Here it is, as promised during the last few weeks. This is the 1:48 scale B-24D Liberator from Revell. This model kits has its age but has managed the test of time based on previous Revell models I’ve built from around the same molding period. The kit comes with some vintage 1/48 scale figures that most likely you have or will see in other Revell models. This model is big, so make sure you have some shelf space ready for it. Tip to tip, the wingspan is 27 3/8” inches (68.58 cm approx). There are a few 1/72 scale options from Hasegawa, Airfix and Mini Craft in case you don’t have enough display space or your scale of choice are the later.
Revell 1/48 Consolidated B-24D Liberator
Every part falls in place without much fuss for a kit this age. If you like to super detail, the kit at this size offers a great canvas for resin and scratch built accessories. I’m no a scratch build expert, yet I managed to add brake lines and some minor goodies. There is no way to see what’s inside once you join the fuselage, but if you want to see what this model offers, check the instructions page from Revell here. Wing to fuselage fit without a problem, but the rear stabilizer has a pronounced gap.
You can use the filler of your choice, but I chose A+B epoxy (see pictures). It can be applied even when the model is already painted and touch up the area without having to sand and reconstruct the model’s raised panel lines.
My major challenge with this model kit was the frontal clear canopy. It has 3 machine guns protruding from it. Since this clear part fits so nicely with the aircraft fuselage, I did paint it separately. It made the process of gluing the machine guns in place without having to mask them. Trust me, this method saved me a lot of time not to mention the hassle of having on of those machine guns going loose inside with the canopy previously glued.
Since the moment I’ve got the B-24D Liberator kit, I wanted to have it with the Strawberry Bitch markings. Decals came from Mike Grant’s Decals and frankly, they are high-quality transfers (Kudos to Mike Grant). The best suitable pink color straight out of the bottle to paint the Strawberry Bitch is Polly Scale US Sand A/N616 (FS05084). If your choice of paint for your model kits is enamel, then Humbrol 250 Desert Pink can do the job as well.
This B-24 would have been another run of the mill aircraft S/N 42-72843. But as soon as it received its distinctive ‘Pinkish’ Desert Tan color, it became part of a smaller group of B-24’s flying missions over North Africa from 1943 to 1944 with the 512th Bomb Squadron.
On August 1st, 1943, this aircraft took part in one of the most famous missions of its career. The raid on the oil refinery at Ploesti, Romania. The B-24 Strawberry Bitch does have a great mission trajectory worth of reading. Today, this beautiful aircraft has a well deserved resting place at the Wright Patterson Airforce Base in Dayton, Ohio.
Word has it that the B-24 Strawberry Bitch currently on display at the Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton Ohio, is haunted by several ghosts. Visitors of the museum claim a sensation of someone looking over their shoulders. Reportedly, that the belly guns sometimes rattle and an incident where a museum custodian was punched in his face.
Length: 66 ft. 4 in.
Height: 17 ft. 11 in.
Weight: 56,000 lbs. loaded
Armament: Eleven .50-cal. machine guns [nose, left & right cheek, top turret (2), ball turret (2), left and right waist and tail (2)] plus a normal maximum load of 8,000 lbs. of bombs
Engines: Four Pratt & Whitney R-1830s of 1,200 hp. ea.
Cost: $336,000
Serial Number: 42-7284
