1:32 P-47D RAZORBACK

A decking that had not yet been cut down

The Thunderbolt in the form with the raised decking makes up the older half of the family. Behind the cockpit the fuselage continued as a continuous spine right to the fin and the view to the rear was practically nil; the teardrop canopy came only with the D-25 batch. Eight heavy machine guns in the wings and a radial engine with a turbocharger at the rear of the fuselage gave the machine a weight with which attacking in a dive worked better than turning.

The set solves the glazing, not the painting

The cockpit has plenty of frames and measuring them out from tape takes longer than the spraying itself, so the pieces pay for themselves here. But reckon with what you will not find in the box: the invasion stripes, the non-slip walkway at the wing root and the ring around the engine cowling. On this type the masked glass is the smaller part of the job; the larger part awaits you on the wing and the fuselage.

Three insignia, twice as many passes

The three pieces are aimed at the national insignia. The star with side bars introduced in 1943 is two-color, so you go over every position at least twice and the finish has to mature between the coats. With a little patience you get an insignia with no step at the boundary of the colors; in a hurry the transition will show against the light.

Details that decide

Wipe the clear parts with alcohol and let them dry perfectly, otherwise the film will not hold in a bend. Smooth the edges with a blunt wooden stick, never with a fingernail. Plan the removal for the day after spraying at the latest, because from a hard finish the edge sometimes tears away along with a layer of paint.