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I Finally Finished The Aurora 1/48 P-38


thevid

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  I wanted to see if I could build a broken relic into something presentable. I learned about the P-38 when I build this kit as a child and I would fly it around outside shooting down me109s and what have you. The copy I had at that time was molded in glossy OD plastic. I decided to find a copy and I did.

I found some busted up kits for sale on eBay. The P-38 was one of them and is molded in metallic blue. It was missing the tail plane, props and spinners and balance weights. I asked for parts from the club membership and a member sent me a complete Monogram P-38 kit for parts.

So here are photos showing the progress. It is one of Aurora's more accurate 1/48 models and I wanted a simple stand build; but, there was lots and lots of sanding and filling. To my surprise the Monogram replacement parts fit perfectly. I carefully removed the yellowed canopy and polished it. There is no cockpit just a molded on pilot, and rudimentary instrument panel and radio. The canopy is more like a helmet in that it sits atop the cockpit and is oversized. The only thing I could do at this point was adding putty and sanding down the sides so that it fitted properly. I glued the canopy with clear Gorilla Glue and it made a good bond without crazing the plastic. The clear canopy is missing some frame lines so I used decal strips to create those missing frames. None of the intakes are open so I just used a large sharpie to paint them black. I painted the model with Tamiya Green Drab and Mission Models Neutral Gray. The markings are from an Aeromaster sheet on OD P-38s. The props are held in place with blue-tac putty. Thanks for looking.

12 additional images. Click to enlarge.

Aurora P-38 001sm.jpg

Aurora P-38 004sm.jpg

Aurora P-38 build 001cc.jpg

Aurora P-38 build 004cc.jpg

Aurora P-38 Process 001_4x6.jpg

Aurora P-38 Process 004_4x6.jpg

P-38 CP3R1596.jpg

P-38 CP3R1598.jpg

P-38 CP3R1603.jpg

P-38 CP3R1606.jpg

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43 minutes ago, RCTHEFOX said:

I can also remember building those old Aurora kits. However, I've never one restored to that level. EXCELLENT WORK!

Hey Fox,

 

Thank for you very much.  I'm happy with the results.  I saw a better restoration in a now defunct retro modeling group,  The best thing I did was fair the canopy to the rear spine.  It was way too big.  I used Magic Putty and it sanded smoothly.

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You need to change your screen name to Rumplestiltskin, because you just spun that old kit of straw into gold with your rebuild. Excellent work David!👍🏼👍🏼 

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2 hours ago, Stikpusher said:

You need to change your screen name to Rumplestiltskin, because you just spun that old kit of straw into gold with your rebuild. Excellent work David!👍🏼👍🏼 

Thanks Carlos, it's not quite IPMS compatible but it sure was a pleasure to get it done.  I have other rate kits that a club member gave me that will see the light of day.  One is the Revell box scale P2 Nepture and the other is the Convair Tradewind.  Both vintage 1950s kits.

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On 2/12/2022 at 9:47 PM, ghodges said:

Gotta add my kudos as THAT old kit is NOT supposed to come close to looking like an authentic Lightning! Congrats on an impressive update!

GIL :cool:

Thank you Gil!  I really appreciate it.

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On 2/13/2022 at 11:53 AM, dmorrissette said:

Great work "polishing a turd". Shows that almost anything can be built and come out great

 

Dave

Thanks, after this I have no fear of attempting any more rebuilds.

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On 2/13/2022 at 1:11 AM, johneaton said:

Very nice, David.  I too enjoy rebuilding some of the old kits.  One I did recently is the XFV-1 by Aurora.

Hi John,  

Thanks!  I think I began with simple Airfix kits 30 years ago when I realized that in their simplicity a decent model could be made with care and modern tools.  Now I've regressed to much older kits that are as old or older than me.

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  • 2 weeks later...

THAT is so cool!! Well done!

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  • 1 month later...
On 2/12/2022 at 5:44 PM, thevid said:

Thanks Carlos, it's not quite IPMS compatible but it sure was a pleasure to get it done.  I have other rate kits that a club member gave me that will see the light of day.  One is the Revell box scale P2 Nepture and the other is the Convair Tradewind.  Both vintage 1950s kits.

Don't ever let anyone tell you your work is not IPMS compatible.

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