Revell 1/48 Lockheed P-38J Lightning

The Lockheed P-38 Lightning was one of the deadliest fighter aircraft of WWII. Called the “fork-tailed devil” by the Germans, the P-38 distinguished itself in both Europe and the Pacific. This version is the one flown by Richard Bong, the top ace among American pilots with 40 kills.  Sadly, Bong died in a crash flight testing the P-80 Shooting Star jet fighter shortly after marrying his sweetheart, Marge, after whom this P-38 is named.

The tail elevator has a stamp saying “1964” for the mold and I believe it.  Once again, not the best fitting kit in the world.

Dry brushed some highlights on the cockpit details. Painted all the internal walls and wheel wells zinc-chromate yellow-green. I always thought this was a weird color until I saw the “Made In The Shade” B-25 in person last year and saw that, in fact, U.S. planes are actually painted this color on the inside.

Masked off the anti-glare panels. Might have gotten the color wrong here — I’ve also seen them done in flat olive drab instead of flat black.

Probably could have done more with the machine gun details in the nose. Also, you can see what a tail-dragger this model is. I tried to put weights in the engines to balance because there is no room in the nose or front landing gear wells, but to no avail. It needs something on the tail to keep it balanced. I added a toothpick to the diorama for this purpose.

The canopy was a challenge.  Fit was poor, but I thought painting on the frames went well.

Finished with a coat of Future floor polish. Still too scared to attempt any weathering. Gathering my courage for this on a future project!

I made a little diorama with a piece of styrofoam. Took it outside on a cold winter day to spray paint the block and it blew away up the street.  Some guy comes walking down the street towards it and I yell “Don’t touch it!  Wet paint!” So, of course, he stomps it with his boot. Fortunately, damage was minor.