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Hobby Boss P-61A

TimW

By TimW
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TimW

TimW

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Hijack away!

 

This is great stuff, very interesting.

 

I hope to get some more work done this weekend, taking a break from the ginormous Bismarck and all that PE... :frantic:

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Kagemusha

Kagemusha

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"Little Audrey" was a P-61B-15-NO 42-39672 which was an attrition replacement assigned to the 422 NFS in Europe, which apparently did have a top turret, and more than likely featured invasion stripes - the aircraft was named after a nurse stationed near the air base which was probably when they were in England which at the latest would be 26 July 1944. I've only seen one photo and that is a close up of the nose art; http://www.oocities.org/mep1100/422NFS.html

 

Decals; http://www.kitsworld.co.uk/index.php?CATEGORY=3&SUB=3&THISPAGE=1&RADIOSORT=4&PICFILE=122&STKNR=122&STRH=2380&ORDN=2679&RNZ=578733

Edited by Kagemusha
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Derek B

Derek B

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"Little Audrey" was a P-61B-15-NO 42-39672 which was an attrition replacement assigned to the 422 NFS in Europe, which apparently did have a top turret, and more than likely featured invasion stripes - the aircraft was named after a nurse stationed near the air base which was probably when they were in England which at the latest would be 26 July 1944. I've only seen one photo and that is a close up of the nose art; http://www.oocities.org/mep1100/422NFS.html

 

Decals; http://www.kitsworld.co.uk/index.php?CATEGORY=3&SUB=3&THISPAGE=1&RADIOSORT=4&PICFILE=122&STKNR=122&STRH=2380&ORDN=2679&RNZ=578733

 

Good spot Andy - I forgot about that one!

 

'Little Audrey' was indeed one of the few P-61B aircraft to get through to the ETO that was equipped with an upper turret. The turret was reintroduced on the P-61B-11-NO (2 x .5" MG, 5 Aircraft) and this was followed by the P-61B-15-NO, which 'Little Audrey' is, which was equipped with the normal 4 x .5" MG turret (153 Aircraft).

 

From what I can find, this particular aircraft was not delivered to the 422nd NFS until late in 1944 when the unit was based in France and Belgium, so would not have been painted with invasion stripes. I have no idea how many P-61B-15-NO aircraft made it to the ETO Squadrons, but the majority of P-61B aircraft out there were earlier turretless aircraft.

 

Derek

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Kagemusha

Kagemusha

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So Brian's quest continues... though there's a B option on the Zotz sheet which has a turret and some dandy stripes on the tail... the decals come with full stencils and walkways too, unlike the kit ones.

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Derek B

Derek B

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Let's see if I can really twist your noodle. P-61B-15 42 39606 Lil Abner had a turret. No invasion stripes but was in Europe. France Mar '45

 

Well, it is a -15-NO, so is very likely to have been from the same batch as the aircraft that went to the 422nd NFS to become 'Little Audrey'. 'Lil Abner' belonged to the 415th NFS, which post-war, became the 449th FIS in Alaska, where one of their P-61B aircraft crashed in December 1947 (Fort Glenn AFB) and has been discussed in another thread elsewhere - Noodle fully joined up and twisted!

 

Derek

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  • 2 weeks later...
TimW

TimW

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OK...taking a breather from this one. Why? Well, it is big and I just finished the B-25....feeling a bit overwhelmed with work and life, so something has to give.

 

Also, looks like Avionix & others are turning out some resin and other aftermarket stuff that might be better than any scratchbuilding I can do. I'm not thrilled with the front office "as is;" I see Avionix has a pilot/gunner's set out--but for a B, not an A. I'm guessing the difference(s) might be rather significant? Especially with the instruments.

 

Arggh.

 

That said, I'm keeping my eyes open and in the meantime, I have to many other "started, but not finished" projects out there I need to get back to.

 

But all is not lost. I figure in a month or two things will have calmed down a bit and I can get back to this one. I just don't want to get in a rush and screw it up, an old failing of mine when I get impatient!

 

Cheers,

 

Tim W.

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TimW

TimW

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I know what you mean Tim. Hang in there buddy. Same reason I haven;t got back to my 38 !...............Harv

 

Yeah...the other thing is that I have several other "in progress" kits that DO NOT need extra resin or PE, so I can just build the dang things!

 

:frantic:

 

Tim W.

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  • 2 weeks later...
TimW

TimW

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Four days of baking in the sun at the 150th Gettysburg reenactment has led to dramatic renewal of purpose, and I'm back working on this one (I can't stay away; it's just too interesting).

 

I'm going with the kit cockpit (with a few bits added by me). The only replacement set I've noticed (Avionix) is for the B, not the A.

 

I see replacement props, spinners and exhaust pipes are out there.....aha!

 

More to come!

 

Tim W.

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Juggernut

Juggernut

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Four days of baking in the sun at the 150th Gettysburg reenactment .....

 

I hate you and I hope you got rained on! No, not really...LOL. I couldn't go this year on the anniversary so I went for Memorial Day weekend. Had a great time but I always do in Gettysburg. It's my second home... If I could find a job in the vicinity I'd make it my first home.

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TimW

TimW

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I hate you and I hope you got rained on! No, not really...LOL. I couldn't go this year on the anniversary so I went for Memorial Day weekend. Had a great time but I always do in Gettysburg. It's my second home... If I could find a job in the vicinity I'd make it my first home.

 

Ha! Actually, some rain might have helped. This was the hottest event I've personally attended in my 15+ years in the hobby (I stayed away from the 2011 Manassas heat fest). Four days was a challenge, but much fun was had by all, i think.

 

Really cleared my head. A few days under canvas is a real change from the usual routine and even the hobby room. Makes you thankful for our modern conveniences, that's for sure!

 

Did some more work on the cockpit section last night, including the Brassin nose wheel. Looks good, though I wonder if anybody thinks maybe the tire is under a bit too much weight? Not a show stopper, to be sure. I have some Relish prop blades/spinner replacements on order as well. And a bunch of Eduard PE!

 

Life is good.

 

Tim W.

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TimW

TimW

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Eduard PE arrived yesterday. I started reworking the cockpit and radar operator's position--this is going to make a HUGE difference as I was not overwhelmingly happy with my own scratch-building efforts.

 

Given the visibility of the interior on this one, the cockpit and landing gear sets are a must (IMO).

 

The exterior set is also well done and includes new spoilers and actuators.

 

Question: Did the P-61A have that night vision thingy in front of the forward gunner?

 

http://www.zenoswarbirdvideos.com/Images/P-61/P-61nitbinoc.gif

 

The kit offers a choice of using the binos or what looks like some armor plating--but no clear instructions about why you'd use one or the other.

 

Thoughts?

 

Anyway, pictures to come, hopefully this weekend!

 

Tim W.

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