1/72 Tamiya P-47D Thunderbolt

by Joe Youngerman

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  I think most folks are well familiar with the history behind Republic's famous fighter known as the Thunderbolt or "jug" as many called it. This is the later version of the P-47D with the bubble top canopy design giving the pilot greatly improved visibility over the earlier razorback design. Many of the bubbletop Thunderbolts were left in their natural metal finish with often flashy group and squadron markings applied. Using Ministry of Small Aircraft Productions decals, I chose to model this aircraft from the 324th Fighter Group, 315th Fighter Squadron that was busy flying ground support missions from France in early 1945.

    The Tamiya P-47's are without question the best kits of these aircraft in 1/72 scale but they are not without some minor issues. Since Tamiya released both the bubbletop and the razorback, some parts had to be designed to be interchangeable to be able to build one or the other. The top of the aft fuselage is a separate piece and my example did not fit tremendously well. A good bit of the detail was sanded away in the process of fixing this and had to be re-scribed. Not a big issue but something to be aware of as you begin. In most every other area the fit of my kit was good to excellent I am happy to say.

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The P-47's all have a lot of panels, vents, exhausts and such on the belly and this must also be carefully re-done after joining the fuselage halves. I also eliminated the nasty seam at the turbo supercharger outlet on the aft belly by filling the small space with very thin sheet plastic. For a little extra realism I also added brake lines, seat belts and the very small "propellers" to the front of each bomb. Small actuator arms were also added to each tail wheel gear door from stretched sprue.

I primed the model with Pollyscale acrylic black and then applied an overall coat of Alclad II Aluminum. After this I added some contrast by painting selected panels with Alclad II Dark Aluminum, Testor's Metalizer Magnesium, and Floquil's Old Silver from their model RR paints line. I then applied Pollyscale Olive Drab for the anti-glare panel and Pollyscale RLM Red for the unit markings...a near perfect match to the decal color. Following a good coat of Future the decals were applied and went on beautifully with some Micro and Solvaset. Most of the photos I have found of a/c in this unit showed a rather flat oxidized condition of the metal surface so I applied a coat of testors enamel Flat to replicate this look.

   Overall this is a great kit a was a very enjoyable build and I look forward to doing another and another!  The pilot figure was added at the suggestion of a modeling friend and was my first attempt at figure painting. It was an old but very nice white metal pilot from New Hope Designs. I think his proud stance really does add to the scene. I hope you enjoy the photos!

Joe

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Photos and text © by Joe Youngerman