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1/48 Tamiya P-47D Thunderbolt. Lt. Col. Francis Gabreski (Complete)

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  • Member since
    July 2019
1/48 Tamiya P-47D Thunderbolt. Lt. Col. Francis Gabreski (Complete)
Posted by Hoss WA on Friday, January 24, 2020 12:48 AM

So now I know what all the hoopla is about...This Tamiya kit is very thoughtfully engineered and wonderfully executed overall. I'm enjoying it so far. What a pleasure to build. 

I decided it was time to take a break from 109's and 190's and make a US plane. I've always been a Thunderbolt fan, so I decided to make my first as Francis Gabreski's colorful P-47D from June/July 1944 (61 FS, 56 FG, 8 AF, Boxted, England). 

I'm sure many on this forum are familiar with the story. As the US top ace in Europe, he had orders to head back to the states after reaching his combat time threshold, but asked to fly "just one more" mission. He ended up clipping his propeller on a strafing run and spent the rest of the war as a POW. 

I plan to build the model straight out of the box except for the Techmod decals. The decal options include 1) June 1944 with full invasion stripes and 27 victory marks, and 2) July 1944 with partial invasion stripes and 28 victory marks. I haven't decided which version yet. 

The office is complete but I have to admit that the decal seat belts are suboptimal. Next time I'll get an aftermarket set but I wanted to go full OOB on this first one. 

 

  • Member since
    November 2003
  • From: Naples, FL
Posted by tempestjohnny on Friday, January 24, 2020 4:48 AM
I'll be watching this. Awesome plane awesome pilot awesome kit

 

  • Member since
    June 2014
Posted by BrandonK on Friday, January 24, 2020 9:43 AM

You can't go wrong with Jugs or this Bada** pilot. This is gonna be one to really watch.

BK

On the bench:

A lot !! And I mean A LOT!!

2024 Kits on deck / in process / completed   

                         14 / 5 / 2  

                              Tongue Tied

  • Member since
    February 2012
  • From: Olmsted Township, Ohio
Posted by lawdog114 on Saturday, January 25, 2020 6:50 AM
Nice! I’m tasked with building Gabby’s Jug soon myself. I look forward to your work Hoss.

 "Can you fly this plane and land it?...Surely you can't be serious....I am serious, and don't call me Shirley"

 

 

 

 

  • Member since
    July 2019
Posted by Hoss WA on Saturday, February 1, 2020 7:20 PM

Thanks Tempest, Brandon and Lawdog!

  • Member since
    July 2019
Posted by Hoss WA on Saturday, February 1, 2020 7:36 PM

Here's the latest update. Main construction and painting is complete. I decided to depict the July 20, 1944 version of Gabby's jug.

This subject is an interesting challenge because the actual photos show some significant overspray of white on the black invasion stripes, overspray of the serial number paint on the tail and the overall look of the Ocean gray over the dark green is inconsistent and sketchy. It all has the look of camo and markings hastily applied at the unit level as we'd expect -- not a factory job!  However, if one decides to replicate the field-applied paint job, the model is going to look a little sloppy IMO (at least for me). So I decided to avoid overspray, tape lines, and inconsistent camo. Hopefully the model will still capture the spirit of Gabby's jug. 

I primed, preshaded and then painted the invasion stripes and red cowl and rudder sections.

I masked these and painted the undersides with AK real colors Medium Sea Grey. For the upper sections, I started with RAF Dark Green overall, added some panel fading and shadows with lighter and darker versions of the main color. Then I painted the Ocean Gray camo color freehand, along with some fading and shading. Fortunately the masking worked well and only minor touch up was required. 

Gloss coat and decals are next.  

 

  • Member since
    March 2015
  • From: Close to Chicago
Posted by JohnnyK on Saturday, February 1, 2020 8:09 PM

I love Jugs. A real bada$$ airplane.

Your comments and questions are always welcome.

  • Member since
    February 2012
  • From: Olmsted Township, Ohio
Posted by lawdog114 on Sunday, February 2, 2020 12:32 PM
Outstanding work. I’ll be starting my Gabby Jug tonight. Mine will get full invasion stripes. I agree, on a scale model neat looks better even if it’s less than accurate. I’ve read these stripes were slopped on with mops. Not conducive to scale modeling.

 "Can you fly this plane and land it?...Surely you can't be serious....I am serious, and don't call me Shirley"

 

 

 

 

  • Member since
    April 2003
  • From: USA
Posted by keavdog on Sunday, February 2, 2020 2:04 PM

Coming along nicely!  That is such a great kit.

Thanks,

John

  • Member since
    July 2019
Posted by Hoss WA on Tuesday, February 4, 2020 11:33 PM

JohnnyK

I love Jugs. A real bada$$ airplane.

 

Agreed!

  • Member since
    July 2019
Posted by Hoss WA on Tuesday, February 4, 2020 11:34 PM

lawdog114
Outstanding work. I’ll be starting my Gabby Jug tonight. Mine will get full invasion stripes. I agree, on a scale model neat looks better even if it’s less than accurate. I’ve read these stripes were slopped on with mops. Not conducive to scale modeling.
 

Agreed and thanks. I'm looking forward to seeing yours.

  • Member since
    July 2019
Posted by Hoss WA on Tuesday, February 4, 2020 11:34 PM

keavdog

Coming along nicely!  That is such a great kit.

 

Thanks John. It really is a pleasure to build. I'm really impressed with the detail and fit. 

  • Member since
    July 2019
Posted by Hoss WA on Tuesday, February 4, 2020 11:37 PM

Gloss coat complete with Tamiya X22 and Mr. Color Leveling Thinner. This is one of my favorite parts of the build process. 

Wrapping this up soon. I have a couple of interesting ones looking at me from the shelf. 

  • Member since
    February 2012
  • From: Olmsted Township, Ohio
Posted by lawdog114 on Wednesday, February 5, 2020 2:41 AM

Outstanding.  That gloss coat technique is fantastic isn't it?  

 "Can you fly this plane and land it?...Surely you can't be serious....I am serious, and don't call me Shirley"

 

 

 

 

  • Member since
    January 2017
Posted by damouav on Wednesday, February 5, 2020 3:00 AM

Great build mate, well done.

In Progress
1/48 Tamiya P47-D Bubbletop
1/48 Hobby Boss TBF-1C Avenger (on hold)
Pending
1/48 Roden S.E.5a
1/48 Airfix Walrus
  • Member since
    July 2019
Posted by Hoss WA on Wednesday, February 5, 2020 6:53 PM

lawdog114

Outstanding.  That gloss coat technique is fantastic isn't it?  

 

Thanks - I love the X22/MCLT gloss coat - smooth as glass. 

  • Member since
    July 2019
Posted by Hoss WA on Wednesday, February 5, 2020 6:53 PM

damouav

Great build mate, well done.

 

Thanks!

  • Member since
    May 2006
  • From: Batesville, IN
Posted by ggatt_2 on Wednesday, February 5, 2020 7:52 PM

Great looking Thunderbolt and what a shine! 

-Greg

  • Member since
    February 2005
  • From: Cleveland, OH
Posted by RadMax8 on Wednesday, February 5, 2020 9:04 PM

Looks great! What did you use for the interior color?

Paintwork looks amazing. Like you, I've used the Tamiya decal for the seatbelt on a plane... never again!

  • Member since
    February 2012
  • From: Olmsted Township, Ohio
Posted by lawdog114 on Thursday, February 6, 2020 11:06 AM

Hoss WA

 

 
lawdog114

Outstanding.  That gloss coat technique is fantastic isn't it?  

 

 

 

Thanks - I love the X22/MCLT gloss coat - smooth as glass. 

 

Hey, let's patent "X22/MCLT" so we don't have to keep spelling it out! 

 "Can you fly this plane and land it?...Surely you can't be serious....I am serious, and don't call me Shirley"

 

 

 

 

  • Member since
    July 2019
Posted by Hoss WA on Thursday, February 6, 2020 5:24 PM

ggatt_2

Great looking Thunderbolt and what a shine! 

 

Thanks!

  • Member since
    July 2019
Posted by Hoss WA on Thursday, February 6, 2020 5:36 PM

RadMax8

Looks great! What did you use for the interior color?

Paintwork looks amazing. Like you, I've used the Tamiya decal for the seatbelt on a plane... never again!

 

Thanks Radmax! For the interior I used AK Real Colors Dull Dark Green (RC 230). I'm by no means a Thunderbolt expert but my understanding is that Dull Dark Green and Bronze Green are both considered for the cockpit interior.

Here's a reference I found online: https://www.ipmsstockholm.se/home/interior-colours-of-us-aircraft-1941-45-part-ii/

Yes. the Tamiya seatbelt decal doesn't cut it. No more decal seatbelts for me. 

  • Member since
    July 2019
Posted by Hoss WA on Thursday, February 6, 2020 5:37 PM

lawdog114

 

 
Hoss WA

 

 
lawdog114

Outstanding.  That gloss coat technique is fantastic isn't it?  

 

 

 

Thanks - I love the X22/MCLT gloss coat - smooth as glass. 

 

 

 

Hey, let's patent "X22/MCLT" so we don't have to keep spelling it out! 

 

Agreed!

  • Member since
    November 2018
  • From: Saskatchewan, Canada
Posted by sickdude on Thursday, February 6, 2020 6:00 PM
Woo hoo, Glossy baby!! :) Tis great to see you both here and Scalemates, gives me more chances to drool over your work ;). Your turning out an outstanding museum/tribute to Mr. Gabreski, it would be great if you could present it to his family, I bet it would make them very happy :). Anyway, great job and carry on.

William (Willy)

 
  • Member since
    July 2019
Posted by Hoss WA on Thursday, February 6, 2020 10:47 PM

sickdude
Woo hoo, Glossy baby!! :) Tis great to see you both here and Scalemates, gives me more chances to drool over your work ;). Your turning out an outstanding museum/tribute to Mr. Gabreski, it would be great if you could present it to his family, I bet it would make them very happy :). Anyway, great job and carry on.
 

 

Thanks sickdude! Much appreciated. 

  • Member since
    July 2019
Posted by Hoss WA on Thursday, February 6, 2020 11:09 PM

Gabby's jug is now complete. 

After the gloss coat, the Techmod decals went on mostly without a hitch. I ended up tearing one of the stars and bars on the wing when I applied it but recovery was fine. I applied another gloss coat over the decals and then applied a dark dirt Flory wash. After some black/brown mix sprayed on selected panel lines, I added some random streaks. Two coats of Model Master Flat Clear Lacquer gave me the matte/satin finish I was looking for. After adding the guns, nav lights, and other doodads she was done. 

This Tamiya kit really deserves its reputation. Wow, what a pleasure to build. And I've always been drawn to the 61 FS, 56 FG paint scheme. As a side note, I actually used the Hasegawa 1/32 profile as a guide for painting -- I think it's very close to the actual photos and much better than the Techmod profile. 

This project represented a number of firsts for me: first US plane (this century), first P-47D (ever) and first invasion stripe project. There will be more. Enjoy the photos and thanks for following along.

  • Member since
    April 2016
Posted by RacerToo on Friday, February 7, 2020 4:52 AM

  I rarely give compliments because its tough to impress me. But your P-47 looks amazing. You've captured the essence of Gabreski's Thunderbolt. Well done.

  • Member since
    November 2018
  • From: Saskatchewan, Canada
Posted by sickdude on Friday, February 7, 2020 3:27 PM
Seeing it first completed on scalemates, and again here, I say again, mighty fine work sir, mighty fine! It looks like a Tamiya 1/48 and 1/72 Jug are on my list of builds ;).

William (Willy)

 
  • Member since
    July 2019
Posted by Hoss WA on Friday, February 7, 2020 7:42 PM

RacerToo

  I rarely give compliments because its tough to impress me. But your P-47 looks amazing. You've captured the essence of Gabreski's Thunderbolt. Well done.

 

Thanks Racer. Much appreciated. I'm glad you like how it turned out. Thanks.

  • Member since
    July 2019
Posted by Hoss WA on Friday, February 7, 2020 7:43 PM

sickdude
Seeing it first completed on scalemates, and again here, I say again, mighty fine work sir, mighty fine! It looks like a Tamiya 1/48 and 1/72 Jug are on my list of builds ;).
 

Thanks sickdude. I haven't tried the 1/72 kit, but the Tamiya 1/48 jug is wonderful. Thanks.

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