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The Saga of "Yo-Yo"

By Dick Engar
Dick tackles a unique customization project for the family of a WWII veteran who navigated a B-24J Liberator over Europe.  Learn some history about "Yo-Yo."  Did Senator George McGovern fly Yo-Yo, or not?

Is it possible to repaint a large, pre-built diecast aircraft?
20 November 2019 Update:  Mr. Editor Bill gave Dick a rough time for forgetting to remove the masking tape from the lower nose plexiglass on Yo-Yo.  So Dick contacted Yo-Yo's owners and together, they arranged for Dick to take care of the masking and perform some minor repair work on Yo-Yo.  At the end of this article, you'll find Dick's description of work done and a dozen NEW detail photos of Yo-Yo.
I do not usually do commission modeling or any contract projects as a “professional modeler,” mainly because a fun hobby then becomes onerous work for me. It is also hard to figure out an affordable fee based on the hours you normally have to fit in, etc.  But when a maxillofacial/oral surgeon friend, the distinguished Dr. Crayton Walker, happened to stop by my office, he was fascinated by my collection of aircraft models. He then admitted that he is a historic aviation buff and tuned me on to a great book written by Stephen E. Ambrose, “The Wild Blue,” about George McGovern and a USAAF B-24 he flew called “Yo-Yo.”
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"Yo-Yo" in flight
​Dr. Walker also mentioned that a friend of his had a father who was a navigator in this same airplane.  He then asked me if I ever did commission work, because this same friend had a large die-cast B-24 model that was in British markings, and wondered if I could re-paint it and turn it into “Yo-Yo.”  Not one to turn down a most interesting challenge, I told to have his friend bring the big model to my office with him and let me take a look.
Just before the 2016 IPMS Nationals, Dr. Walker came to my office and I was introduced to Larry Gilson, whose father, Vervin R. “Gil” Gilson was a navigator in a B-24J-200, airplane number 44-41199 which was called “Yo-Yo.” The aircraft had a classic bit of nose art featuring a Bugs-Bunny like character skillfully manipulating a white yo-yo. 

Gil flew in the 741st Squadron, 455th Bomb Group, in 1944-1945 which was part of the 304th Bomb Wing.  This group was based in Italy at San Giovanni Field near the town of Cerignola. 
 
It so happened that Senator George McGovern also flew this same B-24 in the same Bomb Group.  Even though the plane bore the same Yo-Yo bunny rabbit logo and title, when McGovern flew it, he called it the “Dakota Queen" in honor of his wife, Eleanor.  Even though McGovern actually flew in Yo-Yo, it was the name, "Dakota Queen" that he designated on the flight reports.  This is why there was some questioning as to whether or not he actually flew the plane--he did!
I had started reading The Wild Blue and learned more about B-24 Liberators and their crews based in Italy in 1944.  The book turned out to be fascinating to read and had a huge amount of helpful information, some of which played into my research on “Yo-Yo.”

1.  The 455th Bomb Group’s tail marking had a black diamond shape on the upper half of both vertical stabilizers and yellow-painted lower stabilizers and port upper rudder.  

2. The 741st squadron had a black four-leaf clover on the upper rudders.

3.  The B-24s had their numbers painted on both sides of the rear fuselage to ensure that each plane joined its proper group during formation rendezvous following take-off.
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Vervin R. “Gil” Gilson with his crew.  Gil is on back row, far left, by the bunny) 
4.  By this point of the war, camouflage was not deemed necessary so the B-24s of the 455th Bomb Group were adorned with an aluminum finish.

​5.  
 In August 1944 Lt. Col. William L. Snowden became the 455th Bomb Group’s commander and was well liked by his men.  He often led the missions.
Gil recollected that he was crew on a brand new B-24 in Kansas that got shipped over or flown over to Europe while Gil and crew went across the Atlantic via ship.  Then, they went into action.  He thought that same brand new airplane became “Yo-Yo.”  When Gil and crew were finished with “Yo-Yo,” George McGovern became the chief pilot.
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Four generations of Gilsons involved (L to R):  Alex (great grandson), Gil, Jim (son), and Mario at a restaurant in Italy.  Brad Gilson (grandson) took the photo.
Apparently during his 25th mission, which happened to be a bombing run aimed at the Ploesti Oil Fields, Gil Gilson was the navigator for Lt. Col. Snowden.   The B-24 they were flying was hit by flak and they knew they'd have to bail out as the plane's hydraulic systems were failing.  But Col. Snowden was able to nurse the aircraft long enough to get it back over friendly territory.  Before he bailed out, Col. Snowden returned to the cockpit to retrieve his new hat.  However, he reached the ground before Gil because his parachute was damaged by flak.  They were assisted by a 14-year old boy, Mario, who became their laundry boy once they were back on base.  When Gil returned home from Italy, he brought the used parachute with him, which his wife cut up to make clothes!  Over sixty years later, Gil with his son, grandson and great-grandson returned to Italy and met up with Mario after all this time!

Of course Gil and Lt. Col. Snowden both survived their bail-out adventure and returned to service, but it was unclear in the account whether that aircraft was “Yo-Yo” or another B-24.  Unless another airplane was renamed, the doomed B-24 was not “Yo-Yo” as will be made clear at the end of this account.  Gil flew another 10 missions after this incident of being shot down!
Larry’s picture of Gil’s fellow crew (in front of “Yo-Yo” above) revealed a standard bare aluminum colored B-24J which meant that the paint scheme would not be hard to accomplish on the model.

However, what Larry brought me was an eight-pound, 1/48 scale die cast B-24J in white, gray and dark green British markings. Larry explained that he bought the model from Franklin Mint for his father before he passed away at age 91 in December 2015. ​
I later looked up the model on the Franklin Mint website and noted that a current B-24J went for $499.00!  So I thought to myself, “If I take on this project, I had better not screw up this model!”  But Dr. Walker assured Larry (and me) that I was up to the task and would be able to turn a British B-24J into a USAAF B-24J-200 known as Yo-Yo.  I warned them that I was a slow builder, and would not even be able to think about starting the project until the 2016 IPMS Nationals and a local contest I was running were both over.  Larry was happy to be patient.   
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Dick starts his project with the right aircraft, a B-24J.  No major conversion work was needed, just paint and markings and a pair of small scratchbuilt antennae.  However, putting a silver finish over that camouflage is not a simple endeavor.
I did immediately start doing some research and found that because Senator McGovern had flown the plane, there was quite a bit of information on the internet, including some photos.  I also contacted my friend Jack Morris who has a business called JDMC Aviation Graphics and makes custom decals so I thought that it would be helpful for him to make some professional grade transfers in lieu of efforts on my part to do-it-myself.  Nevertheless, I did experiment with some home-made decals as will be described later.
 
I checked with the vendors at the 2016 IPMS Nationals in Columbia, SC and one of them had a set of 1/48 scale USAAF decals for a B-24J, so at least I now had the basic insignia markings as a start.  I had previously checked with other decal manufacturers via e-mail and none of them had any markings for “Yo-Yo,” which surprised me a bit.  I figured that the story would have been different in more ways than one had Senator McGovern beaten Richard Nixon in the 1972 presidential election.  In that scenario, there could have been plenty of “Yo-Yo” markings out there.  But that premise is one for another time-space continuum, I guess!
 
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Another view of Franklin Mint's B-24J in British markings prior to any customization work
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The rubber wheels needed to be masked as well as the bottoms of the wings and front fuselage as the first item of business was to paint the landing gear wells green zinc chromate.  
One of the best masking mediums for covering unusually shaped parts and areas where your paint may be fragile is Parafilm Laboratory Film.  This product was originally designed as a temporary cap for laboratory containers.  When stretched, a light adhesive is activated, which provides a nice, low-tack paint masking material.  It can be wrapped around irregularly shaped parts and won’t let any paint through.  
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Parafilm is a low-tack masking medium.  A piece smaller than is needed is cut from the roll, then stretched to activate the adhesive.  Further stretching will allow the Parafilm to conform to complex-curved surfaces.
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Rust-Oleum fast-dry silver paint was the primary finish--right out of the can!
To paint landing gear bays and doors, I used Testors Model Master zinc chromate-green paint.  I didn’t think I’d need to prime these areas, and the chromate paint didn’t adhere to the original white paint very well.   I had to be very careful with future masking after this.  Some experiments also showed that regular Model Master Metalizer paint would not adhere well either.  So I opted for some Rustoleum Krylon paint that I knew from prior experience would stick reasonably well to the metal model.
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After the gear doors were painted, Dick finished off the masking he would need to accomplish before the silver paint went on.
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​Dick used Parafilm on the props with wadded tissue in the engine orifices.  Tamiya yellow masking tape covered windows and turret plexiglass and landing gear wells.
Another unlikely product that works well for masking temperamental paint is Post-it Note adhesive paper.  It has enough tack to stay on your surface but not enough to pull up your paint!  You can simply cut off the piece you need with the adhesive at the edge of the area you wish to mask.  Finally, I used yellow Tamiya tape on the de-icer boots and canopy areas.  This part of the project was tedious but necessary.  

The engines were finished sufficiently in their original state, not need any more adjustments or detailing.  I used wadded tissue in each of them to cover the engine inside its cowling.  I left the landing gear struts uncovered as they were also going to be painted aluminum.  So, with masking done, I was ready to paint.
 
I expected that putting a silver finish over the original camouflage pattern would leave visible ridges where the colors met.  To gauge the extent, I decided to shoot some Rust-Oleum silver paint over it, and sure enough, the existing camouflage edge was prominent enough to require sanding and smoothing to eliminate it.
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An initial coat of Rustoleum silver revealed ridges from previous layers of camouflage paint.  Silver paint is unforgiving when it comes to revealing defects.  As a primer, this was a good thing!
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Sanding is required to remove the ridges from the previous camouflage finish.
I used varying grits of wet sanding and wrapped up with 2500 grit to get an edge smooth to normal vision and magnification.  The next coat of Rust-Oleum went on well as primer and showed me that I had effectively eliminated the camouflage-edge.  I made sure I had not missed any spots before I went on from that point.

Rather than decanting the paint from the spray can to run through my airbrush, I decided to revert back to my method of painting automotive models straight from the can.  This worked well in my younger days in the late 1960’s so I was ready to tackle the big project.  Due to the model’s size, I used a card table and painted outside so I would not have to deal with any spray-dust, etc.  I had one winter day of reasonable weather and two coats with time to dry in between did the trick.
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The model after spraying the final coat of silver paint.
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Careful masking reduces the chance of overspray.
I gave the paint several days to dry and focused on my research as the British version had some antennae and wing scoops that my B-24J-200 did not have.  So, after looking through several references and a couple of photos of “Yo-Yo,” I had confirmed that there were no nose antennae.
 
At this point, Jack Morris had finished the decal set and sent them right over to me and I could tell immediately they were beautiful.  They were nice and thin and went on perfectly.
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Larger antennae were  not used for Yo-Yo even though Dick painted them nicely.  The smaller antennae were scratchbuilt.
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Evolution of the clover graphic.  Dick found that using circles from a hole punch was best for getting even circles.  He could have printed the image on decal paper, but in the end, Jack Morris created them along with the bunny decal.
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The custom-made bunny decal went on beautifully, according to Dick.
I sealed the decals with a glossy clear coat first and then used a semi-gloss finish to blend them in with the aluminum paint.  I generally do not like to coat the entire metal surface with the decal coating if I can help it as the natural metal finish generally looks better without anything over it.  I also made a few minor fixes as far as the holes visible where the nose antennae went and where some aluminum touch-up was needed.
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Bottoms of the vertical stabilizers are yellow, as noted above.  Only the upper surface of the portside horizontal stabilizer is yellow.
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Before:  Franklin Mint B-24J in British markings
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After:  Yo-Yo as painted and decaled by Dick
Photos of Yo-Yo showed the plane with no de-icer boots on wing and tail leading edges and I debated their depiction on the model.  But I also had drawings and marking indicators that had them.  I  decided to leave them be since they were on the original die-cast model and I thought the model looked cooler with them.  I did not want to do a lot of modification on the die-cast model itself and I thought it would take too much effort to try to sand or trim the fronts of the  wings and tail section of the die cast model that surrounded the boots.  
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Additional views of the finished model
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I did a little research and found out that in the European Theatre, they often removed de-icer boots from B-17s, B-24s, B-25s, etc. because they caused excessive drag when they were torn up by flak, etc.  Temperatures and atmospheric conditions during flight near Mediterranean latitudes also played a role in boots on vs. boots off.  I noticed in my pictures of the Strawberry Bitch B-24D at the Air Force Museum in Dayton that there are not boots on that aircraft.  However, the Revell instructions, etc. for that scheme had boots marked to paint in black.   I also read that de-icer boots were used less and less later in the war. Oh, well.  Live and learn!
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Dick noted that he forgot initially to remove the masking on the lower nose plexiglass. 
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Below, you'll find updated photos with all masking tape off!  A B-24 has plenty of glass panels to mask and it is easy to overlook removing tape from one or two!
As the conversion process continued, I kept in touch with Larry, who described to me an amazing reunion in November 2007 just a few years before Gil died in in 2015.    Gil, his son Jim, a grandson Brad, and a great-grandson Alex returned to Italy to tour Cerignola, where he was based. 
 
They made arrangements to meet with Mario, who, as a 14 year old boy, found Gil after he bailed out of the ill-fated B-24 after the hydraulic cables had been damaged by flak over the Ploesti Oil Fields. 
 
Mario came by the barracks each week thereafter to pick up uniforms that needed to be laundered.  They had a wonderful reunion with Mario, and spent two days visiting many of the sites Gil had spent time at while serving in Italy.  Pictures of the airplanes still adorned the walls of the restaurant where they got together and are reproduced throughout this article.
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Pictures adorning the walls of the restaurant in Italy where Gil and Mario enjoyed a happy reunion.  A Do 17Z that had been shot down.
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Captured German aircraft, in this case, a Messerschmitt bf-109
The saddest part about the Yo-Yo story comes in George McGovern’s own words from the Ambrose book previously mentioned, The Wild Blue.  After the war, McGovern was back in college and, taking a break from his studies, he took his wife Eleanor to a movie at the Paramount Theater.  Back then, they would typically show a black and white newsreel before the main feature and he recalled that the announcer was saying, “American bombers that were flying a few short weeks or months ago in England, Italy and the Pacific are now being collected in Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico and other western states to be salvaged.”  The newsreel showed bulldozers working away and moving remains of hundreds of B-24s into a heap.  The cameraman zoomed in on one aircraft in particular so viewers could see the name on the nose.  It happened to be “Yo-Yo.
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A B-24 whose pilot hit the brakes too soon.
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A closeup of a colorful B-24J, "Witchcraft." 
McGovern could not believe it.  According to the account in the book, he exclaimed, “I felt like just getting right up out of my seat.  We nursed those bombers back as carefully as we could, conserved the gas, protected the oil and watched the oil pressure and other gauges.  We tried to land them as well as we could, and we brought back the precious airplane.  Now it was being turned into junk.  I couldn’t believe it!  I reacted almost violently!  I wanted to get up and tell the audience that what we had just seen was sheer waste and extravagance.  Made no sense at all!  It really stirred my Scotch-Irish soul to see it taking place.”
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Senator McGovern signed Gil's copy of Wild Blue.  McGovern passed away in 2012.
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Mission briefings were held in this potato bunker.
​In 2007 Gil was actually able to meet George McGovern in San Antonio, Texas at an annual convention of surviving B-24 personnel.  Sen. McGovern signed Gil’s copy of Wild Blue for him.
It would have been interesting to record their conversations about flights and adventures in their four-engine behemoth so ignominiously destroyed all those years ago.  But, at least one replica of Yo-Yo was in existence now and about to be presented to Gil’s son.
 
Finally the big day came to unveil “Yo-Yo” to Larry and his son Brad, along with Dr. Walker and a pilot friend, Ron Bird, who came along for the event.  For effect, I shrouded Yo Yo with a tablecloth and unveiled it for all to see when everyone was there.
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Dick covered the model prior to its official unveiling for Gil's family
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Yo-Yo unveiled!
Larry and friends were very happy to see Yo Yo as their father and grandfather served in it over 70 years ago.  Larry’s only lament was that his ​father was not able to see the model in person.  
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The unveiling L-R:  Dr. Crayton Walker, Larry Gilson, and Larry’s son Brad.  Seated: pilot friend Ron Bird, Dick Engar
​Of course, Yo-Yo was only one of virtually all but a handful of B-24s that met the same fate of the scrap heap.  Out of over 18,000 built, only a relatively few are displayed in museums and only two are still flying today.  But, of course, we modelers can keep the memory of the Davis Wing and the B-24 alive, which made my repainting project so worthwhile.  And it was great to present Larry with a keepsake that was a nice memorial to his father.

Check out our kit review for the Atlantis B-24J.  It's a re-release of an old Revell box-scale (1/92) kit that hasn't seen the light of day in decades.  It's worth a look!

​
Postscript and Additional Picture Gallery:
Once I realized that Yo-Yo had not had all of the masking tape removed, I could not let the model remain in that state any longer.  So I got in touch with Larry Gilson and mentioned that I needed to do some improvements on the model.  He was very accommodating and brought the large and heavy model to my office right away.  
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The underside of the nose showing the masking that Dick forgot to remove.
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Oblique view of same
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Masking removed
I examined the model closely and noticed a few problems other than the masking on the nose.  One of the nose landing gear doors was missing.  The back stand that kept the heavy model from being a tail-sitter had partially broken and the belly turret guns had broken off.  The top fuselage antenna had been bent and weakened and needed to be replaced.  These bits of wear made it apparent that the model is being loved and enjoyed by the Gilson family and they represented simple repairs.  My work was cut out for me.
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Removing the tape and polishing the clear plastic on the lower nose windscreen was the easy part, but it immediately improved the look of the model. 
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The slab-sides of the B-24 made a good billboard for aircrews to get creative with nose art.  Note Jack Morris' custom-made decal.
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The missing gear door.  With sheet styrene on hand, this is a fairly simple repair.
The next step was to use a piece of thick sheet plastic to replace the missing door.  I added some plastic rods by drilling through the door and inserting them and smoothing the joint before painting to ensure strength and create a long term solution to a possibly weak part of the model.  The result was successful as the pictures show.  

Fixing the metal support was a little bit more tricky.  I tried to use the Dremel tool to cut some holes to make adhesion easier but the metal was super hard and actually dulled my cutting burrs. 

I was able to get enough cut to improve but not perfect the retention effort but I was able to secure the support with CYA glue which would hold up as long as the back fuselage did not take a sideways hit.  Most of you know that CYA glue has not a lot of tensile strength so you have to consider this weakness when using it on a piece with a very small surface area.
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Note the repaired landing gear door below the nose art.
The belly turret would not really retract well into the fuselage due to the design of the model so I could not figure out a better way to sink it into the fuselage but still added new machine guns made out of stretched sprue and painted gun metal.  These improvements kept the plane on its nose gear and made the belly turret and guns look much better.

Finally I removed the stump of the old topside antenna and replaced it with a new one made of stretched sprue and painted with the original Rustoleum aluminum paint which I had kept with the premonition that I would need to use it again. 

I also did some other touch-up painting in a few spots where the model had been scratched and finally it was better than new with the improvements and refurbishing.  The pictures show the final result and I was happy to be able to contact Larry for the refurbished and improved model to be picked up at my office.
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New machine guns for the belly turret and a repaired "kickstand."
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Yo-Yo with repair work completed.
The big lesson I learned here is to double check all clear parts to make sure no masks remain in place after completion!  It's easy to do on a large WWII bomber subject since there are so many glass bits.  I made the same mistake at one of my entries at IPMS Nationals with a small window on an airplane entry so I am either getting careless or senile.  But I have learned my lesson to be more meticulous and careful to complete a better final scrutiny protocol, whether the model enters a contest or serves as a museum piece for a deserving family.
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Check back often!  We have a lot of cool upcoming content!


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September 2021:  Minicraft 1/144 F-51 Review
September 2021:  NEW Atlantis 1/32 1982 Camaro Review!
August 2021:  Minicraft 1/144 B-52 (Current Flying) Review
August 2021:  Minicraft 1/144 E-3/E-8 AWACS/J-STARS Review

July 2021:  New Atlantis 1/300 Nautilus Review updates our Nautilus history page!
July 2021:  Revell's Gemini Spacecraft Kits History
June 2021:  Minicraft 1/350 RMS Titanic Review
12 May 2021:  Titanic Models List!  One Movie.  Lots of Titanics.
29 April 2021:  Snoopy vs Red Baron live on YouTube!
15 March 2021:  Atlantis Snoopy and His Sopwith Camel Lands -- What Happens when they meet The Red Baron?
12 March 2021:  Atlantis 1/120 B-29 Review!  New Kit!  
08 March 2021:  Minicraft 1/144 B-24J / PB4Y-1 / B-24D Review!
10 February 2021:  Moebius 1/144 Discovery on YouTube!
07 February 2021:  Guest Gallery!  See our pals' models!
05 February 2021:  Moebius 1/144 Discovery XD-1 Review
Will the Utah Monolith stay vertical this time?
05 January 2021:  Hawk Beta-I Atomic Bomber Rebuild!
28 December:  Bill's Airliner Gallery! 
19 December:  Just in time for Christmas!  Atlantis Phantom of the Opera with Glow-in-the-dark Parts!
13 December:  Godzilla Returns Again!  Atlantis Godzilla with Glow-in-the-Dark Parts!
30 November:  Revell KC-135 and 707 Kit History!
23 November:  Minicraft 1/144 C-18A/707 Kit Review!
Another feature in our series about the KC-135/707!

12 November:  Atlantis Mr Gasser Review updated photos
09 November:  Dick's Lindberg XB-70 Restoration
09 November:  Monogram Air Power Set YouTube Video!
30 October:  Special Project:  Monogram's 1959 Air Power Set! (web page)
09 October:  A Review of Minicraft's KC-135 Kits continues our special series on the KC-135 (feature in-progress).
28 September:  Let's Play Battleship!  Atlantis 1/535 Iowa Class Kits review - and bonus comparison between Revell's USS Missouri and Atlantis Iowa Class Battleship kits!

20 September:  Kit History --  Revell 1/535 USS Missouri
07 September:  Ship It!  Academy 1/700 Titanic ICP Kit Review
22 August:  Revell's All-New PT-109 Elco PT Boat Kit Review
13 August:  KC-135 History Series Part II - AMT's 1/72 Kit:  It's In There
04 August:  Dueling Subchasers-- Atlantis S2F Hunter Killer Review
29 July:  Kit Review and History:  Atlantis Models P-3A Orion
26 July:  Book reviews:  The Vintage Years of Airfix Box Art by Roy Cross
A Weird-Oh World - The Art of Bill Campbell by Bill Campbell

24 July:  DEM BRUDDERS GO OFF THE DEEP END WITH THEIR  ATLANTIS PBY CATALINA KIT VIDEO REVIEW!
22 July:  Why Buy a PBY:  Atlantis PBY-5A Catalina Web Review!

09 July:  No shyin' away from the Cheyenne:  Atlantis AH-56 Cheyenne Kit Web Review
06 July:  Rank the Lanc:  Minicraft Lancaster MK-1 Kit Review
17 June:  88 Reasons:  Minicraft Ju-88A/C Kit Review
16 June:  We Dug the Jug:  Minicraft P-47D Kit Review
15 June:  DICK DOES CARS!  Dick's Car Gallery!
10 June: 
Minicraft RB-29 Review Updated!  Minicraft's Own Lewis Nace Builds an Amazing B-29 Conversion Collection!
05 June:  Minicraft 1/144 B-17 Kit Review!
03 June:  The Big Stick:  Atlantis' B-36 Kit Review!
30 May:  Minicraft A6M2 Zero Kit Review in 1/144
26 May:  Dem Brudders On Youtube!  Watch our Atlantis Ah-56 Cheyenne review. (We're a little disappointed with our new spokesman Roddy Redshirt.  When we find all his pieces, we might not use him again.)
22 May:  The Girl Next Door:  Minicraft 1/144 G4M1 "Betty" Kit Review
20 May:  Unmasking the Avenger:  Minicraft 1/144 TBF Avenger Kit Review
18 May:  B young!  B-29 again!  Minicraft RB-29 Superfortress "Postwar" Kit Review - We've expanded content on this page!
06 May:  KC-135/707 Kit History Series Begins!

27 April:  Enter the Mentor:  Minicraft T-34A Mentor kit Review. 
24 March:  See Dick.  See Dick build.  See  Dick's Large Aircraft Gallery.  Build, Dick, Build.
04 March:  Eat all your vegetables.  Open-Box New Kit Review:  Atlantis HH-3E "Jolly Green Giant"  
06 February:  Requiem for Mad Magazine: Aurora/Revell Alfred E. Neuman Kit History
12 December:  BEECH TRIP!!!  Minicraft's Civilian Aircraft Product Line

20 November:  More pictures added to Dick's Yo-Yo page:  B-24J Liberator "Yo-Yo" - Custom-Painting a 1/48 Diecast Model
20 November:  IPMS/SLC Group Build, Italy/Bulgaria Theme!
12 November:  We welcome Minicraft Models as our first sponsor!
​07 November:  We've again expanded our Report on the 2019 IPMS/USA Nationals in Chattanooga, TN!
15 October:  IPMS Boise Mad Dog Modelers Fall Show!

13 September 2019:  Aerial Photography for a Song:  The Estes AstroCam 110
28 August:  Kit Review - Atlantis 1/92 B-24J Liberator Bomber 
01 August:  We continue our Apollo at 50 celebrations by kicking off our new model rocketry page, and ask:
​Apollo at 50:  Was it Worth It?
20 JULY 2019:  HAPPY 50TH ANNIVERSARY, APOLLO 11 (We don't think you look a day over 40)!  Revell's Apollo Spacecraft Kits
25 June:  A New Blog Post:  Join us at the IPMS/USA Nationals!
19 June:  Build a Resin Figure Kit.  Dick shows step-by-step how he built Anime subject Mew Zakuro
15 May:  Smokey and the Bandit:  MPC's 1977 Pontiac Trans Am
25 April: 
History of Armor Modeling with pals James Guld and John Tate
03 April:  Car Modeling in the 1970's expands our History Series
26 March:  Kit Review--1/350 Space Ark from When Worlds Colllide
17 March:  Weird-oh's, Finks, Flypoggers, and More!  We continue our History Series with our various encounters in the Monster Figures craze of the 1960s
10 March:  Our First Kit Review!  Tamiya 1/48 Army Staff Car - Are we too hard on a Tamiya kit?
​23 February:  The Nuclear Family:  SSN Nautilus 571 - About the Lindberg, Revell, and Aurora Kits
15 February:  DON'T TRY THIS AT HOME I - Dick Builds a Batmobile--in 1/3 Scale!
13 February:  Modeling Outside the Box.  Dick goes all over the place, building a number of unusual subjects!
04 February:  NASCAR or Not?  Monogram's Days of Thunder Cars
31 January:  History Series Begins With The Aurora Monsters
27 January:  Build a P-82 in 1/144 Scale or Other Crazy Conversion
13 January:  The Anti-Modelers
05 January 2019:  The Day I Quit Modeling
01 January 2019:  dembrudders.com is live!!!

  • Home
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  • Blog
  • Projects
    • HAWK Beta-I Atomic Bomber Rebuild Plus Ragnarok
    • Lindberg 1/172 XB-70 Rebuild
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    • Resin Figure Mew Zakuro
    • Yo Yo 1/48 B-24J Custom Paint and Decals
  • History
    • Monogram Air Power Set (1959)
    • Revell 1/144 DC-10 / KC-10 Kit History
    • History of Titanic Model Kits: The Big List
    • Revell Gemini Kit History - 1/48 and 1/24
    • AURORA MONSTER MODELS
    • Atlantis / Revell 707 and KC-135
    • Revell's 1/535 USS Missouri: An Iowa Class Act
    • Monogram Days of Thunder NASCAR Kits
    • Atlantis USS Nautilus SSN-571 Model Kit Review and History
    • Weird-ohs, Roth Finks, Flypoggers and Lindy Loonies
    • Car Modeling in the 1970's
    • Armor Modeling
    • Smokey and the Bandit
    • Revell Apollo 11 Spacecraft
    • Minicraft Civil Aircraft in 1/48
    • Aurora's Alfred E Neuman
    • KC-135 and 707 Part One: The 1/72 Kits
    • KC-135 Part Two: The History and The Build
  • Reviews
    • AIRCRAFT KIT REVIEWS >
      • Atlantis Models 1/175 B-52 With X-15 Kit Review
      • Atlantis 1/93 B-58 Hustler Model Kit Review
      • Atlantis 1/400 Boeing 2707 SST Kit Review
      • Atlantis 1/70 F-100C Kit Review
      • Atlantis 1/135 Convair 990 Review!
      • Atlantis 1/139 Boeing 707-120 Kit Review
      • Atlantis 1/77 F-89D Kit Review
      • Atlantis 1/54 F11F-1 "Blue Angels" Kit Review
      • Atlantis 1/120 B-29 Kit Review
      • Atlantis PBY-5A Catalina
      • Atlantis P-3A Kit Review and History
      • Atlantis AH-56 Cheyenne Helicopter
      • Atlantis B-36 Kit Review
      • Atlantis HH-3E "Jolly Green Giant" Review
      • Atlantis B24J Buffalo Bill 1/92
      • Atlantis S2F Hunter Killer
      • Minicraft RB-29 Kit Review
      • Minicraft 1/200 H-4 "Spruce Goose" Kit Review
      • Minicraft 1/48 Cessna T-41 Mescalero Kit Review
      • Minicraft 1/144 B-52D/F Review
      • Minicraft 1/144 B-52H "Current Flying Version" Kit Review
      • Minicraft T-34A Mentor Kit Review
      • Minicraft 1/144 KC-135 Review
      • Minicraft 1/144 F-51 Kit Review
      • Minicraft 1/144 E-3/E-8 AWACS/J-Stars Kit Review
      • Minicraft 1/144 B-24J / PB4Y-1 / B-24D
      • Minicraft C-18 (Boeing 707)
      • Minicraft 1/144 Lancaster MK 1 Review
      • Minicraft 1/144 B-17G Kit Review
      • Minicraft 1/144 A6M2 Zero Review
      • Minicraft 1/144 G4M Type 1 "Betty" Kit Review
      • Minicraft 1/144 Ju 88A/C
      • Minicraft 1/144 P-47D Review
      • Minicraft 1/144 TBF Avenger Review
    • Atlantis 1/8 Creature Model Kit Review
    • Atlantis 1/8 Wolfman Model Kit Review
    • Atlantis Models 1/8 Wyatt Earp Figure Kit Review
    • Atlantis 1/24 Mack Bulldog Stake Truck Kit Review
    • Atlantis 1/8 "The Mummy" Kit Review
    • Atlantis Rat Fink Model Kit
    • Atlantis Super Fuzz Kit Review
    • Atlantis 1/160 Lighthouse Model Kit Review
    • Atlantis Models 1/8 Flash Gordon and the Martian Model Kit Review
    • Atlantis 1/32 Jungle Jim 1974 Funny Car
    • Atlantis 1/500 USS North Carolina Kit Review
    • Atlantis 1/128 U.S. Space Missiles Set Kit Review
    • Atlantis 1/48 Japanese Medium Tank
    • Atlantis Snoopy and his Classic Race Car Kit Review
    • Atlantis Models Metaluna Mutant Kit Review
    • Atlantis 1/48 JS-III Stalin Tank Review
    • Atlantis 1/32 Tom Daniel Funny Cars: Mustang, Camaro, Duster, Charger!
    • Atlantis 1/665 USS Wisconsin Kit Review
    • Atlantis 1/618 Bismarck Battleship Kit Review
    • Atlantis 1/24 Son of Troublemaker Kit Review
    • Atlantis 1/1200 US Combat Task Force Fleet Kit Review
    • Atlantis The Amoeba review
    • Atlantis Air-Land-Sea Gift Set
    • Atlantis 1/245 Monitor & Merrimac Ironclads Diorama Set
    • Atlantis 1/96 Moon Ship Kit Review
    • Atlantis 1/8 Forgotten Prisoner of Castel Mare Kit Review
    • ATLANTIS 1/25 King Kong Kit Review
    • Atlantis 1/32 1982 Camaro Review
    • Atlantis Snoopy and His Sopwith Camel / Red Baron Reviews
    • Atlantis Glow-Godzilla Review
    • Atlantis Phantom of the Opera Kit Review
    • Atlantis 1/535 USS Iowa and Wisconsin Battleship Kit Review
    • Atlantis Mr. Gasser Review
    • Minicraft 1/350 Titanic Kit Review
    • Moebius 1/1 Hal 9000 Kit Review
    • Moebius 1/144 Discovery XD-1
    • Dream Gear 1/3000 Arkhitect Kit Review
    • D&H 1/35 Cyclops and the Chariot from Lost in Space kit Review
    • Academy Titanic 1/700 MCP Review
    • Revell ALL NEW PT-109 Review
    • Tamiya 1/48 Ford Army Staff Car
    • Pegasus Space Ark - When Worlds Collide
    • A Weird-Oh World - The Art of Bill Campbell
    • The Vintage Years of Airfix Box Art
  • Contests
    • 2021 IPMS-USA Nationals Report
    • 2019 IPMS/USA Nationals Report
    • Boise Mad Dog Modelers Fall Show
    • IPMS-SLC Group Build
  • Rocketry
    • Starting Rocketry
    • History and Use of the Estes AstroCam 110
  • Gallery
    • Bill's Airliner Models Gallery
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