1:48 P-47D Bubbletop

The Jug over the front in the winter of 1944

The late Thunderbolts only rarely took off to escort bombers any more. The Ninth Air Force sent them low over roads and railway yards, where a machine weighing seven tons took a hit after which a lighter fighter would have gone down. Pilots valued that more than agility and nicknamed the aircraft the Jug. Rockets and bombs were hung under the wings, so an originally high-altitude fighter became the toughest attack aircraft of the Western Front.

Overview of the contents

Inside lies film for the outer side of the glazing, a pair of marks for the star markings on the fuselage and eight metal weapons. The shaping corresponds to the parts from Tamiya.

When eight metal barrels do not pay off

It is worth stopping before you reach for the drill. Real machines often had the weapon muzzles taped over with impregnated fabric, which kept out water and dirt and tore at the first shot. Anyone building an aircraft freshly prepared for takeoff, that is with unused armament, will cover those places with a patch anyway and eight precise metal ends will disappear underneath it. It does not pay off either when the wings are already glued and the leading edge sanded, because drilling blind into a closed structure tends to end in a cracked seam.

When it does pay off

On a model with fired armament and worn paint, where eight dark openings are visible. There plastic loses at first glance and the difference from a bare mask shows the moment the model is turned to the light. The same applies to a canopy left open: the film holds the edge of the frame straight even in places where tape would bend over the curve and wrinkle.