Bunker Hill TBM-3 Avenger
This is the second of two kits I bought at an old-fashioned hobby shop in Staunton, VA (the first was an Academy SDB-1 Dauntless). If you're in the area, I highly recommend stopping by and looking at their stock. The shop is in downtown Staunton on Beverly Street. There's also a web site and the store owner ship kits anywhere. I'll leave it up to you, dear reader, to find the web address as I don't want to make this posting into an advert for a small business.
In any case, let's get on to the kit. This is Academy's release of the Accurate Miniatures 1:48 scale TBM-3 Avenger. This kit came with Cartograph decals, which worked beautifully. Unlike the SDB-1 kit, it did not come with a canopy mask. That's OK in my book because I'm a glutton for punishment when it comes to painting canopies.
Some say this kit is over-engineered, and, of course, they are correct. I will take an over-engineered kit rather than an under engineered kit any day of the week. The interior is well detailed, but that didn't stop me from buying an Eduard add-on to upgrade the instrument panel and the other electronics located in the radio operator's compartment (which you can see if you look into the open hatch).
If I had to do this model over again, I would first point my browser to Scalemates.com and download the original Accurate Miniatures instructions for this kit. They are much better than the Academy instructions, which, in my opinion, have much to be desired. For example, the AM instructions give detailed written instructions for assembling and installing the gun turret whereas the Academy instructions gives only an exploded diagram. If I had gone to Scalemates to begin with, I would be able to elevate the gun and traverse the turret instead of having it frozen in place like it is now. But then again, “this is a scale model and not a toy”, as my father told a young me as a kid.
This model depicts a TBM-3 flying from the USS Bunker Hill (CV-17). The Bunker Hill, along with the Franklin, were the only Essex class carriers that were never modernized, probably because of the damaged the sustained in combat operations.
The Avenger has always intrigued me. For one, it's a huge plane. Larger and heavier (by some 400 pounds) than a P-47 Thunderbolt, the Avenger was the best torpedo bomber the US had during WWII. As depicted in this model, the Avenger is showing its chops as a close air support platform carrying four 500-pound bombs and eight rockets under the wings. The P-47 wasn't too shabby either in the fighter-bomber role.
Not only does the Avenger have a bomb bay (how cool is that), but there's also a turret equipped with .50 cal machine gun (an engineering marvel of the time) and a .30 cal in a ventral mount manned by the radio operator who lived in the belly of the beast.
The pilot is physically separated from the rest of the crew. There's no way to reach him after takeoff. I imagine the Avenger is somewhat of a deathtrap, too. While researching, I learned that the radio compartment wasn't armored, so the radio operator was vulnerable, and many were wounded. Also, one article I read said there were no recorded accounts of a turret gunner successfully bailing out of a turret. From what I could see from this model, the turret was a very tight squeeze. I'm not sure if I would have liked to have been a crewman on an Avenger.
Getting back to the model, I used a combination of Tamiya and Valejo paints with a topcoat of Mr. Color flat clear. I tried to use a light hand on the weathering, but I didn't want the plane to look like it just came from the factory.
You can build two versions of the Avenger from the kit – the other being a plane from the USS Essex. Since the Essex version requires painting a “double diamond” figure on the vertical stabilizer and on the wings, I chose the Bunker Hill version since the Arrow was rendered using the supplied decals.
It took me about three months to complete this kit, working a couple of hours each week. This will probably be the last model for a few months since I've run out of room to display them.
Nice work! interior looks great. Good idea about downloading the original instructions
Thanks!
Very nice. I was forewarned about the instructions when I built mine
They should put a warning sticker on the box about the instructions.
lovely! I appreciate the side by side comparison with the P-47.
Thanks, the Avenger really is kind of a monster in size.
Bunker Hill and Franklin weren't the only Essex class never modernized. USS Tarawa CV-40 was mothballed in 1949 and never modernized. I used to see it often down at the 32nd Street Naval Station in San Diego. I think she was stricken in 1966 or so.
You're right that the Accurate Miniatures instructions are better for this kit. Getting the turret in place without those instructions is well nigh impossible. (as you discovered)
Nice work on this and a great result.
Thanks. I'm almost tempted to build another one. Maybe the Trumpeter 1/32 version next time.
You're right about the Tarawa never being modernized, my source (Wikipedia) and I were mistaken. She was scrapped in 1968.
Splendid work on this Avenger. @gwfabian
Thank you!
Excellent work on the Avenger, Greg @gwfabian
Especially the work done on the interior.
Thanks. Thought I was going to go blind working with the Eduard PE parts.
Very nice!
Thank you, Lis!
G’day Greg (@gwfabian),
Great build.
I’m in the middle of building a RNZAF build from the Italeri boxing. I’ve had similar issues with the instructions and also found the them on Scalemates.
Happy New Year from 2024 here in Oz!
Liked!
Happy New Year, Michael!
Looking forward to seeing your build.
Nicely done Greg, after building 2 of the AM offerings I'm a proud promoter of this kit. The ball turret can be a little tricky but once you carefully review the instructions it pops right in. That cockpit you did looks really nice. Still have a -3 in the stash but will probably sell it as these bad boys take up a lot of shelf space. Again good job.
Thanks, Tom.
This was definitely one of the better models I've built recently. And they do take up a lot of shelf space. I'm in the process of trying to find more shelves since I've run out of display space.
Excellent job on the very nice AM mold, Greg!
Thank you, Spiros.
Excellent build. I love the AM Avengers, I've done several.
It is very very nice kit. I would be tempted to do another one, but I think I'm ready for a different challenge.
Nice. Always great to see a "Turkey" in the headlines. Those are really superb kits, Greg @gwfabian.
Thanks, and you're right, this is a great kit.
Lovely Avenger Greg! Lots of effort on the interior for sure! Well done.
Thank you! Lots of interior to work with on this kit.