P-61 Black Widow

I've built that kit a couple times over the last couple decades also, and probably will do more.
My father was at an air show in MI. during or just after the war and saw one. A wing spar collapsed on a low pass and it went in inverted. He said the crowd first ran to it then away as the ammo cooked off.

I was at the AMtech site recently, and it looks like they will be releasing a series of 1/4th P-61's in the near future.

Go Here ====> http://www.amtechmodels.com/

Jim

Ray, i am glad you mentioned "weighting it"...what did you use in the engine nacelles? I have some lead fishing weights in various weights. How much do you need?
Really appreciate all the info on the "Widow" i am going to air brush a model for the first time. It seems to have a lot of interior green...is it best to do all that one color at the same time rather than cleaning up...spraying and then cleaning up again.? If i sound stupid, there is a good reason (smile. Looks like a lot of canopy masking also...i have some left over stuff from EZ mask that i used on the Avenger, that i will probably cut up and use.

I've built the kit twice in the last 20 years or so and the only major problem I ran into was aligning the booms. Other than that, fit was above average and the
possibility for extra detail is excellent. It's also a "tail-sitter" and will require weight to sit properly on it's gear. I put the weight where the weight is on the real
thing---in the engine nacelles. It will take a little more weight there but the main
gear can handle it better than the nose gear can.
BTW---The Mid America Air Museum recovered a crashed P-61 from New Guinea
some years back and is restoring it to flying condition. I don't have the exact URL
to the museum here at work but any good search engine will find it under
"The Widow's Web"
Ray

It's a typical classic Monogram kit - all the parts fit. The instructions are perfectly explicit and easy enough to follow. The airplane is black, that's why they molded it in black :D.

As an interesting side note - my dad once got into a spin the one time he flew a P-61 and pulled out so hard he vibrated all the paint off both tail booms. I have a photo to prove it.

That kit is from the mid-70's. I bought one right after first issue when I was a teenager. They originally came with a Shep Paine diorama pamplet (do they still?). I'm sorry I don't remember much about its quality or fit, I was just a kid, and I was more worried with putting kits together as fast as possible and not about accuracy or finished results.

Thats a re-issue of a classic Monogram kit of I think late 1970s, Early 1980s vintage.

I'm sure you'll find a ton of write ups one way and another about it on the net.