Monogram B-24D "Sleepy / The Squaw" Bond Tour Markings in 1/48th Scale
I have always really liked the B-24 and have built a few of these kits over the years. Ungainly looking, and never getting the love from the press and many aircrews that the B-17 did, I still love it. When I was young I read a lot of books, and Log of the Liberator by Steve Birdsall really made an impression on me. I then looked up and read about the low level mission against Ploesti, learning more and more, about the mission, the men and the machines that flew the mission. The story of Lady Be Good fascinated me, and even led me to draw the plane as a kid.
The B-24 served in every theater of war, and where the B-17 didn't. In the Pacific Theater, what B-17's were there were either withdrawn or used up until all gone by attrition. Being replaced by the B-24. In India flying countless missions over the Hump, every where the war went the B-24 was there. Produced in greater numbers than any other combat plane, rolling off the Willow Run Factory at peak production at the rate of one B-24 per hour. Truly a lot of remarkable information and history surrounds the B-24 plane.
The Squaw, flew with the 343rd Bomb Squadron, of the 98th Bomb Group, in the 9th Air Force. Originally it had been named Sleepy when it was part of the 8th Air Force, but when transferred to the 98th Bomb Group it was renamed The Squaw, but it still retained Sleepy on the port side of the fuselage. The Squaw flew in many missions, including the famous Ploesti low level mission along with the famous Blue Streak.
The Squaw and The Blue Streak returned to the United States but before the return, the artwork on the The Squaw was changed. Sleepy was over painted and a map of the Mediterranean with mission markers was painted along with the squadron badge. The squaw herself was replaced with a more wholesome and clothed squaw. One of the more interesting markings added to the plane were puffs with bullets at all points of battle damage the plane had sustained during its combat missions. This led to rather colorful and very interesting markings for the plane. Also, this plane was originally painted OD and then at a depot painted in the Sand color that faded to the famous “Desert Pink” that I tried to replicate by mixing pink and tan paint together.
I first saw a model of this plane on another modeling site, where a gentleman in Mexico was building this plane. I did a search for the decals but they never showed up, but after some further research I discovered the decals were in the European Revell release of Monograms B-24D in kit number 04529. I put a call out here on iModeler and low and behold a fellow iModeler and friend Spiros Pendedekas, @fiveten has the kit and clips the decals from his sheet and mails them halfway around the world to me. Thanks again Spiros.
Much has been said about the kit, its not perfect but it is very typical of 1970's Monogram kits. It looks good has lots of detail with some imperfections or errors. Still when you build it there in no doubt when you are done, it is a B-24, and with a little work looks really good. I scribed the panel lines, scratched some parts for the interior, used a little photo etch and best of all drew and 3D printed my own parts. All of the 50 Caliber machine guns except for the upper turret which only has barrels, were printed. I printed an interior for the tail turret, new bomb bay doors, interior parts and the boxes I am using to support the tail.
If you are interested at all in seeing the build, which started over a year ago, you can view it here, https://imodeler.com/groups/work-in-progress-aircraft/forum/topic/monogram-1-48-b-24d-the-squaw-sleepy-but-which-version/
I present “The Squaw” still in North Africa but prepared for her bond tour, in late 1943.
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- 1. My Lady Be Good from when I was 16 yrs old.
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- 1. A color photograph that I used to create my drawing.
I really loved following this Walt @luftwaffe-birdman. Beautiful work, lots of skill and talent on display and a great result with this.
Excellent looking Liberator, Walt @luftwaffe-birdman
You did an awesome job on the paintwork, and the other parts as well. Wonderful that Spiros @fiveten was able to submit you these decals.
The supporting article and your building thread are a pleasure to read, a huge source of helpful information.
Well done, Walt! The hue of the main color is spectacular, followed up with some great weathering. Again, nice job.
Thanks Gary, @gwskat, from the start I was worried about getting the color right. I was pretty happy with the color when I was working with it, but when I finally put some Dulcote on it I really liked it.
Remarkable work, Walt. I enjoyed your write-up, reviewing your photos, and can see the skill and patience you put into this Liberator. Really nice job with canopy lines, that must have been quite a challenge. That is quite a model!
Absolutely STUNNING! A flawless rendition of one of the most aesthetically pleasing heavy bombers of WW II. This is a museum quality model. Well done, Walt.
Absolutely amazing, my friend Walt! Having followed your thread from the start, I can only stand in awe looking at your excellent job with attention paid down to the slightest detail. AND, I really feel proud that my decals are on such a wonderful model.
Congratulations!
Thanks again Spiros, @fiveten, I hope I am able to return the favor someday. This is a good example of what a community of modelers can do for each other.
Nice work, Walt!
Spectacular build, Walt (@luftwaffe-birdman). It was a real pleasure following along on your journey with this monster kit. Your research and craftsmanship really shows. I have been intrigued with the loss of the Lady Be Good since I was a kid. I am old enough to remember the TV shows they did after they recovered the crew.
Thanks George, @gblair, I was fortunate enough with my dad being in the Air Force and had a film library on base. I would constantly bug my dad to check out movies for me on the weekends. He would check out a projector and 16mm films about the airwar during WWII. I got to see stuff back then that was not available to the public until the advent of the the internet, and the History Channel on cable/satelitte TV. I saw the film made about the Ploesti raid and was absolutely amazed and awestruck by what those men and machines went through. I thank my dad for supporting me in my interests and hobby.
Amazing to say the least. An inspirational build on so many levels. Thanks so much for sharing this!
Yep - what they all said! She is a beauty! Everything about the build is excellently executed.
Great work..
Bravo, Walt@luftwaffe-birdman. Absolutely outstanding.
All I can say Walt is that that is a terrific inspiration to anyone looking to put a bunch of effort into a quarter scale B-24. I love the chosen scheme as well as ALL the added detail. Congrats on a beautiful build.
Wow, great build! Your artwork at 16 reaps talent.
Well done, Walt, all your hard work, skill, research, and photography have combined to give an outstanding result.
You have made a great looking B-24! The desert scheme always looks right on this aircraft, your overall finish is amazing!
Great Work! I'm impressed!
Walt B (@luftwaffe-birdman)
Wow ! This turned out fantastic 🙂
I especially like how the "Desert Pink" looks. I think it was a good move to spray it with the Dullcoat. Your weathering and "dirt / dust" are like icing on the cake. I also think that your 3D printed parts bring this old girl up another notch or two, sort of like putting on a set of Cragar, Centerline, or Weld Wheel mags on an old muscle car.
Have you had any luck with sourcing the decals for "The Blue Streak" ? I can see myself building that one up along with "The Dragon and It's Tail" as future projects.
I had to place a temporary hold on my "Tubarao", but once I finish up the 1/32 scale Revell Mustangs I will get cracking on it again. I have the scratch built portions of the landing gear wells almost wrapped up. I wanted to get the Preddy Mustang done in time so I could post it in the headlines section here on Christmas Day, since this is the day he was shot down and killed by American AAA over the front. I hope you understand.
It was a lot of fun watching and participating with you and Spiros as you guys built yours up too. Thanks for including me with this group.
Take care my friend.
Thanks Louis, @lgardner, I appreciate yours and all the other fellow iModeler's comments. I am still working to get "The Blue Streak" Decals, and will keep you informed if I get them. I look forward to following your build of "Tubarao" and seeing it join us here on the Front Page! Thanks again for the kind and encouraging words.
Love it !
Walt that's one fine looking B-24. And as others have noted she looks great in that desert paint. Like you I was fascinated when they found Lady Be Good in the desert. Stirred up lots of questions as to what happened to the crew and how did she get there, which has now been explained. Parts of the Lady are on display in the USAF Museum beside the B-24 Strawberry B***h. Once again excellent job on that twin tail heavy.
Incredible B-24. Liked.
Excellent work on this model, I think it’s the best B-24 model I’ve seen . The drawing you did is nice too!
Thanks, Jay, @ssgt, I appreciate you going back to take a look. The drawing is from my Sophomore year of High School. I often spent my study hall time drawing.
That was time wisely used in study hall , Walt.