1/72 B-52D with Big Belly Mod, Operation Arc Light

Hi, All,

I did a preliminary setup of the diorama and discovered I'm one maintenance stand short to cover all of the maintenance scenarios. I'm not in the mood to build another B-4 stand so I decided to used the tilt-and-roll (T&R) stand in the Hasegawa Pilot & Ground Crew Set (X72-7).

However, there were some issues with the way they modeled the stand. The handrails are way too large in diameter for 1/72 scale. I trimmed and sanded the handrails and managed to get them pretty close to scale. Any more and they would be too fragile to work with. And I didn't like the solid work platform - all maintenance stands I used had open grid platforms that provided a safe non-skid surface. So I replaced the solid platform with an open grid platform. A couple of pictures are below.

Cheers,

Russ

Russ:

"I'm not in the mood to build another B-4 stand so I decided to used the tilt and roll stand in the Hasegawa Pilot & Ground Crew Set (X72-7)"

Gosh Russ, is that, like, errrr, cheating.....LOL

Looks pretty good from here,

Hey, you can see how dangerous it was to work on BUFFs, that little guy looks

like he lost a thumb in a real bad engine maintenance accident.... ouch!

Dom

Bockscar

Russ:

"I'm not in the mood to build another B-4 stand so I decided to used the tilt and roll stand in the Hasegawa Pilot & Ground Crew Set (X72-7)"

Gosh Russ, is that, like, errrr, cheating.....LOL

Lol, Dom!  Nope, I originally planned for 4 maintenance stands but I remembered that the turret maintenance guys often used the gunner's hatch to get inside the gunner's compartment and test whatever repairs they made so I opened the hatch, and that requires a B-4 stand. Actually it worked out better as the t&r stand fits under the nav antenna compartment just right - better than the B-4.

Bockscar

Hey, you can see how dangerous it was to work on BUFFs, that little guy looks

like he lost a thumb in a real bad engine maintenance accident.... ouch!

It really was, Dom. A lot of guys lost digits working on planes. Many lost their ring fingers jumping down from a stand or the aircraft and catching the ring on something. The Air Force had lots of posters warning maintenance guys to remove their rings and watches for this reason. I got so used to taking mine off I often found it in my pocket and couldn't remember taking it off. That habit still remains with me today anytime I work on my car or any machinery.

Actually, this guy lost his thumb trying to open a beer at the NCO club .

I had a co-pilot who always said the following just as we got to the C Ramp.

"Rings, rags and tags.  Hatpins, stickpins and accoutrements."

It is still a habit with me also.

Striker8241

Hi, All,

I did a preliminary setup of the diorama and discovered I'm one maintenance stand short to cover all of the maintenance scenarios. I'm not in the mood to build another B-4 stand so I decided to used the tilt and roll stand in the Hasegawa Pilot & Ground Crew Set (X72-7). However, there were some issues with the way they modeled the stand. The handrails are way too large in diameter for that scale. I trimmed and sanded the handrails and managed to get them pretty close to scale. Any more and they would be too fragile to work with. And I didn't like the solid work platform - all maintenance stands I used had open grid platforms that provided a safe non-skid surface. So I replaced the solid platform with an open grid platform. A couple of pictures are below.

Cheers,

Russ

 

Gosh Russ, with the modifications you had to make, you might as will have made it from scratch!  It looks great by the way! 

Thanks, Ken!

Russ

One interesting note - if you noticed, some of the airmen in my photos were wearing long sleeve fatigues. This might seem odd for troops working in the heat of SEA. However, for the bomber guys, it was a fact of life. Most of us were stationed in colder country so long sleeves were standard throughout the Air Force. When we deployed  to SEA, we took what uniforms we had.

Although the US military had already approved a new light-weight fatigue uniform with short sleeves, they were only issued to folks stationed in SEA in the late sixties (as far as I know). However, we were allowed to roll our sleeves up above our elbows as long as they were even on both sides and didn't cover our rank.

In 1969, I was stationed at Takhli RTAFB in Thailand. We were issued the new fatigues and they were great. They were light weight and made of a loose weave so they were a lot cooler. They were also made of stronger material to resist rips and tears, and they dried quickly compared to our original fatigues that could take an hour or more to dry in the humid air.

Most guys shed their shirts anyway as soon as they got out to the aircraft, even with the newer fatigues.

Cheers,

Russ

Striker8241

One interesting note - if you noticed, some of the airmen in my photos were wearing long sleeve fatigues. This might seem odd for troops working in the heat of SEA. However, for the bomber guys, it was a fact of life. Most of us were stationed in colder country so long sleeves were standard throughout the Air Force. When we deployed  to SEA, we took what uniforms we had.

Although the US military had already approved a new light-weight fatigue uniform with short sleeves, they were only issued to folks stationed in SEA in the late sixties (as far as I know). However, we were allowed to roll our sleeves up above our elbows as long as they were even on both sides and didn't cover our rank.

In 1969, I was stationed at Takhli RTAFB in Thailand. We were issued the new fatigues and they were great. They were light weight and made of a loose weave so they were a lot cooler. They were also made of stronger material to resist rips and tears, and they dried quickly compared to our original fatigues that could take an hour or more to dry in the humid air.

Most guys shed their shirts anyway as soon as they got out to the aircraft, even with the newer fatigues.

Cheers,

Russ

Thank you Russ for that information!  I was wondering why my Dad was wearing long sleeves in his pictures taken in Vietnam!  Now I know.

Ken

You're welcome, Ken. Another piece of the mosaic eh?  .

Russ

Striker8241

You're welcome, Ken. Another piece of the mosaic eh?  .

Russ

Exactly!  And a much appreciated piece! 

Ken

Well, I've passed two more important milestones: I completed my two AMS maintenance vans and I've installed the second bomb clip in the bomb bay. Some pictures are below.

That leaves only a few more tasks to go before I can assemble the diorama:

Complete my 2 tow tractors

Complete the new tarmac

Complete the figures

Apply minor touchups on the aircraft

Whoops! Forgot - finish the revetment

Cheers,

Russ

Bombs away!   

Ken

Beautiful work there!

And the 781

Thanks, Subfixer!

Buffirn

And the 781

Hey, Jim

Is it done? Do you have a picture? 

Russ

I'm getting there.  The past 4 weeks at work have been bad.  All is better now and I can finish my work on your 781.

No problem, Jim! Take you time - I was just curious to see how it's coming along  

Russ

Hi, All,

My two Ford tow tractors are finally finished. I used the ones from the Hasegawa US Aircraft Weapon Loading Set #35005. However, I discovered this version is not the same one we had back when I worked on B-52s. It only has one door and that is in the back. That setup is entirely impractical for a busy tow tractor working on the flight line.

Our tractors had two doors in the front, one on either side (as shown below) because the operator had to be constantly climbing in and out to hook up and unhook trailers and stands. Trying to do that from a single door in the back would be too difficult and time consuming.

At any rate, I decided to modify the kit version to the two-door version, which turned out to be a time consuming project. In addition to opening the doorways in the sides of the cab, I also had to modify the rear wall of the cab since, in the two-door version, there was no door at the back and the lower window was shaped differently.

 Some further modifications: I thinned out the rear-view mirror arms, removed the warning light assembly from the roof (our tractors didn't have them) and rounded off the roof edges, thinned out the steering wheel, removed the oil breather from the top of the radiator, added a tank and tail lights in the back, corrected the rear hook assembly and added one to the front. I also added glass to the windows (not included in the kit). The radiator and the fenders are not shaped quite right but they would require too much work to modify. It still looks pretty close to the original.

  The small tank at the back is not a fuel tank. I suspect it's a compressed air tank for the tractor itself or for trailers that have air brakes - like maybe the bomb clip transporters. I haven't been able to find any information on the bomb transporters but they weighed over 8 tons fully loaded and disk or drum brakes likely would not be enough to safely control them. This is just a guess though.

The reflective striping on the tractors was often hand  painted and varied from base to base. The stripes on the back bumpers were often painted quickly and not very neatly, so I can justify mine .

 Cheers,

 Russ

Striker8241

Buffirn

And the 781

Hey, Jim

Is it done? Do you have a picture? 

Russ

Here isthe size of  the 781 once I get it cleaned up.  I have the pages mostly done. 

Wow! Incredible! Can't wait to see them!

Russ

Striker8241

Hi, All,

My two Ford tow tractors are finally finished. I used the ones from the Hasegawa US Aircraft Weapon Loading Set #35005. However, I discovered this version is not the same one we had back when I worked on B-52s. It only has one door and that is in the back. That setup is entirely impractical for a busy tow tractor working on the flight line.

Our tractors had two doors in the front, one on either side (as shown below) because the operator had to be constantly climbing in and out to hook up and unhook trailers and stands. Trying to do that from a single door in the back would be too difficult and time consuming. I don't see how the Hasegawa version could  ever have been used by the Air Force.

 

At any rate, I decided to modify the kit version to the two-door version, which turned out to be a time consuming project. In addition to opening the doorways in the sides of the cab, I also had to modify the rear wall of the cab since, in the two-door version, there was no door at the back and the lower window was shaped differently.

 Some further modifications: I thinned out the rear-view mirror arms, removed the warning light assembly from the roof (our tractors didn't have them) and rounded off the roof edges, thinned out the steering wheel, removed the oil breather from the top of the radiator, added a tank and tail lights in the back, corrected the rear hook assembly and added one to the front. I also added glass to the windows (not included in the kit). The radiator and the fenders are not shaped quite right but they would require too much work to modify. It still looks pretty close to the original.

 

The small tank at the back is not a fuel tank. I suspect it's a compressed air tank for the tractor itself or for trailers that have air brakes - like maybe the bomb clip transporters. I haven't been able to find any information on these transporters but they weighed over 8 tons fully loaded and disk or drum brakes likely would not be enough to safely control them. This is just a guess though.

The reflective striping on the tractors was often hand  painted and varied from base to base. The stripes on the back bumpers were often painted quickly and not very neatly, so I can justify mine .

 Cheers,

 Russ

Nice work on those tractors Russ!      They look great!

Ken

Thanks, Ken!    How's that arm doing?

Russ

Striker8241

Thanks, Ken!    How's that arm doing?

Russ

It is still swollen quite a bit.  It may have gone down just a tad.  If it does not go down by tomorrow I may have to call the doctor and see if there is something more they can do.

Ken

Hi, All,

My ground equipment is completed, at least for the initial phase, and I'm concentrating on the figures and other details such as tool boxes. When we reported for duty at a new base, we were issued a complete tool box. They were usually a large affair that weighed around 75 pounds. Naturally, we couldn't carry these around on the aircraft so we were also issued tool bags. These were made of sturdy canvas and were large enough to carry the most often used and necessary tools. A picture of one of these bags is below.

I wanted to model these bags because they were the most prevalent tool carriers on the flight line. I considered using modeling putty to shape a bag but discovered it was much easier to carve one out of a stick of styrene. Below is the first of my model tool bags. It doesn't look exactly like the original but hopefully they will get better as I make more.

Cheers,

Russ

Wow Russ!  I think it looks fantastic!  Great job man!     

Ken

Thanks, Ken!

Inserted 7/21/19 from my notes.

I added a bomb clip mounting frame to the empty slot in the bomb bay, as shown below.

If you would like to make one, follow the steps in the diagram below. BTW, I made up the terms for the individual parts, so if you know the real terms, please let me know... gently .

Cheers,

Russ

That looks good , Russ!

Thanks, Jim!

Excellent work! 

Lee