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A Big Beastie! P-47D Thunderbolt, 405th Fighter Group, July 1944


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First completed build of 2021! Trumpeter's huge 1/32 P-47D Thunderbolt. It's not as good as the Hasegawa kit, but it's cheaper and still builds up well.

 

It's not a challenging build but the interior has to be seen to be believed! Build thread is here for anyone interested:

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It's painted with lacquers and enamels (Alclad 2, MRP and Alclad Mil-Spec) and after-effects done with Mig and AK enamel washes.

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The model is built completely out of the box (in fact there's a lot of plastic still left in the box!) except for the decals which were KitsWorld (aircraft specific), Fantasy Printshop (insignia) and HGW Wet Transfers (stencils)

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The kit fit together really well, the only putty required was for the wing roots, a bit around the bottom fuselage seam, and the area around the fin/stabilizer joints:

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Really nice nose art and decals by KitsWorld:

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Finished as 'Look! No Hands', a 509th FS, 405th FG P-47D flown by Maj Chester Van Etten. The 405th was a dedicated ground-support wing which claimed over 4,000 ground targets destroyed between its three squadrons between July 1944 and May 1945, an eye-watering total. Nearly 400 of these happened in a single action on 29 July 1944 during the Operation Cobra breakout, when the 405th was responsible for the destruction of an entire German armoured division over a three-mile column near Roncey.

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I depicted it with a typical armament during the Third Army campaign across France - a 150-gal centre tank and two 500lb bombs. 

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I tried to make it look used but still clean and neat, as it's a decent kit and deserves better than being splattered with dirt :lol:

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This is the first Thunderbolt I've made as an adult - I preferred the neat lines of the P-51 and P-38 to this other workhorse of the US Army Air Corps, but the lines are quite aesthetic. Pleased to finally have one in my collection!

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Thanks for looking and I'll see you back here when my Spitfire IIa is finished :wink:

 

:cheers:Alan

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That looks great, used but not abused, must try one of those, the last P-47 in 1/32 scale that I built was the old Revell one, I should imagine that this one is a mite better.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

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1 hour ago, ForestFan said:

Excellent job, looks like a proper brute of an aeroplane!

It sure is! Thanks for that 👍

1 hour ago, keith in the uk said:

Oh , that s just sublime , one of the finest P47s  i have seen in ages .  :worthy:

That's very generous! Cheers :cheers:

1 hour ago, spitfire said:

That looks great, used but not abused, must try one of those, the last P-47 in 1/32 scale that I built was the old Revell one, I should imagine that this one is a mite better.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

Thanks Dennis, it's a lot better than the old Revell, but for a bit more money you would be better off with the Hasegawa new tool version.

1 hour ago, Hamiltonian said:

That's a real beauty. Love the finish.

Thanks very much, it's got the look I was hoping for 👍

1 hour ago, SAT69 said:

Very well done and I do like the subtle weathering.

Thank you again, first model I've weathered for a while, glad I didn't overdo it!

 

Cheers all and thanks very much again :cheers:

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Oh man, I do like the 'bolt, and this is niiiice. I made the Hasegawa 1/48 one, same early prop and no fuselage strake, with a lot of mods years ago and it's the model I'm most proud of, so I think I'll have to try this one. The only downside of the size of it and the huge surfaces is they can look a tad sparse, even in 1/48, fault neither of modeller nor kit, and just an opinion anyway. What's objectively "worse" about the Trumpeter kit than the Hasegawa one?

Edited by burncpt
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On 1/7/2021 at 12:41 PM, burncpt said:

What's objectively "worse" about the Trumpeter kit than the Hasegawa one?

Thanks, objectively the only deal breaker I've found is the shape of the front canopy, which has a generic squarish shape rather than a more oval, curved footprint and washed out, blended join to the fuselage which Hasegawa nails. 

 

Subjectively, it depends on how you feel about surface detail, wheels and rivets which are better represented in the Hasegawa.

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