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1/48th Boeing B-52H Stratofortress (Sanger vacuform)


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16 hours ago, CJP said:

Fabulous neat work with the Evergreen strip

CJP

15 hours ago, woody37 said:

The craftsmanship in those flap apertures is superb Tom. Looks like a Tamiya kit rather than a vac form :)

  

Many thanks, gents - not quite Tamiya quality, Neil, but I’d settle for Revell 😆

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  • 2 weeks later...

Not much building to report on (in fact none at all since the last update!) but these arrived from HPH over the festive period:

 

49335065827_890afdfcf2_z.jpgIMG_1738 by Thomas Probert, on Flickr

 

They are from their recent 1/48th release, and they agreed to sell me a set of decals as a standalone purchase. I don't have much faith in the Sanger decals, so hopefully these will be spot on when the time comes. Disappointingly, there are no squadron badges or nose art provided, only white backgrounds. I've contacted HPH about this but am yet to receive any response... if the worst happens I can probably use the Sanger items over the white backgrounds - we'll see!

 

Tom

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  • 1 month later...

Afternoon all...

 

It's been a while since an update on this monster - work and a lack of mojo conspiring against any significant progress. However, I have made some in-roads into the cockpit transparencies, which are vital in capturing the look of the BUFF.

 

You only get one canopy with the kit so there's no room for error - definitely a case of measure thrice and cut once. When the cockpit glazing had been trimmed to the correct shape, it became apparent that it was quite significantly wider than the fuselage. This is because as the fuselage immediately below the cockpit curves inwards too much as you move up to the base of the flghtdeck windows, and therefore is too narrow for the cockpit to sit on correctly. 

 

The solution was to make a plasticard 'base' which matched the shape of the bottom area of the transparencies. This was then mounted on the fuelage where the glazing will sit, and the difference in space built up with Milliput and blended to shape. This has now corrected the shape of the fuselage sides, as well as making the cockpit more or less a drop-fit:

 

49506587306_55d0cb8aea_z.jpgDSC_0305 by Thomas Probert, on Flickr

 

The cockpit windows have been marked out with masking tape, and are not 100% correct yet but have given a good approximation:

 

49506586606_9ffce6ffb3_z.jpgDSC_0315 by Thomas Probert, on Flickr

 

49506586451_e1253dc938_z.jpgDSC_0316 by Thomas Probert, on Flickr

 

When compared to the original:

 

49506077738_0edb5abf74_z.jpgNose on view by Thomas Probert, on Flickr

 

I think I'm not too far off:

 

49506806862_2a88d1498c_z.jpgDSC_0309 by Thomas Probert, on Flickr

 

A bit more fettling ahead yet, but progress is progress, no matter how small...

 

Tom  

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Half term is upon us so a bit of bench-time this afternoon.

 

I've begun making the basic cockpit structure - the rear bulkhead was made from plastic card along with the bases for the side consoles:

 

49535022927_791b8397c0_z.jpgIMG_E1803 by Thomas Probert, on Flickr

 

The other smaller structural parts were made using Evergreen strip of various thicknesses:

 

49535022652_e9feffac80_z.jpgIMG_E1804 by Thomas Probert, on Flickr

 

Obviously there's lots more to add, and as I hate making and painting cockpits this will be a case of picking it up and putting it down as and when the mood takes.

 

Until next time,

Tom

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7 minutes ago, tomprobert said:

Half term is upon us so a bit of bench-time this afternoon.

 

I've begun making the basic cockpit structure - the rear bulkhead was made from plastic card along with the bases for the side consoles:

 

49535022927_791b8397c0_z.jpgIMG_E1803 by Thomas Probert, on Flickr

 

The other smaller structural parts were made using Evergreen strip of various thicknesses:

 

49535022652_e9feffac80_z.jpgIMG_E1804 by Thomas Probert, on Flickr

 

Obviously there's lots more to add, and as I hate making and painting cockpits this will be a case of picking it up and putting it down as and when the mood takes.

 

Until next time,

Tom

simply inspiring.:worthy:

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12 hours ago, Learstang said:

She's getting there Tom - keep at it! (Says he who never completes a model...)

 

Best Regards,

 

Jason

As the old saying goes: slow and steady wins the race!

 

It will get there eventually - I reckon there’s at least another year’s worth of work in this model yet...

 

Tom

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Tom,

Simply excellent...love the plastic card details...really super. Thanks for sharing the progress. 

Did you make a template or jig for the ribs too cut them all the same and space them properly?  They look great!

 

All the Best!

Don

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8 hours ago, DJJunis said:

Tom,

Simply excellent...love the plastic card details...really super. Thanks for sharing the progress. 

Did you make a template or jig for the ribs too cut them all the same and space them properly?  They look great!

 

All the Best!

Don

Hi Don,

Many thanks for the kind words. 
 

The wing ribs were made using a cardboard master to work from. The ribs for the two inboard flap sections were of course identical, as were the outer sections respectively. I simply copied the master rib for each section until I had enough. I then measured and marked the wing according to plans/pictures before adding the ribs to their correct location. 
 

It won’t be 100% accurate but I simply don’t care - it looks the part and that’s good enough for me. 
 

Tom

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  • 3 weeks later...

Quick question - does anyone know the colour of interior grey used in the cockpit on the H-model B-52..?

 

TIA

 

Tom

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36 minutes ago, tomprobert said:

Quick question - does anyone know the colour of interior grey used in the cockpit on the H-model B-52..?

 

TIA

 

Tom

I absolutely don't know, but I would imagine Dark Gull Grey. Italeri says Dark Ghost Grey for their 'G' and my AMT 'H' isn't handy. Doubt that helps, apologies.

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This site has some great photos of the interior of a B-52: https://www.warhistoryonline.com/military-vehicle-news/stunning-inside-the-b-52-stratofortress-in-52high-res-images.html

 

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Thanks gentlemen. I sold my AMT H kit so don’t have any colour references to hand. 
 

Dark Ghost Grey doesn’t sound at all unreasonable - I wonder if anyone has the definitive answer. 
 

@Johnny_K that link is most useful - I’m currently scratching the cockpit interior so most helpful. 
 

Tom

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1 hour ago, Navy Bird said:

Most US cockpits were Dark Gull Grey (36231) in the 50s and 60s. Dark Ghost Grey just doesn't sound right to me.

 

Cheers,

Bill

That makes sense, Bill - thanks for your input. 
 

Tom

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Hey Tom, a thought just occurred to me. What era will your model represent? If it's a recent vintage scheme, with the CRTs in the instrument panel, it may be a different colour than those from the 50s and 60s, since it's gone through a refurb.

 

Cheers,

Bill

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 3/7/2020 at 9:46 PM, Navy Bird said:

Hey Tom, a thought just occurred to me. What era will your model represent? If it's a recent vintage scheme, with the CRTs in the instrument panel, it may be a different colour than those from the 50s and 60s, since it's gone through a refurb.

 

Cheers,

Bill

Evening Bill,

 

When done, mine will be relatively 'new' version - mid-2000's I should think. From pictures, the interior grey looks quite light, but I don't trust my colour-blind eyes so all help is appreciated!

 

Still not anywhere near ready to paint the cockpit yet, but want to get paint stocks ready whilst I can...

 

Cheers,

Tom

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  • 1 month later...

I fancied doing a bit of work on the BUFF last night... 

 

49912082773_43856b1705_z.jpgIMG_0179[1] by Thomas Probert, on Flickr

 

The wife took this unbeknown to me as apparently she wanted to show her girly pals how big my... model is :D

 

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4 hours ago, Robert said:

Wasn't the B-52 also called the big stick ?

That was the B-36, but isn't directly related to its size. The name comes from a line credited to President Theodore Roosevelt when referring to his foreign policy: "Speak softly and carry a big stick".

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