Col Walter E Kurtz Posted September 29, 2021 Share Posted September 29, 2021 (edited) It's been a fair few months since I started a kit. So as winter approaches I thought I'd have a go at one of my favourite aircraft The Thunderbolt. I bought this kit from Trumpeter back in early Summer and decided it was the next project to start. The last build I did was a Tempest V as a tribute build. I've not made a Trumpeter kit before but I'm quite impressed with the quality. Rubber tyres, fair to good mouldings, PE parts all included. I've never done any PE work before so this is going to be a nice learning process. The kit has a lot of internal supercharger parts which are totally hidden. I've made these up but I won't paint them. For this model I want to concentrate on the visible side. Photos to follow very soon! Regards, Andy Anyway here's some photos of my progress so far. Not sure why they decided to model all this hidden detail? Nice to know it's there I guess! The instructions for the engine were a little confusing. But I decided to paint it after a fashion anyway. my first attempt at PE seat belts. I think they look pretty ok and I enjoyed doing them! The front end will have to have a lot of fettling to sit nicely and allow the fuselage halves to come together within tolerance. Its not a Tamiya kit of course but I'm still impressed with the quality of the mouldings . Not that much flash. If I was designing the kit I think I'd have done some things differently. One thing is the clear plastic cowling. Nice to have I guess if you'd like to display the engine detail but I think it is going to be a bit brittle and difficult to paint. Might have to very gently key the glossy surface first. I do like the rubber tyres. It's always hard to get a really nice delineation between the metal of wheel rims Andre the rubber. Hopefully this approach with the tyres slipped on will look very precise! Edited September 30, 2021 by Col Walter E Kurtz Added pictures and more description 12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted September 30, 2021 Share Posted September 30, 2021 Excellent start Andy and the Trumpeter kits are a nice fit, they do like making the cockpits a bit shallow though I think and have built their Seahawk which needed a few corrections, but have to say their fit is great, I have their 32nd scale Swordfish in the stash to do one day soon !!! Looking good so far. Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunny Posted September 30, 2021 Share Posted September 30, 2021 Nice work Andy - good to see you back in the saddle! Cheers, Roger 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spruecutter96 Posted September 30, 2021 Share Posted September 30, 2021 Hi, Col. Kurtz. I'm looking forward to watching your build progress. It looks great so far. BTW, I would really recommend that you get hold of some resin wheels to replace the kit-supplied ones. A lot of modellers have found that, after a couple of years, kit-supplied, rubber wheels have reacted with the plastic they're wrapped around and started to fall apart. Just given as a bit of friendly advice. Cheers. Chris. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col Walter E Kurtz Posted September 30, 2021 Author Share Posted September 30, 2021 5 hours ago, spruecutter96 said: Hi, Col. Kurtz. I'm looking forward to watching your build progress. It looks great so far. BTW, I would really recommend that you get hold of some resin wheels to replace the kit-supplied ones. A lot of modellers have found that, after a couple of years, kit-supplied, rubber wheels have reacted with the plastic they're wrapped around and started to fall apart. Just given as a bit of friendly advice. Cheers. Chris. That's great piece of advice. Thank you. I wasn't aware of this at all! I wonder why this has ban the case? Cheers ,Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col Walter E Kurtz Posted September 30, 2021 Author Share Posted September 30, 2021 5 hours ago, Dunny said: Nice work Andy - good to see you back in the saddle! Cheers, Roger Cheers Roger. It's nice to be back making something! Must be my age but I'm trying to remember all my little modelling short cuts lol! It's a nice kit and for the money think it was £53? It's going to be an enjoyable journey! Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col Walter E Kurtz Posted September 30, 2021 Author Share Posted September 30, 2021 6 hours ago, bigbadbadge said: Excellent start Andy and the Trumpeter kits are a nice fit, they do like making the cockpits a bit shallow though I think and have built their Seahawk which needed a few corrections, but have to say their fit is great, I have their 32nd scale Swordfish in the stash to do one day soon !!! Looking good so far. Chris Thanks Chris. I also have a 1:32 Trumpeter Stuka in the stash! I'd love to do a swordfish but the rigging frightens me! Lol A question for this Jug is - should I attempt invasion markings sprayed on? Not done this before so a little research is needed how wide the stories should be in scale,and should I lay the black down then mask for the white? The decal sheet unlike the excellent 1:48 Tamiya Jug doesn't have the stripes... I'm going to put the big 500lb bombs on the racks for this one too! Should look quite the piece when finished.. hopefully! Regards, Andy 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted September 30, 2021 Share Posted September 30, 2021 1 minute ago, Col Walter E Kurtz said: Thanks Chris. I also have a 1:32 Trumpeter Stuka in the stash! I'd love to do a swordfish but the rigging frightens me! Lol A question for this Jug is - should I attempt invasion markings sprayed on? Not done this before so a little research is needed how wide the stories should be in scale,and should I lay the black down then mask for the white? The decal sheet unlike the excellent 1:48 Tamiya Jug doesn't have the stripes... I'm going to put the big 500lb bombs on the racks for this one too! Should look quite the piece when finished.. hopefully! Regards, Andy They are impressive kits, not sure about the stripes though. I normally do the white then the black after, but I brush paint so need to fo it that way really. It certainly will look the business I your display as is a big old beastie. Like the look of the P47s. Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spruecutter96 Posted September 30, 2021 Share Posted September 30, 2021 31 minutes ago, Col Walter E Kurtz said: I wonder why this has ban the case? Cheers ,Andy Hi, Andy. I've always assumed that the rubber used is not a very "stable" compound. That's just an educated guess on my part, admittedly. Chris. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shorty84 Posted September 30, 2021 Share Posted September 30, 2021 50 minutes ago, Col Walter E Kurtz said: That's great piece of advice. Thank you. I wasn't aware of this at all! I wonder why this has ban the case? Cheers ,Andy Hi Andy, reason is quite simple, actually. In order to make the vinyl tires flexible, softening agents are added to the material. These agents degas over time, making the tires more brittle and react with other plastic parts they touch (e.g. the wheel hubs). There they do their job and soften (melt) them. Some modellers apply paint, a clear coat or even bare metal foil to act as a barrier between vinyl and common plastic parts. For the same reason seals or O-rings get brittle over time, their softening agent degas with time. Btw., great start on your Jug 👍 Cheers Markus 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col Walter E Kurtz Posted September 30, 2021 Author Share Posted September 30, 2021 1 minute ago, Shorty84 said: Hi Andy, reason is quite simple, actually. In order to make the vinyl tires flexible, softening agents are added to the material. These agents degas over time, making the tires more brittle and react with other plastic parts they touch (e.g. the wheel hubs). There they do their job and soften (melt) them. Some modellers apply paint, a clear coat or even bare metal foil to act as a barrier between vinyl and common plastic parts. For the same reason seals or O-rings get brittle over time, their softening agent degas with time. Btw., great start on your Jug 👍 Cheers Markus Thanks Marcus. Maybe I'll have a go at a barrier method between wheel and tyres. A very clear explanation on your part. I am much obliged! Cheers, Andy 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josep Posted October 5, 2021 Share Posted October 5, 2021 Hello Col. Walter E Kurt! This is a great start! I'm already finishig this kit. It's lovely, but I found a lot of problems fitting the cowling... In fact, I had to sand a lot of the inner walls of it, and remove some parts of the intakes; if not it was impossible fitting the cowling with the fuselage. I hope you don't find the same issue. I'll follow your project with interest! Best regards, 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col Walter E Kurtz Posted October 5, 2021 Author Share Posted October 5, 2021 6 hours ago, Josep said: Hello Col. Walter E Kurt! This is a great start! I'm already finishig this kit. It's lovely, but I found a lot of problems fitting the cowling... In fact, I had to sand a lot of the inner walls of it, and remove some parts of the intakes; if not it was impossible fitting the cowling with the fuselage. I hope you don't find the same issue. I'll follow your project with interest! Best regards, Hola Josep! Thank you for the compliment on my progress so far. im finding the cowling a problem to fit also. I've been doing a lot of dry fitting but like you I will need to do a lot of sanding before I finally glue the engine and cowling together. A better design might have been to have an extended lip that the cowling could have slipped on to. I might make up some plastic tabs myself so it can glue to those , which will be hidden from view inside the rear of the engine. Its also hard to see what's going on with the cowling as it's clear plastic! These minor criticisms apart, I love this kit so far. I'd be interested in seeking my yours when completed in your RFI posting too! Kind Regards, Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan P Posted October 7, 2021 Share Posted October 7, 2021 This is a great choice after your Tempest Andy 👍 great kit, quite hard to get all the innards to fit but really impressive beast when finished 👍 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col Walter E Kurtz Posted October 8, 2021 Author Share Posted October 8, 2021 10 hours ago, Alan P said: This is a great choice after your Tempest Andy 👍 great kit, quite hard to get all the innards to fit but really impressive beast when finished 👍 I think so too Alan! Might forgo some of the innards if I can't get them all to fit to my satisfaction! Off to Duxford IWM today! Heading for the American Airforce Museum part wearing my replica A11 USAAF hacking watch. It's a replica of those types issued to USAAF aircrew in WW2. Also just fancied a bit of inspiration seeing the real things . I don't think they have a Thunderbolt there but it's the other planes I'd like to see again, the Liberator and the B17. Will do some more work on the Jug this weekend and hopefully post some pics! Kind Regards, Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col Walter E Kurtz Posted October 20, 2021 Author Share Posted October 20, 2021 well it was a lovely day at Duxford.plenty of flying aircraft and yes they do have a P-47 there. Took a few pics. always cautious about 'restored' aircraft details. what struct me was how may dings and ripples the underside had.. as modellers we strive for a perfect finish along seams etc. nothing wrong with this of course. The guide in attendance was quite informative and told me this a/c was made from salvaged parts of 3 aircraft .. will get back in the modelling groove soon and post my progress! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdrianMF Posted October 21, 2021 Share Posted October 21, 2021 It’s certainly interesting to see how the turbochargers were liked together. Looks like an interesting project! Regards, Adrian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col Walter E Kurtz Posted November 14, 2021 Author Share Posted November 14, 2021 Thought I'd do a quick update to this WIP. Not done much since my last photos... lost my modelling mojo for some reason at least over the past few weeks. I've got the fuselage halves to dry fit nicely enough. So.. I should glue them and get this model back on track again! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paramedic Posted November 14, 2021 Share Posted November 14, 2021 Yeah - Thunderbolts are lovely, great start too! I owned the Razorback kit once, then sold it.. Cannot remember why..😚 Surface detailed looked nice however.. Your seatbelts indeed look nice, especially for a first attempt! Hope you get the mojo back.. ☺️ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col Walter E Kurtz Posted November 15, 2021 Author Share Posted November 15, 2021 5 hours ago, Paramedic said: Yeah - Thunderbolts are lovely, great start too! I owned the Razorback kit once, then sold it.. Cannot remember why..😚 Surface detailed looked nice however.. Your seatbelts indeed look nice, especially for a first attempt! Hope you get the mojo back.. ☺️ Thanks for your compliments Paramedic. I have a 1:48'Razorback Tamiya kit also. Must say I do prefer the Bubbletop. Yes I hope to get interested again lol! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col Walter E Kurtz Posted November 21, 2021 Author Share Posted November 21, 2021 (edited) Manage to spend a couple of hours today . Glued the main Fuselage halves together and made the large external tank and 500lb bombs up. The supercharger gases exit cupola needs a bit of filling along the very thin rear edge.. I might just square it off. I know it will be a bit too short but this is going to be a compromise.not sure I can get any filler to stay in place . There are some deep ejector pin marks on the bombs fins to fill in. Sanding them out will possibly make the fins too thin. The tail fin assembly also fills in the top half of the rear fuselage. The instructions suggest glueing these together but I think I'll elect to glue each half separately to the fuselage to enable a tighter fit. Pics below. Andy Edited November 22, 2021 by Col Walter E Kurtz Added pictures 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col Walter E Kurtz Posted December 7, 2021 Author Share Posted December 7, 2021 (edited) Quite a lot of progress made since my last post! I'm almost at the stage of spraying primer. The wings went on not too badly, a reasonable tight fit with a little white filler. I bought some Tamiya Extra Thin cement online and have tried this out for the first time. I'm quite impressed by this product. I've made up some of the options for drop tanks and the 250 lb bombs. I have an idea to use these as a little background detail for the diorama setting I have in mind for this model. just looking online for a suitable grass mat. It's hard to decide which one to buy as you don't get a good feel for which is the best quality from online pics! One question for me is should I attempt the invasion markings ? This kit , unlike the smaller Tamiya bubbletop kit doesn't come with decals for these. Hmmmmm... maybe I should give it a go! Edited December 7, 2021 by Col Walter E Kurtz Add pics 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadbadge Posted December 7, 2021 Share Posted December 7, 2021 Hi Andy This has come on well,one vote from me for the Invasion stripes, but it's your model fella. With regard to On 11/21/2021 at 7:57 PM, Col Walter E Kurtz said: The supercharger gases exit cupola needs a bit of filling along the very thin rear edge.. I might just square it off. I know it will be a bit too short but this is going to be a compromise.not sure I can get any filler to stay in place If it's not to late, you could use a mix of CA glue and Talcum powder, this makes an excellent filler that sticks in place and with the Talcum powder added makes it easier to sand. The more you add the easier to sand and shape, it really is great stuff. Great work Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark.au Posted December 7, 2021 Share Posted December 7, 2021 (edited) 10 hours ago, Col Walter E Kurtz said: One question for me is should I attempt the invasion markings ? This kit , unlike the smaller Tamiya bubbletop kit doesn't come with decals for these. Hmmmmm... maybe I should give it a go! Definitely! Decals aren’t very accurate anyway, the stripes weren’t perfect on the real thing, far from it in early June 1944, and it’s much more tricky to weather decals than paint. Edited December 7, 2021 by mark.au 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col Walter E Kurtz Posted December 8, 2021 Author Share Posted December 8, 2021 Thanks gentleman ... I'll give the invasion stripes a go! Some good points raised on the pros of applying them. Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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