Ettore Posted July 11, 2021 Share Posted July 11, 2021 Construction of the final version of the SB2C-5 Helldiver in French colors. This aircraft BU.No 89357 3.F-16, Flottille 3.F Aeronavale Française Indochina 1954 departed from both the sites: the aircraft carrier Arromanches and the Bach Mai base, during the battle of Dien Bien Phu. during these missions it flew without the rear gunner and was quite dirty and worn, but from the photos it is not that you see much this. I chose to equip it with a radar AN/APS-4 under the right wing and eight 8-inch HVAR. Ettore 17 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wez Posted July 13, 2021 Share Posted July 13, 2021 Ettore, A great subject choice, one I'm very pleased to see in the GB. What are you going to do about the holes in the flaps/dive brakes? There's an awful lot of drilling to be done if you don't use some etched brass! Good luck with it and welcome to the GB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ettore Posted July 14, 2021 Author Share Posted July 14, 2021 Thanks Wez As in another old Helldiver, but U.S. SB2-4C, I think to keep the flaps closed and at the end do a wash with red oil color, so that it stays in the holes and gives the impression of the inside of the airbrakes Ettore 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JOCKNEY Posted July 26, 2021 Share Posted July 26, 2021 Great choice Ettore Have you got to drill out all the individual holes in those air breaks ? Thats a lovely tidy workbench, best I don't post a picture of my own shambles of a work area ! Good luck. Cheers Pat 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ettore Posted July 31, 2021 Author Share Posted July 31, 2021 I answer Pat first: no, I'll leave them like this; if it had been in 1/48 scale the dirty work could be done, but in 1/72 it is a waste of time with the risk of ruining something I can finally show something! It was a bit boring but I managed to insert the resin trolley compartments, certainly some anarchic cut with the cutter was on the plastic but I think I can fix it later the kit is rich in resins parts and I have also added some photoengraving, it is important to follow the instructions because they explain some changes to be made to adapt the resin parts Here are some parts of the front cockpit assembled and colored After having mounted some photo etchings in the cockpit of the radio operator and observer, I sprayed grey primer; however I must see some photos of the time well because these planes did not have the rear machine gun and therefore all the frames to support the ammunition, including the opening mechanism of the turtle back ........ ultimately they were quite light and the the operator sat directly on the seat of the gunner. See you soon ! Ettore 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hewy Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Looking good so far ettore Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
modelling minion Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Off to a great start Ettore, your cockpit looks really good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ettore Posted August 9, 2021 Author Share Posted August 9, 2021 (edited) Good morning Work continues on this beautiful dive bomber: finished the cockpit and the compartment of the radio operator (I remember that later this French version did not have the defensive rear machine gun, also because there was no Vietminh aviation and its use as an attack on the ground and bomber was more suitable in that context), so I said that I also closed the two half fuselages. The bomb compartement .... and hot air outlet in photoengraving at next............... Ettore Edited August 9, 2021 by Ettore 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
modelling minion Posted August 9, 2021 Share Posted August 9, 2021 Very nice work Ettore, she is coming together very nicely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ettore Posted August 16, 2021 Author Share Posted August 16, 2021 (edited) Good morning everyone Finally I managed with a bit of fear to join the wings and the horizontal stabilizers to the fuselage, I had to reconstruct some pieces of connection in plasticard but in the end it went pretty well with the grouting and smoothing. Cause my usual mistake, I get too distracted, I had to modify a little the area of the Hvar supports, by the way, do you know what color they were in that historical period? Someone told me light grey or dirty white with an olive green point and aluminum tail fins. Here a small detail of the engine and of the hatches of the bomb bay Finally here it is masked waiting for the transparencies masked too Se you soon Ettore Edited August 16, 2021 by Ettore 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
modelling minion Posted August 16, 2021 Share Posted August 16, 2021 Great to see her taking shape so well Ettore, very nice work. I thought the HVAR supports were in the same glossy blue as the rest of the airframe, that is how I have painted them on my build. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ettore Posted August 16, 2021 Author Share Posted August 16, 2021 Dear Minion I was alluding to rockets 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
modelling minion Posted August 16, 2021 Share Posted August 16, 2021 27 minutes ago, Ettore said: Dear Minion I was alluding to rockets Sorry Ettore, my mistake. I believe your description of the rockets is a good one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ettore Posted August 27, 2021 Author Share Posted August 27, 2021 Good evening And let's give it this preshading blow: Only black below and black and white above .......... very random and imprecise later I took care of the details, specifically the HVAR pylons will be done in midnight blue .... And we come to the main color: H-54 Gunze glazes (like Pierpaolo), the same color lightened with white and / or mixed with night blue on the edges and on some upper wing panels; then H55 Night Blue always in glazes to cover everything and finally the same lightened loooong lightly with white on the wing panels and naca; below a little something like lightening. Then with the polishing it will darken everything, but with aging the colors should come out ....... meanwhile, tomorrow afternoon I will dedicate myself to the trampling areas in black and to the propeller ... Ettore 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
modelling minion Posted August 29, 2021 Share Posted August 29, 2021 Very nice work Ettore, she is coming along very well indeed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ettore Posted September 28, 2021 Author Share Posted September 28, 2021 Goodmorning everyone Sorry for my inaction, but the work has left me no respite, however it is the last 44 days and then my work cycle is over. This kit finally gave me some problems in the coloring, the fault is mine I confess: I mixed a Gunze blue with a Tamiya white and I got a little orange peel on the surfaces, in any case I tried to hide with the aging and here is the result ... At next Ettore 12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bertie McBoatface Posted September 29, 2021 Share Posted September 29, 2021 Splendid! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ettore Posted October 24, 2021 Author Share Posted October 24, 2021 (edited) Thank you very much unfortunately a stupid accident led to the destruction of the plane, so I have to withdraw from this GB hoping to do it again in the future, and I will certainly buy the kit again. Modeling should relax us, but it is a bit of a difficult time and I often get nervous, it will get better later ... Ettore PS anyway .............. I'll do it again !! Edited October 24, 2021 by Ettore 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoftScience Posted October 25, 2021 Share Posted October 25, 2021 On 10/23/2021 at 10:44 PM, Ettore said: Thank you very much unfortunately a stupid accident led to the destruction of the plane, so I have to withdraw from this GB hoping to do it again in the future, and I will certainly buy the kit again. Modeling should relax us, but it is a bit of a difficult time and I often get nervous, it will get better later ... Ettore PS anyway .............. I'll do it again !! I know the feeling, man. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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