Billabob

Thanks for the kind words folks. Chippy, after I put the PE on I realized what I had done but then thought of Bob Ross the painter and decided "in my world" the MFD's are always on. Or it could have external power applied for maintenance. As this is probably not going to be seen by many others who would know except here in the forums and it being my second build I'm using it as a learning tool on construction and painting techniques, not complete realism. The PE was a real eye opener...especially for these older eyes. All the photos I've seen didn't prepare me for the actual size of some of

I'm going with another of my old squadrons... kind of. I was in VX-5 which is now VX-9. The bunny bird.

Well after six months of other activities I've done some more work on the SH. I've installed small parts on the fuselage and stated assembling wing pylons. Ive also been working on the landing gear. I going to use a Fightertown decal set. When I was looking through the instruction sheet it showed a decal on the launch bar but I couldn't find the decal on any of the fine sheets. When I asked about it I was told that decal was left off some of the sheets due to lack of space. Seeing how much is on the sheets I can understand that. They also sad they think it may look better painted anyway. I'

Good looking CAT! Nice subtle weathering,

Nice build there Ken! I'm currently building the same Revel kit different squadron tho. I really like your exhaust. What paint did you use on them if I might ask?

Congratulations on the wins Chuck!

Well after a week of work I've got the cockpit tub 95% completed. I started by removing the detail from the IP and side panels in prep for the PE. I didn't remember to take shots of the IP before installing the PE. I found a nice little tool to assist in sanding small areas at Michaels, just glue on some sandpaper and have at it. They are tapered so you can get into tight areas Here's the IP after PE. And a couple of the whole tub. I'm going to attack the rest of the pit later, I need to give my eyes a rest. I've never worked with anything quite that small before. I going to

Well in my trimming enthusiasm I cut off the piece that sits right in front of the HUD, as in this shot from the ARC walkaround I thought it was part of the sprue. Well I am still learning so now I'm going to have to learn ho to scratch build things. Are there ant suggestions on how to build the cut off part?. In the mean time I'm working the cockpit tub with PE details.

Hi folks. This is going to be my first ever WIP and my second real build. I was going to do a 1/48 A-7 as my second but I was in Micheal's one day with a 50% off coupon and saw this so I said "Why not". This looks like it's going to be a lot of fun. I've got a lot of PE to use from Eduards, some Royale Resin weighted wheels and center-line drop tank plus some Fightertown decals. I'm hoping Two Mike re-releases their resin intake for it soon too. For reference I'm using this book and of course the fine reference stuff you can find here on ARC and the web. This build will be somewhat of

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Thanks. It was Model Master lacquer overcoat.

A real nice job Rain. A very realistic look to it. What I especially like about it is you didn't go overboard on highlighting panel lines. You just did a few that look like they have been removed and replaced a few times. Plus the subtle weathering that looks like sun faded paint. I'm impressed. I just hope I can do as well on my Super Hornet that I'm going to start an my next SLUF which will be this kit but a different paint scheme.

Thanks guys. Holmes; The secret is selective photography. I didn't post any pics that really showed the bad stuff. If you look at the word NAVY in the first pic you may notice it looks a little wavy. When I put the micro sol on it it shriveled and move a little and as I tried to get it back in place it tore so I got it positioned as best I could. A couple of the other decals aren't straight the seams in the intake are deplorable but I'm still happy with it.

Here are a couple of pics of my A-7A. I decided to try a small inexpensive model to try out some things that I have read here on ARC to see if I wanted to try something bigger. I was especially pleased when I opened the box and saw the decal sheet, VA-153 Blue Tail Flies CAG bird, I worked on an A-7B with the identical paint job. It's one of my all time favs. It was built OOB except I added a bit of stretched sprue I added to the top of the launch bar. It was painted with Model Master enamels. The kit had a lot of fit problems with a lot of seams to be filled (which not all got done) and

I just found out that the canopy is OK. I noticed another piece that looked odd so I taped things together and... it fits fine. I guess the moral of the story is... check things out before jumping to conclusions!

Thanks for the replies. I'm going to try contacting Revell to see if they'll replace it. If not the filler route with backing styrene sounds like the easiest fix. Alan

I broke off a one myself on my 1/72 A-7A. I used a pin and some CA to fix it. Alan

I just opened the box on my new 1/48 Revell F/A18-e Super Hornet. When I looked at the clear spure I saw that the front right portion of the windscreen had a piece broken out of it and I didn't see the piece in the bag or box. Fortunately as can be seen,I think, it's in a portion of the canopy that gets painted What type of repair options do I have? Try to build it up with styrene before I install it? Use a filler after installation?.....? Any help is appreciated. Alan

It stays in place.

I also do some photo printing. The light from these bulbs is as close to natural light that you can get. It helps you to see true colors. My wife has a floor stand version without the magnifier for when she's working on an art project.

I've seen photos of the A-4s and A-7s of 153 in earlier years and it seems to be a lighter blue. When I was with them they were darker. I ended mixing MM Blue Angel Blue and True Blue. My tail color matches my photos from 1976/77. I'll post photos when I'm done.

Great job,I love it! I'm having flashbacks from 31 years ago. I transferred into the Blue Diamonds about a month before the scheme was changed to this. The CO allowed everyone to make submissions and this won. Of the three squadrons I was in this was my favorite overall paint job with VA-153 Blue Tail Flies my fav CAG bird which I am working on now. That's the scheme I've been planning on using for my next build. What paint did you use for the tail? I pulled out my cruise book to take a look and your markings are very accurate. Again... Great Job!!!!!!!!!

My new Ott Lite with three different magnifiers that my wife got for me is great. It's really helpful in masking the canopy on my 1/72 SLUF.

He makes it look so easy.

That explains it. Thanks!