1/48 Airfix P-51 D 357th FG Don Bochkay (FINISHED)

Modeling Subjects Aircraft
1

I do enjoy a good Tamiya P-51 D build. I’m usually good for about one a year and even have a “recipe” to improve it’s flaws (that’s another story). This was fine and dandy until I saw the sprue shots of Airfix’s new P-51D. I could not wait to get my hands on this kit and pre-ordered one immediately. Well, It showed up on the doorstep from the UK the other day and I’m diving right in. (my N1K1 just got back burnered). I grabbed some new Eduard goodies for it too.

I plan on doing Don Bochkay’s 357 FG Ace of Clubs mount. Bochkay was a 14.8 (some sources 13.5?) kill ace to include two ME 262 jets. He was of four pilots that often flew together, that being Bochkay, Yeager, Anderson, and Browning, all aces who wrought absolute havoc on the Luftwaffe.

I started with the cockpit. It’s hands down better than Tamiya’s example. For starters, the Merlin Mustang had a wooden floor which had a black coating on it. I wanted to show this with some of it worn off exposing the wood. Enter my first attempt at AK’s worn effects.

I sprayed the floor XF-49 Khaki then used clear orange over it. To my eye this looks like varnished wood. I then sprayed the AK down and let it dry. After a coat of XF-1 flat black, I wet an old Testors paint brush (the cheap white handled ones) and scuffed the floor where the pilot’s feet would go. I’m pleased with the result.

Back to the rest of the pit. I sprayed Gunze Interior Green over a XF-1 black base. The sidewall detail is awesome and they even give you placard decals…nice touch!. I’m not sure I like the checkered seat pad and molded in seatbelts, but painted up and washed it looks ok. In the future this will definitely get replaced with an Ultracast seat (yes, I already ordered another P-51). The instrument panel is a decal and it performed ok, nothing special. I may use Airscale dial decals next time. I added some wires to the battery.

The cockpit and bottom radiator fit like a glove.

This kit has separate tail pieces that have to be glued on. I’m guessing they have an early tail fillet-less Mustang coming. Here I have the tailwheel assembly added and I have test fitted the fuselage. Fit is great so far.

So far…very impressed.

2

Well this is going to put a monkeywrench in the Tamiya Mustang dominance. I’ve built the Airfix 1/72 P-51D and was very impressed.

3

[dto:]

The first 1/72 Airfix 51 I did was alongside Tamiyas 1/72 51…I’ve done another 6 Airfix 51’s since, with another pair in the stash…but not another Tamiya!

I like the looks of this one, aside from the seat “cushion”, which I have never seen to look like that(???). Very nice job so far…as always!

4

I will be following this build. I am quite interested in that kit. Is there any PE out for it yet?

5

Looks awsome so far, you must never sleep just build.

6

Looks really good. Liking the worn wood effect.

I’m looking forward to seeing how this plays out.

-J

7

I’m pretty interested in this kit and would love it if they came out with a fillet-less version. I was hoping this version would give you the option but hopefully we’ll get it in the near future. So far you’re doing a great job.

8

Wow, good to see this new kit is up to the hype.

What is it about props that modeling companies always get wrong? Is it just the fine detail lost due to the nature of injection molding?

I’d be interested in hearing your remedy for the Tamiya kit. I’ve coll a couple in my stash…

9

Joe,

I have no words…Outstanding work on the pit. I’ll be hanging around until you finish her.

10

Oh this is nice…

I’ve held off buying this kit simply because I have the Meng one almost done and am waiting on Eduard’s kit, but I also have a weakness for the Mustang so may end up with one.

How are the panel lines? That’s been my drawback on buying one, as they looked large in the photos I saw. Hopefully they’re more refined.

-BD-

11

As always sir; what a fantastic start. I’ll be looking for more.

Your friend, Toshi

12

Seems Airfix has turned a corner! I haven’t built one of their kits in some time. Your work is fantastic - I’m sure you’re making them look good :wink:

13

Your ‘pits’ are truly works of art, can’t wait for the finish.

14

Airfix did such an amazing job with the P-40 I’m not surprised this kit is solid too. So far the 109 is just average and a bit of a let down in the pit, but the fit is still nice. Almost Tamiya quality.

So, any progress to report?

15

Thanks all,

There’s tons of stuff out there for his kit already, even PE. I bought Eduard wheels, prop, and exhausts which I haven’t decided if I’m going to use them yet or not.

16

Good Question. The props on this one looks ok. Not sure if I will use the AM prop I bought.

Here’s a thread addressing how to improve the Tamiya kit. I know there’s no pic thanks to photosucket, but you should get the gist.

http://cs.finescale.com/fsm/modeling_subjects/f/2/t/162455.aspx

17

A bit heavy I suppose, but it doesn’t really detract from the kit.

18

Bench time has been at a premium lately, but I’m in for an update. For starters, check out that gear bay. Finally someone got it right (Oh yeah…Meng did too). My research has shown that the correct painting for a “factory” P-51 gearbay is silver with the rear spar in Zinc Chromate. I painted it accordingly.

The thing goes together like a dream. I had zero issues. The control surfaces are all seperate so I posed them a bit.

How about them machine guns? The best I’ve seen so far. They even nailed the inboard fifties which are recessed. On this kit these are inserts which fit fairly well.

The windscreen design is ingenius too. No awkward seam where the glass meets metal, like on the Tamiya kit. The fit is great too. I went ahead and masked the windows and added the piece before paint.

Time to start painting. The 357th FG has a red and yellow checkered nose with a yellow stripe on the spinner. My strategy will be to paint in the checkers but use a decal for the spinner. I’ve tried many times to paint in this spinner stripe and I can never get it right. It always comes out lop-sided…I surrender! Fortunately I have an old Eagle Strike sheet that supplies these and they work well. Anyways, I started withXF-1 Flat Black then added XF-7 Flat Red.

Now I had to add the yellow checkers. I used an old 357 decal sheet to match the size and shape of the checkers with Tamiya tape. This was sort of tedious but I managed.

I extended the length backwards to ensure it was long enough. The correct size will be taped off before the NMF application.

Checkers are done…not to shabby. Time to tape it off.

I then sprayed Alclad Duraluminum. This is my go-to base shade for combat aircraft, not too shiny or too dull.

I sprayed the panels by the exhaust Magnesium and other various panels in Dark Aluminum, Semi Matte Aluminum, and Aluminum. This is perhaps my favorite part of this process. It starts to come alive!

I was going to throw down the Olive Drab anti-glare panel, but I ran out of time. I must say, this one has been awesome so far. A couple nit-picks, if you want to call them that. I don’t particularly like the light grey almost white colored plastic that Airfix uses. I prefer the normal darker grey as its easier to see seams. Also, a couple of areas, such as the flaps and belly radiator area are lacking in detail compared to Tamiya. Not a deal breaker, just an observation.

19

S T U N N I N G !

Pure, just like a good 30 year Scotch!

Keep it comming!

P.S. Wishing you and your family all the very best for the “silly” season, and a safe and enjoyable 2018!

20

These new Airfix kits continue to impress me. They are of good quality and prices. I hope that we can reward Airfix by buying their products. If I was not 68 years old and wondering what to do with my stash, I would be buying them. But I no longer buy any new models. However, somehow the Airfix 1/48 P-40B is setting here!