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Anigrand 1/72 McDonnell P-67B Moonbat "Virgin Widow II"

Ah, Anigrand - the ones I've seen so far where quite OK. only the legs ... those legs are made from resin too and they tend to bend, so my little birds look like coming from a long ride with outside bended legs :) So, if you can get some metal ones as replacements, it would help in the long run.
 
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It really does exist! Tucked away in Box #2 of my inventory! Lookie! No wood deck AND bigger than 3 1/2 inches long! I bought this kit from Scott Zuiebeck of Dauntless Hobbies in California before my moratorium on buying Chinese Communist models. Hong Kong wasn't communist then neither! Fine cast, bubble-free parts, with a basic cockpit and recessed panel lines. The clear resin canopy is particularly nice! Then they send TWO sets of decals! :good:

My addled brain is imagining possible paint schemes. I have 1/700 Moonbats to escort my 1/700 Consolidated B-32 Dominators that will attack my 1947 Graf Zeppelin, so all these ideas tie together! WOOF!
It's almost like another one of Mike's "In Another World" campaigns! :yipee:
Stay tuned, Men for more moon-ish and Bat-like progress!

I'm heeding Martin's advice. The hunt for metal Moonbat gear legs is afoot!
 
I've never seen an Anigrand kit built up. I've lusted for the XF11 for years but haven't pulled the trigger. Watching with interest....:popcorn
 
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This is a beautiful casting! Obviously from a two-part mold. Recessed panel lines and pretty nice fit right out of the Box. There isn't much in the cockpit, seat, stick 3-sided instrument panel. The cockpit seems a little underscale for 1/72. The canopy is cast from clear resin. It reasonably transparent, but is just a might thick. Weighing the vertical stabilizer, and tailplanes will give me some idea about how much weight to add to the nose and engine nacelles.:hmm:
Converting this airplane to Jet configuration would not prove too challenging. :drool:
 
Must be one of their good ones. I have the XF-103 and XF-108 and they are a little shaky. Buildable, though.
 
Bob wins! :bat No Jet conversion for the Moonbat. To satisfy my airplane-ness would require too many alterations to a $50.00 model to make it believable. The day may come when a P-67D Jetbat goes up for flight test, but it is not this day. The kit contains 10 propeller blades. I toyed with the idea of 5-bladed fans for a minute. :bang head Then decided on a straight build of my first resin aircraft kit.
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Clean up of the castings begins. I use the same Sharpie technique as on my model ships. Black it out and VERY gently wet-sand until the black vanishes. Anigrand's cream colored resin is easy to shape. Perhaps too easy! I decided not too sand the faces of the engine nacelles flat until I put them together.
The Moonbat has locating pins (?!?) to ID which side of the airplane the major assemblies fit on. The portside wing needs a little fudging, but that's the only obvious problem thus far. The Anigrand kit has no landing flaps or speed brakes. The instrument panel is a 3 faced affair, not so unlike the Airacobra.
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I'm in my P-67B. I just left Keflavik to escort the Dominator formation to Europe over the North Atlantic. It is a crisp, ice-clear night. We expect DKM fighters from Graf Zeppelin along our course. Udet's Jets are out there, somewhere, in the dark. Mustangs will hand the bombers off to us and turn back to Nova Scotia at bingo fuel.

Stars shine bright. 6 flights of four are forming up. Mission duration is expected to be 10 hours, give or take. Both Merlins snarl along smoothly. Radar is powered up, but in stand-by mode for now. Don't I wish for a roomier cockpit? Wiggle around when my butt tries to go to sleep? Eat my sandwiches and drink my soda? Some hope of reaching the pilot relief tube?

This I could NOT leave alone.

My metal file ground out the sides of cockpit most quickly. The existing bottom of the cockpit tub casting will provide a little room for various bits of airplane guff that make a Moonbat go. Will it be visible? God alone knows, but I must put some levers, knobs, switches and circuit breakers in there. Radio and O2 supply will go on the right side of the cockpit. Throttles and mixture on the left. I'm sure some external fuel tanks will be added. I considered tip tanks. The Moonbat might have the same roll rate as a flung pancake, so they wouldn't hurt Her agility much. :bm:

I have sought the sage advise of a more accomplished resin airplane modeler (Frank) than myself. He imparted some valuable model insights. Brass rod, JB Weld clear and useful other tips & tricks.

Thanks again for looking in! :salute::oldguy::pilot
 
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The tail surfaces tipped the scales at 4 grams. I should think 8 grams of recycled wheel weight should keep the Moonbat off her tail. In the fullness of time, brass tube landing gear may become a necessity.
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Some additional gentle filing/sanding recessed the sidewalls of the top half of the cockpit sidewalls. The side consoles began their life as L channel and were sanded away to fit inside the fuselage halves to make a snug kit and still give space for some airplane hoozies and gizmos.
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We celebrated our couples Christmas on Christmas Eve morning. These gifts from my stocking should promote daytime resin P-67 construction progress.
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This jug of "creativity fluid" should encourage lubrication of the wheels of creativity after the sun has "gone over the yardarm" here on the not-so-frosty prairie.
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Our flower garden is becoming populated with garden gnomes. I could not have been more pleased with my Sweetie's reaction when she opened this not-quite-what-was-on-her-Christmas-list gift. The solar powered sign lights up to deter interlopers, both day and night.
Thanks again for looking in!
 
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The Cockpit is looking populated enough. Fuel tank selector panel, throttle quadrant, consoles and other panels in place. The copper wire levers and handles will be added soon! Much of this will be invisible once the canopy is on. I figger this will be pretty much a straight build of the Anigrand resin kit. I haven't decided on armament and shell ejector ports yet.
I really wanted an F-67J Jetbat! Another day, perhaps. If a guy molded the propeller spinners and cast them in white metal...........
 
Right!? Too huge! :rimshot
Before all the resin ship projects began, I had workspace on my desk enough for more than a few 1/72 airplane models.
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Many Moons ago, Chuck Sterns carved a 1/48 scale (?) balsa wood Moonbat. This airplane has roosted in my office since Chuck took his Trip up to Heaven in March of 2012. A few times it topped my Christmas tree. What kind of a Man (Nut) puts an XP-67 on top of his Christmas tree? In any case, Chuck's wooden Moonbat inspired this build, just as The Master hisownself inspired many other fledgling plastic birdmen. In my time I have been fortunate enough to receive airplane and armor models built by Men I admire and respect. Many of them are still alive and modeling! :yipee:
 
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