A beautiful bird you may never have heard of...

I thought I saw a few vacuform kits in 1/48, but I don't see anything for sale anywhere. Looks like we'll have to wait.

BK

GMorrison

 

 

Don Stauffer

Another large four-engined beast that I would love to build was a high altitude long range recce craft- I think it was called the XR-1 Rainbow, and I think it was built by Fairchild.  I believe Anagrand did a resin kit but it was very expensive.  Beautiful plane- pencil thin fuselage, very streamlined nose, high aspect ratio wings.  I have a book on it but couldn't find it now.

 

A very nice model. Republic XF-12 Rainbow in 1/72 by Anigrand. I was building the aircraft that mounted the R-4360 engine, but literally ran out of shelf space.

 

Bill

 

 

 

 

 

 

Beautiful, Bill.  It will be an inspiration when I start my build.

Real G

CapnMac, I think it is a given that a 1/32 B-29 will materialise.

Don, the plane you had in mind was the Republic XF-12 Rainbow.  I have the book with it and the Hughes XF-11.  That book has pretty much enough information to scratchbuild a model!

 

Yeah, I have the book too, and it does have enough drawings and info to scratch it.  I have a couple of scratch projects ahead of it in the queue, so it will take awhile before I get to it.  So if anyone kits it first, I'll be tempted to buy the kit.

I do not recall if there is one of these on display in the USAF Museum. I recall that there is a landing gear on display with one of the huge main gear tires. It is a beautiful aircraft and unfortunately ignored by the model manufacurers. 

Gerry Asher's B-32 is pretty awesome. If you scroll thru his builds in that album you will see his scratch built F108A. Now that is a really cool Mach 3 fighter interceptor designed to accompany the XB 70.

Don Stauffer

Another large four-engined beast that I would love to build was a high altitude long range recce craft- I think it was called the XR-1 Rainbow, and I think it was built by Fairchild.  I believe Anagrand did a resin kit but it was very expensive.  Beautiful plane- pencil thin fuselage, very streamlined nose, high aspect ratio wings.  I have a book on it but couldn't find it now.

 

A very nice model. Republic XF-12 Rainbow in 1/72 by Anigrand. I was building the aircraft that mounted the R-4360 engine, but literally ran out of shelf space.

 

Bill

 

 

CapnMac, I think it is a given that a 1/32 B-29 will materialise.

Don, the plane you had in mind was the Republic XF-12 Rainbow.  I have the book with it and the Hughes XF-11.  That book has pretty much enough information to scratchbuild a model!

Real G

A 1/72 injected B-32 sounds like MPM/Special Hobby territory to me.

So, anyone want to start a pool on whether HK will build a 1/2 version?

(I'm still passing surrised they don't have a SuperFort out yet.)

A 1/72 injected B-32 sounds like MPM/Special Hobby territory to me.  They have branched out to large 1/48 (He-177) and 1/32 single engine subjects, so they definitely have the capacity to do it.

While the question of ROI for tooling obscure subjects come up frequently, just a quick look around and you will see some pretty strange subjects being done from expensive steel molds.  So like Romeo Void said, "never say never".

Don Stauffer

 

 

Aggieman

The B-32 Dominator is the one bomber that I truly wish Monogram had kitted back in the late 70s.  I'd love to see one in 1/48 but with today's manufacturing capabilities, the cost would likely be too prohibitive for such a subject.

 

 

 

 

I'd rather see one in 1:72.  My display space is full already.  In fact, for large multi-engined planes I am going to 1:144.  I'd buy a Dominator in either 1:72 or:144.  With today's molding technology the 1:144 stuff is getting pretty nice.

 You know, we frequently see surveys here on what new subjects you'd like to see, and I don't remember the B-32 showing up much, but I'd bet there are a lot of us who'd buy one.

 

 

I'm pretty sure the last few times I did one of those surveys, I included the B-32.  As for the wish of a Monogram release, that would only be to go in line with their other 1/48 bomber fleet.  I would have to re-arrange the hangers in my workshop, but I'd make room.  Well, I guess I'll just have to go on dreaming of a better world that includes a big B-32 Dominator!

Another large four-engined beast that I would love to build was a high altitude long range recce craft- I think it was called the XR-1 Rainbow, and I think it was built by Fairchild.  I believe Anagrand did a resin kit but it was very expensive.  Beautiful plane- pencil thin fuselage, very streamlined nose, high aspect ratio wings.  I have a book on it but couldn't find it now.

Consolidated and Vultee were two of the great old aircraft companies in the US. Republic another.

Phil_H

 

 

GMorrison

Tail looks kinda like a B-36.

 

 

 

If I recall correctly, it was designed (and first prototype built) with a "H" pattern tail like the B-24. The single tail resembles the tail from the PB4Y-2 Privateer and, I guess, is a common design concept that flows through to the B-36.

 

Family resemblance in the rump?

GMorrison

Tail looks kinda like a B-36.

If I recall correctly, it was designed (and first prototype built) with a "H" pattern tail like the B-24. The single tail resembles the tail from the PB4Y-2 Privateer and, I guess, is a common design concept that flows through to the B-36.

Did he do a WIP on the model? That would be interesting.

the Baron

I'm not sure if I'm remembering this correctly, but I think there is a thread here in the forum, discussing scratchbuilding a B-32.  I remember that whoever it was doing the build planned to use a piece of PVC pipe as the basis for the fuselage.

 

And here is Gerry Asher's model, as referenced in the above thread.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/13935339@N05/6969339481/in/album-72157629188504120/

I saw that for the first time while watching a documentary about the history of the B-36. It really is a beautiful bird.

I'm not sure if I'm remembering this correctly, but I think there is a thread here in the forum, discussing scratchbuilding a B-32.  I remember that whoever it was doing the build planned to use a piece of PVC pipe as the basis for the fuselage.

The pressurization system and remote turret system had problems which were never solved. It couldn't fly at high altitudes and really wasn't a good backup for the B-29. It would have been a nice model.

mawright20

The B-32 was designed off the previous B-24

 

OHO!

 That's one Beautiful Bird!

Aggieman

The B-32 Dominator is the one bomber that I truly wish Monogram had kitted back in the late 70s.  I'd love to see one in 1/48 but with today's manufacturing capabilities, the cost would likely be too prohibitive for such a subject. 

Same here, Aggieman-this one, and a C-46. 

For a couple of years before the Hobbico disaster, it looked like Revell-Monogram (really, Monogram's old design group) was starting to tackle new subjects again.  When they developed and released the Stearman and the Ventura kits, I thought it might be a sign that they might try some larger subjects-like a C-46, or maybe even a Dominator.

You're right, though-today, the likelihood is lower, that we'll see a B-32 in 1/48.  Not impossible, but not likely.

GMorrison

Didn't one of those shoot down some zeroes while on a mission over Japan?

Tail looks kinda like a B-36.

 

 

Both are Consolidated aircraft designed within a few years of each other. Probably some of the same guys on their design teams. The B-32 was something of a “backup” program, in case the B-29 failed. It was a bit less ambitious in its incorporation of new design features such as remote control turrets, etc.

The B-32 did see some action at the end of the war. Not sure about any kills they made, but IIRC, the last US serviceman to die in aerial combat was killed aboard one during aerial recon flights over Japan in August 1945 between the surrender announcement and formal signature of Surrender.

GMorrison

Didn't one of those shoot down some zeroes while on a mission over Japan?

Tail looks kinda like a B-36. 

If I remember correctly, a B-32 was involved in the last aerial combat in the Pacific.  It was just a couple of days after the Japanese had announced their surrender.  The crew shot down at least one of their attackers, though I think the crew suffered at least one fatality, too.  I don't remember if the attackers were flying Zeroes or if they were IJA aircraft.

Aggieman

The B-32 Dominator is the one bomber that I truly wish Monogram had kitted back in the late 70s.  I'd love to see one in 1/48 but with today's manufacturing capabilities, the cost would likely be too prohibitive for such a subject.

 

I'd rather see one in 1:72.  My display space is full already.  In fact, for large multi-engined planes I am going to 1:144.  I'd buy a Dominator in either 1:72 or:144.  With today's molding technology the 1:144 stuff is getting pretty nice.

 You know, we frequently see surveys here on what new subjects you'd like to see, and I don't remember the B-32 showing up much, but I'd bet there are a lot of us who'd buy one.

GMorrison

 

 

Aggieman

The B-32 Dominator is the one bomber that I truly wish Monogram had kitted back in the late 70s.  I'd love to see one in 1/48 but with today's manufacturing capabilities, the cost would likely be too prohibitive for such a subject.

 

 

 

 

Were they built at Fort Worth?

 

 

Apparantely so.

https://rarehistoricalphotos.com/b-32-dominator-bomber-factory-1944/

Aggieman

The B-32 Dominator is the one bomber that I truly wish Monogram had kitted back in the late 70s.  I'd love to see one in 1/48 but with today's manufacturing capabilities, the cost would likely be too prohibitive for such a subject.

 

The B-32 Dominator is the one bomber that I truly wish Monogram had kitted back in the late 70s.  I'd love to see one in 1/48 but with today's manufacturing capabilities, the cost would likely be too prohibitive for such a subject.