Gary ~ What's The Plan For Diamond Lil ? 2006 and Beyond!

[Django]

As upset as some of you guys get over any other warbird/trainer that is painted incorrectly with the wrong colors, markings, designations, etc, I'm really suprised for the rally cries for female noseart on an aircraft from a purchase order that never would have received nose art in the first place. There's no A models that ever got nose art or documentation to support that, correct? So why should the ole girl get nose art, beyond the historically accurate stars and bars?

FWIW, I am a HUGE fan of nose art and would put some on everything I own if given the chance. (See the thread in Gen Disc of the hot rod my shop built.) What would I do? Tough call. I would probably put nose art on it anyway if I could convince myself that it was ok as a "representative" of the era rather than a dead nuts historically accurate restoration.

[Obergrafeter]

You will probably open up a can of worms with the stars and bars. Some p/c ahole will peobably want 50 stars. I have had a 48 star flag in my hangar for over 20 years and only one person has ever noticed on his own without being led to seeing it.

[Former Member]

Whatever design ends up on the B-24 I just hope it isn't modern air brushed on like some of the warbirds I've seen at airshows. When I see that it always reminds me of something you'd see at a sleezy tattoo parlor.

John

[retroaviation]

Out of curiosity, what brand of beer should I buy you when I finally get the chance to meet ya?

Lynn

Believe it or not, I don't drink. Let's face it, if I drank my problems away with this job, I'd be the town drunk. Just eeevery once in a while, if I'm not feeling too great (have some chronic pain issues), I'll go get me some "girly drinks" , but other than that, I really don't do much drinkin'. I'm really not much fun at all. Pretty much a workaholic, and that's it.

Thanks though!

Django, to kind of clear up the issue of B-24A's and their original nose art, there were a few that indeed had some. The stars and bars that I think some of the previous posts have mentioned are referring to the big, giant flags that were painted on the side of the airplanes in the Ferry Command. While it indeed looks like "nose art," it actually wasn't. You see, when those "A" models were doing the Ferry Command roles, we were still officially a "neutral" country. And since the British had B-24's (or LB-30's to the nitpicky bunch), the commanders of the Ferry Command insisted on giant American flags painted on each side of the nose, along with one on the top of each aircraft. After Dec. 7, 1941, they were all painted over.

Before.....




After.....




Hope this helps explain it.

Gary

[Django]

Yeah, I was referring to the flag with my stars and bars comment. I've never seen any painted over though before. Neat!

[retroaviation]

Whatever design ends up on the B-24 I just hope it isn't modern air brushed on like some of the warbirds I've seen at airshows. When I see that it always reminds me of something you'd see at a sleezy tattoo parlor.

John

I can assure you that whatever the nose art ends up being, it will be hand painted by either myself or Chad Ezell. No airbrushing here.

Gary

[Django]

Gary, if you need a hand in designing the nose art, shoot me an email. I'd be happy to assist or provide any of my art director expertise. I designed the nose art on Back Seat Betty.

[Ztex]

Oh great!

Now she's gonna have a big, ugly, off color, rectangle on the nose...you hyper realists are gonna have to get a life ya know...


hehe

[Obergrafeter]

I could do a he11 of a job on painting the after December 7, 1941 nose art on that plane. Wouldn't take too long either.

[retroaviation]

Wow, strange timing here, but just after my "last" post of the day, and just getting ready to go home, I was reading through an old "Liberator Lore" magazine that was just sent to me. In it, was the following picture of another B-24A (that shows the upper flag I previously mentioned), along with a caption that pretty much backs up what I said.

I can't believe I was right for a change.




Gary

[Shay]

Gary

Are you guys finished modifying the Canopy? How did it turn out?

Shay
____________
Semper Fortis

[Bill Greenwood]

Elroy, I don't recall ever writing anything about not liking bombs, but if I did maybe you can give me the quotes. I don't always remember what I said, but I can usually remember what I did not say or write. I think Gary could not get behind the female art side, because when someone said "Jugs" he immediately thought he was gonna be out on the ramp in the wind and the dust changing another cylinder on one of those big radials.

[retroaviation]

Django, PM sent.

Shay, all of the windows that are going to be put in are clecoed into place right now. I'll probably have some volunteers put them in permanently this week or next. But right now, it pretty much looks like it did in the previous post I made about them several pages back. I dunno, I reckon they're okay.......they're not accurate, but they're okay.

I'm going home for the night y'all. I have an extremely long day tomorrow, as I will get here at my normal time (3 a.m.) and then have to speak at a the Desert Squadron's monthly meeting, which doesn't even start until 8 p.m.

But, if you're gonna be dumb, you gotta be tough.

Y'all have a good one,
Gary

[Ztex]

All this talk of nose art...and I never snapped to the great canvas the B-24 tail provides....

What's in store for the B-24 formerly known as 'Lil?

[Mudge]

Just a darn minute here. Bill Greenwood wrote:

It'd be worth a Spitfire flight for you where you can enjoy the sound of the Merlin in all attitudes.

Bill, are you going to try to convince us that Gary weighs less than 190 lbs.?

Mudge the dubious