US CARRIER AVIATION GROUP BUILD 2013

Looking great there, mate! Very convincing!

just in case you need a little more reference... how about the assembly line?

Thanks stikpusher!! I guess I do have the demarcation in a "correct enough" place.

The spray gun was wielded by somebody, possibly at the end of a long shift, possibly hungover the next day, possibly with their mind on something else besides a precision duplicate job to the last airframe. "Close enough for government work" & "that looks about right" pretty much says it all. just look at the cowls on 1151, 1152, and 1153- they are all different.

Would a worker who's cross eyed and droolin' most accurately describe it?

Wow, that's one long assembly line! I can't even see the end of it. LOL

You guys had some serious aircraft production running over there in WW2!

Yes Douglas had several plants here locally when I was growing up. I worked security at one for a bit between my time in the Regular Army and becoming a cop. They built the Delta IIi rockets there and components for the C-17 at that time. It was a very large facility. That one is still open, but all the other plants are closed, or will be closing soon, and a bit more of tha aerospace history and heritage will die...

Well now......................doesn't THAT just suck!!

Now that I've seen what that demarcation line actually looked like, must say I think you did a splendid job, Joe!

Thanks Greg! I just treated the border like the mottle pattern on German camo. It worked!!

Just a tid bit on the rear gun here. The kit comes with a half moon shaped gunner ring and that just aint gonna get it done: Example:

This is how its SUPPOSED to look as many of you know:

 and the gunners ring:

I had to trim the posts of the gunner turret to get it to fit without hitting the floor so I chopped a mm or so off of the "legs". Here this is in the back ground along with the completed cockpit floor and related items:

Now this is what the kit supplied cockpit consisted of (Yep..........two parts!!)

I doubt I could handle that many cockpit pieces! I'm glad the Tamiya kits only have about 20-30 parts per cockpit!

You did a great job on that gun mount, mate!

Thanks Clemens! Yeah the "fancyfied" potato gun that Monogram provided just wasn't gonna work!

You said that right... LOL! Very nice work on the interior there!

Thanks stikpusher! I added the ammo box at the back of the cockpit also. Gotta buy some a couple of 1/48 scale ammo belts to marry the weapon to it and make that part complete!

Try Toms or Verlinden. Both have them in sets you use on other projects as well.

Some slick work there, Joe.

stikpusher:Thanks for the leads! When I built the Hasegawa SBD in 98 I think I used some Verlinden stuff. Probably what you are referring to.

Greg: Thanks man! The end is in sight!!!!

Worked on the birdie this morning and got the tail hook all painted up and got both of the upper wings installed on the plane. It doesn't look too  bad so far. will post pictures later tonight or tomorrow morning depending on progress.

Hey everybody. I dunked the windscreen into windex a couple of days ago and re-dipped it into future and started all over. First by of course re-masking then shooting a coat of zinc chromate and then a coat of blue. Here's the results of that:

and then I shot a coat of gloss on this morning!! Time for those decals tomorrow morning!!

You're moving right along, Joe. Looking good!

Question: How does one temporarily secure a canopy, especially a multiple part canopy like this one, for painting? I've been meaning to ask this for months. (anyway, I'm assuming you've attached it temporarily, except maybe the windscreen?).

Greg

Question: How does one temporarily secure a canopy, especially a multiple part canopy like this one, for painting? I've been meaning to ask this for months. (anyway, I'm assuming you've attached it temporarily, except maybe the windscreen?).

I usually tack mine on with a few strategically-placed droplets of white glue. It holds pretty solidly (unless knocked), but lets the canopy sections pop right off when you're ready to remove them. It also peels easily from the canopy sections.

Great work there, Joe!

Thank you, Greg! That sounds very good. Will give it a go on the next one for sure.

Greg

Question: How does one temporarily secure a canopy, especially a multiple part canopy like this one, for painting? I've been meaning to ask this for months. (anyway, I'm assuming you've attached it temporarily, except maybe the windscreen?).

Hey everybody. Got up this morning and stared decaling!!! Yay!! er.................wait just a dang minute!!! I've got the wrong decal sheet!! How did I miss that?? Well I got the wing roundels on the top of the wings and the black walk way strips on the wings anyways!! I emailed Hasegawa for the correct decal sheet. We'll see what happens from here. I turned my attention to the prop, AND I've got my dark pictures corrected forever!!!! Something good did come from this morning. I found the D-lighting option for my pictures that I have taken on the camera by accident this morning after owning the camera for over a year!!! So now the photos will come out a lot better!! No more dungeon pics.

While I'm here(and I've already posted a "help" post in General Discussion but I'll do it here too) I need a decal sheet for a 1/48 Hasegawa SBD Dauntless kit -kit# Jt20 if anybody's got one they want to give up for the cause. Good Grief!! I wished I would have noticed this earlier!!

What marking scheme are you planing for this? The -4 was in service when colors and markings were in transition for the Navy, late '42 onwards.

Funny that you mention that stikpusher , because "C-22 13" was caught right in the middle of the transition. It arrived on the carrier Independence with the middle color demarcation lines going down the middle of the sides or so and I think around a month later the dark blue carried down the sides of the fuselage at the middle of the acft at the rear and leading edges of the wings and white letters were used instead of black. My build will depict the incorrect camoflage pattern with black letters before it was corrected.

Good deal ;-) I would not call it an "incorrect" pattern, perhaps so much as a "field modified" one. The change may have been done in order to renumber the airframe after it being transferred from one squadron to another, and the Sea Blue was what was used to cover up the old numbers. Looking at photos of Navy aircraft and you can often see where old numbers were painted out and new ones applied over them or in a new position.

Your right I see that alot!