1/48 Monogram Pro-Modeler P-47N
I am a huge fan of the old Revell-Monogram "Pro-Modeler" kits. Obviously no longer produced, but if you keep your eyes peeled, you can find these gems at garage and estate sales, even The Goodwill or Cost Plus. Great kits with nice molding, no flash. I found this one at a local modeling club's annual swap meet. I paid $10!
The P-47N was the last variant of the Thunderbolt towards the end of WWII, seeing combat mainly in the PTO. Note the "squared off" wing tips, the main difference from the earlier variants. Used as a fighter of course, but mostly for ground support. The engineering for the F-86, used in Korea less than ten years later, drove off of the heavy air frame of the Thunderbolt.
The kit was a joy to build, very little fit issues as is typical with these older Pro-Modeler kits. The decals were pretty shot. The only ones I used from the original sheet were the stripes on the tail surface, and then I had to painstakingly piece them together on the model as they had broken up in the water, but I could not find any after market for this particular squadron. Somewhere over the Pacific Northwest, a very long chain of obscenities still floats...
You gotta LOVE "The Jug"!
Excellent Jug, Joe!
What a great job on the Pro Modeler kit!
Thanks Spiros!
looks great! I have fond memories of building this one many years ago. . . bummer about the decals but it looks like it all came together in the end. Well done!
Thanks David!
Nice looking Jug, well done Joe.
Thanks Tom!
I’ve always been a fan of Monograms kits and your build demonstrates why. I still prefer this kit over the Academy kit. I have built one and a half of the Monogram kits. My dog at the time ran out of plastic food bowls to chew up and decided to pilfer the fuselage off the workbench to satisfy his plastic cravings.
Oh my! Sounds like you need a more "kinder, gentler" bench buddy!
1 attached image. Click to enlarge.
Congrats- the Monogram 1/48 P-47N is a great kit- overlooked a bit. I built one because as a young lad, I built the Heller 1/72 P-47N, and learned about that version as a result of that build! Enjoyed finding some aftermarket decals for my kit, and a photo of the actual plane to confirm the markings- it was great. You did an excellent job on yours!
Thanks Dan!
This is a beauty of a Jug, Joe @jboyla
Great wortk on this old kit.
Thanks John!
Really nice result. I have always thought this kit, with all its "problems" still makes up into the best P-47N if you keep your wits about you. It was also released in 10 years ago or so by Revellm same plastic, different decals.
The true story about why the P-47N didn't show up in Korea - it was really wanted, for its "survivability, one F-51 pilot later said that before every takeoff he used to say "Lord, make this an F-47" - was because it was only used by two state ANGs by then (Hawaii and Georgia) and the airplanes were really run-down, and there were almost no spare parts left. All the other stories about it being too costly for the Air Force to send to Korea are basically BS.
Very nice result on this. Definitely "Liked"
I have the kit with the Three Guys Replicas sheet to do "2 Big and 2 Heavy/Short Snorter" from the 319th.
Thanks Tom for the additional history. Amazing the size of the engine in it!
Great looking T-Bolt, Joe. Love the beautiful tail paint.
I only hear nice things about the Pro-Modeler kits, nice work.
Thanks George. The black on the tail is decals pieced back together after "blowing up" in the water!
Very nice - had a nice weathered look to it. Well done.
Thanks Greg!
Who doesn't love a nice jug? looks great!
Thanks Robert!
Looks very good. Decals can be problematic in old kits.