**** DONE: 1/32 F4U-1 - Aircraft Nose Art GB.

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User Name: Catch22
Name: Cory
Category: Intermediate
Entry: F4U-1 "Marine's Dream", VMF-222, of 1st Lt. Ed Olander, Munda, October 1943
Kit: 1/32 Tamiya F4U-1 "Birdcage"
Extras: PYN-Up Decals

Well, I've managed to wait to even open the bags on this kit. I've decided to do the following scheme:



It was flown by Ed Olander in VMF-222. He later became an ace with VMF-214. According to the instructions I have, it flipped over on landing on Bougainville in December 1944, but that seems awfully late, so I think they mean 1943. There are apparently a number of photos of this plane in the National Archives, but I've only been able to find the two below.





It's the standard scheme of Blue Gray over Light Gray, but it appears to have had some Light Gray painted up the side. It has the interim bars on it, without a red or blue outline, with some of the bar missing on the port wing where the gun covers are.

As for the interior, there is only one original birdcage that I can find photos of, and that's one that was pulled out of Lake Michigan two years ago. The paint seemed largely intact, and the cockpit is black, while the gear wells are the bottom colour, so I'll go with that for mine. There is another birdcage that's currently in Brazil, but that was converted from a -1A so that is of no help.
 
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Thanks guys. This looks like it'll be the one to get me back into the swing of things. Hopefully I'll have the engine done tomorrow.

Does anyone have any thoughts on what colour the landing gear are? The conventional wisdom is they're either silver or the bottom colour, but they look more black to me.
 

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