Hornet133 Posted August 20, 2019 Share Posted August 20, 2019 Hi Ed, Great to see these progressing. 'Coral Princess' was more likely a converted B-34 rather than a PV-1. AFAIK no PV-1s were built with the 'glass nose'. The REAL difference however between the versions was the lower altitude rating engines nominated by the USN for the PV-1. Steve Mackenzie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Russell Posted August 20, 2019 Author Share Posted August 20, 2019 20 hours ago, Hornet133 said: AFAIK no PV-1s were built with the 'glass nose'. Hmm... thanks for making me think more about it! I hesitate to quote Wikipedia as a source but it does reference respectable books and backs up your thought about B-34's B-34 - US designation for the Model 137 (with 2000hp R-2800-31 engines) bought for the Royal Air Force, 200 built and designated the Ventura IIA by the British. PV-1 - United States Navy version of the B-34; 1,600 built. A total of 388 were delivered to the Royal Air Force as the Ventura GR.V, others to the RAAF, RNZAF and SAAF. However it also says Early production PV-1s still carried a bombardier's station behind the nose radome, with four side windows and a flat bomb-aiming panel underneath the nose. Late production PV-1s dispensed with this bombardier position and replaced it with a pack with three 0.50 inch (12.7 mm) machine guns underneath the nose. and this is backed up by the BuNos of VMF(N)-531 PV-1s all being early ones. VMF(N)-531 had a variety of Venturas, all they had in common was that they were all clapped out. Ginter and Stanaway call them PV-1 Venturas so I am in good company. Specifically #6 Miss Represented, #46 (?) (the all black one) #52 and #53 Chloe had a solid nose with radar and guns in an improvised nose cap #8 (?) Eight Ball, #25 and #30 had a glass nose with a non-radar cap #51 Coral Princess had a glass nose, guns and radar. The top windows were left clear and the bottom ones overpainted or (possibly) sheeted over. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hornet133 Posted August 20, 2019 Share Posted August 20, 2019 Thanks Ed, I must look into that. The USN did use both what we call Hudsons and B-34s in WW.II. I would not trust Wikipedia to get it correct one bit, however Ginter and Stanaway should be correct. Must look for my copies of the books to see exactly what they say. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyot Posted August 22, 2019 Share Posted August 22, 2019 On 8/19/2019 at 11:13 PM, Ed Russell said: 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. Cheer for the heads up Ed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob Lyttle Posted April 16, 2020 Share Posted April 16, 2020 Hi @Ed Russell. I found this by following the link on Nothing Venturaed thread. I very much hope that you do get back to these. I'm veering away from military stuff and trying to get the hang of civil planes, but I love the Lockheed Twins and these are looking good! Great details with the research too. I was going to suggest that for one at least, you might want to have a go at making those big Fowler flaps and dropping them, but I can see I'm too late for that! An interesting detail I encountered with the flaps, and it took some considerable research to resolve the issue.... While the top of the wing has the add-on extension strip on the trailing edges above the flap area, the flaps themselves are NOT extended to match. They are parallel front to back. If you are familiar with the Special Hobby Lodestar kit, you will see that they supply a Hudson wing set plus a pair of p. e. strips to fit on top of the rails. And they have taken a lot of flak for this "shortcut" But they are correct. The flaps shouldn't be extended out to match the wing top, as represented by Academy, and Revell in 1.48 too! There were a good few airframes were used in the Australian civil scene, if you need a change of focus for getting these beauties finished ‼️😎😁 But finish you MUST......... 👍 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Russell Posted April 20, 2020 Author Share Posted April 20, 2020 On 4/17/2020 at 7:58 AM, rob Lyttle said: But finish you MUST......... 👍 Thanks Rob - as soon as I have cleared my current WIPs I should get back to them. The best reminder is that I see them every time I go in the model room..... no dark cupboard of shame for these guys..... It is rather too late for the flaps but a fellow club member is going to do a Lodestar so I sent him the link to your post. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Putty Animal Posted April 20, 2020 Share Posted April 20, 2020 That is so rude! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Russell Posted November 3, 2020 Author Share Posted November 3, 2020 Time to restart this build. maybe with an audience of one - @rob Lyttle ! I will put the Fairchilds (Fair-children?) into temporary hibernation and resume Venturas - hopefully through to a finish. Here's where we left off some months ago. April actually. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob Lyttle Posted November 4, 2020 Share Posted November 4, 2020 2 hours ago, Ed Russell said: I will put the Fairchilds (Fair-children?) into temporary hibernation I was going to say "how cute are they?!" but that seems a little bit insulting as a term for aircraft. But they do look good. 👍 So do the Lockheed Twins and I'm looking forward to seeing them progress. I have veered right off course and I'm building cars in the Heller Group Build at the moment! So a bit of this might help to fire up my interest in the Lockheeds. Before I wandered off down Gasoline Alley I completed the fuselage on the conversion of the Revell 1.48 PV1 Ventura to a Lodestar, but all the rest, nacelles cowlings engines etc remain to be figured out and done. I'll come up with a plan at some point 🤔 Good luck with these Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Russell Posted January 24, 2021 Author Share Posted January 24, 2021 A bit of progress. I have spent quite while wondering where I was up to and where I had been. It's not a good idea to stop a build for so long. Anyway I think I am back on top of it, having made some notes. You Beaut and Coral Princess have white undersides so here's the first coat of MM Insignia White 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted January 24, 2021 Share Posted January 24, 2021 Sorry I'm late, I have a note. Great work so far, some interesting looking machines being modelled. Will try and tag along if I may. Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Russell Posted January 25, 2021 Author Share Posted January 25, 2021 19 hours ago, bigbadbadge said: Will try and tag along if I may. You are most welcome. It's been a long time since starting but it will be finished! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted January 25, 2021 Share Posted January 25, 2021 2 hours ago, Ed Russell said: You are most welcome. It's been a long time since starting but it will be finished! I picked up a series of stalled builds last year and was amazed at how quickly they build up after that long period away. Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Russell Posted February 7, 2021 Author Share Posted February 7, 2021 More paint on and I think I am at the halfway point of this protracted build More white on the bomber and night fighter and some middle stone colour on the Special Duties plane. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted February 7, 2021 Share Posted February 7, 2021 Looking good, with paint going on. Cracking work Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackson Duvalier Posted February 7, 2021 Share Posted February 7, 2021 Happy to see the one bob to the surface, Ed. I've accumulated a stack of Minicraft Venturas and some AM bits, every now and then I can hear them faintly calling. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Russell Posted February 9, 2021 Author Share Posted February 9, 2021 On 2/8/2021 at 10:30 AM, Jackson Duvalier said: I've accumulated a stack of Minicraft Venturas and some AM bits Unless you want to do all US ones I recommend the DK Decals sheets. Lots of different colours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackson Duvalier Posted February 9, 2021 Share Posted February 9, 2021 2 hours ago, Ed Russell said: Unless you want to do all US ones I recommend the DK Decals sheets. Lots of different colours. Commonwealth birds are lovely but I strictly model Yank aircraft. I I do love the DK decal sets. In fact at least one Ventura will be from the one of the DK Aleutian sheets. I've an Owl set for a Marine nightfighter as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Russell Posted February 11, 2021 Author Share Posted February 11, 2021 On 2/9/2021 at 2:40 PM, Jackson Duvalier said: I've an Owl set for a Marine nightfighter as well. That is one of the ones I am doing - VMF(N)-531. The Owl instructions say three tone finish but the colour pictures are inconclusive. The pictures are not of great quality and the Venturas are in such poor condition that it is hard to say what colour they are. I want to replicate this wear and tear, corrosion and fading but I am worried it will look too fanciful. I am thinking for the upper fuselage a few rusty patches overlaid with masking material. then light blue also partially masked, then dark blue. The actual colours would have faded beyond recognition. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted February 11, 2021 Share Posted February 11, 2021 Crikey the upper surfaces of the Aircraft look very worn and battered, that will look awesome, and don't forget you have the photographic evidence so will look great i am sure. Thanks for your email, very kind of you Ed. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Russell Posted February 16, 2021 Author Share Posted February 16, 2021 Trying to simulate the wear and corrosion on the night fighter I have sprayed a random selection of metallic paints and covered them equally randomly with masking film. This will be a start anyway. Hopefully when removed there will be the basis for some worn metal. The underside of You Beaut is masked. I am going to take up @tonyot ' s suggestion that the MU used Neutral Gray and Olive Drab as the nearest equivalents to the RAF colours. This is conjecture but not unlikely. The SD one was masked with blu-tak, tape and paper to the standard patter and painted in MM Middle Stone and Dark Earth. The nearest Middle Stone segmant is too large and has been touched up with some freehand spraying. [/url] Contact tracing has temporarily dropped the ball here so we are having a local mini-lockdown which enables more rapid modelling! These guys might even get finished! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted February 16, 2021 Share Posted February 16, 2021 Excellent to see some more of these on the go. The SD aircraft looks great in those colours and can't wait to see the very weathered machine emerge. Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyot Posted February 16, 2021 Share Posted February 16, 2021 Looking really good Ed,.... remember with the SF one in desert colours,..... it didn`t have any guns fitted in the clear nose,...... so a blanking plate should be located here. I got to speak to one of its pilots after I made my model and I asked whether these guns were fitted or not,.... he said NO! Cheers mate, Tony 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Russell Posted February 20, 2021 Author Share Posted February 20, 2021 A bit more progress. The night fighter seems to have been finished in the 3 tone scheme, although others in VMF(N) 531 were in Blue Gray over Light Gray or overall black. The theory is that the areas of metal which have been covered with masking fluid can be scraped off and the exterior colour splotched on over the metal. We will see.... You Beaut has the Neutral Gray (which seems to be the same colour as the SMS Grey Primer) applied and needs to be masked off for the Olive Drab. There was lots of adverse comment about Humbrol paint recently in our model club but a thinly applied coat of Gloss Black covered the SD Ventura nicely and dried hard fairly quickly. Maybe I was lucky and this new tin is better formulated? A second thin coat was applied later and it looks fine. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted February 20, 2021 Share Posted February 20, 2021 Getting there and looking good with the paint going on now. Really looking forward to the weathered machine reveal. Fingers crossed it goes as you want it to . Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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