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Showing results for tags 'P-38G'.
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I was building two Airfix P-38 Lightnings in parallel for the recent GB, but I had to concentrate on just one of them to get finished. So this thread is for the second one. The WIP thread is here if you want to see how it all started. Anyhow, just got a first coat of lightened Olive Drab on: I'm going to be using the Exito decals for "Babe", a P-38G flown by Lt. Edgar L. Yarberry in Tunisia, June 1943, so I'm aiming for a sun-bleached finish.
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My first WIP, and I’m stepping in the ring with this, Tamiya's brand new P-38G Lightning. Inside the beautifully designed box you get a sumptuous kit without a fussy mix of materials - just plastic, all of it crisply moulded and finely detailed. I don’t think I would’ve chosen to build a P-38 without all the superlatives being thrown at Tamiya’s new tooling. However, it’s a fascinating subject, and part of the fun of building kits is the research it can lead you to. I’m going for the P-38G, Rex Barber’s legendary ride in Operation Vengeance, one of the longest interception missions in WWII. It seems to be widely accepted that he was the one who shot down Admiral Yamamoto’s Betty, although the controversy surrounding this is worth reading about (https://modelairplanemaker.com/2019/08/09/tamiyas-1-48-p-38-lightning-and-significance-of-miss-virginia/). Not only is it a compelling story, but the plane itself offers so many opportunities for weathering - a fun part of building Pacific theatre subjects (I sound as though I’m talking from experience, although I only have a Corsair under my belt so far). I'm hoping to get close to the beaten look of Barber's plane, complete with its lattice of marks left from the packing tape it was shipped in. I'll be building this OOB, apart from an Eduard seatbelt that might arrive one day (how about it, 1001modelkits?). The cockpit has a wealth of detail, and slips together with the kind of fit for which Tamiya are rightfully celebrated - ie. perfect. I've heard that a more authentic colour for the interior would be closer to RAF Interior Green, but this is art and not life, and I wanted the punch of the yellowish green called out in the instructions. All the details were painted by hand. I gave the IP decal blobs of gloss coat over the dial faces - a nice pop against the Nato black of the panel. The tub sits in the fuselage snuggly; every part of the build reminds you of the level of engineering in this kit. I just hope I can do it justice. Thanks for your time!
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I blame @Procopius and @Cookenbacher. And @CedB In what feels like a very different world, c.2 years ago, 2 young(-ish) Americans well known to this community came to visit the UK. They visited a truly epic number of air museums in a short time, met many of us at Telford and/or some of the museums, and generally appeared to have a blast. As far as I am aware there was no direct evidence of their being over-sexed, but they lived admirably up to the example of their ancestors 75 years ago by being over-paid and over here. One of the museums they visited was at Old Buckenham, SW of Norwich, dedicated to the 453rd Bombardment Group USAAF during WW2... and they got talking to the curator, who reckoned he could use some more models. Many emails and 18 months later, several of their BM friends found large parcels arriving; somehow all those years in the Navy and the instinct never to volunteer for anything... wasted. What was I thinking? [All joking aside, it is an honour to pay tribute to those young men so far from home. No, not Edward and Cookie; the proper heroes.] So I find myself building not just one aircraft miles out of my comfort zone... but 3. The idea is the Museum provide the kits; we do the building. You’ll see other BM 453rd-ers appearing in the coming weeks - it’s kind of like a weird group build. I’ll document all 3 of my builds on here, and no doubt others will do the same. Closer to home, though, there are other reasons for this. Many of you already know that completely out of the blue I had a heart attack on 6 March, while out walking the dog on the downs near Salisbury. It was very, very scary, but I managed to avoid meeting that nice Mr Reaper quite yet. 10 days on and I am still pretty weak and lack stamina (quiet in the cheap seats!), but off work for a few weeks. So I need something to do. My Ark build will continue in parallel, but I feel like something self-contained; the plan is for this to be pretty quick, especially by my standards - this is a celebration of still being here! It has to be said that I’ve wangled 3 corkers, all in 1/48 (so at least some of my comfort zone remains intact): the Eduard P-51D, Tamiya P-51B and, up first... the Tamiya P-38F/G. Every review I’ve seen of this kit since it was released in 2019 has positively drooled, so I’m pretty excited about building it. I am by no stretch of the imagination an expert on either the Lightning or the Mustang; if you are and you see me about to make a howler, then feel free to tell me! I have the kit itself, and Jim (the Museum curator) is sending me sone after-market stuff... including the markings, so I cannot yet tell you exactly which airframe this will be...other than that it will be a P-38 of the 479th Fighter Group, based at Wattisham. OK, enough rabbiting on; the kit and the obligatory photos of the box and its contents. Even on initial inspection I can see why everyone raves about it; beautifully moulded, and some really ingenious engineering. ...and the proof that Tamiya engineering is ridiculously good; no tail-sitters here: The game’s afoot. More soon Crisp
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Late to the party, but let's see what I can do. I'll be building the Tamiya 1/48 P-38G Lightning in the kit markings for Miss Virginia, the aircraft flown by Lt. Rex Barber when he shot down the G4M1 carrying Adm. Isoroku Yamomoto on 18 April, 1943. Here are my start photos: I've been planning on making doing this aircraft for years (and the G4M1) and have had the Mustang International decal sheet. But along comes Tamiya and I think their decals are actually more accurate. So the only thing I plan to add to this build is a set of Eduard seat belts. We'll see how it goes! Michael
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Hello, Here is F-toys P-38 rebuilt and repainted as an Alaskan P-38G. Quick build, easy kit, highly recommended. Paints are Testors enamels with pastels for weathering. The background is the Mojave Desert. Thanks, David Muroc Models