New pics of an old model…
... other pics posted here before, but as Black History Month comes to a close soon, I thought an homage to the Tuskegee Airmen was in order. No 72, "Ina the Macon Belle", flown by Lee Archer- One half of the 332nd's "Gruesome Twosome", the other half being Wendell Pruitt. I've another Tamiya P-51B in the stash and plan on Pruitt's No. 73, "Alice Jo" in the near future.
4 additional images. Click to enlarge.
Ben Walmsley said on February 22, 2021
Nice pony Stan. I love the look of the red tail mustangs, simple yet striking. Yours is sweet!
Tom Cleaver said on February 22, 2021
Good work here and a very nice result. Really excellent NMF.
Stan Traas said on February 22, 2021
Nuttin' like BMF for NMF! Wings are alum lacquer as prototype.
Haslam Yeoman said on February 22, 2021
I really like the contrast between the BMF and lacquer. The dark background is also very effective.
Steven Brandon said on February 22, 2021
Excellent! Filling in the wing panel lines was worth the effort, in my opinion, as it emphasizes just how sleek the Mustang was.
It's been a long time since I read Benjamin O. Davis' autobiography. I should get it out and put it in my reading queue.
John vd Biggelaar said on February 22, 2021
Beautiful Red tail Mustang, Stan.
Love the paintwork on this build.
Spiros Pendedekas said on February 22, 2021
Two thumbs-up from me too, Stan!
Greg Fabian said on February 22, 2021
Great looking P-51. When my father was in the Air Force, Gen. Davis was his CO (this was in the 60's) at one time . I still have my dad's signed copy of the Davis biography.
Greg Kittinger said on February 22, 2021
Definitely worth seeing again! That's a great-looking Red-Tail.
John Krukowski said on February 22, 2021
I had the pleasure of briefly meeting Charles McGee (Kitten) and Lee Archer (Ina the Macon Belle) some years back at Oshkosh. I have a book I take with me for autographs and they both graciously signed it for me.
No matter who it is, even George McGovern, they always sign along with the unit they were with. George McGovern flew B-24's with the 15th AF and signed my book accordingly.
McGee is always the kind gentleman, and Archer was still a real pistol. They were speaking at a small tent setup with the Tuskegee Airmen for anyone who'd gather 'round. Lee Archer was hilarious.
Looking forward to seeing this again along with Alice Jo together someday. Both are in my decal library too.
Robert Royes said on February 22, 2021
Nicely done.
Tom Bebout said on February 23, 2021
Well done Stan, several years ago I did a series of models of the A/C the Tuskegee airmen flew. P-40, P-39, P-47 and P-51B and C models. Had the chance to meet John Leahr and Herb Heilbrun at a book signing here in Cincinnati, both have since passed away. Together they wrote a book titled "Black and White Airmen" . They discovered years after the war that not only had they been in the same 3rd grade class in Cincinnati, but John had flown cover missions for Herb's B-17 Squadron. Quite a story, both were really decent gentlemen.
1 attached image. Click to enlarge.
Stan Traas said on February 23, 2021
Thanks for that really cool story Tom! Hopefully the world can become just a tiny bit better every day.
DE4EVER said on February 23, 2021
🙂 ... Greetings ... 🙂 :
A very clean job and a fitting tribute to the RED TAILS Stan.
Nice work on the finish, very well done.
Stan Traas said on February 23, 2021
Thanks to all for the kind comments!
Cheers,
Stan