Yes, yes. I’ve FINALLY found some time to finish a kit. Of course, it was one I started over TWO years ago, but hey… college is rough. The kit in question is the Hasegawa 1/48th version of the P-38J, one of my all time favorites. This one was flown by Capt. Billy M. Gersham. I added the True Details resin cockpit (I highly reccomend it!). This was my first ever resin cockpit. The interior finish was a mix of Model Masters enamels and Tamiya acrylics. The instrument dials were done with a Prismacolor pencil. Cockpit was washed and chipped. Funny story about why the cockpit is closed: it sits way too far forward due to a lack of sanding on the bottom of the cockpit tub. Next one I build will be open! The exterior paint is exclusively Tamiya acrylics. I lightened the Olive Drab with Dark Yellow to achieve that faded color. Bottom was done in the same manner. Color demarcation was done with Blu-tac. Panel line enhancement was done with charcoal. The springs on the antenna wire were made by wrapping stretched sprue around a drill bit, then heating the bit with flame so the spring held it’s shape. The wheel bays on this kit were abysmal. And I couldn’t get the gear doors to line up to save my life. It’s not the best model I’ve ever made, but it’s one of my favorites. Sorry for the novel, here’s the photos!
Here you can see how far forward the cockpit is…
Any questions or comments are VERY welcome! Thanks for stopping by!
Long time no chat my friend… First off got your PM and I will reply shortly… IMG you mean to tell me you had time to finish one up!!! [:P]
The over all job is right on!! I especially like the various shades of OD through out your build… The one thing that really got my attention is your panel lines… Now this is only my thoughts but the upper lines seem a lil darker than norm HOWEVER the way you did the lower portion is right on Max…
Over all I am really at awe w/ your build… I am kind of lookin at doing either “California Cutie” flown by Lt Loehnert, “Buffalo Blitz” flown by Lt Champlin or “Maiden Head Hunter” flown by Lt Kirby…
Daywalker, you asked about the fit: Overall, not too bad. I had some issues with the fit of the boom. Also, the nose piece was a little wider than the fuselage pod. The biggest problem for me was the gear bays and doors. The bays are a 3 piece affair, and the doors just don’t fit very well. I should have remade the hinges, but I just wanted to get this one off my bench.
Butz, yeah the top panel lines are a little dark. I think the effect is magnified by the light centers on the panels. In person it looks a little less stark, but still a little heavy. I just figured this one was in the sun of the South Pacific a lot. He got 6 kills!
Hey, who told Max you’re supposed to finish your builds!?!?!
Like the others have said, nice one Max! The P-38 is one of my favorites and you’ve made a beauty. The TD cockpit looks great. Way to fight the through the warpage and landing gear doors and finish this one off.
Nice job, RadMax. I built the Academy P-38E not long ago (in OF time) and I had a hard time fitting the booms and gear bays and doors on it too. Maybe it is just a P-38 thing. Yours looks nice. I think maybe the flash emphasized the paint variations, maybe try some pictures outside in the morning or evening would come out more like your eye sees it.
