a4s4eva

Kinetic's excellent F-104J is in the cabinet. I used Fundekals for markings. I really enjoyed this build. Full details of the build and more photos at my blog but here's some pic's for those not interested yn that

What does Auto cannon delete modification mean? It don't think it's actually a thing? if you are asking why don't they have cannons fitted, its because unless you are using the guns regularly there is no reason to. And clearly all the civilian ones won't be doing gunnery -ever. They have simply removed the guns (saving weight) and fitted the fairing over the wing roots.

All that is usually true . The exception is if you want to build a Falkland's Sea Harrier and you are using the Kinetic kit. I ordered those sets from Aztec 2 weeks ago and they are on the way to me at the moment..

Very cool

I cheated and used a HUD cover which was always fitted on the ground unless testing or the pilots were about to go flying . There are plenty of images in the Skyhawk articles on my blog that show the HUD and instrument panel of the aircraft

very nice

I never really had any luck with Future.. I tried it and gave up using it years ago. Gaianotes is an excellent gloss coat, very hard wearing and imperious to any oil or enamel product. Mr like the Mr Color clears which I also like. It does stink though so a mask is a good idea for long spraying sessions

Finally finished my A-4K . It's depicted as NZ6201 from No 75 Squadron RNZAF when it was passing through HMAS Albatross, NSW. Australia in 1993. At that time I was working on No 2. Sqn RNZAF and we (for reasons I can't remember) referred to 75 Sqn as the gumboot squadron. 75 Sqn's aircraft had stopped at Nowra for fuel on the way back to New Zealand. Whilst they were there some mates and I took the opportunity to alter the Squadron crest on a number of the aircraft. I tried to add a lot of the little details that were specific to the A-4K and I'm pretty happy with how that worked out

Good work there

None of that makes any sense, unless you're trying to big note yourself Why are you worried what I pay? If I think something is worth it I buy it.. If not I don't....

Why is it a problem?

I thin it in the airbrush cup and just tip an excess back into the jar. I do this with paint and Mr Surfacer. never seen any point in doing otherwise I've also had yellowing of X 22, proably because I thinned with cheap hardware store thinner and tipped into the jar. I've also sparyed that mixture it doesn't dry anything but glossy and clear.

Sorry Jim this is hobby is dying is rubbish

Whilst all that is true it doesn't make it any less frustrating to those wanting xyz..

You're reading to much into it. It was just a way to express the frustration that they don't release more variants of the subjects they have do so well. I'm pretty sure many modellers feel this way. Never said they did. No argument with here. I bought the P-38 purely because it's Tamiya and despite having no interest in the subject whatsoever. That said I'd choose the Eduard Spitfire Mk I and 109G6 over the Tamiya variants because, for me, they have better options in the box and have better surface detail.

I see this rationale a lot. But IMHO if it was true why not start with E, or EJ.. And why never a F-86, F-104 etc... Tamiya have am annoying track record of doing a few variants, teasing much but then leaving the modeller hung out to dry .... look at the 48 scale P-47 (no N) F-16 (No D's A's or any of the interesting big spine variants.... it appears the F-14 and P-38 maybe going that way as well . From this modellers perspective they make no sense in what they do. 😉

Hope we get some air to ground ordnance

IIRC there was a lock if we were working in there

For the speed brakes I bend them has best I can then line up the lower edge to preserve the Rato attachment detail then sand the upper edges to match the contour of the fuselage. Leaving them cracked is also a good approach as sometime they bled open once hydraulic pressure came off The speed brakes being fully open on the ground with the aircraft parked is possible and does happen (usually for maintenance), but it's not the typical configuration. I'm currently writing an article on building the Hasegawa Skyhawk.. https://hamfisted-modeller.blogspot.com/20

Nice start

I dump the entire Airbrush in a jar of lacquer thinners and place that in the tub of water. Give it about 5 mins in the ultrasonic and then pull it out and rinse and reassemble. I do this every 6-9 months . I'e been doing it for years and the airbrushes (Sparmax DH-103 and iwata HP-C plus) don't appear to be any worse for wear. The O ring in the air valve does swell a little but this does down after 10 mins or so

The line above is the easy way to get good clear images with decent depth of field. As well as the obvious - using a tripod and manual aperture setting. With that I think F16 is about is low as you need to go, any lower just brings slower ans slower shutter speed. Even for close ups you're better cropping a larger /wider image than zooming right in

Do the intake parts on the T bird not fit like they do on the single seater? I've always found them to narrow to correctly mate with the fuselage halves. I solve this by cutting the finished intake piece with generator/CSD fitted down the middle as you can't see all the way down there anyway As for Instrument panels and sidewalls. The Hasegawa decals fit great and look as good as anything else.

Dunno, I've never replaced any seals. I wouldn't even know where to look. The O ring at the back which adds friction to the needle screw stop wore out but I never replaced it as it is really only there to provide resistance to stop the needle stop screw moving from where you set it, . I spray lacquers and I do soak the entire airbrush in lacquer thinners when cleaning it in an ultrasonic cleaner. The thing is pretty indestructible unlike the Iwata...I've had the Sparmax for about 12 years IIRC it cost about $50 USD. As you found out Sparmax are part of the Iwata group. I was to

Depending on how much want to spend the Sparmax DH series are good quality for 1/2 to 1/3 the price of Iwata. Spare parts are reasonable as well Unlike Iwata which are horrendously expensive) . I have a Sparmax DH -103 (0.3mm) and a Iwata HP B Plus (0.2mm) and I use DH 103 for 95% of my modelling.