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B-17F 'Memphis Belle'


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Hi All, its been a long time since I posted anything on the forum, that's because I've been working on this one for the last few months. I had made my mind up to finish every model in my modest stash and this was the last one, that is until Aldi once again starting selling their pre Christmas cheap Airfix models.

I really enjoyed the build, it went together really well with very little filler used anywhere. Midway through the build I was disappointed to read that this is not a very accurate representation of the 'Belle,' so I think I will have to build another. any recommendations on a more authentic model would be appreciated. 

Anyway, this one was built completely out of the box and painted with Tamiya, Revell, Humbrol and Vallejo acrylics.

 

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Thanks for looking, all comments and criticisms are welcome.

I hope everybody out there has a brilliant Christmas and New year.

 

 

 

 

 

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Lovely build Telboy. Weathering is very well done.That it's not an exact representation of the Belle doesn't matter. Any B17 looks good to me 

I particularly liked the slightly indistinct line between the olive drab and the grey. I've often seen this 'effect' in WW2 colour photos of USAAF aircraft. Looks very authentic in my opinion how you've done this. Great stuff! Also I'm impressed by the different shading of panels and control surfaces you've done. Again very authentic! 

May I offer some constructive criticism? One consistent aspect of B17 weathering is the lines of dirt that appear between the 4 vents near the trailing edges... I've included a pic of my rather 'dodgy' take on this. The clean air passing through the vents clears away the dirty engine exhaust/ oil laden air leaving these distinctive deposits. I hope this minor detail is helpful? It's not a negative comment and in no way detracts from your excellent model at all. Thank you for showing this. 

There is a Sky Doumentaries programme called The Cold Blue. It's about the 91st BG and The Memphis Belle. There is some great colour footage which gives lots of scope for B17 weathering pointers. Well worth watching ! 

 

Kind Regards

Andy 

 

20201215_125741

 

 

 

 

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Nice!  Only one constructive criticism you can take or leave: to adjust the angle of the main wheel tires so that they stand straight up, and not splay outward. I think you can accomplish this easily.  Otherwise great work! 

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The finished result is great.

 

I am building this kit at the moment and what an absolute pleasure it is compared to some recent, larger scale versions on the market.

 

Is it 'accurate'? Does it really matter? It looks fine from here.

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On 03/12/2021 at 15:56, F-32 said:

Awesome job, great build of a classic!

Thank you.

On 03/12/2021 at 16:20, Volksjager said:

Beautiful build, always had a soft spot for the belle. Really like the tones on the upper surfaces & the control surfaces. Well done 

Thank you.

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On 03/12/2021 at 20:06, SAT69 said:

Congratulations on a very well built model!

Thank you.

On 03/12/2021 at 19:08, binbrook87 said:

Looks like the Belle to me! Great job on the paint and weathering 👍

Thank you.

On 03/12/2021 at 20:41, Remus389 said:

Stunning result indeed! 👍

Thank you.

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On 04/12/2021 at 11:37, Col Walter E Kurtz said:

Lovely build Telboy. Weathering is very well done.That it's not an exact representation of the Belle doesn't matter. Any B17 looks good to me 

I particularly liked the slightly indistinct line between the olive drab and the grey. I've often seen this 'effect' in WW2 colour photos of USAAF aircraft. Looks very authentic in my opinion how you've done this. Great stuff! Also I'm impressed by the different shading of panels and control surfaces you've done. Again very authentic! 

May I offer some constructive criticism? One consistent aspect of B17 weathering is the lines of dirt that appear between the 4 vents near the trailing edges... I've included a pic of my rather 'dodgy' take on this. The clean air passing through the vents clears away the dirty engine exhaust/ oil laden air leaving these distinctive deposits. I hope this minor detail is helpful? It's not a negative comment and in no way detracts from your excellent model at all. Thank you for showing this. 

There is a Sky Doumentaries programme called The Cold Blue. It's about the 91st BG and The Memphis Belle. There is some great colour footage which gives lots of scope for B17 weathering pointers. Well worth watching ! 

 

Kind Regards

Andy 

 

20201215_125741

 

 

 

 

Thank you, that's useful information about the vents, now I know what they are I will definitely weather appropriately on the next build. Incidentally I love the colour scheme of your model, that may well be my next B.17 build.

On 04/12/2021 at 15:57, RMCS said:

Fantastic finish 

Thank you.

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On 04/12/2021 at 17:53, TheyJammedKenny! said:

Nice!  Only one constructive criticism you can take or leave: to adjust the angle of the main wheel tires so that they stand straight up, and not splay outward. I think you can accomplish this easily.  Otherwise great work! 

Thank you. Your point about the undercarriage makes perfect sense, if you look at the geometry of the undercarriage the wheels would have to be straighter in order to retract into the bay.

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On 04/12/2021 at 19:17, Michael51 said:

The finished result is great.

 

I am building this kit at the moment and what an absolute pleasure it is compared to some recent, larger scale versions on the market.

 

Is it 'accurate'? Does it really matter? It looks fine from here.

Thank you, it is a great kit. I had some minor niggles, whilst I'm not an expert or a river counter I thought it was a cop out on Revell 's part use 4 silver square decals on top of the nose to represent glazing. The ammo belts for the ball turret and waste guns were ridiculously out of scale and the only construction issue was fitting the engine nacelles, they were very hit and miss. I had looked at Revells 1/48 scale version but realised it had raised panel lines which I avoid like the plague.

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15 minutes ago, John_W said:

Very nice indeed, wish I had the room for a 1/72 B17.

A minor point, the framing on the nose shouldn't be painted, its a Perspex to Perspex joint.

Thank you,t hat's interesting to know about the glazing, I'm not an expert so had to led by the instructions on the Eduard masking set!

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22 minutes ago, Telboy3510 said:

Thank you, that's useful information about the vents, now I know what they are I will definitely weather appropriately on the next build. Incidentally I love the colour scheme of your model, that may well be my next B.17 build.

Thank you.

Thank you for the compliment Telboy. Mine was the Revell 1:72 scale version. It's "Little Miss Mischief", the other option oob is "9-0-9" both 91st BG sister aircraft of The Belle I believe.

LMM was cobbled together out of 2 damaged airframes, hence the rather unusual half metal, half olive drab colour scheme. It was a enjoyable if not an exacting painting experience! The tail had 6 different colours ! 

If I did it again I'd take a little more care over the wing vents weathering patterns as I think my first attempt was a little sloppy! 

I also seem to recall there is also a counter intuitive weathering pattern from the starboard outer engine? I'll have to go back to my WIP for this model and track down the comment to remember it exactly? 

 

Look forward to your next B-17! Great work on your Belle though

 

Andy

 

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