Eduard / Hasegawa 1/72 Liberator GR Mk.V Coastal Command

[SaminCam]

I ended up cutting the bulkhead behind the cockpit off as i decided it would be easier to rebuild the frame than cut it out of the original plastic. Photo below gives an idea of how it is going to look:

 

 

I'm basing this on the incredibly useful nmusaf virtual tour (link a few posts above) and based on this have cut away the opening through to the bomb bay as well. Next step is to get more framing done then add some furniture. Cheers, Sam

[SaminCam]

Sunday night update! A few more bits and pieces added to the space behind the cockpit: frame added to the walls plus table, box at the bottom of the wall, and fuse, oxygen and antenna control boxes. The radio kit under the table isn't glued in and will be painted separately. More to come in here including radio on the table,  more on the walls and lots of cables! Thanks for taking a look, Sam

 

 

 

[SaminCam]

I'm starting to gather a little collection of radio gubbins made from plasticard and bits of stretched sprue. So far not too much sacrificed to the carpet monster but still plenty of time as i do a few more of these 😜

 

 

[SaminCam]

Evening all! I'm still working on detailing the nose section and will put some photos up once I've got some paint on. This afternoon i tried a dry fit with wings and tail - all fits well but even with the weight already added the balance is touch and go. 

 

 

So more weight needed! Fortunately there's space behind the wheel well but this is having less effect as it gets closer to the pivot point i.e. the wheels on the wings. Still, plenty of space for more shot, glued in with araldite, so should be able to get it nose down eventually!

 

 

 

[Walter]

Nice work looking forward to seeing this one finished. 

[SaminCam]

Thanks @Walter, afraid things don't move that quickly with my builds but will get there in the end!

 

Still no paint but I'm making progress adding detail: 

 

 

I'm using the 3d photos from the usaf museum site as reference with a combination of stretched sprue and copper wire from an old usb charger (a great tip i picked up on here somewhere). More to come!

 

 

[SaminCam]

Bit more noodling around in the cockpit:

 

 

Nearly there with the pipes and cables and next task is to sort out pilots seats and seats for the radio operator and bomb aimer. Also need a plan for the bulkhead at the back of the radio room. Work and life are pretty full on at they moment but I'm enjoying 20 mins here and there pushing this slowly forward. I'm also hatching an idea to have a removable top section for the nose so that some of this effort can be seen, more to come in this! 

[shortCummins]

it would be a shame to hide all of that fantastic detail, I'm looking forward to seeing how you realise a removable top section, asking for a friend I'm not looking to steal the idea 😉

 

rgds

John(shortCummins)

[SaminCam]

Evening all! Missed my weekend update as work (big proposal) and 1:1 life (buying a house) aren't leaving much time for modelling. Bits still getting done here and there and I thought you might like the chair for the radio operator:

 

 

This is made from plasticard, stretched sprue and milliput, it's pretty diddy! 

 

Quick question: In the eduard instructions the hasegawa bombs don't seem to be loaded in the bomb bay, is this because it is a coastal command liberator, what might have been in there instead? Cheers!

[AdrianMF]

Lovely detailing! You have a full plate but looking forward to progress whenever you have a moment.

 

Regards,

Adrian

[SaminCam]

Evening all, a little bit more progress to report here. Further details added to the cockpit and radio operators compartment - finally nearly ready for some paint, just the pilots seats to detail and then I'll be able to get the airbrush out.

 

 

The canvas covering for the frame is made from milliput and the rest is a combination of usb copper wire, plasticard and stretched sprue - it should be fun picking out the detail once the base coats are laid down. I've also followed @The Spadgent's tip of using swann morton blade foil for some scratch belts on the radio operators chair and really please with how they came out, thanks Johnny! The buckles and clips are mini bits of stretched sprue bent to shape. 

 

 

Good news is that I have a week off(!) so should hopefully get the front interior sections moving forward a bit more quickly over the next few days. Have a great Easter weekend! Sam

[bigbadbadge]

Wowee, this looks absolutely flippin amazing, really great work. 

Chris

[tomprobert]

Looks absolutely brilliant!

 

Tom

[SaminCam]

@tomprobert @bigbadbadge, thanks gents, really appreciate the encouragement! 

Smartened up the kit cockpit sits this afternoon - I snipped away the block they were sat on and then rebuilt a frame based on the best reference shots I could find. A few more little tweaks needed but the photos below gives the general idea:

 

 

The Eduard boxing comes with etch seatbelts so I'll add these once they're painted. Here the seats and console aren't glued in place but got it placed together to give a feel for how it's all going to look:

 

 

And with that I think I'm finally ready to get some paint on. Everything fits well at the moment so I need to remember to put some masking fluid on the mating surfaces and then my plan is to put down a black basecoat followed by aluminium and a coat of varnish. Then I'll spray on some hairspray so I can chip the interior green top coat. Finally there will be plenty of detail to hand paint , plus I'll probably add some washes and shading with oils, wood effect on the table, etc, etc. Fingers crossed it'll look quite smart! 

[Jackson Duvalier]

That seat frame work is exquisite, Sam.  I can't wait to see all your interior upgrades under paint.

 

With as much work as you're putting into this one, have you considered maybe printing a nicely bound build log to display with the finished model?  It's be a shame for all that lovely detail to be sealed off from the world forever with no way for the understanding viewer to appreciate it.

 

It might also encourage the less understanding viewer to look at the model, look at the logbook, look at you, and back slowly to the nearest door whilst smiling and nodding and making reassuring noises until it's safe to run.  You're a madman!  😎

[bigbadbadge]

The seat frames look fantastic.  What an amazing job you've done and in your test fit photo the cockpit looks wonderfully busy.  It will be a shame to cover it , although, you and we know it is there.

Really fantastic work. 

Chris

[SaminCam]

@Jackson Duvalier @bigbadbadge thanks both for the thumbs up! I admit the seat frames might be slightly mad 😜 but your messages got me thinking a bit more about the plan to allow some of the detail to be seen... 

 

The trick I'm going to try and use is to have the whole of the front upper section removeable. The fit looks pretty good and the join line will hopefully be mostly disguised as a panel line:

 

 

I'm then going to use a little neobidium magnet to hold the section in place. This morning I've mounted the magnet in the space between bulkhead and instrument panel and then I'll use metal strips fashioned from paper fasteners glued to the removable "lid". This provides enough pull to hold everything neatly in place but is also easy to "pop" off to reveal the inside detail, especially in the compartment behind the cockpit. I've done something similar to this on a B-29 cockpit a few years ago and also for converting the bomb bay doors on a Lancaster into a removable stand. It should work ok but the comments above spurred me into action - definitely better to get this setup before any paint gets added as well. 

 

 

 

 

 

[bigbadbadge]

The magnet and removable lid is a cracking idea.

Great job

Chris

[Jackson Duvalier]

I remember your B-29, a tricksy bit of work that was.  A similar approach would work well here, provided the parts fit well enough.

 

Seems to me the big challenge here will be doing the needful on brittle clear styrene parts.  The potential for stress cracks, or worse, actual fractures on areas that need to retain pristine transparency will add a level of challenge.

 

Some decades ago, cutaway models were a thing (never really a big thing, but a visibly present thing nevertheless).  You're definitely taking that concept up a notch or two, so points awarded for one-upmanship.  🤩

[Paul Atkins]

Looks good the RAF coastal command liberator has been on my wishlist for ages having not long finished a RAF short Stirling the old airfix kit. Currently working on a 1/48 thunderbolt will be glad when the shows are back. To stock up on new kits.. Paul  A

 

 

 

 

 

[SaminCam]

Thanks @Jackson Duvalier, the clear plastic the entire nose is made from has behaved pretty well so far but I am being careful not to overstress it. The "lid" fits really well so hoping the join will hardly be noticeable when painted. Cutaway sections seem like a good idea to me and little magnets provide a good way to hold removable sections in place - I really enjoy adding the interior detail so willing to sacrifice the perfect seamless finish on the outside to be able to see a bit more interest inside.

 

The front section received an undercoat of Tamiya XF-1 followed by Alclad Aluminium and sealed in with aqua gloss:

 

 

 This is effectively my base coat and once the varnish has cured properly I'll add some hair spray so that the top coat of green can be chipped on frame edges and where the floor would have worn, etc. The green will be home brew dull dark green which is going to be painted throughout this front section - I'll post details of this once I figure it out!

 

I know the interior colour of B-24s is a bit of a can of worms but does anyone have an opinion on what colour to paint the front wheel well? Dark green as well or perhaps leave it bare metal? 

 

Thanks! Sam

 

 

 

[bigbadbadge]

Oh wow, great to see some colour going on , the details are really standing out already.

What a cracking model. 

Chris

[SaminCam]

Afternoon all! I've had a good week off work and managed to get a bit further with the interior front section of the B-24:

 

 

Still lots to do but I'm pleased with how this is going. After gloss coating the silver base coat and letting it dry for a day I sprayed a coat of hairspray then went for the the green - this was a mix of mr color zinc chromate green with a drop or two of black and one drop of blue added in roughly 75:20:5 ratio. This is still quite light but I find that my method of weathering with oils on a matt varnish usually darkens the tone down - we shall see! I masked off the walls in the radio operators compartment so they are still aluminium and provide a bit of contrast. Chipping is still a bit hit or miss for me, the worn floor at the back and front have worked better than in the cockpit, though fortunately the seats will hide most of the bits I'm not so sure about. Also the flat coat and more weathering will hopefully tone it all down a bit. I then picked out the main blocks of colour: brown on the tables, khaki for the canvass covering at the back, black and grey for electronic gubbins on the walls and white on the cables for now (I'll add some red and yellow later). Finally I used streaky oil to do wood effects and used spare bits of decal to add some more detail which I couldn't paint. I'm nearly there with the basic colour painting so the next step will be to spray a matt varnish, add the eduard photoetch and do some more weathering: dry brushing to make some highlights pop and brown and black oils to add contrast to the large areas of green. Let me know any thoughts, suggestions or questions, thanks for dropping by! 

 

 

p.s. I've got some nice yellow Oxygen tanks painted up and ready to be added which I think will make a big difference!

[bigbadbadge]

Oh boy, your hard work has certainly paid off the cockpit details look amazing. 

Great work .

Chris

[SaminCam]

Quick update though not got much time at the bench this week... I got the Eduard etch all added and most of the detail painting done so will spray a flat coat and add some weathering and shading with oils next. Still lots of innards to work on as I'll move rearwards to the bomb bay next and finish off with some extra detail in the rear compartment - she's a long way off being sealed up yet!