1:48 Paint mask B-17G early (HKM)

A Fortress with a chin turret

The G version was the last and most numerous form of the Flying Fortress; in all, roughly eight and a half thousand of them came off the lines of Boeing, Douglas and Vega. It came about as an answer to the German tactic of head-on attacks, against which the older renditions were almost defenseless: a remotely operated chin turret with two heavy machine guns was added under the nose. The early rendition designation refers to the first production blocks, which still kept the older arrangement of the waist gun positions.

Glazing, of which there is unusually much

It is on the Fortress that a masking set makes more sense than on any other type. Besides the pilot's cockpit the navigator's nose is glazed, as are the dorsal and the ball turret, the waist gun positions and the tail position, so some twenty clear parts come together and each has framing of its own. By hand it would be a whole evening's work, and that without any guarantee that the frames would be the same width everywhere.

Proceed in groups. First mask and spray the nose, then the fuselage and finally the tail section, so as not to get lost among the small shapes. Check each part against the light before sticking the mask down, to see whether there are fingerprints on it, and lead the paint in short strokes perpendicular to the surface.

After spraying, remove the mask before the varnish has fully cured. If a ridge does form somewhere, it can be leveled with a fine abrasive pad and the surface polished again.

One more recommendation suits the build. The inside of the glazed nose is clearly visible on this type, so it pays to paint the navigator's station before the clear part is seated and covers it. After spraying you will get inside only with difficulty, and through the large area of glass every omission is conspicuous.