building the 1/48 scale amt b-26 marauder

MIKE ASHEY PRODUCTIONS
PRESENTS
BUILDING THE AMT 1/48 SCALE B-26 MARAUDER
BY
MIKE ASHEY
I found this AMT B-26 Marauder on EBAY while researching old kits. I did not know that there was another kit in this
scale other than the Monogram version. In comparing the AMT and Monogram kits there are some interesting differences.
The fuselages, wings and tail dimensions are the same but the AMT cockpit is slightly larger and so are the interior parts.
The AMT engine nacelles, engines, and landing gear are noticeably larger than the Monogram kit. It appears that the
Monogram dimensions are smaller than they should be and the AMT dimensions are larger than they should be.
Consequently the two kit’s detail parts are not interchangeable. Both kits are a challenge to build, but the issues are different
and both kits can be built up into great looking models.
The AMT engines do not represent the R-2800 engines series that were used in the B-26 and since other kits engines were
too small I dressed up the AMT engines using parts from other R-2800 engines in addition to some scratchbuilding. A lot of
weight was added to the model to get it to sit correctly and I paid special attention to adding strength to the assembly so the
seams would not crack when sanding. The kit was molded in white plastic so I primed all the parts to make it easier to work
with. Much of the raised surface detail was damaged during construction so I decided to sand it all off and not rescribe any
of it. The model was painted with Testors enamels and the decals are from Microscale.
This article is extensive, and if you follow the techniques that I used, you will have a great looking model and you will
sharpen your construction and detailing skills.
HAPPY SCALE MODELING
The fuselage interior parts and the wings and tail fit together
well when I test fitted them. I was also pleasantly
surprised at the level of detail on the interior parts. I
Primed all the parts to make it easier to see flaws.
As I suspected, the engine nacelles, just like on the
Monogram kit, were going to need some attention to get
them to fit correctly. Once the parts were primed, the raised
surface detail was easier to see.
I like to laminate .020 and .030 inch plastic strips to the
interior wings spaces to add extra strength to the assemblies
so the wings will not flex and crack a seam.
I used masking tape strips to hold the wing sections together
tightly for gluing. Beads of super glue were applied along the
seam lines with a thin wire applicator.
The engine nacelles were taped to the wings and adjusted for
the best fit. I then glued the nacelle halves together. I filled
the gaps in the outer edges of the seams with thin
strips of plastic.
I added strips of plastic to the inside of the seam areas to
strengthen the assembly. I also added thick strips to the
backsides of the exhaust ports so that I could drill
deeper holes.
I drilled out the aft interior framing for the nacelles to add a
higher level of realism.
To get the tight contours of the nacelles to fit better onto the
wings, I bent the tips out slightly with flat faced needle nosed
pliers. I then added some super glue to the backside to
strengthen the plastic.
Here the nacelle is getting its second coat of super glue over
the silver paint I added to detect flaws.
There were a lot of voids between the connection points of
the nacelles and the wings attachment locations. I filled them
with various thicknesses of strip plastic and then applied
super glue. The plastic strips make for a strong seam.
The voids that were hard to get to on the aft end of the
nacelles also got .010 inch thick plastic strips inserted into
them to fix the openings. Super glue was applied and then
they were carefully cut and shaped.
I shaped and contoured the seams with sanding sticks and
waterproof automotive sandpaper wrapped around various
thicknesses of balsa wood strips.
The compound curves between the engine nacelles and the
wings are a real challenge. Balsa wood sanding blocks made
the sanding and shaping much easier.
I filled the openings in the wings for the lights with .015 inch
plastic sheet. To get the clear parts to fit correctly the edges
were sanded to reduce the parts dimensions slightly so that
they would fit in the wing openings.
To get the air scoops on the engine cowlings to fit correctly I
shaved off some of the plastic. I shaved some plastic,
checked the fit, and then shaved some more.
The air scoops were glued into place and then the parts were
primed. I then filled the voids between the edges of the air
scoops and the cowling with white glue.
I needed a lot of weight to get the model to sit correctly. The
fishing weights were mashed flat and then cut into small
strips and pieces.
I added weight in every location possible. Once the
remaining cockpit parts are assembled the weights will be
hidden. I even added small scraps of lead weight to the inside
of the engine control panel.
Small chunks of weights were added to the inside of the
engine nacelles and then super glue was added to hold
everything in place.
This seam alignment pin was easily seen from the cockpit so
I carefully scraped and sanded it off.
Sections of weight were super glued to the area between the
interior fuselage sections were it would not be seen. I also
made a small box for the backside of the rear cockpit wall
and added weight to it.
Testing the fit of the canopy revealed a gap which I filled
with a small strip of .015 inch thick plastic. The part was
carefully cut and shaped and then contoured to blend
it into surface.
Other than the cockpit the only other interior assembly was
the bomb bay area. These parts were positioned inside the
right side of the fuselage with masking tape and then
glued together.
Careful masking helped pick out the details such as canvas
curtains and a canvas map case. The interior green color was
lightened up with a few drops of flat white.
Other interior details were picked out with more careful
masking. The electrical and instrument boxes were painted
flat black with some flat white added and the oxygen bottle
was painted yellow.
I just love Eduard’s prepainted interior detail sets. To get the
curve in the engine control panel I used the smooth end of a
drill bit which was the perfect diameter for the curve in the
plastic part.
All the interior parts have been painted, detailed, and
drybrushed with silver paint. Eduard prepainted seat belts
have been added and the cockpit is now ready to
be assembled.
The glue attachment areas on the interior parts have had the
paint scrapped off. So much weight was added to the wings I
wanted to make the fuselage assembly as strong as possible
so the upper seams would not crack.
Now that looks like a real cockpit! I added a large, extra
oxygen tank from the Monogram kit. Note how the weights
cannot been seen.
The instrument console and the engine control panel really
enhance the appearance of the cockpit. Note all the lead
weights.
I added lengths of Eduard’s prepainted 50 cal
machinegun belts to the interior areas were they
could be seen.
To strengthen the upper fuselage seam, I added strips
of .020 inch plastic to the inside of the seam line. Slow set
super glue will be added to the lip of the extra plastic when
the fuselage is closed up.
I also drilled two holes on each side the interior areas where
the wings are located so that I could slide plastic dowels into
the openings after the wings are glued to add more strength
to the wing/fuselage attachment area.
Lots of super glue was added to the upper seam area of the
fuselage so that the glue would seep down into the joint and
make for a strong bond.
I added strips of plastic to the inside of the wing
attachment areas because this area was hollow when the
wings were attached. This makes for a lot more glue contact
surface area between the wings and the fuselage.
The wings on the B-26 did not have a noticeable upward
dihedral, but the kit does. Setting the wings correctly leaves
voids along the upper seam line. I filled the voids with
various sizes of plastic strip.
Several applications of super glue was added to the perimeter
of the plastic strips and then the strips were trimmed with my
trusty Xuron snipers. The stubs were wet sanded smooth.
Once the stubs were flush with the surface I added more
super glue to fill tiny gaps between the plastic strips.
Several iterations of sanding and adding super glue were
needed to get the seam to look good.
The last step in attaching the wings was to add the plastic
dowels. They were trimmed and then painted. All the extra
effort in making all the seams strong really paid off because
they never cracked with all the sanding that I did!
To get the elevator assembly to site level I had to add a .02
inch thick strip to the left side of the fuselage.
There were also voids between the leading edge of the
elevator and the fuselage. I filled the voids with several
applications of white glue that I contoured with a
damp Q-tip.
The base of the rudder also had a void which was filled and
contoured with white glue. Always prime around voids that
will be filled with white glue so the glue will
stick to the surface.
Once the wing, elevator, and rudder work was complete, I
fixed any remaining surface flaws and then gave the
assembly a complete coat of primer.
I cleaned up the landing gear parts, installed them inside the
engine nacelles with tiny strips of masking tape, and then
carefully glued the parts together.
The forward legs of the landing gear were too long to fit into
their locator holes so I cut out a section and then glued the
lengths back together. The legs were not straight but they
were hidden by the nacelle.
On the other landing gear I decided to glue the
forward locator pins where they sat because I did not like the
way the splice job turned out on the other
landing gear assembly.
The B-26 hydraulic lines on the landing gear were
made with black stretched sprue. I made the clamps from
thin strips of masking tape that I painted silver. The landing
gear were painted Testor’s flat gull gray.
The front and back sections of the engines were carefully
glued together and then cleaned up. Unfortunately they are
not very accurate representations of R-2800 engines, but they
can be dressed up!
I used pieces from Tamiya 1/48 scale R-2800 engines to add
detail. I made a spark plug wiring harness from .040 inch
diameter stiff brass wire and plastic rod. I used a 3/8 inch
wood dowel to bend the stiff brass rod.
Each bent brass rod loop was cut into a section that fit almost
half way around the base of the engine. Each section was
carefully super glued onto place.
I used my trusty chopper to cut tiny lengths of .040 inch
diameter plastic rod which were then carefully super glued to
the brass rod. They were then drilled out using a .0225 inch
(#74) drill bit so that spark plug wires could be added.
Spark plug wires were added with #34 soft brass beading
wire. Each cylinder got two sets of wires. The engines look
much better dressed up even though they do not have the
correct number of cylinders.
The engine cowlings were taped to the nacelles from the
inside and the masking is complete. Now its time to add one
final primer coat and then the finished coats.
The underside was painted with Testors dark gull gray
enamel. Note that the landing gear bays have not been
masked.
I made wavy templates from stiff paper, traced them onto
masking tape, and applied them along the sides of the
fuselage and the nacelles and cowlings. The upper surface
and the sides are olive drap lightened with flat white.
I then masked around the landing gear bays and airbrushed
the same interior green color I used for the fuselage interior.
Now the model is starting to look like a B-26! Note the wavy
lines between the gray and olive drab colors.
I masked around the engine exhaust ports and airbrushed
them with Testors metalizer burnt iron color.
The entire model received two coats of Minwax clear gloss
polyurethane . I removed as much of the clear film from all
the decals as possible to minimize any chance of silvering.
Next I used a dilute mixture of flat black with flat white
added to represent subtle exhaust stains on the nacelles, the
upper surfaces of the wings and the nacelle landing gear
doors.
The entire surface received two coats of Testors dullcoat.
Note how much lighter the olive drap color looks now that it
has been restored to its flat color.
I installed the bomb racks and then attached the bombs with
white glue so I could adjust their position. Note how much
more the bombs stand out with different colors
applied to them.
With the landing gear, wheels, and all the doors attached the
model is now ready for the clear parts.
I carefully masked all of the clear plastic parts. The first coat
was the interior green color followed by a coat of primer and
then olive drab.
The clear turret part has some marring on the inside due to
the manufacturing process. To fix this I applied some Pledge
Future acrylic floor finish with a brush to the marred areas
and just like magic the marred areas disappeared.
All that’s left are the cowlings, propellers, and an antenna
from a Monogram B-26 kit. I drilled a hole through the tip
of the antenna with a .0145 inch bit (#79) to run the
antenna wire through. Check out the intro picture.
With detail parts from Tamiya engines, a scratchbuilt spark plug wiring harness, and brass beading
wire spark plug wiring, the engines look very convincing.
If you want to learn more about construction and assembly
techniques, paint preparation, airbrushing, and decal application
check out my aircraft books, especially my most recent book,
BUILDING AND DETAILING SCALE MODEL AIRCRAFT.
Happy scale modeling
Mike Ashey