Monogram Mafia Group Build

wow. gorgeous video!! 

That was some awesome footage.  I wonder if anyone makes markings for that bird.  That has to be one of the nicest restorations of a G I have ever seen.  The 25 was sweet as well, but for me, the 17 is my all time favorite WWII Bomber.

lewbud

Bill,

I forgot how small those bipes really are.  They are looking sweet!  Just a couple of questions though 1.  Is the Phantom Mustang being repopped again, or is that an older rerelease?  (I haven't built one either.)  2.  Since the original Rommel's Rod used the 250 for it's tracks, how come you went with the 251?

Out of respect for the Godfather, footage of Sentimental Journey over the Superstition Mountains.  Be sure to watch it in full screen mode.

http://vimeo.com/18135369

Bill,

I forgot how small those bipes really are.  They are looking sweet!  Just a couple of questions though 1.  Is the Phantom Mustang being repopped again, or is that an older rerelease?  (I haven't built one either.)  2.  Since the original Rommel's Rod used the 250 for it's tracks, how come you went with the 251?

Out of respect for the Godfather, footage of Sentimental Journey over the Superstition Mountains.  Be sure to watch it in full screen mode.

http://vimeo.com/18135369

Weel, the Tres Amigos are moving along fine. It's been fun going all-brush with the basic Testor's bottles. Mixed my own olive, trainer yellow, insignia red and blue and Navy gray.

The 'Rod rests out back.

So I picked up the next kit today at Riverside Hobbies. I never built this, unlike everybody else seems to have. But of course 3 million people say they were at Woodstock, too.

Because I live in another end of the State every weekend now while I get Don's act put away, I'm going super OOB- no paint. Oh maybe the prop tips, but it'll have to be summpin I find down at his hootch like yellow glue.

Wow, I finanlly was able to get my photos loaded on Photobucket (site problems I guess). Here are the pics of the F-105 and F-4 (1/72). This is the first time I have done a side by side and simaltaneous build, but I must make the 2 month time line!!!! One cool thing about this GB is that I had forgot how fun the Monogram kits are!!! I started on them and have several in the stash because I always remembered them having decent detail (even if it is raised!) I got the pit tubs done before I went on Vacation at the beginning of the month. More pics to come!

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Thanks, Travis

Got some pics of the Hellcat cockpit.  I took an old KMC F6F detail set and a F6F-3 night fighter conversion for this project.  It will be a late -3n.

Photos aren't the best, a product of an auto focus camera with a small subject and no background.

Today photographic proof of progress...

F9F fuselage together, seams cleaned up, and lost lines scribed in.

and F-86 fuselage together with seam clean up begun. I ran out of the little rubber bands to use to hold the fuselage together when the glue was drying so I have a slight seam to fill along part of the spine. Superglue has been applied and is drying now...

the Baron

stikpusher:

Trouble, I did the same thing for the gunner's turret. I took one off a derelict TBD for the same SBD kit I have had as a perennial WIP for years now. Yours is coming along well.

 

I have an experiment in mind, to make the ring.  I picked up the enhanced Kingfisher kit, which includes the ring on its photo-etch fret.  I think I can make a template from that, that can be used to punch out the holes in a piece of thin styrene sheet with my punch and die set.  Or failing that, to use the photo-etch to make a plastic master, then cast it in resin.  I don't have a derelict TBD kit, they're all going to get built

Tom's Modelworks makes a nice affordable PE set for USN WII aircraft. The set includes a few of the preforated gun mounts, but not the turret mount you need from another source.

the Baron

stikpusher:

Trouble, I did the same thing for the gunner's turret. I took one off a derelict TBD for the same SBD kit I have had as a perennial WIP for years now. Yours is coming along well.

 

I have an experiment in mind, to make the ring.  I picked up the enhanced Kingfisher kit, which includes the ring on its photo-etch fret.  I think I can make a template from that, that can be used to punch out the holes in a piece of thin styrene sheet with my punch and die set.  Or failing that, to use the photo-etch to make a plastic master, then cast it in resin.  I don't have a derelict TBD kit, they're all going to get built

That`s a good idea with the Kingfisher PE...I have that kit too. I also have latex mold maker, resin and mold release agent. The only thing I don`t have is experience using the stuff...lol! The only thing with the Kingfisher part is there`s no seat attached and would have to be scratch built...have a derelict Kingfisher too...donated it to someone for the floats but kept the innards and was eye-ing it up for the SBD but thought the TBD part was a better fit.

Let me know how you make out with the experiment!

Len

hey baron, I think that kit comes with both the PE and plastic parts...

stikpusher

Trouble, I did the same thing for the gunner's turret. I took one off a derelict TBD for the same SBD kit I have had as a perennial WIP for years now. Yours is coming along well.

I have an experiment in mind, to make the ring.  I picked up the enhanced Kingfisher kit, which includes the ring on its photo-etch fret.  I think I can make a template from that, that can be used to punch out the holes in a piece of thin styrene sheet with my punch and die set.  Or failing that, to use the photo-etch to make a plastic master, then cast it in resin.  I don't have a derelict TBD kit, they're all going to get built

Trouble, I did the same thing for the gunner's turret. I took one off a derelict TBD for the same SBD kit I have had as a perennial WIP for years now. Yours is coming along well.

For my Mafia builds, some more progress today. I glued the fuselage together on the F-86 and cleaned up most of the seams on the fuselage of the F9F. Unfortunately I have one bear of a seam to fill and smooth right where I did not want one, right between the guns in the nose... I added some putty awhile ago and will let that dry overnight. Tomorrow it will be ready for progress pics. Same with the F-86 I believe. I am gonna go with using the Academy F-86 intake and exhaust covers since I dont feel like adding all the extra work to fix those area to my satisfaction on this kit.

Reasoned

 I seem to remember if you run tapefrom  the ends of the wings to pull up the dihedral it will lessen the gaps to be filled in, like the pit, good luck.

Thanks for looking Reasoned,

Len

Len, I love that kit (the SBD), so much so that I picked it up again (due to being 40% off and I botched my first attempt at it).  Yeah, those wing roots are a bear on that one.  I seem to remember if you run tapefrom  the ends of the wings to pull up the dihedral it will lessen the gaps to be filled in, like the pit, good luck.

Hi All,

Here`s some progress pics of my SBD...tape belts with spare box PE bits for buckles

Used pedals from a P-38 and the floor boards are from the spares box...not sure what they were..lol..

Closed up the fuse...added the radio shelf and the rear .30 cal. from a destroyed TBD kit...

Put the wings on and got an unpleasant surprise....

Gaps and steps on both sides.......but..got out the trusty dremel tool and ground `em down.

Some filler and a lot of sanding should fix it up nicely. That`s all for now...thanks for looking!

Len

yeah, I knew the colors for the under wing lights....the sad thing was that my yellow jar decided to finally die and turned solid. So I had to make do with another color.

Here's a link to the Dual P-39 Build I did with the Monogram and Eduard kits:

/forums/t/122567.aspx?PageIndex=2

You know, I've never been a big P-39 fan but... I have one 40% off coupon left good at my local "Michaels" store and they just happen to have that kit.

I'd be jumpin' on that, R-man...

CallSignOWL

well, whoops!  Thanks for pointing that out. The directions didn't show any of the nav light colors. I just went from memory.

Don't forget the three Recognition Lights (sometimes erronenously called "Formation Lights) under the wings..

Straight from my well-worn copy of the "P-51 Pilot's Operating Handbook":

Recognition Lights –Early airplanes are equipped with four recognition lights: A white lamp (AN3097-2) on top of the fuselage aft of the **enclosure, and a red (AN3096-5), a green (AN3096), and an amber (AN3096-4) lamp grouped together on the underside of the right wing near the tip. A bank of four B-9A control switches on the control panel above the right switch panel. The lamps can be set to burn continuously, or to flash off and on by means of Type 8586 keying switch mounted in a box just above the right switch panel. On the later airplanes, the upper recognition light, control switch, and the wiring are deleted.

 Being a late "D"-model,  yours would only need the three lights under the right wing... The colors, from the leading edge back, are: Red, Green, & Amber...

**Army-speak for Canopy

Hans von Hammer

The Monogram P-39 was definitely one of, if not the finest 1/48 single-seat/single-engine fighter kits ever made by Monogram, IMNSHO.  The P-38, P-39, P-40, P-51B (Original "Ding Hao!" version, not the recent release, which is  ProModler tooling; it doesn't count (It was a post-merger release...), Fw 190, & Mosquito all came out in the mid/late 60s and that's when Monogram decided that they were a model manufacturer and not a toy company, and got into concentrating on details, rather than "operating features"...    

You know, I've never been a big P-39 fan but... I have one 40% off coupon left good at my local "Michaels" store and they just happen to have that kit.  

Hammer, thanks for the cool Airacobra story. I have not built the Eduard kit, but have long admired the Monogram kit, ever since I saw it hanging from a buddy's basement ceiling back in middle school. Finally getting around to working on my CAF P-39 and am amazed at the fit.  First produced in 1964? Crazy, wish I had held up as well! LOL

Heh.. I've been active with the CAF since about 1984, and the "Hangar Flying" is one of the greatest benefits of membership... IMHO, the only benfit more worthwhile is the free Space-A flights..  If there's an empty seat on a CAF bird, any Colonel can hop in, as long he/she can get in unassisted (The reason for that is so the PIC (Pilot In Command) is positive that you can get out  unassisted, lol)...  I've gotten quite a bit of "bootleg time" in the right seat of some of the bombers and front seat in three of the trainers).

But the best times are had in the CAF main hangar after the Saturday show.  That's where & when all the pilots, performers, aircrew, and general membership are attending the annual Rompin' Stompin' Hangar Dance & Barbeque... That's where I met all those guys who's names we all know and whose aircraft we've built time and time again: Joe Foss, Gabby Gabreski, Bob Johnson, Paul Tibbets, Bob Morgan, Butch Voris, Tex Hill, just to name-drop a few...

 'Course, the "CAF AirSho Survivor's Party" on Sunday Evening is pretty good too..  Always schedule your return flight or drive from Midland for Monday, lol...  There's even a "Bloody Mary Brunch" on Monday for the hard-core Colonels, though I've pretty much had it by Sunday night and have never attended that one.. But it's the BEST day to get up close & personal to the aircraft still on the ramp (most are still there until around 0900, when they start headin' back to their nests) without throngs of people around taking pictures of their kids & wives standing next to the landing gear.. In fact, many Mondays, around 0700-0800, I was the only one around on the ramp... You can really poke your head into stuff and get good reference pictures... (If you're like me and got the flight gear, it's also a GREAT time to get "Hee-ro Shots" of yourself  with the aircraft. ) However, I digress..

The Monogram P-39 was definitely one of, if not the finest 1/48 single-seat/single-engine fighter kits ever made by Monogram, IMNSHO.  The P-38, P-39, P-40, P-51B (Original "Ding Hao!" version, not the recent release, which is  ProModler tooling; it doesn't count (It was a post-merger release...), Fw 190, & Mosquito all came out in the mid/late 60s and that's when Monogram decided that they were a model manufacturer and not a toy company, and got into concentrating on details, rather than "operating features"...    

well, whoops!  Thanks for pointing that out. The directions didn't show any of the nav light colors. I just went from memory.

You're right, Baron, she did a nice job of fading on that ole Mustang. 

OWL - it's not a big deal and I'm not trying to be mean/critical, but just noticed that your wingtip nav lights are reversed.  For future reference, the red nav light is on the left wingtip and green on the right. 

Ken

Nice job on the Mustang, Owl!  It looks perfectly battered, and that a refreshing change from guys who finish an NMF WWII bird to make it look like it's on the flight line at an air show today--way too clean, if you know what I mean.  Even a bird that was cleaned and polished between missions would have some fading on painted areas, and the panels would oxidize at different rates.  Yours looks like a hard-workin' mount, well done!

Best regards,

Brad

Reasoned

Nice job OWL, what shade of green was that?

it was Testors little 1/4 oz enamel jar: flat green.  I lightened it with various amounts of flat white.

Nice job OWL, what shade of green was that?

hey Marc,, do one of your F-10?'s.. I'm doing the F-100, and someone else is doing the 106... humm... a gaggle of Century series...I also think some is doing a -100 also... so,, more Centuries.. the better right ??

(edit) rich is doing the 106..)...lol.oops

What about an F-106 so you can have a matched set :) ?  I'm doing a 102 in my wild wings build.  It's a fun little kit, and I was thinking of doing a 106 as well.

Rich

dupes

Wow, cool scheme on that P-51, Owl!

I keep waffling about the second kit to enter with the F-102...keep hanging out in the stash (which is my problem) opening up boxes. A-37? A-4? F-5/20? F-100D? F-105D/F/G? Aaaah! Sooooo many good kits!

 

Wow, cool scheme on that P-51, Owl!

I keep waffling about the second kit to enter with the F-102...keep hanging out in the stash (which is my problem) opening up boxes. A-37? A-4? F-5/20? F-100D? F-105D/F/G? Aaaah! Sooooo many good kits!

Nice different scheme, OWL!    Guess that Mustang was worked hard by the looks of all that wear and tear. 

Ken

Owl, nice job !