GWH 1/48 P-61B Black Widow

[dierk]

You keep this up, we'll have to call you Billy McBoatface soon

[wouter]

Billy McBoatface doing a wingy...I can live with that

Cheers

[mustang1989]

Good LORD man!!! Ya see.....that's just way too much for me right there! That's incredible!

[wbill76]

Leon, definitely a case of Optivisor overtime.

Dierk, just don't call me late for dinner!

Wouts , hitting most of the diversity bases this time around.

Joe, first time working in this scale for me, definitely different!

[panzerjager2]

I think ZOWIE sums it up best

[wbill76]

Jul 8, 2016 12:33:15 GMT -5 panzerjager2 said:

I think ZOWIE sums it up best

That's what I said when I first saw how tiny the gun barrels were in 1/700 PJ!

[deafpanzer]

It looks like it is too hard for you to take off your captain cap... great work on those ship guns!

[mustang1989]

Progress here? Just checkin' in.

[wbill76]

Jul 19, 2016 11:04:48 GMT -5 mustang1989 said:

Progress here? Just checkin' in.

Haven't had a chance to start it just yet Joe...been busy working on the Wee Vee (an appropriate nickname for the USS West Virginia considering the scale of the project! ) . And they say 1/72 is 'braille scale' because it will make you go blind...

[wbill76]

Finally managed to get around to starting this one although not a huge amount of progress to report. I removed the main crew pod halves from the sprue and cleaned them up. The interior areas have several raised ejector marks that need to be dealt with but that's the price to pay for the excellent level of detail on the exterior, so I'm not complaining. I used a micro-chisel to deal with most of them and GWH did a good job in their size and placement so that they didn't overlap onto any of the other molded on details. Since I'm going to be using the Eduard details as well as the kit's PE details in various places, it's important to have the two halves clean and ready so I can work on getting the components for the interior assembled as much as possible before the first round of paintwork with the Interior Green. Small steps are necessary on a long journey like this, but at least it's started!

[Leon]

Nice to see this on the bench Bill!

[wing_nut]

Forward is forward to any degree.

[wbill76]

Thanks Leon! It's been quietly sulking while I worked on the USS West Virginia...I had promised I would work on it at the same time but that wasn't possible and is only grudgingly forgiving me for now.

Marc, very true, once the bags are opened and the first sprue is cut, there's no going back!

[wbill76]

I started work on the PE details that go in the radar observer's area in the rear of the fuselage. Eduard has the sets for the Black Widow broken up by area/section and the rear area has a lot of PE to it aimed mostly at replacing the bulkhead and instrument cluster for the RO, but after consulting the references in the Squadron/Signal P-61 Black Widow book, the Eduard layout/configuration is radically different from that in the kit and what the book shows. No idea why that is, but there's still enough of the set that's usable in various spots to still make it useful.

The fuselages get an insert that covers the area where the flaps attach from the wings but there's an inevitable join line in that space that can't be dealt with easily. The Eduard set provides PE panels that literally paper over this and restore the look of things. I also added the PE electronics and wiring that I could fit along with the kit's bulkhead part to increase the level of detail.



One side down, one to go!

[Leon]

Nice PE work there Bill!

[wbill76]

Thanks Leon! Doesn't look like a lot but the little stuff always takes the most time!

[dierk]

Aug 9, 2016 7:55:28 GMT -5 wbill76 said:

Thanks Leon! Doesn't look like a lot but the little stuff always takes the most time!

Ain't that the truth!
Nice to see this one out of the starting-blocks! Eventhough I do suspect we're in for a freeze-frame now due to your new career. Good luck with that, I'm sure the kids will love getting taught by you.

[wbill76]

Aug 9, 2016 10:37:14 GMT -5 dierk said:

Aug 9, 2016 7:55:28 GMT -5 wbill76 said:

Thanks Leon! Doesn't look like a lot but the little stuff always takes the most time!

Ain't that the truth!
Nice to see this one out of the starting-blocks! Eventhough I do suspect we're in for a freeze-frame now due to your new career. Good luck with that, I'm sure the kids will love getting taught by you.

Thanks Dierk! It will be more like stop-motion than high-speed, but will do my best to keep it moving along as much as possible. Going to be a very busy few weeks but once things settle in a bit, it shouldn't be too bad...famous last words, right?

[armorguy]

No worried Bill, I didn't finish ONE model in 2016. It's better to work slow but effective and accurate, it's not a race after all. I like what I see mate, again you're adding smoking hot detail to the kit.

[mustang1989]

Now that's more like it right there. Looking forward to seeing how this shapes up.

[wbill76]

Thanks AG! I hear you there on enjoying the journey as opposed to streaking to the finish line! Since this one's being built for my dad, I'm taking special care with it of course and will work on it as I'm able and without any pressure. Stress in model building leads to mistakes!

Joe, glad you like the first steps out of the gate, lots more to come indeed!

[bish]

I do like the look of the 61, will be watching for sure.

[ogrejohn]

Nice start Bill!

I don't know if you've seen this site but it's got some great shots of one being restored to flying condition,:

www.maam.org/p61.html

[wbill76]

Glad to have you along Bish!

John, thanks for the link, will check it out!

[wbill76]

Aug 11, 2016 18:08:17 GMT -5 ogrejohn said:

Nice start Bill!

I don't know if you've seen this site but it's got some great shots of one being restored to flying condition,:

www.maam.org/p61.html

Now I know where Eduard got their info for the weird layout of the RO compartment equipment. It's virtually an exact reproduction of this restored configuration that they've put into this particular Black Widow. Period factory photos however show something very different, makes me wonder what the restorers are working off of for their recreation? Fascinating stuff.

[Return_To_Kit_Form]

Correct me if I'm wrong but weren't there a couple of different radar configurations used over the course of the war?

Great build so dar by the way. The P-61 is my all time favourite WWII fighter ☺

[wbill76]

Aug 12, 2016 5:48:28 GMT -5 Return_To_Kit_Form said:

Correct me if I'm wrong but weren't there a couple of different radar configurations used over the course of the war?

Great build so dar by the way. The P-61 is my all time favourite WWII fighter ☺

So far as I'm aware, the radar and instruments stayed the same between the P-61A and the P-61B. There may have been changes in the C and/or post war differences perhaps? I haven't looked into it that deeply. Could also be a case of restoring as close as possible without being exactly correct, since the goal is to get this one back to flying condition and the RO position isn't critical to that end.

[nicely11b]

Nice to see this one getting started, Bill! That PE looks like it's really going to add a lot in there.

[wbill76]

Aug 12, 2016 21:16:44 GMT -5 nicely11b said:

Nice to see this one getting started, Bill! That PE looks like it's really going to add a lot in there.

I'm going to try and use as much of it as possible given all the visibility that is present both at the rear and in the cockpit areas. My dad wants everything 'closed up and clean lines' but still on the ground, so I'll have to make the most of what is visible through all the glass.

[nicely11b]

There is a lot of glass to be had on the P-61. I'm sure a good bit of it will still be visible.