1/48 b17E Swamp Ghost building starts

[earnie]

hi there
i have decided to join this forum after lurking around in the shadows

so here goes
i want to build a 1/48 scale swamp ghost
i just bought a 1/48 b17f "memphis belle"
the paragon b17E conversion kit
what i need is the roundels for the wings with the red circles,== any help on this as this has been a real hurdle and any and all pics
i bought the swamp ghost dvd=
it seems that this is as elusive as my 1/48 rb29 " KEE BIRD " has been= another subject of research until duh dig out the video and watch it really slow and get watching her burn

so here is my first post and thanks for any and all help
does anyone have pics of the belly turret from inside to show me



phase 1) ordered and recieved revell 1-48 b17f memphis belle " GUESS WHAT " the decal sheet has the yellow serial numbers 124485 and 229524= take 124485 and remove "85"= take 229524 and remove the "9" invert the "9" and add it to "1244+9="12446" done
fuselage and wing roundels will be corrected with red centers by the just purchased Guillows nakajima a6m2-n rufe decal sheet as i bought a circle stencil an will cut red circles out of it then it will have the correct roundels=
ordered and recieved an aeromasters generic us army decal sheet for the bottom of the wings=
so exterior markings will be correct
ordered and recieved the "PARAGON" b17E backdating kit
ordered the TRUE DETAILS bombadier station,cockpit station, waist gunner station, ordered the eduard painted photo etch cockpit
so i think i am off to a good start

phase 1 is done

phase 2 is under way
the construction

Last edited by earnie on Fri Jul 23, 2010 1:37 am, edited 4 times in total.

[Warbird Kid]

Welcome to the bee hive Earnie!

Sounds like your starting out on the right foot with this project. I also remember seeing somebody had done this aircraft as a diorama, complete with 10.ft high grass and even a light helicopter that apperantlly landed on one of the wings during a expedition out to the aircraft. Hope you take lots of pictures for us!

[rcaf_100]

What size would they be?

I've got a sheet full of the 'meatball' stars in 1/48th that I'll probably never use, but I'd have to dig it out to see how big they go.

[Second Air Force]

Welcome, earnie! That is a great project you're starting on.

Scott

[Steve Nelson]

Sounds like a cool project! There are numerous decal companies that make sheets of generic insignias, numbers, and letters in various sizes. In addition to the star-and-meatball insignias, you'll also need yellow numbers for the tail, and dark blue letters for the "U.S. ARMY" under the wings. I don't know if the SG carried any personal markings or not.

I've posted these before, but here are some pics of B-17E "My Gal Sal." The interior has been completely restored with accurate equipment and in the correct colors. Let me know if you need higher resolution versions.

Cheers!

Steve

[earnie]

thanks all in advance firstly
thanks to all whom have messaged me in regards to this project
thanks steve for the pics of MGS
i did save pics of her recovery from airpirates before the site went down

as for the swamp ghost it is my intention to display her in flight,
i am going to electrify the engines and make the props spin
also light up all the nav light positions that can be possibly done

what i would really like is to find the video of swamp ghosts recovery
thanks again for the support and wishes
and yes i will post pics as this gets built

[tom d. friedman]

ambitious project.... it will be 1 to follow!!

[earnie]

please send me any interior pics of SAL that you have thanks a bunch

Sounds like a cool project! There are numerous decal companies that make sheets of generic insignias, numbers, and letters in various sizes. In addition to the star-and-meatball insignias, you'll also need yellow numbers for the tail, and dark blue letters for the "U.S. ARMY" under the wings. I don't know if the SG carried any personal markings or not.

I've posted these before, but here are some pics of B-17E "My Gal Sal." The interior has been completely restored with accurate equipment and in the correct colors. Let me know if you need higher resolution versions.

Cheers!

Steve

[earnie]

as this aircraft will be displayed in flight
i need to appologize in advance for certain omissions that will follow
#1 the bomb bay as i need a place to run all of the electric wiring to the model from the mounting base
speaking of the wiring i am in the process of having a custom wiring loom made with sound for the engines
check this site out
http://www.dynamicscalemodeling.com, these are the folks that are doing the wiring for this project
as for the mounting base
i have a really cool start in the way of a radial engine cylinder with a few spark plugs and ignition leads

the base will be done in this fashion#1} drill the center out of one of the plugs, #2) gut out an ignition lead then run a copper tube through it
then leaving out the exhaust and intake valves
this is what will happen
the cylinder will be cleaned up, repainted, mounted in an oak base with a repopped data plate with swamp ghosts identity
the spark plug will be installed with the ignition lead , then all wiring ran into the model
the intake and exhaust valve guide holes will be used to uplight the SWAMP GHOST
so far no pics yet as i want to get all of the stuff here first
as for her landing gear it will be up and locked= no details on the landing gear
sorry

[Second Air Force]

#1 the bomb bay as i need a place to run all of the electric wiring to the model from the mounting base

That is the smartest call you could ever make. I'm finding that opening the bomb bay is a PITA!!!!

The whole project sounds really neat and I like the cylinder ideas. Keep us posted!

Scott

[the330thbg]

so the interior of these bombers was really that metallic green-ish-blue-ish? What is that color called?

I always painted the interior of my aircraft 'olive drab'? is that zync-chromate?

Thanks!!!

Smisek

[Django]

Welcome aboard!

There's green zinc chromate and yellow zinc chromate. Not sure what that color is on the B-17E, but it looks alot like Consolidated green.

I'd like the see the model in the swamp. Sounds cool.

[earnie]

the interior question is still in work as we speak i think that "hunter green will work"
as for displaying her in the swamp i have pondered this for a while but no
swampy must fly

[earnie]

i have several photos of that diorama it is cool but i want her to fly
as for pics i have just begun this project = i agree pics seem to speak volums when words only confuse us=="show us a pretty girl,= we know what to do , describe a pretty girl, we are lost

Welcome to the bee hive Earnie!

Sounds like your starting out on the right foot with this project. I also remember seeing somebody had done this aircraft as a diorama, complete with 10.ft high grass and even a light helicopter that apperantlly landed on one of the wings during a expedition out to the aircraft. Hope you take lots of pictures for us!

[Steve Nelson]

The green color is "Dull Dark Green." It's a very dark green with a slight bluish cast..the camera flash makes it more intense than it really is. The color standard for crew compartments on B-17s and B-24s. Shoo Shoo Shoo Baby and Yankee Lady both have that color in the cockpit, radio room, and nose. The Collings B-24 also has it in the cockpit, nose, and waist. For modeling purposes, Testors Model Master "Euro 1 Dark Green" FS34092 is a decent match. Contrary to many models and restored warbirds, wartime B-17s didn't have much (if any) Zinc Chromate or "Interiror Green" in the fuselage.

The general rule of thumb for B-17 interiors is Dull Dark Green for exposed metal in the nose, cockpit, and radio room, and bare metal in the waist. Bombays were ususally either Neutral Gray (on camoflaged aircraft) or bare metal. The nose compartment and radio room came from the factory with insulation/soundproofing padding that was usually dark green or Olive Drab, but this was usually ripped out in service, for ease of maintenance and to reduce fire hazard. The areas underneath were unpainted. You can see padding in "My Gal Sal's" radio room, while the nose shows you can see bare metal areas where the padding would have been.

Here are some better examples of Dull Dark Green. These are some original B-24 turret parts sent to me by WIXer Albert Stix.



And here is an example of an unrestored early B-17 cockpit, in this case "The Swoose." The seats and instrument panel have been removed, and the green padding has faded to a reddish-brown, but the Dull Dark Green is still prominent on the metal parts.



Send me your snail mail address and I'll send you a CD of my "My Gal Sal" pics!

Cheers!

Steve