Sheet:

Superscale 72-131: B-26 Marauder

Units: See Review

Price

$7.00

Reviewer:

Scott Van Aken

An aircraft infrequently modeled in 1/72 is the B-26 Marauder. Perhaps it is the lack of decent kits that keeps this aircraft from being done more often. Frankly the kit has not been well supported by the plastics industry. I can only think of four 1/72 B-26s and one of those is of a subtype where only about 100 were built and few, if any, saw combat. I'm speaking of the Monogram Snap-Tite version. It's a fine kit, but of the B-26B-5 with small engine intakes, short tail and unique tail gun position. For a more 'normal' B-26, only Frog, Revell, and Airfix have produced this in 1/72, and all of those kits are over 35 years old. Still, those are better than nothing and they will build into semi-respectable models with a bit of care.

First plane on the list is the most colorful. 'Big Hairy Bird', from the397th BG has a rather ferocious shark mouth on it. The forward section is to be painted light grey. Though it is in bare metal, it, like the rest of the planes on this sheet, has a full suite of D-day stripes on it.

Also from the 397th is 'Missouri Mule'. Though lacking the flamboyance of the previous scheme, it does have the yellow tail stripes and an altered M on the port side.

In OD over Light Grey is 'Yankee Guerrilla'. This 386 BG Marauder has a large yellow stripe on the fin that will have to be painted on.

Finally from the 344th BG is 'Shopworn Angel' in the same scheme as the previous aircraft. No bright colors for this one aside from the invasion stripes.

No insignia are offered for this scheme so it is to the decal pile to find these items.

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