1/35 PBR 31Mk II Pibber (Tamiya)
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by H. Davis Gandees |
1/35 PBR 31Mk II Pibber (Tamiya)
While volunteering at our local library as a member of the Friends of the Library, I have met many new acquaintances. One of my new friends, Gene McAbee served in Vietnam aboard PBRs. Gene has admired several of my models displayed at the library and when I learned he served on PBRs I told him I’d like to build one for him. He showed up with Tamiya’s beautiful PBR rendition a few weeks ago and after 30 hours of construction/painting, I presented it to him today. I don’t build ships, but this was one I looked forward to building for a special friend, and I enjoyed every minute of it. It is built out of the box except for enhancement of the very visible orange life ring. I have seen photos of some very weathered PBRs but wanted to do Gene’s as a clean display model with only some minor highlighting. It was painted with Tamiya NATO green and Ace Hardware Red Oxide Primer. The figures were painted with Model Master enamels. Gene manned the front twin .50 position that sported “TEX” ( which was his Texan girlfriend’s nickname) on the armor plate. The modeling hobby is not just about building models, but also representing history and making friends. This model is a tribute to Gene’s Navy service.History
- Petty Officer 3rd Class Gene McAbee
- Operation Market Time
- Westpac Detachment 1
- Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam
- August 1968-August 1969
