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Trumpeter 1/32 P-47D Razorback "Eileen"


Thunnus

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I needed a break from my usual Luftwaffe/Axis subjects and wanted to try an Olive Drab Allied fighter.  First choice was the Tamiya P-51D Mustang but my internet search brought up lots of great OD Mustang builds ala Passion Wagon, Frenesi, Old Crow, etc.   My interest was peaked by Gazza's question, Doesn't Anybody Like the Razorback? , especially that photo of the restored Snafu.  Nobody answered my question about 1/32 scale decals for that particular aircraft and I couldn't find any either.  But there were some options for Lt. Frank Oiler's Eileen (WZ-S, Serial Number 42-75249), which served in the same 78th Fighter Group as Snafu and shared that distinctive black and white checkered cowl.  I decided to pick up the Trumpeter P-47D Razorback kit and give it a shot.

 

Before I get into the kit, I want to admit that I don't know much about the P-47D so my build will not be super accurate.  There are some great reference builds at LSP including JayW's superduper-detailed 1/18 Bubbletop and Citadelgrad's recently completed 1/32 Hasegawa Thunderbolt that I can refer to.  If anyone wants to chime in with suggestions and/or references to make my build better, please go ahead and chime away, with the understanding that I may or may not be able to accommodate the suggestions depending on my skill/will level.

 

During my preliminary internet search on Eileen, I was able to find some photos of this machine.

 

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There are a number of things that I can pick up in these photos that I can apply to my build like the wheel covers, diamond tread on the tires, smooth blast tubes on the wing guns, type of rear view mirror, prop type, etc.

 

 

There's also a considerable amount of available photos of the 78th FG and I found this one very interesting as it is in color...

FRE-005604-1.jpg

 

ZC Yellow for the landing gear covers and wheel wells?  A dark color (Olive Drab?) for the landing gear legs.  What appears to be another star/bars under the starboard wing? I am assuming Olive Drab uppers and Neutral Grey for the underparts and not RAF colors... is this correct?

 

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1 hour ago, Dpgsbody55 said:

Any news of the KI-61??

 

 

Cheers,

Michael

 

The Ki-61 is in a holding pattern for now.  For whatever reason, riveting of the exterior is a process that I'm not mentally prepared to dive into right now!  But I do want to get back to her eventually.

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Where to begin?

The Trumpy Razorback is a great kit. A LOT of detail i.e., internal parts that will not be seen once everything is buttoned up, just fun to build though. The fit..... eh. The way you were able to tackle some of the other builds you have shown here, there should be little problem.

The color of 78th FG Thunderbolts. Here is where the fun begins. O.D. Green upper with neutral grey lower is the conventional reasoning. However, I did read an article many years ago in a Fine Scale Modeler magazine, "Special Edition", where a P-47D Razorback "Miss Behave" of the 78 FG was built using British colors for the exterior.  R.A.F. Green upper and "Sky" for the lower portion.

All I can say is, have fun, fit twice, glue once, swear, remove part and re-glue. Lastly, best if you listen to someone else, who knows what they are doing :D.

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nice subject, and creepy kit!
 

I've personally learned to distrust Trumpeters, but I'm sure we'll see terrific execution in your hands!


If I may, have you looked at the kitsworld.co.uk website?
they have several interesting decals for P47 razorback...

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