Douglas SBD 3, Norman "Dusty" Kleiss during the Battle of Midway – 1/72 Testor
This is my rendition of the Norman “Dusty” Kleiss SBD 3 Dauntless during the Battle of Midway (June 4-6, 1942). He was the only Navy dive bomber pilot to land his main bomb (500 lb) on three different Japanese warships (Kaga, Hiryu and Mikuma) and all subsequently sunk. He was a member of Scouting 6 on the USS Enterprise carrier (the most famous fighting US warship of all time). His radioman/gunner was John Snowden. He received the Navy Cross for his actions in this turning point battle in the Pacific.
The kit is a Testor SBD 5 number 693 which was released in 1984. Inside the fuselage is the name “Hawk” in raised letters. A little digging discovered this mold is from 1956. Not bad for a nearly 70 year old mold. The detail is very much lacking but not surprising considering its age. Since Dusty's plane was a SBD 3 and not a SBD 5, I had to do some surgery.
- Cut the air scoop above the engine cowling.
- Add the aiming scope to the front of the cockpit.
- Add the pointed propeller hub.
- Add the circular wheel hub covers.
Additional upgrades;
- after market 30 caliber gun barrels.
- added .010” wheel covers to replace the too thick originals.
- added wire to the antenna/rudder (appears too thick, oh well).
- added hypodermic needles for 50 caliber guns.
- added bare metal foil (chrome) for the shock absorbers.
- Used Testors decal paper for Dusty's SBD 3.
- Cut open the canopy.
- First time using the Galaxy rivet tool.
I did plenty of research (thanks to the internet) to find as many period SBD 3's as I could to get as close to the real thing. The kit came with a 1000lb instead of the correct 500lb (so that's incorrect).
https://imodeler.com/2022/01/douglas-sbd3-june-4-6-1942-uss-enterprise-scouting-six-dusty-kleiss-s-7/. I hope you enjoy.
Nice work on a super oldie, Mike!
I don't know how many of these Tester kits I've built, but none looked any where near as good as this one. Nicely done, Mike! @micrometer
Outstanding work on that old of kit.
Excellent job and really great result on this oldie, Mike!
Well done!
Very impressive result, Mike @micrometer
Great work on the surgeries and the upgrades.
Thank you all!
Way to bring one of these old kits alive! Looks great.