Official FMS 1500mm P-47D Razorback Thread

[davegee]

While work is being done by James in California on the bubble top redo of the fuselage, I'm getting busy on detail items that I wanted to include on the rest of the control surfaces like the wings and the horizontal stabilizers/ elevators.

I have already applied three layers of acrylic Minwax and sanded lightly between each coat. Used a reasonably good bristle brush from Ace and it went on smoothly. It really fortifies the strength of the foam to resist bumps and dings a little better. After that, I've been using a spray Tamiya primer and am continuing to smooth out the surfaces so that they can be painted and look smoother that way. I circle with a pencil any rough or high spots that I will sand and respray with the primer to prepare it for eventual final painting.

Some minor details I like to do with airplanes, especially P-47s, are listed below and with pictures.

In the first picture, I am roughing out the fresh air vent on the forward right wing leading edge. Also are the beginnings of the gun camera port indicated by the small square to the left of the fresh air vent.

The second pic shows the fixed trim tab that is on both elevators just inboard of the cutouts for the elevator trim tabs. They are unpainted white plastic at this stage. These were part of the factory installation on each airplane, and then initial flight tests where they could bend the thin tabs slightly to refine trim characteristics. They would normally not be adjusted after that time. There are even placards painted above these pieces that admonish everyone NOT to alter them as they were fixed at the manufacturer.

The third pics shows a cutout for a aileron trim tab (only one installed on the left aileron, only, back then). For the right wing aileron, there was no trim tab installed as was typical with American built aircraft of the day, but it did have a fixed trim tab installed similar to what was done on the elevator fixed trim tabs.

The fourth pic shows a scratchbuilt removable pitot tube installed in an aluminum tube mounted in the leading edge on the left wing tip. If the plane ever gets into the weeds for any reason and it breaks off, it is easily replaced. I made a bunch of them over the years!

The last pic shows a scale landing light which was installed aft of the landing gear on the left underneath wing on the earlier models of the P-47 Later models had it moved to near the left wingtip. (Note to Rex: if you do a later model P-47 or M model, that is where you will want to place the landing light.) I used parts from a flashlight to make it look realistic. The real ones would rotate down 90 degrees for use at night, but this one is static and stays in the retracted position.

There will be many more little scale items that I will add in other parts of the airplane, going forward.

[jetfool]

Eagle15,
Glad you're enjoying modding your P-47. Some people have used a Sharpie fine tip marker to make their rivets. They gently poke a hole in that leaves a small rivet that is black. When they paint the black rivet shows a small difference to the final paint. Are you brushing Poly acrylic on before primer and paint? Makes a smoother, harder shell over the OEM foam
Please post your progress because we all learn from others and more friends we make. Someday I'd like to do a P-47M. Waiting to see how Davegee comes along with his.
Best Regards, Rex

[Elbee]

Eagle15,

Looking forward to those.

Best, LB

[Eagle15]

Hi all,

Unfortunately, I haven't made any real progress since the last time I attached photos. I'm torn between giving my razorback the markings of the white-nosed HV-A of Gabreski or the white nosed "Lucky" of Robert Johnson.

However, I have decided to give my razorback panel lines and rivets. . . its gonna take a REALLY long time lol. I'll attach photos later today when I get back home; so far I've made progress on the right wing. So far I've just traced each panel line into the plane, then gone back with a pin vise and poked in little holes for each rivet. I'm using blueprints from IL-2 XD but its accurate enough for me! I plan to go back with an airbrush and black paint over all the panels, then get a thin coat of olive drab to let a little bit of the pre-shade of black show through to complete the paint job before flying it!

Have any of you riveted your P-47? I know many modelers rivet their aircraft, and I figured my razorback would look great with them as well. If anyone has also done this to their thunderbolt,I would love any tips to make this process faster!

I'll attach photos when I get home.

Cheers (and good luck on that bubbletop conversion; I personally am in love with Gabreski's last thunderbolt; the two tone camo red nose red rudder D-25 bubbletop. Maybe one day I'll also have to do a bubbletop conversion)

[davegee]

I have seen all the P-47 fly at chino ,2,5 hours away and now they have the yearly airshow at Santa Maria , one hour away with there new wing being built to relocate all of it there in the years to come 4 P-47 Thunderbolt's Missing Man flight, Planes of Fame airshow 2019

That's a beauriful video there, James! I've always wanted to see the Planes of Fame Museum in Chino, haven't made it yet, but hope to. I liked that a P-47 in Hairless Joe markings was in the show. I got to take a ton of photos of it back in the day for reference detailing my Aerotech P-47. Even got to sit in the seat, which was Awesome!

Thanks for posting that.

Cheers

Davegee

[davegee]

Dave even ya weathering looks accurate awesome

Thanks, Craig. Lots of work to do on this one, but I look forward to finishing it and flying it someday. My first rc P-47 I did back in 2002, so I've had a lot of practice. Always working to improve, though...

davegee

[vrosi1963]

I have seen all the P-47 fly at chino ,2,5 hours away and now they have the yearly airshow at Santa Maria , one hour away with there new wing being built to relocate all of it there in the years to come 4 P-47 Thunderbolt's Missing Man flight, Planes of Fame airshow 2019

[f4u ausie]

Dave even ya weathering looks accurate awesome

[davegee]

I like it. It definitely smoothes out the foam finish and provides some strength to the foam for dents and nicks.

[jetfool]

Rudder looks great. What do you think of the poly acrylic process?
Rex

[davegee]

I've been busy painting up some of the control surfaces with acrylic minwax, priming, and in some cases painting parts. I just pretty much finished the yellow rudder for Hairless Joe that is an ongoing build. I added a LED clear light for the tail light on the rudder, although it won't be operable, just for show.

Starting in on the wings with light sanding and min waxing. Some details to the right wing will be a fresh air port on the leading edge and the small window for the gun camera and hatch for getting the camera in and out of the wing.

Cheers

Davegee

[davegee]

Thought these might be of interest

Grossman56
(Dangerous Dan)

Thanks, Dan. I think that is the P-47 out of Chino, CA. A beautiful restoration and I think they fitted it with a jump seat so that they can take passengers up in it. It is loosely painted in the marking of the 56th Fighter Group. but they still need some other details to make it accurate. But I'd take it if they gave it to me! Ha!

Cheers

Davegee

[Grossman56]

Thought these might be of interest

Grossman56
(Dangerous Dan)

[jetfool]

vrosi1963,
Seems there web is down. The phone # is 866-457-3777. I left a message my first time then they got back with me.
Best of Luck, Rex

[vrosi1963]

vrosi1963,
I purchased from park flier plastics last month. There service was great and about 3 weeks I had my order. They commutated with me on up dates thru the process. Highly recommend. Canopies were very clear and formed perfect.
Best Regards

Do you have a link or Number to contact , all the links i see go no where . I have it Parkflyer Plastics Archives - We make flying fun!!!

[jetfool]

Davegee,
Ordering my popcorn so I can watch this phoenix rise up. Almost forgot what the OEM rudder paint looked like.
Rex

[davegee]

turtle deck finalizing to match the hatch sanding ect is a pain but will be worth it and satisfying , the 3d plug will require about 7 more hours of sanding 100 grit 600 grit wet then 800 wet polishing . and mothers polish. the front needs some balsa to bring the front out a bit to be scale and angled to about 110 deg and the back the same so the canopy will let go after the pull . more flaws around the canopy frame but will fill nicely no big , then off to the vac formers for some test pulls in a couple off weeks . qty 4

That's really coming along, James. Nice Work!

Davegee

[davegee]

While we are getting the work done on converting the FMS P-47 fuselage from a razorback to a bubble top, I decided I could make myself useful starting in on some preliminary prep work.

As mentioned before, I did purchase a new FMS 1500mm P-47D razorback kit. I had an extra spare set of wings and fuselage that I bought a couple of years ago but didn't need it so far. So, the fuselage was sent to James in California, and he is busy working on the bubbletop conversion from the bare fuselage that I had purchased back when as a spare..

Meanwhile, I'm digging in on details that I can get started on. All the contents of the kit I bought will eventually be transferred to the fuselage that James is working on. Today, I pulled the tail wheel assembly, doors, etc., out of the kit fuselage and have been painting them first in primer, and then yellow zinc chromate finish. The kit comes with two springs that attach the tail wheel doors to the tail wheel strut, so that when you turn the tailwheel, the doors sway back and forth. That has been a silly idea to me, so the remedy is getting about a 1 1/2 inch long extension spring attached to each door and then looped around the strut so the gear door operate in a realistic fashion, both when the doors are open and when the gear is retracted, they close smartly using the spring idea.

I'm also starting the minwax process with the first coat of preparation on the rudder. With all the trim tabs on the plane, I use an exacto to make them slightly moveable for a more realistic look. The final look of the rudder will be yellow, per the paint scheme of the day for this unit: Red, 61st FS, Yelow, 62nd FS, and Blue, 63rd FS. Attached is a photo of the real Hairless Joe during WWII, about ready to launch for a mission.

[vrosi1963]

turtle deck finalizing to match the hatch sanding ect is a pain but will be worth it and satisfying , the 3d plug will require about 7 more hours of sanding 100 grit 600 grit wet then 800 wet polishing . and mothers polish. the front needs some balsa to bring the front out a bit to be scale and angled to about 110 deg and the back the same so the canopy will let go after the pull . more flaws around the canopy frame but will fill nicely no big , then off to the vac formers for some test pulls in a couple off weeks . qty 4

[davegee]

Davegee,
Glad it arrived. A little something for your new P-47. Mine show up well with the open canopy. Have you started modding the landing gear? Are you going to put poly acrylic clear on before priming? Makes a smooth canvass for paint. I put the poly over the OEM decals and after 4 coats everything leveled out.

Best Regards, Rex

Much appreciated. For the gear, I'll probably do the same with the brake lines and gear shrinker bars. Yes, I plan on using the poly acrylic clear on the whole airplane this time. Fortunately, the fuse I sent James for the cockpit mods was an extra one that I bought a couple of years ago and just had lying in a box. They don't ship those with any decals so that will be easier not having them in place. I might try to paint on the markings with paint masks and using the talcum powder so that they don't pull off any OEM paint fromt he styrofoam. On all my bigger jugs, all my markings, even the nomenclature stencils were indeed stencils and not rub on transfers. I think Callie can do some of those, although there is a limit to the size she can make them. We'll see.

Hairless Joe is one of my favorite subjects and it is quite a challenge if you are trying to be as accurate as possible in the paint scheme. The reason for that is because it suffered dual wing changes, tail change, engine change, and other repairs from battle damage the summer of 1944. So, if you want to be specific, you really have to nail down the time frame within just a few weeks, as things were really changing for this airplane that fast. On one mission, Schilling flew his plane with a completely unpainted left wing as they didn't have time to paint it! There is a rare photo of him in the cockpit taken from the left side of the airplane with a completely unpainted wing, both sides. I will be using a unpainted NMF bottom of the left wing and a painted upper left with in its distinctive camo coloring, which I love.

Cheers

Davegee