This is the AMT 1.72
scale B52H of the 92nd bombardment wing at Fairchild AFB Washington, it was the
744th and last B-52 to be accepted by the USAF. The kit is huge, it was an effort
to build it in my workshop. Detail is ok, but lacks in a couple of areas
especially the engines. I added a little extra detail to the cockpit
including seatbelts and the silver curtains which are prominent on the real
thing. I used aluminium foil to do both. The fuselage comes in four sections
which took a little time to line up. I removed some plastic from the front
and rear sections, to get a good join dry fitting as I went, time doing this is
well spent or the join will be very visable.
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images below to see larger images
The kits other
problem is the wings, if you build is as per the instructions the wing tip
wheels do not touch the ground. To get over this I carved some plastic from the
wing spar which helps to attach the wings to the fuselage, this allows the wings
to droop. The resulting gap was filled and sanded rescribing any lost
detail. The kit flaps are moulded up (although internal detail is
present?). I cut them off
and scratch built them in the lowered position, for this I used plastic
card and filler and lots of reference photos. They're not strictly accurate, but
they give the kit a busy feel.
Humbrol enamels were
used throughout sprayed over thin cardboard masks to get the camoflaged
effect. Pastels were used for weathering and to accentuate the panel lines
especially on the engines (to give an impression of more detail than there really
is). The finished kit sits on a chipboard base spayed to resemble a picture
I have
of a B-52 sitting on its concrete apron. To give an idea of the finished kits size, the
base is almost a meter square. Currently be biggest kit in my collection. I
am really pleased with the result.
Warren
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images below to see larger images
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