1:48 Lightning P38F-4-1 No. 1 PRU RAAF *FINISHED*

[Dunny]

Hi All,

 

My first Group Build - how very exciting! Also, the chance to build a kit I've been itching to get my hands on, ever since it was released - Tamiya's mighty P38F/G! 🤩 Here's the box art:

 

 

Now I normally only build RAF/RAAF/RCAF/FAA subjects, and I have to admit that I wasn't aware that the P38 had limited service in both the RAF and RAAF. So when @mark.au mentioned this group build at the start of the year, I was like a rat up a drainpipe ordering this kit (that man is trouble - he has just made me build a Spitfire FR Mk.XIVe, and also a Taranto Stringbag!). I knew that both Mark and our esteemed GB leader @trickyrich both intended to model RAAF subjects, so I couldn't resist a go at another Aussie subject. 

 

A little research revealed that Red Roo Models offer a conversion kit which allows conversion of the Academy P38F to F-4-1 standard. Here's the conversion kit:

 

 

A little digging revealed that the Tamiya kit would be a suitable donor. The research contained within the conversion kit states that the first airframes operated by 1 PRU in 1942 are often mistakenly referred to as F-4s, whereas they were actually standard P38Es converted by the RAAF to approximate F4-A standard. I'm taking a punt on the fact that the F-4-1 nose can be adapted to the Tamiya kit (I shall measure twice and cut once, believe me 😬). Here's the resin as presented:

 

 

The conversion kit allows for the modelling of 4 subjects - 1 in NMF, and 3 in a hybrid camouflage scheme. I'm planning to model either A55-2 or A55-3, both of which are shown below:

 

 

It is a common misconception that these airframes were painted in a combination of RAAF Earth Brown and Foliage Green over Sky. Red Roo's research indicates that the camouflage used the existing Olive Drab uppers oversprayed with Foliage Green. The Neutral Grey undersides were oversprayed with RAAF Sky Blue to cover up the 'US ARMY' underside insignia. Here's a couple of photos of A55-3 (copyrighted RAAF and AWM - for discussion only and will be removed on request):

 

 

 

I know that @trickyrich beautifully modelled A55-3 a while back, so I may do -2 just to be different! Here's the decals:

 

 

I'm very much looking forward to this build, and taking part with some like minds - let the fork-tailed games begin!

 

Thanks for looking,

 

Roger

 

 

 

 

[mark.au]

And so it begins…. I’m going to be a late starter as I will finish the SE5a first (when are you building yours?)… and maybe even slip in a little Canadian action beforehand too…

 

As you said, I was also planning an RAAF PR but @trickyrich is doing the airframe I was going to do so I might revisit my subject.  It’d be a boring GB with us all doing the same thing - at least at the same time.

 

I shall be following along Roger, I’ll be looking for tips on this kit and conversion set.

[81-er]

Welcome to the world of group builds, Roger! They can get addictive, so I'd imagine it's unlikely to be your last

 

Nice choice of subject as well, and a brillant kit.

 

James

[bigbadbadge]

Nice choice Roger, will pop in now and again to check on progress, whilst I am down this part of the Forum for my GB build which will start in the later part of September. 

Good luck with your build.

Chris

[Dunny]

13 hours ago, mark.au said:

And so it begins…. I’m going to be a late starter as I will finish the SE5a first (when are you building yours?)… and maybe even slip in a little Canadian action beforehand too…

 

As you said, I was also planning an RAAF PR but @trickyrich is doing the airframe I was going to do so I might revisit my subject.  It’d be a boring GB with us all doing the same thing - at least at the same time.

 

I shall be following along Roger, I’ll be looking for tips on this kit and conversion set.

Thanks very much Mark - what about an NMF 1PRU bird? Look forward to sharing the journey!

13 hours ago, 81-er said:

Welcome to the world of group builds, Roger! They can get addictive, so I'd imagine it's unlikely to be your last

 

Nice choice of subject as well, and a brillant kit.

 

James

Thanks very much James - after a recent informal GB with the Spit Mk.XIV I can very much see the attraction...

13 hours ago, bigbadbadge said:

Nice choice Roger, will pop in now and again to check on progress, whilst I am down this part of the Forum for my GB build which will start in the later part of September. 

Good luck with your build.

Chris

Many thanks Chris - so this is where you disappear to!🤣

Edited September 8, 2022 by Dunny
Spelling

[philp]

The Tamiya kit is an excellent model that just falls together.

Not sure what the differences are between the E version and the F, probably something with the interior.

 

Have fun with it and looks like a fun conversion.

[Dunny]

5 minutes ago, philp said:

The Tamiya kit is an excellent model that just falls together.

Not sure what the differences are between the E version and the F, probably something with the interior.

 

Have fun with it and looks like a fun conversion.

Thanks Phil - I believe the major exterior difference between E & F was the radiator shape and therefore nacelle profile (but I could be wrong!)

[trickyrich]

welcome along Dunny, and with an awesome choice as well, these will be very popular builds.

 

I am actually surprised at how many RAAF P-38's there are in the GB, it's great to see, at this rate we'll have the whole lot in this GB.

 

I used the same set for my original model, the resin bits worked nicely. From what I know the Academy model has no issues with the shape of the nose (or any other part), which this resin bit was designed for. So I suspect the shapes of the Tamiya and Academy models should be fairly close.

 

I originally chose A55-3 because of the miss-matched scheme and repairs, I had planned to replace it with the Tamiya model until I found the CMK conversion kit. I would love to see A55-1 to 3 in the GB, plus the 2 75 Sqn birds 21-2156 "Limping Lizzie" (my one) and 2141-2220 "Map Happy Pappy. @mark.au go for it.

 

Anyway, good luck with your build I'm certain you'll fall in love with the model, am looking forward to seeing her in the gallery.

 

PS, my brother lives in your parts......lookout for an older gentleman in loud shirt & pants driving an MX-5 or Landcruiser (or his next toy) around the hills at high speed!!!!  

[Dunny]

2 hours ago, trickyrich said:

welcome along Dunny, and with an awesome choice as well, these will be very popular builds.

 

I am actually surprised at how many RAAF P-38's there are in the GB, it's great to see, at this rate we'll have the whole lot in this GB.

 

I used the same set for my original model, the resin bits worked nicely. From what I know the Academy model has no issues with the shape of the nose (or any other part), which this resin bit was designed for. So I suspect the shapes of the Tamiya and Academy models should be fairly close.

 

I originally chose A55-3 because of the miss-matched scheme and repairs, I had planned to replace it with the Tamiya model until I found the CMK conversion kit. I would love to see A55-1 to 3 in the GB, plus the 2 75 Sqn birds 21-2156 "Limping Lizzie" (my one) and 2141-2220 "Map Happy Pappy. @mark.au go for it.

 

Anyway, good luck with your build I'm certain you'll fall in love with the model, am looking forward to seeing her in the gallery.

 

PS, my brother lives in your parts......lookout for an older gentleman in loud shirt & pants driving an MX-5 or Landcruiser (or his next toy) around the hills at high speed!!!!  

Cheers Rich - got to wave the flag with this one! Good to hear that the fit is likely to be ok, but I will take no chances with this gorgeous Tamiya plastic. Older gentleman, loud shirts - to be fair that covers a fair demographic in these here Hills 😉

 

Cheers,

 

Roger

[Dunny]

Hi All,

 

I  couldn't resist adding just a little more AM to this build, so I've just ordered Quinta Studios interior and harness 3D decals.

 

 

I've never tried these before, so should be an interesting experience! I have also been doing some research on cockpit and undercarriage bay colours - bit of a minefield as it goes! More to come over the weekend,

 

Cheers,

 

Roger

[mark.au]

3 hours ago, trickyrich said:

and 2141-2220 "Map Happy Pappy. @mark.au go for it.

Sold! I forgot about 20, that’s the ticket for me.

 

14 minutes ago, Dunny said:

Hi All,

 

I  couldn't resist adding just a little more AM to this build, so I've just ordered Quinta Studios interior and harness 3D decals.

 

 

I've never tried these before, so should be an interesting experience! I have also been doing some research on cockpit and undercarriage bay colours - bit of a minefield as it goes! More to come over the weekend,

 

Cheers,

 

Roger

 

That looks very nice Roger, I may well indulge myself on this gear too.

[Dunny]

12 hours ago, mark.au said:

Sold! I forgot about 20, that’s the ticket for me.

 

 

That looks very nice Roger, I may well indulge myself on this gear too.

Excellent on both fronts - bring on the Haze!

[trickyrich]

The Quinta stuff is awesome!!!

 

You sort of treat them like decals, soak for a short time in water, then I usually carefully dry them. Then use a really good quality PVA glue (I use canopy glue), gives a chance to position them, and that's it.

[PattheCat]

Looking forward to a RAAF camouflaged bird!

Excellent choice.

 

Wishing you a lot of fun with your first participation in a GB. It's addictve, beware. Oh well, don't!

[trickyrich]

Once you enter you can never leave!!!!  

[Dunny]

8 hours ago, PattheCat said:

Looking forward to a RAAF camouflaged bird!

Excellent choice.

 

Wishing you a lot of fun with your first participation in a GB. It's addictve, beware. Oh well, don't!

Thanks very much Pat - I'm looking forward to it!

55 minutes ago, trickyrich said:

Once you enter you can never leave!!!!  

I thought that was the Hotel California - no, wait...🤣

[Dunny]

Hi All,

 

Well I've cracked on with the Lightning this morning, with some good results. Now as the conversion to F-4-1 standard required (for me) some major engineering on the nose, I thought I'd better take an early look at what was required. First job of work was to remove the Red Roo nose components from their casting blocks (yes it was done under water!). Here's the components taped together:

 

 

Looks about the right shape! Now the conversion set was intended for use with the Academy P38E 'Glacier Girl' boxing; as I'm using the Tamiya kit there could be a few pitfalls, so I thought it prudent to dry-fit the whole fuselage/wing assembly. On the upper fuselage component it looks as if I'll need to remove the following area:

 

 

And on the lower fuselage:

 

 

Here's the assembly prior to surgery:

 

 

I do so hate taking a razor saw to this beautiful Tamiya plastic, but after a surprisingly short time we ended up with this:

 

 

Here's the lower fuselage fitted with the nose wheel bay (which just clicked together and held itself in position 😍

 

 

From the offset it was apparent that the prominent location lugs on the nose were not going to fit, so they were promptly dispatched. Also, Red Roo would have you use the flange on the nose as the front of the u/c bay. Rather than doing this I chose to remove this flange and thin down the walls, preferring to preserve the kit component. Here's a before and after:

 

 

Once both sides were tidied up I was able to offer up the nose to the fuselage assembly:

 

 

There is a rather prominent gap ahead of the u/c bay, but I think that was my poor cutting rather than anything else. Other than that, I am happy to confirm that fit is good and it should all blend in nicely - F-4-1 is a go with Tamiya!!  I still need to figure out how to locate the nose weight - Tamiya thoughtfully provide these (one for the nose, on for each nacelle):

 

 

I terms of the optical glass for the oblique and ventral camera ports I did think that I might open them out and use transparent sheet back-sprayed black to represent the optical glass. However, all of the photos of F-4-1s I have found show the glass to be obscure black thus:

 

 

I shall therefore probably just use sections of black decal cut to size, with a gloss coat - simples!

 

Now that I've got the buttock-clenching structural work out of the way I can hopefully start enjoying this superb kit. My thoughts turned to the interior colour - most builds are completed in standard US Interior Green, but I had a niggling suspicion that earlier P38s (up to -G?) had an interior colour much closer to RAF Interior Grey Green. The 'Glacier Girl' mentioned earlier was recovered from a Greenland icecap, and its interior colour was surprisingly close to IGG - here's a link to a photo of the 'faithfully restored' cockpit, along with a reasoning for the colour choice:

 

https://imodeler.com/2019/10/information-for-those-building-the-tamiya-p-38/

 

There is some logic to this - at the time the only other military aircraft being produced by Lockheed was the Hudson for the RAF, which used IGG. Anyway, that's enough for me to go with IGG. There is also much discussion around colours of undercarriage bays along with u/c oleos. I've therefore decided to go with the following colour choices:

 

Cockpit - Interior Grey Green

Undercarriage Bays and doors - Aluminium

Oleos - Neutral Grey

 

Happy to hear if anybody has definitive evidence to the contrary!

 

I was also pleased to note from studying photos that the RAAF aircraft did not have wheels fitted with hub caps, as the 'spoked' wheels provided by the kit are rather lovely:

 

 

During the week I also managed to mask the canopy:

 

 

Also the Quinta 3D decals arrived:

 

 

Girt lush, as they say in Bristol. Right, I'm off to throw some paint around - I'm looking forward to this!

 

Thanks for looking,

 

Roger

 

 

Edited September 17, 2022 by Dunny
Spelling

[mark.au]

And this is why I’m not starting mine just yet, I get follow the trail blazed by someone as supremely competent as you.  Nice.

[Dunny]

10 minutes ago, mark.au said:

And this is why I’m not starting mine just yet, I get follow the trail blazed by someone as supremely competent as you.  Nice.

'Yes, your Supreme Competence, I can confirm that that massive hole ahead of the u/c bay is, in fact, your own daft fault' 🤣 Still enjoying it though, and appreciate the kind words...

[Dunny]

Hi All,

 

A little more progress on the PRU bird today! Most of the afternoon has been taken up throwing around copious quantities of Interior Grey Green, Aluminium and Neutral Grey for the interior components and undercarriage. Here's those lovely wheels with the hubs sprayed aluminium:

 

 

I sprayed the oleos with aluminium too, and then masked over the compression areas:

 

 

Here's the final result after a coat of Neutral Grey:

 

 

Don't look too bad? I then brush painted the tyres, which was a pleasant half-hour or so:

 

 

I've since cleaned up the jagged edges on the nosewheel with a cocktail stick. I reckon they'll come up nicely with a bit of weathering, a grime wash and perhaps even a dusting of weathering powder (oooh - get him!). Here's a selection of the other painted components:

 

 

Whilst I was spraying the interior grey green I was organised enough to paint the glazing:

 

 

The last job for the day will be to pick out the internal canopy framing in interior grey green (again, a cocktail stick shall be the weapon of choice!) This kit really is superb,

 

Thanks for looking,

 

Roger

 

 

 

Edited September 17, 2022 by Dunny
Corrected photo

[gingerbob]

6 hours ago, Dunny said:

Happy to hear if anybody has definitive evidence to the contrary!

 

Funny, I'm quite sure (which means very little?) that elsewhere Tom Cleaver stated in no uncertain terms (as he is prone to do) that the interior of Glacier Girl was exactly the same paint as the OD on the outside.

 

A comment (or two) about that conversion: it is intended for the Academy kit, which uses the separate front bits to form the front wall of the nosegear well, thus the way their parts are formed.  I also notice that it claims to be "Suitable for all modellers," [emphasis added] so it must not be your fault!

[Dunny]

7 minutes ago, gingerbob said:

 

A comment (or two) about that conversion: it is intended for the Academy kit, which uses the separate front bits to form the front wall of the nosegear well, thus the way their parts are formed.  I also notice that it claims to be "Suitable for all modellers," [emphasis added] so it must not be your fault!

Well said Bob - I have no negative comments towards the Red Roo conversion, just happy to confirm that it can be made to work with the Tamiya kit! They may choose to produce a Tamiya version, which I'm sure would sell like hot cakes in the Aussie modelling community,

 

Cheers,

 

Roger

[bigbadbadge]

Crikey Roger,  that's some cracking progress . Looking good fella.

Chris

[Dunny]

7 minutes ago, bigbadbadge said:

Crikey Roger,  that's some cracking progress . Looking good fella.

Chris

Thanks Chris - very much enjoying this one!

 

Cheers,

 

Roger 

[81-er]

Very nice progress there, Roger, and interesting information about the paint colours as well

 

James