The CA+accelerator trick sounds like a great option. Will have to try that one. Happy that you have decided to experiment on the colors - that will be something else, and I am looking forward to it. Happy modeling!

Glad to be able to contribute in a small way. I got to have a bit of fun this morning. I decided to start working on the oil coolers. I still don't have the mesh yet so I will wait until that arrives before painting these parts, but I think they will look pretty cool once painted and in place.

Well, I've run into a bit of a snag. I had always thought that the cowlings on the Hobby Boss kit looked a bit off. I always thought it was the lower forward edge was sharp on the kit whereas the actual plane is more rounded. I had done a bit of sanding on the kit part to try and rectify this, but probably could do a bit more.

However, a newer more difficult problem has been made apparent. I first noticed it when trying out the props and spinners on the cowling and then setting it in place. It didn't look right. It turns out that the kit lower cowling is angled back further than the aircraft. I checked several photographs to be sure and compared it to the Monogram kit (which does look right). It should be slightly more vertical. Aarrgh.

Okay so how to fix this? Options would seem to be 1. Don't fix it and live with it. 2. Add material to the front and try to reshape it. 3. Cut it from the cowling and try to reposition it to the correct angle. 4. Try and adapt the Monogram cowlings either to the Hobby Boss cowlings or to the Hobby Boss booms.

1. Well!

2. Risky because if I screw up, I cannot finish the kit

3. Also risky although probably not as much, but difficult to accomplish because of the ribbing inside the oil cooler openings

4. Biggest concern here is that there is a slight size difference between the two kits mostly in cross sectional width) and if I cut the HB cowlings and the Monogram cowlings don't fit, again I can't finish the model.

I agree with your chosen "cut -reposition - redetailing" solution, my friend @clipperboat.
It is low risk, and I believe you will come up with a spot-on result!

Off to the sheetmetal shop. . .

Something else that is noticeable between the Monogram kit and the HB kit is the cross section shape of the booms and the cowling. The Monogram kit has a slightly more blown out shape which looks more correct. This is why I decided to go with the approach I chose. The Monogram cowlings are bigger in cross section and it would have been difficult to match them up to the HB kit.

Overall, I have to rate the kit about a 5 on a 10 scale for accuracy. Too bad really because the assembly method they chose is far superior to the older Hasegawa, Academy, and Monogram methods. From what've seen of the Tamiya kit it is even better although it uses the separate boom approach and makes up for it with superior engineering and fit.

I still want to make a J model fighter and an F-5 Photo recon bird. I'll be using the Academy kit for the F-5, but I am hoping that Tamiya comes out with a J/K. When I was looking at options to correct the cowling on the HB kit, I also took out the Academy cowlings to see if they would work. They seem to be off a bit as well compared to the Monogram kit. Sigh!

Thanks Tom, although the other P-38s are not nearly as far along. I will probably be tackling the Monogram Droop Snoot conversion next, but that one will require a lot of rescribing (fun!)

I'm rather reluctant to tackle the Academy kits right away and may work on something else for awhile to avoid burn out. One of the issues I face with these kits is they all (except the Tamiya kit) need additional detailing (especially in the wheel wells) which means three wheel wells per plane .It gits a bit tedious.

Nice buildup!