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B-24 D inspiration needed


rob85

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I am looking for some inspiration for a b-24 D in 1/72, I would like something a bit different and have seen a few that I like the look of but finding the transfers hard to come by.

 

so I’m opening it up to the collective minds of Britmodeller! If you have any ideas on particular sheets with good options let me know!

 

thanks

 

Rob

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The main problem would be finding the decal sheets. Very little has been done on B-24Ds in last 10 years or so so you are stuck with what dealers may have remaining in stock. I’ve currently got a Hasegawa B-24D in progress that will be a “Tidal Wave” survivor. The decals however were a small production run at least 10 years ago. Best bet would be to follow Simon’s advice and do a search on Hannants site for B-24 decals and see if any of those float your boat. Dave Klaus has had “Tidal Wave” project in the works for several years and last winter published some 1/48 decals but as far as know has resisted doing them in 1/72, which to me is short sighted since 1/72 B-24 kits are available and “Tidal Wave” (the low level Ploesti raid 1 August 1943) is perhaps their best known operation. 

 

Edit added: Eduard did a project last year issuing the Hasegawa kit almost like a Royal Edition with PE, masks, additional parts a decals to do several Coastal Command aircraft

Edited by Chuck1945
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ETO, MTO. or PTO? OD/neutral grey or sand/neutral grey? US, RAF, or RAAF? You could go to the Kits World website and look at all the decal sheets they have for 1/72 B-24D's, Superscale and Aeromaster did sheets as  well, but probably OOP and hard to find at a decent price. The dark gull grey/white PB4Y-1's based out of the Bay of Biscay are very, very pretty! Hope this helps, as you don't see too many 1/72 B-24's built of any type.

Mike

 

http://www.hudsonairdepot.com/PB4Y-1_Liberator_32032.aspx

 

http://www.clubhyper.com/reference/calvertncokejh_1.htm

 

What do you think?

Edited by 72modeler
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what about a B-24 assembly ships? they're definitely the most interesting and challenging camouflages to make. They were used to help bomber squadrons form up, therefore painted with very bright and visible color schemes. 

 

a6c24ecea2580e35d5ca7c5abd65dad8.jpg

 

or b-24 coastal command used to patrol british coasts, they had very elegans camos and look very good on a model

 

2-BN-Ac-Eduard.Hasegawa-B-24-Coastal-Com

 

 

Edited by cambridge
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6 minutes ago, cambridge said:

what about a B-24 assembly ships? they're definitely the most interesting and challenging camouflages to make. They were used to help bomber squadrons form up, therefore painted with very bright and visible color schemes. 

 

a6c24ecea2580e35d5ca7c5abd65dad8.jpg

 

I second this suggestion ⬆️ ! I have plenty of profiles and photo's of these for my planned build sometime in the future.  

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8 hours ago, Simon Cornes said:

Have a look at the markings on the new 1/32 B-24D and then see the decal options for that in aftermarket at Hannants. Some interesting options?

 

8 hours ago, Chuck1945 said:

The main problem would be finding the decal sheets. Very little has been done on B-24Ds in last 10 years or so so you are stuck with what dealers may have remaining in stock. I’ve currently got a Hasegawa B-24D in progress that will be a “Tidal Wave” survivor. The decals however were a small production run at least 10 years ago. Best bet would be to follow Simon’s advice and do a search on Hannants site for B-24 decals and see if any of those float your boat. Dave Klaus has had “Tidal Wave” project in the works for several years and last winter published some 1/48 decals but as far as know has resisted doing them in 1/72, which to me is short sighted since 1/72 B-24 kits are available and “Tidal Wave” (the low level Ploesti raid 1 August 1943) is perhaps their best known operation. 

 

Edit added: Eduard did a project last year issuing the Hasegawa kit almost like a Royal Edition with PE, masks, additional parts a decals to do several Coastal Command aircraft

Cheers both I will look at what the 1/32 has to offer and trawl hannants etc. Cheers for the info on tidal wave.

 

8 hours ago, 72modeler said:

ETO, MTO. or PTO? OD/neutral grey or sand/neutral grey? US, RAF, or RAAF? You could go to the Kits World website and look at all the decal sheets they have for 1/72 B-24D's, Superscale and Aeromaster did sheets as  well, but probably OOP and hard to find at a decent price. The dark gull grey/white PB4Y-1's based out of the Bay of Biscay are very, very pretty! Hope this helps, as you don't see too many 1/72 B-24's built of any type.

Mike

 

http://www.hudsonairdepot.com/PB4Y-1_Liberator_32032.aspx

 

http://www.clubhyper.com/reference/calvertncokejh_1.htm

 

What do you think?

Both are beautiful, I love a costal command scheme! However I currently have on the go (stalled due to lack of correct turret and the short shot bomb window) a Dutch aircraft in costal command colours that flew with a sharks mouth and Dutch flag on in PTO. 

 

MTO has caught my eye with ‘lil’ de-icer’ I have seen ‘strawberry b***h’ which is a classic but a bit over done. 

 

Cheers mike!

 

5 hours ago, cambridge said:

what about a B-24 assembly ships? they're definitely the most interesting and challenging camouflages to make. They were used to help bomber squadrons form up, therefore painted with very bright and visible color schemes. 

 

a6c24ecea2580e35d5ca7c5abd65dad8.jpg

 

or b-24 coastal command used to patrol british coasts, they had very elegans camos and look very good on a model

 

2-BN-Ac-Eduard.Hasegawa-B-24-Coastal-Com

 

 

Assembly ships! God they look nuts!! But the has to be some interesting options in there!

 

5 hours ago, brewerjerry said:

Hi

    B-24 D captured by italy 

 

 

http://www.ww2incolor.com/italian-forces/BLONDEBOMBERIIcatturato.html

 

 

  cheers

    jerry 

 

 

 

Cheers Jerry, I actually have the decals for this on! So is an option 👍🏻

 

Cheers Rob

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No idea how available, but the Eduard added parts for their issue of the Hasegawa B-24 included options for the B-P tail turret as well as the correct earlier Consolidated tail turret. These sprue were also sold separately. Leigh Light, radar, earlier ‘needle’ props, nose mounted rockets, and with other stuff were also on these sprues

Edited by Chuck1945
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My favorite has always been "Teggie Ann," the lead ship on the first Ploesti raid that had the national insignia with the red surround. I think it was Aeromaster that did a decal sheet on Ploesti B-24D's. Off topic, but I still remember an auto trip we took one year to visit my dad's relatives in Wisconsin- drove too late at night and could not find a motel with a vacancy (late 50's) A very nice lady who was manager at one of the motels we stopped at took pity on a young AF officer with a wife and two kids, and let us spend the night in her apartment above the office. There was a large  American flag, photos of a young airman, medals, and a beautiful very large oil painting of B-24's flying through smoke and flames on the deck. She told us her oldest son had been a pilot on the Ploesti mission and was shot down and killed. I think that's where my desire to build a tribute model of a B-24D started, but back then there was only the old box scale Revell B-24H, "Buffalo Bill." Sorry for the divergence, but that memory just popped up during our discussion. (I don't know about you guys, but in all the reading and research I've done while  building models over the years, it's still sometimes hard to handle reading about the sacrifices made by the airmen of all the nationalities during WW2.)

Mike

Edited by 72modeler
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Another divergence. The original Revell 1/72 B-24D back in the 60s had markings for Teggie Ann/Blue Streak as I recall.

 

I was 14 and at the WP-AFB open house when the “Strawberry B***h” was flown in to be placed in the AF Museum and it made a lasting impression, not least of which was “can they actually have that word on an airplane?”  Rather  naïve at the time I admit.

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13 minutes ago, Chuck1945 said:

Another divergence. The original Revell 1/72 B-24D back in the 60s had markings for Teggie Ann/Blue Streak as I recall.

 

I was 14 and at the WP-AFB open house when the “Strawberry B***h” was flown in to be placed in the AF Museum and it made a lasting impression, not least of which was “can they actually have that word on an airplane?”  Rather  naïve at the time I admit.

Chuck,

Yep- it was 1959, IIRC, and a B-47 pilot with WW2 B-24 time flew her to the museum from storage at Davis-Monthan.  Wish I had been there to see that landing! It was such an incredible feeling being next to her at the AFM the last time I went there.

Mike

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6 hours ago, mhaselden said:

How about "Lady be Good"?  Pretty simple scheme and would be a great tribute to some courageous men.

 

5 hours ago, Dermo245 said:

Or there’s “Superman”, the Pacific B-24 of Louis Zamperini

 

Don’t think there are decals but a great story..

 

http://warbirdsnews.com/warbird-articles/ron-cole-b-24-lou-zamperini.html

Both are very compelling builds just for the story’s behind them! Can’t find anything for Superman, which I thought would have been done considering the film unbroken was made. Appear to be options for Lady Be Good!

 

@Chuck1945 and @72modeler no need to worry about diverting the thread, I like to hear anecdotes, and how people have made a personal connection to aircraft. Mike, I completely agree about the sacrifice, it’s mind boggling.

 

also @Chuck1945 that’s some very interesting info on the turrets as I need a tail turret! 

 

Cheers

 

Rob

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As an 0-3 in 1972-3 at Forbes AFB KS, my Deputy Commander Material was an 0-6 who retired just before the base closed. He had flown Spitfires and P-51s in Italy with the 52FG and I visited some with a KANG LTC flying RB-57s there and who been a WWII B-24 instructor pilot. My father was an Army Air Corps WO during WWII and later told me the most miserable flight he had was as a passenger in a B-24 that had seats in the bomb bay. Presumably this was a C-87 but he just called it a B-24. The B-24 and I have crossed paths several times not counting visits to the AF Museum or crawling through the Commemorative AF example 

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Yes, Jimmy Stewart's a/c was an H model. However, we did have a sheet of "Sub Hunting Liberators", but unfortunately it's out of print. Might be worth re-doing, I suppose, if the interest is still there.

Bob

72asw.jpg

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16 hours ago, Chuck1945 said:

No idea how available, but the Eduard added parts for their issue of the Hasegawa B-24 included options for the B-P tail turret as well as the correct earlier Consolidated tail turret. These sprue were also sold separately. Leigh Light, radar, earlier ‘needle’ props, nose mounted rockets, and with other stuff were also on these sprues

 

Still seems to be available https://www.eduard.com/eduard/liberator-gr-mk-v-vi-conversion-parts-overtrees-1-72.html?lang=1

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5 hours ago, rossm said:

This is very helpful! Postage is rather steep though makes it £25. Anybody know of a uk retailer I could try?

 

or has anybody used the Pavla set? I need a replacement turret as the one I have for a stalled build is incorrect (it’s the funny round one). Is everything included to build a turret or do you need a base for it? 

 

Im not so knowledgeable on these things

 

Rob

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9 hours ago, bobmig said:

Yes, Jimmy Stewart's a/c was an H model. However, we did have a sheet of "Sub Hunting Liberators", but unfortunately it's out of print. Might be worth re-doing, I suppose, if the interest is still there.

Bob

72asw.jpg

I think a reprint would be a great idea! Really like the look of the top two a the forth one down!

 

Rob

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18 minutes ago, rob85 said:

This is very helpful! Postage is rather steep though makes it £25. Anybody know of a uk retailer I could try?

 

or has anybody used the Pavla set? I need a replacement turret as the one I have for a stalled build is incorrect (it’s the funny round one). Is everything included to build a turret or do you need a base for it? 

 

Im not so knowledgeable on these things

 

Rob

I don't know of a way to get Eduard Overtrees sets in the UK other than direct from them.

 

The Pavla set does contain parts for the turret but the glazing is vacformed https://www.hannants.co.uk/product/PAVU72040

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15 minutes ago, rossm said:

I don't know of a way to get Eduard Overtrees sets in the UK other than direct from them.

 

The Pavla set does contain parts for the turret but the glazing is vacformed https://www.hannants.co.uk/product/PAVU72040

Vacform is no bad thing as some the seams in the injection turrets are not that fun! I just didn’t know if it was like the the squadron one I bought which only had the replacement for the top of the turret rather than the whole glazing, meaning you need a base turret.... which I didn’t 🙁.

 

cheers for the info, very helpful! I’m wanting to complete the below.

 

oxHHRmM.jpg

 

in this stalled build

 

 

so I will hopefully end up with two liberator to finish thanks to this thread!

 

Rob

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