F-86D Sabre 62nd
F.I.S./56th F.I.G.
I make no apologies for
my weakness building F-86D Sabre kits of the post-WWII era, in main part
because I’m an avid dog lover ("D" for dog). I also remain
convinced Monogram's ProModeler kit is the best such 1/48 kit available,
with many still offered for sale on Ebay and elsewhere; no need to consider
buying foreign-made F-86D kits, except for smaller and larger scale Sabres.
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I used SuperScale decals for a "Dog" Sabre from the 56th Fighter
Interceptor Group in the mid-1950s. As the decal sheet was issued back in
2001, it’s no longer produced. I bought my sheet from a seller on Ebay. On a
cautionary note, I strongly recommend applying Microscale’s Liquid Decal
Film to the sheet before cutting each decal, especially to the multi-colored
angular fuselage band, as it tends to crack at the edges, this due to the age
of the decal sheet (20 years old).
On a historical note, 56th F.I.G. traced its history to the 56th Fighter
Group (FG), of the 8th Air Force, during WWII. That group, of which the 62
Fighter Squadron was part, amassed the second highest number of victories
against German aircraft, downing just over 1,000 of them; the 4th FG came in
first place, but they were in active service for a longer period of time than
the 56th, too. Moreover, the 56th FG exclusively flew P-47s, much preferring
them to the P-51 Mustang, which was quite unusual.
I didn’t invest money on any after market items, except for the mentioned
decals. In my build, I applied Bare Metal Foil (BMF) to accent the deployed
leading edges.
Carl
Jarosz
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