I’m new to this forum and fairly new to pastic model building. I am currently building a Monogram B-36 and just joined the Group Build here.
I remember seeing these monsters as a kid in Ft Worth Texas. We lived 3 miles from the end of the runway in a housing development aptly named “Bomber Heights”. It was heaven on earth at that part of my childhood, as we were 3 miles from Carswell AFB and NW of Dallas Naval Air Station—think Corsairs, Panthers, Cutlasses, F-51s, F-86s, Banshees, B-25s and of course the B-36! Something was always in the air around my neighborhood.
At present I live close enough to fly in some WWII stuff and would like to build a Stinson Reliant and PT-19 in plastic. I learned to fly gilders from the old WWII German pilots back in the 60s.
If there are builders on the B-36 Peacemaker forum that are still building, it would be nice to talk about the bomber.
Welcome to FSM, a great place to learn and share. I built the -36 in the late 70’s, I was happy with the fit and relative ease of build, but used up a LOT of BB’s getting it to sit level.
You, my friend, are one lucky fellow for having grown up where you did. I get to hear similar stories from my dad who grew up on Hamilton AFB in Novato, CA during the 1950s & '60s. He always saw F-89s, B-36s, Flying Wings, -104s and -101s outside his windows. Talk about exciting times in the history of aircraft!!!
I do love that big ol’ B-36 by Monogram. I’ve built three of them so far: One when I was a kid but it didn’t survive the numerous moves we made. The second one I made just a few years ago and I gave it to my dad as a gift. The third one was just for me. I’m glad I did my best work on the one I gave my dad.
The thing I love about the Monogram B-36 (and Monogram planes in general) is that no matter how massive it is, it is a joy to build! It isn’t overly engineered like so many kits out there today. It’s a fuselage, wings and a cockpit. There’s no duct work that I have to build that’ll never be seen. Each landing gear is one or two pieces at the most, not eight or more. It goes together quickly with basic modeling skills and I find that very relaxing.
Andy, one of the things I strongly recommend is to look over the entire list of FSM forums. Many people look over the forums near the top of the list and never get to some of the gems near the bottom of the list.
In particular, look at the section called Tools, Techniques, and Reference Materials. This group of forums can be a big help. The Painting and Airbrushing forum is quite active and discusses many issues involving all types of painting.