Simon Posted October 28, 2014 Author Share Posted October 28, 2014 (edited) A quick update: I've re-done the bomb racks, as I wasn't 100% happy with them. Old ones on the left hand side, new ones to the right: These are ready to go into the bomb bay, which has had the central walkway added, including the three formation lights: Rear bomb racks added, as well as the extra vertical beams forward of the central supports: I'm going to leave the rear racks empty, and have the front ones loaded, so I'll add the front bomb racks after I've done some bombs to go on them. I'm going to use some R.A.F. 1000lb bombs from Airfix's Bomber Resupply Set, but I think that the SEAC also used U.S. pattern 1000lb bombs during that period. One other thing that I need to do is figure out how to blank off the ball turret. Thanks to Matt Poole over at the RAFCommands forum, I've discovered that 159 Sqn's Liberators from that period had the ball turret removed to save weight and thus extend range, and indeed often their sole defensive armament was to have only the tail turret manned and equipped with ammunition. Saves a lot of weight leaving the other gunners and their ammo on the ground...! Cheers Simon Edited July 5, 2017 by Simon relinking images from Photobucket to Flickr 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Byron Boyd Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Hi Simon, If you know somebody with the Minicraft B-24D, it came with a blanking plate for the ball turret area... Good luck, and really nice work! Byron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPReggie Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Wow this really is an awesome build. Amazing stuff going on here. Nice to see a type that is not so common as well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted October 30, 2014 Author Share Posted October 30, 2014 (edited) Hello again A quick update for today. I've assembled and painted the 1000lb bombs from the Airfix set and added them to the forward bomb racks. All the photos I've seen of RAF bombs on Indian airfields show them to be pretty filthy, so I added some weathering with chalks: These have been installed in the forward section of the bomb bay: Note the pencilled in P and S on the temporary paper masks - it's easy to forget left from right when the planes upside down and back to front...! I've also made a blanking plate for the ball turret. I've no idea if this was what it looked like, but it'll do, I reckon: More soon... Cheers Simon Edited July 5, 2017 by Simon relinking images from Photobucket to Flickr 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bordfunker Posted October 30, 2014 Share Posted October 30, 2014 Loving the finish on the bombs, they look amazing. Too often bombs look clean and shiny despite the fact they've been rolled around bomb dumps. The rest of your build is stunning. Karl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephenCJ Posted October 30, 2014 Share Posted October 30, 2014 it is good to see a master modeler at work. Brilliant job SImon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martian Posted October 31, 2014 Share Posted October 31, 2014 More great work! I shall be sorry when this build is over. "What next?" is the question they are all asking! Martin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hamden Posted October 31, 2014 Share Posted October 31, 2014 More stunning work on the bomb bay, this is really become a show stopper! Roger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James G Posted October 31, 2014 Share Posted October 31, 2014 Stunning. I love the weathering on the bombs... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Navy Bird Posted November 1, 2014 Share Posted November 1, 2014 Stunning. I love the weathering on the bombs... +1 That is extremely realistic weathering. Superb! Cheers, Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dazdot Posted November 1, 2014 Share Posted November 1, 2014 Bookmarking this I have a us navy one to build at some point Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted November 3, 2014 Author Share Posted November 3, 2014 (edited) It's time for another update... I'd forgotten to add the lower access door under the rear fuselage. The fit of the kit part was pretty rubbish, and so I bottled out and put it in the open postion - it was a bit of a challenge to glue the open door inside the fuselage! I've also done the Quickboost props and spinners. here you can see how much needed to be removed from the prop blades' roots: and here are the four props ready for their manufacturer's decals: And at long last the wings have been added to the fuselage. It now looks like a bit more like a plane: Typically, the starboard wing fitted perfectly, first time, but the port one was less co-operative, and need some (very) gentle persuasion... One the wings have set, it'll be time to find out if she's a tail-sitter...gulp! More soon. Cheers Simon Edited July 5, 2017 by Simon relinking images from Photobucket to Flickr 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hamden Posted November 4, 2014 Share Posted November 4, 2014 Now that really looks like a B24 great work Roger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vulcanicity Posted November 4, 2014 Share Posted November 4, 2014 Just read this all the way through, what a stunning, stunning build! I'm in awe of both your patience and scratchbuilding skills-wish I was that nifty with the Evergreen strip... My girlfriend just looked over my shoulder and said "Why on earth does he put in all that detail when hardly any of it will be visible?" I guess there's just no way some people will ever understand... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted November 12, 2014 Author Share Posted November 12, 2014 (edited) Time for another update... Now the wings are on, time for some decals to be added. I've obtained the deal sheet from Airfix's latest release of their venerable B-24J, which has the SEAC RAF roundels and fin flashes, as well as a full set of airframe stencils. They've gone on really well, and a coat of MicroSol has bedded them down perfectly. Here are the props: And here's the upper surfaces with the stencils for the fuel fillers. I've toned them back a bit with a light coat of OD: The upper turret was removed by accident but it meant that it was easier to mask, and will go back on easily enough. The cockpit seats are now back after I took them out to avoid them being damaged during the painting of the fuselage. An e-mail conversation with Matt Poole in the US led us to discovering the original image that was used inspiration for the nose art. It has been thought that the artwork featured the actress Merle Oberon, as she appeared in the film The Divorce of Lady X, but this image of Lynn Bari featured in Esquire and is clearly the inspiration: http://wwiiletters.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/1945-07-09-Date-Book-1024x731.jpg I'd guess the artist who did the nose art would have stuck with the same colours, so I've amended the decal artwork so her dress is blue. Here's the Photoshop file of the amended nose art: I've taken an educated guess, and I reckon the mission tally panel would have been blue too: I'll need to get the decals re-run in the correct colours now. There's a photo in the Airlife Combat Legends book of KH408 which shows a repainted area behind the nose art, so this will need to be masked and painted before the nose art decal can go on. More soon... Cheers Simon Edited July 5, 2017 by Simon relinking images from Photobucket to Flickr 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hadzi Posted November 12, 2014 Share Posted November 12, 2014 Amazing Work, really beautiful !!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hamden Posted November 12, 2014 Share Posted November 12, 2014 Sorry to see your top turret - misshap the rest looks stunning Roger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidcurrie42 Posted November 13, 2014 Share Posted November 13, 2014 Stunning work John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SHAR67 Posted December 12, 2014 Share Posted December 12, 2014 Anymore progress on this lovely looking bird. Clive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted December 12, 2014 Author Share Posted December 12, 2014 Hi Clive No progress recently - work and visting the in-laws had temporarily stalled the build. On the plus side I've got the revised decals, so it's all pretty much ready to go! Cheers Simon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mixup_1 Posted December 12, 2014 Share Posted December 12, 2014 This has been fantastic to follow! Cant wait to see it finished... Some serious skills on show! BRAVO!! Thanks for sharing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted January 3, 2015 Author Share Posted January 3, 2015 (edited) Firstly, Happy New Year to everyone! At last I'm back on the case at last after Chrimbo and New Year. All my modelling stuff had to go in the loft, as it was all in the spare bedroom and we were expecting three lots of visitors over the Christmas period. As it happens, none of them ended up coming due to unforeseen circumstances, but everything got put away, so my work area went from this: to this: All back in place now, so on with the build... The revised decals arrived from DrawDecal, so the nose art, name and mission tally markings are now in place: I've also invested in some lovely waist guns, from MiniWorld, which I picked up on eBay. These little brass beauties came from Germany: I've made some mounting frames for them, and added in the handles with some plastic rod: Hopefully once they've got a coat of paint, they'll look pretty good. More updates soon... Cheers, Simon Edited July 5, 2017 by Simon relinking images from Photobucket to Flickr 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martian Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 This build just keeps on getting better and better! Martin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Navy Bird Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 Those brass guns are superb! Much nicer than the resin guns I used on my PB4Y. Is MiniWorld the manufacturer, or just the seller? Love that nose art decal, too. Very nice and in the 1940s style. Excellent work. Cheers, Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted January 3, 2015 Author Share Posted January 3, 2015 Bill They're the manufacturer, from the Ukraine I believe. If you search on Google for Miniworld 7230a (for a fixed mount) or 7230b (flexible mounted) you'll find them. There's a seller from the UK on EBay. Regards Simon 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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