1:32 Douglas TBD-1 Devastator part 2 - Kwajalein and Wake Island Attack, February 1942

1:32 Douglas TBD-1 Devastator, part 2 - Kwajalein and Wake, February 1942 (Art Scale)

This is a sheet of wet decals in 1:32 scale with the markings of carrier Devastators from the period of the first American counterstrikes in the Pacific. The set is an accessory for a modeler: it is applied to a finished model, painted and polished with a gloss varnish. The model, paints and varnish are not in the package.

The real subject

The Douglas TBD-1 Devastator was a groundbreaking machine for its day - an all-metal carrier torpedo bomber with folding wings, an enclosed cabin for a crew of three and retractable landing gear. It entered service with the US Navy in the second half of the 1930s, and by the time the war in the Pacific broke out it was already technically outclassed, yet it formed the backbone of the torpedo squadrons aboard the aircraft carriers. February 1942 is precisely that short period when Devastators flew live operations against Japanese bases in the Marshall Islands, Kwajalein among them, and against Wake. These were the first raids with which the American formations answered Pearl Harbor, and the machines in them still carried markings transitional between pre-war variety and wartime gray.

How to work with the decals

• Polish the base with a gloss varnish, or silvering will appear under the film.
• Soak the decal in warm water only briefly and let the backing release by itself.
• Transfer it to the model with a brush, align it and draw off any excess water.
• Pull it into the engraved lines with a softener and seal it with a final varnish.

Who the sheet is for

• Modelers who build the Devastator in the large 1:32 scale.
• Those interested in American carrier aviation of the first months of the war in the Pacific.
• Collectors who put together a whole series of markings for one type.
• Those who want a model with a documented period trace, not just general national insignia.