Here are the guns that will be installed there. I used some of the same stretched sprue from the cranks (previous post) to create hand grips and charging handles. The hand grips were simply added over the molded in grips because it helps create extra width for the new ones. (twisted grip on the far gun has since been fixed) - - That's it for the moment

Time to get Cranking I have to give credit to the original craftsman that made these molds for the detail they include -- some of it is amazing! One of the details that does bug me is the molded in hand cranks that are so subtle that I have to indicate them so they'll be visible in this pic. I had been reluctant to leave the one on the bulkhead as painted, but as long as I was going to create the forward one I might as well do both. These would be made from stretched sprue pulled slow when cool so it would be very thick. A shot before painting (and adding more details to the fuselage) - attachment straps were tiny loops of wire. How I got them glued to the kit and off my fingers is a miracle. I started with needle-nose pliers but was afraid I would superglue them shut and ruin them. - Next up the waist guns...

I( especially like the rudder antenna -- flattening the end and creating a slot rather than trying to just stick a rod into the top. That should be a much better purchase and be more secure. I'm going to file that away for the next project.

Closer to closing... It's getting harder to stall on closing up the fuselage. Painted a few parts like the turret plexi and other bits and started gluing more things in place. - - The tail turret looks good, but I'm sure it will have a floor installed before I close the fuselage. I am not going to try to continue the belt feeds to the guns (they'll just dead end at the shield) I also saw a reference drawing that indicates the belts actually made a 90-degree twist so that the get to the belt on end rather than flat... yeah, I'm leaving well enough alone at this point. Glued the turret plexi on and applied some paint: ZC green followed by silver followed by one light coat of brown OD. Not sure this is the final body color so I am using it as a primer for whatever goes on later. The glass will get scraped to make the paint nice and tidy, then coated in Future to conceal most of the blemishes. Barrels will be added at the very end. The same brown has been on the wings for a while -- again, only to put a dark base down for the final paint color. Something similar but with a hint of olive rather than straight brown (although I think this is pretty close) t was nice to tape it together to see the major parts together... at least for tonight. Note that while I was "flying" the plane around the room (with the mandatory zooming noises) I managed to let the tail drop off and both rudders broke off on impact. I got incredibly lucky that nothing was damaged. Good night all