Hasegawa + J. Rutman 1/32 scale
P-47N Thunderbolt

by Frank Mitchell
 

Hasegawa's 1/32 scale P-47D Thunderbolt is available online from Squadron 

For a modeler, one of the great things about Atlanta is the AAA Hobby Shop, and one of the great things about that shop is that on Saturdays a group gathers around noon to have lunch and hang out for a while. A model or two will often show up, as will an occasional Work-In-Progress. There is a great deal of talk about current projects, planned projects (a few of which might actually get built), and what others should build.

Thus we come to this model.

When the Hasegawa 1/32 P-47 was first released a few months back, of course I had to have one. However, on the first Saturday after the release, two brothers (the Colvins), who, like their father, are great modelers, gave me a 1/32 scale J. Rutman P-47N conversion for the old Revell kit and challenged me to install it on the Hasegawa kit.

Obviously, such a challenge could not go unanswered, so work began.
 

Don’t look for a group of in-progress shots; the only two are evidentiary shots to prove that the Rutman wings will, more or less, fit the new kit.

In brief, while the resin wings do fit chord-wise, the thickness is significantly less. I therefore ended up epoxying the top half of the Hasegawa wing to the top half of the Rutman wing, and used the Rutman wheel wells in the resin bottom halves. Lots of filling, fairing, sanding, priming, and scribing ensued. I had an old aftermarket R-2800 lying around that had the correct gear case, so that was also used, along with the Rutman prop which had the correct blades. From here on, the build was relatively easy, having only to add the vertical fin, antennas, etc.

The Hasegawa landing gear and doors fit quite well, but new gun blast tubes had to be made up from aluminum tubing. I also added every tank I could find since I really like the wide-stance, broad-shouldered look of a loaded ‘47N.

The markings were picked so that they could be done without special decals. To be honest, while I am sure about the basic squadron markings, I am not absolutely positive that these numbers go with this airframe.

Actually, I am kind of pleased with the finished model, and I would really appreciate some thanks from the rest of you for assuring that both Hasegawa and Trumpeter will soon release their 32nd P-47Ns.
 

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Model, Images and Text Copyright © 2007 by Frank Mitchell
Page Created 17 October, 2007
Last Updated 24 December, 2007

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