Consolidated PB4Y-1 Liberator (Revell)

Bill Gilman
Let's get started!

james johnson
Cool Bill! I just got this kit.......tuning in mate!

Burkhard D
I love it when old kits get tackled 🙂

Wilfried Bogaerts
Hmmmm, love this plane 😄 Don't forget the noseweight 😉

Erik Houghton
Make it so, Number One. 👍

Christian Meyerhoff
You have no fear of anything Good Luck!

Acki
What a perfect work bench. Great pictures, best quality. Nice project. Watching one of Bills masterpiece growing.

Bill Gilman
James - you just got this same kit? Cool! It's the start of an obsolete kit renaissance! 🙂

Bill Gilman
Acki, the workbench is not all so neat! I should show you the rest of it. Yikes!

james johnson
yeah Bill, a buddy of mine showed up the other day with 34 aircraft kits for me..almost all 1/72 scale.........I've got most of them logged into my stash.....most are fairly old.....check out my stash......I've got to go through them again and hunt down the 6 or so that weren't in the data base here.....

Holger Kranich
Wow Bill, i´m curious how you tackle this kit!
Damn the kit was old, even when i was born!😢

Dirk Heyer
That`s a nice project!
If the doctor has said, "Mr. Gilman, here is your medicine!", either he don`t like you or he knows your perfect dexterity!
It is always a pleasure to watch such a metamorphosis of old kits!

Mohammad Adl
👍

Holger Kranich
I would love to sit next to you Bill and watch you build this one!😢

Dave Flitton
Got to watch this one!

Christian Bruer
Interesting project! Do you plan to build her in the ASW pattern?

Mohammad Adl
I believe in your ability! 👍

Bill Gilman
Thanks for the enthusiastic encouragement! Holger, come on over - I'll set up a second chair and make some popcorn! Dirk, my doctor knows me and my plastic addiction! 🙂

Martien Lourens
That will definitely a masterpiece. Just like your Supermarine Scimitar, Bill,

Philip De Keyser
I'm looking forward to this build 👍

Duncan Cook
Go for it Bill!
I will follow that one.

Roy McKenzie
This is going to be great to watch. Please post as many WIP as possible 🙂

Bill Gilman
Is it possible to sand off your fingerprints? Man, I've been sanding so much to get rid of those rivets my fingertips hurt! Or, as Ringo so eloquently put it "I got blisters on my fingers!"

Bill Gilman
Christian, I will build her in the USN three-colour ASW scheme. This is Non-specular Sea Blue, Intermediate Blue, and White. I'll use the markings for the "Gallopin' Ghost of the Brazilian Coast." The artwork shows a skeleton riding down on a bomb whilst looking through a spyglass at a sub on the surface. Very cool. It must have been tough stationed on the beach in Brazil.

Holger Kranich
Jep, must have been hard in Brasil...All the girls, the beach, surfing, beer...😢

Holger Kranich
Absolutely Mike!😢

Burkhard D
The three-tone ASW scheme is one of the most attractive camo schemes, go for it. 🙂

There's a nifty tool for removing rivets - Tamiya Chisel - works great
Modeling Chisel 4 (Hasegawa 71209, No)

Christian Bruer
Hi Bill, you have choosen a really nice pattern :
[img1]
By the way, I just read Martin Middlebrooks Convoy SC122 & HX229. The history about the biggest but last really convoy battle in the North Atlantic. Royal Air Force VLR Liberators protect the convoy on the way to England and Middlebrrok recorded flying times of 18 ? 20hrs. Really impressing such long flying times for now 70 years ago!

Bill Gilman
Burkhard - now you tell me, after I've sanded off my fingers. 🙂
Michael - sounds like that old Kinks song "Australia" - "We'll surf like they do in the USA, we'll fly down to Sydney for our holiday, on sunny Christmas Day!"
Christian - that's the scheme!

Bill Gilman
Hey, I can fire up the barbie on Christmas Day. I just need to wear a parka while I'm doing it! 🙂
Some new photos added, as I'm working on getting the cockpit fitted. Fun!

Zimmermaniac
that little Tamiya tool is easily self-made out of an old micro screwdriver

Zimmermaniac
btw, you got me tuned in Bill 🙂

Burkhard D
@ Ziimermaniac: That's what I used before, but I learned to like professional tools 😄

Christian Lehmann
Very interesting project with this old kit. I'll stay tuned.

Bill Gilman
Hi mates - I've uploaded some nice historical photos that show the plane I'm modelling, plus some pictures of the base in Brazil and a couple of unfortunate U-boats that were sunk by Liberators from this base. Fascinating photos, and ones that will help me model the plane correctly.

Christian Bruer
Thanx for sharing the very interesting photos. By the way, is there a Boing Clipper in the background of photo 21?! May this is for your interest, B-24 history with a list of some boats that where sunk or hit by Liberators: uboat.net/allies/aircraft/b24.htm

Bill Gilman
Christian - I think so. I mentioned that in the caption for the photo. It looks like it is still in civilian livery, although it is hard to tell. I wonder if it was pressed into service for the USN.
Thanks for the link - great stuff! They need to change the page title (what shows in the browser tab) as it says "Boeing B-24..." Looks like a little cut and paste problem.

Bill Gilman
The cockpit is started! Gotta love that Eduard colour PE!

Burkhard D
The Boeing Clipper was drawn into military service and at least one was respayed in three-tone blue/grey

[img1]

Holger Kranich
The new pictures are really cool,(except those with the beautiful sub😢)! History lessons with uncle Bill!🙂

Bill Gilman
Glad you guys liked the historical photos. They really add something to the build I think. So, I did some more work on the cockpit, adding the control yokes and the seats/harnesses. Photos uploaded to show the progress. Let me tell you, it's a lot of fun to make the control yoke shafts - 0.6mm diameter plastic rod cut into pieces about 1.0mm long. I need smaller fingers! 🙂

Philip De Keyser
Great looking cockpit Bill 👍

Bill Gilman
I made some good progress this weekend. The rest of the PE has been added to the forward fuselage, and I've done some post-shading and a quick wash to dirty things up a bit. I've uploaded some new photos that show how she's looking. Any guesses as to how many times I'll knock off the bombardier's seat before I close up the fuselage halves? 🙂

Philip De Keyser
Great progress Bill, love the cockpit, looking forward to the next steps 👍
Greetz Phil

Bill Gilman
I've added some photos of the actual B-24 nose gear, along with what I came up with to represent it. I think it will be OK, and much closer to the real thing than the "working feature" nose gear that was in the kit. Remember this kit was first made back in the 60s when the manufacturers gave us teenage boys all these working features, like landing gear that retracted and turrets that moved, etc. Hey, the only working feature I wanted back then was a bomb that actually exploded! 🙂

Bill Gilman
Hi mates! For a change of pace, I decided to practice my photoetch bending skills by making up one of the main gear bays. Plus, I wanted to know if the PE designed for the Hasegawa kit would work on this old Revell kit. It turns out that it fits really well, and will make a huge difference - the kit had nothing but a big empty space instead of any detail. New photos!

james johnson
neat stuff Bill! I like working with photo etch.....sure will make a big difference, those empty spaces are one of my many, many pet peeves.....

Christian Bruer
Nice progress with your build! I really like the exzellent cockpit as well as the nice add ons on the nose laning gear. Great modelmaking!

Christian Keller
Hi Bill,
respect... For the age of this kit it looks just marvelous :-O
Greets from switzerland

Bill Gilman
I haven't done a lot of modelling lately, but I did manage to add some interior structural details at the waist gunner's position. I've uploaded a couple of photos. This area will get painted Zinc Chromate Yellow, as most of the early Liberators were, and to match the references I have. What an ugly colour!

Ricardo Gonzalez Ramos
Fantastic!

Petri Manninen
Wow! Looks excellent, love your work!

Jean-Paul DEWAR
Hi Bill

I take this assembly ongoing and I find that you did a great job on this Privateer. It should be very nice in the end.

JiP

Dirk Heyer
Very nice progress! Indeed!
I`m curious!!!

Bill Gilman
Guido, that's what I think, too. A little motivation to get the job done right so they could get back to base and get out of that airplane! Of course, if they didn't get the job done right, they were getting out of that airplane anyhow...

Bill Gilman
And the motivation takes form - Zinc Chromate Yellow primer added to the interior fuselage at the waist gunner's stations. Complete with some weathering - next we'll start adding all the goodies like ammo boxes and chutes, guns, etc. Have a look at the new photo I've posted. What a horrible colour! I've ordered resin guns, oxygen cylinders, and anti-sub radome. It's starting to come together! 🙂

Guy Golsteyn
Some serious Revell-kit upgrading going on here😉

Bill Gilman
Thanks, Guy. What amazes me is how well the aftermarket stuff for the Hasegawa kit fits. I guess that means the old Revell kit is reasonably accurate in size and shape.

Bill Gilman
I've made some progress by scratchbuilding the floor for the waist gunners area along with the machine gun mounts. New photos have been uploaded. I'll be adding more details to this area today - not too far from closing up the fuselage halves. I still need to add details for the bombardier's position up front.

Erik Houghton
Coming along nicely, Bill.

Holger Kranich
Great great great, Bill!

Metodi Metodiev
Great work Bill

Bill Gilman
I posted an additional photo that shows the end of the real aircraft I'm modelling. It crashed on take-off and although there were no injuries, the plane was written off. The amazing fact I learned is that the plane was fully fueled and armed for an antisubmarine mission when she went down, and there was no fire. I understand that the armament for the mission consisted of depth charges in the bomb bay. Incredible! The photo I posted shows that the maintenance crews have already begun stripping the plane.

Bill Gilman
More progress! I've added the waist guns, complete with ammo belts and gun-sights. Armor plating has been added to the waist gunner's area, as well as several oxygen bottles. I've figured out how much weight is required to keep this baby on her wheels, and most importantly...I've added the relief tube!!! 🙂

Holger Kranich
Bill, you are mad!🙂
What a great detailing for this old kit! Whadda ya think, will the gear tackle the weight to let it not turn into a tailsitter?

Philip De Keyser
Great progress Bill, there are some nice details on the inside of this beauty, it's a pitty when you later closed the fuselages

Christian Meyerhoff
Great work!

Wim van der Luijt
fantastic work, had managed to miss this up till now, but did some catching up and I love it

Wilfried Bogaerts
Amazing job Uncle! I'm not sure but ... was an empty B-24 not a tailsitter ?

Christian Lehmann
Very nice details. It's a pitty that most of them will not be visible in the closed fuselage.

Aghis Barberopoulos
Nice work!

Bill Gilman
Thanks guys!
@Holger - mad? Perhaps "daft" is a better description! I reinforced the front gear with extra triangulation, and it withstands two bottles of Gunze without collapsing. For now anyway! And I think the main gear will be OK. Hasegawa recommends 90g of weight in their B-24D! 🙂
@Philip, @Christian - yes, a lot of the detail will not be easily seen once the fuselage is closed. The waist windows are pretty big, though, and almost all of the detail there is visible (except the relief tube!). I'll open the side windows on the cockpit, but they're very small. The nose has a lot of clear parts, but the image through them won't look so good. Everything will look great in my mind's eye though! 🙂
@Wilfried - you are correct! 10 points for you! I've seen photos of empty B-24s sitting on their tail bumpers. The crew would often put a jack stand under the tail bumper in order to keep the nose wheel on the ground. I believe the Tigercat was the same way, maybe worse.
Cheers, Bill

Guy Golsteyn
Looks more like a 'nosesitter' to me 😉

[img1]?uselang=ru

Bill Gilman
Ha! That's after I put the 1 kilo of solid lead in the front of the model! 🙂

Bill Gilman
Actually, I shouldn't joke about that one. I've seen that picture before, and I believe it was a fatal accident.

Vorya hidaryan
Amazing paint job and detailing on cockpit bill 👍

Bill Gilman
More progress! Check out the new pictures. I've added the waist window panels, front nose gear doors, and the front nose gear. I also found a problem with the engine/propeller which was positioning the prop too far away from the engine cowling. I fixed this by modifying the front engine case. Then, I took a good look at the props supplied by Revell. Two blades are 21mm long, and the third is 22mm long. The blades are not 120 degrees apart, one is off by about 5 degrees. The hub is too small in diameter. Each prop is the same. I compared to the Academy props, and although the blades are the same length and positioned correctly, its hub is even smaller. I've ordered resin props from Quickboost. Next it was time to put weight in every conceivable place to make this bird sit on her nose wheel and not her tail! The weight is in (and there's a lot of it!) and she sets correctly when I tape all the pieces together. Although the nose gear looks spindly, it is actually quite strong and should support the plane with no problems!

Fabian D.
great work Bill 👍

Holger Kranich
Yep, this is really a motivating build! You are right, Guido!

Christian Keller
it is a joy to follow you :-D

Vitor Costa
Hello Bill amazing work so far! looking forward to see more of it 😄

Zimmermaniac
much inspiring Bill...I'm currently working on the old monogram/revell B26 Marauder, your build encourages me 🙂

Bill Gilman
Thanks, guys! Zimmy - I built the Monogram B-26 when it first came out! That's how old I am! LOL - it's still a great kit.

Dirk Heyer
Great, really really great show!
Looks so crispy and it`s sensational!!!!!

Bill Gilman
Well, I've closed up the fuselage. All that lovely detail that I added has disappeared - it will only return with the aid of small right angle mirrors and tiny single LED flashlights! Have a look at the latest photos. Cheers!

B
Wow! Looks amazing Bill,great work

Burkhard D
Who needs modeling magazines if one can read + watch build-reports like this on scalemates? 👍👍👍

Aghis Barberopoulos
And you are progressing fast, nice work Bill!

Holger Kranich
I agree with Burkhard and Aghis, this is really some kind of tutorial! Simply amazing!

Bill Gilman
Thanks - it wasn't planned as a tutorial, instead I view it as a photo journal of one man's dark journey into the depths of insanity. 🙂

Howard Barrett
Hi Bill, I've been following this build both here and on BM and I'm sure you're bored of hearing "amazing, superb etc" but it really is. Inspirational if you will!!

Bill Gilman
I never get bored with hearing "amazing, superb, etc." Heck, even "inspirational!" Keep it coming!! 🙂 🙂 🙂

james johnson
personally, I liked "photo journal of one man's dark journey into the depths of insanity"😉

Wilfried Bogaerts
clutter !! junk !! mess !! debris !! rubble !! rubbish !! litter !! lumber !! rummage !! disorder !! chaos !! muck !! shit !! shambles !! ugly !! unsightly !! nasty !! disfigured !! amateurism !! abortif !! mistaken !! unchancy !! ridiculous !! ludicrous !! laughable !! absurd !!

Wilfried Bogaerts
Ooops... I thought I was commenting my own models 🙁

Wilfried Bogaerts
Your Libby is truly amazing, superb, inspirational ... 🙂 Great work Uncle !!!

Hunter Cummins
Cant wait for more 🙂🙂🙂

Bill Gilman
Wilfried, I'm so glad you're my nephew! I always know your comments are straight from the heart! But "lumber?" Really? Like in wood? From a tree? 🙂 🙂 🙂 👍

JohnnyO
I love the PBY-1, and this model is looking really good for a kit that age. Keep up the good work.

Bill Gilman
Hi mates, well I've finally done it. The PB4Y-1 Liberator now has wings, and it's setting on its own legs. Although it now looks a lot further along in its construction, I sense I am only about half way through. Check out the new pictures to see how I did it, and see if you can find the mistakes I've tried to cleverly cover up! Cheers! 🙂

B
Looks great Bill! There's a lot of seams though,but you only paid one dollar so I guess you can't really complain.

Bill Gilman
It has about the same amount of seams as modern kits, they just don't fit together very well! 🙂 🙂 🙂
I'm building this model for the "Obsolete Kit Group Build" over on Britmodeller, and the object is to see what you can do with a kit that is hopelessly outdated. I would never have decided to build this kit otherwise. It's a fun project, but there is a reason why they don't make this kit any more! 🙂

Philip De Keyser
Great progress Bill, looking forward to the next step 👍

Bernhard Schrock
This is astonishing what you has made from this old kit: respect!! In the same year I'm born 🙂

Bill Gilman
I've finished assembling the horizontal and vertical tail/rudders, along with converting the belly turret panel to accept the anti-sub radome.

Aghis Barberopoulos
Very nice work on the tail.

Aghis Barberopoulos
Oh, and I forgot to mention the landing gear legs: great job Bill!

Mohammad Adl
very nice 👍

Bill Gilman
Since none of you are trying to stop me, I went ahead and did some more work on the PB4Y. Check out the photos for updates on the nose glazing and canopy, forward guns/ammo belts, masking of the nose glazing, mounting the tail assembly, and spraying yet some more Gunze H58. I didn't finish the model in time for the deadline in the Obsolete Kit Group Build on Britmodeller, so I'll be setting this aside for a short time so I can do something different. Change of pace as they say, then we'll finish it up. Cheers!

Hunter Cummins
Oh bill you have made a masterpiece out of this 🙂😄 keep up the great work 🙂 and would necer stip you😉

james johnson
..Question for Bill, or anyone else for that matter:
Newby to aircraft modeling wants to know about Future on the canopy.
Is it applied for protection?
Is it applied for lustrous appearance?
When is it applied, before painting the canopy seam lines (or whatever they?re called) or after?
Thanks in advance,
WF???.

Bill Gilman
Hi James,
Applying Future to the clear parts and canopies is usually done prior to putting them on the model. They parts can be dipped in Future, or it can be airbrushed. I prefer dipping myself, as the Future goes on very thick and self-levels itself resulting in a very shiny look. Future makes the clear parts appear more transparent and glossy, and provides additional protection. For example, once a canopy has been dipped in Future, you can use superglue and it won't get that foggy or smokey look from the fumes. I paint the canopy frames after the application of Future.
Here's a good website that explains it all:
swannysmodels.com/TheCompleteFuture.html

Augie
Looking damn good Bill

james johnson
Thanks Bill, exactly what I was looking for!

Bill Gilman
Thanks, Augie! For an old gal, she's cleaning up nicely! 🙂

Clifford Keesler
What can I say Bill but WOW!!!!!

Bill Gilman
Hi mates, I managed to finish blending the nose glazing into the forward fuselage and then I primed the model with Alclad Grey Primer. I'll check for any areas that still need attention, and then we'll paint the USN tri-color scheme. I'm sensing the finish line, but we have to get around the last turn first! 🙂

Hunter Cummins
Cant wait 😄😄😄😄😄

james johnson
AHA!! This is another issue you might be able to help me out with Bill?..
In my neophyte attempts at aircraft models, I am dissatisfied with the appearance of the interface between the clear parts and the fuselage per say.
I mean, it looks okay; no glue reaction with the clear plastic or anything like that, but it just doesn?t look natural or something.
Is this the ?blending? that you refer to in the immediate, preceding post? If so, what is the technique involved?
Thanks;
WF?????

Bill Gilman
Have a look at post #84 in my Scimitar build:
britmodeller.com/for..imitar-f1/?p=1414576
I use spackling paste for wallboard.

james johnson
spot on Bill, thanks! URL is pasted into the build log of my upcoming sturmovik!

Bill Gilman
In the case of this Libby model, all of the spackling compound was dry sanded with 2,000 grit paper. I didn't use any water at all. This was necessary since there were some large areas to blend in, and you want to keep the surface smooth and flat, like the plastic you're joining to. I only dry sand the stuff if the model hasn't been painted yet.

Erik Houghton
Spackling compound......interesting. I'll have to give some a try as a test for alternatives to my other fillers. I have some of the 'pink' stuff that turns white when it's dry 😄

Bill Gilman
I don't recommend it for big gaps, I really only use it for blending in the canopy. Another thing to consider is that you cannot scribe a panel line into it.

Adam Carter
Seen this a couple of times n my news feed but only just taken a look. Wow! Amazing work, truly stuff to aspire to.

Erik Houghton
Ah, I see. I'll stick to the Vallejo water based stuff for canopy blending then. Thanks for clarifying, Bill.

Bill Gilman
After what seemed like decades, I finally got to paint the sub-hunting Libby. We're not too far away from wrapping this up - hope you like what we've done so far!
I have changed my other mind about the markings, though. The decal for the "Gallopin' Ghost" is a wee bit out of register, and the grey doesn't line up with the black outline of the letters. Therefore, I'm going to use the decals for "Subduer." This will add some colour (red), plus the nose art is on both sides of the plane. Cheers!

Augie
Love it bill, real eye catcher..

Christian Lehmann
Looks nice so far. Waiting for the decals

B
Great work Bill,do you think it'll be done by 2014? 😄

Bill Gilman
Thanks, mates! I just finished "fading" sections of the top fuselage and wings, plus doing some patches of off-white on the sides and bottoms. Got to break up all that stark white! The off-white I used isn't much different, though, so I will use pastels after the final flat varnish is on. And, no, it won't be done by the start of 2014! Mid-January, probably. 🙂

Philip De Keyser
It looks great Bill, looking forward to the decals 👍

Christian Bruer
That comes out really nice Bill!

Burkhard D
Outstanding work there 👍👍👍 🙂

Gordon Sørensen
That is looking really good in blue!

Guy Golsteyn
Wow! Great paintjob! Keep up the good work😉

Albi Hitz
This is an awesome build! Congratulations so far!
I like the camouflage with the white and blue its an eye-catcher!

Bill Gilman
I've added a couple of coats of Future in preparation for the decals. Then I realized that I only have the national insignia, nose art, and serial number - this baby needs the maintenance stencils. It took a lot of Internet searching, but I finally found an aftermarket sheet of stencils. I should have it in a week or so. On hold until then... 🙂

Hunter Cummins
Awwwww 🙁🙁😢😛

Bill Gilman
I've posted a couple of photos that show the nose art and insignia added to the PB4Y-1. I think I'll work on the engine faces while I'm waiting for the stencils. The cowlings are attached with temporary white glue, so they should pop right off. This will make it much easier to paint the engines! 🙂

Clifford Keesler
Looking very nice.

Hunter Cummins
Top notch matec😄😄

gerry keenan
Looks great

Christian Meyerhoff
Simply Excellent!

Bill Gilman
I've added some more photos of the PB4Y-1. I finished adding the stencils, and I've painted the engines and superchargers. I also added another coat of Future to seal in the decals, and today I'll start work on a wash. Once I have that to my liking, we'll add a flat varnish and get the tape off of the clear parts! The big reveal, as they say - I hope it comes out OK. Cheers! 🙂

Howard Barrett
Looking forward to it Bill, looks great mate!

Christian Bruer
I?m curious for the final result! Any problems while leaving the tape for the whole time? I have always the problem that the paint will frazzle along the tape. Do you cut it first before you will get the tape of? Cheers, Christian

Christian Meyerhoff
WOW! This one will be a true Beauty!

Es-haq Khosravi
Great Job!

Bill Gilman
Hi Christian, I usually find that the Tamiya tape comes off well, even if left on for a long time. I think what makes a big difference is how many coats of paint have been applied. That will have an effect on the edges. I'll take the first piece off and then see how it goes, and if I need to cut the edges. Of course, I'll start with a piece on the bottom! 🙂

Marc Schimmler
Another Navy addict ... I love it.

Acki
Amazing! I love this one.

Bill Gilman
Just because my nickname is Navy Bird doesn't mean I like the Navy...or aircraft. NOT! You're right, I admit it, my name is Bill and I'm an addict! A Navy addict! Although this is the first USN aircraft model in a while. 🙂 🙂 🙂

Christian Keller
Woooow, just great 🙂 🙂

Aghis Barberopoulos
Very nice work Bill, addict or not 🙂

John Thomas
Very nice BP4Y

Bill Gilman
The flat varnish and panel line wash has gone on, and the Tamiya tape has come off! Five new photos for your enjoyment - I like how the model takes on a whole new persona at this stage. The flat varnish really adds realism.
There's lots of fiddly stuff left to do, like the actuator arms for the main gear legs, gear doors, cockpit glazing, astrodome, turrets, gun barrels, props, antennae, etc. Thanks for your advice and encouragement, you need it for a project like this. Cheers!

Marc Schimmler
Pretty awesome ...
Speaking of beasts ... this one has been tamed in a fantastic manner!!!!!!

Guy Golsteyn
This is pretty impressive stuff! I'm a fan 😉

Roland Sachsenhofer
most impressive, beautiful.... masterly!

Holger Kranich
Boah Ey!!!
As we say in germany when there are no more words, to describe fascination!

Christian Bruer
Hi Bill, the Ghost looks really beautiful. Very well done ? Bravo Zulu! Cheers, Christian

Clifford Keesler
Looking awesome,good job.

Bill Gilman
Revell left off the characteristic radial panel lines that are so prominent on the vertical tails of every B-24. Rather than try to scribe them (I'm a terrible scriber!) I'm adding them with a pencil. I've uploaded a photo of the first one. I think it will be OK.

B
It's looking great Bill!!! Before reading that^ I thought the lines on the tail were scribed! Great Work!

Eduardo Arguijo
Wow Bill, excellent step by step. Haven`t got to read the hole thread, and sorry if you exlained before, but why did you left the main windshield for last in stead of glue it togather like the bomber windshield? Great work! Loved the detail you put into it.

Jose Miguel Rodriguez
Amazing work!!!

Bill Gilman
Hi Eduardo, the short answer is I forgot about it. But no worry, I can make it blend in with the fuselage even at this stage of construction. Stay tuned! 🙂

james johnson
Stay tuned I will........I didn't do so well with my spackle blending Bill......would be interested in seeing this!
I did check out in some detail the tutorial at britmodeller.com/for../page-5#entry1414576
so.........maybe I just need more practice or something.......maybe I had the wrong kind of spackle??????
Anyway, thanks for the help and look forward to your posts........
Sincerly,
JVJ

Mike K
Amazing builds like this are the reason why my sole aircrft kit is relegated to the very bottom of my stash. 🙂

Keith Gervasi
Stunning!

Bill Gilman
Hi mates! I spent today doing some post shading with the airbrush and some Gunze H75 Smoke, and then used some pastels to do some topside paint fading. I then added the radome, tail bumper, the main gear actuators, and the gear doors. Not too much left to do, just some more fiddly bits, the canopy, props, antenna wires, etc. Quite possible could finish tomorrow, he said, knowing full well it is unlikely. New photos have been posted, enjoy!

B
Great work Bill!! How'd you do the fading? Can I do it with a brush?
Thanks

Erik Houghton
Not really Brandon, but you can get similar results using lighter colored pastels in middle of the panels.

Bill Gilman
Erik is right, Brandon. First, the paint must be matte finish. Pastels don't stick to gloss. For this effect I used a light gray (really!) pastel powder. My pastel chalks are solid sticks, so you need to use a razor blade to scrape the sides which gives you a pile of pastel powder. Using a small brush, I place some of the powder on the panel I want to lighten. When you place the powder on the panel, don't rub it in a lot. Just very lightly spread it around and then blow the remaining powder away. At this point, I just take my finger and gently rub the pastel that remains (and it doesn't have to be much) around the panel, first in the direction of airflow, and then in a circular fashion. The trick to this is simple...PRACTICE (preferably on another model first, one you don't care about)! If you use too much pastel powder you end up with a big spot of grey (or whatever color you're using). This is a delicate technique. And I'm sure I'm doing it incorrectly. I know this because I never follow directions, just ask my wife! 🙂

Mike K
It just keeps getting better. I cant believe how good it looks.

Clifford Keesler
Wow is all I can say.

Joerg R.
Well, what can I say. Thisis brilliant !!!

Marc Schimmler
This is gettin better and better!

Mathias Carl
Wow 😮
Impressive work 👍 👍

Bill Gilman
One step forward, two steps back. After I had the canopy all masked and sprayed, I realized that Revell had been up to their "fictional framing" game again. Different than the nose, though, which had framing missing, the canopy had framing added. Arghhh.
I really should have been paying better attention, but like a dummy I just blindly masked away without looking at my references. I forgot that whole measure twice, cut once thing. 🙁

Long story short, I stripped off the masking, removed all of the paint with mineral spirits, sanded off the frames that shouldn't be there, and set about micro-meshing. Then, at 2:00 AM, I re-masked and it's ready for paint. Live and learn - I won't make that mistake until until my next kit. Experience is what we call learning from our mistakes so we can recognize them when we make them again. 🙂 🙂 🙂

Clifford Keesler
Amen to that.

Phil Marchese
At some point this will need pitot masts installed. Not sure about fictional framing. Can you offer some insight so we can benefit from your observation. Nice job on an under-rated classic.

Pardo
Wow, I mean wow...

Bill Gilman
Right you are, Phil. The pitot "horns" will probably go on last, same time as the antenna wires. The pitots are just too fragile for me to worry about knocking them off.
By the way, the Revell kit has the pitots mounted in the original position, as seen on very early B-24s. I filled those mounting holes, and will mount them in the correct location for the PB4Y-1.
Regarding the fictional framing, have a look on the kit's box art. You can find this here on Scalemates, by clicking on the kit in my project. Have a look at the window that is between the windscreen and the sliding side window. Revell have the glass extending all the way down, so this window comes to a point by the bottom front edge of the side window. The real B-24 windscreen looks like the photo of the olive drab bird below.
[img1]
You can see from the PB4Y-1 photos from Brazil (below), Sea Beast and Subduer, that these ships were equipped the same way.
[img2]
[img3]
Hope that helps! A small change, but one that required a fair bit of work as the entire canopy was already masked off and painted, both flat black (for an interior color) and Intermediate Blue.
That shot of Subduer shows the pitot horns nicely...

Bill Gilman
Quick link to the box art, plus another view of the window in question, this time on the famous Strawberry Lady.
[img1]
[img2]

Phil Marchese
...for the bistered Windows,Yes. Thanks for the clarification. Once the cheek guns were added to the B-24D ( and at least one C) the pitots were relocated. This occured before block production but after HALPRO and the Blue Streak. Extremely well done build on kit that has well stood the test of time. Bravo to you.

Bill Gilman
Hi Phil, was the window only this way when the side windows were blistered?

Phil Marchese
There were many different framings on the side windows in that lower front joint.. The Kit was essential a HALPRO...exteremly early combat Ds. The 8th Af often had thick armored glass mounted differently.

Bill Gilman
Much obliged. I'll stick to my plan and try to make it look like my reference photos. Cheers! 🙂

Phil Marchese
Yep. The picture of the plane you are building is always the way to go.

Bill Gilman
You know how good it feels to have masked and painted the canopy three times? And you're all ready to get it on the model because you're almost done? But then you drop the canopy and don't see where it went...and you figure you have to get out the flashlight and get down on your knees, searching around under your bench. So you take a step and reach for the flashlight, grab it, and then take a step back. And then you hear the sickening "crunch" sound...remember how that feels? I do... 🙁

B
Oh god....I know how you feel,it happened 3 times on my spitfire. Thank god that cheap vac-form canopies exist!

Clifford Keesler
I hate it when that happens. I have had to ask Revell for 2 replacement canopies for that very reason. I just can't figure out how stuff becomes invisible when it hits the floor. I even have a black mat under my workbench to prevent that. Plane is looking amazing.

Bill Gilman
The fun is just beginning - the vacuform canopy doesn't even come close to fitting. But it is thin and flexible...I have a plan! 🙂

B
That's not good! Are you using your white glue method?

Phil Marchese
The aftermarkets for minicraft are out of the question...too flat. If you can cement the Revell back together, fill the back with modeling clay and mount for a heat and smash. Blister pack material will work. I made several.

Bill Gilman
No need to piece the Revell canopy back together. The vac canopy will fit fine, and it will look fine. When you remove the side windows, and bend the canopy to make it match the curvature of the Revell kit's spine, it magically "gains" height. (With the side windows gone, the canopy is very flexible and bends easily.) And, the bottom of the windscreen now matches the curvature of the Revell front fuselage surprisingly well. In fact, it matches better than the Revell part did. The height of the windscreen is in-between the height of the Academy stock part and that of Revell, and to my eye looks much better. There is just one small issue to deal with that is easily fixed. Stay tuned, she'll look just fine. 🙂

B
Awesome! I'm glad that you found a solution

Erik Houghton
Hmm, this I am waiting to see. A part that does not fit, fits better than the kit part, which fit, but now does not fit. My head is spinning 😛

Bill Gilman
Brandon, yes I will use the same method I used on my Buccaneer and my Scimitar. And countless other models, come to think of it. But it doesn't involve "white glue." 🙂

B
Cool 😄

B
Erik,don't question it,just go with the flow....like a dead fish. 😛

Phil Marchese
Yep...the bend will work fine. I didn t go into that because you hadn t mentioned your replacing the side window during the blister discussion. You have a fine build going and it well along.

Bill Gilman
I call it "adaptive modeling." Or, to use an American stock car racing expression: "run what you brung." 🙂

Phil Marchese
I call these fortunate accidents and welcome them because as you ve done here its moved you abandoning the Revell part altogether to get a better look. You may have notice the real B-24 canopy drops into a new shape at the overhead window coming forward to the front.

Erik Houghton
Also known as "hillbilly engineering".

Ricardo Martins
Impressive build... Amazing cockpit... Outstanding paint 🙂 🙂

Bill Gilman
Houston, we have a canopy! 🙂
Once I bent it into shape it did not fit the Revell fuselage as well as I thought it would, but hey, that's what we have filler for.

Eduardo Arguijo
Great work Bill, thanks for the pictures. It really gives an Idea of what you did to fix the problem.

Phil Marchese
Bill, outstanding job on the canopy bend. You captured the drop of the real deal.

Christian Bruer
Now this one comes to an beautiful end. Very very nice work Bill!

Jermaine Hoskin
Bill, I have to ask. How did you get that transition between the blue and white? Please share how to masked off for that. Thanks

John Staehle
Wow!!

Bill Gilman
Thanks, everyone! Jermaine, no masking at all, it's a free-hand airbrush line.

Clifford Keesler
Outstanding job Bill.

Bill Gilman
Hey Erik, did your head stop spinning? 🙂 🙂

Erik Houghton
Yes, but I'm afraid it is now on a little crooked 😄

Bill Gilman
Erik, so is the canopy, but I won't tell anyone if you don't! 🙂
Making some progress on the flaps - I've added a couple of photos that show deployed flaps on B-24s coming in for a landing, and my idea of how to do this on the model. Revell have the flaps pivot down from the front of two arms moulded into the flap. This is all wrong, from what I can tell from drawings the flaps slide out and pivot down on five rails that are within the wing. If it was anything like a modern airliner, there were probably some big honking ball screws used as actuators. But then, this was back in the 40s so maybe not. Anyway, have a look! Cheers!

Erik Houghton
...I am completely surprised that this old dog came with deployable flaps! They may have gotten a bit of the detail wrong, but it's still a feature a bit ahead of its time.

Paulo Henrique Marins Cezario
Hi nice work.
what you used for the washing?

huggs

Holger Kranich
Will your B-24 get such a "Leigh Light", too?
[img1]

Bill Gilman
Holger, I believe the Leigh Light was used only on British Liberators, not on USN aircraft. However, that gives me some good ideas if I ever want to build a Coastal Command Libby in North Atlantic camouflage!
Paulo, the wash that I used is one I mixed myself from artists acrylic paints. They come in a tube like oil paints, but they are water based. I use a small bit of paint, water, and dish-washing soap in my mixture. The soap reduces the adhesion of the wash, and makes it come off easy.
Erik, not only did the kit come with deployable flaps, but the landing gear retracted and the belly turret could be pulled out and deployed. Of course, the turrets all moved too. I think these were meant as toy-like features, rather than attempts to depict the aircraft accurately. But I think the overall size and shape of is pretty good. It looks the part, but there is a lot more that I could have done to make it more accurate. The detail in the area where the flap retracts is not right, for example, but at least they tried.

Francisco Colaço
Great 👍

Paulo Henrique Marins Cezario
Thanks for answer.

Christian Meyerhoff
Finish it! Please finish it! Best Liberator model I`v seen ever!

Dirk Heyer
I love this blue Lib!
Great realisation!
It is a pleasure to watch your models.

sdzsdtintinsqdqsd
so much for "old kits"... looks like you beat all the over-engineered "tamigwa" kits'!

Bill Gilman
Thanks, mates! Christian, I will definitely finish it! Too close to the end to stop now! 🙂 🙂

Phil Marchese
The Revell flap were not designed to pivot down. They were design to trail out correctly as Fower Flaps. The tracks and stops are there.

sdzsdtintinsqdqsd
Fetchez la vache, bill!😉

Bill Gilman
Hi Phil, they may have been designed that way, but my copy sure didn't work that way. With the flap in the retracted position, they simply flopped down, pivoting on the forward end of the arms. Whatever was supposed to lock them in place didn't work. If you pulled them out to the deployed position, they came right out. Probably whoever had the kit before I bought it played with it too much and wore the plastic down. 🙂
I remember that was typically the case with these models from the 60s with the "working" features. They would work for a few times, and then slowly whatever held them in position wore down. Styrene isn't the strongest thing out there! I remember trying to lubricate the areas where two plastic pieces would rub against each other to prevent this - I think I used vaseline or something like that. 🙂

Clifford Keesler
It sure looks great to me Bill!!!!!!

Bill Gilman
More to come, I'm cooking up some goodies for the weekend! 🙂

Clifford Keesler
I'm watching.

Gabor Szabo
I will watching this! Masterclass! 👍

Bill Gilman
Hi mates, I've added some more photos today. I started some preliminary work on the rear turret, added the marker beacon antenna on the bottom, painted, weathered, and mounted the Fowler flaps, and added the propellers. This project is coming in for a landing soon! Cheers! 🙂

Glenn
nice work! you sure got a neat project out of your $1 kit

Bill Gilman
I'm afraid to add up all the aftermarket parts though! They were considerably more than $1! 🙂

Duncan Cook
Great looking result Bill. 🙂

Gabor Szabo
Better and better all time!

Christian Keller
Hi Bill,

this is definitly one of the best B-24 i've ever seen.

Jens
very nice 👍 👍 👍 👍

Aghis Barberopoulos
It takes a lot of patience and skill to finish off any 4-engined bird, and this one is no exception. Well done Bill!

Vitor Hugo Sousa
It's not fair. A beautiful inside work and details and having to close it at the end 🙁
Nice work😉

Bill Gilman
Thanks, folks!
Hi Vitor - you're right, I almost didn't want to close it up. Someday I'll make one that's all open. But at least I have the pictures to remind me of what is inside! 🙂
I added two more photos of the work I've done on the rear turret. Remind me again why I work in 1:72 scale...I can't believe I'm rolling .50 caliber cooling jackets around 0.64mm diameter rod. But they do look kind of cool. 🙂

Bill Gilman
I've finished the rear turret, and I've added the ADF "football" antenna and the navigators astrodome up front. Photos added so you can see what I've been wasting my time on. Now I'm off to see if I can make the top turret. There is just no rest for the wicked! 🙂

Clifford Keesler
Still a great model Bill.

B
Awesome!!

Bill Gilman
Only just now I see that there is an error in the rear fuselage of the kit - too late to fix it now, I think! It's the fairing right at the end of the fuselage top, that extends part way over the top of the turret. It should not be straight along the rear edge, it should be "scalloped" or rounded inward. This makes it conform better to the actual shape of the turret glass. Oh well...should have been paying attention earlier. Don't tell any of the IPMS judges! 🙂

Clifford Keesler
I won't I promise.

B
Hey Bill what IPMS contest are you going to? Is it in Massachusetts? I'm going to one in May

Bill Gilman
Hi Brandon, nothing planned at the moment. I usually stick around Western New York - Rochester, Buffalo, Syracuse - but I sometimes head into PA or MA, even Toronto. Where is the show in May?

Phil Marchese
Improved tail turret looks very nice.

B
Hello Bill,the contest is at Gloucester High School in Gloucester MA. Sunday May 18th 9AM-4PM. If you want more details pm me 🙂

Bill Gilman
Hi mates! I've done some work on the dorsal turret, have a look. I didn't get a lot of work done, as my wife spent the last week in the hospital after her appendix ruptured. After she got home on Saturday, I took on the chores of cooking, cleaning, and caring for her. Who knew being a housewife was so hard?

Holger Kranich
Damn shit, Uncle.... Äh, grandpa!😢
What a great work, and i dont mean the dorsal turret😢... More the housework!
Cheers to your wife and a speedy recovery for her!
Ah, btw, fkn brilliant work on the B-24!!!!!!

Bill Gilman
Thanks, Holger! I told my wife that I would do the cooking and cleaning as long as she promised not to work on any of my model projects. She could pick a kit of her own out of my stash if she wanted to make a model, but she hasn't picked one yet. 🙂

Christian Ristits
Wow!!!

Jose Miguel Rodriguez
Amazing work!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Congratulations!!!!!!!

Jermaine Hoskin
Words can't describe how I feel about this work before me.

Bill Gilman
Thank you, gentlemen! I truly appreciate the kind words. Nonetheless, I am going to build the top turret again, as I'm not happy with it yet. I'm going to use the Falcon vacuform part instead of the Revell part. Since the clarity will be much better, I will have to do a better job on the internal details! It's the burden of building an ancient kit - your work is never finished! 🙂

Phil Marchese
Bill, nice turret!

Phil Marchese
Many libs had a flair gun port starboard btw the turret and cockpit in the area opposite of the port top hatch. The command and liaison stand-off insulators ran to this area too. These would bring detailed interest and attention to this area if that is your desire.

Bill Gilman
Hey, Phil - you wouldn't happen to have a photo of the insulators would you? I can't find a good photo anywhere - it's hard to model something that you don't know what it looks like! 🙂

B
Hey Bill,is this what you're talking about? forum.keypublishing...24-antenna-insulator

Bill Gilman
Hi Brandon, if it is, it's almost exactly the same shape as what I've been playing around with. Note the small green cone on the spine of the model in the photo above. (Don't tell anyone, but it's the tip of a rocket from the resin leftovers of my Scimitar kit!) I'll let others chime in as well.

Phil Marchese
I couldn t open the attached photo when I reached the site Brandon posted. The insulators are small, white cones with an eyelet near the apex. The spot you ve identified so far is a whit e navagation/ identification light teardrop cover. I look for picture of the standoff insulator.

Bill Gilman
Looking forward to anything that you might find, Phil. The small green piece that I've been experimenting with is definitely a cone, so that's on the right track. I think making an eyelet in 1:72 scale might be going too far, I will just glue the antenna wire to the stand-off insulator.

Clifford Keesler
It's still awesome Bill. Do you think someday you might finish it? LOL.

Bill Gilman
Not at this rate!! 🙂
I rebuilt the top turret, switching to the vacuform piece. I switched the location of the ammo belts to match where they're supposed to be (D'oh!). The overlap areas (where the real Plexiglas pieces were glued) has been simulated by lines of matt varnish on the clear turret. I kinda like it. Check out the last two photos. Cheers!

Bill Gilman
Hey Brandon, I think the photo you directed me to is the piece I'm looking for. It matches what Phil described, and it matches this photo that I found. See photo 187. The photo shows the insulator for the liaison antenna below and forward of the top turret. You can also see what looks like the original location of the antenna lead-in which was below but in line with the turret. It appears as a small dark circle, which I guess is a repaired area to the fuselage. The plane itself is the famous Blue Streak.

B
Cool! I'm glad I could help! 😄

Bill Gilman
Hey Brandon, I posted another picture that shows the insulator even better. It's definitely the same as the photo that you found. It's in photo 188.
With that settled, I went and added four white conical insulators to the fuselage and tails, so hopefully I can soon add the antenna. I also added the gun barrels to the waist guns. I want to finish the canopy side windows, then the nose gun barrels, then the pitot probes, and lastly the antenna. Fiddly-est stuff last! Then she's done - I think!!! 🙂

B
Cool. It looks Amazing!! I wish one day that my models looks as amazing as yours! By the way,if you go to the model show/contest in Massachusetts,will you bring this?? I'd love to see it in person

Bill Gilman
Why not? I'll have to figure out a way for it to travel safely. I'll probably do the show in Buffalo in April as well.

B
Yay! You got the information right?

Phil Marchese
Yep that s the insulator. Good eye. Onward u go. Great job. I ve always defended this kit and you can see why.

Bill Gilman
IT'S FINISHED!!! Lots of pix tomorrow. Cheers!

Christian Bruer
Looking forward to the final result!

Erik Houghton
yay! it is tomorrow! where's the pictars?!? 😄

Bill Gilman
Let me wake up first... 🙂

Bill Gilman
I added a photo of the finished model - much more to come, but I gotta eat first! Cheers!

B
WOW!!! 😄 😄 😄 unbelievable!!! Amazing work Bill!!!

Albi Hitz
A beauty!
It was a pleasure to watch the build. And its a pleasure to see the result. Wow!
I like it!

Vitor Costa
Congratulations Bill! Really amazing work, this shows that is not the model that makes the modeller 😉
Something to be proud off!

Bill Gilman
Thanks guys! It was a long strange journey. I never ended to do this much work when I first joined the Obsolete Kit Group Build on Britmodeller. I thought I would just do a quick, OOB build to recreate my youth. But then I started tinkering... 🙂

Augie
Outstanding Bill... just outstanding

Bill Gilman
I uploaded a bunch more photos - enjoy! 🙂

Clifford Keesler
What can I say but WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! what an amazing model great work Bill.

Ray Seppala
Looks great Bill, been following it here and on BM 👍

Eduardo Arguijo
Bill, you went off the board with this build! Great and inspirational work!

Mike K
BOING!...there go my eyes again.

Erik Houghton
Amazing work, and well worth the effort Bill.

Bill Gilman
Never again... 🙂

Paulo Henrique Marins Cezario
very nice model.

Paulo Henrique Marins Cezario
i can upload inmy FB page?

Bill Gilman
Sure, no problem. That is just a link back to Scalemates right? (I'm not much of a FB user other than to look at pictures of my grandchildren!)

Christian Keller
My deepest respect.....A real Masterpiece

Mathias Carl
In one word:
"PERFECT" 👍 👍

Christian Lehmann
Amazing 👍

Joerg R.
Thats amazing, what you did with this kit. Congratulations, with my deepest respect!!!

Guy Golsteyn
This is surely the best Revell-based Liberator model in the whole wide world, if not the best whatsoever! Congratulations with a perfect model!

Gabor Szabo
Outstanding! 👍 Exceptional work!

Jean-Paul DEWAR
The final result is at the height of the sum of labor expended. Very beautiful model.

Bernhard Schrock
Bill, all formulation for praise are sold out, so there you also understand German: herausragend!

Holger Kranich
Unglaublich...Irre...Wahnsinn...NEID!😢

Paulo Henrique Marins Cezario
Thanks Bill, this pic is just my FB page.

Follow link.

facebook.com/photo.p..amp;relevant_count=1

Christian Meyerhoff
The best liberator I have ever seen! Great!

Dirk Heyer
Your craftsmanship and dexterity is undoubtedly of expert level!!
It`s always a pleasure to watch the photos of your models.
The refinement of old models is the high art of modelling.
Congrats.

Philip De Keyser
I love the endresult Bill, simply beautifull 👍

Roland Sachsenhofer
I am deeply impressed by your adorable modelling skills! That´s high end modelling: the best Liberator I have ever seen!

Bill Gilman
Thank you, everyone! I appreciate all of the kind words. I have declared the model as finished, but every time I look at it, I want to do some more work!
One thing that I did not do prior to construction was compare the kit to drawings to see how accurate its shape and dimensions were. Nonetheless, it sure looks like a Liberator!
Holger und Bernhard: Ich danke Ihnen, meine Herren! Ich verstehe ein bisschen Deutsch, also ich Ihre Kommentare schätze. Es ist wahr, dass gab es einige Wahnsinn in seinem Aufbau beinhaltet! (Sorry if I have the sentence structure wrong - I always try to make German into English structure. My brain is only wired for one language!) 🙂

Bernhard Schrock
Bill, your welcome! Please, don't worry: I also know the problem. My mother-language is Polish and the structure of Polish-language and the sentence construction is completely different, compared with German. If one speaks nearly 35 years two languages, mixed to himself a lot...

Alex
Simply amazing!

Christian Bruer
second all the comments + Bravo Zulu! Great Job Bill!

Burkhard D
Model and Thread of the Year 👍👍👍

Jose Miguel Rodriguez
Amazing work!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Marc Schimmler
Obsolete???? No kit is left behind!!!!
Absolutely awesome!!!!!!

Aris Grey
Wow man, what a model!

John E
All I can say is "Wow!"

Keith Gervasi
That is just freekin AWESOME!!! Well done!!!

babak chalangi
such amazing work !

Martien Lourens
amazing piece of craftsmanship

Bill Gilman
Thanks, everyone! The model is not perfect by any means (I'm already thinking about how to change some things I don't like) but it's the first four engine bomber I've built in 25 years. Now I feel the need to get some others to give it company! I have a B-17 and Lancaster in the stash, I'll probably start with them.

Christian Meyerhoff
Bill, please do so! 🙂

Wilfried Bogaerts
Fantastic job Uncle, well done !! 🙂

Mike Kryza
This is really "Art Of Modeling" - A gem -- 👍

Jay Jerisek
OH MY ! Beautiful work.

Jay Jerisek
An endless source of inspiration for a hack modeler such as myself

Marko Paakkanen
Very nice clean build! perfect job!

Holger Kranich
Exeptional, Bill...Simply exeptional...It was pure fun to watch your steps during this build! The best i´ve seen from you and there where many exellent builds from you so far! You topped yourself with this B-24! Absolute remarkable what you´ve done with this old kit... Its so stunning that i would say: This is a gold medal model and i think all the others here, would support my statement!

Bill Gilman
Thanks so much you guys! It makes the effort worth it all the more. The PB4Y will go to its first contest in April, hopefully the judges will like it.

For what it's worth, my Skua project is guaranteed to underwhelm! 🙂 🙂

Tim Vereecke
Fantastic PB4Y-1 Liberator! 👍

Dirk Heyer
Fantastic result!!!!!

Stefan Schneider
Congrats for this stunning piece of work!

Bill Gilman
You should have seen this kit back in the 60s after my brother built it and blew it up with firecrackers (barrel bombs, we called them)! 🙂

B
I still can't belive that you got it for only 1 dollar 😄

Bill Gilman
Yup, the President of our local IMPS club came in one meeting with a big box full of these old kits, mostly armor. There were all a buck each. So I grabbed it, never, ever thinking that I would build it. The world works in mysterious ways sometime.

B
That's awesome. How much do you think it added up to? All the extras and paint,stuff like that? Also at IPMS meetings/conventions are kits usually sold?

Hunter Cummins
Yup
brandon
all good ipms meetimg
at convemtions
you will go freaking crazy at the amout of kits and how much they cost
you will talk in with 200 dollars and leave with 100 kits
literally

B
Yay!! So they're a lot cheaper?

Hunter Cummins
Umm yea lol
You can even wim free kits in a raffel multiple times
I litterally spemt 100 sollars and got 40 kits
and they were dragon tanks
and since your only 14 people will just give you great deals like 4 model kits for 15 dollars
And they will give you free stuff and will make you the best deal they possibly could

B
It'll be awesome!!! I'll be sure to take my camera,I'll take a pic of everything! 😄 lol

Hunter Cummins
Lol
and take atleast 100 to 150 dollars
I know it sounds like a lot but it will go a loooooooooooooooooooong way

Bill Gilman
Brandon, if I add up the kit and all of the aftermarket parts (but no paint, glue, wire, etc.) it comes to about $150 retail, but I'm pretty sure I bought most of the aftermarket at a discount. Who knows? I don't keep model receipts. SWMBO might find them. 🙂

B
That's still not bad...considering a full die cast one would be around 299 dollars.

Bill Gilman
The antique Revell Liberator did OK at Buffcon 31, the annual show put on by the IPMS Niagara Frontier Chapter (Buffalo, NY). First place in 1:72 Multi-Engine Prop, and Best Aircraft Overall. Woo-hoo!

Great show - about 450 total entries. As usual, I forgot my camera and my phone (but I did bring my wallet!). As everyone was packing up and going home, my friend took a picture of some goofy-looking guy who wouldn't take his hands off my trophy! (See photo #211) There's one at every show... 🙂 🙂 🙂

B
Bill,that's awesome!!! 😄

Alan Rush
Congratulations Bill! Two top awards in a big show. It certainly looks great in the photos and the judges saw that the real thing was a winner too. I live near Toronto and have often seen ads for that show, so someday I may check it out. (As an observer though!) 👍

Zimmermaniac
muchos congrats Bill

Christian Lehmann
Congratulation

David Lengyel
Great build mate, congratulations!

Roland Sachsenhofer
My compliments to those well earned awards!
Picture 211 shows two individuals in the background with folded hands: I would fully agree if this is a gesture of adoration... 🙂

Augie
Outstanding bill well deserved

Holger Kranich
What did i say some month ago? This is a gold medal model!
Well done uncle Bill!👍👍👍

Burkhard D
Well deserved. Your Liberator thread is already an internet classic in my book. 🙂

Philip De Keyser
Congratulations Bill!!!! It"s well deserved, you make from this old Kit a real beauty 👍
Greetz, Phil

Bill Gilman
Thanks everyone! I appreciate it. Roland, I hadn't noticed the two people in the background before. It kind of looks like they're praying, but for what I don't know. Probably praying that I pack up the model and go home, so they can take the tables down! 🙂