In Box Review of Revell 1/32nd Scale Lockheed P-38J Lightning
Kit no. H-280
By Ray Mehlberger
Copyright: 1970
Out of production.
By Ray Mehlberger
Copyright: 1970
Out of production.
HISTORY:
The Lockheed P-38 Lightning is an American single-seat, twin piston-engine fighter aircraft that was used during World War II. Developed for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) by the Lockheed Corporation, the P-38 incorporated a distinctive twin-boom design with a central nacelle containing the cockpit and armament. Along with its use as a P-38J: This production variant was built in 1943 with improvements to each batch, notably an increase of Hp that came with an improved turbo charger.
It also included chin radiators, flat bullet-proof windshields, power-boosted ailerons, and increased fuel capacity* 2970 were built. Some were modified to pathfinder configuration and to F-5C, F-5E, and F-5F. general fighter, the P-38 was used in various aerial combat roles, including as a highly effective fighter-bomber, a night fighter, and a long-range escort fighter when equipped with drop tanks.
There were heavy bombers, or even other P-38s equipped with bombs, to their targets. Used in the aerial reconnaissance role, the P-38 accounted for 90 percent of American aerial film captured over Europe. Although it was not designated a heavy fighter or a bomber destroyer by the USAAC, the P-38 filled those roles and more; unlike German heavy fighters crewed by two or three airmen, the P-38 with its lone pilot was nimble enough to compete with single-engine fighters.
The P-38 was used most successfully in the Pacific and the China-Burma-India Theaters of Operations as the aircraft of America's top aces, Richard Bong (40 victories), Thomas McGuire (38 victories), and Charles H. MacDonald (27 victories). In the South West Pacific theater, the P-38 was the primary long-range fighter of United States Army Air Forces until the introduction of large numbers of P-51D Mustangs toward the end of the war.
Unusual for an early-war fighter design, both engines were supplemented by turbosuperchargers, making it one of the earliest Allied fighters capable of performing well at high altitudes.
The turbo-superchargers also muffled the exhaust, making the P-38's operation relatively quiet. The Lightning was extremely forgiving in flight and could be mishandled in many ways, but the initial rate of roll in early versions was low relative to other contemporary fighters; this was addressed in later variants with the introduction of hydraulically boosted ailerons. The P-38 was the only American fighter aircraft in large-scale production throughout American involvement in the war, from the Attack on Pearl Harbor to Victory over Japan Day.
P-38J, P-38L
The P-38J was introduced in August 1943. The turbosupercharger intercooler system on previous variants had been housed in the leading edges of the wings and had proven vulnerable to combat damage and could burst if the wrong series of controls was mistakenly activated. In the P-38J series, the streamlined engine nacelles of previous Lightnings were changed to fit the intercooler radiator between the oil coolers, forming a "chin" that visually distinguished the J model from its predecessors.
While the P-38J used the same V-1710-89/91 engines as the H model, the new core-type intercooler more efficiently lowered intake manifold temperatures and permitted a substantial increase in rated power. The leading edge of the outer wing was fitted with 55 US gal (210 L) fuel tanks, filling the space formerly occupied by intercooler tunnels, but these were omitted on early P-38J blocks due to limited availability.
The final 210 J models, designated P-38J-25-LO, alleviated the compressibility problem through the addition of a set of electrically actuated dive recovery flaps just outboard of the engines on the bottom centerline of the wings. With these improvements, a USAAF pilot reported a dive speed of almost 600 mph (970 km/h), although the indicated air speed was later corrected for compressibility error, and the actual dive speed was lower.
Lockheed manufactured over 200 retrofit modification kits to be installed on P-38J-10-LO and J-20-LO already in Europe, but the USAAF C-54 carrying them was shot down by an RAF pilot who mistook the Douglas transport for a German Focke-Wulf Condor.
Unfortunately, the loss of the kits came during Lockheed test pilot Tony LeVier's four-month morale-boosting tour of P-38 bases. Flying a new Lightning named Snafu per-man, modified to full P-38J-25-LO specifications at Lockheed's modification center near Belfast, LeVier captured the pilots' full attention by routinely performing maneuvers during March 1944 that common 8th Air Force wisdom held to be suicidal. It proved too little, too late, because the decision had already been made to re-equip with Mustangs.
The P-38J-25-LO production block also introduced hydraulically boosted ailerons, one of the first times such a system was fitted to a fighter. This significantly improved the Lightning's rate of roll and reduced control forces for the pilot. This production block and the following P-38L model are considered the definitive Lightnings, and Lockheed ramped up production, working with subcontractors across the country to produce hundreds of Lightnings each month.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Crew: 1
Length: 37 ft 10 in (11.53 m)
Wingspan: 52 ft 0 in (15.85 m)
Height: 12 ft 10 in (3.91 m)
Wing area: 327.5 sq ft (30.43 m2)
Aspect ratio: 8.26
Airfoil: root: NACA 23016; tip: NACA 4412
Empty weight: 12,800 lb. (5,806 kg)
Gross weight: 17,500 lb. (7,938 kg)
Max takeoff weight: 21,600 lb. (9,798 kg)
Powerplant: 2 × Allison V-1710 (-111 left hand rotation and -113 right hand rotation) V-12 liquid-cooled turbo-supercharged piston engine, 1,600 hp (1,200 kW) each WEP at 60 inHg (2.032 bar) and 3,000 rpm
Propellers: 3-bladed Curtiss electric constant-speed propellers (LH and RH rotation)
Maximum speed: 414 mph (666 km/h, 360 knot) on Military Power: 1,425 hp (1,063 kW) at 54 inHg (1.829 bar), 3,000 rpm and 25,000 ft (7,620 m)
Cruise speed: 275 mph (443 km/h, 239 knot)
Stall speed: 105 mph (169 km/h, 91 knot)
Combat range: 1,300 mi (2,100 km, 1,100 nm.)
Ferry range: 3,300 mi (5,300 km, 2,900 nm.)
Service ceiling: 44,000 ft (13,000 m)
Rate of climb: 4,750 ft/min (24.1 m/s)
Lift-to-drag: 13.5
Wing loading: 53.4 lbs./sq ft (261 kg/m2)
Power/mass: 0.16 hp/lbs. (0.26 kW/kg)
Drag area: 8.78 sq ft (0.82 m2)
Zero-lift drag coefficient: 0.0268
Armament: Guns: 1× Hispano M2(C) 20 mm cannon with 150 rounds or 4× M2 Browning machine gun 0.50 in (12.7 mm) machine guns with 500 rpg.
Rockets: 4× M10 three-tube 4.5 in (112 mm) M8 rocket launchers; or:
Bombs:
Inner hardpoints: 2× 2,000 lb (907 kg) bombs or drop tanks; or 2× 1,000 lb (454kg) bombs or drop tanks, plus either or 4× 500 lb (227 kg) bombs or 4× 250 lb (113 kg) bombs; or 6× 500 lb (227 kg) bombs; or 6× 250 lb (113 kg) bombs
Outer hardpoints: 10× 5 in (127 mm) HVARs (High Velocity Aircraft Rockets); or2× 500 lbs. (227 kg) bombs; or 2× 250 lbs. (113 kg) bombs
The Lockheed P-38 Lightning is an American single-seat, twin piston-engine fighter aircraft that was used during World War II. Developed for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) by the Lockheed Corporation, the P-38 incorporated a distinctive twin-boom design with a central nacelle containing the cockpit and armament. Along with its use as a P-38J: This production variant was built in 1943 with improvements to each batch, notably an increase of Hp that came with an improved turbo charger.
It also included chin radiators, flat bullet-proof windshields, power-boosted ailerons, and increased fuel capacity* 2970 were built. Some were modified to pathfinder configuration and to F-5C, F-5E, and F-5F. general fighter, the P-38 was used in various aerial combat roles, including as a highly effective fighter-bomber, a night fighter, and a long-range escort fighter when equipped with drop tanks.
There were heavy bombers, or even other P-38s equipped with bombs, to their targets. Used in the aerial reconnaissance role, the P-38 accounted for 90 percent of American aerial film captured over Europe. Although it was not designated a heavy fighter or a bomber destroyer by the USAAC, the P-38 filled those roles and more; unlike German heavy fighters crewed by two or three airmen, the P-38 with its lone pilot was nimble enough to compete with single-engine fighters.
The P-38 was used most successfully in the Pacific and the China-Burma-India Theaters of Operations as the aircraft of America's top aces, Richard Bong (40 victories), Thomas McGuire (38 victories), and Charles H. MacDonald (27 victories). In the South West Pacific theater, the P-38 was the primary long-range fighter of United States Army Air Forces until the introduction of large numbers of P-51D Mustangs toward the end of the war.
Unusual for an early-war fighter design, both engines were supplemented by turbosuperchargers, making it one of the earliest Allied fighters capable of performing well at high altitudes.
The turbo-superchargers also muffled the exhaust, making the P-38's operation relatively quiet. The Lightning was extremely forgiving in flight and could be mishandled in many ways, but the initial rate of roll in early versions was low relative to other contemporary fighters; this was addressed in later variants with the introduction of hydraulically boosted ailerons. The P-38 was the only American fighter aircraft in large-scale production throughout American involvement in the war, from the Attack on Pearl Harbor to Victory over Japan Day.
P-38J, P-38L
The P-38J was introduced in August 1943. The turbosupercharger intercooler system on previous variants had been housed in the leading edges of the wings and had proven vulnerable to combat damage and could burst if the wrong series of controls was mistakenly activated. In the P-38J series, the streamlined engine nacelles of previous Lightnings were changed to fit the intercooler radiator between the oil coolers, forming a "chin" that visually distinguished the J model from its predecessors.
While the P-38J used the same V-1710-89/91 engines as the H model, the new core-type intercooler more efficiently lowered intake manifold temperatures and permitted a substantial increase in rated power. The leading edge of the outer wing was fitted with 55 US gal (210 L) fuel tanks, filling the space formerly occupied by intercooler tunnels, but these were omitted on early P-38J blocks due to limited availability.
The final 210 J models, designated P-38J-25-LO, alleviated the compressibility problem through the addition of a set of electrically actuated dive recovery flaps just outboard of the engines on the bottom centerline of the wings. With these improvements, a USAAF pilot reported a dive speed of almost 600 mph (970 km/h), although the indicated air speed was later corrected for compressibility error, and the actual dive speed was lower.
Lockheed manufactured over 200 retrofit modification kits to be installed on P-38J-10-LO and J-20-LO already in Europe, but the USAAF C-54 carrying them was shot down by an RAF pilot who mistook the Douglas transport for a German Focke-Wulf Condor.
Unfortunately, the loss of the kits came during Lockheed test pilot Tony LeVier's four-month morale-boosting tour of P-38 bases. Flying a new Lightning named Snafu per-man, modified to full P-38J-25-LO specifications at Lockheed's modification center near Belfast, LeVier captured the pilots' full attention by routinely performing maneuvers during March 1944 that common 8th Air Force wisdom held to be suicidal. It proved too little, too late, because the decision had already been made to re-equip with Mustangs.
The P-38J-25-LO production block also introduced hydraulically boosted ailerons, one of the first times such a system was fitted to a fighter. This significantly improved the Lightning's rate of roll and reduced control forces for the pilot. This production block and the following P-38L model are considered the definitive Lightnings, and Lockheed ramped up production, working with subcontractors across the country to produce hundreds of Lightnings each month.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Crew: 1
Length: 37 ft 10 in (11.53 m)
Wingspan: 52 ft 0 in (15.85 m)
Height: 12 ft 10 in (3.91 m)
Wing area: 327.5 sq ft (30.43 m2)
Aspect ratio: 8.26
Airfoil: root: NACA 23016; tip: NACA 4412
Empty weight: 12,800 lb. (5,806 kg)
Gross weight: 17,500 lb. (7,938 kg)
Max takeoff weight: 21,600 lb. (9,798 kg)
Powerplant: 2 × Allison V-1710 (-111 left hand rotation and -113 right hand rotation) V-12 liquid-cooled turbo-supercharged piston engine, 1,600 hp (1,200 kW) each WEP at 60 inHg (2.032 bar) and 3,000 rpm
Propellers: 3-bladed Curtiss electric constant-speed propellers (LH and RH rotation)
Maximum speed: 414 mph (666 km/h, 360 knot) on Military Power: 1,425 hp (1,063 kW) at 54 inHg (1.829 bar), 3,000 rpm and 25,000 ft (7,620 m)
Cruise speed: 275 mph (443 km/h, 239 knot)
Stall speed: 105 mph (169 km/h, 91 knot)
Combat range: 1,300 mi (2,100 km, 1,100 nm.)
Ferry range: 3,300 mi (5,300 km, 2,900 nm.)
Service ceiling: 44,000 ft (13,000 m)
Rate of climb: 4,750 ft/min (24.1 m/s)
Lift-to-drag: 13.5
Wing loading: 53.4 lbs./sq ft (261 kg/m2)
Power/mass: 0.16 hp/lbs. (0.26 kW/kg)
Drag area: 8.78 sq ft (0.82 m2)
Zero-lift drag coefficient: 0.0268
Armament: Guns: 1× Hispano M2(C) 20 mm cannon with 150 rounds or 4× M2 Browning machine gun 0.50 in (12.7 mm) machine guns with 500 rpg.
Rockets: 4× M10 three-tube 4.5 in (112 mm) M8 rocket launchers; or:
Bombs:
Inner hardpoints: 2× 2,000 lb (907 kg) bombs or drop tanks; or 2× 1,000 lb (454kg) bombs or drop tanks, plus either or 4× 500 lb (227 kg) bombs or 4× 250 lb (113 kg) bombs; or 6× 500 lb (227 kg) bombs; or 6× 250 lb (113 kg) bombs
Outer hardpoints: 10× 5 in (127 mm) HVARs (High Velocity Aircraft Rockets); or2× 500 lbs. (227 kg) bombs; or 2× 250 lbs. (113 kg) bombs
THE KIT:
Revell is an old prolific plastic model kit manufacturer, that is based in Venice, CA USA. They make all manner of plastic model kit subjects in the popular scales.
This kit comes in a jam-packed, shrink-wrapped tray and lid type box.
The cover art shows a color illustration of a Lockheed P-38J Lightning being chased by a Japanese Zero fighter, with another Lightning coming to it’s mates rescue.
The Lightning being chased is overall bright steel, with a black anti-glare panel in front of its windshield and black propellers and spinners. It has a black and white photo of a woman’s face, with red “MARGE” beside it, on the side of the nose. Followed by 30 victory markings over Japanese aircraft, over maintenance data. It has U.S. Air Force stars with bars on the engine booms sides and atop the left wing and black stenciled serial no. 210 4390 over smaller 936 on the sides of the rudders.
The Zero is in a camouflage of a base of light-grey with dark-green spots. It has yellow wing leading-edges and red Japanese Air Force roundels under its wings.
The upper right corner of the box says: 1/32nd scale. 14 ½” long with 19 ½” wingspan. Ready to assemble model of the revolutionary WWII fighter.
One side-panel of the box starts with a small color repeat of the box art.
Followed by a one-paragraph history of the Lightning and color illustrations of the pilot figure in a flight suit, the removable cowling with a detailed Allison engine, detailed cockpit with hinged canopy.
This Revell model is scaled from the actual aircraft at the Air Museum. Ontario, CA. For best results use Revell paints and cement.
Movable wheels and propellers. Official U.S. Army Air Force insignia with Major Richard Bong’s personal markings.
The other side-panel of the box shows color box arts of other 1/32nd scale aircraft kits that Revell manufactures: North American P-51B Mustang, Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, Messerschmitt Bf-109G “Gustav” and a Vought Corsair F-4U1.
Revell is an old prolific plastic model kit manufacturer, that is based in Venice, CA USA. They make all manner of plastic model kit subjects in the popular scales.
This kit comes in a jam-packed, shrink-wrapped tray and lid type box.
The cover art shows a color illustration of a Lockheed P-38J Lightning being chased by a Japanese Zero fighter, with another Lightning coming to it’s mates rescue.
The Lightning being chased is overall bright steel, with a black anti-glare panel in front of its windshield and black propellers and spinners. It has a black and white photo of a woman’s face, with red “MARGE” beside it, on the side of the nose. Followed by 30 victory markings over Japanese aircraft, over maintenance data. It has U.S. Air Force stars with bars on the engine booms sides and atop the left wing and black stenciled serial no. 210 4390 over smaller 936 on the sides of the rudders.
The Zero is in a camouflage of a base of light-grey with dark-green spots. It has yellow wing leading-edges and red Japanese Air Force roundels under its wings.
The upper right corner of the box says: 1/32nd scale. 14 ½” long with 19 ½” wingspan. Ready to assemble model of the revolutionary WWII fighter.
One side-panel of the box starts with a small color repeat of the box art.
Followed by a one-paragraph history of the Lightning and color illustrations of the pilot figure in a flight suit, the removable cowling with a detailed Allison engine, detailed cockpit with hinged canopy.
This Revell model is scaled from the actual aircraft at the Air Museum. Ontario, CA. For best results use Revell paints and cement.
Movable wheels and propellers. Official U.S. Army Air Force insignia with Major Richard Bong’s personal markings.
The other side-panel of the box shows color box arts of other 1/32nd scale aircraft kits that Revell manufactures: North American P-51B Mustang, Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, Messerschmitt Bf-109G “Gustav” and a Vought Corsair F-4U1.
WHAT’S IN THE BOX:
The kit holds 7 chalk-white parts trees, a clear tree, the decal sheet and the instructions, that are not cello bagged. There is some plastic flash on trees.
Trees are not alphabetized or illustrated in the instructions. They do, however, have part number tabs next to the smaller sized parts.
The first large, chalk-white tree holds: propellers, air intake, nose wheel, head rests, landing gear legs, cockpit floor and side panels, engine front etc. (26 parts)
The kit holds 7 chalk-white parts trees, a clear tree, the decal sheet and the instructions, that are not cello bagged. There is some plastic flash on trees.
Trees are not alphabetized or illustrated in the instructions. They do, however, have part number tabs next to the smaller sized parts.
The first large, chalk-white tree holds: propellers, air intake, nose wheel, head rests, landing gear legs, cockpit floor and side panels, engine front etc. (26 parts)
The second small chalk-white tree holds: the engine halves and landing-gear doors (6 parts)
The second large chalk-white tree holds: the fuselage halves and halves of one engine boom with rudder on it (4 parts)
The third large chalk-white tree holds: the wing and elevator bottoms and right engine cowling (6 parts)
The fourth large chalk-white tree holds: the landing gear compartments, spinners and front cowling parts (8 parts)
The fifth large chalk-white tree holds: the wing tops, fire wall, fuselage nose, nose wheel well, stabilizer tops and bottom end, left and right air scoops (14 parts)
The sixth medium-sized chalk-white tree holds: the main wheels, superchargers, seat, air intakes, engine bearers, short and long machine-guns, nose landing gear leg, steering handles, nose wheel door etc. (30 parts)
The seventh small-sized chalk-white tree holds the engine halves, left and right wheel inside and outside doors (6 parts)
The clear tree holds the hatch retainer, canopy parts and a light lens (4 parts)
The decal sheet completes the kits contents.
There are parts missing in the kit. They are the pilot and instrument panels.
The detail is the raised type and very well done.
Recommended.
The detail is the raised type and very well done.
Recommended.