Joe Vizcaino, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
A photo showing a P-47 in pinstripes piqued Joe’s curiosity: “I found the paint scheme completely interesting,” he says. “I had seen other, larger formation aircraft, but never a P-47. I had a Hasegawa 1/48 scale Thunderbolt lying about, so I decided to model it with the ‘circus tent’ scheme. I read that the airplanes used for assembly were not in the best of shape, and the ones that served as taxi trainers were in even worse condition. I never did nail down what this P-47’s true mission was. Some articles had it as an assembly ship, and others listed it as a taxiing trainer at an airbase in Italy. Either way, it was a mess. So, I removed all armament and gave it a very worn-out look. I painted it with Testors Model Master acrylics and weathered with Vallejo washes.”