1:32 P-51 B - Set Steel Seatbelts (for Eduard Kits)

Belts for the cockpit of the P-51B Mustang

The P-51B is the version of the Mustang that changed the war over Europe. The British Merlin engine gave it performance at high altitude and drop tanks gave it reach, so from the winter of 1943 it could escort bomber formations all the way to German targets and back. The recognition feature of many machines is the bulged clear canopy, which finally let the pilot look behind him.

Why steel: an ordinary brass fret breaks after being bent a few times and the edges stay hard. A steel sheet is more flexible, carries a thinner material and above all holds the shape you give it. A strap can thus be left to fall freely over the edge of the shell or coiled on the cushion the way it looks in a cockpit the pilot has left.

The bonding procedure: separate the belts with a scalpel, bend them carefully where a strap folds over a buckle and offer them up dry. Only once they sit, put a drop of super glue on the underside. The metal buckles are bonded separately and under a magnifier, or they easily fly right across the table.

Color: the parts are printed as they come, but it still pays to go over them with a matte varnish, which unifies the sheen and protects the print against rubbing. The shade of the straps differs between machines, so it is good to have references for the particular aircraft at hand.

The package holds the belts alone. The seat, the kit and paints are not part of it.

A tip at the end: lay the buckles out dry on a piece of double-sided tape first. They will not move, you will have both hands free, and bonding the whole assembly takes a few minutes instead of a whole evening.