Monogram 1/48 B-24J Liberator finished in Bare Metal Foil

[Johnny_K]

This will be a time compressed WIP. The B-24J model was started last May and was finished in October. I didn't think that anyone would want to watch a 6 moth WIP, especially when most of the time was spent foiling the model. That's kind of like watching paint dry.

 

 

The above photos are of a B-24D that I built a few years ago. I tried to do a natural metal finish using Testors' Metallizer paints straight from rattle cans. Unfortunately, the finish does not look like a metal finish, instead it looks like a  panted finish, which is exactly what it is. Plus, look at that nasty seam at the leading edge of the wing on the lower photo. OUCH!!!  So, last year I thought that it would be fun doing a second Liberator, only this time in Bare Metal Foil.

 

Now, onto the B-24J.

 

 

I always was fascinated with the B-24J since it is kind of a strange aircraft; wings mounted at the top of the fuselage, roll-up garage doors used as bomb bay doors, long thin wings, and of course, that strange, large turret slapped onto the nose of the aircraft. This is an older Monogram model that I purchased on eBay. It is typical of older Monogram/Revell kits: thick plastic, raised panel lines, no rivet detail and boring decals.

 

When I opened the box, nothing was packed in plastic bags. That was typical for the era when this model was manufactured. Luckily, nothing was broken. However, the clear plastic parts were scratched due to sliding around in the box. Check out those decals---boring.

 

The parts are a silver plastic with those funny gray streaks. 

 

The instructions are typical Monogram/Revell quality. However, the sequence of installing parts is sometimes wrong. For example, look at steps 5 and 6. The instructions recommend that the two side mounted guns be installed very early in the build. If I did that, those guns would be broken in no time.  Guns should be installed last.

 

Typical of Monogram/Revell bombers, this kit has some annoying problems: warped main wings, nasty seams at the nacelles, and parts that just do not fit correctly. I'll cover those in detail as the build progresses. I replaced the kit's tires/wheels with Eduard parts and I used Eduard precut paint masks for masking the clear parts.

 

 

I started with the cockpit. I used Tamiya Cockpit Green for the floors and walls. Flat black was used for the dashboard. The gauges were highlighted with a silver pencil. The floor behind the flight crew was highlighted with a black wash. The second photo is of my B-24D. I did not overdo the detailing of the B-24J's cockpit because very little of the cockpit is visible once the model is completed.

 

 

The interior of the fuselage was painted Tamiya Cockpit Green.

 

 

The bombs were initially painted black by holding a rattle can about three feet from the bombs. I lightly pressed the nozzle until the paint started to spit from the nozzle. This provided a rough finish for the bombs. Next I applied Olive Drab in the same manner. The bombs were then mounted in the bomb racks. The ladder racks are really clunky looking.

 

Now the problems start. I just could not get the gunners' module to fit correctly. Clamps helped, but it still did not fit right.

 

The result of the ill fitting gunners' module is that the two sides of the fuselage did not fit together properly. The only solution was to hack off the corner of the floor. Not very elegant, but it will never be seen.

 

Next up are the nose weights.

 

 

 

Edited March 27, 2019 by Johnny_K

[BKirwan]

Great work.

Why has nobody else commented? 

[Johnny_K]

Maybe  everyone is on Spring Break.

[crobinsonh]

Brilliant - wish I had the skill and patience to do that.

[Codger]

You would be wrong about a 6 month WIP my friend. I had loads of viewers in my 38 month, 70+ page WIP for my 1/8 scale Rolls Royce in the vehicles section. And this aircraft section has tons more interested parties than the vehicles area.

I for one am highly interested in a foiled NMF and your work looks first rate to boot.

Carry on...

 

[Johnny_K]

This airplane is real tail heavy. Weights need to be added to the nose to keep the tail off the ground. I added three solid weights behind the bombardier and a bag of lead fishing weights behind the landing gear. I know that it looks pretty primitive, but none of this will be visible once the fuselage is assembled

 

This is a photo of a B-24's engine that I found on-line. I liked the copper colored sparkplug cables, So I thought that I could duplicate those without too much effort.

 

I bent a thin copper wire to the approximate shape of the sparkplug wires.

 

Upper left is the engine provided with the kit. The first thing that I did was to paint it an aluminum color. Next I highlighted the cooling fins with a thin black wash, painted the pushrod covers black and painted the rocker arm covers silver. Lastly, I glued the sparkplug wirers into place and added a red hose that was included with the real engine. I know that the number of sparkplug wirers is incorrect, but it gives a good impression of the real thing.

 

 

The main wings are warped. Nothing looks worse on a big bomber model that warped wings. I needed something really stiff to fix the warped wings, so I entrusted the task to my architects scale. I don't know what kind of plastic it is made from, but it is impossible to bend. Next came a small army of clamps and rubber bands.

 

The result is a perfectly straight wing. 

.

[Getting Old]

nice work so far 

 

[Johnny_K]

 

Now I have this mess to contend with. Every Revell bomber has the problem. 

 

This is my B-29. Same nasty problem.

First I filled the seam with Bondo Glazing Putty.

 

After sanding the Bondo stuff, I applied Mr. Dissolved Putty. Then I sanded, applied more putty, sanded, and repeated until the seam disappeared.

 

 

 

While I waited for the putty to dry on the engine nacelles I applied Bare Metal Foil  to the rear wing. I painted the fabric areas of the wing with Tastors' Metallizer Aluminum, followed by Metallizer Sealer. The deicing boots were painted black. All painting must be finished prior to applying foil. Go here to see how I applied the foil:

https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235052774-tips-to-apply-aluminum-foil-and-rivets-to-an-airplane/

 

 

 

Edited March 29, 2019 by Johnny_K

[Johnny_K]

 

 

The main wings have been foiled and rivets were added. Note the subtle changes in the colors of the foiled panels. This is accomplished in two ways, using two different color foils (matte aluminum and chrome) and by changing the direction of the foil's grain. The majority of the foil was Matt Aluminum and the majority of the grain ran sideways (right to left). A few panels were foiled in Chrome and a few panels had their grain  front to back. 

 

Here I a close up of the rivets. It is important that the rivets are in straight lines and that all the rivet lines are equally spaced within each panel. Also visible is the subtle changes in foil color.  Here is how I applied the rivets: https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235052774-tips-to-apply-aluminum-foil-and-rivets-to-an-airplane/