Venturas at Night - 459 Sqn, 1575 (SD) Flt & VMF(N)531

[Ed Russell]

Having done a fair bit of the development of our Lockheed Ventura update for the 1/72 Minicraft and 1/48 Revell kits, along with the rest of the Red Roo team and much help from @tonyotTony O’Toole, I thought I had better build one.

I usually build in 1/72 so I’ll update the Minicraft kit.  As I have the Owl conversion for the Ventura nightfighter I’ll do one of them also.

Do I have the models? Yes.

 

 

The Minicraft kit has been around since at least 1987 and can be picked up cheaply second hand. It is often re-issued or re-released.

There is a reasonable number of accessories etc available and looking through my Ventura file I seem to have most of them.

 

Similarly with books. I have the three most commonly cited ones so reference is hopefully not a problem

 

Let’s start on the bomber version. 459 (Australian) Sqn used Venturas for convoy escort and day and night bombing in the Mediterranean theatre. The subject of our decals is FP653 flown by the CO of 459 and carrying You Beaut nose-art

 

 

Having the Pavla set, this one looks the most likely candidate for a bomb bay so we cut out the existing doors, fit the bomb bay and the cockpit interior.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was going to go the whole way with the Pavla interior but it would be completely invisible. I might give it a go in a future build with the door open and maybe an interior light.

We'll get going on some of the main parts too.

 

 

The Aeroline cowlings will end up on the nightfighter version.

[Rabbit Leader]

Great start Ed.. all that AM stuff should really lift this Ventura kit, one which I've been meaning to add to my collection however for some reason still haven't. 

I'll watch on with deep interest if that's OK. 

 

Cheers.. Dave 

[Ed Russell]

Here's a review of the conversion. Also available in 1/48

http://www.hyperscale.com/2017/reviews/accessories/rrr72161reviewbf_1.htm

 

PS - apologies if you couldn't see the pics - Flickeritis now cured

[Edge]

Great looking set Ed - I'll have to get one as soon as Blackbird Models have them in stock (postage from Aus is expensive). 

[Ed Russell]

Parallel to You Beaut I am building Coral Princess, a nightfighter used in the Pacific Theater. About all they have in common is that they they are Venturas used at night. This photo of Chloe from the same unit shows the very weathered finish. These PV-1's had served as bombers before conversion, were used by VMF(N) 531 as trainers and then served in the front line as combat fighters. No wonder they looked weathered. Points to note on the conversion are the different solid nose grafted onto a window Ventura, the armament, the radar, the flame damper exhaust and the glare shields. These are all in the Owl kit.

We need to add the clear nose in the kit before we paint out the windows and cut off the nose transparency! The windows are obvious on pictures and it's easier to paint over them than rescribe a solid nose.

While this is happening more painting of parts is going on in the background. Bomb doors from the Pavla set, bombs from there and from the spares box, propellers. I have some Aeroclub props labelled by some unknown vendor as "Ventura" but to my eye the kit ones look more like the photos.

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[Ed Russell]

The Minicraft Ventura is reasonably well detailed but one sadly lacking area is the wheel wells - they are just a flat surface. I had thought of just painting them black but I thought i could do better. They are a complex shape so I used a bit of casting silicone to get the shape.

Once removed it made a nice template. I could then start to make something a little better than a flat surface.

It's okay but there's something wrong........................

 

[Ed Russell]

The problem is that building the wheel well up with more detail means you can barely get a tailwheel in there let alone one of the main wheels. A better solution is needed - paint it all black maybe.

[Ed Russell]

So the answer is to build wheel wells with more depth

They are just built from plastic card and strips to more-or-less approximate the basic features of the real ones, which were a mass of piping and brackets etc

Their increased depth means we have to butcher a space in the nacelle for them to fit

but that's not too hard, using a Dremel and sanding sticks, files etc

[stevehnz]

I'm liking the look of this Ed, I've several Ventura versions in stock, for a couple of Kiwi ones & the one my Uncle navigated in with 464 sqn in Europe. I could well be tempted with a 459 sqn one too I reckon, its such a beaut scheme, so I'll be watching on with more than usual interest.

Steve.

[Ed Russell]

You may have to buy a couple more - the DK Decals sheet has seven NZ schemes.

[stevehnz]

Don't i know it, reckon I'll have some spares.

Steve.

[Ed Russell]

All cleaned up nicely. Also removed the drop tank pylon from one set as the bomber did not carry them but the nightfighter did.

 

I'm not actually sure whether there is any time saving in doing two similar aircraft at the same time.

 

I'm sure I will have lots of spare decals - I have 2 x Red Roo sheets, 2 x DK and the Owl one. I'm sure that's 30+ Venturas!

[Ed Russell]

Some internal structure for the wheel doors

and some aluminium foil behind the landing lights

 

[Ed Russell]

The re isn't much to see in the interiors so - I know it's heretical - any colour paint will do.

 

 

The bomb bays and wheel wells are a different matter.

[Ed Russell]

Well this build has almost gone into reverse. There was a severe wind a few weeks ago. The model room window was a few cm ajar and the wind got under the propeller blades which apparently fluttered into the air. Only noticed when I trod on them..............

Anyway, all repaired now with wire and glue. the only real progress is to dunk the glassware in Future for a week and let it dry for a few weeks. here it is before dunking.....

 

 

Another setback has been the inadvertent addition of another Ventura - I was looking for something for a customer and found, in a box labelled Hasegawa Avenger, a half-made Minicraft Ventura. I have to decide whether to throw it out or finish it. It came in a carton of 10 supposed half-built models I got at a swap-and-sell for $5 the lot so I'm not losing much. What shall I do?

[Rabbit Leader]

What type of Ventura is this half built one Ed, a US Navy PV-1 or an RAF type with the big BP turret? Got any pics?? 

 

Cheers.. Dave

[Ed Russell]

It's a glass nose Ventura with the Martin turret. Unfortunately the inside of the nose is painted but that's fixable.

The DK Decals set has given me an idea for using it - needs to be something at night or I'll have to change the title.

Here are the clear parts post-Future

[Ed Russell]

And here are the repaired propellers

 

 

I think I have found the subject for the 3rd one. A special thanks to Tony O'Toole for having done all the research for me and presumably being the inspiration for putting AE881 on the DK sheet.

[Ed Russell]

In reply to a couple of emails and PMs this build has indeed stalled due to other priorities intervening , but I promise it will be resuscitated post Model Expo.

[Azgaron]

Nice work with the wheel bays!

 

Håkan

 

[Ed Russell]

Many WIP threads die on BM - good subject for a thesis? However this one, having been static for some time, is still alive. I have made some progress. Here we have the three of them with a preliminary priming to look at seams and suchlike.

 

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[stevehnz]

Good to see this resurface Ed, I'm still keen to see the end results.

Steve.

[Ed Russell]

It's pottering along slowly......... here are all three, having had multiple, fill, sand, fill, sand etc sessions, waiting to dry after a wash.

 

They were primed with SMS Grey primer. This is an acrylic lacquer which is a new departure for me. Testing it with enamel paint seems to work fine. It's a local product https://www.scalemodeller.com.au/search?q=primer and rady to spray from the bottle.

 

A large number of the smaller parts have been primed also and the next task is to attach some of these before painting.

 

All three are a bit different so there are various sorts of intakes, exhausts, external loads, armament (there should be 16 x MGs there 14 x 0.50 cal and 2 x 0.303 for the BP turret) but they have the same wheels, props doors etc.

 

 

 

[tonyot]

Looking forward to following these Ed,.....you`ve done a superb job so far! I am also in the process of building `You Beaut' using your set,.... but I had a severe mojo loss before going away on holiday and it has not returned yet!!

Glad you liked and chose AE881,..... I did quite a lot of research on this one and I hope that you have a copy of my article in Model Aviation Modeller International where I built this one and covered its history as reference mate? After writing the article and building the model I managed to contact a pilot who flew the aircraft and I asked whether the guns were fitted in the nose glazing as I had my doubts about this,...... he said that they were not,...... so the holes for the guns should be plated over.  I did do a post here on BM with most of the info;

 

and I`ve done another post with most of my Commonwealth Ventura`s here too;

 Good luck with the models mate,

Cheers

            Tony

Edited August 19, 2019 by tonyot

[Ed Russell]

12 hours ago, tonyot said:

Looking forward to following these Ed,.....you`ve done a superb job so far! I am also in the process of building `You Beaut' using your set

Thanks. I certainly have all your information about Venturas. if you are doing one with our set check this

http://www.hyperscale.com/2019/reviews/accessories/redroorrr72161reviewdc_1.htm

It's an easy fix and it also applies to the 1/48 set.