Ken, you're so right about the all-purpose aircraft the military dreams of; just that, a dream. I worked for a short time on A-10 at the start of my time in the Air Force and remember how impressed I was with it. It was a purpose built design that filled the air to ground role in ways that silenced its harshest critics. I know for a fact the grunts on the ground loved the sound of those things flying in. Bye bye bad guys!

Looks like things are picking up here!  Great seat Jim, good reference pictures.

    The Collins Foundation operates a B-24J "Witchcraft" and a B-17G marked as the "Nine-O-Nine," both of these are OD over neutral gray.  Got to walk thru both of them and take pictures and felt awfully jealous when the paying customers boarded and they taxied down the runway....Too rich for my blood, besides, I got to see them warm up the engines and make the run down the line.....a truly awe inspiring sight!

    And yes, that A-10 is one heck of a plane!  I remember during Desert Storm when they were flying out of KIng Fa'ad International Airport.  A few of them returned to base pretty shot up and it was amazing to see them still in the air.  As Mister T would say "I pity the fool" that was on the receiving end of the Warthog!!!

jimbot58

Seat work:

The seat back is actually very dark green, but the photo makes it look black. Some of the PE belts are in place. Obvious touch-ups needed on the seat. I was trying to replicate this:

Most of the photos I found, that part of the seat always looked either black or green so dark it almost looked black. I went for the dark green, mixing a green with gloss black.

More A-10 stuff. Avenger gun turns armor into Swiss cheese:

An F-35 is going to do that to a tank? Hardly!

Jim

Great job on the seat Jim!  (As always!)      Yes, I don't see an F-35 doing the same job as an A-10.  The whole concept of one plane filling the roles of all planes is insane!

Ken

Yeah, looked it up on their site and this B-17 served as a VIP transport during the Second World War and Korea and then ended up painted as 'Memphis Belle' for the movie. Sorry for the confusion.

Jim: Yeah, you have to love that cannon on the A-10 - assuming you're not on the business end of course.

jimbot58

Gamera

I think Aluminum Overcast was here about twenty years ago. This B-17F is listed as Memphis Belle, supposedly the actual Second World War bomber.

Here

I'm confused... Isn't the original Memphis Belle still being restored in Dayton? I thought Ken saw it there when he visited the museum.

I think they are quoting this one as "The Movie" Memphis Belle? Doesn't matter though, any B-17 still flying is impressive enough.

Hi Jim,

You are correct.  The "real" Memphis Belle" is at the USAF National Museum being restored.

Here is a picture I took earlier this year:

Ken 

Seat work:

The seat back is actually very dark green, but the photo makes it look black. Some of the PE belts are in place. Obvious touch-ups needed on the seat. I was trying to replicate this:

Most of the photos I found, that part of the seat always looked either black or green so dark it almost looked black. I went for the dark green, mixing a green with gloss black.

More A-10 stuff. Avenger gun turns armor into Swiss cheese:

An F-35 is going to do that to a tank? Hardly!

Jim

Gamera

I think Aluminum Overcast was here about twenty years ago. This B-17F is listed as Memphis Belle, supposedly the actual Second World War bomber.

Here

I'm confused... Isn't the original Memphis Belle still being restored in Dayton? I thought Ken saw it there when he visited the museum.

I think they are quoting this one as "The Movie" Memphis Belle? Doesn't matter though, any B-17 still flying is impressive enough.

I think Aluminum Overcast was here about twenty years ago. This B-17F is listed as Memphis Belle, supposedly the actual Second World War bomber.

Here

Son Of Medicine Man

Gamera

Jim: Look good, very nice work there on the PE. And I couldn't agree more- the A-10 should have been assigned to the Army, makes a lot more sense but you know politics.

BTW: We've got a vintage B-17F flying into the local airport and I'm going to try to get Friday off to go see her. They're offering rides but it's very expensive- still mulling if I should take the plunge or not since I may not have another chance. 

Hi Cliff,

I thought at first that the B-17 you were talking about might be the same one that stopped by here last summer.  But it was a B-17G named "Aluminum Overcast"

Yes, those rides are expensive!  It would be cool to take one, but out of my price range too!

Ken 

I believe there are a couple of these that tour. I think the last one I saw here was painted.

Gamera

Jim: Look good, very nice work there on the PE. And I couldn't agree more- the A-10 should have been assigned to the Army, makes a lot more sense but you know politics.

BTW: We've got a vintage B-17F flying into the local airport and I'm going to try to get Friday off to go see her. They're offering rides but it's very expensive- still mulling if I should take the plunge or not since I may not have another chance. 

Hi Cliff,

I thought at first that the B-17 you were talking about might be the same one that stopped by here last summer.  But it was a B-17G named "Aluminum Overcast"

Yes, those rides are expensive!  It would be cool to take one, but out of my price range too!

Ken 

Yeah, $450.00 for a half-hour ride. I know these vintage aircraft are expensive to operate but I can find a lot of better things to spend that much money on. Still sitting on the fence.

Gamera

Jim: Look good, very nice work there on the PE. And I couldn't agree more- the A-10 should have been assigned to the Army, makes a lot more sense but you know politics.

BTW: We've got a vintage B-17F flying into the local airport and I'm going to try to get Friday off to go see her. They're offering rides but it's very expensive- still mulling if I should take the plunge or not since I may not have another chance. 

The B-17 came through Colorado a few months ago, but didn't stop at the nearby airport due to runway construction. I never had the money or the guts to take a ride, but I get to see it fly right over my house when it does, several times a day for that weekend. Isn't something like 450 bucks?

Jim

Jim: Look good, very nice work there on the PE. And I couldn't agree more- the A-10 should have been assigned to the Army, makes a lot more sense but you know politics.

BTW: We've got a vintage B-17F flying into the local airport and I'm going to try to get Friday off to go see her. They're offering rides but it's very expensive- still mulling if I should take the plunge or not since I may not have another chance. 

jimbot58

Hey guys!

Just want to start by mentioning that Sept. 1st. would mark the 75th anniversary of Nazi Germany's invasion of Poland, the act that is generally said to be the beginning of the Great War. Briton and France declared war on Germany 2 days later. Some say though, that many of the conflicts can be traced back to the 1860's.

Some work on the kits:

PE details:

All those notches match up to the ribs on the wall inside the cockpit. I had to glue carefully to be sure they lined up.

I went to cement the seat into the frame and the stupid thing (frame) broke on me! Don't know why, it broke away from the seam, so it had to be a weak point in the molding process. Repairs:

details:

Assembly of the A-10 engines. not a lot of detail there, you won't be able to see anything up the tail pipe anyway. Just kind of a big nothing:

I am sad that the AF is going to retire these planes.They should have never been an AF plane anyway. With their role as close ground support, they would have been more effective in the Army's hands.

A-10 fact: The gun comprises approximately 16% of the empty weight of the aircraft. If it needs to be removed, a prop must be placed under the back or it would become a tail-sitter!

Jim

Some great work there Jim!      Sorry you ran into trouble with the part breaking on you.  It is like adding extra parts to be assembled!

And thank you for the history lesson.  Some very interesting facts there!

Ken

Hey guys!

Just want to start by mentioning that Sept. 1st. would mark the 75th anniversary of Nazi Germany's invasion of Poland, the act that is generally said to be the beginning of the Great War. Briton and France declared war on Germany 2 days later. Some say though, that many of the conflicts can be traced back to the 1860's.

Some work on the kits:

PE details:

All those notches match up to the ribs on the wall inside the cockpit. I had to glue carefully to be sure they lined up.

I went to cement the seat into the frame and the stupid thing (frame) broke on me! Don't know why, it broke away from the seam, so it had to be a weak point in the molding process. Repairs:

details:

Assembly of the A-10 engines. not a lot of detail there, you won't be able to see anything up the tail pipe anyway. Just kind of a big nothing:

I am sad that the AF is going to retire these planes.They should have never been an AF plane anyway. With their role as close ground support, they would have been more effective in the Army's hands.

A-10 fact: The gun comprises approximately 16% of the empty weight of the aircraft. If it needs to be removed, a prop must be placed under the back or it would become a tail-sitter!

Jim

Wow, that's beautiful Jim, and glad to see you take a little time off there and get to breath some good clean air! The A-10 and F-8 don't look half bad either!

jimbot58

Hello all!

I did get out yesterday on a little excursion to the high country, and by high country, I mean High Country! I went to the top of Mount Evans, only the highest paved in the world! Had to make it this weekend as they usually close it down after Labor Day. It was busy and crowded, but I expected that, and took it in stride! I wasn't surprised to get caught in a snow storm while at the summit! The temps were in the 20's and winds that I estimated to be between 30 and 40 mph, wind chill factor had to be below zero! Quite a transition from the 80 degrees when I left Denver! Needless to say, I didn't take the trail from the parking lot to the actual summit (about another 200 feet of elevation) with the weather. Maybe next year!

Almost like the Arctic!

Wasn't all bad though!

And back to the workbench!

Hollowing out the gunmount in the nose to accommodate the brass parts of the A-10

Various sub assemblies of the F-8:

And partial assembly and seam work on the A-10:

There is also cockpit work, which I'll update later.

Jim

Hi Jim,

Quite the journey there!  Very beautiful pictures!

Looks like you have a really good start on the A-10 Warthog too!  Coming along nicely!

Ken

Hello all!

I did get out yesterday on a little excursion to the high country, and by high country, I mean High Country! I went to the top of Mount Evans, only the highest paved in the world! Had to make it this weekend as they usually close it down after Labor Day. It was busy and crowded, but I expected that, and took it in stride! I wasn't surprised to get caught in a snow storm while at the summit! The temps were in the 20's and winds that I estimated to be between 30 and 40 mph, wind chill factor had to be below zero! Quite a transition from the 80 degrees when I left Denver! Needless to say, I didn't take the trail from the parking lot to the actual summit (about another 200 feet of elevation) with the weather. Maybe next year!

Almost like the Arctic!

Wasn't all bad though!

And back to the workbench!

Hollowing out the gunmount in the nose to accommodate the brass parts of the A-10

Various sub assemblies of the F-8:

And partial assembly and seam work on the A-10:

There is also cockpit work, which I'll update later.

Jim

Son Of Medicine Man

Hi Everyone!

I hope that EVERYONE is lucky enough to have a 3 day weekend this Labor Day weekend!

I am working on my basement.  Today I will be working on replacing the speakers in the bass cabinets.  These are very large cabinets (30"W x 25"H x 23"D).  They contain 15" woofers.

In addition to that, I will be dropping my wife's car off at the dealership to diagnose what is wrong with it.  I think that it is the timing chain.

Also, I will be mowing my yard and my Mom's yard.  Pretty full day!

Ken

Yes, lucky enough here, though I just came off another 50 hour work week. I wasted the whole day yesterday sleeping, and today I have decided to get out for the day. I don't care how much I have to do here, I need a break. It is threatening to rain today and if I head up the hill, I could encounter some snow. I don't care about that, either.

Try to take a little time for yourself Ken.

I have done some work on the kits, updates when I can.

Jim

Hi Everyone!

I hope that EVERYONE is lucky enough to have a 3 day weekend this Labor Day weekend!

I am working on my basement.  Today I will be working on replacing the speakers in the bass cabinets.  These are very large cabinets (30"W x 25"H x 23"D).  They contain 15" woofers.

In addition to that, I will be dropping my wife's car off at the dealership to diagnose what is wrong with it.  I think that it is the timing chain.

Also, I will be mowing my yard and my Mom's yard.  Pretty full day!

Ken

Yeah.....I was doing pretty good until I zoomed in to read the article....yeah, yeah, that's the ticket!!  That was a close call!!! LOL

TAD

ROTL... thanks guys I needed that.

Though yeah, we might be headed for trouble with the mods!

Son Of Medicine Man

jimbot58

Duke Maddog

jimbot58

Ok guys, I was searching for photos of the F-8 Crusader (a second project I am starting) and found this web page:

Am I missing the connection here?

Maybe she piloted one...???

That reminds me. I have a couple F-8 Crusaders in my stash. Maybe it's time I pulled one out for this Group Build too.

Is that her flight suit?

If it is, I think her life jacket is inflated. 

Ken

Mmmmm.... floatation devices....

Something tells me we should quit before we go too far.....

Jim

jimbot58

Duke Maddog

jimbot58

Ok guys, I was searching for photos of the F-8 Crusader (a second project I am starting) and found this web page:

Am I missing the connection here?

Maybe she piloted one...???

That reminds me. I have a couple F-8 Crusaders in my stash. Maybe it's time I pulled one out for this Group Build too.

Is that her flight suit?

If it is, I think her life jacket is inflated. 

Ken

Duke Maddog

jimbot58

Ok guys, I was searching for photos of the F-8 Crusader (a second project I am starting) and found this web page:

Am I missing the connection here?

Maybe she piloted one...???

That reminds me. I have a couple F-8 Crusaders in my stash. Maybe it's time I pulled one out for this Group Build too.

Is that her flight suit?

mikeymize

Hey Ken, what's the deal. I thought you told Jim the front page was updated; where's the Crusader chick???

I tried but it wouldn't fit!!

Ken

Hey Ken, what's the deal. I thought you told Jim the front page was updated; where's the Crusader chick???

jimbot58

Gamera

Jim: They both look perfect to me, very sharp work!!!

The F-8 and A-10 look like they'll be pretty cool too, maybe you can find a bikini gal to go with them!

Maybe I should search for "Bikini Girl" to find pictures of the F-8!

Sometimes you don't know what you might get when you do a search. Years ago, I was at Mom's on her computer trying to look something up. I did a search and came up with something unexpected. I quickly closed it, but not before my nephew saw it and ran up the stairs to inform his Grandmother, "Gramdma! Uncle Jim's using your computer to look at porn!" The little t*rd bucket was mad that I pulled him off of computer earlier! Plus, it wasn't porn, just something a little suggestive.

Ken

jimbot58

mikeymize

F/A-18 and Voodoo look awesome Jim as does the F-8 Crusader girl! But seriously, which of the two jets do you like better or feel is the best. They both look great from here and show a great deal of attention to detail as well as skill; much to be proud of my friend!

I think the EA-18G I am more fond of as there was a lot of time spent with all the decals, aftermarkets parts and other details I added in such as intake ducting and compressor faces where the kit only had blank walls before. Maybe it represented more of a "labor of love?".

The Voodoo also was a lot of work, though it is very well molded and a good looking kit, it suffered from vague instructions in both part placement and painting guides, and many parts lacked locators. The landing gear was one example as the gear itself had a rectangular base but the bay had sort of oval shaped raised ridges where it ought to go. I had to scrape that away and cement it, then reinforce it with CA. No them way to reinforce them as the wings are very thin there. The pilot will need to land very gently....

The kits I am starting on are these:

Academy F-8E Crusader with added Eduard detail set and a Master Model Pitot tube: (Photo courtesy of Sprue Brothers)

And Academy's A-10 Thunderbolt II or better known as the "Warthog". No detail set, but I am adding a Master Model gun barrel/pitot set and some TwoBob's decals. (Photo from the net)

I would love to do a dessert scheme if I had appropriate decals.

Jim

Nice box art on those kits!  Looking forward to watching you build them!

Ken

Duke Maddog

jimbot58

Ok guys, I was searching for photos of the F-8 Crusader (a second project I am starting) and found this web page:

Am I missing the connection here?

Maybe she piloted one...???

That reminds me. I have a couple F-8 Crusaders in my stash. Maybe it's time I pulled one out for this Group Build too.

Go for it Duke!

Ken