Revell 1:72 Consolidated PB4Y-1 Liberator

[Navy Bird]

Hi mates! I've finally finished a project that I originally started as part of the Obsolete Kit Group Build. The kit I chose is the old (and very obsolete) kit from Revell USA of the PB4Y-1 Liberator in glorious 1:72 scale. This kit first saw light of day in 1965, and I can remember my brothers and I building this (and blowing it up) several times in my errant youth. To pay for such past injustice, I was sentenced in my adulthood to think this would be an easy, quick project. Yikes!

Project: Consolidated PB4Y-1 (B-24D) Liberator

Kit: Revell Kit H-205 (1965)
Scale: 1:72 (The Only Scale That Matters)
Decals: Iliad Design Sub-Hunting Liberators No. 72001

Decals: Aviaeology B-24/PB4Y-1 Stencils No. AOD72S01
Resin: CMK B-24D Cockpit Set No. 7234
Resin: Quickboost Liberator Antisubmarine Radar No. 72170
Resin: Quickboost B-24 Propellers No. 72329

Resin: Quickboost B-24 Oxygen Cylinders No. 72319

Resin: CMK B-17 Waist Gunners Detail Set No. 7205 (used for the 0.50 Brownings)

Resin: True Details B-24/PB4Y Wheel Set No. 72016
Photoetch: Eduard Big Ed B-24D Set No. 7252

Paint: Tamiya XF-2 Flat White, Gunze H54 Non-specular Sea Blue, Gunze H56 Intermediate Blue, Tamiya XF-69 NATO Black, Gunze H95 Smoke Grey, Alclad Klear Kote Flat
Weathering: Pastel chalks
Swearing: Loud and often

Improvements/Corrections

• Removed all rivets; re-scribed all panel lines (they were already engraved, but inconsistent - not sure I improved it!)
• Replaced kit flight deck and nose gunner/bombardier station with CMK resin set and details from Eduard PE set
• Added all guns (resin stock and PE cooling jackets) and equipped with PE ammo belts
• Eduard PE colour seat belts in all stations
• Added port cheek window (not in kit)
• Scratchbuilt front landing gear structure from plastic rod and PE
• Main landing gear wells made from Eduard PE
• Scratchbuilt entire waist gunners area including fuselage structural members, floor, and gun supports
• Waist gunners area detailed with PE and resin oxygen cylinders
• PE ammo belts realistically draped from overhead ammo box into waist guns
• Added relief tube to port waist gun area (really!)
• All guns have PE gunsight (and I no longer have any eyesight!)
• 83 grams added up front to prevent tail-sitter!
• Waist gunners window panels made from film sandwiched in PE pieces
• Modified engine housings so propeller would be in correct position; replaced kit props with Quickboost resin
• Replaced wheels and tyres with True Details set (had to make the resin tyres not look flat)
• Added main landing gear retraction strut; detailed all landing gear with PE brake lines and oleo scissors
• Added radome in place of belly turret
• Scratchbuilt interior of top and tail turrets; replace kit clear parts with vacuform
• Replaced kit canopy with vacuform; added bulged side windows; added vacuform astrodome
• Replaced Fowler flap actuators and posed flaps in landing position
• Lowered elevators slightly; posed ailerons in off-neutral position
• Added PE deflectors forward of waist gunner windows
• Used decals to represent tunnel gun windows (because I forgot to put holes in the fuselage!)
• Added radial panel lines on both sides of each vertical tail with pencil
• Weathering by post-shading with paint and pastels; chipping on props with silver pencil
• Gear doors from Eduard PE
• Scratchbuilt forward pitot probes from styrene stock and hypo needles
• Added all antennae: Marker Beacon (underside of bomb bay catwalk), Command, Liaison, ADF, Sense, and one more that I have no idea what it is! 0.005" Nitinol wire used for aerials.

 

Elapsed time: Approximately five months (too freaking long!)

You can find all the details in two WIP threads, Part One in the Group Build, and Part Two in the normal WIP section. On with the pictures! I hope you enjoy the photos as much as I enjoyed this crazy obsolete kit build!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A few in-progress shots:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cheers,

Bill

[IainA]

John. That really is superb.

[llking]

Awesome job

[Wolwe82]

fantastic work all around, so clean build and totaly great finish, i like it a lot!

[VG 33]

Fantastic. I followed step by step your project and it was very interesting.

Patrick

[SimonR]

Stunning Bill, really amazing work!

Great to see it finished!

cheers

Simon

[arnobiz]

Fantastic work as usual, thanks for sharing!

Arnaud

[Snitok1983]

Wow that is amazing! You did a great work! The fotos take my breath away!

[Speedman]

A work of art! I'm glad you added photos of the interior so those who haven't been following this since the start (and possibly too lazy to go through the build threads) will know just how insanely detailed it is. It's been a long haul but totally worth it.

[nicE1]

Wow! that's very nice indeed!

[snapper_city]

Stunning finish and the build has been a joy to watch when I finally found it.

[Jessica]

It needs a companion. Now you need to do an RCAF Liberator with the Leigh light and chin radar.

[JasonC]

That's a big list of improvements! A very nice Lib, and she looks great in that scheme. Really nice finishing.

regards,

Jason

[DannyB]

Fantastic work Bill, and much cudos for sticking with it. Bet you're glad to get it off the bench!

It's been a journey

[SHAR67]

Very nice indeed I've been looking in on your build and its inspired me to finish mine, can you tell me if you had to weight the nose as it looks to be a tail sitter. I have a gun nose version and have spent the last four years on and off the thing but she's close to being finished sometime this year I hope well maybe this year

Nice job anyhow

Clive

[kev67]

Wow, really excellent build, viewed it on my iphone, but it was so small could not see much in terms of detail ,but on my PC brings every thing into perspective

[stevehnz]

Fanflamingtastic.

Steve.

[_H_]

That really is amazing Bill!

Couple of things though, I dunno if you ever "show" your models but a few people are going to say "What kit is that?" and when you tell them they're either not gonna believe you or go out and buy one thinking how good it looks and then be in for a world of hurt!

Howard

[stevej60]

Epic WIP and build Bill,a pleasure to follow and see the end result.If somewhere in the world there,s a Revell museum this should be somewhere

in it!

[zegeye]

She is a real beauty Congratulations.

[tomprobert]

What a beauty. It's great to see it finished.

Just goes to show that with a bit of elbow grease and some imagination that these golden oldies have a lot of life in them yet. And I bet it was a lot more fun, as well as you learning a lot more form it, than a more modern 'shake and bake'.

Thanks for sharing your WIP too - it was a joy to follow.

Tom

[sunray]

What a bird! You can almost smell the oil and avgas. Also the photo's are top notch.

Cheers

Ian

[batcode]

:mike:that's is truly some amzing work the detail and paint are fantastic, flip doubt I can build my 1/48 one half as good!!!!

love the scheme and the weathering looks great what did you use to highlight the panel lines??? as looks so smooth better than how I get with a wash???

fantastic work got be one the best ive seen and amazing its only 1/72

[bobster]

A really impressive job Bill! I have followed this build from the Obsolete GB and now the Liberator is finished, It is a fine looking model!

Rob.

[Val]

An absolutely amazing build! The build thread and finished item are a real inspiration, fine work!