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B-24 Liberator (one or maybe even two?) - new project.

Started by capt. R · 161 ≡ · ↻ 6 days ago

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George R Blair Jr said 1 year, 9 months ago:

Interesting questions, Bernard (@lis). I think many of the changes could have been accomplished at a depot that was capable of providing major maintenance. I don't think these changes would necessarily have occurred in the factory. I also know there was variation that could occur on the factory assembly line, with changes being made to specific airframes as they moved through the assembly process. I will try to get to some of my references and see what I can turn up.
capt. R said 1 year, 9 months ago:

@fiveten @johnb @luftwaffe-birdman @gblair

Question is: It is possible to replace frames in fuselage without reduction of the assumed hull strength in the place another than factory?

If 31 squadron could Flying with normal turret without Guns why somebody would have gone to so much trouble to replace the nose of the aircraft if there was no weaponry for a given version at all?

If I made nose in normal D version it will be a big shortcoming with back turret Consolidated?

Do exsist any aftermarket set with Bouton-Paul turret?
Spiros Pendedekas said 1 year, 9 months ago:

Ditto with @gblair 's thoughts, @lis!
The "J" glazing looks simpler than the "D"'s . Nevertheless, those jobs could have been done at a maintenance depot and not necessarily at the factory.
capt. R said 1 year, 9 months ago:

@fiveten Simpler and smaller than D at the point of connection with the fuselage. The J version was slimmer in the nose.
2 attached images. Click to enlarge.
Spiros Pendedekas said 1 year, 9 months ago:

Possibly the "J" nose was a simpler, smaller, more aerodynamic "evolution", my friend @lis.
capt. R said 1 year, 9 months ago:

@fiveten Question is why there is no any photos of this nose in another units, only in 1586 flight? Rebuilding on a special order?
Spiros Pendedekas said 1 year, 9 months ago:

I would assume 1586 made their own glazes, my friend @lis ,suited to their specific needs.
John vd Biggelaar said 1 year, 9 months ago:

@lis, @fiveten, @gblair, this is a great discussion. To make it a bit more confusing, I have a question as well, what would have been the benefit to use the 'J' nose instead of the already existing 'D' variant.
capt. R said 1 year, 9 months ago:

@johnb Planes in 1586 flight they usually served as long as they were crashed (lost) or were repaired. Then another machine was sent, and that one was after repair "circulated" and went to other RAF squadrons. I can guess that at some stage the machines in the D version were no longer available, due to new models, and in some circumstances a glazed nose was added to the J version with a nose turret, as in the D version. pilots and replace the frames to match the front to the glazed version. Therefore, it seems to me that the amount of work (and costs) did not compensate for the achieved goal. For example Liberator BZ965 has two kinds of markings GR@S and GR@V, and three different paintings. it is also interesting that the machine came back from overhaul and not replaced with another one. Or maybe it was replaced with another one for the duration of the repair and then returned? It's all just scientific guesswork.
2 attached images. Click to enlarge.
Walt said 1 year, 9 months ago:

@lis, @fiveten, @gblair, it is interesting to note the differences in armament and such. Changing turrets and noses would most likely be done at repair depots. Not to reduce the incredible feats of repair and maintenance performed by the line mechanics, they were usually simply too busy doing that to perform major alterations. The "J" model of a B-24 is actually over a foot longer than the "D" model, the fuselage was lengthened to fit the turret into nose. Removing the turret and added structure and skins would leave you with a fuselage of the correct dimension for the "D" nose. As for making the "D" nose, forming plexiglass can be done, but getting it right is difficult. A depot would be more likely to have the abilities to do that, but I am guessing they were getting supplied parts most of the time. Lots of modifications like this occurred in the Pacific Theater and different nose configurations was one of the most common alterations. They usually added a turret to the nose instead of removing one, though.
capt. R said 1 year, 8 months ago:

Some time ago, as part of an experiment, I ordered a set of decals from the 34th SAAF squadron from the South African manufacturer MAV-decals. The contact was a bit difficult and I got the answer about the order confirmation after a month (as I had already forgotten about it 😉 Surprisingly the shipment arrived quite quickly, in just over a month. My surprise was great when it turned out that the nose in this Liberator paint is from the "Express" transport version. Do any of you know if there is a manufacturer of aftermarket nose kits for this version of Liberator?
1 attached image. Click to enlarge.
capt. R said 3 months, 1 week ago:

https://www.scalemates.com/kits/airfix-a09010-consolidated-b-24-h-liberator--1523742
I'm impressed!
Spiros Pendedekas said 3 months, 1 week ago:

Looks a very promising kit, my friend @lis!
John vd Biggelaar said 3 months, 1 week ago:

Looks like to be a great kit, Bernard @lis
capt. R said 1 week, 5 days ago:

This kit looks very promising!

Viewing 136 - 150 of 161 posts

Bomber Command

B-24 Liberator (one or maybe even two?) - new project.