1/72 Testors B-2 Spirit

by Scott Vomacka

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This is my build of the Testors B-2 Spirit stealth bomber. The kit is not that great, and allot of seam work had to be done to make the model look presentable. I had to use shims in the wings to fill the large gaps that were there. I then applied three light coats of super glue and putty to the joints and sanded them smooth. I used a Eduard photo etch set for this model that included details for the cockpit and the weapons bay doors. The weapons bay had no detail in it so I added some framing to the side walls and some wiring to the SRAM launcher.  I added hydraulic tubing to the landing gear as well. I also filled in the small segment lines on the leading edge. They are not on the block 30 aircraft. The leading edge is all one smooth continuous piece.

I applied three light coats of Model Master Acryl gunship gray so as to not lose too much surface detail. Then I applied two coats of MM Acryl gloss coat for a nice shinny surface for the decals. I wanted to do an in service Block 30 aircraft. However I could not get decals for one. (Last year) So I decided to make my own. I created the numbers using decal paper and my ink jet printer and used a ACC badge from an 1/72 Monogram B-1B kit. The other markings were from the kit. Unfortunately I could not create the markings for the gear doors, so I left them. After the decals, I applied three light coats of Acryl flat coat to seal everything and to give it that nice uniform finish.

I am proud of the seven months I spent working on this model. It has won two awards at two local contests in New Jersey. The kit was not exactly builder friendly, but the hard work paid off in the end. 

Scott

Photos and text © by Scott Vomacka