I have started a B-26 ID model in 1/72nd scale. My father carved one of these as a high school sophomore in 1943 for the war effort. He went into the Navy in 1945. The war ended while he was in basic training, but served in a utility squadron VJ-1 or VJ-7 (not sure) on Ford Island in Hawaii. I scanned a few photos from his album.
My neighbor, an antique dealer, gave me a couple of 1920s wooden ironing boards for the western pine lumber, so I am using some of it for this model.[
You are doing much better than my project.
Louis
The wood is dense, not the easiest to carve. Sanding blocks are essential.
That's looking great, Dave! How do you get such a smooth curve for where the wing will sit?
I cut the fuselage out with a band-saw using a 1/4 wide blade, then go over that wing cutout section with round rasp and a small sanding block. After both of the wings are shaped, I try to refine them and the opening until they fit together well.
I have shaped the wing and cut out the rest of the parts. The grain on this wood is very pronounced and not the easiest to work with.
That's looking great, Dave! What did you use to cut out the "clothespin" part of the nacelles?
Awesome progress.
Louis
Thanks Lou.
Jordan, I use a bandsaw for cutting everything. At one time I had a 1960-ish Craftsman jigsaw table that was ideal for those kind of tight curves.
Continue with shaping the parts and finding the easiest way to get the nacelles to fit.
I like the idea of carving the underside of the wing to fit the nacelles. Looking good!
Strombecker had an interesting way of solving the nacelle issue. The drilled a hole onto the leading edge of the wing the same diameter as the nacelle. I don't have the actual kit so a photo found online is attached here. I might try this sometime.
That is interesting. Were those kits made to be assembled right away with no additional carving or shaping?
Generally ,sanding was all that was required to shape the tail surfaces and smooth out the mill work. They supplied the powdered glue and sandpaper in the kits.
That's very cool. Yours is looking great! Are you going to paint it black like the WWII models or do a paint scheme?
Yes, all black. I think it will look good.
More sanding and shaping. All of the main parts are glued together now.
That looks great, Dave! I'm extremely impressed by how tight and clean your joints are.
Excellent talent as expected from your hangar.
Louis
Thanks Lou.
A lot of sanding, filling and several coats of black primer, not to mention more sanding. I still need to add the intakes on the nacelles (which I forgot about). I drilled a hole for the turret. Then on to incising lines.
That is looking great, Dave! Very clean lines.
Fantastic Marauder.
Louis
This manual was how I learned to carve planes-
Scale Model Aircraft Construction Procedure (https://sites.ualberta.ca/~khorne/solid/manual.pdf)
Since first reading it in 2006, I have picked up many tips from modelers here on SMM and discovered, by trial-and-error, my own methods.
Would you have the manual? I have the same cover photo.
Louis
Just follow my link to the pdf version of the manual. It is to Ken Horne's site. The cover was a separate download for some reason.
Got it, thank you.
Louis
B-26 ID model is finished. A quick photo attached.
The last step in building this was finding the center of gravity and drilling a 1/16-inch hole through the fuselage for a piece of string or thread. My results make it look a bit nose heavy, but close enough.
That looks fantastic, Dave! Very clean build!
Shallow descent to bombing altitude. Excellent workmanship Dave
What did you use for your spinners?