Mattlow Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 I start this build log with a little trepidation as it often spells the kiss of death for my builds. However, I feel that i have enough 'head of steam' already to see it through. I bought this just after Christmas for £29, knowing it was designed by Radu Brinzan who has a great track record in designing excellent 1/32 kits - from his resin Arado 234B (sold by MDC) to his most recent (excepting this Mustang) Revell Me 262B-1a/U1 night fighter. When the kit arrived, I dived straight in and forgot to take any photos of the initial stages. So what you see here is where I am at now after about five days worth of building. P-51D-5 14 by Matt Low, on Flickr Fuselage halves with separate tail section to accommodate future 'filleted tail' versions. These go together very well and are further strengthened by the large internal part which consists of radiator ducting back to the tail wheel well. Everything fits very tightly (maybe not as tightly as WNW - but that's no bad thing in my book). The cockpit is designed to be assembled as a self-contained module (like in the Revell 1/32 Spitfires) but I wanted to work with sidewalls attached to fuselage halves. This is fine and doesn't appear t have cased any issues down the line. A closer view or two..... P-51D-5 15 by Matt Low, on Flickr P-51D-5 16 by Matt Low, on Flickr and finally... P-51D-5 17 by Matt Low, on Flickr All OOB so far, except the lightening holes in the seat support structure (from which I've also removed the moulded on cold air ventilation hoses (more on them later) Plenty of details and detail painting to go. Matt 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattlow Posted January 5, 2018 Author Share Posted January 5, 2018 I have to say I am not going for an uber detailed build. I want to do the 'pit justice but keep progress steady. Also apologies for some of the shots showing lots of randomly spayed/splurged/spattered black primer in areas that'll be hidden upon assembly. I had a hell of a time with black Stynylrez and I used hidden areas to test the flow each time I cleaned the needle... Here's the IP with two decals applied as provided by Revell. Not individually punched out, used lots of Mr Decal Destroyer to get it to sit down nicely. Again, lots of painted details to add here. The decals are designed by Barracuda but unfortunately (and not surprisingly) don't provide the degree of cockpit placards and labelling that Barracuda's own set does. P-51D-5 13 by Matt Low, on Flickr Note this is an instrument layout specific to the D-5 variant. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattlow Posted January 5, 2018 Author Share Posted January 5, 2018 The wing. This is provided as full span upper and lower parts. Wheel bay has the correct spar arrangement and features very nice rib and structural detail. One approach that these latest Revell 1/32 kits seem to have adopted is the habit of not trying to depict wiring looms and pipes as moulded on detail. This makes our lives easier if we wish to add it (as the moulded on stuff doesn't have to be removed). P-51D-5 18 by Matt Low, on Flickr P-51D-5 19 by Matt Low, on Flickr Bays need all their YZC painted, leaving just the aluminium skin unpainted. Apparently early Mustangs didn't recieve the general 'hosing' of interior surfaces with YZC and/or GZC. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattlow Posted January 5, 2018 Author Share Posted January 5, 2018 Here's an overview of the wing from below (must take some photos f the upper surface), showing the separate flaps and ailerons. Also note the way that the leading edge containing the wing guns is separate piece, incorporating the inner forward lower wing surface. This allows guns to be nicely (and correctly) moulded without pesky seams to worry about. Two sets of landing flaps are provided, one for raised the other for... you guessed it... lowered. P-51D-5 21 by Matt Low, on Flickr P-51D-5 22 by Matt Low, on Flickr Glued a bit of wine bottle foil to inner wing (after thinning a bit) and used a tool with rounded end to create the reflectors for the ID lights. P-51D-5 20 by Matt Low, on Flickr Finally, I took a photo of the faces of the different radiator matrices. Used black base and a light grey wash to give them a heat stained effect - looks better than silver with black wash for the Mustang's radiators. P-51D-5 23 by Matt Low, on Flickr 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattlow Posted January 5, 2018 Author Share Posted January 5, 2018 Finally for the moment, As you can see there's a lot going on inside the fuselage and the wing fuselage junction is quite complex, what with the radiator scoop. I wanted to see how well this all fitted together as early as possible to ensure I took any measures required to thin/adjust parts. Having cleaned all seams, removed mould parting lines etc, I can say the whole lot comes together with a very satisfying 'click' and was solid - taking some effort to take back apart. The only thing I'm dreading is getting a decent unpainted aluminium finish on the fuselage.... More soon. Matt 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antonio argudo Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 NIce Matt, love to see more Mustangs on the works, do you have a decoration in mind? keep the good cheers 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattlow Posted January 5, 2018 Author Share Posted January 5, 2018 Hi Antonio I have two schemes in mind at the moment. First is 'The COMET' Nice full set of D-Day stripes and a quite refined nose art... The COMET by Matt Low, on Flickr Second is 'Pendaja' / 'Miss Ruth'... you've got to love that yellow tail... MissRuth1 by Matt Low, on Flickr That's a way off though.. Matt 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antonio argudo Posted January 6, 2018 Share Posted January 6, 2018 those are good looking Mustangs choices , also this one, can't get enough of that oil stains!!!! cheers 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimonT Posted January 6, 2018 Share Posted January 6, 2018 Stop it stop it stop it I don’t want to move up to 1/32, she’ll kill me... Lovely work, really making me want one! 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattlow Posted January 6, 2018 Author Share Posted January 6, 2018 That is a nice one Antonio... I hadn't realised how many of the well known Mustangs were actually these early D-5s. 'Ferocious Frankie' is also a nice looking one as well as 'Frenesi' - interesting with those Japanese and German kill marks... Simon, think of it this way... a 1/32 Mustang is about the same size as a 1/72 Dakota or a 1/48 Bf 110. It's only when you gravitate to Ju88s and B-17s that things can get out of hand... Matt 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bedders Posted February 11, 2018 Share Posted February 11, 2018 On 06/01/2018 at 1:53 AM, antonio argudo said: those are good looking Mustangs choices , also this one, can't get enough of that oil stains!!!! cheers That's a great photo. I'd only seen a black & white print of that until now. Justin 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totally Mad Olivier Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 6 hours ago, Bedders said: That's a great photo Great pic, indeed, that I will use for the rivets lines, completing usefully what I ever have... Keep up the good work, Matt! The Revell 1/32 seems to be a quite good kit, do you confirm? Cheers Olivier Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biggles87 Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 Don't know how I've missed this so far, but thanks to Olivier's request I've found you. I sold my Tamiya 1/32 Mustang recently ( decided it would take me too long to build ) and bought one of these, but I don't want to start it yet because I have a Dragon P-51D to finish, which I intend to re-start in the Spring, when the weather is more suitable for spraying. You're doing a great job on this, and seriously tempting me to start mine. Looking forward to more. John 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spitfire Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 It's great to see one of these kits being built, I have one sitting patiently behind me on a shelf waiting for me to finish my current build, so keep up the good work, it's encouraging me to build faster. Cheers Dennis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattlow Posted February 12, 2018 Author Share Posted February 12, 2018 13 hours ago, Olivier de St Raph said: The Revell 1/32 seems to be a quite good kit, do you confirm? I certainly can confirm this Olivier. In terms of 'bang for buck' I feel it wins over the Tamiya kit... Matt 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattlow Posted February 18, 2018 Author Share Posted February 18, 2018 OK, onwards with this build. I was struck down with a nasty dose of flu which stopped me doing much at all, and last week wasn't great either. So finally this weekend I've got back on it. P-51D-5 26 by Matt Low, on Flickr From reading about the early P-51Ds it seems they had a less extensive application of YZC in the gear bays. The wing inner skin was left unprimered but the spar, stringers and other areas were given YZC. This resulted in a laborious masking session. Result is good enough and once give a light weathering it'll look fine. P-51D-5 27 by Matt Low, on Flickr Closer in you can see that I've filled all the indentations in the lower wing for the rocket stubs, filled some sink marks around the spent shell/link ejector chutes and I decided to open up the ejector chutes as well. This is probably not necessary but I wanted to see how it looked (still need boxing in). Anyone got any idea what the indentation circled in red is? It should be there, I just can't figure what it is. P-51D-5 27 by Matt Low, on Flickr 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattlow Posted February 18, 2018 Author Share Posted February 18, 2018 P-51D-5 30 by Matt Low, on Flickr Cockpit is coming along nicely. I've tried to maintain a sheen on the fuel tank to indicate rubber. More detail painting to do but most components are ready to go in. P-51D-5 29 by Matt Low, on Flickr Here's a crap photo of something to watch out for. I took some time to attach each rear half of the fuselage to the rest - getting the outer surfaces to have as small a step as possible (or none). Getting a good exterior fit has resulted in a small gap at the centre seam now. Not a problem as it's better to have the gap here than as a step on the fuselage skin. P-51D-5 31 by Matt Low, on Flickr 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattlow Posted February 18, 2018 Author Share Posted February 18, 2018 Another small step. The Mustang had a canvas 'boot' covering all the delicate mechanism around the tail wheel leg. I am currently creating one out of Plasticine. Once it looks how I want it, I'll give it a coat of CA to seal and harden it. The original wheel strut was cut off and has been replaced with some bent steel wire... this strut looked quite delicate in plastic - I can also now pose the tail wheel at a jaunty angle. P-51D-5 28 by Matt Low, on Flickr Here's another poor photo just showing how nicely the inserts for the filtered carburettor intakes fit. Revell provide three variations - solid (seen here) holes (what I'd think of as 'classic' look) and holes plus vents. I think the little intake seen on the fuselage side here needs to be removed - I believe it is an intake for the latter location of the battery..? P-51D-5 32 by Matt Low, on Flickr Finally for tonight, a couple of sundries. To let me insert the exhaust as late i the build as possible, I've separated the chin intake and the disk that fits behind the propeller. This means I can fit and fair in the intake but leave the front of the nose open to allow access to the exhaust locations. The other item is the alternate seat. This was apparently used as and when needed and doesn't seem directly related to specific batches. Therefore I thought why not - it'll be a bit different. I've opened up the back to give the holes a bit more of a 3D look. Not sure how much extra detail to add to this, I'll decide when I have better info on what the seat actually looked like. P-51D-5 25 by Matt Low, on Flickr 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Terrell Posted February 19, 2018 Share Posted February 19, 2018 (edited) Hi Matt, A few posts back you ask, "Anyone got any idea what the indentation circled in red is? It should be there, I just can't figure what it is." That indentation represents the hole (one on each wing) where a jacking stand can be installed below the aircraft to jack the aircraft up for maintenance and assembly/disassembly. This can be seen in the following few photographs: Glad to see you filled in the holes for the rocket stubs! One of those very few mistakes made in the Revell product (of course those mounting holes for the rocket stubs weren't introduced until mid-late production P-51D-20-NA's). As you've mentioned in your last post too, the little battery vent scoop on the nose is completely wrong for the P-51D-5-NA and wasn't seen on factory Mustangs until the P-51D-30-NA, P-51D-25-NT and P-51D-30-NT (although a variation of this battery vent scoop could also be found on Iwo Jima Mustangs, those too were far different than the P-51D-5-NA generation airplanes). Edited February 19, 2018 by John Terrell 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Terrell Posted February 19, 2018 Share Posted February 19, 2018 (edited) With regard to the seat, the "alternative" option provided by Revell depicts a Schick Johnson seat. These didn't really begin showing up in P-51D's until P-51D-20-NA production. All of the P-51D-5-NA's had early Warren McArthur seats (unless modified much later in the field - both seat types were of course interchangeable), which were a carry-over from previous P-51B production. Note that, unlike the later Warren McArthur seats, this early derivative had a straight forward edge to the seat pan. Although some Warren McArthur seats are known to have been painted dark dull green, in all of the photos I've seen of D-5-NA's it would appear they were painted interior green, just like the rest of the cockpit. The Warren McArthur seat just visible on these D-5-NA's, "The Comet", "Cripes A' Mighty 3rd" and "Da Quake". This is one of the early Warren McArthur seats too, with the straight forward edge of the seat (the large kink in it is due to hitting the control stick in a crash). This seat is from Bill Preddy's P-51K-5-NT "Rusty". Edited February 19, 2018 by John Terrell 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marky sparky Posted February 19, 2018 Share Posted February 19, 2018 Looking good. Making mine at the moment and it's a struggle to be honest. It's the silly breakdown of the different variants which don't fit neatly (but that's modelling I guess). For the same price you can get the Dragon P-51 and although not perfect, it goes together a lot better than this Revell kit. Carry on regardless Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattlow Posted February 19, 2018 Author Share Posted February 19, 2018 John Many thanks for your assistance. I shall go back to the Warren McArthur seat and straighten out that front edge (I suspect careful application of brute force will do it). Mark. I can't say I'm having issues yet, in fact mine feels like a well engineered kit (I suspect the whole ventral intake will require careful assembly and a degree of filling. As for the Dragon Mustang, I had one, took a look at the detail and promptly sold it on.... Horses for courses I suppose.. Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tourist Posted February 19, 2018 Share Posted February 19, 2018 5 hours ago, John Terrell said: With regard to the seat, the "alternative" option provided by Revell depicts a Schick Johnson seat. These didn't really begin showing up in P-51D's until P-51D-20-NA production. All of the P-51D-5-NA's had early Warren McArthur seats (unless modified much later in the field - both seat types were of course interchangeable), which were a carry-over from previous P-51B production. Note that, unlike the later Warren McArthur seats, this early derivative had a straight forward edge to the seat pan. Although some Warren McArthur seats are known to have been painted dark dull green, in all of the photos I've seen of D-5-NA's it would appear they were painted interior green, just like the rest of the cockpit. Hi John, it's been a while. Very interesting stuff as always. I would disagree with you on one point though; I believe the front of the WMA seat pan was curved with the very first P-51D-5. The evolution of the cockpit between P-51B's and P-51D's slightly altered the distance between the control column and the seat which is what prompted a curved seat pan. A straight pan would likely prevent the stick from moving freely in a P-51D. Photos seem to a show at first a relatively faint curve on WMA seats which became more accentuated in later blocks. I think the photos you posted show a P-51B cockpit modified as a P-51D, look at the unpainted non standard parts above the longeron, the dual SCR-274 and SCR-522 controls, the P-51B bomb release handle, the odd gunsight etc... This is not a P-51D-5 but a prototype, that is why in my opinion the seat pan is still straight. I originally thought it was 43-12102 but it could also be 42-106539 or '540. I've seen SJ seats on photos as early a the P-51D-15NA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Terrell Posted February 19, 2018 Share Posted February 19, 2018 Good to see you again, Christian, and thank you for the information about the seat! In all past discussions and photos I've seen, I don't ever recall this subtle progression/early curve in the forward edge of the WM seat pan being mentioned/illustrated. I do know the couple of cockpit photos are from one of the P-51D prototypes, but I've always been under the understanding that the seat in these photos was likely the same type as used in the P-51D-5-NA - but that was with the belief that it was the same as the seat out of Bill Preddy's P-51K-5-NT as well. Now comparing them again, I can see a few differences. It does bring up some old memories of the discussions that were had over what appears to have been a fabric lining on the seat pan of these earlier WM seats (as would also seem to have been present on the Bill Preddy seat). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattlow Posted February 19, 2018 Author Share Posted February 19, 2018 2 hours ago, Tourist said: Photos seem to a show at first a relatively faint curve on WMA seats which became more accentuated in later blocks. Christian Thanks for your interjection. I like the fact that the seats seem to have had a slight curve - because I've done my straightening and there is a slight curve still present - so that's nice and prototypical So does John's photo show a 'subtly curved' seat front (hidden by the ding?). Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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