1/48 AMT/ERTL Boston III (early) – Desert Air War Group Build
The DB-7B/Boston Mk III was the exported British version of the Douglas A-20C mid-1941. So many Bostons were modified and assembled on British airfields and elsewhere that it can be difficult to pinpoint the actual airframe model just by looking at a photo. A number of these were shipped to SAAF squadrons in North Africa early on, retaining their RAF dark green and dark brown colors only to be repainted in the field with the new desert colors of middlestone and earth brown using whatever paints were available. Within a few weeks these new camo paint schemes faded considerably and started to look worn after being sanded down by the endless desert sun, sand and wind.
Early Bostons featured cut out “tropical” cowl vents that must have seen like a good idea at the time, but were soon eliminated on later C production models and all Havoc/Boston airframes thereafter. I assume this was due to the desert sand, rocks and critters that got sucked inside. These Bostons with “tropical” vents eventually had them plugged with sheet metal fairings right there on the tarmac in between sorties. Many of these early Bostons sported unpainted metal Hamilton props.
The Plane
I chose to model this desert weary Boston III based on a photo of Z2162 “G” said to be with SAAF No.24 Squadron, most likely based at Zucara Airfield in Libya, late 1941.
Note this plane has unpainted props but does not feature those tropical vents. It is possible they had already been covered over or maybe it's a later C model. I decided to stick with the vents (I already had them) despite not finding any SAAF photos showing them open. I did find several SAAF images of these vents faired over. It's interesting to note that RAAF photos of these planes seem to favor these tropical vents open on all their early Aussie Bostons. Different conditions I suppose.
The Kit
This is AMT/ERTL's venerable Douglas A-20 B/C “Havoc”1994 original boxing plus Red Roo Models resin tropical cowls and exhaust stacks. It's still a great fitting kit after all these years and well worth building. This is my second ERTL Havoc build and I highly recommend it. Italeri has been re-popping A-20 variants of this same kit for years with much better decals.
Construction
You might want to take look at my build thread for all the minute details and helpful hints on how one can improve and modify this AMT/ERTL Boston III from start to finish.
One decal mistake I just noticed too late to correct are the red RAF flash colors on the tail. SAAF flash marks were orange, not red. But I did make sure to dirty up this bird with all the desert grit, sand and crud a Libya based Boston would accumulate fighting the air war over North Africa and the South Mediterranean.
One Last Word
This was a long journey from box to completion but I enjoyed every second of this Desert War Group build. Hats off to everyone else who participated with their own desert builds as well.
Thanks for looking.
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- 1. yes, there's a raft in here
This is a wonderful model my friend Eric! Following your build thread was an utterly enjoyable experience! Thanks for the historical facts!
Congratulations!
Thanks Spiros @fiveten for following along and offering suggestions when I needed them.
I
An amazing result, Eric @eb801
Your build is a perfect match of the original one, which can be clearly seen when comparing with the black/white picture.
Those Bostons do look great in this scheme.
It was a pleasure to follow your thread, learned a lot from it.
Thanks John @johnb. You guys must have iModeler on 24/7 as I just posted this.
@eb801, close to 24/7 🙂 .
You're not alone.
Very nice Eric
Excellent build, it came out looking great. One of my favorite twin engines, I love the scheme you chose for this build!
Thanks Bob @vipro. The SAAF photo above in this post is inspired me. The Havoc and A-26 are my fave twins.
That looks real sharp, Eric. Nice job!
Thanks for the compliment, Gary @gwskat.
Very nice build Eric, @eb801, I enjoyed following along on your build and think the results are great. I really like the colors and how the worked out on this build for you. I keep seeing these built and with two in my stash must find the time to build one of my own.
Yes, you should make time to build one of these kits. It's right up your alley. It's big on the fun factor chart as well, Walt @luftwaffe-birdman. You might be able to use your 3D printer for a few things.
Excellent camo. work, great build!
Thanks Robert @roofrat
Very nice result - it was fun watching this in progress.
One minor tweak you might still be able to make: the single .50 was US aircraft. IIRC, the kit also has the twin 30 mount that is right. (Not a complaint)
TC @tcinla:Glad you followed along and I do appreciate, as always, the tips and guidance you gave me during the course of this build. I did ponder over which gun to use and I forgot how I reached the decision to use the single .50. I guess I didn't see that piece of info about USAAF vs RAF configuration. I will replace it with the twin if I haven't tossed that part in the trash.
Thanks!
Great build! Very nice painting!
Lis @lis - Thanks.
Eric Berg (@eb801)
Your A-20 looks magnificent ! Personally, I like the open cowling look better. These Havocs look excellent in desert colors, and the way you photographed your model in the same position as the original B&W photo looks spot on. I never realized these planes flew with silver props, like the early P-40's did. Very cool !
When I was a kid, I had a school bus driver who flew A-20's during the War. We would talk about the various planes he flew in combat, but he told me that he enjoyed flying the A-20 the best. He said it was a blast to buzz along in it at tree top height. I can only imagine. They had a lot of US Army air crew / pilot training Fields here in Florida so they would have been a common sight to see in the air back then.
I have a few of these AMT kits in the stash, and I built up one in a pre war overall bare metal finish with red and white rudder stripes. It ended up having a strange reaction, and the foil started bubbling up in some places. So I started stripping the foil off, but that's as far as it went. Someday I'll have to drag it back out and finish it up. These are some sweet looking birds, and yours is very inspirational.
I definitely clicked on the "like" button.
Thanks Louis @lgardner. Too bad about that Bare Metal Foil. Much as I like that product I don't think I could pull off a full on foil finish. Yeah, I gather these twin attack A-20's were real hot rods. I redid the profile photo of the model in B&W to match the vintage photo. Indeed these are sweet looking birds. I can see myself building a third one down the road.
This one came out spectacular, Eric (@eb801). I jumped into the middle of your WIP, then totally missed the end. The extra work you did on the cockpit, engines, and nose gear really gives a lot of value added to your kit. Now I want to go and build mine that are in the stash. Well done.
I had a great time putting this one together although I got sucked down the rabbit hole a few times trying to dial this in, George @gblair. In hindsight I still see errors. The position of the kit landing gear is wrong as been noticed by others. Technically speaking, the main gear need to be moved forward and I may have angled the nose gear a bit too much. Regardless these Havoc kits are still terrific, so pull yours out of the stash and get going! Thanks for your comments.
I would have never noticed the gear problem if it had not come up here, Eric (@eb8001). I am trying to pull together the research I need on a specific A-20G, and then it will go into the build queue. Cheers.
Even though I didn’t contribute to your WIP thread, Eric, I thoroughly reading it, and the end result displays all your extra work and research perfectly.
Thanks George @chinesegeorge. It's certainly a far cry from those lovely motorcycles you've been building.
Good one Eric @eb801
The details you spot on this Boston are the fun part of modeling a specific subject right?
Absolutely, Pedro @holzhamer. So much to learn with each build. I find myself acquiring a few more reference books along the way, every time.
Nice work, Eric. Great paintwork.
Thank you sir. @j-healy
Nicely done Eric, one of my favorite models to build and fun too as you mentioned. Great A/C that performed well during the war but received little to no fame. Good job on this one.
Grazie Tom @tom-bebout. These were real hot rods. Let's hope no one destroys the one flying Havoc left on the airshow circuit.
Very nice work.
Appreciate it, Martin @matra.
Very nice results on this A-20, Eric. As others have said, I really like the tropical cowls. All the other additions and tweaks you've made are subtly notable and add to the overall impression.
While the AMT kit is not perfect, it will be interesting to see how its value for the money holds up against the forthcoming HK A-20G. Word on the street is that a 1/48 will follow the 1/32 kit.
Thanks Andrew @pb_lengend. From what I’ve seen of the 32nd previews, HK will blow the ERTL kit to obsolescence if a 48th scale version is released. But the price will probably be triple that of the Italeri boxing.
That's what I suspect as well. Only time will tell! In the meantime, you and I at least have A-20's in our collection to be proud of. 🙂
You certainly can be proud of yours which I studied several times. Have you built more than one? This makes two on my shelves for me.
Changing the subject, I will be tackling the Dora Wings Curtis Jeep next. I finally got it out of the box and have washed the sprues, so here I go.
Just the one @eb801, I simply meant A-20's to mean collectively.
On the Jeep, just mind the fitment of the windscreen and doors very carefully before committing to paint. You'll have to remove a good bit of molding seams to get them to fit correctly, and the real bugger is that the windscreen forms half the door jam, so you have to risk setting the doors into place after the canopy is glues to the fuselage. Also, I highly recommend test fitting the cowls as best as you can before paint, mine didn't quite align. As Tom C always says, treat it like a limited run kit and you'll be fine. 🙂
Super nice Andrew. Masterfully done.
Thanks Bernard. Both Andrew and I have build one each.
@eb801, Another "knock out" Eric! 🤩 I love that model, and the type too, and that's a great replica! WWII twins are a favorite subject of mine. Your beauty here inspires me to try a few of my stash queens. Thanks for posting the article, and for the inspiration (heaven knows I need it! 😉)! And, I will bookmark your build thread for future reference my friend! 😃
Thanks Gary @garybrantley. Don't you have one of these in your stash? I'm still waiting to see your Bulldog completed. I find just gluing one piece gets me going again.
@eb801, You're welcome EB! Yep, got one of those, along with the Monogram B25 and B26. Man, would I love having all three of those built! 😀
I'm still putzing along on the Bulldog. Down to straps and ropes and tarps, and assorted stowage gear. Mostly, all that's left at this point. Realistically "strapping" down stuff has been harder than I expected; had to develop a couple ideas for that part. 😉 😊
Fantastic model & subject. Liked.
Really appreciate you "liking" this, Doug @eydugstr
A great-looking Boston! Looks great in the desert scheme. Well done.
Thanks Greg @gkittinger. You know, Special Hobby has a couple of good looking Havocs available in your scale.
The one I have on my shelf now is the old Matchbox kit, and was one of my earliest builds when I reentered the hobby. I love the book "Wreaking Havoc" - great read!
A bit late in getting back to you Greg @gkittinger Thanks for the book recommendation. I am aware of that book and have been trying to find a used copy but no luck so far. I wonder if the SH Havocs have any relation to those old Matchbox kits.