popeye the sailor

....as I said to Lou yesterday.........it's just one of my habits I wish I could break     my love for older kits will be the demise of me yet!    I wracked my brain trying to find decals for this model.........the biggest hurdle is the scale.  the major problem in domesticating an older kit is just that.......early model kits produced,  were in such odd scales,  that it makes it nearly impossible to bash them in this way.   even in the after market dept.,  mods {unless scratch built} are hard to do.   I have some pictures from the 17th on the progress of this model.......painting for the most part.   after painting the underbelly gray, I got the feeling that I had made a mistake.........most of the captured planes had their under bellies painted yellow.  I did find out however,  that a few of them retained the gray........so that put me at ease for the time being.   I rode a little high on the fuselage,  but I think it won't matter too much.

the top and bottom of one wing was done........the wheel well is done in chromate green.

I still need to do the engine paint,  as well as the deicing trim and touch ups.   the pilots were molded to the seats......I would have cut them out, if not the fact that I want to show the plane in flight.  painted in chromate green too.

the stabilizer and rudders were done in the Army green and gray.  the malformation of one of the rudders doesn't show too badly,  now that it's disguised in paint  

 

I also painted the buckets for the turrets......I need to do the glass frames and guns......later to assemble them.   our discussion over the phone yesterday actually uncovered another aspect of the B 24,  that I had not seen previously........there was such a thing as an assembly plane.  this was the lead plane that the others would assemble behind and follow to the mission location.   the paint {camo} on these bombers is very reminiscent to planes of WWI
there were a few that were even more striking !
here is an idea of what one would look under another banner...............

we kinda joked about scale...........I'm sure I'm not alone,  but I believe that from one manufacturer to another,  there are subtle differences in their production of scale.  it may be slight......but it is noticeable.........and once the molds are tooled,  there is no going back.  just for a laugh,  we looked up anyone who made a model in 1:32 scale.  think of it.......the model would be HUGE!  well......we found one...........Hobby Boss!  I found these decals for them.......these are masks to paint the markings on {something I've never done before}.
Captured B-24 Liberators Luftwaffe Insignia Paint Mask Set 1/32
un....%#&# believable!   but wait!...........there's more!

thanks Gary     sadly no motivation to do too much yesterday......they were painting the outside of the building yesterday,  and if I were the customer { I wouldn't pay for it!}.  I need to get out there and put the border around the admiral's lily garden....the bulkhead is finally installed.  the guys doing it did an awesome job on it........poured the foundation and everything.  now I just need to do a little landscaping and put the timber borders back.  I will attempt to do something later on.  

just getting caught up OC.........the farm house looks great!  got some really nice colors going on there    looks to be an easy peasy assembly!

that is correct.........as I read,  they were stock.  not to get too far off track here,  the L6 was a 235 C.I.  small blocks were next  with the 283 C.I. {the best engine in my view.  larger engines were the 348 C.I. { you could get it turbo charged and with fuel injection.   the 350 C.I. ,  409C.I. and larger came into place a couple of years later.   what surprised me,  is that fuel injection went back that far.......heard about it { like the maintenance free battery},  but never read up on it.  the kit is in the post.........there will be a log     I haven't seen the '59 kit yet,  but these kits do not supply the engine as an option.  they only come with the V8......last time I looked in the box,  it had the triple carb set up. I have never seen one of these cars with a V8,  let alone this carb set up {not even four barrel}.
 
as for the Liberator,  I forgot that I had found another site devoted to captured aircraft.  some of the plane look quite interesting.......
Harold A. Skaarup web pages
......and for anyone looking at getting one of these kits?
Atlantis Plastic Model kits Made in the USA!
......and for those who are looking for decals...
kitsworld Model Decals & Photo Etch for the Modelling Enthusiast

blew my mind too Mark.........the things one finds in research?!?!?!
 
been an interesting turn of events going on here........the Revell kit will be a separate log.  I found some interesting information to go along with it.   I went back into the Mega Hobby site to find decals.  it wasn't going too good....there are no aftermarket decals for Dornier or Heinkel aircraft {this is where I was going to get the call letters from}.  but then.......I saw them!  there is a decal sheet made by Kits World {warbird} for the B 24 'Sunshine'.  they were done depicting the captured plane.  as I looked further.......I was bummed to find that they were 1:48 scale........noooooooooooooooooooooo!
      I contacted Mega Hobby asking if they had them in 1:72 scale.......they replied with a no.......    I didn't bother inquiring about the decal I already got.....my fault for not reading thoroughly.  I did reply to them,  telling them....that's OK......I still love ya,  and proceeded to look up the Kits World site.  I not only found them,  but I found the decals too!  naturally,  I ordered them straight away!  I still need the call letters........I could use what I have,  but they may not look correct........at the moment,  I'm walking on eggshells 
 
I have the Revell / Monogram '60 Chevy Impala hardtop kit......it's what my dad drove when I was a kid.  on the old Model Kit site,  they have a '59 Chevy Impala {bel-air} hardtop........My mother drove this one {it was her first car}.  I always referred to them as Chevy Bel-airs.   the past week I was bummed to see that someone was buying it..........today I looked and they must have decided not to,  because it was back into 'cart' status.  so after a bit of 'carrying on about it',  the admiral gave in...........but I fear that I burned the last of my bridges.  she was pretty stern when she said....'no more!"
 
one thing I need to look into with these two models,  is that neither had a V8 engine.  as I recall,  they both had the L6 engine {I'll have to look up the CID}.
  my dad's car for certain........after all,  I fell on the hood with the tricycle,  piercing the hood and the valve cover! 
 

this has to be the fastest I've ever gotten anything from Evil Bay!  I ordered the Warbirds B 24 on June 29th,  and I got it on the 2nd........just like they said!
 
   I'm tempted to piggyback the Warbirds kit with this log,  but the model is much more detailed and is considerably larger.   one thing I found that is refreshing,  is that the model depicted is of a real plane!  I also found something that is quite interesting........
 
Memphis Belle vs. Hot Stuff: How History Came to Celebrate the Wrong WWII Airplane | Ann Arbor District Library
 
it's quite a story........I'll continue with this model soon  

that's funny OC.........    we were in the grocery store the other day.........we were in an isle with another woman {she kinda followed along}.  we got to the end and I looked up and said something to her...........she complimented us and said that she enjoyed listening {we're not shy with 'cutting up' in any store}
   then I did my Popeye laugh,  and the rest was comic history     since I have gotten my dentures,  the laugh has gotten better........I had  to practice though.......nothing is going to stop me from doing it! 

quip of the day.........
 
the admiral just suggested she should talk to the doctor about water pills.................I said, "what.....you don't get enough water?!?!?!?!"

so the new {updated} model room is almost complete.   I've hung some pictures and added more wall shelving on the back wall.  the details of the room switch and move can be seen in my PT 109 project,  in case your confused on what I'm referring to.  we are in the midst of the heat wave that is affecting the country right now.......I haven't been doing much.   there has also been some home renos going on here as well,  and that has caused some upheaval in activities.  a bit of a story,  but I also took Mon and Tues. off from work........the boss insisted    so who am I NOT to take it!  this gave me the time to go into searching for decals a bit more........that turned to be a huge bust.  I bookmarked the Atlantis site.......the Pacific raiders kit isn't available at this time { just what's floating around out there},  but I can order the decals if I want to.  nawwww.....I think I'll wait and find the kit     I even entertained the idea to locate the old Revell kit and compare the two for retooling and other changes made to the kit since it's initial production........but I think I should get my head examined instead {the admiral would do it for me anyway}.   Old Model kits has one for.......get this........145.00!  I ordered a decal pack from Mega Hobby.......the Warbirds B 24 lettering and number sheet in 1:72 scale.  what I got were these........

these are clearly NOT 1:72 scale..........more like 1:48.......or even 1:32!  I am going to bring this to their attention,  but won't be asking for any compensation....I'm sure I can use these somewhere down the road.   I had the Lindberg "Legends of the sky"  Heinkel He111 kit.  I trashed it due to missing and broken parts,  but saved some of the parts,  along with the decal sheet.  that kit was in 1:48........the decals being too large to use as well.

here are the decals in relation to the  Warbirds decal sheet.........

other decals to show the relative of scale.........these decals came from the Profile series kit of the B 25 from MPC.  the sheet from the Atlantis kit are here too for reference.
 

 

the Warbirds decals I ordered {I found out later} are part of a set that would depict the 486 BG.  there are three parts to this set.  it is a compilation of six planes,  all named after a Zodiac sign.

 

Virgo,  Sagittarius,  Aquaria,  Aries,  Cancer,  and Pisces. ........all pretty cool if you wanted to build all six   ........Wait!.......seven {let's not forget Leo}. 
     I did a dry fit of the plane,  checking the fit of the wings......hard to stuff them in the wing wells.  if I were to put this plane next to a 1:72 scale B 17,  you would see a significant difference in scale....mainly due to the obvious scale production.   I even gave a thought to look into HO scale to see what they have available.  my head hurt too bad..........so I abandoned the crusade.

 

 

my quest hasn't diminished........I still want to do the captured German plane.   my hunting did produce a solution.........I won't try to bend the 'will' to me.........I'm going to flank the problem!   I ordered this off of Evil Bay yesterday 

this is a kit in 1:72 scale!  I think decals will be much easier to find.........and with a lot more detail too!    I got an e-mail this morning.........already sent and I should see it by July 2nd!  that's fast.........I got the decal sheet just as fast    I like Mega Hobby!
 
admiral's crabb'in............gotta take Gibbs out..............
 

....as I said to Lou yesterday.........it's just one of my habits I wish I could break     my love for older kits will be the demise of me yet!    I wracked my brain trying to find decals for this model.........the biggest hurdle is the scale.  the major problem in domesticating an older kit is just that.......early model kits produced,  were in such odd scales,  that it makes it nearly impossible to bash them in this way.   even in the after market dept.,  mods {unless scratch built} are hard to do.   I have some pictures from the 17th on the progress of this model.......painting for the most part.   after painting the underbelly gray, I got the feeling that I had made a mistake.........most of the captured planes had their under bellies painted yellow.  I did find out however,  that a few of them retained the gray........so that put me at ease for the time being.   I rode a little high on the fuselage,  but I think it won't matter too much.

the top and bottom of one wing was done........the wheel well is done in chromate green.

I still need to do the engine paint,  as well as the deicing trim and touch ups.   the pilots were molded to the seats......I would have cut them out, if not the fact that I want to show the plane in flight.  painted in chromate green too.

the stabilizer and rudders were done in the Army green and gray.  the malformation of one of the rudders doesn't show too badly,  now that it's disguised in paint  

 

I also painted the buckets for the turrets......I need to do the glass frames and guns......later to assemble them.   our discussion over the phone yesterday actually uncovered another aspect of the B 24,  that I had not seen previously........there was such a thing as an assembly plane.  this was the lead plane that the others would assemble behind and follow to the mission location.   the paint {camo} on these bombers is very reminiscent to planes of WWI
there were a few that were even more striking !
here is an idea of what one would look under another banner...............

we kinda joked about scale...........I'm sure I'm not alone,  but I believe that from one manufacturer to another,  there are subtle differences in their production of scale.  it may be slight......but it is noticeable.........and once the molds are tooled,  there is no going back.  just for a laugh,  we looked up anyone who made a model in 1:32 scale.  think of it.......the model would be HUGE!  well......we found one...........Hobby Boss!  I found these decals for them.......these are masks to paint the markings on {something I've never done before}.
Captured B-24 Liberators Luftwaffe Insignia Paint Mask Set 1/32
un....%#&# believable!   but wait!...........there's more!

yea Ken......injection molding relies on the correct pressure to push the material into the molds...I think it was a bit off    I wonder how many kits were produced before they noticed the problem?!  when I worked at Disogrin industries,  it was one of the things we looked for during our inspection of the parts we made.......flow lines and 'dirt' was other factors.  flow lines meant that the material was cooling too fast in the molds.......and 'dirt' meant that the production was moving too slow,  or the temp was too high........either case meant that the material was in the liquid state too long and starting to 'over cook'......turning the material brown or {in extreme cases} black.  the production stopped at this time and the machine was purged of all the burnt material until it ran clear again.  this usually resulted in the operator being written up for slacking off     injection molding is a very fast paced job........one had to be on his toes all the time.  I usually had 'hot runners' ,  which meant that these parts were produced at a much faster rate....you couldn't even stop to go pee!
 
that was one of the things I liked about the older kits........although they usually relied on a simple slot method.  this is something different....we'll see how this holds up      WHOOPS..........right into confession for that guy!      sound as funny as the Holy Hand Grenade skit     I do recall though building the 'Pacific Raiders' kit,  but don't recall the steps I went through building it.  the wing roots are a tad too large to fit into the root wells in the fuselage....I'm having to file the edge down a bit {1/16 or so} around the root so they will fit in the wells.  the elongated tabs of the wing roots overlap one another inside the fuselage.........but no way to clamp them at all to insure the proper dihedral.  I've done one of the wings.........but dummy me painted the undersides without doing the other one first    nostalgia.........gotta love it   
 
as with the Wulfe Hound,  I think it will be hard to find decals for a model of this subject....least I haven't seen any others so far.   Blonde Bomber II,  a B 24D-1-CO  41-23659,  the first B 24 captured,  was inspected by the Germans and sent to Rechlin,  but there is no info as to its use by the KG 200.                       Sunshine,  as the second plane on record,  a B 24H-5-FO 42-52106,  was used a had the call numbers A3+FK.  on most of the B 24's,  the Germans weren't concerned with removing the bulk of their markings,  aside from the American insignia.  they must have learned from their use of the B 17's,   that it was harder for them to infiltrate an in flight squadron,  the more they looked like German aircraft {as if the insignias didn't give them away}.  I guess as long as it wasn't offensive to the Germans.......like the Wulfe Hound,  with a wolf eating a German plane}     two other planes,  a B 24 G-10-NT  42-78247......given the code CL+XZ,  and B 24G-5-NT  42-78106,   had the code numbers NF+NL.   this plane was destroyed in a raid.......the other plane's fate is not known.  by the end of 1943,  several B 24's had been captured.......as many as 5 were in service.  I haven't done much checking for decals.......I do have the decals for an HE 111 that became botched,  damaged and then thrown out.  I think the decals are still useable.......I may go with them.

there's quite a history on this aircraft.........many variants......A....all the way to M!  over 18,000 were built.......there are only two that are flyable today. 
    nicknames for them included the flying boxcar,  but most notably,  the flying coffin.......since the only escape route was through the hatch in the tail section.  scalemates shows an interesting timeline on this kit.   I'm finally caught up in this forum.....my word.....you folks have been busy!   

just getting caught up OC.........the farm house looks great!  got some really nice colors going on there    looks to be an easy peasy assembly!

very nice  

these are the older kits OC.......produced before the change over to uniform scale classification.  basically,  the big plus here is that molds can be sold more readily.......you see,  who wants a bunch of odd scales?  back in the days of Aurora,  Pyro,  LIndberg Line and others who predated the change,  that was all they had and produced.  when the change happened,  new companies sprung up.......AMT,  MPC {to name a few} and other companies like Revell,  Monogram,  Renwall,  Hawk,  dumped some of them and produced within the new scales.  there's a lot more to it.......survivability,  the war {WWII} took it's toll......some survived by using other materials for their kits.  lately,  new companies sprung up........Round 2,  Atlantis.......bought up a bunch of these old molds,  and are now flooding the market with them.  is it a bad thing.......not in the big picture,  but the does limit the availability of aftermarket mods and add ons.  todays models are so much better anyways   
 
so where was I.........oh yes.......how I got hood-winked.   I saw a few other lesser model company offerings......and then I saw this one and bought it.  it stated 1:72 in the description.........I failed to give it a thought   I took a look in the box,  and it was just as described.....bagged and unopened.

here's a chuckle for you all.........who saw these advertisements in their kit and sent away for it?

I did    I got the lunar module and lander!  sent in the dime......got the start up kit,  but when I saw that I had to pay more to get the rest of the stuff,  I canceled out.  I also joined the Revell model club,  but that was short lived too.......kept getting kits I didn't like.   as I suspected,  the decals are useless.
    if you look close enough,  you can see the micro cracking and the gaps from shrinking decal.  I could spray them with the decal bonder,  but the cracking is just too severe.

the good thing about this kit,  is that the rivet detail is not as pronounce,  as what I saw in the Atlantis kit.  the molds were not as old as they would be now.  they still can be seen though...I may try to even them out.

some manufacturers will just create the mold to make the parts that will distinguish one model from another......in most cases,  it would be the fuselage.
   this way,  they can monopolize on molds they have already created to expand the kit selection.  for these two models......there was nothing that needed to be modified.......they are both B 24 J's.  for an example,  those who follow my crazy antics,  read about my future Chevy Impala project.  one kit is produced by Monogram,  and the other is produced by Revell / Monogram.  these two kit have similar parts......the engines are exactly alike....I'm sure there is more.  I haven't checked the sprue ID numbers yet,  but I believe there will be some that match   more on this soon    I will need to cut out the windows,  like I did with the 'Buffalo Bill'.

there are a reasonable amount of loose parts in the bag.  being a kit produced in 1965,  I would expect nothing less.

of course,  nothing is broken.........there's nota lot of flash either.  cleanup will be easy.

I'm gonna try and fudge one of these to the subject.  when I got the kit,  the admiral wanted to see it.......so I showed it to her.  then I told her of the shortcomings.........the effort in getting a kit that will cure all.   I chased my tail........I'm back at square one.......went on a fool's errand.....whatever metaphor you want to hang on it......I'm left with the same dilemma.  while it would be great to stay with the same scale as the Wulfe Hound.....I can't anything more till next week {still deciding}  what to do with these kits?.........crazy thing are forming   for anyone who is not familiar with the difference between these two scales......here is a comparison

1:72 to 1:92.    I'm going to check out the 1:100 scale decals  for anything interesting.   I already looked into the 1:87 scale......all American and very few choices.

thanks Blackreed.........the Atlantis model is fairly new.......a recent production of the old Revell model.  this Revell kit here......is old,  but it is in amazingly good shape.  I've built lots of older kits and I haven't had to use anything different as far as glues go.   the one thing I didn't mention,  is with the Warbirds kit,  the plastic is a lot thinner.........other model manufacturers seem to mold thicker plastics......the worst one I've done to date,  is HobbyCraft.  as I mentioned in my last post,  any decal sheet for this model would be unusable.......I learned my lesson when I ordered decals from Revell for the Cutty Sark,  now many moons ago.  even though the decal sheet looked new,  it had micro cracking,  suggesting that their stock of the decals were as old as the kit.  I'm not too concerned about the riveting........most model kits are exaggerated with this detail.  on the Atlantis model,  I actually sanded a lot of it off anyway.....would have been a total nightmare to put decals on a surface like that {unless you want to use a gallon of decal set}. another example,  is the Hasegawa U.S.S. Missouri I have.  some of the raised detail on it {especially the float plane} will need to be sanded off so it don't look so gaudy. 

just getting caught up OC.........the farm house looks great!  got some really nice colors going on there    looks to be an easy peasy assembly!

amazing job on the plane........the weathering and added details really stand out!   looks awesome!   

amazing job on the plane........the weathering and added details really stand out!   looks awesome!   

price is my guide too.....for what I want to do,  didn't want to buy an expensive model to hack on.
 
you saw the comparison.......right?!?!  that is too big a jump to make with scale.  I looked into 1:100,  which would be a lot closer.  it's like what I did with the 909........1:64 as opposed to 1:48....that one worked out quite well.   troubling that the fit isn't so good for this one.......the best thing to do would be to get another kit in 1:72.  these decals are going to be too big........I won't be able to use them all.  I should have bought the MPC kit I saw.  
 
I played around with the Revell kit.........very different concerning the plastic........more rigid than the Atlantis kit.   the parts are a lot cleaner too......still the same 'ole injection pins though     I'm cutting out the windows on this one as well..........there is the exact same dimple {that needs to be trimmed out} on the inside behind the nose window.  .......a bit more effort to remove it.  I'll compare the decals...that will be the decision maker   

just getting caught up OC.........the farm house looks great!  got some really nice colors going on there    looks to be an easy peasy assembly!

price is my guide too.....for what I want to do,  didn't want to buy an expensive model to hack on.
 
you saw the comparison.......right?!?!  that is too big a jump to make with scale.  I looked into 1:100,  which would be a lot closer.  it's like what I did with the 909........1:64 as opposed to 1:48....that one worked out quite well.   troubling that the fit isn't so good for this one.......the best thing to do would be to get another kit in 1:72.  these decals are going to be too big........I won't be able to use them all.  I should have bought the MPC kit I saw.  
 
I played around with the Revell kit.........very different concerning the plastic........more rigid than the Atlantis kit.   the parts are a lot cleaner too......still the same 'ole injection pins though     I'm cutting out the windows on this one as well..........there is the exact same dimple {that needs to be trimmed out} on the inside behind the nose window.  .......a bit more effort to remove it.  I'll compare the decals...that will be the decision maker   

looks really cool!

Evening all,   I did a couple of hours work making  a set of stairs this evening,   I have saved a lot of wooden lolly sticks  and I worked out  the length and width I needed  then cut them out, I have  then started to stack the treads and risers together glued using PVA  then I sanded  the edges to level them  - I need a few more  added to it as its not quite  tall enough, then I will add the Two side boards again made from my sticks, then I will fashion a hand rail.
 
OC.

Thank you Alan,     I think it will look ok when its atatched to the walls  and when they get a bit of weathering too.
 
OC.