Jump to content

L084 - Republic P-47N Thunderbolt. How bad can it be? ** FINISHED **


TonyOD

Recommended Posts

3 hours ago, TonyOD said:

Have you ever had one of those sessions where you wish you hadn't bothered?

 

Yes, usually towards the end of a GB when I’m quite near the finishing line! You always know you should stop and call it a day, however there’s that voice inside your head telling you to push through. Never mind, plenty of recovery time left in this GB. 

Cheers.. Dave 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 hours ago, TonyOD said:

Have you ever had one of those sessions where you wish you hadn't bothered?

 

Yes had that at the weekend, got very little done, conversely, last night when I was pushed for time. I wish I could have kept going!

 

As Dave says, it's always best to step away when things aren't going well, it's easy to make a mistake you'll regret and that can be very de-motivational.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Bit of pondering going on.

 

My intention was to build the PRANG plane as seen in its museum home in Colorado, because it's a lovely, colourful example. However this aircraft has no evidence of underwing installations to carry weaponry.

 

The Heller kit has the bomb and rocket pylons moulded into the wing:

 

spacer.png

 

My options are:

 

  • Butcher these bits off the wings and do my best not to lose the surface detail in these areas.
  • Meh. Just leave them and live with it.
  • Build the PRANG Jug but stick a load of rockets and bombs on it. There's no evidence that this plane was ever thusly armed, and Googling of postwar ANG aircraft does not throw up any examples of fighters or fighter bombers with this kind of ordnance. I'm well aware that the kit has is inaccuracies, but I don't want to make it any more inaccurate if I can help it.... or should I just be thinking, my build, my rules, I'll stick as many pointy bits on it as i want?
  • Switch from the PRANG Jug to this tooled-up bad boy, which is a bit of a plain Jane relatively speaking but which I have the decals to do.

 

spacer.png

 

What to do, what to do? 🤔

 

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please don’t take this the wrong way Tony, but this T-Bolt is not exactly one of Heller’s finest, so I probably wouldn’t get too worked up over details. I’d be more inclined to just have fun with it and go whichever way you feel like, leaving the accuracy part to one side. There’s plenty of other kits in the stash, so put this one in the Gallery and start another! 
Cheers.. Dave 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just now, Rabbit Leader said:

T-Bolt is not exactly one of Heller’s finest

I know, which is why it's hilarious that on the one hand I've defending the inaccuracies of the kit and on the other I'm getting worked up about this point of authenticity. 😂

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Tony,

 

The only P-47N's that couldn't take the rockets were the very early -1/-2RE's, all those that followed were equipped to take the rockets, e.g. the rocket stubs were a permanent fit (unless modified out later by removal), likewise pylons had been a standard fitting from sometime during the D production.

 

I can't remember what dash model this aircraft is but it's more than likely to have had the capability to be fully armed, just because you have no evidence it ever was, you likewise have no evidence that it never wasn't.  I vote for fully tooled up.

 

7 minutes ago, TonyOD said:

I know, which is why it's hilarious that on the one hand I've defending the inaccuracies of the kit and on the other I'm getting worked up about this point of authenticity. 😂

 

Precisely!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

43 minutes ago, thorfinn said:

Don't know whether you've seen it or not...but here's how she might look w/full load-out:

https://cdn-live.warthunder.com/uploads/32/0e/c1/361027270f8a024ca5020cc456f839847f_mq/Cover+Image.jpg

Pretty impressive!


Well, there ya go! 👍🏻
 

Interestingly it has the same misspelled nose art, red spinner nose and lack of red wingtips as called out by the decal manufacturer. Who inspired whom I wonder?

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, TonyOD said:

Interestingly it has the same misspelled nose art

Purely a guess on my part...but I'm inclined to believe it might have been a poorly-informed museum restoration worker (or simply an inattentive painter) who did the misspelling. Given the nose art, 'Hare' seems the more likely version...and if the painter hadn't seen the nose art graphic, missing on the plane, 'Hair' might have been the 'logical' assumption,

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, thorfinn said:

Purely a guess on my part...but I'm inclined to believe it might have been a poorly-informed museum restoration worker (or simply an inattentive painter) who did the misspelling. Given the nose art, 'Hare' seems the more likely version...and if the painter hadn't seen the nose art graphic, missing on the plane, 'Hair' might have been the 'logical' assumption,

 

It's one of those "who knows?" situations... but then notwithstanding the dimensional inaccuracies I'd like to try to get at least the paint job right.

 

While in residence at Peterson Air Museum this Jug has had two guises, one without the "Wild Hair" nose art and red lightning flashes on the tail and wheel covers, and one with, both with red wingtips; I don't know which came first chronologically. The former seems to have a bright green anti-glare panel, as opposed to the expected olive drab.

 

The decal callouts suggest no red wingtips and "Wild Hare" nose art, but for some reason depict curved instead of straight wing tips. They refer to the March 1992 issue of Scale Aircraft Modelling, "Latin American Thunderbolts", which suggest there may be a photographic source, perhaps even the Jug in service. Happily I've found a copy for the princely sum of £3.25 (post free!) on evilBay, for the sake of a few quid it's worth a punt!

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just about stopped the bleeding after 45  minutes.

 

Tomorrow's another day...

 

 

I'm going to put a LAUGH on this, Tony, just because I know exactly what you're talking about ‼️😂

Sometimes, it's just not worth the hassle. 

Modelling can only get better now, the only way is up! 👍

Edited by rob Lyttle
Addition
  • Haha 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, the March 1992 issue of SAM has arrived, and alas, no photo, just a profile that is basically a b/w version of the decal sheet callout, rounded wingtips and all. Specific reference is made in the text to the red lightning flashes, although these are absent from the profile. So, the paintjob, like the weaponry, will be speculative, even fanciful, to a certain extent.

 

The mag looks charmingly dated. I mean, I remember 1992 like it was yesterday (28 years ago!!!) but it looks like it’s from the seventies, not the nineties.

 

It’s occurred to me that I’m going to have a hell of a time working those large underwing decals around the various stubs and pylons...

Edited by TonyOD
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 10/20/2020 at 3:40 AM, TonyOD said:

Build the PRANG Jug but stick a load of rockets and bombs on it. There's no evidence that this plane was ever thusly armed, and Googling of postwar ANG aircraft does not throw up any examples of fighters or fighter bombers with this kind of ordnance. I'm well aware that the kit has is inaccuracies, but I don't want to make it any more inaccurate if I can help it.... or should I just be thinking, my build, my rules, I'll stick as many pointy bits on it as i want?

Load it up they had to fly training missions for target practice once in awhile. One of the U.S.Militaries biggest bombing gunnery range was on Puerto Rico until the late 90’s. 
 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Navy_in_Vieques,_Puerto_Rico

  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Got a rudimentary cockpit assembly. Seat, stick, pedals, dry brushed instrument panel. Seatbelts knocked up from wine bottle foil.

 

spacer.png 

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The engine isn’t up to much, but I tried to give it a bit of life with an enamel wash.


spacer.png


Fuselage zipped up in record time. Almost makes up for trashing the canopy on my LeO.

 

spacer.png

 

Next job tidy up the wings and fit the replacement cannon.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great stuff Tony

That picture of the fuselage being clamped is a cracker, its obviously not going to be built without a bit of a battle, but I actually enjoy a challenge so show it who's the boss !

Cheers Pat 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, JOCKNEY said:

That picture of the fuselage being clamped is a cracker, its obviously not going to be built without a bit of a battle

To be honest Pat the clamps were overkill, I stuck them in out of habit. The fuselage fit was pretty much perfect. I needed to do just the tiniest amount of sanding on the engine bulkhead. So far I have nothing but nice things to say about this kit! 

Edited by TonyOD
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Getting the new guns on. But of tidying up to do but I have to say they look rather smart.

 

spacer.png

Edited by TonyOD
  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well this is something new. Made some copies of the decals to work around all those weapony bits. I’ll only get one chance with the real thing so I’ll use these as a template.

 

spacer.png

Edited by TonyOD
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

48 minutes ago, fightersweep said:

Call me a philistine, but it looks like a P-47N to me.

 

Looking great so far. The replacement weapony/gunny/sticky out bits improve things a lot.

 

Steve

Thanks Steve. The drilling was surpirsingly tricky! I'm heading down the aftermarket route with the rockets too I think, the ones provided in the kit are very poor.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...