Of late, Thunderbolts have been a major subject of decal sheets. There are two reasons for that. One is due to the new Tamiya Razorback kit.  A new kit always sparks a flurry of interest in the type and the aftermarket crowd are not stupid so choose this time to release a mountain of material. Especially if it is in 1/48. 1/72 does not fare quite as well. Second is that the researcher of this sheet (and others produced by SuperScale ) is a Jug fanatic of the first order. It is thanks to him that these schemes have come to light. Many of you will remember the Aeromaster specials on the 404th FG. While I can't verify this supposition, I'd say that these are different aircraft from what were on those sheets. The 404th is the researcher's pet unit.

The result is this sheet with three T-bolts on it. All are from the 404th, all are in natural metal and all are well researched.

First is a P-47D-27 'Elsie', from the 507th FS. It is the Squadron CO's plane so has a black cowling and red pin-striping. It also has the black ID bands on the tail and D-day stripes on the lower fuselage. It carries MANY mission markings. As a -27, it requires a Hamilton Standard prop.

Next is a -30 so needs the asymmetrical Curtiss Electric prop. You'll notice that it also has the additional fin fillet that was standardized on this block number. It is also from the 507th.

The final choice is another -30, but this time from the 506th. 'Pride of Dogpatch' was flown by Lt. Harry 'Pappy' Yocum. This appropriately named plane has yellow wing tips and yellow  forward wing pylon sections.

Though not shown, there is a 2/3 sized sheet that has a lot of insignia on it. It appears that you can do all three planes with this particular sheet. The recommended kits are the Hasegawa, Monogram and Academy family of P-47s. I dare say that they'll fit the Otaki/Arii version as well if that is your choice, though most will go for what is readily available on shelves or in their stash.

Review sheet courtesy North American Hobbies, where you can get everything from 20-30% below retail.

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