P-51D Mustang in Canadian Colors - Pts 1 & 2

Leading Edge Models, 1/48 scale

Reviewed by Andrew Garcia

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This release by Leading Edge Models continues the focus on Canadian subjects. The decal sheets provide a variety of colorful markings for several RCAF P-51D airframes. The subjects will obviously appeal to these with a strong interest in Canadian aircraft. I found the variety of color schemes to be a fascinating insight into a new, for me, subject area. I have built many P-51’s over the years, from the very nice venerable Monogram release through to the Hasegawa and Tamiya versions. I chose from my Tamiya stash a few P-51D Korean era releases to use with these decals and am pleased with the result. The Tamiya kit is a pleasure to build and the end result, even when the purpose is to get some new P-51D color schemes in the built model shelf was quite nice.

The decals are supplied in a re-sealable plastic bag with several pages of color instructions that are very nicely produced on one side the folded sheets. They clearly indicate markings placement, and include an airframe history along with modeler notes on exterior finish, prop type and interior color for the version of aircraft depicted. The decals are superbly printed and with excellent color density. They were thin, easily applied and performed flawlessly.

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Thumbnail panels:

Some stencils that are unique to RCAF airframe also come with the decal package. I built four versions in my initial build and will complete a few more due to the interesting and varied subject matter. I found the arctic red wing panels used in some of the Canadian subjects to be an interesting change to the normally plain P-51 wings.

The subjects covered by this package are as follows:

LE4880 RCAF P-51D Mustang Part I Western Squadrons

•P-51D #9267 PR*267; 403 Sqdn. City of Calgary

• P-51D #9590 PR*590; 403 Sqdn. City of Calgary

• P-51D #9595 BU*N; 442 Sqdn. City of Vancouver

• P-51D #9268 PF*268; 443 Sqdn. City of New Westminster, British Columbia

• P-51D #9592 PF*592; 443 Sqdn. City of New Westminster, British Columbia

• P-51D #9272 PF*272; 443 Sqdn. City of New Westminster, British Columbia

LE4881 RCAF P-51D Mustang Part 2 Eastern Squadrons

• P-51D #9253 BA*S; 424 Sqdn.

• P-51D #9589 BA*W; 424 Sqdn.

• P-51D #9566 FB*N; Experimental Test & Proving Establishment

• P-51D #9287 OU*287; 443 Sqdn. Tactical Fighter Flight, Rivers, Manitoba

• P-51D #9224 AW*N; 420 Sqdn. London, Ontario

• P-51D #9564 AC*F; 402 Sqdn. Winnipeg (note unusual cuffed prop with silver front blades)

• P-51D #9563 AC*U; 402 Sqdn. (Early Scheme) Winnipeg

• P-51D #9265 AC*265; 402 Sqdn. (Transition Scheme) Winnipeg

• P-51D #9258 AC*258; 402 Sqdn. (Late Scheme) Winnipeg

I had a limited awareness of the Canadian use of the P-51. Over the years I have seen very few photos or articles regarding their use by Canada and assumed Canada, as a Commonwealth country was prone to using homegrown or British aircraft designs in the 1950’s. The post-war use by Canada of this beautiful aircraft, the P-51 Mustang, was a pleasant surprise. The colorful and varied markings were too tempting to put away in the decal stash so I started a four aircraft build using the Tamiya P-51D Korean War version (to obtain the correct cuffless prop) as soon as the decals arrived. I had a difficult time selecting the markings I wanted to use – too many good choices. The superb builders comments labelled as “Notes”, needed to catch the subtle changes required for accuracy were really appreciated and led me to write up this review for this fine decal offering sicne I know you will like this offering as much as I did.

I used a variety of natural metal or aluminum lacquer finishes (Alclad & from dead flat to highly polished and several resin components on the Tamiya P-51 models. I used True Details (cockpit and tires) and Black Box resin cockpits, as well as almost OOB with the easy addition of Ultracast P-51D seats with seat belts, Ultracast resin tires and cuffless HS prop with spinner. This project was more of a decal display than a plastic perfection effort. In that light I was very pleased with the look and impact of the colorful Canadian markings. The Tamiya P-51 is a pleasure to build and you do get a nice final result. Most of the aircraft required the Hamilton Standard cuffless props with blunt tips which comes with the Tamiya kit. If you choose the Hasegawa or Monogram kit you will need some aftermarket resin props or the white-metal special releases by Hasegawa for these decals.

This is a superbly produced set of decals. If you have any interest in the P-51 Mustang then you need some covered with these markings! These decal sets provide some appealing options for a wide range of aircraft.

Highly Recommended.

Purchased with reviewer's funds.

Review Text and Images Copyright © 2014 by Andrew Garcia
Page Created 15 January, 2015
Last updated 15 January, 2015

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