Justin M Posted February 7, 2021 Share Posted February 7, 2021 Hello All, This is a kit I bought many years ago and it has sat in my stash until I was finally motivated to build it when I saw a friend of mine build his. I acquired it when I lived overseas but realised building it there would create a monumental transport issue when getting it home. Even so, building it at home also posed some storage challenges so I decided to try and address that in the build. It is an interesting kit as it was repackaged by Hasegawa with decals from Aeromaster. The aircraft was Rattle n Roll of the 6th Bomb Group. Being a "vintage" model, it has some flash issues, but not too bad, and, needless to say, raised panel lines. And here all are the parts in the box, with a "under construction" 1/48 Spitfire to give an idea of size. In terms of extras, I also added the Eduard canopy masks (EX367), wheel set (648132) and exterior photo etch (48744). 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewis95 Posted February 7, 2021 Share Posted February 7, 2021 I'm in for this one. Looks like it could be one hell of a build! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mackem01 Posted February 7, 2021 Share Posted February 7, 2021 I'm in too for spying purposes, I have one of these too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnT Posted February 7, 2021 Share Posted February 7, 2021 Made one an eternity ago. Nearly all the internal detail can’t be seen but there is a good aftermarket nose “glass” replacement that adds clarity to the cockpit area. It’s a biggie and a tail sitter. I cheated and opened a rear door and added a metal access ladder as a prop to keep the nose wheel on the shelf. Very impressive when finished and worth doing once anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin M Posted February 7, 2021 Author Share Posted February 7, 2021 The first step was to remove all the raised panel lines and details in order to re-scribe recessed panel lines. This is quite easy with the old Monogram "silver-grey" kits as when you sand off the detail, the line of the remove panel line is still visible in the plastic. I used my trusty UMM SCR-01 SCRIBER, which I used in my F-4 Phantom build which explains the technique in a bit more detail. See here: Redoing the panel lines on the B-29 is not hard as they are mainly straight. The problem is there are lots of them and they are pretty long. A flexible straight edge is a must. In the photos below, you can quite clearly see the residual outline of the panels after the raised elements have been sanded off. 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan P Posted February 9, 2021 Share Posted February 9, 2021 It's a mammoth task! Great idea to do a build blog on this monster 😉 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B_Bogus Posted February 9, 2021 Share Posted February 9, 2021 Subscribed! Have you decided on how to do the NMF yet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bentwaters81tfw Posted February 9, 2021 Share Posted February 9, 2021 I have one looking at me. No worse than a 1/72 B-36. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin M Posted February 9, 2021 Author Share Posted February 9, 2021 Overall, it is not a bad kit, especially given its age. The surface detail is not fantastic but using the photo etch will improve that. The internal details is quite extensive, a bit softly moulded in places, but plenty of material. I did not add much detail other than some levers that would be vaguely visible from the outside. I used a decal set for the instruments - it was an old set that covered the B-29, B-17 and B-24. I recollect they were made by Monogram but I bought them about 25 years ago so I am not sure if they are still available. 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin M Posted February 9, 2021 Author Share Posted February 9, 2021 Rubbing down and re-scribing the fuselage. I found having the two halves together provided better grip and also ensured that the panel lines over the 2 halves linked up. It is possible to see the slight ribbing that appears on these kits just aft of the wing. Rubbing down for re-scribing does remove the prominence a bit. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob85 Posted February 9, 2021 Share Posted February 9, 2021 The office looks excellent! Good luck with the re scribe. Rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin M Posted February 11, 2021 Author Share Posted February 11, 2021 Internally, I added a bit of "insulation" to the very front of the cockpit to enhance it a bit. Little will be visible but it was worth a try. The surface detail was done by applying putty and then rolling the handle of a modelling knife over the surface to represent the quilted texture. 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tigerausfb Posted February 11, 2021 Share Posted February 11, 2021 I remember back in the mid-late 70's and seeing this kit in the shops for the first time. A thing of wonder. Way too expensive for me back then. It should be a mighty impressive model one finished, good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ruskin Air Services Posted February 11, 2021 Share Posted February 11, 2021 This is one monster of a kit and nice work so far. I have one built and sitting in my loft room where used to build, it will come down when shedquarters 2 has been built and fitted out as I will have the room!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry Callahan Posted February 12, 2021 Share Posted February 12, 2021 I have never known that exist a B-29 in 1:48, so i will watch your build thread with huge interest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin M Posted February 14, 2021 Author Share Posted February 14, 2021 This build takes an interesting direction; all to do with the wings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
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 accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now