Thunderbolt GB 2016

Looks good steve.

I sprayed the invasion stripes painted on. Now a gloss coat and decals.

modelcrazy

 

 

rooster513

Yeah I couldn't get the money out of pocket fast enough lol!

 

 

That's funny! LOL

 

The best part is the kit was marked $20 (which I was more then willing to pay) and all I did was pick the box up to look at and before I could open my mouth the guys brother, who was watching his table while he was away, says $15? And I said "that's what I was thinking too". Must have been the nice face discount lol.

Thanks BK,

I tried to stick to the painting guide as best I could for Gabby's bird but like most of the kit guides, it get a little vague when it comes to the top where there are not actual photos to duplicate.

Great finish, Rooster.

Awesome paint work on that tricky scheme, Steve.

BK

rooster513

Yeah I couldn't get the money out of pocket fast enough lol!

That's funny! LOL

modelcrazy

 

 

rooster513

Yeah it's Tamiya's 1/48 kit. I was lucky enough to pick it up for $15 at a local show late last year.

 

 

Wow, what a great price!!

 

Yeah I couldn't get the money out of pocket fast enough lol! I keep an eye out for another one at every show but so far haven't seen one.

rooster513

Yeah it's Tamiya's 1/48 kit. I was lucky enough to pick it up for $15 at a local show late last year.

Wow, what a great price!!

Thanks Steve and Bish! I appreciate it!

modelcrazy

Well done Rooster, I wish more kits gave the option of lowered flaps. That was the 1/48 Tamiya?

Sprayed the red on the cowl ring and tail, now time to get the invasion stripes on.

 

Yeah it's Tamiya's 1/48 kit. I was lucky enough to pick it up for $15 at a local show late last year.

Looking forward to seeing the invasion stripes go on your build!

Great job there Steve.

Thats one nice looking Jug Andy. Great scheme and realy well done.

Well done Rooster, I wish more kits gave the option of lowered flaps. That was the 1/48 Tamiya?

Sprayed the red on the cowl ring and tail, now time to get the invasion stripes on.

That camo job is very well done Steve!

Well I finished all the little bits on my Tamiya bubbletop. Overall this kit as many of you know is a joy to build. Assembly wise it is pain free. Only real problem I had on this build were the decals not sitting down properly. After several coats of Micor-sol they conformed ok but they do have some wrinkles in them but it isn't noticable unless you get up close. Here are the finish pics...

Thanks for looking and comments/critiques appreciated!

Interesting scheme on this one Steve, looking good.

Now the OD. Pictures show that it was not sprayed on with a whole lot of care, probably found some lying around and sprayed it on.

It looks brown but it's OD green. I need to paint the engine then the red cowl ring and rudder.

Thanks TJ you got your wish. I got the grey on. Next is the OD stripes.

Toshi

Very nicely done, looks like you are getting there modelcrazy.

Toshi

 

Thanks, it's a pretty fast kit, nothing like your Mossy LOL.

O, I installed the guns and I can see what you're talking about. After some trimming and head scratching I found out what the problem was. The outer gun on the port wing would make the part misalign. After some trimming and filing I got it to fit well. The starboard side slid right in no problem.

Port side

Starboard side

I like this kit very much. The guns are engineered level to the ground, which they were. Few kits get this correct. If I were to come up with a con it would be that the tailwheel is molded into an assembly that is installed when the fuse is closed. The tailwheel strut is small and eaisly bent and broken. The other would be the engine. A solid engine mounted to the fuse and the cowling mounted over it wouldn't have made the kit more difficult and made it much easier to paint.

Very nicely done, looks like you are getting there modelcrazy.

Toshi

Thanks O.
Frankly I forgot about them until I loaded the picture and was looking at it. I was going  to say something like "Oops, I forgot the guns" but decided not to.
I was wondering about fit.  I try tomorrow and see how they fit and try not to break them off going forward.

Hey modelcrazy,

Your Thunderbolt is looking good.  I built one of these and thought it was a fun little build.  Quick and easy.  Maybe I'll build another one.  I noticed you haven't added the gun "plugs" yet.  Just a heads up if I may.  On mine, the fit was not good (read: terrible).  It took some serious trimming-filling-sanding-rescribing to get mine to fit.  I'm looking forward to seeing how yours turn out.  It's very possible that my fit issues were builder's error.  Still, just thought I might be able to give you fair warning.

Good luck!  I'm looking forward to seeing the paint scheme!

Cheers,

-O

Thanks Rooster, the paint is the main reason I chose Gabby's plane. The camo looks so cool.

I believe your right about the upper markings Bish. The Luftwaffe still had quite a presence in July 44.

I filled and sanded the gaps and I must say it didn't take too much. For a quick kit, it is impressive, most impressive.

Wow Steve thats a great start, not to mention quick! Fit does look very nice. Looking forward to seeing you tackle that paint!

Steve, its my understanding that the strips on top of the wings were ordered removed a month after the invasion. This was to prevent them standing out from the air as many were moved to forward bases in France.

The one i will be doing has really grubby looking strips under the fuselage, i think i am going to brush paint them to give the right look.

Thanks TJ and Bish!! You guys are always so kind to me. 

I was searching for Gabby's mount and in June 44 he had invasion stripes around the fuse and lower as well as upper wings. In July 44, just before his capture on 20 July 44, the stripes on the upper wing surfaces and upper fuse were removed. I will be painting his plane in the latter scheme.

Francis Stanley Gabreski (born Franciszek Gabryszewski) earned 28 kills, was the top scoring American ace in the European Theater, went on to fly an F-86 in Korea where he became a jet ace with a score of 6.5 kills and retired in 1967 at the rank of Colonel. He passed away on Jan 31st 2002 at the age of 83.

I learned of his exploits on The American Hero’s Channel "Air Aces" (plenty of RAF on there too). Very interesting man.

Looking good Steve.

I got the wings and tail on and will procede to filling the seams. The seams are small and will be easy to fill.