Search the Community

This kit is a monster - both in sheer size and by measure of the amount of work that will be needed to complete it. Ordered from Randy Cooper in the US in the Spring, this must be one, if not the last of his old Devastator mouldings. A nice challenge ahead - when was a short run resin kit ever meant to be a simple lick and stick job. If I'm honest with myself, I'm quite looking forward to the amount of work needed here. The Hangar parts are not really usable due to shape distortion so I have commissioned a 3D build which will be an upscaled hanger produced for the Zvezda 1/2700 ISD - the proportions and dimensions work well when enlarged and nothing that a bit of filler and plasticard wont put right to blend the hangar into the hull when I get to that stage. Randy is working on a new and much improved ISD kit in the same scale with some updates and what I believe to be a more simplified build - but here goes my attempt. Randy's new ISD is based on the larger 9 footer studio model used in ESB and RoTJ - his Facebook pages are being regularly updated for anyone in the market for one of the new kits - I have slipped one on back order for myself hoping that this build will be the "dress rehearsal" of the 2.

My next attempt at model building will be the 1/32 Trumpeter TBM-3 Avenger. (Apologies to jean who requested the 1/32 F-105, but there are too many corrections and additions I need to make to the 105 and just want to do something semi-out of the box.) When this kit came out, it was reviewed as one of Trumpeter’s better kits as far as shape and accuracy is concerned. The box art is here. Inside there is some included kit PE and it looks like at some point in time I purchased the Eduard Seat belts. Now the kit PE has seat belts, but the Eduard are so much better. The bulk of the rest of the kit PE is for the bomb bay doors. Now what is missing from this picture? The canopy masks! I hate to mask canopies. It is my least favorite thing about model building. And this puppy has a lot of complicated masking that needs to be done. Must go online and purchase canopy masks! Not to worry though, it will be a bit before I need them. Inside the main box is a little mini-box full of goodies. Inside the mini-box are the vinyl tires; the engine cowl; some pieces for the engine; those funny, but irritating steel pins needed to hinge the flaps, tail and elevator; stuff for the instrument panel; the clear part for the rear machine gun; some stuff for the folding wings; and finally, some string. (Not real sure about the string use yet?) I got me some instructions to follow. (28 pages!) The decals aren’t much to write home about. I have a choice of two color schemes; one for a bird from the USS Shamrock and the other in the markings of former President Bush’s plane. Right now, I am strongly leaning towards President Bush’s mount as I have just reread Flyboys. I also am tempted to do a Tarpon/Avenger II but I think I will do that with the Accurate Miniatures version I have in the stash. Finally, there are a ton of sprues inside. There are 492 parts in total, not counting the Eduard PE. According to the kit instructions, just 2 will not be used. This might keep me busy over the weekend! I also did a size comparison so I can also start thinking about where to put this when it is finished. The kit fuselage is dwarfs the 1/48 Accurate Miniatures fuselage which for a single engine plane is fairly large for 1/48. I’m thinking this is destined for one of the hutches. I also compared the inner fuselage detail. Accurate Miniatures is known for the quality of kit detail and the Trumpeter inner detail is pretty close to match the AM detail. That is a good sign. So, next up, according to the instructions is four steps on just building up the engine. It looks fairly detailed so I will probably figure out a way to display it as the cowling is a one-piece affair. Must do some research on how the engine panels open for servicing and how to plan the surgery to open up the engine. Seems a waste not to show it. As always, all comments are welcome.

Hi all, I recently completed this a few weeks ago and I decided to upload it here. The build wasn't that enjoyable and I'm not to pleased how it turned out to be honest . The decals are just a bunch of markings I had spare so it is in no way historically accurate

Hello A few new pictures of my latest project. It's TBM-3 Avenger in 1/32 scale. Enjoy. Cheers Mike

An old chestnut this, I am in the throes of assembling an old Accurate Miniatures Avenger and I would like to know how the hell the turret fits inside the fuselage. Years ago there was a link to some instructions on the Accurate Miniatures Website but that has well gone now. Just asking as I don't fancy a cock up at this late stage, thanks in advance lads. Dauntless

A wee bit of a test to see if I can still post photies on the new set up forum. I back-dated the old Airfix Grumman Avenger to a Mk1 Tarpon of the FAA. A lot of the info for doing this was gleaned from this very Britmodeller Forum Changes and improvements are; fish-bowl observation windows, gun trough in top front of fuselage, removal of chin intake & reprofiling of engine cowling with the reduction of the number of cooling fins. Exhausts drilled out and replaced with sliced aluminium tubing. Guns changed for white metal ones. Yagi aerials correctly positioned and made from plastic strip. Main radio aerial raked backwards. Better crew figures installed in three positions. Wheel wells boxed in. Thinner bladed prop, from an Airfix F4U Corsair. Decals all came from the files.

Hello all, this is my latest completion, Accurate Miniatures 1/48 Grumman Avenger. This kit is no shake and bake model, but with some effort it can be built without too many drama's. I chose to build a subject close to my heart: This Avenger is JZ670 "AHBX" of 707 Squadron Fleet Air Arm. She was an Avenger Mk.III and she can be seen in the photograph below during her time at HMS Ringtail in West Lancashire, England. In an attempt to bring my Avenger up to Fleet Air Arm Spec, I scratch built an observers position behind the pilots seat. This involved installing a seat, fold out table and instruments. I did the best I could, but I have no idea how accurate my efforts have been. On that note I would like to say thanks to the forum members here who went out of their way to give advice and share references. I used the Freightdog Models decal sheet "Brits at Sea-Part 1" for the 707 sqn markings and I mixed my own shade of Gloss Sea Blue from Tamiya acrylics. I like the colour, again it may not be "spot on" Here are some photo's of the finished model, I hope you like it! You can see more pics of this build and it's W.I.P. on my blog. http://thescalemodelhangar.blogspot.co.uk

This is my completed TBF-1C Avenger, JZ257/373 'P', 849 NAS HMS Victorious 1945. I used the Italeri kit, Xtradecal markings and an Eduard cockpit detail set. The build log is at the link below: http://www.aussiemodeller.com.au/forum/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=10881 The images: For more images go to the link below: http://www.aussiemodeller.com.au/pages/Gallery/Aircraft_E-H/Harvey%20FAA%20Avenger01.html

Here is a compilation taken around Cornwall during July and August. I've avoided posting any from Culdrose Air Day as the show has already been covered here.

Hi, Grumman Avenger TBF1C "Barbara", pilot Lt. George Bush VT-51, "USS Saint Jactino" 1944. Kit from Academy with small corrections, decals by Techmod. The story, from net: Lt (JG) George Bush - the future President of the United State - flew this TBF-1C. CVL-30 USS San Jacinto, the fall of 1944. He named the Avenger BARBARA for his fiancee, Barbara Pierce. Bush's aircraft was shot down while attacking the Japanese-held Island of Chichi Jima on 2 September 1944. His turret gunner and radio operator/bombardier (John Delaney and William White) were killed, however Bush safely parachuted from the stricken TBF and was rescued by the submarine USS Finback (SS-230). Comments welcome Regards Jerzy-Wojtek

Hi everyone ! Finally finished ! Hope you like it

Hi everyone ! After a very long time i present to you my latest project . At first i thought that this would be an easy and oob project . When i started assembling the cockpit , i decided to try and improve the whole model . I give you photos of my progress so far . Thank you!!! [url=https://flic.kr/p/nNW94V]P6010230

Hey all So I'm just about finished my Accurate Miniatures Avenger (In the Academy box) and I've decided that seeing as how the Avenger was designed as a torpedo bomber, it just makes sense to put a big ol' Mk.13 Torpedo in the weapons bay as opposed to standard GP bombs. As the Academy boxing only comes with bombs, I've sourced a very nice resin torpedo from True Details, however, I'll be damned if I know how to mount the darn thing in the weapons bay. I've tried every combination of "torpedo, avenger, mount, etc" in Google that I can think of, but to no avail. That is why now, I rest my fate in the paint and cyanoacrylate covered hands of my fellow (brit)modellers... Regards, KHood

I make the following humble observation. I welcome any comments and corrections TBF-1 and TBM-1 (FAA MKI) Radio mast on top of the canopy sloped backwards slightly and was positioned on leading edge of cockpit bulkhead. Antenna lead in was below the rear canopy. TBF-1C and TBM-1C (FAA MKII) On American aircraft, the radio mast on top of the canopy was moved further aft and stood vertically. Antenna lead in was moved to the fuselage side below the turret. Illustrations of FAA MKIIs often show this revised radio mast position. However, photographic evidence seems to indicate that the vertical and re-positioned masts as per TBF-1C and TBM-1C were not fitted to FAA MKII machines. This might be due to the FAA specific crew layout not requiring a change of mast position between the two MKs or it might be that when Blackburn fitted the FAA required folding masts, they fitted them as per MKIs. However MKIIIs seem to have been delivered with re-positioned masts as per the TBF-1C and TBM-1C, so the reason is unclear. Photos of possibleTBF-1C and confirmed (according to Sturtivant and Burrow) TBM-1Cs seen with TBF-1 and TBM-1 masts include; FN912 Scale Aircraft Modelling May 84 TBF-1C? JZ114 Model Aircraft Monthly Aug 05 TBF-1C? JZ150 Internet – Britmodeller forum TBF-1C? JZ159 Air Britain Squadrons of the FAA TBF-1C? JZ229 Air Britain FAA Aircraft 1939-45 TBF-1C? JZ396 Air Britain FAA Aircraft 1939-45 TBM-1C JZ401 Aeroplane Monthly Nov 02 TBM-1C JZ434 Scale Aircraft Modelling Feb 94 TBM-1C JZ466 Model Aircraft Monthly Aug 05 TBM-1C JZ496 Scale Aircraft Modelling May 84 TBM-1C JZ497 Aeroplane Monthly Nov 02 TBM-1C JZ535 Aeroplane Monthly Nov 02 TBM-1C JZ541 Air Britain FAA Aircraft 1939-45 TBM-1C JZ594 Scale Aircraft Modelling May 84 TBM-1C JZ614 FAA in Camera 1912-96 TBM-1C

From reading Air Britain FAA Aircraft 1939-45 and looking at previous posts, my understanding is as follows; 80 TBM-3 / TBM-3E serialled JZ635 to JZ720 delivered to the FAA in late 1944 and early 1945. US BuAer No.s indicate that the first 16 aircraft were TBM-3s and the final 64 were TBM-3Es. This would suggest a switch to TBM-3E from JZ651, but Air Britain picture of JZ654 http://www.abpic.co.uk/photo/1228480/ shows TBM-3 characteristics – indented lower cowl flaps, stinger gun position extant, MK5 zero length rocket launchers but no underwing rack for an AN/ASP-4 radar pod. Does this mean serial allocation didn’t directly reflect BuAer No.s (i.e. earliest assigned to earliest)? Most were delivered to S India and then some on to Australia for distribution to front line sqdns in the Pacific. A very few were used by front and second line squadrons, but service records for aircraft of this batch end in 1946, when they were returned or more likely dumped. Earliest MKIIIs seem to have been delivered in US TSS equivalent as per MKIIs. The FAA formally adopted SBG for US supplied aircraft from August 1944. The rest delivered in Sea Blue Gloss with an ant-glare Non-spectacular Sea Blue panel in front of the cockpit. Interior colours as per MKII. The already mentioned Air Britain picture of JZ654 with delivery number in Canada and the crown picture of JZ635 at the A&AEE on p82 of Profile Publications Profile 214 and in the book ‘The Secret Years - Flight Testing at Boscombe Down 1939-1945’, show TBM-3s in TSS. A photo seen by others of JZ681 (a TBM-3E) show it to be in SBG, so were JZ series TBM-3s delivered in TSS and TBM-3Es in SBG or wasn’t it as simple as that?

My latest model, a nice and easy build, hope you like it! More about the construction and painting you can find here, using a translator: http://www.modellingnews.gr/el/%CE%BC%CE%BF%CE%BD%CF%84%CE%B5%CE%BB%CE%B9%CF%83%CE%BC%CF%8C%CF%82-%CE%BA%CE%B1%CF%84%CE%B1%CF%83%CE%BA%CE%B5%CF%85%CE%AD%CF%82/tbf-1c-avenger-uss-natoma-bay-1944-italeri-148

Grumman TBF Avenger, pics thanks to Allan.

Accurate Miniatures’ Avengers, along with their SBD Dauntless and F3F series, are among the best 1/48 scale aircraft kits ever produced. Everything – from surface and interior detail to fit of the parts – is about as good as it gets in injected molded plastic. The fact that almost no aftermarket parts were made for these kits is a testament to how good they were out of the box. The only drawback to the Avenger kits were the instructions – the drawings were crudely done and hard to follow, but this was rectified in the SBD and F3F kits. Aside from some True Details photo-etched seatbelts and an antenna wire, this kit was an out-of-the-box build, including decals. I used no filler – just careful assembly and seam sanding resulted in a near-perfect fit of the main airframe parts. I did find that the lower dorsal gunner’s clear part didn’t fit very well, but that’s probably as much my fault as the kit’s. The rudder is a seperate piece, so I installed it offset to the left for a more candid appearance. I armed my TBF with a standard anti-submarine load of two 500-lb. general purpose bombs and two aerial depth charges. I also cut out and dropped the flaps. For the Atlantic anti-submarine paint scheme, I used Model Master Dark Gull Grey and Floquil Reefer White enamels. (I really hate that Floquil is now out of business – Reefer White was the BEST!) I used kit decals to depict a TBF-1C from VC-55, deployed aboard USS Block Island in the North Atlantic during the summer of 1944.

Just missed out on being first on the list.....again! Ok in to another one, this as usual will have lots of extras, though not too much in the way of modifications which will be nice for a change!! I’ll be building and Accurate Miniatures 1/48 Avenger TBF-1C I picked up in Singapore for next to nothing. With this I’ll be building and FAA Avenger MkI/Tarpon I JZ257 from 849 NAS, aboard HMS Victorious, British Pacific Fleet January 1945. Mouldings and details are lovely. I’ll be adding a few extra detail bits from Eduard, Quick Boost, DEF Model, as well as decals from XtraDecal. Got the BigEd set before I realised I had a TBF-1C and not a TBM-3, so have had to order the correct detail set, so will use both to complete this build. Sure I might need some for the second cockpit! Deacls are lovely as well. Said bit, forgot to take photos of TBF set, next post. Maybe a bit of an over kill, but they were cheap. The XtraDecal markings were for an Avenger MkII (TBM-1C), which I thought maybe an issue but after careful research I have found that these Decals were actually for an Avenger MkI (TBF-1C). There’s a great site which lists all the Bu. No’s assigned to each air craft which helped a lot, so that problem has been solved. Next is the issue of the second cockpit. Not too many photos are available, so this may not be 100% accurate but with a bit artistic license it should look fine. Am really looking forward to this build.

hi all, I’m after some help on an old chestnut that I know has caused some heated discussions both on this site and a few others. I see others have asked about bits and pieces of information on this subject before but this time I’m hoping once and for all (yeah right!) with this thread we can have some definitive answers.....maybe! FAA Avenger MkI/II (or Tarpon Mk I/II) versus TBF/TBM-1C Ok for starters, TBF-1C vs TBM-1C, so far form all he research I can find there was/is very little difference between the two. The TBF was manufactured by Grumman and the TBM was made under license by Eastern Aircraft (division of GM), plus for some bizarre reason each company decided to painted the interiors different, so this aside I can find no other differences between the two aircraft. I have read though that there was some issues with parts between the two different manufactured aircraft as they often weren’t interchangeable??? So for a coming build an Accurate Miniatures Grumman 1/48th TBF-1C is going to be the starting point. Tarpon (Avenger) Mk I/II vs TBF/TBM-1C First up the base model is going to be a -1C, so this will not have the single cowling mounted 30cal of the -1, but rather the wing mounted 50cal’s. This probably is the major noticeable difference other than the radio mast location changed between -1 and -1C. The Tarpon had a different Radio Observers windows, they were the round dome windows on each side rather than the flat ovals fitted to the TBF/TBM’s. Plus they had the second cockpit position for the Navigator, which had aircraft controls fitted (though it is mentioned that the control column was stored most of the time), in place of the radio gear normally found on the TBF/TBM’s. Other than those two details I cannot find any other major differences. Oh and for some reason they decided to change the name from Tarpon back to Avenger. Tarpon Mk I vs Tarpon Mk II Next the difference between are Tarpon Mk I and an Tarpon Mk II with respect to SEA operations and not Atlantic operations? Again only looking at the -1C aircraft (earlier TBF-1’s were also called Tarpon I’s), other than it seems the Grumman made aircraft are referred to as Tarpon Mk I’s and the eastern made as Tarpon Mk II’s. There seems to be very little differences between the two. I have an aircraft I want to build but again have run into this issue of whether it is a Mk I or Mk II! I have a set of Xtradecal markings for an Avenger II JZ257 of 849 NAS, HMS Victorious, British Pacific Fleet, Jan45. But a quick bit of research on the FAA archive web site shows this aircraft was actually an Mk I!! If anyone has a definitive guide to the aircraft serial numbers that would be a great help. I guess the main thing is to get the additional cockpit sorted out and correct as I can get it. I either have the bit required or can easily make them, I just need either some good photos (only have a couple) or some good draws showing some detail. Else I may just have to create something that looks the part....maybe! Have a few reference books, but there’s not a lot of info on the FAA Avenger/Tarpon. All help with any of these question/quires would be greatly appreciated and hopefully this won’t start a big argument!