The early war blue-grey over light grey was good looking! I will be building two since I also love the prewar panache of the chrome yellow and silver with all the squadron and ship colors and markings. “ The film “Dive Bomber” in Technicolor really shows how good looking those prewar schemes were!
Yes! The press war aircraft colors are awesome! And the movie Dive bomber is one of my favorite color old movies and you really get to see those actual aircraft as they were! I believe that movie was made in 1941.
I remember loving this kit as a kid and really being excited over it coming with 3 figures (although, as I recall no seated pilot for some reason) Thanks for the video.
@@CelebratingVintageModelKits Yes, a new very low bar since they were not at their stations in the aircraft but were posing on the deck for the propaganda photographers, and only 1 of the 3 was even a crew guy, the other two were deck and servicing crew, who, yes, the airplane would not be flyable without them, but, come on model manufacturers, having decent crew in place is not a thing which is beyond human ability to achieve with existing technology. Wow, I hadn't realized that I had quite this opinionated of an opinion.
This was one of the last ones in the series I built. The box color scheme and a lack of operating features kept me away..waddaya mean the landing gear doesn't retract? The Shep Paine brochures were a game changer for me also. Building dioramas is probably the most fun I have in this hobby. Thanks again Eric, great video,great subjects
Ugh, fond memories of attempting to build an acceptable version of this bad boy 50 years ago, and drooling over Shepard Paine's incredible artistry of his diorama.
This is one of MONOGRAMS BEST…. Adding figures made all the difference… A lot of details for this kit… Even though MONOGRAM were considered not very good for today’s models…. THIS WAS THE ONLY KIT AVAILABLE OF THE DEVASTATER ….. WELL WORTH THE PRICE…. MODEL ON……… CHRIS 🇺🇸
@@russkinter3000 I agree… we are talking 1/48 ….. I have an AIRFIX 1/72 Devastator in the stash… With AFTERMARKET Products specifically for that kit…… I like AIRFIX KITS………. It’s all good brother….. CHRIS 🇺🇸
@@chrispacer4231 In 1/48, Monogram was the only game in town for decades. Great Wall and then Hobbyboss have brought out kits in the last ten years. And if you want to go big, Trumpeter just released a 1/32! Airfix was the only maker in 1/72 for decades as well until the more recent Admiral, Olimp and Valom in the 2000s. Obscure German “what ifs” get more toolings than the Devastator!
4 месяца назад+2
Very nice video. Great kit. I am giving you a subscription. Best regards, Aleš from the Czech Republic🙂👍
I had developed an interest in the battle of Midway in the late 60s after reading Irving Weinstein's (sp?) book on the battle. As a kid model builder I wanted to build a 1/72 collection of the planes that fought in the battle. At the time such an ambition was a tall order in terms of both research and obtaining certain planes. RarePlanes made an SB2U Vindicator as a vacu-form kit with wings that were a bit short. Vacu-form kits are ALOT of work and I realized that if I was going to do that amount of work, then I wanted to get everything right research wise. No one made a Kate torpedo bomber until a Japanese company called "Mania" set a new standard in detail circa '74 by releasing a Kate. I could go on about how I figured out the serial number of one of the B-26s that took part in the battle from Martin Caiden's book "Ragged Rugged Warriors", but this has gone on long enough. Anyway, my goal was never achieved. From all the info I've seen on the internet such a goal is at least 50% easier.
I hear ya in this. Not only were kit options limited to nonexistent for same key planes, but quality references were also slim. I spent many hours in the archives of local aviation museums trying ti find information I was looking for. Fortunately, a few Wind Indicator kits have come out since, some of the few modern kits in my stash!
That came out in the year after Monogram bought themselves out from under Mattel. 1974 saw the 1/72 F-82, and the 1/48 P-61, DO-335, and TBD. Sad to say Monogram no longer exists.
@@orbitalair2103 at the end of each vid I list all the issues of the kit and show the boxes for those issues. Some are definitely still available on store shelves.
Also great wall hobbies out of China makes a 148 scale devastator kit that is amazing The detail blows this kit out of the water, the fit of all the parts are perfect! you don't even have to use putty on the kit it is of course computer model CNC milled molds kit so if you don't want to destroy one of these classic monogram devastator kit by building it and you want an excellent rendition of this aircraft then I guess you buy the great wall hobbies kit it's going to set you back about 60 bucks
Its in the "stash"...will build . Nice video...but perhaps the video is a little out of focus at times ? Thumbs up anyway . Love those old Monogram kits. What about a video on Bill Koster and Koster Aero Enterprises ? I am doing a B-17G to C conversion right now ...well I started it a few years back but just got back to it . Converted fuselage halves just about ready...
Thanks for the heads up on the focus. I will focus on the focus better! The channel is mainly focused on kits made in the 70s or older. I am not familiar with Koster so I checked on Scalemates and see they made some interesting stuff. Submit some pics of your conversion when you get it done for the next viewer build video. Thanks for watching!
Very much like the yellow wings livery and the aircraft which wore it. Very much disappointed at Monogram for not having the 3 crew guys at their stations.
Correct me if I'm wrong but I seem to remember that they found one of these in a lake here in the States and they pulled it up and restored but maybe I'm thinking of a different place but I can swore it was the devastator they found
They have pulled up from Lake Michigan SBDs, SB2Us, F4Fs and a few other types. The are mostly crashes from the paddle wheel training carriers on the lake. They are usually in pretty good shape due to it being fresh water and extremely cold. TBDs I believe were too large and underpowered to be used for training on the small flat tops. In addition to the fact that there were only a handful left by the time this was done. There is a known wreck of the Atlantic coast, some on the Lexington wreck and possibly two in the lagoon of the Marshall Islands.
It looks like there was an SBD recovered, with a large population of zebra mussels attached. As for the TBD in the US, found an April 12, 2019 article on AVweb authored by Editorial Staff about a TBD which had been located off the coast near San Diego. Looks like it was lost in 1941. Article says $300,000 needs to be obtained to finance its recovery.
In addition to being outdated at the beginning of world war II the other huge problem for the devastator is the torpedoes they were carrying had a horrible hit rate and often times even if it did hit the target they failed to detonate, which must have been very disheartening and frustrating for the pilot of that devastator who risked his life to launch that fish only to see it go wildly vear off course or if it hit the ship it didn't Even detonate!!!
Prior to Midway, the SBD was considered the more vulnerable of the two. Only a couple of TBDs were lost to actual combat action, flak on the island raids in early ‘42. The TBD had score hits on shipping on those raids and multiple hits on the Shoho at Coral Sea. The CAG on Yorktown wanted the F4F escort to stick closer to the SBDs due to the higher loss rate of the SBDs at Coral Sea. So much learning was happening in the first year of US Carrier ops. Sig Intel is what kept us even close to being in the game. And blood and guts!
John Ford made a special short movie for the families of the lost crewman. It wasn’t available to be seen for years but you can find it on youtube now. Footage of the crews he filmed while making the documentary of the battle is in color.
Feeling old now.
I built that same exact kit back in the mid 70's when I was in my teens. I even recognize the box. 😆
You’re not old, you’re vintage! Thanks for watching!
Счастливчик!😂🎉
Built this kit as a kid and met an unfortunate demise while using a skateboard as transport. This plane was never great, but the kit was!
The skateboard at least get a torpedo hit? Lol! Thanks for watching!
I built this kit i think it was in the late 70's . i built it painted the blue over gray scheme. I always loved those Monogram aircraft models!
The early war blue-grey over light grey was good looking! I will be building two since I also love the prewar panache of the chrome yellow and silver with all the squadron and ship colors and markings. “
The film “Dive Bomber” in Technicolor really shows how good looking those prewar schemes were!
Yes! The press war aircraft colors are awesome! And the movie Dive bomber is one of my favorite color old movies and you really get to see those actual aircraft as they were! I believe that movie was made in 1941.
A good old kit that can hold its own even today. May have to search for one for the stash! 😊
Definitely a good one to add! Thanks for watching!
I remember loving this kit as a kid and really being excited over it coming with 3 figures (although, as I recall no seated pilot for some reason) Thanks for the video.
No seated crew was odd for them but the ones you got set a new bar for kit crew!
@@CelebratingVintageModelKits Yes, a new very low bar since they were not at their stations in the aircraft but were posing on the deck for the propaganda photographers, and only 1 of the 3 was even a crew guy, the other two were deck and servicing crew, who, yes, the airplane would not be flyable without them, but, come on model manufacturers, having decent crew in place is not a thing which is beyond human ability to achieve with existing technology. Wow, I hadn't realized that I had quite this opinionated of an opinion.
Built that one, a great kit!
Still got it? Send in some more pics if you do.
I have this kit in the original shrink wrap. Thanks for opening yours. Mjd
Ah, the perennial dilemma, keep it sealed or build it?
@@CelebratingVintageModelKits It is going to get built “someday”.
This was one of the last ones in the series I built. The box color scheme and a lack of operating features kept me away..waddaya mean the landing gear doesn't retract?
The Shep Paine brochures were a game changer for me also. Building dioramas is probably the most fun I have in this hobby.
Thanks again Eric, great video,great subjects
Monogram grew up!
Very nice. I remember that kit
One of the classics!
Ugh, fond memories of attempting to build an acceptable version of this bad boy 50 years ago, and drooling over Shepard Paine's incredible artistry of his diorama.
Paine’s dioramas were definitely inspirational! Thanks for watching!
This is one of MONOGRAMS BEST….
Adding figures made all the difference…
A lot of details for this kit…
Even though MONOGRAM were considered not very good for today’s models….
THIS WAS THE ONLY KIT AVAILABLE OF THE DEVASTATER …..
WELL WORTH THE PRICE….
MODEL ON………
CHRIS 🇺🇸
I agree. This kit marked the beginning of a new era for Monogram. Thanks fir watching!
No, Airfix made a 1/72 Devastator. It came out circa '69 '70. Given the date, it was one of the most highly detailed 1/72 of that time.
@@russkinter3000
I agree… we are talking 1/48 …..
I have an AIRFIX 1/72 Devastator in the stash…
With AFTERMARKET Products specifically for that kit……
I like AIRFIX KITS……….
It’s all good brother…..
CHRIS 🇺🇸
@@chrispacer4231 In 1/48, Monogram was the only game in town for decades. Great Wall and then Hobbyboss have brought out kits in the last ten years. And if you want to go big, Trumpeter just released a 1/32! Airfix was the only maker in 1/72 for decades as well until the more recent Admiral, Olimp and Valom in the 2000s. Obscure German “what ifs” get more toolings than the Devastator!
Very nice video. Great kit. I am giving you a subscription. Best regards, Aleš from the Czech Republic🙂👍
Thank you Ales! And thanks for watching! A fee more Czech kits are coming!
Still have that kit in the stash... with the Avenger, Dauntless and kingfisher
You got a whole carrier air wing waiting to take flight!
I love the Kingfisher, I have 3 of them
@@massmike11 the Kingfisher will be showing up in a future vid. Thanks for watching!
This was a breakthrough kit for Monogram and set the standard at that time for fine detail.
Definitely a leap forward from the more toy-like naval aircraft they made earlier. Thanks for watching!
Got one in the stash.
I think I hear it calling out to you “build me! Build me!”
@@CelebratingVintageModelKits It's on my "soon" list. Especially since I found an Eduard PE set.
I had developed an interest in the battle of Midway in the late 60s after reading Irving Weinstein's (sp?) book on the battle.
As a kid model builder I wanted to build a 1/72 collection of the planes that fought in the battle.
At the time such an ambition was a tall order in terms of both research and obtaining certain planes.
RarePlanes made an SB2U Vindicator as a vacu-form kit with wings that were a bit short. Vacu-form kits are ALOT of work and I realized that if I was going to do that amount of work, then I wanted to get everything right research wise. No one made a Kate torpedo bomber until a Japanese company called "Mania" set a new standard in detail circa '74 by releasing a Kate.
I could go on about how I figured out the serial number of one of the B-26s that took part in the battle from Martin Caiden's book "Ragged Rugged Warriors", but this has gone on long enough. Anyway, my goal was never achieved. From all the info I've seen on the internet such a goal is at least 50% easier.
I hear ya in this. Not only were kit options limited to nonexistent for same key planes, but quality references were also slim. I spent many hours in the archives of local aviation museums trying ti find information I was looking for. Fortunately, a few Wind Indicator kits have come out since, some of the few modern kits in my stash!
@@CelebratingVintageModelKits LOL! I remember reading in Walter Lord's book "Incredible Victory" that pilots called the SB2U "wind indicator".
That came out in the year after Monogram bought themselves out from under Mattel.
1974 saw the 1/72 F-82, and the 1/48 P-61, DO-335, and TBD.
Sad to say Monogram no longer exists.
Yeah, once they got free of Mattel, they really brought out some nice kits.
some of the old kits are still being released under revell-monogram.
@@orbitalair2103 at the end of each vid I list all the issues of the kit and show the boxes for those issues. Some are definitely still available on store shelves.
Another great presentation !!
I never made a Devastator & don’t have one in my stash. Should I invest? 🤔
I think it’s one of the classic Monogram kits, worth hunting down.
Also great wall hobbies out of China makes a 148 scale devastator kit that is amazing The detail blows this kit out of the water, the fit of all the parts are perfect! you don't even have to use putty on the kit it is of course computer model CNC milled molds kit so if you don't want to destroy one of these classic monogram devastator kit by building it and you want an excellent rendition of this aircraft then I guess you buy the great wall hobbies kit it's going to set you back about 60 bucks
Nice to hear there are some modern options. Thanks for watching!
Its in the "stash"...will build .
Nice video...but perhaps the video is a little out of focus at times ? Thumbs up anyway . Love those old Monogram kits.
What about a video on Bill Koster and Koster Aero Enterprises ? I am doing a B-17G to C conversion right now ...well I started it a few years back but just got back to it . Converted fuselage halves just about ready...
Thanks for the heads up on the focus. I will focus on the focus better! The channel is mainly focused on kits made in the 70s or older. I am not familiar with Koster so I checked on Scalemates and see they made some interesting stuff. Submit some pics of your conversion when you get it done for the next viewer build video. Thanks for watching!
Very much like the yellow wings livery and the aircraft which wore it. Very much disappointed at Monogram for not having the 3 crew guys at their stations.
Would have been nice to get more crew. You could use the crew from some of their earlier naval aircraft. They were pretty good looking.
Correct me if I'm wrong but I seem to remember that they found one of these in a lake here in the States and they pulled it up and restored but maybe I'm thinking of a different place but I can swore it was the devastator they found
They have pulled up from Lake Michigan SBDs, SB2Us, F4Fs and a few other types. The are mostly crashes from the paddle wheel training carriers on the lake. They are usually in pretty good shape due to it being fresh water and extremely cold. TBDs I believe were too large and underpowered to be used for training on the small flat tops. In addition to the fact that there were only a handful left by the time this was done. There is a known wreck of the Atlantic coast, some on the Lexington wreck and possibly two in the lagoon of the Marshall Islands.
It looks like there was an SBD recovered, with a large population of zebra mussels attached. As for the TBD in the US, found an April 12, 2019 article on AVweb authored by Editorial Staff about a TBD which had been located off the coast near San Diego. Looks like it was lost in 1941. Article says $300,000 needs to be obtained to finance its recovery.
In addition to being outdated at the beginning of world war II the other huge problem for the devastator is the torpedoes they were carrying had a horrible hit rate and often times even if it did hit the target they failed to detonate, which must have been very disheartening and frustrating for the pilot of that devastator who risked his life to launch that fish only to see it go wildly vear off course or if it hit the ship it didn't Even detonate!!!
Prior to Midway, the SBD was considered the more vulnerable of the two. Only a couple of TBDs were lost to actual combat action, flak on the island raids in early ‘42. The TBD had score hits on shipping on those raids and multiple hits on the Shoho at Coral Sea. The CAG on Yorktown wanted the F4F escort to stick closer to the SBDs due to the higher loss rate of the SBDs at Coral Sea. So much learning was happening in the first year of US Carrier ops. Sig Intel is what kept us even close to being in the game. And blood and guts!
God bless the men of Torpedo 8. 🫡❤️🇺🇸
John Ford made a special short movie for the families of the lost crewman. It wasn’t available to be seen for years but you can find it on youtube now. Footage of the crews he filmed while making the documentary of the battle is in color.
@CelebratingVintageModelKits I believe that Ford won an Academy Award for best documentary for Battle of Midway.
@@chrisnichols4962 I was surprised to see John Ford included in the 2019 comedy “Midway”
I believe Ford was also wounded during the making of that Midway film.