Doubt about a P47D. Nick name: Kokomo...

[Marcelo_P51D]

Hi guys.

Well, another day another kit. This time i have a P47D by Revell, 1/72. But i don't want to use the kit's decals: balls out and the other version that i don't remember now.

So, i asked a friend and he gave to me a set from Tamiya's P47D: Kokomo! When i start a little search in the web about this plane, i saw somethings tha i really don't understand:

1 - this particular plane have only 6 machine guns?

2 - had or had not the wings pylons under the wings? Carring or not carring bombs?

Thanks a lot.

Marcelo

[Hal Marshman Sr]

Kokomo was flown by Gen'l Kempner, CO 8th AF fighter Command. It did indeed carry only 6 guns. It was never intended for the gen'l to join combat, but to use his airplane to shadow his formations to ensure that they were in compliance with orders. Some other things you should know: Tamiya color instructions not withstanding, The nose ring and fore and aft anti-glare panels were OD, not some pretty shade of green. Likewise the wheel covers. They also carried a mini rendetion of the star and bar national insignia, but with a red dot in the center of the star. Hal Marshman Sr

[Marcelo_P51D]

Kokomo was flown by Gen'l Kempner, CO 8th AF fighter Command. It did indeed carry only 6 guns. It was never intended for the gen'l to join combat, but to use his airplane to shadow his formations to ensure that they were in compliance with orders. Some other things you should know: Tamiya color instructions not withstanding, The nose ring and fore and aft anti-glare panels were OD, not some pretty shade of green. Likewise the wheel covers. They also carried a mini rendetion of the star and bar national insignia, but with a red dot in the center of the star. Hal Marshman Sr

Thanks for the replay.

So, this P47 has some particularities: the color that tamiya manual show us is a mix of xf4 and xf5. Can i paint it with OD? Many profiles shows this diferent green tone.

No bombs and under wings pylons, correct? And a little red dot in the wheel center.

Am i correct?

MArcelo

[greatgonzo]

The picture I know (Bodie book) shows no pylons at all. The pylons could have been mounted or dismounted depending on the mission. Kokomo is D-25 with very unusual CE symmetric paddleblade prop. The red dots in the centre of wheel hubs are surrounded by full AAF insignia with bars and all. The struts look OD too.

[Cobrahistorian]

There's a good color shot of Major General Kepner's (not Kempner) airplane on this thread: http://s362974870.onlinehome.us/forums/air/index.php?showtopic=139974

As a side note, Maj. Gen. Kepner's uniform was recently discovered in a UK estate sale!

http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=128289&hl=Kepner&st=0

Edited December 15, 2011 by Cobrahistorian

[Marcelo_P51D]

So guys thanks for all.

But can i build the "kokomo" with a Revell's kit?

Marcelo

[Steve N]

The nose ring and fore and aft anti-glare panels were OD, not some pretty shade of green.

I would agree about the anti-glare, but the cowl is definitely a lighter, brighter green. I got this from the horse's mouth, so to speak. A section of the original cowl is preserved in the Grissom Air Museum in (approrpriately) Kokomo, Indiana. Here's a snapshot I took..the color in the photo is pretty true to what I observed with the naked eye, and the paint looked original to me.

And there's no reason you couldn't use the Revell kit..just delete one of the wing guns and remove the wing pylons.

SN

Edited December 16, 2011 by Steve N

[Marcelo_P51D]

Hi Steve.

Well the Revell's kit is a D30. Kokomo is a D25. They have a little big difference: the landing light under the left wing! If you saw the Tamiya's P47D and a Revell's one you will see what i'm talking...

So this project is dead for a moment...

Thanks guys.

Marcelo

[Hal Marshman Sr]

I love that photo of the section of Kokomo's cowling, but the nose ring looks Interior Green, whereas the photo of the airplane clearly depicts OD. I would have to surmise that the piece on display had been repainted, or the original paint had faded badly. The nose art is also very fresh looking, not at all like 68 years old. (thanks for the correction on the good General's name, 'preciate it). Hal Sr

[Steve N]

I thought the paint looked pretty well preserved myself, bit it doesn't appear to have been repainted (note the scratches that show bare metal, but no other previous colors.) According the museum, it was presented to Kepner by General Eisenhower, and loaned to the museum by his family. I'm assuming it must have been kept out of the sunlight all these years. The cowl band color is a little greener than interior green..kind of like Navy Willow Green, but maybe a little less blue.

We were really short on time when we visited the museum. I plan to make another visit when we can take our time and I can get some better pics..we pass through the area a couple times a year when going to visit the wife's family.

SN

Edited December 17, 2011 by Steve N

[Chuck1945]

Totally off topic ...

Steve, is Grissom AFB still operating? I was there in 1966 for AFROTC summer camp and it was still Bunker-Hill AFB with the 305 BW and its B-58s and a KC 135 tanker squadron. Still have the slides (somewhere) I took from the boomer's spot refueling a B-58.

[Cobrahistorian]

Hi Steve.

Well the Revell's kit is a D30. Kokomo is a D25. They have a little big difference: the landing light under the left wing! If you saw the Tamiya's P47D and a Revell's one you will see what i'm talking...

So this project is dead for a moment...

Thanks guys.

Marcelo

Converting a D-30 back to a D-25/26/27/28 is fairly simple. Fill in the landing light on the wingtip, sand off the dive flaps, and add a new landing light inboard. In the cockpit, you'll want the corrugated floor, not the smooth floor. (D-28-RAs had the corrugated floor, D-28-REs didn't)It's a pretty straightforward conversion.

Jon

Edited December 17, 2011 by Cobrahistorian

[Steve N]

Steve, is Grissom AFB still operating?

According to the base website, it's now a reserve base, home of the 434th Air Refueling Wing operating KC-135s.

SN

[Cobrahistorian]

Had to bring this thread back up. I just got an original pic of "Kokomo" in the immediate postwar period. VM codes are gone, although the P-Bar is still there. However, that's not the odd thing. It is the same airplane (nose art and tail number corroborate that), but it has a P-47N-style fin strake!

The Mustang in the background is "Miss Mary Kay", P-51D-20 44-72412. It ground looped at Schweinfurt in June 45 and was eventually sold to the Swiss, where she operated for a number of years. My hunch is, this shot may have been taken at Schweinfurt.

Edited March 6, 2012 by Cobrahistorian

[Tbolt]

Interesting picture, thanks for that, it shows the nose band colour as darker than the anti-glare area, I'm guess because the OD of the anti-glare has faded/tinted from the sun and the nose band green has not.

As for the dorsal fillet, we know some M's were fitted with the larger N style fillet, but that's the first D I have noticed with it - at least Tamiya supply it in there kit if you want to model this aircraft at this later date.

[Phil marchese]

Note the direction and height of the sun.

[Hal Marshman Sr]

Not unusual for a -D to be retrofitted with a fin strake. In particular, this is the C.O. of the 8th AF Fighters Command, and would have any improvements available. She would also be kept in tip top shape, and cleaned regurlarly. No weathering would have been tolerated. Hal Sr

[Tbolt]

Not unusual for a -D to be retrofitted with a fin strake. In particular, this is the C.O. of the 8th AF Fighters Command, and would have any improvements available. She would also be kept in tip top shape, and cleaned regurlarly. No weathering would have been tolerated. Hal Sr

Unusual for a D to have the later N sized fillet though. Maybe this aircraft actually missed out having the original fillet fitted when they were first available for retro fit and when they came to fit one the N sized ones were available.