B-29 & B-50 Superfortresses, and C-97/ Stratocruiser

[Madoc]

Folks,

I remember seeing a "family tree" diagram of post-war Soviet bombers.  This was in just the past couple of years but its source now escapes me.  Anyway, it was fascinating to see how many of them all led back to the B-29 and what forms the Soviet engineers were able to morph the original Boeing design into.

Some of them had mightily clear Boeing lineage while others looked like they'd left a '29 buried in some well fertilized and watered soil, only coming back some months later to see what it had grown into.  Either way, the designs looked radically different yet all had some distinct similiarities.

Madoc

[Radish]

At Telford I shall be looking for an Acdemy B-29 or B-50.

Thinking about the various schemes a Washington could carry....

RAF Bomber Command either WW2 style (like Martin did with his 1/144th one) or possibly post-war Medium Sea Grey and black.
The Maritime option means a White with MSG top....

Or all over grey?  

[Jeffry Fontaine]

If you are going to lengthen the fuselage, you may as well increase the wingspan as well.  The argument there would be that with the increase in wing span comes an increase in operating altitude which was a good thing for a reconnaissance aircraft tasked with collection of intelligence information.  The increased fuselage length would allow more technicians to be accomodated and the bomb bay could then become an additional fuel tank for increased range and loiter time.  

I wonder how many miles of asphalt would be required to get something that large into the air...

[Daryl J.]

Jeffrey,

That's a great idea!  Bull-esque turbos, extended wings, and a stretch fuse.  The Bomber-stretched29 could then be known as the BS-29 eh?  B)

Rather than stretch the wings, large tip tanks had popped through my mind.  I've got a bunch of Magic-Sculp nearing the end of it's shelf life and a lathe at work so moulding and machining tip tanks is not out of the question.  

And thanks for all the -INT information too.    


Now.......had the P-3 never come about................(that's another story for later, eh?)



 to all,
Daryl J.

[Captain Canada]

Toad's the one who built one.

And I can't even fing a pic of the poor old thing.....mine had two life boats, under the wings.

[Jeffry Fontaine]

Daryl, the wing tip tanks sound like a winner!  As for the P-3 being a non-starter, it would be interesting to have seen a Navy version of the B-29 as the PB-2 for a long range surveillance and patrol aircraft.  In reality there were a few B-29s that were acquired by the Navy and used for AEW missions but they did not last long.  So maybe a PB-2 with an ASW role with a large surface search radar under the fuselage (from the AD-4W Guppy or TBM-3W) and a MAD boom in place of the tail gun. 

Maybe keep the four gun .50 caliber turret and mount it on the bottom of the aircraft in the rear turret location to allow strafing of submarines and sweeping the decks clear of crew.  The overall sea blue color similar to the Privateers and other late war aircraft would be very impressive.  Maybe a post war color scheme of white on the top and sea blue bottom like the Neptune and Mariner.   

The wing tip tanks could also become sensor pods for the electronics surveillance mission if you give them the "proper" shape...

[Brian da Basher]

I'd love to see a B-29 done up in Temperate Land scheme camo...maybe even with RAF roundels. The Washingtons in RAF sercive were all natural metal I think.

Brian da Basher

[elmayerle]

If you are going to lengthen the fuselage, you may as well increase the wingspan as well.  The argument there would be that with the increase in wing span comes an increase in operating altitude which was a good thing for a reconnaissance aircraft tasked with collection of intelligence information.  The increased fuselage length would allow more technicians to be accomodated and the bomb bay could then become an additional fuel tank for increased range and loiter time.  

I wonder how many miles of asphalt would be required to get something that large into the air...

Consider the original B-52 proposal, essentially a stretched in length and span B-29 with six T34 or T35 turboprops and a stepped cockpit.  It might make an interesting project.

[Daryl J.]

Was the hyooge tail on the B-50 so oversized to counteract torque?   The underlying statement being: Would counterrotating props negate the need for a tail change over the standard B-29?


Neat B.4 btw, J.

Daryl J.

[Mike Wren]

lovely stuff Jennings! I picked up a Dragon Wings die-cast 1/400 B-29 with an idea of doing it in those Bomber Command colours, the only problem being the lack of roundels in such a ridiculour scale, then I realised some SEAC blue/blue roudels would be much easier to paint on myself, so mine will be in white over black Tiger Force colours, when I get round to it anyway...  

[Radish]

The more I look at that B-50 in RAF camouflage, the better it seems.

Awesome              

I'd thought of doing a B-50 in 8th AF markings, you know, "A Bit O'Lace" with the yellow tail and everything (taken from the B-17G), but the RAF one looks so good, I could almost build it twice :dum: 

So.....

B-29 Washington, RAF SEAC markings?

B-50 Washington B4 in RAF Bomber Command European markings.

Stratocruiser MR.6 in Coastal Command colours.

That's about £90 eh??
Bloody hell, but a lot of plastic though, and better value than that resin crap people buy.  

[Daryl J.]

OK.....Vietnam era, USAF:

4 Turbines, no contraprops
Tip tanks
No turrets
Tail stinger, Gatling
Green/Green/Tan over black
Metalized control surfaces

Necessary updated antennae

Anything else?
External daisy cutters?


Daryl J.

[Radish]

The Stratocruiser MR6....got the kit, and it'll have some lumps and bumps of course, a MAD boon (what else!!) and some underwing pylons.

Colour scheme?
Probably white with medium sea grey uppers, or I may "go" for an overall mid-grey. RAF of course, full colour "D"-type roundels.

Oh, gun turrets too.

I'm "planning" on putting this in SMW06 Competition in a years time, but hope to begin the thing just after Christmas.

 

[GTX]

Hi folks,

Something I found recently - the Boeing P2B-2S Superfortress by Scott Pedersen (See here for more info):



I have seen a real life B-17 looking very much like this too, but can't quite remember where.

Regards,

Greg

[elmayerle]

From what I can find online, the P2B-1S did exist and was tested, so an operational P2B-2S isn't that much of a stretch at all.  Gogeous piece of work, though.