AMT 1/48 A-20B
Posted: Sat Oct 26, 2024 8:30 pm
This has been a slow project that is starting to get a little momentum. The kit can be built as a B or C version, I have another kit to build the C version. Actually as is usual for me I have kits for the G, H, J, and P-70, as AMT was kind enough to do them all. I'll pass on the Turbinelite as it is best forgotten as a bad idea.
I am using the Vector cockpit and an instrument panel from Yahu. All in all it wasn't much fun to do but looks pretty good. I'll just use the Yahu panel on the rest of them and do them canopy closed. One opened up is enough. I made a mold from the life raft in the Vector kit so I can add resin copies of that on the rest of the A-20's as AMT didn't supply any.
I had to build up the landing gear so I could figure out how much weight to add. It seemed easiest to build it in place, as there was warpage and one or two minor breaks, these are very delicate parts. Would have been nice to have another hand but once together it all looks good. AMT said to paint the bottom of the wing in the nacelle zinc chromate green, and the insides of the nacelles neutral grey. Made no sense to me so I painted it all green. The landing gear parts are neutral grey, though.
I used very small lead shot fixed in place with canopy glue, and tested the balance by taping all the major parts together. Looks like it will work, and all the additional weight to be added will be forward of the main gear. AMT had a really unclear instruction on installing the bombs, I ended up clipping off a bit of the frame on one end and then gluing it to the back of the nose wheel bay and to the front of the gunner compartment bulkhead. The gear doors and bomb bay doors are all molded to build the model gear up and have to be split down the middle. I did that with a Tamiya scribing tool. Never mind the thin paint on the top of the bombs, I promise I did better on the bottom of them.
Boring OD and NG scheme, but I did use two different OD's. Maybe some staining and weathering will liven it up some. It has been a nice fitting kit once I got past the cockpit additions.
A few more shades of green and some markings painted on. Trying to get some fading and modulation going. It's not easy for me to see but the flying surfaces are edged in a random dark green.
I am using the Vector cockpit and an instrument panel from Yahu. All in all it wasn't much fun to do but looks pretty good. I'll just use the Yahu panel on the rest of them and do them canopy closed. One opened up is enough. I made a mold from the life raft in the Vector kit so I can add resin copies of that on the rest of the A-20's as AMT didn't supply any.
I had to build up the landing gear so I could figure out how much weight to add. It seemed easiest to build it in place, as there was warpage and one or two minor breaks, these are very delicate parts. Would have been nice to have another hand but once together it all looks good. AMT said to paint the bottom of the wing in the nacelle zinc chromate green, and the insides of the nacelles neutral grey. Made no sense to me so I painted it all green. The landing gear parts are neutral grey, though.
I used very small lead shot fixed in place with canopy glue, and tested the balance by taping all the major parts together. Looks like it will work, and all the additional weight to be added will be forward of the main gear. AMT had a really unclear instruction on installing the bombs, I ended up clipping off a bit of the frame on one end and then gluing it to the back of the nose wheel bay and to the front of the gunner compartment bulkhead. The gear doors and bomb bay doors are all molded to build the model gear up and have to be split down the middle. I did that with a Tamiya scribing tool. Never mind the thin paint on the top of the bombs, I promise I did better on the bottom of them.
Boring OD and NG scheme, but I did use two different OD's. Maybe some staining and weathering will liven it up some. It has been a nice fitting kit once I got past the cockpit additions.
A few more shades of green and some markings painted on. Trying to get some fading and modulation going. It's not easy for me to see but the flying surfaces are edged in a random dark green.
