f4h1phantom

What is it with manufacturers and their love relationship with the "C" model of the Mirage III? Why don't they start with the Mirage IIIE/V sub-family which was the most used version and offers them the possibility of zillions of boxings with countless decal options? Jeeeez man! Why make a few bucks when they can earn tons of money for the same time and effort? Jorge.

Absolutely fantastic! Jorge.

The Monogram J also has them included. Here's a pic from the ones in the "Black Bunny" boxing: Jorge.

I am not sure I want Revell Germany to do the things I want. If they release a subject I badly want with shape mistakes and trenchy panel lines I would feel most irritated. I started an "idea" last year about the F-101A/C and RF-101A/C which got a good number of votes. I am not sure now if that was wise at all. I would prefer to ask Tamiya, Hasegawa, Eduard or Academy to produce the jets I want. I will vote just because you are asking, and keep my fingers crossed that it is a good product if released. Best regards, Jorge.

Completely agree with El Pibe Vitina. HU 125 (equivalent to FS 36118) is a very good match for the topside color. In spite of the name, it is basically a grey. The undersides are white. Jorge.

I like this one very much, and the weathering is very subtle and well done. Great work! Jorge.

Way overdone! :lol: More interesting to me are the earlier fuel tanks! Jorge.

Okay, keeps coming! :lol: Another shot from an old FAOW series book: Note tail markings are slightly different. If I happen to find more, I'll post them. Jorge. EDIT: I have a larger scan of this pic, but Photobucket keeps reducing the size when I upload it! PM me if you think it would be of any use.

I found the picture Tom posted in larger format on flickr. The caption (incorrectly identifying it as an F-4J) says: Gerrit Kok 152327 / 7 F-4J. VMFA-351. NAS Atlanta, Georgia. Marines. Nov. 1977. Jorge.

According to this (partial) list of 152327's career, it appears it was updated after it left VMFA-351: F4H-1 (F-4B-24-MC) b/n 152327 *1966-67: VF-14 as "AB-101". *1970: VFMA-251 as “DW-3”. *1976: VMFA-351 as “MC-7”. *Upgraded to F-4N. *9/7/1983: Struck off charge. (taken from: http://www.millionmonkeytheater.com/F-4.html ) Here's a couple of pics I found on the net, although while with other squadrons: And one from May 10, 1966 while with VF-14 : Hope this is of any help, Jorge.

Hi again, I have been googling a little and it appears most places refer to the extension at the base of the fin as a "HF radio antenna". Here's a drawing from the SAAF forum: Hopefully more knowledgeable people (than me) will chime in. HTH, Jorge.

Alright! Apologies for my confusion. Jorge.

Awesome! Thank you! What do you mean by "Doubt removal antenna" ? Also, I think you could add a column stating whether the aircraft has a straight fin leading edge or the VHF antenna extension at the base. Jorge.

Sharuk, your build is very nice! Congratulations! BTW, using one of Sharuk's pictures am I the only one who thinks Kinetic's nose cone for the IIIE is too conical??? The one in the Esci/Italeri kit looks soooooooo much better: Jorge.

Excellent and very interesting! Many thanks, Jorge.

Thanks Bill, this is very interesting. It is not often that you get such amount of detailed information on how a paint scheme wad devised and applied. And yes, pics and diagrams would be most welcome! All the best, Jorge.

Thanks Jari! Gracias Alberto! The education is most welcome. Cheers my friends, Jorge.

I am finding it hard to accept the grey is due to fading. Check these other pictures, especially the first two. What could the explanation be for the "unaltered" tan patch on the tails amid "faded tan" paint?: Jorge.

Thanks Jari, I didn't have that one! I was checking dates and found the F-4Es I posted arrived in Vietnam in 1969 so, as your picture seems to confirm, the "practice"(?) spanned from 1967 to at least as far as 1969. Jorge.

Many thanks for the elaborate answer Jim. My brain is in the verge of melting with all that information. I'll have to study it carefully to assimilate it. Deviating a bit from my own question, could someone please tell me what is the purpose of those windows in the Target Detecting Device? What are they needed for? :blink: Best regards, Jorge.

I perfectly understand the skepticism. What I wrote is based on my studying pictures and I may be confusing things. I found the picture Rex was talking abut. I have it in two different books, the Model Art F-4 Phantom II part II modelling book and also on Koku Fan Illustrated No.21 Air War over Vietnam. I have scanned them and are reproduced below in that order, with the Schiffer book [see my edition of post #4] pic reproduced again at the bottom for easier comparison. To me, the ones in the japanese books are "cleaner" than the one in the Schiffer book, which is red-shifted making the grey

That's excellent Erik! The differences are subtle, but they are there. Many, many thanks! Jorge.

Here's another pic somebody uploaded here, IIRC, long ago: Another one: And two from the Osprey book [EDIT: it is a Schiffer Military history book, sorry for the confusion] on F-4 and F-105 MiG killers: Sometimes it is hard to see the grey, especially if the picture is color-shifted or not of the best quality. I'll post the Koku Fan pic when I can find it. Best, Jorge.

Grey was painted over tan areas in 1967. Some examples could be seen still wearing it in 1968. This is based on studying pictures and the date when they were taken, so I stand to be corrected. There are plenty of pictures of them in both Vietnam and Europe, and also some stateside machines. It appears to have been a washable paint of sorts, as it faded very rapidly. When faded, it let the tan show trough aquiring a "mouse grey" effect (my idea of how to describe it). It appears that for some reason some areas of the airframe needed to have the paint removed before it faded (or washed away, or

Wanting to know how to distinguish one variant from the other. Is there any lettering on the body of the missiles that tells you which variant it is? Anyone knows? TIA, Jorge.