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Mustang Wings and panel seams


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I also have a P-51B in the stash and I'll paint with alclad colors aluminium and duraluminium.I think the NMF planes in WW2 were not so bright they eventually became more and more matt on the ground because they are not maintained

Edited by josipww2
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My father was in the USAAF during WW II and he said he never saw a P-51 with the inner undercarriage doors open. I was in a discussion about this on another forum and aparently the early P-51Ds had a problem in which the doors would pop open in flight after some maneuvers. Aparently there was no interlock to lock the doors up in flight on the early Ds.

Part of the solution was to keep the hydraulics in the door operating system in top shape, so the doors tended to be the last to drop as the hydraulic system bled out.

Many years ago, I asked a modern P-51 operator why the doors were dropped on restored P-51s and not on WW II planes and he said that nobody bothers to do that level of maintenance on the door hydraulics. I believe later model P-51Ds had an interlock that locked the door up while in flight. I'm sure TF51GREGWISE probably knows more about those systems than I do.

I would expect the heavily used Mustangs in primitive conditions (such as in the Pacific or CBI theater) probably didn't get all the maintenance mandated in the manuals, but most of the 8th and 9th AF P-51s had good maintenance. Of course planes still in the states would be maintained quite well too.

I'm not sure how many P-51s my father saw in the front lines. He was all over the Pacific, but before being sent to the war zone, he bounced around different bases in the US. He was a combat photographer and his unit also made training films and filmed various studies. I'm sure he saw many P-51s in the states, but when he was out in the Pacific, the USAAF fighters were mostly P-38s with some P-47s.

Bill

Wdolson-Is your father was on the Marian islands??and have you some pictures of razorback of 318th FG in saipan,because I need pictures of stanley lustic's and his Razorback and bubbletop I searching on the internet but there are only few photos I opened a topic in this forum:

http://s362974870.on...howtopic=231416

Edited by josipww2
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Hi Greg. I read all this topic and bring back the main subject, i have some questions to do, ok?!?

1 - For P51 with Allison engine, model A and A36 Apache, the wings panel lines will be filled too?

2 - Wings of RAF Mustangs follow the same procedure?

3 - P51B and C, same questions!

Now, some pics that you post doesn't open can you post these again?

Thanks a lot, MArcelo

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  • 1 month later...

Sorry folks to delete all my posts in this thread but I will not support ARC while Terry Sumner is deleting my other postings for no reason.

:tumble:

Well that's a shame. This info has been posted here for 7 years. I was going to use it for my Tamiya build

I have no idea what posts your referring to Greg but I hope you reconsider someday.

Ron

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Heard about this through the grapevine as well. Does anyone know why and what posts were being deleted? I mean crap, Greg is a very good person to go to if you have some Mustang questions.

Ron if you want me to give you an email for Greg off-boards, send me a PM. He is a very helpful and a close friend. I know he would like to help you out however he can.

-Jim

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  • 3 months later...
  • 2 months later...

Thanks Greg.

Tom

Hi Greg

I've been trying to get your info form this site about the P-51 Mustang Wings, but with NO Luck?? Is there any way you could email me this info?? plus do you have any info on the proper P-51 Interior & Wheel Well colors starting from the early P-51 to the P-51D/K Mustangs. Any info would be greatly appreciated. You can email me direct at bubbha53@shaw.ca

Regards

Bob in CANADA

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  • 4 weeks later...

What info are you looking for on the wings?

P-51 wheel well colors is a subject that could (and does) go on for pages, and pages, and pages of discussion. Pages and pages. And pages.

Here's the way Mustang wings looked from the factory. Lighter areas are aluminum paint, darker areas are bare metal. The bolder black panel lines on the wings were *not* filled, and those shown in light grey, along with all of the rivets *were* filled. This was complied from LOTS of photos and the inputs of people on the P-51 SIG site who are **VERY** knowledgeable of this stuff.

Mustang_Wing_Finish.jpg

Edited by Jennings
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Thought I would post this up here. And "tourist" feel free to critique. I know the old Revell 1/32 kits are probably the most inaccurate out there, but its what I tend to build. Anyway the focus of my post is the ejector ports on the B/C vs. D model Mustang wings. Just FYI... (Not sure if the A models are the same as the B/C)

IMAG1464.jpg

IMAG1465.jpg

P.S. Tourist, what was the primary reason for the reshaping of the leading egde of the wing root on the D?

Edited by xmh53wrench
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  • 4 weeks later...

Question ~ Why is this still pinned when the majority of Greg's pictures have been deleted? Seems kind of stupid.

Well, simply put, the topic is still valid and the illustrations by Tourist and Jennings are highly appropriate and on point. Any more questions?

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Well, simply put, the topic is still valid and the illustrations by Tourist and Jennings are highly appropriate and on point. Any more questions?

I understand the topic is still valid, if not invaluable, as I remember Greg's original posts (if only slightly at this point) showing where the panel lines on the various kits need to be replaced/omitted or amended. The few illustrations, good as they might appear, pale in comparison to the outstanding work Greg Wise originally posted here so therefore the question was raised. Let's hope the closing sentence was meant to be helpful rather than sarcastic too.

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IMAG1465.jpg

Get rid of the rivets on the fuel tank covers except for the perimeter and you're golden.

If you can locate "P-51 Mustang: From Production Line to Front Line", get it. It should still be readily available.

Edited by Slartibartfast
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I understand the topic is still valid, if not invaluable, as I remember Greg's original posts (if only slightly at this point) showing where the panel lines on the various kits need to be replaced/omitted or amended. The few illustrations, good as they might appear, pale in comparison to the outstanding work Greg Wise originally posted here so therefore the question was raised. Let's hope the closing sentence was meant to be helpful rather than sarcastic too.

I'm not trying to toot my own horn (Christian fed me the information), but the drawing I posted shows exactly what you see on the real airplane. The panel lines a particular kit has are kind of irrelevant if you're trying to make your model look like the real thing. Not sure what Greg may have posted that would be more explicit than that...

J

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Hello,

1.About the puttied panel lines on the P-51... After 23 Aug '44, the romanians briefly had some P-51b/c on their hands (see the story of "Bazu" Cantacuzino) and there was a mechanic who worked on them during those times - the "Dorothy II" and the "Sleepy Ann". As he was a neighbour of an aunt of mine, i got to ask him some years ago when i first heard the putty-wing thing, about the wings of the P-51: they were not puttied on both these two aircrafts. He said that the overral finish of the P-51 was very smooth and panel work was very carefully done with very fine panel joints. He also remembered that the inner doors where opened.

2.About the wing profile : i ask an aerodinamcs teacher and he said that the profile is what they call "low drag-highly efficient" and that the "laminar" profile is something of a next level so speaking.

Eduard

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No offense to the gentleman you spoke to, but 65 year ago memories about whether or not there was putty in the panel lines isn't exactly definitive information. The overwhelming body of historical and technical evidence says the were.

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